Investor buys vacant Castleton-area hotel
A vacant former Country Inn & Suites along Interstate 69 just north of I-465 is getting a new owner with plans to reopen
the 85-room property in the Spring.
Real Estate
Articles
Panel OKs bill to provide pet buyers with info
The bill would require pet stores to put information about the dog or cat on its cage in the store, including the animal’s
medical history, the name of the breeder and any congenital disorders.
Duke Realty reports loss, says outlook remains ‘challenging’
Locally based Duke Realty Corp. reported a 53 percent drop in funds from operations in the fourth quarter but still managed
to beat Wall Street expectations.
Independent Carmel bookstore closing
An independent book shop specializing in mystery and suspense novels is closing after a seven-year run in Carmel.
Northwest-side industrial park sells for almost $30 million
The North by Northwest Business Park near 86th Street and Georgetown Road has been sold to firms in Minneapolis
and Baltimore for $29.6 million.
Employee buys Drexel Interiors from struggling parent firm
The east-side Indianapolis kitchen and bathroom remodeling shop is attempting to succeed as a solo operation following longtime
employee Allen Weisenburger’s decision to buy the operation rather than let it close.
Simon Property Group enters dispute over founder’s fortune
Simon Property Group Inc. is suing Bren Simon, the widow of company founder Melvin Simon, over her effort to convert part
of her late husband’s ownership stake in the publicly traded mall giant into common shares or cash.
Report says Indiana home sales, prices on rise
Home sales statewide rose 4.1 percent in December compared with the same month in 2008, although Marion and Hamilton counties
reported sizable slides.
Simon Property accepts $2.3B of notes in offer
Simon will fund the purchase with available cash plus proceeds from the sale of $2.25 billion in senior unsecured notes.
Affordable-housing group goes on apartment-buying binge
Partners in Housing Development seized on a weak real estate market to acquire three urban apartment communities in the last
18 months.
Farmland once targeted for housing still being plowed
Farmers who might have worried about losing their livelihood
to new homes or retail have gotten a little breather.
Rising credit card fees eroding retailers’ profits
Businesses say the money they must pay to provide customers the convenience to use plastic adds up. For example, Ricker Oil
Co. paid a whopping $3.9 million in 2009, according President Jay Ricker.
Salvation Army draws scrutiny for supplying homes to officers
In Indiana, the Salvation Army owns 34 residences, including 10 in Indianapolis with a combined value of $1.6 million.
One exec pays off risky loan, another pays a big price
Emmis’ Jeff Smulyan paid off a loan collateralized by nearly all his Emmis stock. Retired Duke Realty Chairman John Wynne is facing new fallout from his margin loan, with the lender on his Williams Creek home pursuing foreclosure.
Indianapolis Conrad hotel nabs top honor
Conrad Indianapolis and West Baden Springs Hotel have been named to Condé Nast Traveler’s
Gold List 2010.
Simon says husband’s shrinking fortune spurred new will
Bren Simon says in a new court filing that her billionaire husband Mel Simon granted her a bigger share of his fortune in
the last year of his life because of alarm over Simon Property Group’s plunging stock price and a sharp cut in its cash
dividend.
Finish Line forfeits incentive deal
Mall retailer The Finish Line Inc. has agreed to forfeit a potentially lucrative tax-abatement deal because it won’t be able
to meet a 2008 promise to create almost 200 jobs and invest $24 million at its Indianapolis headquarters.
Simon Property Group rolls out $2.25B offering
Proceeds from the offering will be used for general corporate purposes and to fund the purchase of senior notes.
Outlook remains grim for commercial real estate
Expect another year of rising vacancies, declining property values and distressed sales in the central Indiana commercial
real estate
market. That’s the message from Colliers Turley Martin Tucker in its annual State of Real Estate report.
Pioneering automobile dealer Lockhart dies
Freda Lockhart was the first woman to open dealerships for Cadillac and Saturn automobiles.