MARCH 22-28, 2010
This week, reporter Cory Schouten continues his in-depth examination of real estate deals involving Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi, who has attracted the attention of the FBI for his relationship with embattled financier Tim Durham. In Focus, check out how Indiana's 750 food processors and distributors are ramping up safety precautions to prevent illnesses and expensive product recalls. And in A&E, etc., Arts Editor Lou Harry presents a passionate defense of musical theater legends Rogers & Hammerstein, responsible for two classic shows currently under revival in Indianapolis.
Front PageBack to Top
City, NCAA forge 30-year event pact
It started as a meeting seven years ago between the NCAA, city and state officials, representatives of the Indiana
Sports Corp. and a few others. The result was an agreement
assuring Indianapolis hosts a major NCAA event every year between now and 2039.
Trucking firms shift gears to weather long downturn
Logistics companies have found the last few years an unparalleled challenge. If it wasn’t higher fuel prices, it was softening
business in key sectors, such as the automotive industry. Fewer goods to move created overcapacity and softened rates.
Big guns behind Allos Ventures tech fund
The region’s blossoming technology sector is about to get another shot of financial fertilizer. The newly formed Allos
Ventures has raised $20 million from investors and plans to focus on early-stage tech companies.
Top StoriesBack to Top
Prosecutor Brizzi defends no-cost real estate deal
Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi paid nothing for a 50-percent stake in an Elkhart office building he acquired with a
local defense attorney.
Year delay in unemployment tax hike won’t satisfy Uncle Sam
Hoosier legislators are crowing about the deal they just brokered to delay a $400 million state tax hike meant to shore up
Indiana’s bankrupt Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. Here’s what they’re not touting: the mandatory federal tax increases
every single business in Indiana now faces the next three years.
Animal shelter tries to improve under new leader, tight budget
Indianapolis’ new public safety director says the city’s pound is woefully underfunded. But he also takes umbrage at critics
who call it a dirty death row for unwanted cats and dogs.
Mysterious $14M Verizon payable looms over Durham firm
CLST Holdings founder Al Goldfield says the company hid a $14 million debt to Verizon Communications Inc. in the years after
he left.
Indy Partnership aims to double economic development deals
The organization last year closed 11 business expansion or attraction deals, netting 2,950 new jobs in the process.
Read MoreSales slowdown prompts biz model change at Weblink
Software maker took abrupt turn into advertising for its customers when recession threatened.
Read MoreFocusBack to Top
Indiana food manufacturers ramp up safety precautions
The peanut-borne salmonella outbreak of 2009 raised awareness about the risk of illness from unlikely sources. Unfortunately,
that wasn’t the last time a seemingly innocuous ingredient made people sick, and prompted recalls.
OpinionBack to Top
EDITORIAL: Opportunities lost in 2010 legislative session
After a legislative session short on fireworks but absent any major achievements, it’s fair to ask how long “do
no harm” will pass for progress in the Indiana General Assembly.
MAURER: Doctor turned author is worth a read
Dr. Douglas P. Zipes, retired director of the Krannert Institute of Cardiology at Indiana University School of Medicine,
has devoted his last couple of years to scaring us half to death with his new novel, “The Black Widows.”
MARCUS: Lower business taxes don’t stimulate hiring
A job is the
foundation of self-esteem, the linchpin for connecting to the community, the instrument by and through which the individual
connects with the greater international marketplace and derives the income that provides security for the family.
GUY: Do you want to travel or truly vacate?
How does a busy person vacate, as in the dictionary reference, “to vacate one’s mind
of worries?” One answer is to take a vacation, but an important choice remains: place or event?
HICKS: Taxation not top factor in attracting business
Businesses care about taxes to be sure, but the availability of a pool of well-trained workers is at the forefront of most business-location decisions.
Read MoreWe should all have Forsell’s fortitude
Sometimes we think we’re having a bad day, until we consider the plight of others. I was recently reminded of this
when I came across David Forsell’s article in the March 15 issue.
Lilly shareholders deserve protection
This is the wrong time, in my opinion, and I may not have all the facts, to open up Eli Lilly to an outside takeover.
Read MoreSKARBECK: Amazing patience paid off for Grace
Back in 1935, she invested $180 in Abbott Laboratories stock and never sold it. This one decision became the entire investment
career of Grace Groner.
In BriefBack to Top
Net metering bill short-circuited in legislature
Bill would have allowed businesses, universities and other organizations generating their own power to receive a retail credit
on their utility bills.
Indiana Legislature approves mortgage certification program
Rating system will help homebuyers avoid the risks of borrowing.
Read MoreText donations are new frontier for not-for-profits
The Indianapolis affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure plans to unveil what might be the first such “text-to-donate”
option offered among local not-for-profits.
Conexus says infrastructure important to Great Lakes and Ohio River commerce is at risk
Many of the locks controlling the key passageways date back 80 years and are failing.
Read MorePROXY CORNER: Eli Lilly and Co.
Eli Lilly and Co. discovers, develops, manufactures and sells pharmaceutical products for humans and animals.
Read More