Indianapolis Business Journal

Restaurateurs are happy to see customers flooding back into their businesses, but the relief is leavened by skyrocketing labor and food costs. Dave Lindquist digs into the priciest items and how local restaurants are handling the effects of inflation. Also in this week’s issue, Emily Ketterer examines the move in the Statehouse to reduce taxes on vaping products. And Susan Orr reports that local companies that offer online meeting and collaboration platforms still see a lot of opportunity ahead, despite signs that the pandemic is waning and in-person activities are safer.

Three Black-owned businesses are planning moves downtown as part of a larger effort to help the city’s sore recover from the pandemic. Dave Lindquist reports that they’re getting help from a not-for-profit that has emerged as a local leader in diversity initiatives. Also in this week’s issue, John Russell explains how the sprawling case against Bloomington-based Cook Medical has ballooned into one of the largest and longest civil actions in Indiana history. And Mickey Shuey outlines how Indianapolis is embracing esports on the professional and academic level with hopes of become a national player.

Indianapolis has put more than $30 million into its Violent Crime Prevention Grants Program since 2009, but homicides have skyrocketed. Leslie Bonilla Muñiz reports that as the city plans to spend $45 million in federal pandemic money for programs aimed at quelling violent crime, some stakeholders want to see clear-cut results. Also in this week’s issue, Dave Lindquist explains why many Indy-area restaurant owners have unfinished business with the underfunded federal Restaurant Revitalization Fund. And Mickey Shuey explores the question of whether Indianapolis should try to nab hosting duties for another Super Bowl when warm-weather cities—and those with new NFL stadiums—are favored.

Eli Lilly and Co. has high hopes for donanemab, its new experimental drug for Alzheimer’s disease and a potential blockbuster for the pharma giant. But John Russell reports that its prospects have dimmed recently with a draft policy from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that would restrict reimbursement payments for the drug. Also in this week’s paper, Emily Ketterer reports that Indiana lawmakers are working to set up the first regulatory framework for utilities to build charging stations for electric vehicles. And Dave Lindquist fleshes out the plan for Hi & Mighty craft distillery to open at the Indiana State fairgrounds as its first year-round retail tenant in two decades.

Remote work is here to stay, and Indiana might capitalize on it by paying remote workers to move here. Emily Ketterer reports that state lawmakers are considering paying new residents who do remote work up to $15,000 in grants over three years. Also in this week’s issue, Leslie Bonilla Muñiz examines the prospects for redeveloping downtown’s Jail II and Arrestee Processing Center facilities. And Susan Orr examines the latest trend in the war to hire new talent: acquiring your competitors.

Hoosiers might have the chance to shop without paying sales tax for a couple of weeks this summer. Emily Ketterer dives into the proposal from a key Republican state senator. Also in this week’s issue, Susan Orr previews the upcoming jury trial for the former president and the former chief financial officer of the now-defunct trucking firm Celadon Group. Both men were charged in December 2019 on multiple counts of fraud. And John Russell has compiled an authoritative list of the largest philanthropic gifts in Indiana for 2021—the donors, the recipients and what the money is supposed to cover.

Indianapolis leaders want more affordable housing in Marion County for low- and mid-income residents, but low-cost options often sunset after a period of years. Leslie Bonilla Muñiz reports that city officials and a wide range of neighborhood organizations think they have found an approach that can keep some properties affordable indefinitely: community land trusts. Also in this week’s issue, Susan Orr reports on the progress of private equity firm Monument Microcap Partners toward its goal of buying small firms and helping them grow. And Dave Lindquist explains how long delays at vinyl-pressing plants are affecting Indiana-based recording artists and music stores who cater to fans of the resurgent format.

More than 100,000 people are expected to come downtown for the festivities that begin this weekend for the College Football Playoff National Championship. Mickey Shuey reports that the stakes for Indy go far beyond the immediate economic impact. Also in this week’s issue, John Russell examines the latest numbers for hospital diversions in central Indiana as health systems strain to care for the surge in COVID-19 cases. And Emily Ketterer sheds light on the battle for a statewide policy on solar- and wind-energy projects, which often run into roadblocks in a mélange of local ordinances and public boards.

IBJ names its 2021 newsmakers and recaps the year's top headlines. Plus, Cook Medical set an audacious goal when it announced it would build a new manufacturing plant in Indianapolis using only contractors and subcontractors owned by a person of color, woman, a veteran or someone with disabilities. Barb Berggoetz explains how the company made it happen. Plus, Sam Stall writes that the home remodeling boom that started with the pandemic shutdown in 2020 gained steam in 2022, even as people were no longer so stuck at home.

Duke Energy, the largest electric utility in Indiana, wants to send much of its coal-fired generating fleet into early retirement by 2035 and switch to cleaner sources of energy. But as John Russell reports, some consumer groups, environmentalists and elected officials contend the progress isn’t nearly fast enough. Also in this week’s issue, Leslie Bonilla Muñiz explains how an unusual public-private collaboration is renovate a 160-unit affordable housing complex on the north-east side and keep it affordable for the next three decades. And Dave Lindquist has a roundup of the holiday season’s main attractions as cultural institutions vie for seasonal dollars.

A bill already under consideration by the Indiana Legislature orders that any worker who request a religious exemption to an employer’s vaccine mandate can automatically get one, “without further inquiry.” As John Russell reports, the bill raises thorny questions about the balance between a worker’s religious freedoms and the right of employers to keep workplaces safe. Also in this week’s issue, Mickey Shuey questions whether city tourism and sports officials properly vetted  a financially troubled developmental football association before it racked up some $1.4 million in unpaid bills in Indianapolis last spring. And Dave Lindquist explains how the College Football Playoff National Championship, set for Jan. 10 in Indianapolis, plans to make a big investment in local teachers.

Indianapolis is well behind peer cities in terms of land dedicated to parks. The vast majority of forested land in Marion County is privately owed. Leslie Bonilla Muniz explains how the Indiana Forest Alliance is trying to encourage protections for trees on private land so they’re not destroyed by future development, starting with an exhaustive study of forested land in the city. Also in this week’s issue, Dave Lindquist digs in to the new strategy for creating new restaurant concepts at Fishers Test Kitchen. And John Russell details plans by VillageMD, co-founded by a former Anthem Inc. executive, to use more than $5 billion invested by Walgreens to buy primary care medical practices across the country and open clinics inside Walgreens pharmacies.

Susan Orr explains how Indianapolis-area companies hope to take advantage of the big influx of federal infrastructure dollars, from huge corporations like Cummins Inc. and Allison Transmission Inc. to smaller ones like 120Water Inc. and BCA Environmental Consultants LLC. Also in this week’s issue, Leslie Bonilla Muñiz expands on plans by Indy Parks to add another 90 acres of public green space. And Leslie has an update on how IndyGo is moving ahead with the next two legs of its massive bus rapid transit project, after a messy state legislative session and pandemic-related problems threw a wrench in the timeline.

In a city filled with developers who can handle complex, multiuse projects, the businessman who came to Lafayette Square’s rescue is a relatively unknown 50-year-old from Argentina named Fabio de la Cruz. Mickey Shuey has a proper introduction and dives into his $200 million plan to transform the retail center into a cultural hub featuring a concert center, movie theater, hotel, apartments and a shopping village. Also in this week’s paper, Emily Ketterer explains how the federal $1.2 trillion infrastructure package will help Indiana. And John Russell has the feds’ latest report card on how well Indy-area hospitals are keeping patients from needing to return to hospitals after their initial treatment.

Twenty months into the pandemic, it has become clear that there won’t be a rush of white-collar workers back to the office once the threat has passed. Susan Orr digs into the wide range of responses from local companies to the question of maintaining a remote workforce. Also in this week’s issue, Emily Ketterer explores the rise in Indiana of the Delta-8 THC, which has effects similar to traditional marijuana and is being sold in shops across the state thanks to a legal gray area that many state officials would rather not talk about. And Leslie Bonilla Muñiz reports on long-awaited cleanup of the Black Mountain industrial site on Indianapolis’ near-east side.

Indiana’s tech sector is in a red-hot cycle of mergers and acquisitions, with momentum so strong that the number of deals during the first three quarters of 2021 has already eclipsed full-year 2020 and 2019 totals—and by a healthy margin. Susan Orr examines the reasons behind the boom. Also in this week’s issue, Emily Ketterer explains how state officials are working to preserve and grow Indiana’s position as a leader in auto production by leaning heavily toward electric vehicles and related tech. And Dave Lindquist looks behind the curtain at the Indianapolis Opera to learn more about how it’s shifting its strategy to be more flexible and reach a wider range of patrons.