Indianapolis Business Journal

The upcoming MotoGP motorcycle race could be the last at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as NASCAR officials lobby instead for a stand-alone race for a newly merged sports-car series. Anthony Schoettle has more on the United Sports Car Series that will kick off in 2014, and the impact in Indianapolis of losing MotoGP. Also this week, Andrea Davis has an inside look at two redevelopment ideas for a seven-acre parcel near Carmel's downtown. The catch is that the projects—priced $33 million and $65 million, respectively—each would require a funding kick from the public. And in A&E, Lou Harry surveys the new goodies offered by food vendors at the Indiana State Fair.

In this week's issue, we have a number of pieces focusing on the city's approach to crime, including news that the tax-averse Ballard administration is willing to consider an income-tax hike to add more police officers. Also this week, Chris O'Malley takes a look at a recent stumble by City Securities Corp., which could lose its grip on the Indiana municipal bond market. And Scott Olson examines the flood of new downtown apartment projects and their possible effect on the retail market. The projects will add another 170,000 square feet of apartment-anchored retail, leading to a potential glut as existing downtown storefronts struggle to find tenants.

This week, read about a series of EEOC complaints filed against WTHR-TV--seven since 2005--by female employees alleging sex discrimination and meet the  three Colts employees who have been on the team's payroll since it called Baltimore home. Also, examine the IU medical school's progress in the research realm. And in Focus, see how Indiana's tourism spending stack up against other nearby states looking to draw visitors.

Indianapolis is in the final stages of preparing a bid for the 2018 Super Bowl, but it's not a done deal. Anthony Schoettle picks the brain of bid committee leader Allison Melangton to unpack the factors that could keep the city from entering the hyper-competitive fray. In Behind the News, Greg Andrews explains why investment advice juggernaut Oxford Financial Group was ordered to pay $2.2 million to an unsatisfied client. And in Focus, Chris O'Malley communes with luxury car afficionados in the nine-county area and reveals which communities have the greatest concentrations of Jaguars, Acuras, Teslas and the like.

Sponsorships are what make IndyCar run, and the open-wheel racing series has just been dealt a blow in its search for a new major sponsor. Anthony Schoettle reports that the executive in charge of corporate sales has resigned just as the series has entered the home stretch of the selling season. Kathleen McLaughlin has an update on Ball State University's new $4.6 million planetarium project, and charges from a contractor that the bidding process was rigged. And in Focus, Jeff Newman dials down in detail the massive process of building Westfield's Grand Park Sports Campus, turning 360 acres of undeveloped land into 57 sport fields.

This week, learn how former Indiana Pacers forward Jonathan Bender turned his career-ending knee injury into the inspiration to become an entrepreneur and develop a medical device for strenthening the lower body. Speaking of inventions, Dan Human reports on the hundreds of patents produced through Indiana's universities over the last 20 years, and a gaping disconnect with the private sector: Many of these developments are simply irrelevant to Indiana's strongest industries. And in A&E, Lou Harry returns to the hallowed Pawn Shop Pub to see how the food fares in the post-smoking ban atmosphere.

This week in IBJ, two CEOs of the area's big hospital systems reveal that their doctors are likely to see pay cuts in the next few years, unless they find new ways to be significantly more efficient. J.K. Wall reports that hospitals are losing millions of dollars on their employed physicians, and that Obamacare and budget battles in Congress are sucking money away from hospitals as well. In Forefront, Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard and Terre Haute Mayor Duke Bennett go head-to-head on the question of whether Indianapolis gets more than its fair share from the General Assembly. And in A&E etc., Lou Harry explains why the "Avatar" exhibit at The Children's Museum of Indianapolis is so much better than the 2008 movie.

This week, Anthony Schoettle reports on a classic David-and-Goliath story from Lebanon, where a father-and-son team of engineers developed a ground-breaking innovation in manufacturing and then ran up against an industry conglomerate that apparently stole the technology. Their patent-infringement case has yielded a stunning victory and, potentially, tens of millions of dollars. In Focus, Scott Olson cozies up to the moneyed class and discovers that the market for vacation homes is heating up in Indiana, as buyers encounter fair-market prices on the states many lakes. And in A&E, Lou Harry is successful in his quest for Broadway-quality entertainment with Bob Harbin's production of "Spamalot."

In this week's issue, we detail allegations in an explosive lawsuit filed by one of the best-known families in the Indianapolis corporate world, against one of the biggest names in retailing. Tomisue Hilbert has accused hardware-store magnate John Menard Jr. of pressuring her to have sex with him. The suit claims that Menard then launched a battle to remove her husband, Steve Hilbert, as CEO of the Indianapolis-based private equity funds the three of them started in 2005. Also in this issue, we take a closer look at Carmel-based developer Mainstreet Property Group and how it has tapped government support to help grow its portfolio of skilled nursing facilities. And we present the "Indiana 100," our annual compendium of the biggest and fastest-growing companies in the state, both private and public.

This week, Scott Olson reveals that Columbus-based manufacturing giant Cummins Inc. is interested in expanding its presence in Indianapolis and constructing its own office building downtown. Potentially as large as 70,000 square feet, the building would allow Cummins to grow its visibility in the state's largest city. Also in thsi issue, IBJ presents a profile of dynamic philanthropist Marianne Glick, this year's winner of the Michael A. Carroll Award. And in A&E, Lou Harry has the scoop on the latest features at Conner Prairie Interactive History Park, including a precursor to baseball called "Rounders."

This week, J.K. Wall explores the likelihood that the Indianapolis area's four major hospital systems will merge and shrink down to two. While the change isn't imminent, national trends in health care suggest mergers might happen soon. Also, Anthony Schoettle takes you into a tiny gym on the northwest side of downtown where top college and pro basketball stars face off in the Knox Indy Pro Am Summer League. And in A&E, Lou Harry heads for a state museum not so far away (actually, downtown; you know the one) to soak in the inspired geekery of  "Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination."

This week, get an indepth look at new WellPoint CEO Joe Swedish, as the longtime hospital executive takes control of the nation's second-largest health insurer and tries to figure out how to compete under the new rules of Obamacare. In Focus, meet two across-the-street neighbors in Meridian-Kessler who both ended up on a Forbes list for top names in their industry. And in A&E, Lou Harry takes notes on parenting from Indiana-born comedian Jim Gaffigan.

It's no secret that the top executives at public companies receive fat paychecks. This week, IBJ uncovers the goodies ladled on top of that compensation. Using public records, reporter Dan Human finds that some officers at Indiana's top public firms spent tens of thousands of company dollars on personal expenses such as travel, golf club memberships and financial advisers. Also in this issue, learn about the $171 million rounded up by a local private investment firm to invest in other companies. And in Focus, J.K. Wall details how mobile apps designed to improve users' health could be a real threat to Indiana's established life-sciences giants like Eli Lilly and Co., Roche Diagnostics Corp., and  Cook Medical Inc.

College sports as we know them could change virtually overnight, and athletic porgrams could watch their budgets shrink by half, depending on the outcome of a lawsuit against the Indianapolis-based NCAA. Anthony Schoettle examines the potential consequences of the anti-trust case brought by a former UCLA player, which could become a class action in June. In Focus, learn about the comeback staged by credit unions in central Indiana, with profits climbing 45 percent statewide. And walk the halls of Howe High as a new charter school operator struggles to turn around the troubled school with declining enrollment. J.K. Wall presents a case study in revamping an institution.

It’s been under construction in downtown Indy for six years and has cost $63 million, but many people still don’t have a handle on what it is, exactly. In this issue, Lou Harry takes an in-depth look at the genesis and possible long-term effects of the Cultural Trail. Plus, we weigh in with an editorial and a first-person account of walking the whole 7.5-mile enchilada. Also, Anthony Schoettle serves up a story on the rapid rise of enrollment at the city’s culinary schools, and what that means to the local hospitality industry. Plus, Scott Olson strikes out to the new Stadium Lofts apartment project, a redevelopment of old Bush Stadium.

This week, thrill to the life story of Bill Shirk, a professional escape artist who built a radio empire in central Indiana – and remains a player in the industry at age 67. Zionsville’s brick-laden retail district is still hanging in there as well, but some key vacancies have economic development officials scrambling for an extensive market study. In Focus, Anthony Schoettle spells out the major upgrades planned for the Brickyard, aka the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which include lights for night racing. And in A&E, Lou Harry breaks down the lineup at Spotlight, a fundraiser featuring a cavalcade of lesser-known but more-than-impressive artists in Indy.

This week, learn how local TV stations are preparing for a major sea change in the weather-broadcasting environment: the return of Angela Buchman. The immensely popular meteorologist will make her debut soon on WTHR-TV Channel 13 after parting ways with WISH-TV Channel 8, and all the competitors are fine-tuning their weather-casting teams in response. Also, find out how a local investment group is taking a shot at bringing pro hockey back to Indianapolis. In A&E, Lou Harry weighs in on the ritzy Plat 99, the latest addition to the CityWay dining lineup downtown. And in Focus, test your knowledge of downtown’s architectural landscape with a 20-landmark quiz on signature design details.

This week, learn about how food-truck operators are struggling to migrate to communities north of Marion County like Zionsville and Fishers, as different cities and towns pose an array of permits and regulations for doing business. Lou Harry kicks of IBJ's expanding arts coverage with a sneak peek at Butler University's new $15 million theater, and then his take on the Indianapolis Museum of Art's exhibit featuring the emotionally direct works of Ai Weiwei. And in Focus, Scott Olson testifies the free fall in admissions to state law schools as prospective students weigh heavy debt versus light job prospects.