Entertainment is a big part of a $480 million development proposed for the south side of downtown–plans include a 3,400-seat
theater to attract the likes of Bruce Springsteen and first-run tours of Broadway shows such as “Wicked.” The question is
whether the city can support another midsize venue.
What started as Jim Brothers’ search for an assisted-living facility for his mother could end up as the region’s most comprehensive retirement “resort.” The president of The Bradford Group, an Indianapolis residential developer, has been working several months to get the zoning he needs for Copper Leaf. The 177-acre community on the east side of McCordsville would be home to 400 to 600 residents and sport a nine-hole public golf course. About 30 acres would be set aside for restaurants,…
If Circle Centre mall were built today, it would cost $420 million. Throw in another $60 million, and you’ve got the price
of Legends District-SoDo, a proposed mixed-use development on the south edge of downtown.
As Hoosiers, every time we open our wallets and pocketbooks, we should think about going back to school. For the last three decades, Indiana’s per capita income growth has lagged the rest of the country, to the point where the average Hoosier earns less nized for work force development use a combination of state and local dollars and even lottery funds (as in Georgia). Private management of the Hoosier Lottery, as proposed during the last legislative session, could provide the…
The effort to put high-speed trains into service in Indiana and eight other Midwestern states sometimes seems as fanciful as the first manned flight to Mars. There have been years of talk and countless meetings. And it will be many more years before a vehicle is fueled-and-ready, if ever. In the 13 years since the Indiana High Speed Rail Association was formed in Highland, the closest thing to high-speed rail Hoosiers have seen is an occasional speedy European locomotive brought…
Lawmakers returned from their respective districts across the state for Organization Day activities Nov. 20, with many already weary of having their ears bent by constituents frustrated over property taxes. Instead of finding some respite in Indianapolis, they were greeted at the Statehouse by protests from both citizen activists and organized interest groups-such as the Indiana Farm Bureau-seeking substantive property tax reform and not simply another round of short-term property tax relief. The Libertarian Party of Indiana even bought Indianapolis…
Judging from the many yard signs I’ve seen, a repeal of property taxes is a popular sentiment in the state. Too bad, because that would be an uncommon departure from Hoosier practicality and wisdom. Like most states, Indiana taxes income, consumption and wealth. We use these taxes to fund different levels of government. Critics of Indiana’s property taxes are right to be flummoxed. I’ve even argued that many of the consequences of Indiana’s property taxes are worse than most critics…
WellPoint, Indiana’s largest health insurer, is making more noise than ever about what it’s doing to help improve Hoosiers’
and Americans’ health.
Indianapolis Public Schools Superintendent Eugene White, in his third year as head of the state’s
largest school district, is determined to reverse the long decline of the state’s largest school district. The status quo
is not an option.
Troubles in the residential mortgage market have ensnared local mall giant Simon Property Group Inc. Simon said today it plans a fourth-quarter write-off of $26 million, the entire value of its equity investment in a master-planned community proposed for a suburb of Phoenix. The loss is expected to reduce the company’s diluted net income by […]
As legislators prepare to overhaul the state’s property-tax system, Marion County’s future hangs in the balance. Indianapolis
residents–particularly in the city’s older, urban core–already pay far higher taxes than their suburban counterparts. And
arguably get less bang for their buck. Changes on the table could make Marion County an even tougher sell.
Christopher P. White is arguably the city’s most daring real estate developer. But an IBJ review of hundreds of pages of public
records shows White and his Premier Properties USA Inc. are facing major financial and legal challenges.
The recommendations of the Shepard-Kernan report are a tonic to anyone who cares about local government efficiency and improved local services. The commission r e c o m m e n d e d changes to the way Indiana’s government provides local services. Our current system looks much like a pre-statehood government, where services are provided in a disconnected fashion with budgetary decisions answerable to state bureaucracies, not local voters. It is this organization of government that has caused much…
The Indiana Department of Local Government Finance (DLGF) issued a “Citizens’ Guide to Property Taxes” on Nov. 20. That document contains the following paragraph: “What factors contribute to property tax increases? Local spending is the reason for property tax increases-or decreases-depending on local fiscal management. Other factors that contributed to increases during the 2006-2007 pay cycle include the elimination of the inventory tax and the onset of the annual adjustment process, also known as ‘trending.'” Got that? Property taxes rise…
June McCormack, the top-ranking executive at Sallie Mae's Fishers operation, is leaving the student loan giant, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company and McCormack are negotiating a severance agreement, the company's Dec. 12 SEC filing said, but her departure date was not disclosed. McCormack has led the 2,300-employee Fishers […]
A unit of Citizens Gas proposes building a natural-gas-fueled steam plant in Speedway to serve large employers in the town
of 12,800.
Retailers and restaurateurs have flooded Indianapolis International Airport with letters-of-interest for space in the midfield
terminal, which is scheduled to open in late 2008. The demand is “more than five times” the number of concession spaces available,
airport managers say.
Democrat Bart Peterson leaves office in early January after two terms as mayor of Indianapolis. Succeeding him will be Republican Greg Ballard, a former lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps who parlayed property-tax outrage into a surprise win. As Peterson, 49, prepared to leave office, he sat down with IBJ. The following is an edited version of the interview. IBJ: You didn’t expect to be stepping down this year. What was the most significant priority you had planned for…
Many called it “the perfect storm.” But in retrospect, the dark clouds of Indiana’s 2007 property tax crisis had been forming
for years. Legislators caught wind early that something was amiss and spent all spring preparing to weather the impact.
How did it all seem so simple back in September? The reality of reform is sinking in for lawmakers and interest groups. Hoosiers who demanded serious property tax reform in November-and expected their wishes to be fulfilled-now see indications that the road to reform may be bumpier than foreseen. The property tax reform plan detailed in late October by Gov. Mitch Daniels was initially largely well-received by voters and lawmakers, but after it rattled around for a while and the…
