Home » Search

Search Results

13977 results for 'articles'

To refine your search through our archives use our Advanced Search

City’s relocation from Sherman Park raising concerns: Indianapolis moving departments from blighted area

When the city of Indianapolis relocates two of its departments later this year from Sherman Park on the near east side to 1200 S. Madison Ave., some say the city is merely trading one blighted area for another-and abandoning a neighborhood it has said it wants to help. And over the 10-year lease with Pillar Investments LLC, owner of the Madison Avenue property, the city will pay nearly $1.2 million more in rent than it would had it stayed at…

VOICES FROM THE INDUSTRY: Greener Indianapolis buildings could be within reach

In case you’ve missed it, energy dependence and environmental preservation are among the most pressing issues here at home and around the globe. The issue is forcing all of us to take a hard look at nearly every aspect of how we live. This self examination of sorts, extends point on building costs can sometimes move as a strategy to draw down life-cycle costs. Typically the increased front-end investment can be recovered within a relatively short period. In order to…

Office market vacancy rates showing positive signs: Government leasing boosts downtown performance; suburbs see fast absorption despite flurry of construction

Downtown and suburban vacancy rates are declining slightly or at least holding steady-a positive sign for an Indianapolis office market absorbing a plethora of new space on the city’s north side. The second-quarter vacancy rate for the central business district dropped to 15.9 percent, from 16.7 percent the previous quarter, according to data from the local office of St. Louis-based commercial real estate firm Colliers Turley Martin Tucker. A similar report from the local office of Los Angeles-based CB Richard…

SPORTS: Star athletes say the craziest things (or do they?)

Ah, another day, and another kick in the teeth for the Indiana Pacers. Back to the oral surgeon. The kind word for the Pacers’ Jermaine O’Neal would be disingenuous. Either that, or it’s a gaggle of reporters whom O’Neal wants us to believe either fictionalized or took several quotes “out of context”-don’t you love that fallback phrase?-last weekend in Los Angeles, where O’Neal said (or didn’t say) he wanted to be traded to the Lakers and was critical of Pacers’…

Plans for Central State’s rebirth taking shape: Mixed-use 150-acre project vast in scope, challenging

Touring the expansive grounds of the former Central State Hospital west of downtown is like taking a trip back in time-evident by the crumbling buildings that are as dated as the site’s original Hospital for the Insane name. But a redevelopment in the final stages of city approval could breathe new life into a 150-acre parcel surrounded by blighted neighborhoods to the east and north and Hispanic storefronts to the south along West Washington Street. The proposal features a mix…

EYE ON THE PIE: Are big counties getting all the goodies?

Are the most-populated counties of the northeast and southwest corners of Indiana improving their economies faster than their regional neighbors? Indiana is very sensitive to this issue. Throughout the state, people resent the presumed primacy of Indianapolis, which serves as the center of Hoosier government and business. Those outside Marion County claim that all the goodies go to Indianapolis and the rest of the state gets only the leftovers. Are the carpers right, or are they deluded by a residual…

PROFILE THERESIA WHITFIELD: Changing direction after life-altering crisis Former CNN producer follows path to healing, new career after overcoming post-traumatic stress

Whitfield, owner of Indianapolis-based Fletcher Communications Inc., was a freelance television news producer working for CNN, Reuters News and the Christian Broadcasting Network’s news division in Washington, D.C., when American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon. Four years later, Whitfield crashed emotionally and was hospitalized suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder. The daughter of a retired Army officer, Whitfield, 39, had moved many times as a child before settling in Columbia, S.C. She graduated from high school in 1986, but…

Beilouny Luxury Properties carves out downtown niche: Propelled by its flagship 757 Mass Ave project, upstart local developer eyeing more mixed-use projects

When Ed Beilouny bought property at the southwest corner of Massachusetts and College avenues in 1977, many of his friends and family members thought he was crazy. The neighborhood wasn’t much to look at. In the eyes of some, it was downright dangerous. But Beilouny, who was born in New York, had a vision that would take 30 years to develop. The land is now home to the flagship building of Beilouny Luxury Properties, a privately held company that has…

Fantasy football leagues concern employers

The kickoff of the National Football League season this month has many central Indiana employers fearful that fantasy will
encroach on reality. The fretfulness revolves around the start of the fantasy football season, where fans draft real players
onto make-believe teams and track their individual performances via organized Web sites.

Fieldhouse must fend off Louisville arena rival

Although the opening of a 22,000-seat arena in Louisville is still three years away, officials here are already bracing for
a raid on Indianapolis and Conseco Fieldhouse events. Several Indianapolis interests will be watching Aug. 20 as the Louisville
Arena Authority unveils designs for the arena along the Ohio River.

Inventory tax repeal still being hailed as good decision: Amid rising property taxes, economic development officials and brokers say taxing inventory was bad policy

With the state in an uproar over soaring property taxes, some have wondered whether phasing out Indiana’s business inventory tax was a good idea. The phase-out process began in 2002 before completely eliminating the inventory tax this year, taking with it roughly $380 million in tax revenue shared annually by local governments. Supporters of the move insist lawmakers made the right decision. And they say Indiana has become more attractive to business as a result. Marion County property-tax bills were…

A&E: ShadowApe visits Vonnegut’s ‘Monkey House’

This week, a Harrison Center art opening, a visit to the “Monkey House” and an improv nightcap. If, today, you stop into the Harrison Center for the Arts (1505 N. Delaware St.) to see the multi-artist exhibition “Unusual Animals,” the experience will be very different than if you popped in, as I did, during its First Friday opening. For starters, there won’t be as many gummy bears and animal crackers (opening night snacks are matched to the show’s theme). Second,…

Farmers’ markets are blossoming in Indiana: Consumer demand for local produce increasing; sellers see bigger profits without the middleman

On summer Saturdays, Ross Faris starts work at 4:30 a.m., packing up zucchini, peaches and other produce for the trek to farmers’ markets in Broad Ripple and Zionsville. Then he stands in the 90-plus-degree heat, answering questions about heirloom tomatoes or new varieties of peppers, greeting regulars and loving every minute of it. “It’s just a rewarding experience,” Faris said. “I can’t tell you how many people appreciate what we do here.” Faris, owner of Indianapolis-based Your Neighbor’s Garden, is…

Skillman goes Classic: Greenwood car dealership flies under local radar while gaining attention of auto collectors nationwide

Tucked away behind hundreds of shiny new cars on the west side of U.S. 31 just south of Greenwood Park Mall is a showroom that includes some of the rarest-and highest-priced-cars in the country. The double doors to a building that looks like every other at Ray Skillman’s car dealership complex open to rows of pristine pieces of history. As eclectic as the man who opened the dealership 18 months ago, the collection of cars includes Packards alongside Pontiacs and…

Lots of empty new houses on market, expert says

Forty-six percent of new houses in the nine-county Indianapolis area are unoccupied-barely an improvement from the 49 percent of early this year. The figure were compiled by Market Graphics, a Nashville, Tenn., firm that researches housing stock in 30 Midwest and Southern cities. Market Graphics owner Edsel Charles said ongoing problems with mortgage foreclosures appear […]

UPDATE: Steak n Shake looks to cut store hours

Hours could be pared at as many as 25 percent of Steak n Shake Co. stores in order to cut labor costs, an official of the Indianapolis-based restaurant chain told analysts in a conference call late yesterday. An experiment with 12 stores showed that closing doors during certain periods rather than staying open around the […]

Open thread: What’s happening?

Your Friday gift: An open thread to discuss whatever real estate topics are on your minds. Fashion Mall? MSA? Penn Centre? The new BMW ad on this blog? We’re classin’ it…

Steak n Shake reports more sales troubles

The Steak n Shake Co. late this afternoon reported that same-store sales slid 4.3 percent in its third fiscal quarter, which ended July 4. It was the eighth straight quarter same-store sells fell. The Indianapolis-based diner chain said total sales increased 2.1 percent, to $154 million. Profit was $124,000, compared with $7.3 million in the […]

Judge puts Benicorp Insurance into receivership

A Marion County judge has appointed the Indiana Department of Insurance as receiver of Benicorp Insurance Co. to protect the ailing company’s 52,000 policyholders, the department announced today. Marion Circuit Judge Theodore Sosin appointed Insurance Commissioner Jim Atterholt to oversee the transfer of Benicorp customers to Minnesota-based UnitedHealthcare and, potentially, to liquidate Benicorp’s assets. Indianapolis-based Benicorp has […]

Blog: Simon defending Fashion Mall turf

At least one local real estate broker thinks Simon Property Group’s plan to expand the Fashion Mall is a competitive dig at the nearby Venu mixed-use project. Simon said yesterday it would add 150,000 square feet to the Fashion Mall. The long-rumored addition of a second level on the west side of the property will […]