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‘Rat’ campaign targets projects: Union-hired protesters picket non-union contractors

Union supporters have no plans to exterminate the giant rats that have become a common sight downtown, as they continue to pressure certain contractors to pay what they consider fair wages. That is the message from the Indiana/Kentucky Regional Council of Carpenters, the labor organization that has adopted the rodent as its mascot for a campaign targeting various downtown construction projects. Organizers said the effort is twofold: to create public awareness that union contractors are losing work, and to better…

VOICES FROM THE INDUSTRY: Vibrant city can be built without oceans, mountains

In late April and early May, two things happened. The Legislature adjourned on time and Forbes magazine released its seventh annual list of the best (and worst) metro areas to develop businesses and careers. Forbes based its ranking on business costs, living costs, education levels of the work force, qualityof-life issues as well as job and income growth and migration patterns. Indianapolis ranked 33rd out of 150 of the country’s largest metro areas, and there’s some good news in that…

SPORTS Bill Benner: IRL vision falls short for driver on outside looking in

This will be the 10th Indianapolis 500 since the split-or chasm, or Grand Canyon-wide divide-in American open-wheel racing, and there is no question that the Indy Racing League and CART/Champ Car continue to suck the exhaust fumes of NASCAR. They lag well behind the taxi-cab series in crowds, television ratings, media coverage and corporate support. Why the knuckleheads who rule both open-wheel circuits stubbornly continue to go their own way is way beyond me, but I suspect the reason can…

TOM HARTON Commentary: The twins that hold us back

Stubbornness and stupidity are twins. I’ve remembered that notion from Sophocles ever since a high school friend said it to a teacher as they argued about the way she’d scored his test. He lost that fight, but went on to become a successful lawyer. I don’t know what happened to the teacher, but I’m reminded of the phrase as I observe the decisions made by our elected representatives. Two examples come to mind, one recent and the other long ago….

Foyt’s tough transition: Legendary driver struggles as racing owner

Foyt with a wrench. It’s an iconic image dating back to the 1960s, when the brash, hott e m p e r e d racer started forging his image as one of the world’s best drivers. A wrench gripped by Foyt’s rugged hands is still the image that best characterizes the legendary Texan. But in an era of high-tech diagnostics and sponsor-driven economics, it’s no longer a winning image. “There are certain athletes, racing drivers and personalities that have unusual…

Helping seniors get online: Teen-founded organization teaches computer literacy

Philip Ealy became quite deft at pounding the keys of his manual typewriter while processing orders during a career in the construction industry. But when his son gave him a laptop, the gap in technology was too great to overcome. So the 88-year-old resident of Manor Care at Summertrace in Carmel enrolled in a computer class at the independent living facility offered by an upstart not-for-profit known as Senior Connects. The thrust of Senior Connects’ mission-to promote computer literacy among…

Building trades set for takeoff: Construction companies line up for first set of bids on $300M midfield terminal

The Indianapolis Airport Authority board on May 9 is expected to vote to approve the letting of the first six construction packages. They’re worth a total of $70 million, said Midfield Program Manager John Kish. That’s about a quarter of the $300 million terminal building’s price tag. The $974 million midfield project also includes a new airport entrance at I-70 and Six Points Road. But it’s the terminal building that has broad appeal to the trades. “I’d say this is…

Elite execs raking it in: As pay swells, critics urge restraint

Special Report: Elite execs raking it in As pay swells, critics urge restraint Highest-paid Indiana public company executives in fiscal ’04. Includes salary, bonus and other annual compensation, as well as long-term pay and stock option grants. 1) includes $1.7 million signing bonus received upon becoming CEO and president in August 2004 Turns out life’s certainties stretch way beyond the cliché about death and taxes, especially in corporate Indiana. If you’re a top executive at one of Indiana’s biggest public…

VOICES FROM THE INDUSTRY: Effective tech outsourcing takes well-managed plan

More companies than ever are outsourcing their critical business functions, including sales, marketing, accounting and human resources. But the most rapid switch is taking place in technology, due to the accelerated pace of changes in security threats, certifications, government policies and customer-driven mandates. While companies have high expectations of their internal IT departments, many simply don’t have enough time to manage workloads and stay on top of current trends and innovations. Because most technology requires specialization, some companies are finding…

Stutz’s future includes condos: Developer envisions high-rise, nightclub as part of biz center

Stutz Business Center owner and visionary Turner Woodard last month rolled out a 10-year master plan for the Stutz that could bring condominiums, retail and a high-rise tower to the former auto-manufacturing plant at 10th Street and Capitol Avenue. Right now, Woodard concedes many of his plans are dreams. But with a blossoming life sciences corridor just to the west along the Central Canal, Woodard said he wants the 80-year-old Stutz to continue to be a hub of activity as…

Give employees space to succeed TAWN PARENT Commentary:

I fought through Castleton traffic recently to pick up a few bottles of wine at Trader Joe’s. It was a brand I’d bought before and liked. But the first bottle I opened was spoiled. So was the second one. I called Trader Joe’s. They said to bring the bottles back. I told them I hadn’t saved my receipt. “It doesn’t matter,” they said. So I took the bottles in. They gave me a full refund, no questions asked, even for…

NOTIONS Bruce Hetrick: Traveling on the ritual road from loneliness to love

AVON, CONN.- I’m sitting alone, in my red sedan, in the parking lot at 40 Tower Lane, an office building where I last worked in 1991. It’s late at night. Rain pelts the pavement. And those who now work here have long since gone home to their spouses and families. I’m parked in the very spot where my best friend became more than that one fateful October afternoon. Pam had invited me to lunch that day to celebrate my birthday….

BEHIND THE NEWS: Mall of America ruling cites Simon ‘subterfuge’

A federal appeals court last month issued a ruling that gave affiliates of the Simon family some of what they wanted-a larger ownership stake in Mall of America. But the three-judge panel also gave them a lashing over dealings with their partner in the Minnesota mega mall, the Ghermezian brothers of Canada. “This case presents the worst kind of self-dealing and subterfuge” by Simon affiliates, the court wrote. Ouch. At issue was a deal Simon Property Group Inc., the family’s…

Demand stokes Coke: After slump, Citizens Gas unit adds workers, expects profit

The bituminous-belching behemoth is as close as this city gets to 19th century industry. It is an anathema to economic strategists who would leave smokestacks behind and recast Indianapolis as a haven for the clean rooms of high- and biotechnology. And neighbors fear it’s the source of elevated levels of benzene and other chemicals blamed for cancer. Yet the politically and environmentally incorrect Indianapolis Coke appears to be on a comeback-at least financially. The subsidiary of Citizens Gas & Coke…

Music converts lift Get Digital: CD-ripping firm catching on, could hit mainstream with Canadian retail deal

Imagine walking into a retailer and dropping off a stack of compact discs to have them converted to mp3 files, just as consumers have done for years when having their film processed into photographs. The scenario may take a while to play out in the United States, but it’s on the cusp of becoming reality in Canada. And two local entrepreneurs who are putting their spin on digital music technology are largely responsible. Doug Strachota and Brian Moore launched Get…

BULLS & BEARS: Sarbanes-Oxley leads to small-company delistings

While many view an initial public offering of stock the mark of a fast-growing company, a stark contrast has begun to emerge. There has been a marked increase in the number of small, publicly traded companies voluntarily opting to remove their shares from the markets. The main reason expressed for doing this is the financial burden associated with complying with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. The new regulations mean increased expense in audit and legal fees. The requirements consume company…

Cleanliness is being undervalued EYE ON THE PIE Morton Marcus:

This column has been too glum recently. That is the result of observing what happens in the General Assembly where the many good things done (for example: a stiffer open alcohol container bill) are outweighed by the silliness (daylight-saving time). Let’s take a rest and praise some people who are doing something noble and important. A coalition of clergy, civic groups and labor unions are trying to get higher wages and benefits for janitors in the Indianapolis area. Currently, most…

Event encourages leaders to get on board: Not-for-profit agencies looking for help at the top

Call it high-stakes matchmaking-with a twist. For the third time in as many years, Indianapolis-based Lacy Leadership Association is gearing up for a massive blind date, hoping to connect communityminded individuals with not-for-profits that need their help. And “Get on Board” has been more successful than most fix-ups: Two-thirds of the 500 people who turned out in 2004 got involved with a participating agency in some way; nearly 20 of them took the leap into board positions. Interest already is…

Applied Engineering Services Inc.: Engineering firm builds clientele slowly

Starting a new company is a tricky business, even if you’ve done everything right. Applied Engineering Services had the funding, the contacts and the skills it needed when it started in 1998. Still, the first year or so was hardly easy. “We didn’t hit the ground running,” recalled Terry DeBoo, one of the principals in the company. “The first year was pretty tough.” Applied Engineering is a consulting engineering firm that focuses much of its business on the central utility…

Convention payoffs won’t be instant: New deals, development unlikely until construction begins

The much-ballyhooed battle about funding for a new stadium and expanded convention center downtown appears to be over, but it will be some time before the victors get the spoils. Although state lawmakers authorized a series of tax increases to pay for the $900 million project, plenty of work remains to realize the promised payoffs-increased convention business, additional development and a shot at hosting the Super Bowl. “I don’t expect to see any of that until construction starts,” said Indianapolis…