National Rifle Association convention debuts in Indy
Businesses are scrambling to decide how to cater to the massive confab.
Conventions
Articles
Tourism officials kept mum on NRA convention for years
Visit Indy officials finalized a deal in 2010 to bring the National Rifle Association’s annual convention here in 2014. They say the NRA asked them not to publicize the event. The group disagrees.
Indy committee advances new panhandling proposal
An Indianapolis City-County Council committee has approved a proposal that would ban panhandling and other forms of begging near bank entrances, ATMs and other specified areas.
City designs new strategy to combat panhandling
A bipartisan group of city-county councilors is considering an ordinance that would increase panhandling restrictions, including barring panhandling and street performances within 50 feet of any area where any financial transaction is made.
Indy attracts more visitors than much-larger Cleveland
A comparison of the convention and tourism businesses.
Smoking ban opens new doors to Visit Indy
New convention prospects are talking to the city’s marketing agency after passage of the city’s expanded smoking ordinance last year.
Racing home: Fast-growing trade show returns to Indy
The upcoming Performance Racing Industry Show—in its first year back in Indianapolis since 2004—is beating expectations for exhibitors, attendees and, most important, visitor spending.
Ritzier hotels may lure top events, but year-round demand unclear
Indianapolis lacks a five-star hotel, a fact some hospitality experts think could hurt the city’s chances of landing the 2018 Super Bowl. But there’s no consensus on whether the city should go more upscale.
Work starting on French Lick Resort expansion
A ceremony was held Monday to mark the start of a $15.5 million expansion of the events center at the French Lick Resort in southern Indiana.
Long way to go to fill expanded Indiana Convention Center
Eighteen months after the expansion opened, indicators of success are mixed.
Crafting Indianapolis’ convention biz took guts
Ex-Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Association chief Bill McGowan weighs the pay-off.
IUPUI to show off elaborate game at Gen Con
The entire Indiana Convention Center will be the stage for the game, which uses video mapping and projectors that will create a large crystalline display showing the game results. The four-day Gen Con event begins Thursday.
Crowd funding taps passionate fan base for fantasy figurines
A growing number of small game companies will join a pantheon of industry titans starting Aug. 15 at the Gen Con Indy gaming convention. The small guys are there largely because they can get the money they need to keep themselves alive via the fundraising technique known as “crowd funding” or “crowd sourcing.”
HENEGAR: Proposed panhandling ban appears unconstitutional
The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana believes in the power of the First Amendment to give the powerless a voice. Our constitutional right to free expression allows us to confront our greatest challenges, including poverty and homelessness.
San Diego tourism market significantly larger than Indy’s
A side-by-side comparison of the tourism and convention industries in Indianapolis and San Diego.
LOU’S VIEWS: The critics are coming … the critics are coming
Journalists from San Francisco to D.C. and from New Haven to New Orleans descend on Indy for a first-ever critical mass of theater.
QUICK HITS: More people visit Philly than Indy despite similar tourism budgets
Philadelphia offers strong historical draws and a plethora of downtown restaurants.
Is Indianapolis becoming too expensive for conventions?
A recent tax increase coupled with cut-rate competition from other cities has Indianapolis-area convention and meeting officials fretting about losing a longtime cost advantage.
City’s tourism agency reports strong 2012
Indianapolis’ hosting of the Super Bowl last February seems to be paying off for Visit Indy, which says the exposure the city received from the game is translating into more visitor interest.
Deal to save racing show had many twists, turns
In a matter of a few months, operators of the Performance Racing Industry show and its upstart rival, the International Motorsports Industry Show, went from being bitter rivals to merging—a deal that will return the world’s largest motorsports trade show to Indianapolis next December.