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Former Duke retail executive ready for first solo project: Schembre preparing to break ground on $15M Lawrence Commons

A former Duke Realty Corp. executive who hung up her own shingle last year is close to breaking ground on her first project. Cindy Schembre, 49, launched Via Retail Development LLC in January 2007 and is negotiating with tenants and closing on the purchase of 11 acres at 56th Street and Mitthoeffer Road. The $15 million project, known as Lawrence Commons, is an 80,000-square-foot neighborhood center that is slated to break ground in June. The development includes a 45,000-square-foot anchor…

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Soaring cost of gas makes ethanol blend more competitive

Prices of an alternative fuel that’s had patriotic and environmental appeal–but not an economic one for motorists–have been
flirting this month with gasoline on an energy-equivalent cost basis. The sudden but often fleeting price appeal of fuel “E85,”
a blend of ethanol with a dash of gasoline, is due largely to gas prices soaring to nearly $4 a gallon.

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Defaults also hit business property: Experts expecting bump in commercial loan woes

In the few short months since Gordon Hendry began leading the Property Management Division for the local office of CB Richard Ellis, the firm has become involved in a growing number of commercial loan defaults. Locally, CB Richard Ellis is the courtappointed receiver for Plainfield Crossing, a 92,000-square-foot West Washington Street strip center anchored by Value City, and for Crooked Creek Center, a 52,000-square-foot center at 79th Street and Michigan Road. Hendry expects the local office will be assigned to…

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ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: Recession speculation is wrong way to use brainpower

With all the media warnings on the state of the U.S. economy, it is hard to get a good idea what a recession is and what it might mean for Hoosiers. The formal definition of a recession is two consecutive quarters of negative economic growth. We haven’t had even one quarter where real growth dipped below zero, and the weakerthan-usual employment data of the first three months this year won’t be enough to pull the economy into a recession. The…

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VOICES FROM THE INDUSTRY: As business property taxes rise, who really pays the bill?

All Indiana counties revised property tax bills as a result of an outcry by thousands of homeowners who fought back when they saw their 2007 tax reassessments and bills. Assessors had to go back to work and try again. So, they did. The new bills are out, and while it may be good news for homeowners, you can bet commercial property owners aren’t turning cartwheels in the parking lot. The average assessment for commercial properties (where you shop, work and…

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The sum of IU and Purdue

It wasnâ??t so long ago that the thought of Indiana and Purdue universitiesâ?? doing anything of consequence
together was a nonstarter.

Then they began working on economic development together, and later life science projects.

But the person who dreamed up Indianaâ??s first…

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The next Fortune 500 companies

Conseco has dropped off the Fortune 500, leaving WellPoint, Lilly, Cummins and NiSource as the only Indiana companies remaining. Several Indiana firms are closing in on the elite list, though. One is Steel Dynamics, the Fort Wayne company that recycles scrap metal….

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Company seeing big growth in family entertainment: Firm supplies parties with oddball acts from acrobats to mimes to ventriloquists

When Kathy Fitzgerald has a group of 85 day-camp kids to entertain, she needs someone who can hold their attention-easier said than done considering they range in age from 6 to 13, not counting the 12 young adults who work as camp counselors. If an act bombs, the result can be chaos. That’s why Fitzgerald, assistant park manager for Broad Ripple Park, has locally based FamilyTime Entertainment Inc. on her speed dial. FamilyTime can deliver a fully produced magic show,…

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VOICES FROM THE INDUSTRY: There is no better time to think about going global

A weak dollar. Lost jobs. Liquidity challenges. These and other perceived barriers tend to unfortunately mute short-term considerations for Indiana businesses thinking about international expansion. The reality? Globalization of U.S. businesses is alive and well, and proceeding at a breakneck pace. In fact, America and the world remain embroiled in likely the greatest commercial transformation since the Industrial Revolution with the full integration of U.S. markets in an open era of innovation and productivity. How does this play out in…

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International students flock to Purdue, IU: State schools are national leaders in attracting foreign-born scholars

Purdue and Indiana universities have become magnets for international students. Purdue is third in foreign student enrollment among all U.S. private and public colleges and universities. Indiana is No. 15. Another Big Ten school-the University of Illinois-is No. 2. The University of Southern California is the leader, with 7,000 foreign students. Purdue currently has 4,994 foreign students enrolled in graduate and undergraduate programs, while IU has 4,027. This year, overall, there are about 39,102 students enrolled at Purdue’s main campus…

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BEHIND THE NEWS: Plans in beaten-down state test HHGregg’s strategy

HHGregg Inc.’s audacious expansion strategy is about to get its biggest test. Since 1999, the Indianapolis-based electronics and appliance retailer has charged into eight new metro areas, adding 78 stores in such markets as Atlanta; Knoxville, Tenn.; Birmingham, Ala.; and Charlotte, N.C. The company doesn’t tiptoe in. It starts with multiple stores to justify the cost of building distribution infrastructure and launching an advertising blitz. The strategy has allowed it to swiftly build major market shares everywhere it’s gone. Now,…

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IU leader’s goal: global integration: CIBER director wants center’s work to influence all areas of business education

Barbara Flynn, a veteran of academia who arrived at Indiana University in 2006, is director of the IU Center for International Business Education and Research. CIBER, founded in 1981, creates business research and study opportunities for IU faculty and students, with the ultimate goal of preparing graduates to compete in today’s global economy. The center mostly is funded federally and operates on a $500,000 annual budget. The 55-year-old Flynn has a degree in psychology from Ripon College in Wisconsin and…

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ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: How kids do in high school matters to economy

Far too often, our worry about the shortterm state of the economy prevents us from focusing on the long term. That’s too bad because it is the long term, not the short run, that we have the most ability to influence. The most important issue looming for Indiana and the nation is education. Here is the fate of a representative group of 10 18-year-olds. Four years ago, our 10 Hoosier students entered high school. One could not read. As of…

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Docs dip toes into computerized records: Electronic systems are the future, but high costs slow adoption rate

Ask Cathy Molchan the cost of installing the electronic medical record system in a doctor’s office she administers, and she gives a clear, quantified answer: $80,000. Ask her whether the system saves the practice any money, and her answer is less concrete. “It can definitely save money because of the time savings,” said Molchan, practice administrator for Dr. Leo Bonaventura, an infertility specialist at Clarian North Medical Center. “You can actually be focused more on what you need to do,…

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NASCAR ponders following IRL’s lead with ethanol: Green marketing a major motivator for race series

The Indy Racing League was the first North American race series to use an alternative fuel to power its cars. Now it appears NASCAR might follow suit-news that has the attention of race fans and sponsors alike. “We’re looking at eight or nine different alternative fuels,” said Andrew Giangola, NASCAR director of business communication. “Ethanol is one of the alternatives we’re looking at.” NASCAR has put no timetable on adopting an alternative fuel. Because the league switched from leaded, petroleum-based…

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VIEWPOINT: ‘Buy local’ should be rallying cry

In recent months, our governor and mayors across the state proudly have announced business developments and out-of-state companies’ plans to expand or relocate in Indiana. They’ve worked overtime to earn these economic boosts, and they’re to be congrat ulated for helping bolster the state and local economy. But we’re ignoring a simple strategy that could yield many more high-paying jobs: Buy local. Here’s the irony: Pursuing this strategy doesn’t have to cost a dime. No recruiting trips to China, no…

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ECONOMIC ANALYSIS: Sales tax increase helps cut government spending

Indiana’s sales taxes rose a penny this week, to 7 percent. The increase was a necessary remedy to our property tax mess. But it’s worth laying out its impact on our economy. Sales tax is paid by Hoosier residents, visitors and businesses alike. By my estimates, Indiana households will pay $640 million in additional sales taxes, businesses $500 million more, and out-of-state visitors an extra $160 million. The two effects economists might worry about with a tax hike are changes…

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Where are you from?

The terms we use to describe local geography are changing.

â??Central Indianaâ?? is cropping up more often for television stations, Central Indiana Corporate Partnership and
other organizations that extend well outside of Indianapolis. The term can sweep in as much as…

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BEHIND THE NEWS: 2 tech firms planning IPOs get curveball from markets

Aprimo Inc. and ExactTarget Inc. haven’t had to weather the recent stock-market turmoil. Not directly, at least. But the two Indianapolis software companies-which filed plans for IPOs last fall, when markets were comparatively serene-surely would have made their public debuts by now if conditions had remained favorable. Lately, they’ve been anything but. The tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite is off 12 percent in the year. And the volatility of the Dow Jones industrial average is enough to make anyone queasy. One day,…

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