Throughout March Madness, tourism and sports leaders entertained dozens of prospective clients, pitching the city as a safe place for those groups to host their own big events.
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Local officials are scheduling neighborhood cleanups, public art initiatives and a slew of other efforts to help the city put its best foot forward when March Madness takes over downtown next month.
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The herculean effort over the next 2-1/2 months will involve city and state officials, tourism and civic leaders, and likely thousands of volunteers.
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The tourism bureau’s 62 employees will see their work weeks cut to four days through at least April.
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Greenfield city officials argue that a local not-for-profit group can’t provide proof of ownership for much of the collection of writings, furniture, paintings and other items stored at the James Whitcomb Riley Boyhood Home and Museum.
Overall attendance at Indiana Convention Center events has stagnated, but annual major conventions have seen explosive growth.
Team Indiana is meant to give its members—about three dozen tourism and sports organizations across Indiana—better access to resources that will get the attention of sports governing bodies that decide where to play events.
Mario Rodriguez, executive director of the Indianapolis Airport Authority, said activity has dropped to as low as 5% of typical operations, with the the facility serving only 14 of its 53 destinations.
Combined, the events were expected to draw in upwards of $35 million in revenue for local businesses, including hotels and restaurants.
Officials say no events have been canceled locally, but groups—including the NCAA and Visit Indy—are watching the news and weighing their options.
State lawmakers passed legislation during the 2019 session that allowed the Indiana Office of Tourism Development, which is under Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch and funded by the state budget, to become a quasi-governmental corporation as of July 1, 2020.
While the city and Kite Realty Group discuss a slower development timetable for the massive hospitality project, White Lodging said it is holding off on plans for another downtown hotel “until we figure out what’s going on at Pan Am Plaza.”
The Indianapolis City-County Council on Monday overwhelmingly approved proposals to help fund the Capital Improvement Board’s long-term strategic plan, including chipping in $270 million to help fund a massive overhaul of Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
The five-day NFL Combine has been hosted in Indianapolis since 1987, and efforts are underway to ensure the showcase calls the city home for the next several years.
The proposal would turn the Office of Tourism Development into the Indiana Destination Development Corp., a quasi-governmental group that could accept funding from tourism organizations.
A record 28.8 million people visited the Indianapolis in 2017, generating a $5.4 billion economic impact, according to figures released Wednesday afternoon by Visit Indy as part of its State of Tourism event.
A bill filed by Senate Appropriations Chairman Ryan Mishler would extend the life of multiple tourism- and entertainment-related taxes that help fund the Capital Improvement Board and expand the footprint of what’s known as the Professional Sports Development Area to capture even more tax revenue for the CIB. But there’s a catch.
Nearly 30 years after coming to Indianapolis to head the city’s convention efforts, Barney Levengood is retiring later this year.
The city’s tourism agency plans to ask the Marion County Capital Improvement Board of Managers for an increase in funding, but is planning a slightly smaller overall budget in 2019.
The Capital Improvement Board will seek at least $8 million from lawmakers to help fund what officials say will be a 25-year plan for improvements in the Indiana Convention Center, Bankers Life Fieldhouse and other facilities the CIB owns.
Tourism bureau Visit Indy has spent about $60,000 on advertising over the past two weeks targeting Ohio State and Northwestern fans in Columbus, Ohio, and Chicago.
Hospitality industry observers say this is far from an ideal time for Kite—a publicly traded real estate investment trust specializing in shopping centers—to veer outside its core business and tackle what would be a risky and colossal project that easily could cost more than $600 million.
Guest host Lindsey Erdody (in for Mason King) talks with IBJ reporters Hayleigh Colombo and Anthony Schoettle about the public-private project, the city’s convention business and what remains unknown about the Pan Am Plaza project.
The Capital Improvement Board has selected a Kite Realty Group plan from among three proposals in its effort to expand the city’s convention capacity. The CIB is expected to vote Friday to move the project forward.
