Indianapolis Business Journal back issues from October 2007:
Desperate home builders?
Oct 01, 2007; ... For most of this decade, the Indianapolis residential real estate market enjoyed a very good run. But now it's muddling through the doldrums just like the rest of the country. and builders are pulling out all the stops to avoid getting stuck with inventory. "There are just not a lot of ...
Mellencamp is selling trucks, but not tunes
Oct 01, 2007; ... Hoosier rocker John Mellencamp is helping Chevrolet sell more trucks, but he's having less luck when it comes to selling his records. In November, Mellencamp embarked on his first major commercial campaign, selling his song "Our Country" to Chevrolet for its Silverado pickup truck ...
Indiana salivating for culinary tourists
Oct 01, 2007; ... The Mississippi Delta has its hot tamale trail. Alabama and Texas boast a Southern BBQ byway. Now Indiana is getting in the game with planned candy and pork tender-loin trails. State boosters are looking to tap into a growing travel industry niche: culinary tourism. These are travelers ...
Atterholt's toughness questioned
Oct 01, 2007; ... As complaints and problems mounted at Benicorp Insurance Co. this spring, Indiana Insurance Commissioner Jim Atterholt did two things to protect its customers. He went to court to force the Indianapolis health insurer into receivership, and he asked other health insurers to pitch plans ...
Convention faithful are sticking it out
Oct 01, 2007; ... The Indiana Convention Center isn't big enough for some large trade shows, but Indianapolis' location and hospitality are enough to keep certain customers coming back. Despite losing locally based Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association's CEDIA Expo and California-based ...
Wrestling over Retail
Oct 01, 2007; ... A six-word slogan on the Web site of Premier Properties USA Inc. sums up the Indianapolis-based company's approach to business: "Entrepreneurship with a Bit of Daring." Its no exaggeration. The company's proposal for Venu - a 2.3-million-square-foot, $750 million development at 86th ...
Lilly, Emisphere settle drug dispute
Oct 01, 2007; ... Eli Lilly and Co. has agreed to pay $18 million to settle a bitter dispute with New York-based Emisphere Technologies Inc. Emisphere announced the settlement agreement Sept. 26, but gave no details. The agreement still needs approval from U.S. District Court Judge David Hamilton in ...
Plans plug downtown 'gaps'
Oct 01, 2007; ... Now that most of the existing buildings along South Meridian Street downtown have been rehabbed for condos, restaurants or hotels, developers are eyeing surface parking lots. Local companies filed plans recently to replace two such gaps in the Wholesale District streetscape with ...
IEDC life sciences head is all about connections
Oct 01, 2007; ... In July, the Indiana Economic Development Corp. named David A. Boncosky its director of life sciences. On Sept. 25, he sat down with IBJ. IBJ: Tell us about yourself and your background. BONCOSKY: I grew up in a family business that was sold in 2000. It was called HPS Inc. We ...
Landlords bring pipe to fight with regulators
Oct 01, 2007; ... The state's apartment industry, backed by firms that landlords hire to bill their tenants for water and sewer service, says state officials are legally all wet if they try to regulate the industry as utilities. Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission jurisdiction "does not extend to the ...
FlowCo in verge
Oct 01, 2007; ... Drug-coated stents, which are used to open clogged arteries, can be life savers - if they're implanted correctly. The $6 billion global stent market has come under scrutiny lately from doctors and researchers concerned that poor technique by cardiologists may contribute to rare but ...
Chemical giant diversifies biotech portfolio
Oct 01, 2007; ... Jerome Peribere has a 10-year plan to diversify Dow AgroSciences LLC, Indiana's largest agricultural chemical company. Biotechnology is the blueprint. And through a series of aggressive international deals, Dow AgroSciences is building the framework for its future. By 2015, Peribere ...
Chasing the American dream
Oct 01, 2007; ... Tom Foreman had worked for other contractors, but in 1993 he decided the time was right for him and his wife, Donna, to start their own business. So they founded Leader Corporation of Indiana, which provides control systems (think temperature controls, security and automation systems) ...
Capital key topic at forum
Oct 01, 2007; ... The pulse of Indiana's fledgling life sciences sector will be taken later this month at an annual conference featuring some of the industry's strongest advocates. Experts will weigh in on several topics ranging from the discovery of technology to accessing capital, which is a growing ...
Payola alleged by radio exec
Oct 01, 2007; ... Radio One Indiana's former controller has filed a civil lawsuit against the company charging she was terminated because of her race after she raised concerns about fraud and payola in relation to the company's financial statements. Denise Redding claims she was fired in July 2006, three ...
Supreme Industries Inc.
Oct 01, 2007; ... Supreme Industries Inc., 2581 E. Kercher Road, Goshen, 46528 (www.supremeind.com) manufactures specialized truck bodies produced to customer specification. It also manufactures the Star-Trans line of special purpose shuttle buses. For the quarter ended July 1, the company reported net income of ...
Patent dispute threatens Suros Surgical Systems
Oct 08, 2007; ... An intellectual property tussle dating back to the origins of Suros Surgical Systems Inc. is threatening to become more than a headache for the local medical-device maker. Founded in 2000, Suros was one of the fastest-growing high-tech startups in Indianapolis history. Its machine for ...
Benefits get test at Marsh
Oct 08, 2007; ... Marsh Supermarkets Inc.'s decision to offer its employees a health reimbursement account as their only health insurance option this year has captured the attention of local employers and benefits consultants. If Marsh succeeds at totally replacing traditional health insurance with a ...
Ralston Square aims high
Oct 08, 2007; ... A local development team is working on a 10-story, mixed-use tribute to a man who helped design the original plan for Indianapolis, Alexander Ralston. The $60 million project, dubbed Ralston Square, would feature a 150-room hotel, 55 condos, a 617-space parking garage and 41,000 square ...
Players benched for new Pacers ads
Oct 08, 2007; ... The Indiana Pacers recently rolled out a marketing initiative that was in sharp contrast to last year's campaign, which prominently featured players and proclaimed, "It's up to us." This year's new television, radio and print advertisements appear with not a whisper from or mention of ...
Arts void filled by 'coach'
Oct 08, 2007; ... When Shannon Linker went to work for the Arts Council of Indianapolis in mid-2002, it was a typical pass-through organization - regranting city money to local arts groups. Its leaders hobnobbed with movers and shakers at the local notfor-profits, but they didn't have a lot of direct contact ...
Indiana fighting fiber deal
Oct 08, 2007; ... Indiana University and the state's Office of Technology have sought an emergency order from regulators to halt a Colorado company's further assimilation of an Indianapolis fiber provider it bought Oct. 1. They say Zayo Bandwidth's plans for Indiana Fiber Works may threaten a ...
Coastal appeal
Oct 08, 2007; ... Silicon Valley venture capitalist Jack Gill doesn't know Mitch Daniels personally. Gill is not a Hoosier, and he doesn't typically get involved in Indiana polities. He doesn't even always vote Republican. Nonetheless, he's got a strong opinion about Daniels' job performance. "I ...
Attorney 'escapes' from the infamous Rock
Oct 08, 2007; ... Carolyn Clay has been swimming for as long as she can remember. The 29-year-old attorney at Indianapolis law firm Haskin Lauter LaRue & Gibbons was a competitive swimmer in high school and college. Now she's a member of a local master's swim team in Indianapolis, Indy SwiniFit, which ...
Conseco predicting 'long-term' recovery
Oct 08, 2007; ... Carmel-based Conseco Inc. executives expect the company's struggling long-term-care insurance business to turn a profit by next year, the insurer said during a conference call Sept. 27. Conseco's long-term-care insurance unit no longer sells the policies, but must manage older ...
Mental health parity gets closer to reality
Oct 08, 2007; ... Local mental health advocates are applauding a U.S. Senate bill passed last month that would require equal health insurance coverage for mental and physical ailments when policies cover both. The bill, which passed unanimously, moves advocates one step closer in their long-fought quest ...
Loss of institute may polarize Statehouse debate
Oct 08, 2007; ... If the Indiana Fiscal Policy Institute remains shuttered due to a lack of funds, the public won't notice immediately. After all, the Indianapolis-based organization focused on long-term analysis of complicated communal questions, such as how to equalize property taxes, diversify state pensions ...
Florist's business is blooming
Oct 08, 2007; ... In just more than three years, Erika White and Meredith Moynahan have moved from employees of someone else's flower shop to owners of a fast-growing retail florist with a reputation for unusual arrangements. Posh Petals Inc. opened its doors in July 2004, just a few months after the ...
Wellness working for Goodwill workers
Oct 08, 2007; ... Why pay to get employees healthy if they're likely to leave in a few years? That used to be the killer question for wellness and disease management programs. But that attitude is changing. And employers like Goodwill Industries of Central Indiana are a good example of why. The ...
PEOs bouncing back following shakeout
Oct 08, 2007; ... Even though Sentelligence Inc. in Noblesville has only five employees, the tiny tech firm offers an appealing benefits package rivaling that of a large corporation. The designer of diagnostic sensing devices for diesel engines has not discovered the Holy Grail of human resources. Rather, ...
Is justice blind?
Oct 08, 2007; ... Women have made great strides in the field of law during the past half century, but for those called to the practice are still many acres to plow and seeds ant before they can fully reap the benefits of a career in the legal profession. It is still unusual to have women presid ing over a ...
Marketing firm broadens offerings, narrows focus
Oct 08, 2007; ... In the last year, Hetrick Communications has hired 10 employees, added a major new client, and changed its focus. What was once primarily a public relations firm is now also an advertising agency targeting health care and life sciences. On the heels of the changes, Hetrick actually wants ...
NOT-FOR-PROFIT OF NOTE: Agape Therapeutic Riding Resources Inc.
Oct 08, 2007; ... 24950 Mount Pleasant Road Cicero, 46034 Phone: (317) 773-7433 Fax: (317) 984-9103 Web site: www.agaperiding.org Founded: 1986 Paid employees: 15 Highest-paid staff member: Cheryl Miller, executive director, $53,560 Top volunteers: ...
Health forecast: Higher costs, stubborn barriers
Oct 08, 2007; ... The future for health care in Indianapolis and the nation is predicted to look much like the present and the past-costs will rise and some people will be hindered from receiving care. That's the prevailing message gathered by the Center for Studying Health System Change, a Washington, ...
PROXY CORNER: Baldwin & Lyons Inc.
Oct 08, 2007; ... Baldwin & Lyons Inc., L099 N. Meridian St., Indianapolis, 46204 (www.baldwinandlyons.com) markets and underwrites property and casualty insurance. The company acts as an agent and broker, and provides casualty, inland marine, property and other types of insurance. For the quarter ended June ...
Traffic transformation?
Oct 15, 2007; ... To many motorists, it's the prickliest quilt of concrete and steel in the metro area: the convergence of interstates 69 and 465. If the wind is just right, you can hear the cursing for miles. Whether it's southbound I-69 traffic backed up almost to Noblesville, or north-bound I-465 ...
Curb-side businesses
Oct 15, 2007; ... When the phone rings at Neighborhood Pizza, owners Michelle Greenberg and Tami Maslyk jump into action. Dough is prepped and toppings piled on before the pie enters the oven. And the bubbling-hot finished product finishes baking just as the delivery truck pulls into the customer's ...
State feels pain from health care
Oct 15, 2007; ... Is health care making Indiana's economy sick? Spending on health care is rising faster in Indiana than it is across the country. Yet the state's job and income growth continue to lag national norms. In 1991, the average Hoosier spent just 94 cents on health care for every dollar ...
IU business incubator partners with Siberian school
Oct 15, 2007; ... After unwrapping his luggage from its seal of shrink-wrap, Mark Long reviewed his notes for the upcoming seminar. He hardly needed them. Long, CEO of Indiana University's Research and Technology Corp., has spoken many times about how academics transfer their research discoveries to the ...
Heartland's push for national attention is working
Oct 15, 2007; ... Since 1991, the Heartland Film Festival has brought uplifting independent films to Indianapolis every year, building a reputation with time and an impressive $100,000 grand prize for the best feature. Then two years ago, it decided to aim a little higher. With help from a $3.7 ...
Initiative seeks to bolster not-for-profit execs
Oct 15, 2007; ... The local not-for-profit Leadership Ventures plans to pilot a program that teams not-for-profit CEOs in monthly sessions where they'll jointly solve problems at one another's organizations. Besides professional development, the Executive Director Venture Group program seeks to form ...
New leader aim to keep school, students growing
Oct 15, 2007; ... What began in 1994 as a six-room schoolhouse with 38 students has grown into a three-building campus with 602 pupils. The growth of the International School of Indiana, which welcomed a new headmaster this year, has been possible because of increased support from an expanding flock of ...
IEDC ups pressure on park
Oct 15, 2007; ... Shelbyville leaders and residents are grumbling about restrictions the Indiana Economic Development Corp. just slapped on Intelliplex, their $22.8 million certified technology park. Meanwhile 40 miles to the north Anderson officials are cheering IEDC's simultaneous decision to renew the ...
MARTINSVILLE WELCOMES EVERYONE
Oct 15, 2007; ... The town of Martinsville has struggled for years to squash its reputation as closed-minded and racist, but high-profile incidents every few years always seemed to bring the negative image back to the fore. In 1998, local fans verbally assaulted black athletes from Bloomington after a ...
'Landmark moves' jolt local radio
Oct 15, 2007; ... The local radio market's biggest shake-up in more than a decade has almost every commercial station in central Indiana scrambling to attract the thousands of listeners and millions of advertising dollars suddenly up for grabs. Emmis Communications Corp. said Oct. 8 it will move WIBC-AM ...
PROXY CORNER: Celadon Group Inc.
Oct 15, 2007; ... Celadon Group Inc., 9503 E. 33rd St., Indianapolis, 46235, www.celadontrucking.com, is a trucking company that provides service between Canada, the United States and Mexico. For the year ended June 30, 2007, the company reported net income of $22.3 million, or 94 cents per diluted share, on ...
Arcadia Resources HQ lured to city by central location
Oct 15, 2007; ... Arcadia Resources Inc. CEO Marvin Richardson, an Anderson native and Purdue University pharmacy graduate, said Indianapolis was chosen for the company's new headquarters because the city's central location will create an advantage when it launches a new drug-packaging system. The system, ...
Exotic dancer's comp claim upheld by Indiana court
Oct 15, 2007; ... The Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed an injured exotic dancer is entitled to worker's compensation benefits and remanded with instructions to the Full Worker's Compensation Board to determine if she is eligible for double compensation and attorney fees because her company did not have worker's ...
Need for center questioned
Oct 15, 2007; ... Not everyone is welcoming the launch of an Indianapolis-based not-for-profit, backed by billionaire businessmen, that aims to curb colleges' discretion in spending donor contributions. Founders of the newly launched Center for Excellence in Higher Education say development officers don't ...
Rental firm offers 'marvelous' nights
Oct 15, 2007; ... Indiana natives Doug and Nancy Tracey visited Brown County one autumn night in October 1988, looking to buy a vacation retreat. The strains of Van Morrison's "Moondance" played on the car radio - "a marvelous night for a moondance 'neath the cover of October skies." So when the couple ...
Firm sees growth for on-site clinics
Oct 15, 2007; ... Doctors who make house calls are about as obsolete as polio. But a fledgling local company is taking a page from the past and reintroducing the practice to the workplace instead of the home. Rising medical costs and the companies desperate to contain them are driving interest in the ...
Court of Appeals reverses decision over nursing pay
Oct 15, 2007; ... The Court of Appeals ruled Oct. 9 that Indiana's restructured pay plan for nurses is rational and proper, reversing the judgment of the trial court. In Madison State Hospital, Indiana Family & Social Services Administration, and State Personnel Department V. Karen L. Ferguson, the ...
Swancy's Auto Laundry: Car wash does work the hard way
Oct 22, 2007; ... They don't make them like Swancy's Auto Laundry anymore. "It's sort of the last of the old-time car washes," said longtime customer Turner Woodard, an Indianapolis busiiessman and antique car collector. "You can just sit there, read the paper and watch your car get washed ... and dried ...
Small agencies building wealth
Oct 22, 2007; ... Leaders of small not-for-profits often are so concerned with day-to-day survival that they have little - if any - time to worry about saving for the future. A growing number of local organizations are bucking that trend, taking a proactive approach to build an endowment its leaders hope ...
Planners paving way for biotech
Oct 22, 2007; ... City planners have long envisioned a high-tech corridor of life sciences research buildings and businesses extending northwest of down-town to 16th Street. Development will take decades. But Indianapolis finally is taking major steps toward its biotech dream. The city is spending $4 ...
Courting USA hoops
Oct 22, 2007; ... Indianapolis is poised to launch a bid to attract USA Basketball's headquarters from its Colorado Springs home. The not-for-profit national governing body for men's and women's basketball in the United States recently put out a request for proposals for a new headquarters ...
Local corporations maintain FFA convention funding
Oct 22, 2007; ... Indianapolis-area companies are ponying up $1.15 million to help put on this month's National FFA convention, an event expected to draw more than 55,000 members and their chaperones to the city. They're backing the big-budget affair largely because of the access it gives them to future ...
WellPoint adjusts to executive exodus
Oct 22, 2007; ... As the weather turned chillier this month in Indiana, former WellPoint Inc. executive David Helwig enjoyed sunshine, 70-degree temperatures and ocean breezes on the alpaca ranch he and his wife operate in southern California. "I have no regrets leaving," said Helwig, 51, who gave up 55- ...
Power plant opponents claim Duke, governor interfered
Oct 22, 2007; ... Groups opposing Duke Energy's coal gasification plant proposed for Edwardsport allege the utility and Gov. Mitch Daniels tried to sway regulators with improper contact and political pressure to get the $2 billion plant approved. They "are clearly trying to back-door the public ...
Can multilevel marketing cure high drug costs?
Oct 22, 2007; ... Here's a new strategy to control spiraling drug prices: multilevel marketing. That's right. A new company called NuLegacy International LLC is deploying the tactics of Amway Corp. to give Americans - particularly those without health insurance - a break on prescription drug ...
District tests anti-tax mood
Oct 22, 2007; ... A north-side Marion County school district is reigniting the property-tax furor by rolling out a plan to spend as much as $200 million on renovations and new construction. Washington Township is the first school district in the county to unveil major capital projects since residents ...
Westfield on verge of development boom
Oct 22, 2007; ... In the top drawer of an old desk in the basement of Westfield Town Hall, there is a small steno-style notebook filled with fraying, hand-written pages. It's where town planners kept track of building permits for more than a decade starting in the 1960s. This was a tiny town then, where ...
Reuse authority leader feels at home in new role
Oct 22, 2007; ... Cassandra Ashley-Jordan is literally returning home to become the new executive director of The Fort Harrison Reuse Authority. Ashley-Jordan, who was named head of the authority Oct. 15, spent years of her childhood living at the former military base while her father, an officer, served ...
'Aggressive moves' feed Flaherty & Collins' growth
Oct 22, 2007; ... David Flaherty and Jerry Collins left comfortable vice president gigs at a local real estate firm to strike out on their own in 1993. Roughly two years passed before the two former Revel Cos. executives received another paycheck. But the gamble eventually paid off handsomely ....
Carmel claims victory in latest annexation court case
Oct 22, 2007; ... Carmel has another appellate victory on the issue of annexation after an Indiana Court of Appeals ruling on Oct. 17. The state's second-highest appellate court decided that the city adequately proved it could afford to annex part of a nearby community into its municipal borders, and that ...