The IBJ Podcast with Mason King

IBJ reporter Mickey Shuey broke the story last month that Indy Eleven majority owner Ersal Ozdemir has purchased the Diamond Chain industrial site downtown to be home to Eleven Park, a mixed-use development that is to include a 20,000-seat soccer stadium. Shuey joins the IBJ Podcast this week to discuss the Diamond Chain site, which is located at the corner of South and West streets downtown, and...

Ryan Vaughn has spent the past eight years leading the Indiana Sports Corp., a job that requires constant work attracting big sports events to the city and then pulling them off once they arrive. The goal is to always have a pipeline of events coming to help bolster the region's tourism industry and economy overall. IBJ reporter Mickey Shuey (in for vacationing host Mason King) talks with Vaughn a...

The city has endorsed a $175 million proposal from two Indianapolis-based developers to significantly recast the entire block that contains the Indianapolis City Market. The proposal from Gershman Partners and Citimark included the following: A $90 million redevelopment of the Gold Building (which is the 9thlargest office complex downtown) into an apartment building with 350 units and an entirely...

The amount of venture capital invested into Indiana-based tech companies was down overall in the first quarter of the year—despite several recent announcements. That tracks with national trends, and has local venture firms urging their portfolio companies to think about ways to make their cash last longer. IBJ tech reporter Susan Orr talked with local tech firms and venture funders about the trend...

The name Leslie Bailey might ring a bell. She was a reporter for The Indianapolis Star from 2012 to 2016 and penned a regular column titled "The Adventuress." She’d jump into some new sport or activity or an unusual situation and write about it. As she discusses in the latest edition of the IBJ Podcast, taking risks is in her DNA. In 2019, Bailey and business partner Amanda Kingsbury co-founded In...

Carmaker Stellantis NV made big news in Indiana last week when it announced it will build a $2.5 billion electric-vehicle battery plant in Kokomo with partner Samsung SDI. The plant—which is expected to employ 1,400 people—is one step in a fledgling transition in the auto industry from vehicles with internal combustion engines to those with electric motors.  But what does that transition mean for...

As most racing fans know, Doug Boles is president of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. But that title isn’t quite adequate. Boles is the Speedway’s chief evangelist, its omnipresent public face and its buck-stops-here customer service guru. Beyond presiding over the day-to-day management of a 300-acre venue that hosts dozens of large, complicated events annually, Boles is the protector of its legac...

When Larry Myers was mayor of Greenwood in the 1970s, about 20,000 people lived in the Johnson County city. Today, Larry's son, Greenwood Mayor Mark Myers, leads a city of more than 64,000. But he says some of the most important duties haven't changed: Fill potholes, pick up the trash and plow the snow (without blocking anyone's driveways).  Still, Greenwood has definitely changed. And during Mark...

In the latest issue of IBJ, financial advice columnist Peter "Pete the Planner" Dunn shares a letter from reader who for undisclosed reasons has spent a great deal of the money that he made through a successful business. It’s evident from the letter that this person has hit an emotional low. And in his response, Dunn addresses the dangers of linking your self worth to your financial worth. IBJ Pod...

Best-selling author Michael Koryta of Bloomington based his book, “So Cold the River,” at the West Baden Hotel in Orange County. In fact, you could argue the hotel is essentially a character in the book. And so when it came time to make "So Cold the River" into a movie, there could be no other spot to do it. Enter Pete Yonkman, president of the hotel's owner, Cook Group. Yonkman is friends with Ko...

As spring turns into the month of May and Indy 500 season, broadcaster Kevin Lee is reviewing his notes for many hours on radio and TV, explaining the nuances of IndyCar and its drivers to fans. Lee has had a 30-year history covering sports, a career that included doing play-by-play work for the Indianapolis Colts and the Indiana Pacers but is focused today largely on auto racing. He’s in the pits...

Elanco Animal Health on March 12 broke ground on its $100 million headquarters campus on the former GM stamping plant site just west of downtown Indianapolis. CEO Jeff Simmons explains why the project is far more than simply an office building. He tells host Mason King that the goal is to create what the company calls "a post-COVID workplace destination" that attracts talent to the city and the co...

Matt Gentry was just 26 when he was elected mayor of Lebanon in 2015, after running a campaign in which he argued it was time for the Boone County city to embrace change, attract jobs and revitalize its downtown. Since then, Lebanon has become one of the fastest growing communities in the state—both in terms of population and commercial development. And now, the state is negotiating to buy as many...

The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra announced last week that Andrea Bocelli, the operatic star who has sold more than 90 million albums worldwide, will perform Dec. 7 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse along with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. In this week's episode of the podcast, IBJ arts reporter Dave Lindquist talks with James Johnson, the CEO of the orchestra, about how the show came to be and wh...

Anyone who has driven past a car lot knows that dealers have virtually no inventory. So what do you do if you need a car? IBJ personal finance column Peter "Pete the Planner" Dunn found himself in just that predicament recently. And he tells host Mason King that shopping for a car was like nothing he's experienced before. Buyers have no negotiating power. Zilch, he says. And that's because there a...

The Children's Museum of Indianapolis has just reopened its Dinosphere exhibit after a year of renovations that added two huge long-necked sauropods and a new prehistoric marine area—all based on bones found in a museum-owned dig site. CEO Jennifer Pace Robinson, who took on the museum's top job about a year ago, talks with Mason King about the importance of the exhibit, the logistics of hanging a...

Hoosiers For Good Inc., the brainchild in part of Cook Medical Group President Pete Yonkman, is a new organization that is looking to pay Indiana University athletes to represent and promote Indiana not-for-profit organizations. Just a year ago, such an arrangement would not have been possible. But last summer—under pressure advocates for student-athletes as well as  states legislatures and Congre...

Buying a franchise is one way to become an entrepreneur—and it can be an effective way. You’re starting with an established brand, some built-in marketing and, hopefully, a solid business plan provided by your franchisor. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Just ask Lori Meyer, owner and operator of Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh in Zionsville, and Melinda Rowan, owner and operator of The Human Bean at...

In 2020, Colts owners Jim Irsay and daughters Kalen Jackson, Carlie Irsay-Gordon and Casey Foyt launched the "Kicking the Stigma" campaign to boost awareness about mental illness and raise money to help not-for-profits expand addiction and mental health treatment. Since then, the effort has committed more than $16 million to local and national organizations—and most of that was donated directly by...

Entrepreneur Madame C.J. Walker. International sports star Marshall “Major” Taylor. The Indiana Avenue commercial and entertainment district. Crispus Attucks High School. The foundations and luminaries of Black history in Indianapolis have received due attention in recent decades and have been the subjects of books and documentaries. But there hasn’t been an authoritative history of African Americ...

Stephen Goldsmith is the Indianapolis mayor who pushed Circle Centre Mall into reality some 27 years ago. But he's not surprised the mall needs some reimagining—something its owners are now undertaking. In fact, Goldsmith—who is now a professor at the Harvard Kennedy School—says he's surprised the mall remained as successful as it did for long. That's because the project was less about creating a...

The Legislature is debating a bill that could clear a path for nuclear energy to come to Indiana, a controversial move that could help the state reduce its reliance on fossil fuels. Indiana has never had a nuclear plant—and the one attempt to local one in southern Indiana failed when the utility building it ran out of money. So why are Indiana and other states talking about nuclear power now? IBJ...

Following an unexpectedly strong year for the stock market, 2022 is starting with far more volatility, as concern about interest rate hikes and lingering supply chain issues have kept investors jumping. So what do you do as you watch the balance in your 401(k) fund rise and fall (and so far this year, mostly fall)? IBJ investing columnist Mickey Kim said to stick with your plan—which probably mean...

In a wide-ranging conversation with IBJ reporter Dave Lindquist, Tom Griswold — Tom of "The Bob & Tom Show" — talks about working with his sons (one on the air and one off), recovering from heart surgery and the future of the iconic radio program.  Plus, Griswold offers his take on the show's cast, including Chick McGee, Kristi Lee and Ace Cosby. The IBJ Podcast is brought to you by Taft.

The 150-acre estate of the late Indianapolis philanthropist Christel DeHaan is on the market for $14 million, with the proceeds earmarked for an endowment that will help support and expand Christel House International, which operates schools in poor areas around the world. Host Mason King talks with Mike Johnson, the Sothebys International agent who has listed the property, about what makes the ho...