Indiana Business Magazine articles from December 2008

Indiana Business Magazine archives from December 2008

Shrinking pains: property tax caps and budget realities for Indiana communities.(INDIANA INDICATORS)
December 1, 2008... DURING THE COMING weeks a number of Indiana cities and counties are coming to terms with their new budget realities. The property tax caps which will be phased-in over the next two years have prompted discussion of "economic emergency"...

Civic pride: Indiana welcomes new Greensburg assembly plant.(AROUND INDIANA)
December 1, 2008... IN THE WORST OF automotive times, it was the best of news. And it arrived with an Indiana dateline. While recent headlines have been dominated by worries over the precarious fates of domestic automakers and falling sales of most other...

All American fuel: CountryMark refines oil from the Midwest, not the Middle East. And Hoosier farmers reap the rewards.(Cover story)
December 1, 2008... IT WAS EASY TO DESPISE the oil industry last summer, when gas prices were in the stratosphere and it felt like there was a direct pipeline emptying your wallet into the sands of the Middle East. Consider, though, that your neighbor here in...

Risk & reward: winners of IU's Indiana Entrepreneurial Leadership Awards.(ENTREPRENEURS)(Company overview)
December 1, 2008... BOB LAIKIN HAS LEARNED a few lessons in entrepreneurial leadership over the last 20 years as he's led Brightpoint into its initial public offering and highflying days on Wall Street and then through periods of rapid declines, restructuring and...

Indiana's best hospitals: top 10 percent nationally in a dozen specialties.(HOSPITALS)
December 1, 2008... HEALTHGRADES, THE nation's leading independent provider of health-care ratings, recently announced its Excellence Awards for 2009. Quite a few Indiana hospitals made it into the top tier, which represents the top 10 percent of hospitals...

Hoosier hospitality: an update on Indiana hotel groups.(HOTELS)
December 1, 2008... BUSINESS TRAVEL MAY be down, but Indiana-based hotel groups are investing for the future. Dora Brothers Hospitality Corp., Fishers, continues to build its Indiana footprint, with 17 hotels now and several more planned to open through 2011....

West Baden Springs picked a top U.S. resort.(HOTELS)
December 1, 2008... READERS OF CONDE NAST Travel scored West Baden Springs Hotel high in its annual ranking published in the November 2008 issue. The hotel finished in the top 25 among the Top 75 Mainland U.S. Resorts. Tied at 21st with resorts in Arizona and...

Indiana's largest hotels.
December 1, 2008... Indianapolis Marriott Downtown 350 W. Maryland St. Indianapolis 615 rooms Belterra Casino Resort & Spa 777 Belterra Dr. Florence 608 rooms Westin Indianapolis Hotel 50 S. Capitol Ave. Indianapolis...

Trash into treasure: Indiana company to make ethanol from municipal solid waste.
December 1, 2008... IT MADE FOR GREAT comedy in "Back to the Future." At the end, Christopher Lloyd's character returned from the future in his DeLorean time machine, having replaced the vehicle's nuclear reactor with a fusion energy source powered by household...

Northeast Indiana update: the region's top business stories.(REGIONAL REPORT: NORTHEAST)
December 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] HEALTHCARE CAPITAL investments, a few new manufacturers and expansions at other industries are among the bright spots in northeast Indiana, where many are facing challenges from a tightened economy Two new...

Eating your cake and keeping it, too: or how leveraged recapitalization can solve a dilemma.(ADVICE : FINANCIAL)
December 1, 2008... MANY BUSINESS OWNERS who serve as president of their businesses face a thorny dilemma as they "mature". Their financial advisors tell them to diversify; to shift from wealth creation to wealth preservation. They want to enjoy some of the finer...

Growing with innovation: guarding your company's ideas with patents.(ADVICE : LEGAL)
December 1, 2008... ENTREPRENEURS TELL ME that they build their businesses on ideas. The ideas might tangible--like a new product or feature--or might embody a vision of value. Unfortunately, ideas can be stolen, and copycats can undercut innovators on price....

Building green tech: fostering a strong investment climate will help Indiana.(VIEWPOINT)
December 1, 2008... OVER THE LAST DECADE, Indiana has focused on promoting such sectors as life sciences and logistics. It has made steady progress in these sectors. But Indiana has yet to embrace the extraordinary potential of 'green tech'--zero-carbon...