The Indiana Pacers and the Marion County Capital Improvement Board have reached a deal to keep professional basketball in Indianapolis for the long-haul. On the most recent (i) on Economic Development, Tim Cook and Katie Culp join Gerry Dick to discuss the benefits of the City’s reinvestment in this very important economic asset, as well as other hot topics making Indiana news headlines.
Culp states that the Indiana Pacers are part and parcel of our reputation and economy, so the multi-million dollar deal was necessary. Cook agrees. “The Pacers deal isn’t a jobs deal. It’s about what it gives to the broader community.”
Cook and Culp have held fast to the notion that Indianapolis’ quality-of-place strategy centered on sports and conventions has not only worked, it has created a domino effect of economic success:
Indianapolis … developed a quality-of-place strategy decades ago that eventually came to fruition and continues to be refined. Over the course of many mayoral administrations, the city created a downtown symbiotic based on sports and conventions as attractions. Now, with that strategy firmly in place and flourishing, Indy has leveraged its burgeoning downtown to find success in the tech industry. Many recent projects in this space, including the Salesforce and Infosys deals, are objective proof of this winning approach. The quality of place Indianapolis has built around downtown has been an indispensable part of this strategy. –What Makes Up Quality of Place?
Other topics covered on the show include the record number of retail closures in the United States and its effect on cities like Indianapolis, hate crime legislation recently signed by Gov. Holcomb, and workforce development happenings in the current Indiana legislative session.
Catch (i) on Economic Development each month on insideindianabusiness.com, or get the show delivered straight to your inbox by subscribing to the KSM Location Advisors blog at ksmlocationadvisors.com/blog.