Site Selection

The Indianapolis region is home to nearly 2,000 Indiana information technology firms, and IT executives predict that number to rise with the completion of another new state-of-the-art data center being built by LightBound on the west side of the city of Indianapolis.

President Jack Carr of LightBound said the new data center will be an asset to Indiana site selection and has the potential to bring more software service providers and even other leading IT targeted companies such as ExactTarget to the Indianapolis Region.

ExactTarget, a fast growing IT company with roots in e-mail marketing, will be a major tenant in the new data center. ExactTarget COO Scott McCorkle said the new facility was a critical aspect of ExactTarget choosing to expand and invest in Indiana and the Indianapolis Region.

PHOTO CAPTION: The new LightBound data center, located on the west side of Indianapolis at 650 West Henry Street.

This 47,000 sq. ft. state-of-the-art data center is tornado proof; has the latest power, cooling and communications technologies; and is a Tier IV facility, meaning it guarantees 99.995 percent availability and is designed to host mission-critical computer systems. When it comes to data centers, there are different types or levels, and each is classified in terms of tiers being either a I, II, III or IV Tier. The higher the tier, the higher the accessibility.

Indiana and Indianapolis region IT executives are eager and excited for this new data center to further stimulate the growth of Indiana information technology. this excitement was captured in a recent press release from TechPoint, an initiative of the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership and a sister organization in technology-related Indiana economic development to Indy Partnership:

Despite last year being the worst year in more than a decade (since 1997, to be exact) for venture capital nationally, investors are betting on Indiana’s high-tech entrepreneurs, with Indiana growing in total revenue investment by nearly 70 percent over 2008, which surpassed 2007 by 40 percent, according to the PricewaterhouseCoopers National Venture Capital Association Money Tree Report.

“The latest Cyberstates report from the TechAmerica Foundation shows that the state added tech jobs during the downturn, even as the rest of the private sector was making cuts,” said Jim Jay, president and CEO of TechPoint. “When the rest of the economy starts catching up, Hoosier high-tech companies will be leading the way.”

Read the INside Indiana Business Article and learn more about Indiana information technology.

No one living anywhere near Indianapolis could imagine the nation's 14th largest city without White River State Park -- home to the Indianapolis Zoo and White River Gardens; Indiana State Museum and IMAX Theater; Eiteljorg Museum of Native American art, history and culture; NCAA headquarters and the NCAA Hall of Champions; Victory Field and the Indianapolis Indians Triple-A baseball team; The Lawn outdoor concert venue; and the Central Canal waterway.

However, without a plan developed in cooperation with the American Institute of Architects in the 1970s, the west edge of downtown Indianapolis might never have become the laudable quality of life and economic development engine that it is today.

Forty years later, Indianapolis and indeed the Indianapolis Region as a whole is at another major crossroads that will have significant and long-term impact on the people who live in the region, on Indiana site selection and Midwest economic development in general.

This time, the plan takes a comprehensive look at regional public transportation, with a blueprint developed by a task force led by Allan Hubbard, co-founder of locally based acquisition firm E&A Industries and an economic adviser to both Bush administrations. The group also included representatives of the Greater Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce, Central Indiana Corporate Partnership (the nonprofit parent organization of Indy Partnership) and Central Indiana Community Foundation.

This group evaluated transportation investments with an eye towards return on investment, using a rigorous cost-benfit model and focusing on issues like workforce mobility, transit-oriented development and neighborhood redevelopment.  (Read more about the potential economic benefits of the plan here on the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership blog.)

Major enhancements to public transit such as the proposed new in-street light rail, ground-level commuter train, and expanded bus service, bike and pedestrian paths are helpful to the economic development cause. According to an IBM study conducted for Indy Partnership, these types improvements will be viewed by SOME site selection consultants and their clients as a "key project driver," and by ALL consultants and their clients as a positive contributor to the Indianapolis region's business climate, infrastructure and living environment. 

Visit indyconnect.org or read the official press release to learn more about the proposed comprehensive regional transportation plan. Click on the map to view specific proposed routes and transportation modes.

• Largest Life Sciences Companies (Statewide) - Available as point data on "Map Overlays"
• Manufacturing Employment (Region) - Available as county-level thematic layer
• Logistics Employment (Region) - Available as county-level thematic layer
• 2007-2008 Population Change (Region) - Available as county-level thematic layer

• Allison Transmission
• Delphi
• EnerDel
• Magna E-Car
• Remy

Inaugural Real Estate Trends in Indiana Report to be released at "Emerging Trends in Real Estate" event on Nov. 18

The ups and downs and areas of opportunity within the real estate industry have great impact on economic development here in the 10-county Indianapolis Region and across the nation. As critical as superb transportation, distribution and logistics infrastructure as well as world-class workforces are, real estate issues can make or break a business relocation or expansion project.

"It is the combination of our assets that gives the Indianapolis Region its competitive advantage over the coasts and neighboring states,” said Ron Gifford, president and CEO of the Indy Partnership. “Having better access to rail service and interstates wouldn’t do us much good if our real estate rental rates were three or four times higher like they are in California and Florida, for example.

“That’s why we are supporting the Urban Land Institute Indiana as a sponsor of its upcoming ‘Emerging Trends in Real Estate’ event and why we are particularly eager to see its Real Estate Trends in Indiana Report become a successful annual resource.”

According to Area Development magazine’s 2007 Annual Corporate Survey, real estate issues were said to be “important” and “very important” by between 79 percent and 89 percent of all respondents when ranking their expansion and relocation priorities. These issues range from availability of buildings and land, construction costs, “fast-track” permitting, energy considerations and residential housing availability and costs. In fact, real estate issues account for three of the top five site selection factors tracked by the survey.

According to Matt Waldo, director of research for the Indy Partnership, the Indianapolis metropolitan area ranks as the “second most affordable” among 46 major metro areas for industrial warehouse rental rates (based on 2008 Mid-Year Market Report data from Cushman&Wakefield) and is highly competitive in Class A and Class B office space.

“The Indy Partnership was directly involved in the decision making process for seven of the 10 largest real estate lease transactions in Indianapolis from the middle of 2007 through the middle of 2008, and I can tell you with the highest degree of certainty that understanding the real estate trends in the Indianapolis Region as they relate to the nation was critical to making the argument to create jobs and invest here. The Urban Land Institute Indiana’s report will enhance our ability to continue this track record of success for our region,” Waldo said.

Learn more about the "Emerging Trends in Real Estate" event .

By: Ron Gifford - President & CEO, The Indy Partnership

In winning the right to host the 2012 Super Bowl, Indianapolis beat out some tough competition: Houston and Phoenix had both hosted the game before, and both offered the promise of sunny weather and plenty of financial incentives for the NFL.

As seen on Inside Indiana Business with Gerry Dick



Despite these advantages, the Indianapolis region scored a victory with a shrewd and aggressive strategy, selling three decades of experience and investment that has made our region uniquely suited to host major championship events.

Now take this three-city contest and expand it to include every metropolitan area in America – and in some cases, around the world. That’s economic development today, a dog-eat-dog competition for new jobs. In this battle, Indianapolis has built a similarly focused approach – combining our geographic advantages and competitive business climate with strengths in industries like the life sciences, advanced manufacturing, logistics, technology and motorsports.

As a football fan, I was happy to hear that Indianapolis landed the big game. But I’m even more excited about this event in my day job as the head of our regional economic development effort. I’m confident that winning the Super Bowl will help us score more victories in the broader competition for business opportunities.

First, there’s the marketing value. The Super Bowl will bring many of the nation’s most influential corporate executives to Indianapolis – a first-time visit for several of them. Why does this matter? Well, we see this phenomenon time and time again: We’ll host someone who’s never been here, and typically they don’t have much of an impression of the region. And then they get to experience first-hand all that our city has to offer, and they are uniformly blown away. “I had no idea what a great city this is,” is a common refrain. Almost nobody moves their company on the spot, but this exposure certainly builds relationships and lays the groundwork for future business relocations or expansions.

Showing our region at its best to the audience of millions who tune in for the game also provides an invaluable brand-building opportunity. My organization, the Indy Partnership, is a consortium of local economic development organizations from ten counties tasked with marketing the region. Funded by private investment, we engage in a program of advertising, public relations, tradeshow participation and personal outreach to site selection consultants and business leaders.

Our efforts have borne success; 2007, for example, saw relocation, expansion and retention projects committed to create nearly 13,500 new jobs and bring new capital investment of $1.36 billion to the region. We’ve won these competitions despite the fact that our leading competitors spend millions on mass advertising to shape public awareness. The Super Bowl erases much of this advantage, bringing a wave of publicity so significant it would be impossible to buy…and if the city manages the event with its typical aplomb and hospitality, the boost to Indianapolis’ image will give us a solid new foundation to build upon.

There’s also the race for human capital. Dynamic economies are fueled by concentrations of talented people – the regions with the most educated workforces also tend to rank high in per capita income and job growth. Today, the Indianapolis metropolitan area ranks above the national average in college graduates as a percentage of the adult population. But this position is threatened by a ‘brain drain’ that sees too many of our young people leave the state after earning their degrees.

To thrive in the knowledge-based economy, we have to attract and retain more educated workers – Richard Florida’s ‘creative class.’ We can’t offer mountains, beaches, or year-round golf weather to entice tomorrow’s workforce. But a steady diet of world-class sports and cultural amenities, with the excitement that comes with hosting high-visibility events like the Super Bowl, helps put Indianapolis on the map as a great place to live, start a career and raise a family.

The Super Bowl will certainly provide a short-term bonanza for our region’s economy, with more than $120 million in direct spending of the course of game week. But the long-term ramifications are even more powerful: If we take full advantage of this opportunity, we’ll be more than just a destination for football fans in four years – we’ll be further down the road towards being a prime destination for capital, new job opportunities and top talent.