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Indy

Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 10:58:44 am

Indy
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Joined: 15 Jun 2005
Posts: 2316
Location: Indianapolis, IN

This contains some of what I sent to the Mayor's office.

I have a few ideas to help provide a year round boost to the Indianapolis economy. The ideas may touch on a few sensitive issues but if we can overcome the hurdles I believe it will help turn Indianapolis into a popular tourist destination.

The center of all this would be a relatively unused Union Station. As of now the facility is a liability to the city. I think we can turn it into an asset. The idea would be to make it the only casino in the city. That right there touches on a sensitive issue. I wouldn't allow modifications to the facility that would take away from the Union Station charm such as excessive lighting on the exterior that is popular with Vegas style resorts. Restrict signage so that people driving by would for the most part never know the facility was a casino. Perhaps eliminate the use of the word casino or gaming on exterior signs.

With the first part of this plan you would see an immediate impact in the form of retail space leasing at the station. Lease revenue could be used to further enhance Union Station. Enhancements would include remodeling of the rail part of the station and bus depot.

With the first two parts of the plan in place the tax revenue generated from the casino could be used to fund the light rail construction from Indianapolis International Airport to Union Station. The route could continue to the northeast side of town as part of phase one of the cities light rail network. This in itself would open the city to more commerce.

The final part of this plan would be to construct 3 different family vacation centers around town. Ideally they would be in walking distance or a quick shuttle bus ride from Union Station. The items would include an indoor theme park, indoor water park, and indoor ski slope. If you are unfamiliar with indoor ski resorts please check the following link...

http://www.skidubai.com/

So even in the dead of winter in Indianapolis you would have immediate access to items such as the casino, water park, theme park, ski resort, Children's Museum, Indiana State Museum, Circle Center Mall, and any number of Pacer games or Colts games. In the summer you would have the Indians games as well as the Indianapolis Zoo plus any one of the 3 major races.


Your thoughts?

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Boofer

Posted: Fri Feb 16, 2007 02:57:19 pm

Boofer
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Joined: 17 Jun 2005
Posts: 949
Location: Carmel, IN

My thoughts:

1. Gaming in Indianapolis is a non-starter. Mayor Peterson and the mayors before him have consistently said that they do not want gaming in the city. The state legislature would have to approve the additional casino license for Indy, and you'll face oppostion from a large number of lawmakers who would see it as an expansion of gaming. You'll also face opposition from the interests behind the horse racing tracks (who are currently trying to get a bill through the legislature that would allow slot machines at the tracks) and the new casino/hotel/resort developments near French Lick. Rightly or wrongly, casino gaming is seen as non-family friendly, and the big political forces in Indianapolis like to tout our city as being very family-friendly. I personally am also against it, because I'd rather see casinos thrive as resort destinations in places like Lawrenceburg, Rising Sun, French Lick, and on the shores of Lake Michigan. I think having gaming in the city would really change the character of downtown.

2. Light rail connecting the airport to downtown should be the top transportation priority for this city. A viable airport and good public transportation are neccesary for strong, sustained economic development, especially as Indy continues to get bigger. The lack of good public transportation is the most commonly cited need for Indianapolis. I think our lack of public transporation is a big negative when it comes to landing larger and ever more lucrative events, such as the Super Bowl. And it makes sense to start with the new airport. Most new terminals around the world have high-speed rail to link the airport with the downtown city. It will be expensive, and probably won't ever make money, but it's an economic development tool that we need to have. Connecting it to Union Station, however, only makes sense if you're going to develop Union Station into a bigger transportation hub. If you'll have connections there to commuter buses, other (future) rail lines, and improved Amtrak or high-speed intercity rail service, than OK. Otherwise, the light rail from the airport would be better off coming in to the city nearer IUPUI, with maybe 3-4 downtown stops near the campus, near the AUL building, near Circle Center/convention center, and near Conseco Fieldhouse/Lilly/Wellpoint. The light rail extension to the northeast should be next, with stops near the Fairgrounds, Broad Ripple, Castleton, Fishers, and one or two stops in Noblesville. After that, the next route should be from near the Greenwood Park Mall toward downtown. But start with the airport route, absolutely.

3. The indoor theme park ideas and such are OK. But you have to be careful here. There are a lot of choices for people's entertainment dollar already, and you'd have to have a project that can be profitable. I think expanding Circle Center to include an indoor theme park and water park like the ones at Mall of America outside Minneapolis could be viable. Indoor water parks are all the rage right now, and they're building them all over. Great Wolf Lodge just opened near Kings Island; they built a medium-sized one onto the Holiday Inn at I-1465 and Michigan Road, and they're building one along I-37 in Fishers where the old Britton Golf Course used to be. If you're going to put one downtown, you've got to be spot-on with your market research, because it's a very competitive environment. You've got to understand what will make people come downtown versus going to the water park nearer their homes. As for the indoor ski slope, that's a very intriguing idea. But that thing cost a whole bunch of money to build in Dubai. Everything in Dubai has basically been built by the Sultan because he wanted it built, and the cost didn't really matter. It would be a huge thing, though, and would require a lot of land to build. I'm not sure where you'd put it near downtown, frankly. And it might draw people from around the Midwest to ski in downtown Indy, especially in the summer time when you couldn't ski much in the northern hemisphere anyway. But during ski season, you'd be competing against Paoli Peaks and Perfect North Slopes, and the indoor skiing wouldn't really be any longer of a run or any more of a vertical drop than those resorts offer. I think that would probably just be too costly to make sense. Although it would certainly put Indy on the map more than it already is.

Can I get a peanut crumb with that thimble of Coke?

Paintrain

Posted: Fri Feb 16, 2007 03:48:13 pm


Member

Joined: 11 Oct 2006
Posts: 248
Location: Lexington ky

i think union station will be the key to getting the superbowl. I think it could be the Media center if theres not enough room in the convention center

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