Mayor Scott Fadness held a lengthy briefing Wednesday evening on his mammoth $1.1billion economic development package before the Fishers City Council Finance Committee and laid-out plans to finance a part of that plan, the 8,500 seat events center.  Included in that financing plan is a food and beverage tax.  That would add 1% to food and beverage charges to restaurant meals, from an 8% sales tax to to 9%.

Most communities surrounding Fishers already charge the food and beverage tax.  The Fishers Town Council was given a one-year window to pass the food and beverage tax, but in December of 2013, the town council tabled the proposal and never brought it back for a vote.

Fadness is putting together a financing plan that would not increase the city’s share of the tax rate, but that package depends on the City Council’s approval of the food and beverage tax.  There will be a public hearing before any council vote.  Fadness says state law is providing a two-year window for the Fishers Council to enact that tax, beginning July 1 of 2022.

The new event center will seat 6,500 fans for hockey or basketball games, 8,500 for a musical act with the stage in the middle (in the round) or 8,000 with the stage placed on one end of the venue.

Fadness told council members Hamilton County Tourism believes there will be a major demand to use this building for conventions.  The Indy Fuel minor league hockey team will have 30-35 dates at the center each year, and Fadness expects roughly 125 events in total per year.

The City Council will be asked to pass a resolution at Monday night’s meeting indicating the city’s intention to move forward with the expanded Fishers District and events center.

It was my first time to visit the mayor’s office suite in the First Internet Bank building, the temporary quarters for the mayor and a few of his staff members while the new Arts & City Hall project is under construction.  There is plenty of natural light and open spaces…so open the offices do not yet have doors on them.  I understand that is coming.

I was visiting the mayor to discuss a major announcement from his administration September 14th, a $1.1 billion package of investments in the city.  The Andretti Motorsports complex had already been revealed, but the remainder was rolled out in the announcement.

It includes an 8,500 seat venue, to be the new home of the Indy Fuel minor league hockey team and will likely host a number of other events.  Thompson Thrift, the firm that developed Fishers District, is planning more of the same with an additional Fishers District development that will look much like the original.

Italian life sciences company Stevanato plans to double its employment plans in Fishers, with 512 workers expected here by 2031.

Fadness says the economic incentive packages will be totally revealed in the coming weeks, but said the incentives will be much like other developments, featuring TIF Districts and tax abatement provisions.

Listen to my mini-podcast with Mayor Fadness about the economic development plans at the link below.

Mayor Scott Fadness has been hinting that more than $1 billion of investment was coming to Fishers.  Wednesday morning, the full listing was announced.

It started with Andretti Motorsports plans to locate its headquarters in Fishers.  Now, we have a number of other developments, including:

• Thompson Thrift plans next expansion of Fishers District with event center and entertainment district
• Hallett Sports & Entertainment announces Indy Fuel as anchor tenant at new event center
• Stevanato Group doubles down on Fishers investment following BARDA contract
• Andretti Autosport to establish global HQ, museum at Indianapolis Metropolitan Airport property

Below is the news release from the city detailing these plans:

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FISHERS, IND. – Fishers City officials announced Wednesday more than $1.1 billion in economic and entertainment investments. This is the largest single-day announcement in Fishers’ history. The projects will be presented to the Fishers City Council on Monday, September 19.

Thompson Thrift’s Next Phase of Fishers District

The Fishers City Council will vote on economic development agreements for Stevanato and Andretti Global at its next council meeting on September 19. The Council will also initiate the
introductory financing for the event center and begin the rezoning process for Thompson Thrift at the same meeting.

For many years, going back to the days of Fishers as a town, there has been an effort to bring commercial roads, such as many on or near strip malls & grocery stores, up to city standards.  After all, the public depends on those roadways to handle their everyday business.

City officials are setting up a system that will force commercial interests to at least bring their streets up to a minimum engineering standard before the city agrees to bring those roads into the city inventory.  The legal method the city plans to use is the Barrett Law.

The Barrett Law has its complexities, but put as simply as possible, invoking this law allows commercial interests to make the needed road upgrades through a loan, often repaid over 20-30 years, with a lower interest rate than the market rate.

The city plans to utilize this law, allowing business entities financing to bring their private roads to a minimum condition before the city agrees to bring those roads into its own inventory.

At a Tuesday meeting of the Board of Public Works and Safety, Director of Engineering Jason Taylor recommended some private roads, both commercial and residential, be potentially entered into the city’s inventory.  A Barrett Law, or similar arrangement, could be used for some residential roads in disrepair, but Mayor Scott Fadness wants certain conditions to be applied, admitting there are gray areas.

“We may say that a gated community can’t bring their roads into (the city’s) inventory unless they do away with the gate,” according to Mayor Fadness.

Fadness expects to bring this issue before the City Council for a work session to get councilors ideas on where to go from here.

“If we do it for one apartment complex or town (homes), then we really are setting a precedent for every other town home or private development that’s out there,” Fadness said.  ”Some council members, I can tell you, definitely do not want to subsidize, using other people’s tax dollars, to bring those into alignment.”

The mayor appears to want a system where residential neighborhoods would have guidance on which areas may apply to have their roads taken into the city inventory, as long as it is clear that meeting that standard does not automatically mean that those roads will be accepted by the city.  Fadness appeared to favor a case-by-case evaluation of such requests.

“A lot of these folks may look at the financial implications and say, we’re not going to mess with this,” the mayor added.

The board approved some potential candidates for roadways to be brought up to standard.  The map is difficult to read, but is available below.

The Fishers City Hall we have known for so long will have the wrecking ball swaying and demolishing the structure, beginning in the second week of October, making way for the new Arts & City Hall Complex, scheduled to open in April of 2024.

The Fishers Board of Works and Public Safety voted Tuesday to approve the second (and final) phase of the public-private partnership agreement with local contractor Meyer Majem, allowing for the demolition of the old and construction of the new facility. The board has previously approved resolutions allowing for the purchase of steel and other items, as well as the moving of the City Hall transformer.  This final resolution clears the way for all remaining construction.

The action Tuesday provides $20.5 million for this final phase.  Total cost for the project is set at $23.2 million.  The Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) agreement with the contractor guarantees the costs listed, with the city and Meyer Najem sharing in any cost savings.

Tailgating is a tradition at sporting events like Colts home games, and a local nonprofit is raising money with a special event coming up Sunday, October 2nd.

“More Than a Phone” is a Fishers-based group that works with domestic violence shelters, providing smartphones and data service plans to the survivors of abuse.  The event is called “More Than a Tailgate.”

On Oct. 2, from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Crane Bay Event Center in downtown Indianapolis, attendees can enjoy tailgate-inspired food and drinks, outdoor games and live music from the Cool City Band during a family-friendly tailgate. Live and silent auctions will take place throughout the event, which will include several getaways and a black opal necklace. All event proceeds will benefit More Than a Phone.

Hamilton County government is in the process of constructing the first county domestic violence shelter in the Noblesville area.

Tickets are available at this link.  For more information about More Than a Phone, use this link.

A McCordsville woman faces a number of charges in connection with an incident along I-69 in Fishers.  Shaalea Davis, 38, is charged with a number of felony counts, including attempted murder, domestic battery and pointing a firearm.

Fishers Police were called to I-69 just north of 116th Street around 3pm Saturday and  found a man and a woman standing outside a parked vehicle on the shoulder of the highway.  The man told police he had been shot.  The woman was taken into custody and officers assisted the man until paramedics could arrive at the scene.  The man was taken to a local hospital and the woman was transported to the Hamilton County Jail.

Authorities did not disclose the condition of the man taken to the hospital.  Police say a handgun was recovered from the scene.

County Commissioner Mark Heirbrandt and I recalled about 9 years ago when Hamilton County first proposed a new design for State Road 37 through Fishers, to the then Fishers Town Council, with a smooth traffic flow along the highway.  Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness remembered leaving a meeting at the Statehouse years later, with the realization that the State Road 37 project could become a reality.

126th Street with the first interchange to be complete, with a roundabout overhead and an underpass for highway motorists.  In spring of 2021, construction began on the interchanges along State Road 37 at 131st and 146th Streets.  Monday morning, a ceremony was held to open both interchanges.  A throng of dignitaries from state, county and city governments were on hand.

It was a caravan that traveled along the new 131st Street roundabout, then the 146th Street traffic signal design, with the lead vehicle motoring through the ribbon, officially opening the roadways.

That leaves only the 141st Street interchange left to be constructed in the Fishers part of the highway.  The city and county are working with state officials and looking at design and engineering issues, finding a way forward to construct that interchange.  All the officials connected with that project say it is not a matter of whether, but when that interchange will be built.

I was invited to join the vehicle with Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness and Noblesville Mayor Chris Jensen in the ribbon-cutting caravan, and I video recorded the journey.  We talked along the route and had an informative (and at times entertaining) discussion along the way.

You can watch the video at the link below.

I’ve been attending Mudsock football games for a lot of years and this special event never loses its shine with me.

I started thinking, how many events happen in Fishers where roughly 8,000 people, mostly local, gather together in in place at one time?   The only other time I can imagine is the annual Spark Fishers summer festival.

For those new to the area, the Mudsock Game is the annual game on the football schedule where the two local high schools meet on the gridiron.  It has been a big date on the local calendar ever since Fishers High School Opened and started playing varsity football.

It is a time to celebrate our local schools and the athletes that compete.  I am told the 2022 game last Friday sold out all the tickets the two high schools had to offer (the home field this year was HSE) and the HSE Education Foundation sold out its VIP area.

It was about as competitive as a high school football game can be.  The score was tied at the end of regulation.  Fishers started the overtime by scoring a touchdown but muffing the extra point.  HSE then scored a touchdown and the extra point was good.  The Royals won by one point in overtime .

The atmosphere was something, but that is true every year.

Halftime is always special at the Mudsock Game because the Teachers of the Year are celebrated.  See the video below (I may have missed one or two due to getting setup a little late…to those teachers, my apologies).

The Mudsock Game is a special celebration each year.  The weather was good and it was another special night to remember.

Safety Day has become a regular early September event in Fishers, but 2022 is the first year it was held next to the Farmer’s Market in Fishers, on Municipal Drive next to the Amphitheater.

Perfect weather drew a big crowd with activities galore for all ages.

Here are some photos from the September 10th Safety Day in Fishers:

Continue reading Safety Day moves to the Farmers Market →