Comments on Advance Indiana™: Misplaced Priorities Continue Under Ballard

If we get the bid for the Super Bowl that is award...

2008-01-25T22:27:00.000-05:00

If we get the bid for the Super Bowl that is awarded this year, it will be because of the efforts of the CIB and Mayor Peterson.

Show me a steak you can buy at Kincaid's for $10!!...

2008-01-25T22:25:00.000-05:00

Show me a steak you can buy at Kincaid's for $10!!!!!!

Did you ever wonder how Ruth's Chris or St. Elmo c...

2008-01-25T21:40:00.000-05:00

Did you ever wonder how Ruth's Chris or St. Elmo can charge what they do for a steak you can buy at Kincaid's for $10 or less and cook for yourself?

It's called marketing...selling the sizzle, not the steak.

Cities have to do it too.

Spending an amount equal to 2.5% of one year's city budget ONE TIME to market Indianapolis on a world stage...and NOT EVEN TAX MONEY...makes perfect sense when we are trying to fill up new hotels and a new convention center and a new airport which WERE built for with city money.

Does anyone pay attention to the sales reports at Circle Centre Mall? A significant percentage of sales are to out-of-town shoppers. Does anyone wonder why we have all those high-end restaurants downtown? Lobbyists and lawyers don't support all of 'em.

Conventions and visitors are big business in "Our Town Indy" (apologies to the late Fred Heckman) and $25million to pump 'em up is money well spent.

$25 million would be better spent attracting an or...

2008-01-25T12:23:00.000-05:00

$25 million would be better spent attracting an organizations headquarters like the NCAA and have a multi-year agreement to hold events in Indianapolis.

Maybe the U.S. Olympic Committee which is looking for a new headquarters?

Maybe a soccer organizations headquarters and its regional, national, and international finals each year?

Maybe U.S. Basketball's new headquarters?

Maybe the World Cup?

4:42,That would explain why he has to pick up so m...

2008-01-24T19:01:00.000-05:00

4:42,

That would explain why he has to pick up so many menial contract jobs.

Get em', Abdul. It's Wilson Allen. You're smarter ...

2008-01-24T16:56:00.000-05:00

Get em', Abdul. It's Wilson Allen.
You're smarter than he is.

Hopefully Miles will be able to get the Super Bowl that Peterson boy, Glass, couldn't.
It would show the entire world what a schmuck that Peterson was.

anon 12:13 here, Abudl. You need more free publici...

2008-01-24T16:42:00.000-05:00

anon 12:13 here, Abudl. You need more free publicity than I can offer you. A friend of mine in radio told me you are the lowest paid radio talk show host in the Indianapolis market, which matches the lowest rating your show checks in with in this radio market.

Anon 12:13,Thanks for the love and free publicity....

2008-01-24T16:10:00.000-05:00

Anon 12:13,

Thanks for the love and free publicity. :-)

Thanks, Gary, for continuing to fight on these iss...

2008-01-24T12:13:00.000-05:00

Thanks, Gary, for continuing to fight on these issues. Abdul abandoned the cause as soon as Greg Ballard was elected. He spends his morning show sucking up to all-things Ballard and Republican and proving what a phony he has been all along.

I agree with Gary. You show what is most importan...

2008-01-24T11:03:00.000-05:00

I agree with Gary. You show what is most important to you by the order in which you do them. Many, many, many appointments to important boards have not yet been named - something that should have taken place before January 1. The legality of the decisions made by improperly seated board members has been called into question.

Gary brings up abandoned houses. There are a lot of issues worth tackling BEFORE addressing the SuperBowl. But, Ballard prefers to talk with the money folks first. Other issues will just have to wait, I guess.

If the private sector picks up the total cost it w...

2008-01-24T10:50:00.000-05:00

If the private sector picks up the total cost it would be a waste of money but there is no law against foolish expenditures. They could begin with picking up the cost of any City staffers needed to "co ordinate". As far as the Mayor goes on this, I don't recall him saying he was for frivolity when the actual needs of people have been so long neglected.

A nice rant, but some calm needs to follow here:We...

2008-01-24T09:38:00.000-05:00

A nice rant, but some calm needs to follow here:

We have mroe abandoned homes than the City of Chicago? I was just there, and that cannot be true. The definition needs altered if it is true.

We have too many abandoned homes. But the condemnation process is costly and time-consuming. Perhaps the legislature, in its monkey wisdom, could shorten condemnation timeframes for abandoned homes? Or are they too busy with marriage and navel lint?

A Super Bowl would be a tremendous boost for the city. If it can be staged with the kind of support that was mustered for our original bid last year, I'm all for it.

Yeah, I do wish someone would generate $25 mil for other things. Our United Way, for instance, has not yet met its 2008 goal.

But you cannot penalize folks who do step forward to donate money to a Super Bowl bid.

We lost out to Jerry Jones, and he is a classic tool.

Will you stop it Gary? Why be all over the Mayor?...

2008-01-24T09:23:00.000-05:00

Will you stop it Gary? Why be all over the Mayor? The mayor is not spending any of the cities cash so why blast him? It makes me wonder if every city that has hosted the Super Bowl had to put up with these arguments. I am glad they did not listen or noone would host the big game. I am sure it is the same story everywhere that 99.9% of the people in the host city will not attend.