Indy Economic Development CEO wants to build on recent momentum
Subscriber Benefit
As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe president and CEO of Indy Economic Development says the newly formed organization aims to build on recent momentum in central Indiana.
The organization was previously known as Develop Indy, an arm of the Indy Chamber, but became a separate nonprofit entity at the beginning of the year.
Jim Schellinger, a former Indiana Secretary of Commerce, said with the international attention that Indianapolis has received from the Indiana Pacers competing in the NBA Finals, as well as major construction projects like the Signia Hotel downtown, the city needs to build on that momentum.
“I want to work really hard—as I did when I was secretary—to reach out internationally…to bring headquarters here,” Schellinger said. “We want to take care of Indiana first, and take care of Indianapolis, take care of Marion County. But there’s no reason why we can’t attract these headquarters.”
One way to accomplish that goal, Schellinger said, is to add more international nonstop flights such as the Aer Lingus flight to Dublin, Ireland that launched earlier this year.
“In the state of Indiana, we’re a 12-hour drive from 83% of the population. We’re a four-hour drive from the third largest economy in the world in Chicago,” he said. “But to be really connected with the No. 1 airport in North America, we need those international flights. Being connected to the world in that manner is so valuable to business.”
Schellinger said competing with other cities like Nashville, Tennessee; Columbus, Ohio; and Austin, Texas comes down to spotlighting the ability for Indianapolis to create a “great place to live, work, play and stay,” with “stay” being the key word.
“We have great residential communities all around our city. We’ve got to help young people buy homes, set up roots in those in neighborhoods, and stay. If we help them buy homes, they’ll stay in our city.”
You can watch the full interview with Schellinger in the video above.