The IBJ Podcast

Sen. Todd Young on how his Endless Frontier Act could boost innovation in Indiana

Republican. Sen. Todd Young of Indiana and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, introduced the Endless Frontier Act this spring with the goal of pumping more than $110 billion over five years into scientific and technological innovation.

That includes a $10 billion effort to create tech hubs across the U.S., focusing on areas outside of the traditional tech centers like Silicon Valley, Seattle and Boston.

Sen. Young is on today’s podcast to talk about the legislation. Then we talked with David Johnson, the president and CEO of the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership about what it could mean for Indiana. You can read a column Johnson wrote about the Endless Frontier Act at IBJ.com.

One note: After our interview with Sen. Young, Sen. Schumer announced he would expand and rename the legislation to the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act.

 

Restaurants are getting busy again—but don't have the staff to keep up

As more Hoosiers become fully vaccinated, restaurants and bars are filling up again. But restaurant operators say finding workers to serve all those customers. has been a struggle.

Are some people afraid to return to work at such public places? Are the increases in unemployment benefits to blame? Have former restaurant workers given up on the industry and found positions elsewhere?

Host Mason King talks with two restauranteurs—Loughmiller's Pub & Eatery co-owner Danny Scotten and Upland Brewing Co. President David Bower—about how the labor crunch is affecting their eateries and what they're doing to try to find workers.

For more about this issue, read reporter Kurt Christian's story at IBJ.com.

Patio and yard goods are still hot—and some are in short supply

Sales of grills, patio furniture, fire pits and other outdoor goods skyrocketed last spring and summer as the pandemic forced people to stay at home.

So a big question for this spring—as vaccinated people started venturing out again—was whether that trend would continue. Local garden and outdoor venture retailers say it has. In fact, they say sales of some products, like outdoor furniture, have been even hotter, which is just one of several reasons many outdoor goods have been hard to come by.

Host Mason King talks with two of those retailers—Scott Horvath, owner of Omalia’s Living, and Pat Sullivan, who owns owner of three Sullivan’s Hardware & Garden stores plus Allisonville Home & Garden by Sullivan.

They explain the supply chain issues that are causing a shortage of bigger-ticket items like fire pits and furniture and smaller, everyday products like watering wands and garden hoses. 

For more about the trends, check out Kurt Christian's store at IBJ.com.

Pete The Planner says stimulus ahead ‘is going to blow people’s minds’

The U.S. economy is on the verge of potentially the greatest boom time of all time, according to Peter “Pete the Planner” Dunn. It will be fueled at least in part by the enhanced child tax credit, which is part of the American Rescue Plan stimulus package.

In essence, the child tax credit that parents get every year will increase to $3,000 to $3,600 per child for 2021, depending on the age of each child. And the government is going to give taxpayers half of it in cash in installments over the last six months of the year.

But Dunn also is concerned that as the economy improves and taxpayers start to feel their stimulus payments since the beginning of the pandemic burn holes in their pockets, they will fall into a financial trap. In this week’s edition of the IBJ Podcast, Dunn discusses with host Mason King the risks in recalibrating your spending habits during a boom with artificial income.

Why IU's Mike Woodson hire is about much more than winning games

Indiana University didn't just hire former Hoosiers standout Mike Woodson to turn around the school's struggling basketball program; it also brought reinforcements. Thad Matta and Dane Fife are joining Woodson in the effort to bring glory back to IU.

Mason King talks with IBJ reporter Anthony Schoettle about why IU Athletic Director Scott Dolson put together the team he did and how the strategy could get big-money donors excited again.

It's all about bringing different generations of IU fans back into the fold.

To read more about Dolson's effort, check out Anthony's story at IBJ.com.

 

A pediatrician on kids, COVID, variants and vaccines

Thousands of Hoosier adults are receiving COVID vaccines every day in Indiana. But none of the shots are available to kids younger than 16. 

So what does that mean for family gatherings? For cookouts and other outdoor activities? And what about youth sports?

Host Mason King poses those questions and many more to Dr. James Wood, a pediatrician at Riley Children’s Health and an expert in pediatric infectious diseases. Dr. Wood offers practical advice for traveling, entertaining and other activities when parents are vaccinated and kids aren't.

 

Indiana's vaccine rollout has been smooth—but not as fast as many states

By some measures—like the percentage of doses that have gone into arms—Indiana's vaccine rollout has been better than average. But because the state hasn't received as many doses as others, the percentage of Hoosiers who are fully vaccinated trails much of the country.

IBJ health care reporter John Russell dives into the numbers with host Mason King, and they explore how soon herd immunity might stop the pandemic.

Read John Russell's story about the state's vaccination efforts here.

How Sun King came through the pandemic in better shape than it entered

When the pandemic hit one year ago, Sun King almost immediately lost some 40% of its business, the result of restaurants and bars that shuttered and stopped buying beer in kegs.

It would have been a catastrophe had canned beer sales not picked up fairly quickly, leaving Sun King and other breweries to scramble to shift work. An eventual can shortage caused more problems.

But Sun King co-founder Clay Robinson tells podcast host Mason King how the company and its employees adapted to put the company in better position now than it was before the pandemic.

To read more about how other Indiana breweries managed, read IBJ reporter Susan Orr's story at IBJ.com.

City Market plots its comeback

The pandemic has been tough on restaurants almost across the board. And so it's no wonder that the Indianapolis City Market and its 22 vendors have had a particularly difficult past year.

And with uncertainty about the return of downtown office workers, construction outside its front door and new competition at Bottleworks and 16 Tech, it's not clear when—or if— the situation will improve.

But a new director and a group of resilient vendors say new events and a focus on residential developments nearby should help them not only survive but thrive. 

To learn more about the market, read IBJ reporter Susan Orr's story here.

The NCAA has 850 million reasons to love its deal with CBS and Turner Sports

CBS and Turner Sports will pay the not-for-profit NCAA some $850 million this year for the right to broadcast, stream and otherwise present the Men's Basketball Tournament. That will equal about 70% of the organization's revenue for the year.

IBJ columnist and investigative reporter Greg Andrews explains why the rights to March Madness is so valuable even as the media landscape changes quickly. And he tells host Mason King why it's unlikely that the NCAA or its broadcast partners will want to renegotiate the deal—which runs through 2032.

You could read more details about the NCAA's contract and see a breakdown of the value of the contract by year in Andrews' story in this week's IBJ.