http://http://www.loopnet.com/Attachments/A/5/D/A5D2EE66-DAB4-4300-9183-D4270A42921B.jpg Any updates on this project???

A total of 253,691 people call Fort Wayne home, according to the 2010 census numbers released Thursday.



And 355,329 live in Allen County now, up 7 percent from 2000.



Or, at least, those were the totals – figured to the best of the U.S. Census Bureau’s ability in a nation of 308 million people – as of April 1, 2010. The census, after all, is just a snapshot of a living, breathing population at one moment in time.



But it’s a snapshot upon which trillions of dollars in federal spending will be decided and – of utmost importance to politicians – will be used to draw legislative districts.



The process might sound arcane or technical, but these numbers determine whether your child’s school gets a million-dollar grant for reading programs and whom you get to choose to represent you in Congress.



What this initial set of numbers shows is that when it comes to the trends that have defined America for the past six decades, not much has changed.



The population in rural areas continues to stagnate or decline as people move closer to cities. The population in the urban core of cities continues to stagnate or decline as people move to the suburbs. And the suburbs continue to explode in growth.



Fort Wayne, for example, appears to have grown 23 percent in the past decade. But a closer examination shows that virtually all of that growth was from annexations – the city’s border expanded several times to encompass more and more residents.



In 2000, Fort Wayne’s population was 205,727 and Allen County’s was 331,849.



Census Bureau officials estimate that the city added 57,000 people from annexation, wiping out what otherwise appeared to be nearly a 48,000-person increase.



Areas considered to be Fort Wayne suburbs, however, have grown so much that they are spilling over into other counties, according to John Stafford, director of the Community Research Institute at IPFW.



Whitley and DeKalb counties saw growth of 8 percent and 5 percent, respectively.



“We’re seeing residential development going across the county lines,” Stafford said.



One place benefiting from suburban growth is Huntertown, which saw the greatest increase of any town in northeast Indiana – a whopping 172 percent.



“Wow!” Huntertown Town Council President Jim Fortman said on hearing the numbers. “I didn’t know we had gone up that much.”



Huntertown’s population rose from 1,771 in 2000 to 4,810 in 2010.



Fortman said the town is expanding its water plant to handle the growth, which continues with the addition of more housing.



“Our logo is that Huntertown’s a great place to call home,” Fortman said. “We’re in a recession, but people want to move out here and build a home.”



In a time when government budgets are bleeding, growth has been good.



“I think growth is still desirable,” Fortman said. “It’s exciting times.”



Valerie Richardson, a research associate at Stafford’s agency, said Allen County’s growth of 7 percent was much more than expected.



“I was just shocked, I fell over flat to see Allen County’s growth was so high,” Richardson said.



She said the growth – more than 23,000 people added to the rolls – can be attributed to two factors. She cited the estimated 5,000 Burmese immigrants who have settled here and the natural growth of a young population, which is more likely to have children than counties with older median ages.



Bluffton Mayor Ted Ellis, whose city saw a 4 percent growth, said that for a small town in a rural county he’s pleased with the rate of growth.



“It indicates stability to me,” Ellis said. “We see that in unemployment numbers, too; we never hit the zenith, and we never hit the nadir. We’re always slow and steady.”



Still, he has seen the nation’s migration from the farm to the city continue.



“As the last of the family farms go away and we see consolidation in larger and larger agribusinesses, and more people are retiring or getting out of farming, it’s just a natural migration at this point,” Ellis said.



There’s another silver lining to the slower pace of growth: Though Bluffton’s population is now 9,897, it is still less than 10,000 – the threshold on many grants and programs aimed at small towns.



“So I’m happy to still be under that,” he said.

Citylink,

I accidentially asked this in the Indy development thread, but exactly how many times did Fort Wayne annex over the past decade, and exactly how much land was added to the city?

Census Bureau officials estimate that the city added 57,000 people from annexation, wiping out what otherwise appeared to be nearly a 48,000-person increase.

BTW, what does this mean? Are they saying without annexation, the city would have still added 48,000 people?

Citylink,

I accidentially asked this in the Indy development thread, but exactly how many times did Fort Wayne annex over the past decade, and exactly how much land was added to the city?



BTW, what does this mean? Are they saying without annexation, the city would have still added 48,000 people?

I think it means that without annexation, the Fort lost 9000 people, which sounds about right.

yes the city core is loosing people, but the suburbs of Fort Wayne are growing at a high rate. Fort Wayne annex these areas, yes because of more tax money, but since these areas are so highly populated they can benefit from city services such as trash and water. Most of the 50,000+ people added to the city came from aboite township which is on the southwest side of the city. It is an area growing extremely fast as well as the Northwest and Northeast.

think im delaying my trip to visit your beautiful new ball park till the Fort to Port Project is done. Hopefully it will be completed by next summer before the tin cap season ends!

http://www.barrycompanies.com/images/portfolio/other/harrison_square.jpg
http://www.insideindianabusiness.com/images/news/scenes/HarrisonCondo.jpg

“The Harrison is a go.”

With that statement, Mayor Tom Henry on Monday ended the suspense about one of the most anticipated – and delayed – projects in the recent history of downtown Fort Wayne.

Henry and Chris Schoen, chief executive officer of Barry Real Estate, on Monday announced the $18 million retail/residential project will begin construction this spring and be open for business by the TinCaps’ opening day in 2012 – sometime in early April. The project will contain first-floor retail, a local law firm on the second floor and 42 total apartments on the third and fourth floors.

“I am so pleased that we are able to be here today, ready to go, with our development team and our tenants,” Schoen said. “Thank you, Mayor Henry – a lesser city might have given up on us.”

The project was originally scheduled to open by June 2009 according to the developer’s contract with the city’s redevelopment commission. The commission formally filed a notice of default on the project with Barry Real Estate in September and last month approved levying $2.4 million in fines to Barry Real Estate and Hardball Capital if the project didn’t happen.

The commission on Monday approved returning the $70,000 worth of checks Barry Real Estate used to buy more time to get the project’s financing complete.

“To hold onto (the checks) to me seems simply punitive,” said commission chairman Christopher Guerin, who noted the recent blizzard caused some of the delays. “I just think good faith ought to be met with good faith.”

Casey Cox was the only board member to oppose returning the checks, stating they should be kept until the project begins construction.

Schoen also announced what will be on each of the 25,000-square-foot floors.

The first floor has two current tenants: 3Rivers Federal Credit Union and O’Reilly’s Irish Bar, a restaurant chain that started in Indianapolis. Those two tenants will occupy about 8,000 square feet.

Greg Leatherman, executive director of redevelopment, said negotiations are under way to sign Cardinal Fitness as a first-floor tenant. The left field wall of Parkview Field contains a bank of empty windows where developers originally envisioned people exercising in a fitness center overseeing the field.

Schoen said he is holding first-floor space for Scotty’s Brewhouse to return to the project. The company had signed on to locate at The Harrison but backed out because of uncertainty on its start date and some negative publicity surrounding the development. Schoen said he hoped Monday’s announcement will persuade the restaurant to return.

The second floor will be entirely occupied by Carson Boxberger, a local law firm now housed at One Summit Square. Schoen called Carson Boxberger a “critical” tenant because of its high ratings with the banks.

Bruce Boxberger, a partner in the firm, said he is excited to be downtown and have a venue to attract clients and new attorneys.

“This is where we had to be,” he said.

The third and fourth floors will have high-end apartments, which is a change from the original proposal to build condominiums. Schoen said it was simply too difficult to not only get financing to build a condo project, but also for people wanting to buy a condominium to get financing from a bank.

The building will have one- and two-bedroom units with rents starting at $850 a month. Schoen said most of the units will have two bedrooms. All apartment tenants will have access to a rooftop viewing area where they can watch games at Parkview Field.

Schoen said he will likely begin seeking tenants for the apartments after construction begins. He said he hopes to pull permits by April 1 and have a groundbreaking by May 1.

-Journal Gazette

Cool. I wonder if they'll set up some kind of bleachers up on the roof, kind of like a mini Wrigley Field. Looking good. I hope Scotty's announces it will return to the building. That would be fantastic to watch a game from their patio while sipping a local brew and munching on fried pickle chips and some good burgers!

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvg/story?section=news/local&id=7965248

Fort to Port project closer to completion

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3042/2441856844_5346549399.jpg
Arts United announced Thursday a new name for the Fourth Wave building, which was purchased by Arts United to house arts and cultural organizations.
The Auer Center for Arts and Culture is named for Ione Auer, and the Edward D. and Ione Auer Foundation, which gave Arts United $1 million toward the purchase of the $2.2 million building at 300 E. Main St.
The Auer Center will house arts and cultural organizations, complementing current neighbors like the Fort Wayne Museum of Art, The History Center and Freimann Square, said Jim Sparrow, Arts United executive director.
“Mrs. Auer absolutely loved art and education. That’s what this building and this project is all about,” said Katherine Moenter, the grants director for the Auer foundation.

-Journal Gazette

Let me know what you think about this potential project. Fort Wayne has money to spend and are wanting ideas. I think this would be perfect.

http://headwatersjunction.com/

It sounds pretty interesting. There is a lot of history of the various rail lines that crossed northern Indiana with so many trains running between Chicago and the East Coast. Initially, $21.5 million sounds like a lot of money -- but I think it might be possible if you could work on getting the majority of the funds from foundations, charitable groups and wealthy people who might be interested in giving a good sized chunk of money to help promote improvements and development in and around downtown Ft. Wayne.

It usually is important when raising private sector funds though to be able to show how the project will provide benefits to the community. The brochure talked about trips on the train in other places (OH, MI, IL, etc.) and big historic railroad sites in places like OH and PA -- but I'm not sure if the success of those efforts translates to similar success related to having a huge, cool steam train at Headwaters Junction just north of downtown Ft. Wayne. I can see this being an attraction for a while -- but after a few months -- will it continue to be something that keeps drawing people in?

I thought the language in the brochure was cute -- romantacizing travel on the train - talking about the gentle blowing of the whistle and the soft rumble of the train as it vibrates along the tracks. I don't remember the exact wording - and I've already closed the electronic copy of the executive summary - so I might be getting the wording wrong - but generally, it was a nice job of making it sound like a big, soft teddy bear gently plodding around through the near downtown neighborhoods. The reality though is that nearby neighbors will likely not be thrilled to hear a (likely) very loud train whistle blowing frequently -- and will be very concerned about vibrations from a moving, many tons heavy train engine rolling along railroad tracks near their homes and businesses. This may be difficult to overcome.

I need to look at a map of the area around this site to better be able to say how this might impact neighboring areas. I also would like to see the routes that the train would take to the other nearby attractions that were discussed. A point related to the travel to the other attractions is that -- it might be pretty difficult to get enough riders to make it worthwhile. As cool as it might sound to ride on a train -- far and away the easiest way to get around between the attractions is to simply drive your car. Even with gas prices going up -- this mode is still much cheaper than the likely cost that would be charged to ride the train. People will want to try it once or twice -- but again -- how long will the novelty last? (I guess the cost of the trip will be an important factor in how often people may be willing to pay to ride on the train.)

I know there is a decent sized number of train fans around the country and in the midwest -- but I don't know if there will be enough of them to keep this project viable. I'd like to see this be a success and an attraction for downtown Ft. Wayne -- but I have to admit it seems like it will be difficult to get enough funds to get it up and going and then to keep it operating.

As cool as the big train is -- in looking at the site plan for Headwaters Junction - it doesn't look like there is a lot of room for the train to move around. The turntable would be very neat though. That would be a pretty big attraction by itself. Is there one that could be rebuilt at the site? Is the cost of building the turntable part of the $21.5 million budget? I was interested in seeing the routes for how the train would get to these other nearby attractions. Are there tracks that go to all of those places? Will the train be able to operate over them? (ie will the Headwaters Junction folks own the tracks or will they need to get trackage rights from other railroads to operate on these other tracks?)

I guess there are plenty of questions. Overall -- it sounds pretty neat - but I think there would be a lot of concerns from neighbors about its operations - and there would need to be a good and realistic benefit / cost analysis conducted to show how this project would be able to provide overall positive impacts for Ft. Wayne.

looks like a cool project.. does it look like this will go near the new ballfield?

From my understanding of the site --- the area for the train park is about a mile north of the ball field.

I had an elaborately planned response, but the spam filter was apparently hungry.

Being relatively familiar with this project, I'd like to respond to a few of the thoughtful points raised. My answers are a touch shorter than they were originally, so I'll be happy to elaborate further if anyone wishes.

It sounds pretty interesting. There is a lot of history of the various rail lines that crossed northern Indiana with so many trains running between Chicago and the East Coast. Initially, $21.5 million sounds like a lot of money -- but I think it might be possible if you could work on getting the majority of the funds from foundations, charitable groups and wealthy people who might be interested in giving a good sized chunk of money to help promote improvements and development in and around downtown Ft. Wayne.

It usually is important when raising private sector funds though to be able to show how the project will provide benefits to the community. The brochure talked about trips on the train in other places (OH, MI, IL, etc.) and big historic railroad sites in places like OH and PA -- but I'm not sure if the success of those efforts translates to similar success related to having a huge, cool steam train at Headwaters Junction just north of downtown Ft. Wayne. I can see this being an attraction for a while -- but after a few months -- will it continue to be something that keeps drawing people in?

The big engine - the "765"- has a massive, 38 year following. As the summary points out, it experienced anywhere from 900-3,000 visitors a day in 2009 during every day of operation (16 days total -- it's so few because of the logistics involved, but could very definitely be more, especially if the public's ability to experience/enjoy it was increased.)

The locomotive did not pull trips each day, nor are all of those numbers people who were passengers, but it represents people from all 50 states and 7 countries. I just got off the phone with a visitor who is coming from Australia in August just to see the engine where its stored in New Haven, Indiana - it won't even be operating.

Couple the significant following the locomotive has with an attraction that is home to diverse offerings, events, rides, and attractions throughout the year (something similar to what is found in Santa Fe's Railyards or the Strasburg Railroad, both named in the summary and conceptual plan) and you have a combination of attractions/mini-catalysts in what essentially amounts to a mixed use, urban core. Take away all the history, culture, character and the railroad trappings and you have what is essentially designed to be a city park, trail head, retail/recreation destination, to which Headwaters Junction is an anchor for development and while it provides its own services and experiences throughout the year, it is also the "backdrop" to everything else.

Part of the concept is to create an institution -- something that becomes part of family traditions, visits to Fort Wayne, and that offers variety and differently colored experiences throughout the year, so as not to be a one trick pony. Well run operations that lack the big draw of a large engine like the 765 are successful because of what they offer, how often, and in what ways. If they can bring in 100-400,000 in a year, and the engine can do 50,000 in sixteen days, the combination of the two could prove successful.

I thought the language in the brochure was cute -- romantacizing travel on the train - talking about the gentle blowing of the whistle and the soft rumble of the train as it vibrates along the tracks. I don't remember the exact wording - and I've already closed the electronic copy of the executive summary - so I might be getting the wording wrong - but generally, it was a nice job of making it sound like a big, soft teddy bear gently plodding around through the near downtown neighborhoods. The reality though is that nearby neighbors will likely not be thrilled to hear a (likely) very loud train whistle blowing frequently -- and will be very concerned about vibrations from a moving, many tons heavy train engine rolling along railroad tracks near their homes and businesses. This may be difficult to overcome.

One of the first things the project managers did with Headwaters Junction was to meet with the Bloomingdale Neighborhood, whose boundaries encompass the property and much of the right of way leading in and out of it. They remain incredibly enthusiastic and were immediately told of possibility of the infrequent whistling and various noises, but that they would not be at 3AM, and not be part of 100 car freight train consists that most people are familiar with, and that the operation would place incredible emphasis on working one on one with the neighborhood should their be issues -- which, despite the glowing accolades of the Association -- are bound to be a reality on occasion. The project is meant to complement and enhance the neighborhoods it borders, including redeveloping Polk Street entirely. Also, similar operations in urban areas have been closely studied -- the Three Rivers Rambler in Knoxville, TN departs a downtown riverfront district, skirts through condos, and maintains a very successful relationship with its neighbors; an example worth following.

Similarly, the 765, though a cornerstone to the project, would not be the every day motive power -- its size alone doesn't make that feasible. It would join a roster of diesel electric, recreated streetcars, and a smaller steam locomotive, all of which would operate depending on the season. Streetcars, for instance, have an incredibly small footprint, don't have horns, and there are many practices that allow slow-speed operation without the use of horns or whistles for signaling regardless of the motive power.

As cool as it might sound to ride on a train -- far and away the easiest way to get around between the attractions is to simply drive your car. Even with gas prices going up -- this mode is still much cheaper than the likely cost that would be charged to ride the train. People will want to try it once or twice -- but again -- how long will the novelty last? (I guess the cost of the trip will be an important factor in how often people may be willing to pay to ride on the train.)

As a "transit attraction," the idea is to produce a venue that offers something beyond a mere train ride -- functionality (as a true alternative to driving downtown on a seasonal basis) or change of venue (dinner trains, holiday trains, chartered trips, etc.) Holiday or banner train events are what make the biggest impact throughout the year (some can bring in over 30,000 in a weekend.) Couple banner events with regular operation and the offerings are both diverse and serve different roles and consider the fact that actual moving transit is half the experience, whereas various education (apprenticeship, outreach), mechanical contract work (fabrication, metal work, machining) and economic development (freight transportation) and suddenly a nice "place to visit" has more than one leg to stand on.

I know there is a decent sized number of train fans around the country and in the midwest -- but I don't know if there will be enough of them to keep this project viable. I'd like to see this be a success and an attraction for downtown Ft. Wayne -- but I have to admit it seems like it will be difficult to get enough funds to get it up and going and then to keep it operating.

Though there are "train fans" a plenty, this is meant to be a place that is just cool to visit, participate, and experience. Even people who could care less about history or railroads could find this place vivid enough that it doesn't matter how old a train is or when the train leaves. It's the experience. The draw of the 765 has been magnetic in recent months. In September, the entire town of Payne, Ohio appeared trackside to witness the locomotive's arrival in town -- they even let school out and took the kids trackside. If the power of the locomotive could be harnessed in an attraction that was engaging, entertaining, and maybe a touch educational, suddenly it's a lot more than a train, it's a happening.

As cool as the big train is -- in looking at the site plan for Headwaters Junction - it doesn't look like there is a lot of room for the train to move around. The turntable would be very neat though. That would be a pretty big attraction by itself. Is there one that could be rebuilt at the site? Is the cost of building the turntable part of the $21.5 million budget? I was interested in seeing the routes for how the train would get to these other nearby attractions. Are there tracks that go to all of those places? Will the train be able to operate over them? (ie will the Headwaters Junction folks own the tracks or will they need to get trackage rights from other railroads to operate on these other tracks?)

No trackage rights for regular operations, though the bigger engine already operates in an existing program that allows it to run throughout the midwest. Most attractions or other points of interest are no fewer than 5 blocks from the actual rail (Parkview Field for instance can be easily walked to from a station stop at Wells Street -- maybe just enough to inspire a culture change and encourage people from the northern suburbs to drive 2 miles instead of 5, for instance.)

Beyond the tangibles proven elsewhere, there are many intangibles that are a part of this concept -- sense of place, color, creative placemaking, New Urbanism, that are designed to encourage traffic, even if they could care less about trains. Compare how many actual baseball fans attend Parkview Field for a similar intangible -- people may not be sports fans, but they want to be in an exciting, meaningful, and interesting urban environment with others.

I guess there are plenty of questions. Overall -- it sounds pretty neat - but I think there would be a lot of concerns from neighbors about its operations - and there would need to be a good and realistic benefit / cost analysis conducted to show how this project would be able to provide overall positive impacts for Ft. Wayne.

Your thoughtful critique and others like it are what will be necessary should the city consider or pursue this as a development option. I may have had far more eloquence and useful URL links in my previous attempt at posting, so I hope this response is adequate.

Thanks for the response to my comments. A lot of interesting and helpful information. It definitely sounds like a good amount of advanced work is being done. I now better understand how the operation might work --- that other types of rail vehicles might be used most of the time for transporting people around -- with the big 765 only used on special occasions. That 765 is amazing -- I would definitely like to see it. I grew up in Ft. Wayne and remember it sitting there in that small park just north of the river and downtown. It definitely was massive -- although to see it again today would probably be even be more impressive - as I think I now realize how special it is and would be able to better understand how important it is as an historic piece and what its role was in the rail industry. I remember it being a huge, painted black mechanical sculpture. Kids used to climb around on it too, I believe. Its amazing to think that that big conglomeration of steel has now been cleaned and has all of its parts properly maintained and is now actually capable of moving on its own again.

I also checked back and looked at the map of where the route is planned for the trains to move around, transporting visitors. I can see how it is pretty close to Franke Park and the zoo. It wasn't quite as clear to me what some of the other attractions might be in some of those other areas -- the ones that I believe are to the NW of downtown.

Maybe it'll work. It would be cool to have a great attraction like that in Ft. Wayne that helps bring in plenty of visitors. With Chicago, Detroit, Grand Rapids, S. Bend, Dayton, Toledo, Columbus, Cleveland and Indianapolis all fairly close -- hopefully some of those visitor projections could happen.

I also checked back and looked at the map of where the route is planned for the trains to move around, transporting visitors. I can see how it is pretty close to Franke Park and the zoo. It wasn't quite as clear to me what some of the other attractions might be in some of those other areas -- the ones that I believe are to the NW of downtown.


The Pufferbelly Trail (http://www.indianatrails.org/Pufferbelly_Trail.htm) is establishing a trailhead at Franke Park Drive where a planned station stop would be. A "spur" of the trail will run off the main drag through Wells and into Franke Park Drive. The Pufferbelly and the conceptual railroad would occupy two adjacent right of ways (the interurban and the old Fort Wayne, Jackson & Saginaw) similar to Portland (http://www.4449.com/03photos/index.html?albumid=5431719456868739777&photoid=5431719764868852466)or the Western Maryland (http://mtnmd.com/images/allegheny_highlands_trail_western_maryland_scenic_rr_-_5-1.jpg).

Just send me a message if you'd ever like to see the locomotive sometime. Very cool memories!

http://www.wane.com/dpp/news/business/rail-supporters-discuss-city-impact?ref=scroller&categoryId=20000&status=true

Franklin Electric moving to Allen Co.
$30M project will bring 250 jobs to site west of airport.







By Kevin Leininger
of The News-Sentinel
A 102-acre site west of Fort Wayne International Airport is quietly – and anonymously – being prepared for a $30 million project that will bring about 250 jobs to Allen County.

Franklin Electric Co., a Bluffton-based maker of submersible motors and pumps, is expected to announce later this month that it will move its headquarters and research and development facilities to airport-owned land at Airport Expressway and Coverdale Road.

Airport Executive Director Torry Richardson on Thursday asked the Allen County Plan Commission to rezone the site from residential to industrial use, saying industry would be more compatible with county land-use plans and airport operations. Richardson never told the commission about Franklin, however, and told The News-Sentinel after the meeting that no specific use had been identified for the property.

But local officials confirmed Thursday that Franklin, which has made no secret of wanting to move to a larger and more modern facility, will be coming to Allen County. The company was shown at least five sites in the Fort Wayne area, one official said – including the former location of the Seyfert's snacks plant at Lima Road and Interstate 69 – before settling on the site the Plan Commission is expected to rezone next week.

The expressway between I-69 and the airport is considered a prime location for development, and one official said Franklin's presence could help attract even more growth to the area. The city has been working to extend sewer and water service to the area.

The Indiana Economic Development Corp. recently reported that Franklin, founded in 1944, would be offered about $6 million in incentives if it would come to Allen County, including state tax credits and training funds and temporary reductions in property taxes.

The move across the Wells-Allen county line would minimize disruption on Franklin's work force. Wells County Economic Development Director Mike Rowe, who was unavailable for comment by deadline, told the Bluffton News-Banner in April that “if (Franklin) finds it necessary to relocate, we only hope that it would be close so that Wells County employees would not be affected.” Many Franklin workers live in Allen County. Timing of the move has not been announced.

In addition to about 225 existing jobs, the new facility could create another 25 to 35 jobs with average wages of nearly $40 an hour, state officials have said, indicating that other states had also made overtures to the company.

Franklin sold its Bluffton manufacturing operations to Bluffton Motor Works in 2006 but has 14 manufacturing and distribution facilities worldwide. Reflecting in part price increases averaging 3 to 5 percent, the company last month reported record quarterly sales of $185.3 million, up 16 percent from last year's first-quarter results of $160 million.

Luring Franklin Electric would represent just the latest economic development coup for Allen County, which is the site of several large industrial projects that have been announced or proposed, including a new $36 million General Mills warehouse, also near the airport; a new $39 million Steel Dynamics Inc. copper wire mill in New Haven; and $50 million in upgrades to the Goodrich tire plant in Woodburn. The General Motors plant is also being considered for $230 million in improvement, but company officials have not confirmed their intention to move forward.

http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/3792/fortwayne553451web729ar.jpg

Jim Sparrow envisions a day not long from now when downtown Fort Wayne will be a vibrant collection of cultural districts partially supported by consumer taxes, arts businesses launched with forgivable loans and a bustling arts campus that serves as a model for cost-efficient collaboration.
An “iconic, innovative arts project” will draw the attention of the nation, more organizations will be the recipients of operating grants, young people will become increasingly active in arts decision-making and public art will be more than merely a grand idea.

Those things and more — many of them driven by an entrepreneurial sensibility and treating the arts more like an economic development catalyst — are part of a five-year-strategic plan recently adopted by Arts United of Greater Fort Wayne that one economic development official said could boost the city’s viability — and eventually the region’s.
Sparrow figures the only thing standing in the way of achieving the goals is community apprehension.
“One of the things I see in our community is that it is a little afraid to think things are possible,” said Sparrow, executive director of Arts United. “So much of the perception is: The locals have a little bit of an inferiority complex.”

Even just one big project that puts Fort Wayne on the arts map, he said, would have the capability of elevating the city’s self-esteem and confidence across many business, educational and social sectors. It would eliminate the occasionally heard phrase, “Good enough for Fort Wayne.”
“I hate that phrase,” Sparrow said. “Absolutely despise that phrase.”
The starting point for Arts United’s vision is Fort Wayne — and largely downtown Fort Wayne. Although the nonprofit is a regional organization, Sparrow believes the core of the effort must be focused in the city to take advantage of an abundance of people and resources. Fort Wayne-based organizations, adequately funded and producing high-quality outcomes, can then share their talents with other northeast Indiana communities.

“One of the essential pieces I see for any kind of significant cultural development is there has to be a level of density and quality to begin with,” he said. Arts United, he said, will continue to support some arts projects in the outlying areas, but he sees no value in distributing money evenly across the board. “If someone comes to Arts United from Peru and has a great idea, that should be invested in,” he said. “But it should not be, ‘Well, we’ve got to give a little money to Peru, we’ve got to give a little money to Auburn, we’ve got to give a little money to LaGrange.’ That to me is just not a very smart thing to do.”

To that end, the quality of projects in the region beyond Fort Wayne will determine the fate of their grant requests. “I don’t know that we’re doing ourselves a world of good by trying to have something 30 minutes down the road that is not going to compete as well and is going to siphon off money that could go for something of high quality in the metropolitan area,” he said.

Arts United will continue to seek that high quality from the 10 core member organizations that receive Arts United operating allocations each year — organizations such as the Fort Wayne Philharmonic and Fort Wayne Museum of Art.“(Those organizations) have become such a vital piece that you just can’t pull the pin out, pull the finger out of the dike,” he said. “We want to make sure we don’t gut the fish, so to speak.”

But in this brave new world of arts planning, Sparrow said he would like to see Arts United develop new funding sources to begin providing small operating allocations — between $5,000 and $10,000 — to other organizations.

“I’d love to see the model change so there’s an opportunity for us to evaluate new projects and organizations,” he said. “I think it’s going to be less about 10 groups and operating support exclusively. I think it’s going to be operating support for those institutions, but giving opportunities to evaluate new projects, new organizations.”

Money — and how it is raised — is at the heart of Arts United’s strategic plan.
Sparrow would like to see the organization’s annual budget, now at $2 million, return to the $3-million level of a decade ago.
He’d also like to see some very specific, project-focused, money-generating, cost-saving or community involvement initiatives that essentially reward financial or social entrepreneurship.

Among them:
• A proposed Fort Wayne food and beverage tax of less than 1 percent for arts development
• A cultural district sales tax of less than 1 percent
• A cultural district community programming fund;
• Coordinated place-focused marketing and development among downtown arts clusters initially, expanding outward eventually
• A young donor society that is more about idea investment than financial philanthropy;
• Incentivized cooperative business models that encourage arts groups to work together to save money and share resources and ideas;
• A public art plan, perhaps starting with a project through Fort Wayne Trails; and
• Forgivable small business development loans administered by the city to help entrepreneurs establish arts businesses in the city and market their enterprises.

Of the latter, Sparrow said there is nothing wrong about art for art’s sake, but the arts should be a more significant economic driver. An example of an arts entrepreneur, he said, might be a potter who wants to begin selling pottery that can be used for functional, not just aesthetic, purposes.
An example of a cooperative business model, meanwhile, is the new Auer Center for Arts and Culture on East Main Street in the former FourthWave building, he said. By Oct. 1, the 37,000-square-foot building will house the Fort Wayne Ballet, Artlink, Arts United staff, Fort Wayne Trails and a lunch nook called Pembroke Bakery operated by former ARCH Inc. executive director Angie Quinn.

The organizations will share back-office operations and be in an environment where they can collaborate on projects. The so-called arts campus also will tie in activities with the nearby Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Arts United Center, the History Center and perhaps the Cinema Center.
Further, by next summer Arts United hopes to construct a $1.5-million to $1.8-million arts lab/performing space building to the east of the Auer Center. Sparrow said Arts United has thus far raised $500,000 for the 5,000-square-foot, 250-seat building, which will be connected to the Auer Center.
Sparrow believes the Auer Center will have a community feel that inspires people to visit not only that facility but the other arts places nearby.

The collection of organizations and buildings on East Main street could be construed as a cultural district, he said, but there could be many more in the city. In any event, he said, the emerging cluster in and around the Auer Center represents the kind of collaboration that other arts organizations should consider.
“The way the arts work now: They are independent islands as opposed to figuring out how to consolidate,” Sparrow said. “And they feel they can only consolidate within their art form. One of those entrepreneurial steps is to say, ‘Consolidate so you can do your mission work.’” Should the strategic plan be realized, Andi Udris, president of the Fort Wayne-Allen County

Economic Development Alliance, said it will bring a level of creativity that will entice people to live and work in Fort Wayne, especially young people.
“One of the problems we face in attracting young people particularly is that they don’t see Fort Wayne as an area that would nurture their creativity,” Udris said.

That creativity, Sparrow said, should not merely be limited to traditional arts. Marketing, advertising and design enterprises also fit the bill.
Rich Davis, president of the Downtown Improvement District, sees the arts as critical to the city’s economic growth.
“It’s not exclusively about economics, of course,” Davis said. “But we find that once downtown institutions make a commitment to promoting and supporting the arts, once a city commits itself to being a city where the arts are an important part of civic life, it signifies a transformation.”

Sparrow hopes Fort Wayne can embrace just such a transformation through Arts United’s efforts to push the envelope when it comes to arts financing and planning. “We know,” he said, “that if you just keep the traditional barriers up that say, ‘This is the way we’ve always done it, so we’re always going to do it this way,’ then you’re going the way of the American auto industry. You’re really not looking at ways that might be better.
“You’ve got to be continually reinventing yourself.”

-Greater Fort Wayne Business Weekly

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Mark: Nice looking and informative blog. Its great to have this type of thing so local folks have a place to go when they want to check out new plans and discuss projects in Ft. Wayne. Lots of good things happening. I hope the hotel project at the Embassy Theater can happen. Also - glad to see things progressing with the Harrison Square project. That O'Reilly's pub proposal sounds good as far as a first floor business. They have a location on S. Pennsylvania street - a block from Conseco Fieldhouse in downtown Indy and it does well - even when there are no events going on at Conseco (I guess technically I should call it CNO Financial Fieldhouse now - since the name just officially changed a few minutes ago.)

Those buildings along Broadway are beautiful. I hope they can be saved and turned into more cool businesses. There already are several along Broadway. I really like that street and its feel with all of the brick. I think Mad Anthony's pub is just a little further south on Broadway from that location. Maybe they could just keep the name "Canton Laundry" and turn it into a cool Chinese restaurant. Its a great building.

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