Business Booms Near Lucas Oil Stadium

INDIANAPOLIS -- Businesses near Lucas Oil Stadium are expecting a big boost of income when Lucas Oil Stadium opens in a few days and some are already rolling in dough.

Developers have big plans to open new businesses in an area that is mostly industrial now, 6News' Cheryl Jackson reported.

The city is banking that the stadium will ignite a landslide of development in the area just south of downtown.

For some businesses nearby, the stadium has already increased revenue.

Workers continue to toil as the clock ticks to the stadium's opening. Those workers have been a boon to nearby eateries and other establishments.

Greg Basey, owner of Basey's Downtown Grill, said business has flourished as stadium workers came to his eatery for lunch or dinner.

"We love the stadium for what it has done for us and what it is going to do for us," Basey said. "We are looking more forward to the expansion of the convention center. That is where the big money comes in."

Mark Flanary, of the Concord Community Development Center, is proposing a project he said would benefit the neighborhood and visitors.

"Our plans are for an international restaurant row, with Shapiro's as an anchor to the north and past the Greek Islands to the (Interstate) 70 overpass," Flanary said.

For now, three hotels are the main new businesses near the stadium, but developers have plenty of plans to add retail shops, condominiums, restaurants and more.

Crews are working 24 hours a day to wrap up stadium construction. It is expected to open on schedule next Saturday.