This and that: A Monday edition
Holcomb sees more trade missions in waning months, ‘more good news to share’ this year on LEAP district. A pivotal week in Delphi murder case. And more
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HOLCOMB SEES MORE TRADE MISSIONS IN WANING MONTHS, ‘MORE GOOD NEWS TO SHARE’ THIS YEAR ON LEAP DISTRICT
Closing out an economic development trip to Australia and Singapore, Gov. Eric Holcomb didn’t offer that immediate results were coming back with him this week to Indiana.
But he said that the international trip might not be the last of his eight-year term as governor, winding down at the end of 2024.
“There's no substitute for showing up,” Holcomb said. “Hopefully, ultimately, we're standing side by side in the state of Indiana and celebrating, cutting a ribbon or doing a groundbreaking.”
Holcomb left Indiana July 20 with a group that included First Lady Janet Holcomb and David Rosenberg, Indiana’s secretary of commerce. Holcomb was schedule with an emphasis on defense, energy and advanced manufacturing, defense and energy, in a trip that included visits with companies with Indiana ties, including Eli Lilly operations in Australia and Singapore and Penske Australia.
Here are a few takeaways from a Sunday evening call with statewide reporters, via Singapore.
On his approach to trade missions this late in his term: “It's pedal to the metal. Indiana cannot afford to downshift, down my stretch or in 169 days, I think it is, when I when I hand the keys to someone else to drive forward. … First and foremost, we're here to strengthen those ties and bonds (and) create new ones. So, yes, I suspect there will be trips in the future, because we're bird dogging that work right now. … It would be lazy, at best, and derelict of duty if I did not follow up on helping our companies grow and fostering an environment that would help new friends join us on our Hoosier soil.”
How the political climate in the U.S. is affecting recruiting companies: “I am reminded everywhere I go that … we're not unique. That there is, I'll call it drama, for lack of a better description. There is drama abroad just as much as at home. There are folks who binge watch our political theater as if it's a reality show and can't get enough of it and hang on every minute. … Everywhere I go, I always say, how many governors have been here this year? In Australia, it was two others that had beat me. I hate being in the second row, so I shoot for pole position. But that competition is very healthy in the sense that at least I know that there are other folks in America trying to forge these new pipelines and these new business ventures on American soil. I want it all in Indiana, of course. My message is, if you are looking for a place in America … for certainty and predictability and stability and continuity, Indiana is a strong bet.”
On the 9,000-acre LEAP district in and around Lebanon – a spot that could loom large for Greater Lafayette if the IEDC pulls the trigger on a controversial plan for a water pipeline from western Tippecanoe County – Holcomb was asked about the prospects as his administration lines up passing that development to the next administration: “I think there's a lot of momentum in that general area – Lafayette, West Lafayette, the Greater Lafayette area, all the way down to our capital city, and all that it has to offer. … LEAP continues to draw interest, and I am optimistic that there will be much more good news to share before I do hand over the keys in the LEAP district. It will be an oasis, if you will, of opportunity for people to find great careers that contribute to not only our state's growth, but actually to our nation's economic and national security. Those are the type of businesses that we're looking to locate in the LEAP district.”
POTENTIALLY PIVOTAL WEEK COMING FOR DELPHI MURDER CASE
Three days of hearings, starting Tuesday, are expected to bring what could be pivotal decisions ahead of the trial in October of Richard Allen, the 51-year-old Delphi man who was arrested and charged nearly two years ago in the 2017 murders of Delphi eighth-graders Abby Williams and Libby German.
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