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CALL FOR NOMINATIONS Crain’s is accepting nominations for our annual Forty Under 40 section, honoring some of the top business and civic leaders in Northeast Ohio. For more details on how to nominate, see Page 4.
Road to turnpike deal may be rough Indiana operator’s trouble, tight debt market make for a hard sell By JAY MILLER jmiller@crain.com
Indiana got lucky when it leased the Indiana Toll Road in 2006. “It was the best deal since Manhattan was sold for beads,” Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels told Barron’s
THE GHOSTS OF BUILDINGS PAST More Northeast Ohio sites meet wrecking ball as way to save on tax bill
business weekly in 2009. A for around $3 billion ANALYSIS hopes multinational joint venture for the 241-mile road. paid $3.8 billion for the 157-mile Those comparative numbers could stretch of road between Ohio and make it hard to swing an Ohio deal. Illinois. In part, that’s because the Indiana But Gov. John Kasich won’t do as operation hasn’t performed as well well, it appears, if he tries to peddle as promised, chilling investment the Ohio Turnpike. As it is, he only interest in U.S. infrastructure deals.
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ig demolition projects such as razing the old Cleveland Convention Center and 113 St. Clair office building for the Medical Mart and Convention Center project and the Columbia Building on Prospect Avenue for casino-bound visitor parking in downtown Cleveland are attention grabbers. However, wrecking balls also have been swinging with far less fanfare elsewhere around town, like at the old Jim’s Steakhouse on Collision Bend in the Flats. See GHOSTS Page 5 STAN BULLARD PHOTOS/ LAUREN RAFFERTY ILLUSTRATION
Story by STAN BULLARD sbullard@crain.com
The former Jim’s Steakhouse in the Flats became this empty lot after being demolished.
A tight debt market and a less generous lease deal also will reduce the attractiveness of the Ohio Turnpike. Debtwire, a London newswire affiliated with the Financial Times, reported recently that the Indiana road’s operator, the Indiana Toll Road Concession Co., has been dipping into an interest reserve account to cover debt service because operating See TURNPIKE Page 7
Dots taking aggressive approach to grow brand Backing of veteran retail private equity firm helps By MICHELLE PARK mpark@crain.com
With its sights set on planting 1,000 dots on the map and the potential for an eventual public offering of its stock, women’s fashion retailer Dots LLC is working feverishly to take its brand nationwide. Backed by a private equity firm that has helped build retail brands such as New York & Co. and Aeropostale, Dots is doing more renovations and opening more stores this year than it has in any single year, said its CEO, Rick Bunka. At present, Glenwillow-based Dots has 407 stores in 28 states, Bunka all east of the Rocky Mountains, Mr. Bunka said. It now is looking beyond that base. “Our vision here is a much grander vision than historically was the case,” said John Howard, CEO of Irving Place Capital, the New York private equity firm that acquired Dots for an undisclosed price last January. “We think there’s something really special that can be exported here,”
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Crain’s profiles 15 of Northeast Ohio’s leading business women ■ Page W-1
Entire contents © 2011 by Crain Communications Inc. Vol. 32, No. 29