Seeing what develops: a healthy state of commercial development continues across Indiana.

• Author: Dunlop, Phil

New commercial real-estate projects are springing up all over the state, and the examples reported here are merely a sampling of what is on the plate for developers of varying size.

CENTRAL INDIANA

Simon DeBartolo Group, headquartered in Indianapolis, is the largest publicly traded real estate company in North America. It owns, develops and manages regional malls and community shopping centers, with an interest in 186 properties totaling 113 million square feet in 33 states. Several major expansions are occurring in Indiana at present.

For example, Simon DeBartolo recently renovated Muncie Mall, adding an L.S. Ayres store and allowing some small shop expansions. At University Park Mali in South Bend, the company completed a mali renovation along with expansions of the L.S. Ayres store and several shops, and added a food court.

Redevelopment projects currently under construction include Lafayette Square Mali in Indianapolis, plus the addition of a Dillard's department store and mall renovation at the Richmond Square Mali in Richmond. Simon is performing major expansions and renovations of this type in many of its malls across the country.

Duke Realty Investments is celebrating its 25th year in business. Started by Phil Duke and John Wynne, Duke is an almost $2 billion business with more than 40 million square feet of buildings constructed. Duke, headquartered in Indianapolis, is one of the first real-estate investment trusts of the 1990s to focus on office and industrial development.

Of the approximately 12 million square feet of suburban office space in the Indianapolis area, Duke controls about 10 million, carrying a 92 percent occupancy rate. Duke currently is developing a building for Software Artistry (with a portion to be leased to other prospective tenants); a speculative building at Parkwood Crossing, 96th Street and College Avenue; and a new headquarters building for Firestone in Carmel at 126th Street and U.S. 31 at Hamilton Crossing. "Because the market is tightening up, we believe the time is right to build some conservative speculative space," says Donna Coppinger, a Duke vice president.

"Three years ago, Duke began Lebanon Business Park with 750-plus acres of master-planned land," she continues. "Today, we have 2.1 million square feet of completed industrial properties which are 100 percent occupied." Currently under construction at Lebanon Business Park is a 577,000-square-foot building for MacMillan Publishing. Also going up...