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Terre Haute looking toward next chapter – Inside INdiana Business

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Terre Haute looking toward next chapter – Inside INdiana Business


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The city of Terre Haute has seen several major changes recently.

The city has a new mayor—the youngest in its history—as well as a new president at Indiana State University, a new casino that opened with great fanfare and big crowds in April, renewed investment in the city’s downtown, and a general feeling that west central Indiana is ready to make a statement.

That feeling was evident as more than 300 business and community leaders filled the floor at the Hulman Center on the campus of ISU for a conversation on important issues facing the regional economy as part of our Engage Indiana series.

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“Terre Haute and west central Indiana spent a lot of time planning and doing research and really feeling what we could do to increase our population and increase per capita income,” said Jon Ford, chairman of the Wabash River Valley Regional Development Authority. “And right now, it’s all kind of coming together, along with new talented people moving into our area.”

Terre Haute Mayor Brandon Sackman says the optimism is well founded, pointing to more than $80 million in downtown projects in the pipeline, including a new Courtyard Hotel on Wabash Avenue with walkways connecting to parking and additional hotel rooms.

The investment, which includes the restoration of the historic Indiana Theatre, is all part of a new vision for the city’s downtown.

“What we’re really doing is saying, ‘Hey, it’s not going to be like 50-60 years ago…but some of the characteristics will come back,” Sakbun said. “And that’s what’s important is we’re not going to go back to what the past was, but we’re going to build off of it and move towards the future.”

The bet on Terre Haute’s comeback is also riding on a $290 million casino and hotel that opened in the spring to big crowds and a boost to the region’s tourism efforts.

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“We had over 12,000 people come in that first weekend,” a casino spokesperson told IIB. “We were just absolutely slammed. It was so great to see. We had people starting to line up starting at 6 a.m. that morning; we opened our doors at 11, and ever since then we’ve been open.”

After years of talk, efforts are moving forward around a Wabash River master plan focused on accelerating riverfront development and quality of place initiatives—all moves the mayor says position Terre Haute and the Wabash Valley to compete.

“It was not too long—decades ago—that Terre Haute was was beating the Muncies of the world, competing with the South Bends, the Evansvilles, the Fort Waynes,” said Sakbun. “So we’re really taking that hard look in the mirror saying, ‘Hey, let’s pivot and change some things up,’ and that’s what we’ve done through elections, through new leadership at organizations, and I strongly believe you’re going to see a lot of activity in the next 18 to 24 months, which will pay off not just for the next two years but the next two decades.”

One of the biggest issues facing communities in the Wabash Valley and throughout the state of Indiana is available housing. Just south of Terre Haute in Knox County, the city of Vincennes is taking the issue head on with a $35 million apartment project.

It comes as work begins on the $83 million AgroRenew bioplastics plant that is expected to create more than 250 jobs. Knox County Indiana Economic Development CEO Chris Pfaff says growth opportunities will drive demand for even more housing options.

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“Now with the AgroRenew project, we’ve really got a unique opportunity to build a bioplastics cluster in this region, whether that’s right in Vincennes or Knox County or even in our surrounding community.”

Officials say increased communication and collaboration among local stakeholders has been key to the region’s growth thus far and will continue to be important moving forward.

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FBI thwarted ‘ISIS-inspired plot’ at Indiana school, but won’t say where

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FBI thwarted ‘ISIS-inspired plot’ at Indiana school, but won’t say where


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At some point in 2025, the FBI helped a local police agency foil an “ISIS-inspired plot” that at least one minor planned to carry out at an unnamed central Indiana school, according to an annual summary released by the federal agency’s Indianapolis field office on Jan. 5, 2026.

FBI agents “disrupted an ISIS-inspired plot targeting a Central Indiana high school through rapid coordination with local partners,” according to the news release.

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Beyond that, the agency provided few details, sharing neither the name of the school involved nor the city or town in which the school was located. Nor did the agency clarify why the report characterized the plot as ISIS-inspired.

Chris Bavender, an FBI spokesperson, declined to answer an IndyStar request for additional information about the foiled attack, responding in an email that “this matter is ongoing.”

“Because the student had immediate access to firearms, FBI Indianapolis worked closely with the high school and our local law enforcement partner to remove all firearms from the house, and the student was expelled from school. DOJ did not file charges as the individual is a juvenile,” Bavender wrote.

Bavender did not provide any information on whether the student is facing charges in the juvenile justice system.

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Although high schools in both Mooresville and Westfield were the site of high-profile threat investigations in 2025, neither matched the details mentioned in the FBI report.

In February 2025, Trinity Shockley, 18, was arrested after sharing plans for a Valentine’s Day school shooting at Mooresville High School. Though the investigation into Shockley began after the FBI received a tip, Shockley was not a juvenile at the time of her arrest. Nor did court documents filed in her case reference any connection to ISIS.

The Mooresville Police Department did not immediately respond on Jan. 5 to a request for comment.

In September 2025, Westfield High School was placed on lockdown after a “potential threat.” Billy Adams, the assistant chief of the Westfield Police Department, said there’s no indication the lockdown “had anything to do with an ISIS-inspired plot.”

IndyStar reached out on Jan. 5 to multiple police agencies in central Indiana, including the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, the Southport Police Department, the Speedway Police Department and the Beech Grove Police Department.

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Officials for IMPD, Southport, and Speedway police said their agencies handled no such threat. Beech Grove’s police department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Ryan Murphy is the communities reporter for IndyStar. She can be reached at rhmurphy@indystar.com.



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Unseasonably mild temperatures for central Indiana this week | Jan. 5, 2026

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Unseasonably mild temperatures for central Indiana this week | Jan. 5, 2026


INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Temperatures in Central Indiana are expected to remain above normal through late this week, with highs near 60 degrees expected by Thursday and Friday. Rain showers are predicted from Thursday through Friday night, with the possibility of isolated thunderstorms.

Today:

Dry and mild, with high temperatures ranging from the mid 40s to low 50s. Just a mix of sun and clouds with light winds should make for a pleasant afternoon.

Tonight:

Lows in the mid 30s to low 40s, with patchy drizzle or fog possible late.

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Tuesday:

Mostly cloudy skies and breezy conditions with wind gusts of 20 to 25 mph, elevating highs into the lower to middle 50s. A few light showers will be possible through the day as well.

Wednesday:

Should be the best day of the week, featuring more sunshine and lighter winds, with highs in the low to mid 50s.

Late week storm system:

Highs on Thursday and Friday are set to approach 60°, which will be pushing a few records across the state.

A warm front moving through Thursday evening will spark scattered showers and possibly some thunderstorms across the area starting Thursday afternoon.

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A stronger storm or two can’t be ruled out.

Showers will continue into the first half of Friday, before the cold front pushes out of the state later in the day.

As the weekend approaches, the cold front will move through, leading to a significant drop in temperatures. Conditions will become cooler and breezy, with spotty flurries possible as temperatures return to seasonal norms for this time of year.

Looking ahead, the weekend is expected to bring a return to cooler temperatures and near-seasonal norms, with potential light snow flurries in the forecast as a cold front passes through Central Indiana.



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Indiana football adds explosive running back out of transfer portal

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Indiana football adds explosive running back out of transfer portal


BLOOMINGTON — Curt Cignetti reinforced his running back rotation, which will need an offseason makeover due to eligibility related attrition, on Sunday with the commitment of Boston College running back Turbo Richard according to multiple media outlets.

Richard helps relieve the stress created by the departures of Kaelon Black and Roman Hemby, the Hoosiers’ leading rushers in 2025, both of whom will exhaust their eligibility at the end of the current season. Cignetti and his staff add Richard to a running back room already anchored around Lee Beebe Jr., returning from injury, and Khobie Martin, the one-time Fishers star who flashed meaningful potential this season.

Here’s what to know about IU’s newest running back:

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Turbo Richard provides proven production

Indiana has, in Cignetti’s two seasons in Bloomington, shown a repeated desire to add skill players who’ve shown impact in numbers and film. Richard fits that bill.

Across two seasons in Chestnut Hill, he posted 1,027 yards and 11 touchdowns on 200 carries, with another 275 yards receiving and two more touchdowns through the air.

Last season, Richard accounted for 962 total yards and 11 scores.

He’s shown explosiveness too: Richard posted at least one carry of 10-plus yards in seven different games last season, with single-game highs of 18, 43, 46 and 71 yards.

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How much eligibility does Turbo Richard have remaining?

Cignetti often refers to players with more than one year of eligibility remaining as more valuable in the portal. His program will get as many as two from Richard.

Additionally, the Charlotte native played right away at Boston College, in 2024, meaning he has a redshirt year if he needs it for any reason as well.

Fit to type

Listed at 5-8, 207 pounds, Richard looks on film a lot like the kind of back Indiana has had success with in Cignetti’s tenure.

He’s quick and nimble enough to get involved in the pass game, but powerful enough to make an impact between the tackles. He also shows excellent burst — as evidenced by those explosive numbers — potentially replacing the second- and third-level burst that made Black and Hemby so dangerous this season.

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Indiana led the Big Ten in rushes of 10-plus yards in 2025. Richard profiles as the kind of back that can help sustain that production into 2026.

Back rotation settled?

It’s not clear exactly where Beebe stands in his recovery from a season-ending injury suffered in September. If IU is confident in his return to form, coupled to Martin’s development, this could wind up as Indiana’s running back rotation into next season.

The Hoosiers have reportedly hosted other portal running backs, so it’s possible IU isn’t done here. But especially given Martin’s flashes this season (74 carries, 463 yards, six TDs), if Indiana is settled here, then the Hoosiers appear to have handed position coach John Miller another healthy stable of backs to build a run game around.



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