Tell me something positive about Gary Indiana (Ogden Dunes: neighborhood, movie theater)

[MyTarge13]

Originally Posted by midwest1

A pic from the line waiting at 18th Street Brewery in Gary

https://www.facebook.com/18thStreetB...type=1&theater



The patrons...

https://www.facebook.com/18thStreetB...type=1&theater

18th Street Brewery is great. We made a special trip there to celebrate a new job and really enjoyed it. It is nice to see a small business succeeding. (try the grilled cheese and tomato soup, it is really good).

[Northwest Indiana Life]

The downtown baseball stadium in Gary has more than 1 million people enter. The dunes and the Airshow (Airshow usually at Gary Int'l Airport). The city also has successfully torn down the former Sheraton Hotel, works on the new bank branch at the Gary state bank downtown, and also has removed many vacant homes in the city. Although Gary has had its ups and downs in the past, the city seems to be changing smally and successfully for a brighter future.

[ColdAilment]

Originally Posted by Northwest Indiana Life

The downtown baseball stadium in Gary has more than 1 million people enter. The dunes and the Airshow (Airshow usually at Gary Int'l Airport). The city also has successfully torn down the former Sheraton Hotel, works on the new bank branch at the Gary state bank downtown, and also has removed many vacant homes in the city. Although Gary has had its ups and downs in the past, the city seems to be changing smally and successfully for a brighter future.

Curious for a citation on these numbers. Are you claiming the baseball stadium has more than 1 million visitors per year? That's more than twice the population of Lake County.

[Northwest Indiana Life]

@ ColdAilment

This city had its one millionth customer walk in the baseball stadium in 2009, but it usually brings in some visitors.

[ColdAilment]

Originally Posted by Northwest Indiana Life

@ ColdAilment

This city had its one millionth customer walk in the baseball stadium in 2009, but it usually brings in some visitors.

So 1 million total, not 1 million annually. Your statistics are a little misleading.

[Northwest Indiana Life]

Well what I mean is the baseball stadium was built in 2001. From 2001-2009 there have been 1 million customers that have entered the stadium. But the stadium attracts about 115,000 people a year. It's one of Gary's attractions.

[midwest1]

More positive media coverage of the coming turnaround..

The challenges and opportunities of Gary at its turning point | WGN-TV

[ColdAilment]

Originally Posted by midwest1

More positive media coverage of the coming turnaround..

The challenges and opportunities of Gary at its turning point | WGN-TV

I'm glad WGN covered this, reaches a much larger audience by doing this. However the news is still grim in Gary, the chamber of commerce admits that Gary has, "No furniture store, no grocery store, no movie theater" calling it a city that lacks even the basics.

I know a Starbucks isn't the be all end all of a city and how successful it is, but Gary has 80,000 people and not a single chain cafe. I kind of wonder where all the manufacturing and steel mill workers live at, because Gary still has a lot of industry.

[Chuckity]

Originally Posted by midwest1

More positive media coverage of the coming turnaround..

The challenges and opportunities of Gary at its turning point | WGN-TV

Hahahahaha! LOVE the hipsters in the video!!

But Miller and Gary are really two very distinct places - Miller is a protected enclave for the most part with pretty distinct natural borders. Breathing new life into Miller Beach will be easy peasy compared to the rest of Gary.

Gary has two things going for it - location relative to Chicago and it's shoreline. Unfortunately, the only shoreline that really exists for public consumption, is in Miller. If one could get rid of the steel mills (the environmental clean up $$ alone would have to be staggering) I think Gary as a whole would undergo a stunning transformation - at least the areas north of the toll road.

But that will never happen.

I really don't foresee Gary ever making a turnaround.

[ColdAilment]

Originally Posted by Chuckity

Hahahahaha! LOVE the hipsters in the video!!

But Miller and Gary are really two very distinct places - Miller is a protected enclave for the most part with pretty distinct natural borders. Breathing new life into Miller Beach will be easy peasy compared to the rest of Gary.

Gary has two things going for it - location relative to Chicago and it's shoreline. Unfortunately, the only shoreline that really exists for public consumption, is in Miller. If one could get rid of the steel mills (the environmental clean up $$ alone would have to be staggering) I think Gary as a whole would undergo a stunning transformation - at least the areas north of the toll road.

But that will never happen.

I really don't foresee Gary ever making a turnaround.

Gary is too engrained into the industry to ever make a major turnaround in my opinion. Outside of pockets of New Jersey, northwestern Indiana has to be one of the most industrialized areas. Where in Chicago you see glimmering skyscrappers in Gary you see towering smoke stacks, by the dozens.

Didn't realize initially that this opened up in Miller Beach, which is still a decent area. For the time being it's going to be very difficult to entice new businesses to open up in Gary primarily because their commercial traffic has taken a plunge, most people go to Merrilville for shopping and because of the high crime. No one wants their business to be burglarized.