The Tribune's top business stories of 2023

Dec. 29—It was a busy 2023 business-wise in Howard County and Kokomo.

From two large, commercial-scale solar farms having their eyes set on Howard County to Chick-fil-A finally announcing their intent to open a location in Kokomo, it's evident the local area is growing and changing and will likely continue to do so in the new year.

In no particular order, here are the top business stories of the year.

One last scare for Edge of Insanity

For the last 16 years, Edge of Insanity has scared locals. That ended this October.

Owners Tammy and Walter Ingham choose to close the "haunted asylum" to allow the couple to have more time off. Because of the amount of work and preparation the attraction requires, the Inghams barely go on vacation.

The Inghams kept Edge of Insanity going for as long as they could to support their surrogate family of volunteers and the charities they help.

"We're legitimately tired," Tammy Ingham said. "Absolutely exhausted."

The beginnings of Edge of Insanity were modest. In its first year, the attraction took up just half a barn. It now occupies 1,000 or so square feet of walking space outside and two floors of a 40-by-50-feet long barn connected to a 50-by-60 feet long barn.

Though originally planned to be a for-profit business, Edge of Insanity has operated for nearly two decades as a nonprofit, donating proceeds to various charities, a scholarship fund for entrepreneurial students and families in need.

Through the first 15 years of operation, Edge of Insanity has raised more than $100,000 for various charities.

Chick-fil-A sets its sights on Kokomo, finally

The long wait for a Kokomo Chick-fil-A is finally over.

Chick-fil-A is planning on opening a Kokomo location, the company confirmed to the Tribune.

The fast food chain that specializes in chicken sandwiches, chicken nuggets and waffle fries has plans to build a restaurant in the parking lot in front of Hobby Lobby and Summit Salon Academy near the intersection of Indiana 931 and Markland Avenue.

In a statement, the company said it was "excited by the prospect" of opening a location in Kokomo.

"While we are still early in the process, Chick-fil-A is happy to share that we are actively pursuing our first location in the Kokomo area," the company said in a statement. "We look forward to working through the approval process and are excited by the prospect of joining this community. Each locally owned and operated restaurant creates 80 — 120 jobs in the area. We look forward to the opportunity to serve new guests delicious food in an environment of genuine hospitality."

With the expected arrival of Chick-fil-A, that corner of Markland and Indiana 931 will soon be "chicken corner" and have three chicken-centered businesses — Popeye's Raising Cane's and Chick-fil-A — all within a stone's throw of each other.

Solar powered

Two solar companies have their eyes set on installing large, utility-scale solar farms in eastern Howard County, though when they will begin operations is still unclear at the moment.

ENGIE North America and Ranger Power have both publicly announced their intention to build near 2,000 acre solar farms just east of the town of Greentown near Duke Energy's Greentown Substation.

The companies both claim their proposed projects would generate tens of millions in tax revenue, contribute to the state's shift to using renewable energy sources and create hundreds of temporary construction jobs and a handful of permanent jobs.

Once the life of the solar farm is complete, both companies said the land can be returned to agriculture use.

The projects have faced considerable opposition. Opponents of the solar farm largely cited concerns over neighboring property values, potential drainage issues caused by the installation of the solar farm and the loss of arable land.

On the other hand, proponents of the projects say they will help fight climate change as it contributes to the state weaning off fossil fuels as its main source of electricity and will show that Howard County is a leader in that regard.

Both proposed solar farms received needed special exception approval from the Howard County Board of Zoning Appeals earlier this year, though it took ENGIE three attempts over two years and a lawsuit against the BZA to get its approval. The special exception approval is the first step in a multi-step process before the projects can begin construction and operation. Other steps include receiving drainage approval, road use approval, stormwater plan approval, decommissioning plan approval, development plan approval from the Howard County Plan Commission and economic development agreement approval.

Ranger Power's Locomotive Solar project escaped a legal appeal. ENGIE's Emerald Green Solar was not so lucky.

A group of nearby property owners have filed an appeal of the granting of ENGIE's special exception and are seeking judicial review. That litigation is still ongoing as of late December.

Howard County gets a dose of fiber

Stuck with slow and occasionally unreliable mobile broadband internet, it often took Mast Farms 45 minutes to upload or download any farm data.

That's if the internet didn't drop during the process, causing the Masts to have to start the process all over again.

Even non business use, such as watching Netflix, was difficult and often impossible during times of congestion.

Mast Farms no longer has those problems, though.

That's because they're one of the first families and businesses connected to Howard County's new fiber ring being installed by local internet service provider BerryComm.

The internet service provider completed the installation of a 55-mile fiber optic ring this year.

The ring will serve as the base for build-out of the fiber optic network to address the low broadband availability that has impacted many rural residents in Howard County, offering up to 1-gigabit speeds to residents and beyond-1-gigabit speeds to schools, health care facilities and businesses that require dedicated bandwidth.

In the upcoming years, BerryComm said it will continue to go after state and federal grants to help expand fiber access from the ring to all directions.

The effects on the county's more rural areas will be positive as better broadband access has been shown to generate higher property values and drive population and job growth.

City gets tough on gas stations, discount stores

For Kokomo City Council, 2023 was a year where it got tough on small box discount stores, gas station and convenience store combinations and self-storage facilities.

The elected board overwhelmingly approved new, stricter standards for both types of businesses this year, including how close a new gas station/convenience store and discount store can be built to an already existing one and newer design standards for both that the city says will make any newer developments more aesthetically pleasing.

Any new small-box discount store — defined as "a retail store of less than 16,000 square feet that continuously offers and advertises a majority of the items in their inventory for sale below retail market value" — must at least 15% of gross floor space must be reserved for "fresh meats, fresh dairy, fresh fruits and fresh vegetables." In addition, 15% of gross floor area must be reserved for storage of inventory not currently on display.

In approving the fresh food requirements, Kokomo joins many other cities and towns across the country who have enacted similar requirements as a way to tackle food deserts and a history of discount stores lacking in serving fresh produce and meats.

A self-storage facility is now only permissible in light industrial, moderate intensity industrial and heavy intensity zoning districts. If sought in a light industrial zone, the petitioner would need to receive approval for a special exception permit from the Kokomo Board of Zoning Appeals.

The changes come after Kokomo saw a number of new discount stores, gas station/convenience stores and self-storage units come to the city in the last few years.

According to the company websites, Kokomo has seven Dollar Generals, three Family Dollars and two Dollar Trees. A new Family Dollar and Dollar Tree combination store is expected to open soon at 1401 N. Washington St., the former home of Marsh Supermarket. The store is a half-a-mile away from an existing Family Dollar.

TJ Rethlake, city attorney, defined the changes enacted this year as the city opting to prioritize the "highest and best use of properties."