Billions Flow into Downtown Indy, but Challenges Linger

Last week, Japan's Nippon Steel announced plans to invest nearly $1 billion in U.S. Steel's Gary Works .

Indiana State Capitol building in Indianapolis, Indiana

Source: Ward DeWitt / Getty

INDIANAPOLIS – Billions are being invested in downtown Indianapolis, with cranes filling the skyline. But as Gerry Dick of Inside Indiana Business points out, city leaders still face major challenges.

“It’s not that the discussions, this is my opinion, that they aren’t taking place, they are taking place, perhaps they’re not as high-profile out in the public as some would like, and they are challenges that Indianapolis needs to face, and I think they will face,” Dick said.

Last week, Japan’s Nippon Steel announced plans to invest nearly $1 billion in U.S. Steel’s Gary Works if its acquisition of the Pittsburgh-based company is approved. However, the deal has drawn opposition from both President Biden and President-elect Trump, who have raised concerns about national security.

“If the deal doesn’t go through, what is next?” Dick said. “I think that’s what has people concerned.”

In a press conference with the city of Gary on Thursday, Nippon Steel Vice Chairman Takahiro Mori revealed that the company plans to invest $300 million into upgrading one of the blast furnaces at Gary Works. These furnaces, which use coking coal, are responsible for the largest share of emissions in the steelmaking process.