1 big thing: Indiana workers set to strike

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2. 🚀 Another Boilermaker heads to space

3. Pit stop: Airport hotel might actually happen

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4. Weekender: Monster trucks, ghost stories and football

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5. 📷 Pic to go: Market Square Arena

Rosh Hashanah begins tonight. One way to ring in the Jewish New Year: Try Israeli American chef Michael Solomonov's coffee-braised brisket recipe.

😶‍🌫️ Today's weather: Patchy fog again this morning, then sunny with a high near 77.

Today's newsletter is 944 words — a 3.5-minute read. Edited by Lindsey Erdody and copy edited by Bill Kole.

😴 Arika is going to need a nap before going to the Purdue football game, which she agreed to attend before realizing it was a night game.

🏈 Lindsey is glad the IU football game is not a night game.

Plus: 🕯️ Remembering Market Square Arena

Indianapolis

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A daily look at the most significant and interesting stories affecting Indianapolis.

Axios Indianapolis

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1 big thing: Abortions dropped before ban took effect

2. Sen. Young leading charge on AI regulation

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3. Pit stop: Where the incentive is being informed

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4. 🌮 Loco opening new concept downtown

5. 📉 Chart to go: Employee satisfaction dips

🌤️ Today's weather: Mostly sunny and warm, with a high near 82.

🚨 Situational awareness: The Marion County Sheriff's Office is looking for a murder suspect mistakenly released from jail yesterday. Anyone with information that may help find him can call Crime Stoppers at 317-262-8477.

Today's newsletter is 918 words — a 3.5-minute read. Edited by Lindsey Erdody and copy edited by Bill Kole.

🥰 Arika had lunch with James and his adorable baby Meredith yesterday!

🙅‍♀️ Lindsey will not be paying for X if it comes to that.

1 big thing: Hoosiers are here to stay

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2. 🎓 Indiana's top colleges

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3. Pit stop: Where the news is getting real litigious 

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4. 🏈 Colts get first win of the season

5. Meatless Monday: Tough choices at Easy Rider

It's Arika again, this time with fighting words: Purdue is better than IU, but Notre Dame beats 'em both. (But Butler is the best in the Midwest. #GoDawgs.)

Don't @ me. Take it up with U.S. News & World Report.

☀️ Today's weather: Sunny, with a high near 74.

🏁 Sounds like: "Back Home Again in Indiana," sung by Jim Nabors at the Indy 500.

Today's newsletter is 942 words — a 3.5-minute read. Edited by Lindsey Erdody and copy edited by Bill Kole.

🧐 Lindsey thinks IU should be ranked above Purdue in any and all categories.

The White River's turning point

1 big thing: The White River's turning point

On the job hunt?

Hamilton Southeastern superintendent Yvonne Stokes resigns

2. HSE's history-making superintendent is out

3. Pit stop: In awkward timing news ...

4. 📓 Old Northside gets a stationery store

A shop with cards on the walls and tables in the middle

☀️ Today's weather: Sunny with a high near 76.

💉 Situational awareness: The CDC is recommending everyone 6 months and older get a COVID-19 booster amid a months-long uptick in cases.

Today's newsletter is 897 words — a 3.5-minute read. Edited by Lindsey Erdody and copy edited by Bill Kole.

🚣‍♀️ Arika recommends the 7-mile kayak trip from Frank’s Livery for anyone wanting to experience the White River.

🛶 Lindsey is excited to kayak and paddle board on the White River in the future, but she's among those who are skeptical about swimming.

1 big thing: Rokita headed to disciplinary commission

A new career is waiting for you

2. Purdue Global partnering with Meta on VR

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3. Pit stop: City nixes redevelopment at CCB 

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4.🍻 Brews on Tues: Oktoberfest season is here

It's Tuesday. More importantly: It's National Voter Registration Day.

Register to vote online! The deadline to participate in November's municipal elections is Oct. 10.

🌤️ Today's weather: Mostly sunny, with a high near 77.

 🤝 Thanks to our members for supporting our newsroom! Become one today.

Today's newsletter is 953 words — a 3.5-minute read. Edited by Lindsey Erdody and copy edited by Bill Kole.

🐶 Arika is glad that weiner dog racing season is finally here. 

🍎 Lindsey wants to know where the best apple cider doughnuts are in Indy.

The University of Notre Dame is still Indiana's best university.

Driving the news: U.S. News & World Report released its 2023-24 Best Colleges rankings this morning.

Why it matters: U.S. News is one of the most influential college rankings and has shaped the hierarchy of higher education since 1983.

Yes, but: The list (and others like it) has become polarizing.

Last year, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said college rankings are "a joke."

The big picture: Notre Dame is consistently the top-ranked school in the state and the only to regularly place among the top 20 in the nation.

It ranked 20th among national universities this year, down two spots from last year.

It also ranked No. 19 on the list of the nation's best values in higher education.

Meanwhile, Purdue University moved up eight spots to No. 43.

Indiana University's Bloomington campus dropped one spot to No. 73.

Details: The annual rankings also include a plethora of specific categories.

U.S. News releases regional lists and ranks everything from the best public schools to the most innovative. It also rates individual programs, down to the best undergraduate engineering program at a school that doesn't offer a doctorate.

Rose-Hulman has taken the top spot on that last list for the past 25 years.

Zoom in: Butler University was once again named the best Midwest university.

Taylor University ranked No. 3 among best Midwest colleges.

Purdue also made the list of best public schools in the nation, ranking 17th, and was named seventh most innovative in the country, same as last year.

Notre Dame tops best colleges lists for Indiana

Plus: Purdue ranks higher than IU, and Butler maintains its "best in the Midwest" title.

Indiana

The University of Notre Dame is still Indiana&#x27;s best university.Driving the news: U.S. News &amp; World Report released its <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="2023-24 Best Colleges rankings" data-vars-click-url="https://usw2.nyl.as/t1/315/28sf1nxuw28uu5dnxawgddads/1/97ed8abc79a0782958115b63811ab399219a9d6a5355540dfd7c5c1e87520bf8" data-vars-content-id="63707a64-c1ce-4a87-883e-57e34500d2c5" data-vars-headline="Notre Dame tops best colleges lists for Indiana" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://usw2.nyl.as/t1/315/28sf1nxuw28uu5dnxawgddads/1/97ed8abc79a0782958115b63811ab399219a9d6a5355540dfd7c5c1e87520bf8" target="_blank">2023-24 Best Colleges rankings</a> this morning.

Education

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Grab your lederhosen and sausage dogs — Oktoberfest season is in full swing.

The annual fall festivals, inspired by the German tradition celebrating beer and Bavarian culture, often feature specialty brews, traditional German food and activities for the whole family. Here are our picks for the weeks ahead.

Oktoberfest at The Cradle @ Monon 30, noon to 11pm Saturday.

The family-friendly event will have Oktoberfest beer on tap, German food, live music, a local vendor market, a bratwurst tossing contest, stein holding competition and dachshund races.

Lagers in Lawrence Oktoberfest, 2-6pm Saturday at the Fort Ben Cultural Campus.

Attendees at the 21+ event get unlimited pours of craft beers and other beverages, while food will be available to purchase.

The day includes live music, German dancing and the "Running of the Weiners," dachshund races.

Herron-Morton Place Oktoberfest, 3pm Saturday at the Herron-Morton Place Park.

The kid-friendly event will feature a new Tot-toberfest kid zone with bounce houses and a special treat.

Adult treats include drinks from Sun King, Mashcraft and Ash & Elm and food from various vendors.

Tickets are $15 for adults and free for kids under 18.

City of Carmel Oktoberfest, 6-10pm, Oct. 6 at Carmel City Center.

The event is free, open to the public and all ages. It will have live music.

BarktoberFest, 11am to 2pm, Oct. 7 at Asa Bales Park in Westfield.

Dress up your dog for Hamilton County Humane Society's fundraiser featuring a pet costume contest, a "Mutt Mart" with pet-focused goods, a dog agility course, food vendors and adoptable pets.

GermanFest at the Athenaeum, noon to 6pm, Oct. 7.

The annual family-friendly street party is back with food, beer, live music, crafts for the kiddos, a bratwurst eating contest and, of course, weiner dog races.

Oktoberfest at Skyline Club, 5-8pm Oct. 19.

Tickets are $15. They include a beer tasting and Bravarian bites like pretzels, sausages and schnitzels.

Brews on Tues: Oktoberfest season is here

Beer, pretzels, live music and weiner dog racing take center stage.

Indianapolis, Indiana

Grab your lederhosen and sausage dogs — Oktoberfest season is in full swing.The annual fall festivals, inspired by the German tradition celebrating beer and Bavarian culture, often feature specialty brews, traditional German food and activities for the whole family. Here are our picks for the weeks ahead.

Things to Do

Food and Drink

The Indiana Supreme Court's disciplinary commission has accused Attorney General Todd Rokita of violating confidentiality laws and rules of professional conduct during his investigation of Caitlin Bernard, the doctor he targeted for providing an abortion to a 10-year-old patient last summer and for violating confidentiality laws by publicly discussing it.

Driving the news: The commission filed the complaint against Rokita yesterday, following an investigation that found "reasonable cause" to believe Rokita's actions — if proved — "would warrant disciplinary action."

Why it matters: If Rokita's found guilty, discipline could range from public reprimand to disbarment, which would cost him his elected office.

The intrigue: Much of what Rokita is accused of doing played out on national television, in public statements to media outlets and in social media posts.

State law requires that complaints against a doctor's medical license "shall be held in strict confidence until the attorney general files notice with the board of the attorney general's intent to prosecute the license."

Catch up quick: In July 2022, Rokita said on Fox News his office was investigating whether Bernard had failed to report the 10-year-old patient's abortion and sexual abuse as required by law.

He called Bernard "an abortion activist, acting as a doctor, with a history of failing to report."

Rokita filed an administrative complaint with the Indiana Medical Licensing Board against Bernard in November.

The board found that Bernard had followed all reporting laws but violated privacy laws when she publicly discussed the case.

What they're saying: The complaint against Rokita alleges that his public comments about his investigation of Bernard before his complaint was filed in November violate the state's confidentiality laws and rules of professional conduct.

It requests he be disciplined "as warranted."

The other side: In a response filed with the court on Monday, Rokita says "confidentiality should not be required" because Bernard violated her patient's confidentiality.

He also said he did not violate the confidentiality statute.

The big picture: Bernard sparked a national conversation about abortion — and became Rokita's target — after she told the IndyStar about a 10-year-old patient who traveled to Indiana for an abortion from her home state of Ohio in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade.

At the time, abortion was banned after six weeks in Ohio, but still legal in Indiana.

Indiana passed a near-total ban on abortion the next month.

How it works: If the court finds that there was misconduct, it orders a disciplinary sanction, which can vary based on the seriousness of the case.

Options include a private or public reprimand, suspension from practicing law for a limited time, suspension with reinstatement pending fitness or permanent disbarment.

What's next: Rokita has hired Washington, D.C.-based law firm Schaerr Jaffee to represent him in the misconduct case and taxpayers will foot the $550 per hour bill, a spokesperson for the attorney general's office confirmed to Axios.

The attorney general's office has contracted with the firm to act as outside counsel on abortion-related issues for several years. 

The Indiana Capital Chronicle reported that the office amended its contract with Schaeer Jaffee in December to cover an additional $100,000 — for a total of $900,000 — to work on Bernard-related matters.

Of note: Rokita is the second straight Indiana attorney general to be charged with disciplinary misconduct.

His predecessor, Curtis Hill, had his law license suspended for a month related to charges he groped several women at a party celebrating the end of the legislation session.

Hill, who denied the allegations, is currently seeking the 2024 GOP gubernatorial nomination.

Rokita is seeking re-election to the attorney general's office next year.

Rokita headed to disciplinary commission

Commission says the attorney general's statements violated professional conduct rules.

Attorney General Todd Rokita is running for re-election next year. Photo: Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call via Getty Images

The Indiana Supreme Court&#x27;s disciplinary commission has accused Attorney General Todd Rokita of violating confidentiality laws and rules of professional conduct during his investigation of Caitlin Bernard, the doctor he targeted for providing an abortion to a 10-year-old patient last summer and for violating confidentiality laws by publicly discussing it.Driving the news: The commission filed the complaint against Rokita yesterday, following an investigation that found &quot;reasonable cause&quot; to believe Rokita&#x27;s actions — if proved — &quot;would warrant disciplinary action.&quot;

The hardest thing about my recent visit to Easy Rider — the Fountain Square diner that opened last year in the former Pure Eatery spot — was choosing between the breakfast tacos and the chilaquiles.

But wait. There's a biscuits and gravy burrito on special and you can get it with vegan gravy.

Plus: You can swap out the chorizo in dishes like the huevos rancheros and omelet for an Impossible version.

I couldn't decide and asked the server to break the many-way tie.

What to order: The huevos rancheros, with Impossible chorizo. Corn tortillas are layered with the chorizo and a smoky tomato sauce, dotted with pico and queso fresco and topped with over-easy eggs.

Pro tip: Get the vegan gravy. I ordered a side (you know, for science) and it's thick, flavorful and studded with bits of vegan sausage. 🤤

If you go: 1043 Virginia Ave., Suite 3. Open 8am to 9pm Wednesday and Thursday, 8am to midnight Friday, 9am to midnight Saturday and 9am to 4pm Sunday.

Meatless Monday: Tough choices at Easy Rider

The Fountain Square diner's many meat-free menu options make for touch choices.

Shea did not steer me wrong. Photo: Arika Herron/Axios

The hardest thing about my recent visit to <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Easy Rider" data-vars-click-url="https://www.easyriderindy.com/" data-vars-content-id="ad02a5fd-c999-4c90-9bc5-4bce55c1c159" data-vars-headline="Meatless Monday: Tough choices at Easy Rider" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.easyriderindy.com/" target="_blank">Easy Rider</a> — the Fountain Square diner that opened last year in the former Pure Eatery spot — was choosing between the breakfast tacos and the chilaquiles.But wait. There&#x27;s a biscuits and gravy burrito on special and you can get it with vegan gravy.

Loco Mexican Restaurant and Cantina is opening a taqueria concept at the corner of Market and New Jersey streets.

Details: The new fast-service location will add to the locally owned chain's two full-service restaurants in Indy.

The menu will focus on tacos and burritos, similar to an express concept it recently opened in Whitestown.

Other locations are at 22nd and Delaware streets in Fall Creek Place and on Prospect Street in Fountain Square.

State of play: The new restaurant will open on the ground floor of the Cummins building, a space formerly occupied by Public Greens.

Public Greens was one of several downtown restaurants that closed during the pandemic.

Loco will be across the street from the new Tinker Coffee Co., which reactivated a former Starbucks and has served as a counterpoint to business owners who say crime and homelessness have made downtown unviable.

Loco Mexican Restaurant opening new taqueria concept downtown

The restaurant will take the space of Public Greens, which closed during the pandemic.

Downtown workers will soon have a new lunch option. Photo: Arika Herron/Axios

Loco Mexican Restaurant and Cantina is opening a taqueria concept at the corner of Market and New Jersey streets.Details: The new fast-service location will add to the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="locally owned chain&#x27;s" data-vars-click-url="https://www.locomexicanrestaurant.com/" data-vars-content-id="e49ec05f-c6b1-45a8-89ea-585db9bdd060" data-vars-headline="Loco Mexican Restaurant opening new taqueria concept downtown" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.locomexicanrestaurant.com/" target="_blank">locally owned chain&#x27;s</a> two full-service restaurants in Indy.

Arika Herron

Stories

Loco Mexican Restaurant opening new taqueria concept downtown

Rokita headed to disciplinary commission

Brews on Tues: Oktoberfest season is here

Notre Dame tops best colleges lists for Indiana

Meatless Monday: Tough choices at Easy Rider

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🤖 Limiting AI

👀 Tables turn on Rokita

🌽 Our Indiana home

🪧 UAW on strike

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