The stories that will shape Indianapolis this year

🖥️ Data centers

They're everywhere! Or, at least, they want to be.

The big picture: The Midwest is expected to be a hub for the ongoing data center boom, bringing debates about AI, water, electricity, jobs, land use, tax incentives and more to Indy.

Zoom in: Google withdrew its plans for a data center on the southeast side last year, but that's likely to be just the start.

• More data centers are proposed in Martindale-Brightwood, Decatur Township and Morgan County.

What we're watching: Some level of opposition has already been expressed in each case, but the proposals will still have several steps to move through.

👎 Redistricting failed

It may have made Indiana the "state of the year" in some eyes, but the failed effort to draw a new congressional map favoring Republicans made us a target in others.

Catch up quick: Gov. Mike Braun warned that Indiana could face federal consequences if lawmakers didn't pass new maps that would deliver President Trump two additional GOP seats in Congress.

Threat level: Indiana has a Medicaid waiver pending federal approval and plenty of federal grants worth millions of dollars could be impacted.

• Plus: A USDA hub that promised to bring at least hundreds of federal workers is, for now, planned to locate in Indiana.

🗳️ Elections

We won't have new maps, but we will still have an election this year.

Why it matters: Federal, state and local races will be on ballots starting with the May primary, ahead of November's general election.

Driving the news: All nine of Indiana's House of Representatives seats are up this year, spurring the failed effort to redraw the districts.

• Without a map that breaks up the state's two Democratic districts, Republicans have vowed to put up strong candidates — particularly in the more competitive northwest Indiana 1st District, where Democrat Frank Mrvan is the incumbent.

Zoom in: The May primary, which is often when many races in politically lopsided districts are decided, will be particularly interesting.

• President Trump, Gov. Mike Braun and national groups have promised to target Republicans who opposed redistricting efforts.

What we're watching: This will be the first year that school board candidates may declare a political party affiliation on the general election ballot.

👮‍♂️ IMPD's new plans

After gathering feedback in 2025, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department implement its new strategic plan this year.

State of play: The refreshed five-year plan comes amid a flurry of new ideas as chief Chris Bailey pushes to modernize the department and address an ongoing officer shortage that has left IMPD down between 300 and 350 officers.

• Other changes in 2026 include a new shift schedule that puts more police on the streets during peak hours, further refinement of an online IMPD transparency tool and expanded call reduction strategies.

By the numbers: Year-over-year, 2025 saw criminal homicides drop by 20% and non-fatal shootings drop 21%, compared with 2024.

What they're saying: "This is a department on the move, and we're going to continue to move it forward," Bailey told Axios. "We're going to keep pushing things that improve the working conditions for the people that we rely on every day to keep us safe, but in doing so, maintain the safety of our community, which is our No. 1 priority."

💡 AES rate hike wraps

A deal between the city of Indianapolis and AES Indiana that would raise rates for more than 500,000 residents will get the yay or nay in the first half of 2026.

• A rate review case filed by AES last June has sparked a heated back-and-forth between a utility company that says it needs to charge more to cover rising costs and customers who say they simply can't afford another hike.

Zoom in: The original rate hike request would have increased rates by 13.5% over the next year and a half, but a proposed settlement filed in October averages 3.35% annually over a two-year period.

• The deal also would prohibit AES from seeking another base rate increase before January 2030.

What's next: AES and the rest of the settling parties have until Friday to file rebuttals to their opposition with the new five-person Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission.

• The IURC deadline to make a final decision is June 24.

🏗️ Host city evolution

As one of Condé Nast Traveler's top 14 places to visit in 2026, local tourism leaders expect to host an estimated 30 million visitors driving $5.8 billion in economic impact to Indy this year.

Zoom in: Our prowess as a convention city is one of the reasons for all that foot traffic, and the next evolution of the Indiana Convention Center aims to accommodate even bigger crowds going forward.

• The expansion — as well the 38-story Signia by Hilton hotel — is set to open this fall.

Why it matters: The projects have already secured $1.3 billion in retained convention business and generated interest in $1 billion in new bookings.

Yes, but: Before fall, our ability to throw a big bash will get a facelift this spring.

• A project to transform the three-block Georgia Street promenade connecting the Convention Center to Gainbridge Fieldhouse into a more walkable greenspace should be ready in time for the NCAA Final Four to take over the city April 4-6.

✈️ Finding Amelia Earhart's plane

A Purdue University-supported plan to recover the remains of Amelia Earhart's long-lost aircraft will finally take flight in 2026.

Driving the news: Announced on the 88th anniversary of Earhart's disappearance, a joint effort by the Purdue Research Foundation and the Archaeological Legacy Institute was slated to take place in November.

• However, research permit issues and a looming cyclone season led to the expedition being delayed to this spring at the earliest.

Catch up quick: Earhart's and her plane, the Electra, went missing on July 2, 1937.

• Researchers believe a visual anomaly seen in satellite imagery in the lagoon of Nikumaroro Island in the South Pacific may be what's left of the Electra.