"The Crossroads of America," better known as Indianapolis, has quietly experienced a Latino population boom.

Nearly a decade ago, the Latino population boom was announced. Between 2000-2013, the Latino population of Indianapolis increased by 195.5 percent, and it's continued to increase at a rate of 40 percent since. According to the Census, 9.4 percent of the population in Indianapolis is Latino, which is 3.4 percent higher than the state, and a large chunk of the Hispanic/Latino population is Mexican.

"Indianapolis is attractive to Latinos and non-Latinos for a number of reasons. One is the cost of living. It's a major city; we're the 12th largest city in the nation, but it doesn't cost nearly as much to live here," Carlos A. May, Senior Executive Policy Advisor to Indianapolis' Mayor Greg Ballard, said to Latin Post.

"The second factor is Indianapolis is known as the crossroads of America because every road basically comes through here, and we're within a day and a half of most major metropolitan areas in the entire United States, with an exception of the farther west coast. And, finally, I think it's just that Hoosier hospitality, you know. People are nice, we tend to welcome everybody and we love to chat with other people. So it's three things: the economics, the connectivity/sensibility and the type of people that Hoosiers are."

Presently, 8 percent of the Indianapolis population speaks Spanish, and translators, services and umbrella organizations have been brought in to aid the Spanish-dominant individuals of Indianapolis. May indicated that the Latino population growth has been something that's been noticed internally for, although Hispanic/Latinos have been present in Indianapolis for 20 to 30 years. The recent influx can, in part, be attributed to the pre-established base of Hispanic/Latinos who've been living in Indianapolis for 5 to 10 years, and who attract relatives when they decide to emigrate to the U.S.

According to the policy advisor, there are now about 400,000 Hispanic/Latinos in the entire state of Indiana, and 100,000 in Marrion County, Indianapolis--comprising approximately 10 percent of the population.

A survey published in 2014, which tallied Hispanic buying power and business friendliness, revealed that Indianapolis was ranked above Chicago, Illinois, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Jersey City, New Jersey, and just below New York City. The rankings for that data was extracted from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Council for Community and Economic Research, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Tax Foundation and others.

Indianapolis instituted new contractual mandates when the present mayor took office seven years ago. Mayor Ballard modified a pre-existing policy that stated 20 percent of contracts were allocated to minority and women-owned firms. Ballard increased that number to 33 percent. That policy expanded the pool of contracts that go to minority and women-owned businesses, and it has helped to double the number of Hispanic business.

Hispanic-owned and operated businesses are proven contributors to Indianapolis' local economy. According to May, from the Mexican Community alone, which is about 85 percent of the total 400,000 Hispanic/Latino population in Indiana, the impact of their sales tax is about about $230 million, and the entire Hispanic/Latino community has an impact $400 million dollars. That doesn't account for public safety taxes, school taxes, income taxes or other taxes. With all things considered, that adds up to 7 billion dollars in statewide economic impact in a year. That's a 40 percent increase from even five years ago.

"There was one gentleman, Mr. David Campos, he owns a grocery store here called Carniceria Guanajuato, and this guy started his business [13 years ago]... just one small store on the south side of Indianapolis," said May. "He became more business savvy and he started to expand, a few years ago he opened up a second store on the east side, and then about five years ago, he open up a third store on the near west-side of Indianapolis. This gentleman now is the largest grocer in the Midwest. It's Hispanic owned and operated. He employs about 250 employees in one store alone. About three years ago, he cleared about 20 million in profit."

Cabello Associates, Inc., a full-service ad agency with adverting veterans at its helm, is the largest Latino-owned advertising and marketing agency in the state of Indiana. Also, Barcelona Tapas Bar, Crown Concrete Cutting, Indiana Latino Institute, La Prensa Medial, Champion Chrysler Jeep Dodge, Radio Latina and many other firms are businesses headed by Hispanic business leaders.

The economic influence of Latino-owned businesses in Indianapolis and throughout the state of Indiana has led to local business intelligence and statewide prosperity. According to a publication supplied by the Indiana Department of Administration Division of Supplier Diversity, in 2014, the combined annual revenue of Hispanic-owned businesses was projected to exceed $486 billion in the state of Indiana, an increase of $18 billion since the year prior.

The Hispanic Business Council (HBC) and other crucial entities in Indianapolis have made it their business to highlight and encourage the gains of the Latino small business community. For example, the Hispanic Business Council offers their Mentor-Protégé Program, developing more business leaders. The local chapter of the National Society of Hispanic MBAs continues to foster leadership through Hispanic management education and professional development. The efforts of these organizations are to improve the outcome of Latino residing in Indianapolis. There are at least two-dozen nonprofit service providers assigned to the Latino community in Indianapolis, and there are numerous opportunities for employment throughout the city, particularly in the food industry, service industry and hotel industry.

Unfortunately, Latinos only own 2.2 percent of firms in Indianapolis, the median household income is just around $30,000 annually, and the home ownership rate is at only 35.5 percent. However, those numbers increase annually with the education and population growth, as well as the number of entrepreneurs and homeowners.

"Depending upon what area of Indianapolis you're looking, you're going to see anywhere from 10 percent ownership to 80 percent ownership," said May. "Because some areas of town have become like little Mexico--not statistically. So, you drive down the street and you see a lot of international stores. You see a lot of Hispanic owned and operated businesses, and so those folks tend to live in those areas, and because of that, you'll see a much larger percentage of home ownership in those areas because that's where they live, and these are the business owners, and their businesses are just right down their road from their homes."

Latino-owned business are so desired in central Indiana that the Better Business Bureau (BBB) launched efforts to better interact with Latino businesses, and even welcomed Agustin ("Gus") Rojas, owner/operator of The Palms by Five Star Catering in Plainfield, as a new member to the Board of Directors to plan professional Latino events and support. Also, the BBB was a sponsor for the Indiana Latino Expo 2014 Business Forum, which annually helps to ensure networking among Latino business owners.

Indianapolis has witnessed an incredible racial and ethnic shift, but the state isn't nearly as diverse as some others. And compared to other metro areas, Indianapolis is low on the list of communities that have experienced growth. However, the Latino influence in Indianapolis is undeniable, and Indianapolis will become a likely destination for business-minded Hispanic/Latinos in the years to come.

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