Greenwood city workers Jim Lamb, right, and Barry Inabnit hang Super Bowl destination banners along Madison Avenue on Jan. 23, 2012, in Greenwood.
Daily Journal Archives
News from around Johnson County as reported on Jan. 25 in the pages of the Daily Journal and the Franklin Evening Star from the last 112 years.
On this day in 2012, the main story on the front page of the Daily Journal was about local residents renting out their homes for an extra crash ahead of the Super Bowl in Indianapolis.
For $2,000, Super Bowl visitors could buy a week-long stay at a local home. They’d get two bedrooms and a full bath, plus a working kitchen and a garage to park their vehicle. Within a matter of minutes, they could be in downtown Indianapolis, in the center of Super Bowl festivities.
They did have to bring their own sleeping bags, lawn furniture and other comforts to fill the vacant space.
In the pre-Super Bowl madness, even a place without beds or chairs could fetch thousands of dollars.
Like many homeowners, Center Grove-area resident Lisa Davis saw a windfall in the estimated 150,000 people expected to come to Indy. She listed her home on Craigslist for $800 a night, with a three-night minimum. For an additional fee, she would consider shuttling guests to downtown events in her own car.
While she was committed to renting out her home, Davis had taken precautions to protect herself from damage or fraud. Potential renters would need to put down a $2,000 refundable deposit before removing in, and she would remove any valuables before they came
Greenwood resident Kirby South offered a vacant rental home on Craigslist too. A $1,000 down payment was required, which would help cover damage to walls, carpets and appliances.
Interest in the homes had been tepid, however. But Davis expected interest to increase closer to the game.
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Other memorable Johnson County stories from this day
2013
Franklin schools planned to add buzzers and intercoms to school entrances, making the district the latest in the county to add security cameras to its buildings.
2004
Center Grove area residents were concerned about an increase in traffic along State Road 135 in Greenwood.
1994
The second fire at a Franklin home in two days caused at least $25,000 in damage.
