Robert Buggs stood alone amid a sea of applause.
Clad in a baby-blue fedora and matching sport coat, he was the only person to rise in the county Government Center’s second-floor chamber as the Lake County Board of Commissioners named Gary the new convention center site.
“I’m very ecstatic about it, because now’s the time for Gary,” he stated after hearing the announcement.
The board’s unanimous decision to build the 145,000-square-foot convention center in Gary sent waves of excitement through the city. From longtime residents who see the project as a long-overdue investment to local officials who call it a turning point in Gary’s resurgence, the response has been both emotional and energized. As the city prepares to host a development of regional significance, community voices are rising to the forefront, eager to shape what this moment means for Gary’s future.
Moments after the commissioners voted in Crown Point, news swept across Lake County. Two cities away at Marquette Park Pavilion, where Calumet Township Trustee Tai Adkins hosted a symposium on community needs, the news was met with a rousing applause as the nearly 100 attendees rose to their feet in ovation.
“This is a win for not just for Gary, but the entire region,” Adkins said.
She thanked the handful of Common Council members who were in attendance — including Linda Barnes-Caldwell, whose 5th District will be home to the new facility.
“You’re going to have people coming into our city who maybe would never have thought about coming before,” Barnes-Caldwell told Capital B Gary.
She recalled riding the bus as a child to what is now J’s Breakfast Club so she could shop downtown. “I’m looking for that again,” she said.
State Sen. Lonnie Randolph, who co-authored the legislation for the convention center along with then-Sen. and now Gary Mayor Eddie Melton, highlighted the multilevel benefit the project promises to provide.
“I’m excited. I’m ecstatic. I’m happy. I think it’s a brand-new beginning, a brand-new opening for the city of Gary, the county of Lake, and the state of Indiana,” Randolph told Capital B Gary shortly after the decision was made official.
“If it generates enough tax dollars, the entire state is going to benefit. But the direct benefit is going to be the city of Gary,” he said. “We’re going to be an added attraction for the state of Indiana. So when people think about Indiana, they’re going to think about Gary, because Gary, Indiana, is going to have the convention center of Northwest Indiana.”
State Rep. Ragen Hatcher, whose district includes portions of Gary and Hobart, echoed the senator’s sentiments.
“I think the biggest thing that we’re seeing is an increase in people coming into the city of Gary, and then the increase in our property values, which is something that a city of 54 square miles … we need that property value tax increase so that we can continue to provide all of the services for the residents in the community,” she said.
Longtime Gary resident Latrice Farmer saw the decision as a no-brainer.
“Gary has a strategic partnership with the Hard Rock brand, so I can’t understand why they would put a convention center anywhere but Gary,” she told Capital B Gary.
Though excited about the project, Farmer also expressed concern for residents in the area now that the new development is official.
“Will Lake Etta be affected?” she asked. “A convention center brings hotels, restaurants, and other businesses that will improve the city. I would like to know what the plan is for Gary residents who are at risk of being displaced due to the expansion.”
First lady Crystal Melton described the moment as historic and deeply personal.
“If it was from 1 to 10, then I am a 10,” she told Capital B Gary immediately after the announcement. “I am excited about the economic possibilities that come from not just this, but everything that comes along with this.”
Melton said the convention center represents a turning point for future generations. “I think this will create generational benefits for the city,” she said.
Chuck Hughes, president of the Gary Chamber of Commerce, said he was thrilled by the announcement’s potential for area businesses.
“I think it’s phenomenal because I think what it will do is, in addition to attracting events, it will attract people,” he said. “People are what makes the economy work, and people will come into the community, and they will buy. They will sell. They will live.”
He added that the project would bolster the local tax base, allowing the city to fund street repairs, public safety payrolls, and other vital services. Hughes called it a catalyst for future investment and population growth, noting that an influx of residents and enterprises could help Gary reclaim its status as the largest city in Northwest Indiana.
Fire Chief Larry Tillman called the decision both an economic victory and a public safety boon, adding that the project could allow the department to expand its first-responder ranks to meet rising demand.
“When Gary, Indiana, wins, the whole county wins,” he said. “It’s going to bring us a lot of economic development to that area, which is only going to bring more people into the surrounding area.”