Could a new professional sports franchise be headed to Indianapolis?

The developer of a $500 million medical complex on the site of the old Indianapolis International Airport terminal said he is talking with out-of-state professional sports organizations about moving to a stadium on the city’s west side.

Included in Athletes Business Network Holdings’ plan for a five-building complex is a 20,000-seat stadium or arena to host entertainment and sports events year-round and be the home field/ice/court for a pro team.

ABN co-founder Craig Sanders said he has had serious talks with representatives of pro sports teams about locating at the new stadium.

“We are having very active discussions with sports organizations outside of Indiana, professional and amateur,” Sanders said, though he declined to name which organizations. The complex would include two 250-room hotels and would be a “global destination” for sports medicine and events, he said.

Conceivably, the stadium, if outdoor, could host Indy Eleven soccer games or baseball games and, if it’s indoor, hockey or basketball games. The Indy Eleven has been lobbying the legislature for a publicly subsidized new stadium, but Sanders said he had not been in contact with team owner Ersal Ozdemir. Indy Eleven, in a club statement, said it would like to stay Downtown.

“Indy Eleven is aware of the redevelopment proposal for the former terminal site at Indianapolis International Airport,” the statement read. “While the club has been contacted by numerous parties throughout the Indianapolis area regarding our plans for a permanent, multipurpose stadium, our preference remains to house this facility in the Downtown Indianapolis area.”

A spokesman for the Fuel could not be reached, but the minor league hockey team  is in a long-term agreement to play its home games at Indiana Farmers Coliseum at the State Fairgrounds. Likewise, baseball’s minor league Indianapolis Indians recently signed a 20-year lease extension to stay at Victory Field Downtown.

Most city officials and civic representatives said they knew too little about the stadium proposal to comment on it, or about the need or desire for another pro team.

Chris Gahl, a spokesman for Visit Indy, the city’s tourism office, said it wasn’t surprising that a developer would include a large sports component such as a stadium in its plans — it fits the city’s image.

“Indianapolis is known worldwide as a sports-minded city,” Gahl said. “Having a sports stadium included in the plan is not out of character, especially with a sports medical facility as part of the parcel.”

In a memo to the Indianapolis Airport Board, Marsha Stone, senior director of commercial enterprise for the Indianapolis Airport Authority, makes a reference to the pro franchises.

“Due to the complexity involved in the potential development of a stadium and the acquisition of a professional sports franchise,” the deadline for building the facility is longer than for other parts of the project, Stone wrote.

The board will vote Friday on whether to enter a tentative agreement with ABN, and if it approves, the developer will have just 10 days to submit a stadium parking plan to the airport board.

The medical complex would employ 3,000 workers and would specialize in sports performance, substance abuse sports medicine, and orthopedics and sports medical technology. The centerpiece, called the ABN Global Center for Brain Health, would focus on brain trauma.

The stadium would be built in the second of two phases of construction, which wouldn’t begin until at least 2020.

Mario Rodriguez, executive director of airport authority, declined to speculate about the stadium.

“Let’s get the first phase done first,” he said.

A spokeswoman for Mayor Joe Hogsett said the mayor had no advance knowledge of the medical center plan or the sports stadium.

Barry Levengood, executive director of the Capital Improvement Board, which oversees the city-owned pro sports venues Lucas Oil Stadium, Bankers Life Fieldhouse and Victory Field, said that in his 25 years with the board, it never discussed getting another sports team.

“I don’t know of the CIB seeking any other sports franchises other than the ones we have,” Levengood said. “This is the first I’ve heard of this, but I’d be interested in hearing more.”

CIB member James Dora Jr. said he was intrigued by the plan to build two hotels at the old terminal site.

“We’ve already got a lot of hotel rooms at the airport, and there is not a lot of business because there are more hotels Downtown now,” said Dora, president of General Hotels Corp., a hotel management and development company.

Dora said a medical complex could fill some rooms with doctors in training sessions and patients’ families, but “he’s talking about 182,000 room nights a year.”

Sanders said his stadium also could host top-level amateur events, such as the NCAA’s Final Four, without stealing thunder from Lucas Oil Stadium or Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

“Our objective is to be a collaborative partner and help elevate the city as a whole,” Sanders said. “Especially as various other entities seek to develop sports infrastructure Downtown.”

A spokesman for the NCAA was unavailable for comment.

The ABN would enter a 50-year lease agreement with the airport and pay $378,400 per year in rent for the phase 1 property and $637,500 a year for phase 2.

ABN would be responsible for maintenance and operating costs and for installing or connecting utilities.

Call IndyStar reporter John Tuohy at (317) 444-6418. Follow him on Twitter: @john_tuohy.