The Pulaski County Highway Department crew has been busy working on spring projects. Highway Superintendent Mark Fox said a lot of grading and culvert work has been done.
Commission President Larry Brady asked about the miles of roads that will be paved this summer and Fox said the winter really took a toll on roads this year.
The unemployment rate for the state and for individual counties was released this week.
The rate in Starke County dropped a point, according to the April statistics. The rate is 6.9 percent which is a 1.3 percent decrease. Starke County still ranks in the top ten in unemployment. All 92 counties reported a decrease in the unemployment rate.
The Culver Community School Board appears poised to hire a combination assistant principal and athletic director for the middle and high schools. They’re meeting Tuesday, May 27 at 7:15 p.m. EDT at the administration office for that purpose. Culver Superintendent Dr. Vicki McGuire stresses the schools will remain separate. She says the corporation is just combining the administrative roles in order to save money. The meeting is open to the public. It will follow an executive session, presumably for the purpose of reaching a final decision. Final action on all personnel decisions must take place during a public meeting.
The Marshall County Commissioners will meet in executive session on Tuesday, May 27 at 10:30 a.m. ET where they will interview applicants for the position of highway superintendent.
Former Highway Superintendent Neal Haeck retired at the beginning of the month and highway department crew members, Jason Peters and Jerry Ambrose, have been filling in the interim position until the commissioners decide on Haeck’s replacement.
The North Judson- San Pierre School Board approved a contract to add wireless Internet to the schools. They received two bids for the project. IT Solutions offered a lower price, but it did not include installation or tech support. Cubit Technology’s price includes both. Director of Media Services Sheila Akers is confident in their ability to successfully do their job. The school board voted unanimously to go with Cubit. The project will be paid for with a common school loan. Even though the board isn’t sure how much money they will get, they had to act quickly. Installation needs to begin by July 7 in order to be finished when school starts.
A higher volume of traffic will be hitting the roads this Memorial Day holiday. Be aware that the police will be patrolling the highways for drivers who may be impaired, following too closely or may be unrestrained.
Indiana State Police officers and 249 other law enforcement agencies in the state are in the midst of the Click it or Ticket campaign. This enforcement focuses on seat belt usage and will be in full effect this weekend. It continues until June 1.
DNR officials remind boat owners and passengers to stay safe on the water this summer. Lt. Kenton Turner is Indiana’s boating law administrator. He says everybody on board should wear a life jacket. Often accidents can happen too fast to get to a jacket that is stowed away. Also, Turner says passengers should never sit on the sides of a motorboat while it is in motion. If you’re planning to tow a skier or tuber, make sure you have an observer. Always pay attention to marker buoys and idle zone restriction areas. Navigational lights and anchor lights should be used between sunset and sunrise. All inland lakes in Indiana have a nighttime speed limit of 10 miles-per-hour. Alcoholic beverages should be consumed in moderation. Turner says .08 is Indiana’s legal limit.
The Handbook of Indiana Boating Laws and Responsibilities is available online at http://www.boat-ed.com/indiana/handbook/. It can also be downloaded to an eReader.
One of the longest, greatest and historic NASCAR races is on tap for Sunday: The Coca Cola 600. What is your favorite driver saying about this weekend’s event?: Continue reading
John Wes Townley had a great finish in the NASCAR Camping World Truck series last week and he hopes that luck continues when he races in the NASCAR Nationwide Series this weekend at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Townley discusses those things plus he gives an insight into his racing career in this Behind the Wheel interview with WKVI’s Anita Goodan:
Starke County Council members voted unanimously to reestablish two funds that were somehow discontinued by the state. Monday’s action on the cumulative capital development and cumulative bridge funds will allow the county to keep more of the property tax money it collects and spend money that is currently set aside. Council President Dave Pearman hopes this will soften the blow for the county when budget time rolls around.
The North Judson – San Pierre school board has postponed definite decisions about how to slash $1.2 million from the corporation’s budget.
They’re awaiting more information about retirements and transfers. Monday evening the board members did approve a budget calender. Treasurer Guy Richie will present information to the school board and superintendent on July 15.
Officials in Pulaski County are still looking into getting more details in outfitting the county home and the Pulaski County Health Department with generators.
In previous settings, county home and health department workers have asked the commissioners for hard-wired generators that will be activated if the power would happen to go out. Currently, there isn’t a generator on hand to keep the power going in an instance of a storm or other event where the electricity could be out for some time.
The members of the Culver Redevelopment Commission went before the Culver Plan Commission Tuesday night to present the approved addition of three parcels to the TIF District.
Redevelopment Commission President Kathy Clark said the plan commission members found that the proposal meets the specifications of the town’s comprehensive plan and now it will go before the Culver Town Council for approval.
The Director of the Marshall County Council on Aging gave a report to the commissioners about older adult services and one thing that jumped out was a steady increase in transportation.
Transportation has doubled since 2010. Jackie Wright said money from the Indiana Department of Transportation helped this year. INDOT was unable to provide the county with it’s usual allocation last year due to the federal sequester. Wright had to ask for $20,000 to cover that loss last year. Thankfully, she will not be asking for that money this year.
The Starke County Commissioners want a better cost-benefit analysis before they agree to expand the advanced life support service offered by EMS.
Director Paul Matthewson wants to add a paramedic at the North Judson base. Doing so would allow the service to generate more money by transporting patients from IU Health Starke Hospital to other facilities. Right now the Knox EMS base is the only one with ALS coverage. Having a paramedic on duty at another base insures adequate county coverage if an ambulance is out of town.
The Culver Community School Board has hired a new high school principal. Brett Berndt will take over that job July 1st. He replaces Albert Hanselman, who recently took a job as the director of the North Central Vocational Educational Cooperative.
Berndt previously served as dean of students at Culver Community High School.
Superintendent Dr. Vicki McGuire says the corporation is now looking to fill the combined position of assistant principal and athletic director. Whomever they hire will serve in that capacity at the middle and high schools. McGuire stresses the schools will remain separate. She says the corporation is just combining the administrative roles in order to save money.
Applications are currently being accepted. McGuire says the school board hopes to approve a hire at their June 16 meeting.
Officers from the North Judson Police Department, with the assistance of the Hobart K9 officers, conducted a drug sweep at the North Judson-San Pierre high school and at the middle school on Wednesday morning.
North Judson Town Marshal Doug Vessely told WKVI that there was nothing found during the sweep. The four K9 handlers and dogs checked lockers and vehicles and officers did not find any illegal substances. The K9s did indicate on a couple of items, but Vessely believes it was a passive result as no evidence was found.
The Indianapolis 500 is Sunday, but activities have been ongoing for a month at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Qualifying occurred for the 33 drivers involved in the event last week which found Ed Carpenter with the top speed. He will start on the pole position the 98th running of the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing”. This is the second consecutive time he’ll begin in the first position for the Indy 500.
A Knox man was arrested on a warrant Wednesday, May 21 after an investigation into an alleged sexual assault incident.
On April 24, officers from the Knox City Police Department were notified of the alleged incident by officials with the Indiana Department of Child Services. It was alleged that the incident involved a female juvenile and an adult family member.
Officers located and arrested 85-year-old Donald L. Bottorff Wednesday morning. He was booked into the Starke County Jail on preliminary charges of Child Molesting and Vicarious Sexual Gratification, both Class C Felonies.
A Walkerton woman is in critical condition following a motorcycle crash Tuesday night in Marshall County. It happened at 8:45 p.m. on 6th Road east of Olive Road, according to a news release from the Marshall County Sheriff’s Office. Lukas J. Moren, 24, of Walkerton, was westbound on 6th Road approaching the turns east of Olive Road on a 2006 Kawasaki Ninja and lost control of the bike while trying to pass another motorist in a no-passing zone. He lost control of the bike and hit a wood fence. Lindsey R. Hall of Walkerton was on the back of the bike prior to the wreck. The news release does not specify whether they were wearing helmets.
