Metronet Project Underway in Marshall County, All Paperwork Signed

Posted on Author WKVI

All of the paperwork for the Metronet project has been signed. That was the information relayed to the Marshall County Commissioners Monday morning.

County Attorney Jim Clevenger said the City of South Bend approved the easement agreement that was prepared for the placement of conduit on the Michigan Road right-of-way. The intergovernmental agreement with the Marshall County Council was approved last week and the Memorandum of Understanding with St. Joseph County was signed at the end of April. Clevenger said all is good to continue with the construction plus the services once that construction is complete.

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Sandy Acres Park Closed for Improvements

Posted on Author WKVI
 
 

A park in Knox will be closed for the next several days for some infrastructure improvements. Parking lot paving at Sandy Acres Park on South Heaton Street is set to begin today. It will take about a week to complete. IU Health Starke Hospital employees have also scheduled a work day at Sandy Acres on Friday, May 30. They plan to install some new fitness equipment and do some painting. Knox Park Superintendent George Byer says Wythogen and Heritage Parks will still be open. Sandy Acres will reopen next week once the improvements are finished.

Reading Challenge Captivates Knox Third Graders

Posted on Author WKVI
KCES Super Readers
KCES Super Readers

Knox Community Elementary School third graders are Wild about Reading! This year a competitive reading initiative called Battle of the Books premiered that challenged students to read in order to win.

The program ran year-long and required kids to read anywhere from 6 to 12 different books from an official reading list. Children involved acquired the desire to read as well as developed essential team-work skills.

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Bass Lake Beach and Campground Set to Open for Season

Posted on Author WKVI
 
 

The manager of Bass Lake Beach and Campground assures the Starke County Commissioners the amenities will be ready for business over the Memorial Day weekend.

Richard Callahan and his attorney Dave Wallsmith provided the first of what will be monthly status reports for the properties during last night’s commissioners meeting. Wallsmith says a car hit the fence on the campground side, and the weight of snow tossed by plow trucks damaged the fence on the beach side. Both will need to be replaced with materials that meet current code standards.

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Marshall County Commissioners Discuss TIF Expansion in Culver

Posted on Author WKVI
 
 

Phil Faccenda, Jr. of Barnes and Thornburg of South Bend and Kathy Clark, President of the Culver Redevelopment Commission requested the Marshall County Commissioners to approve a resolution to include more properties into the Culver TIF (Tax Increment Finance) District.

Faccenda explained that the Culver Redevelopment Commission is going through a process of expanding the Culver economic development area one.

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Budget Reduction Recommendations Anticipated at N.J.-S.P. Board Meeting

Posted on Author WKVI
Michael Shireman, Jim Menis, Larry Lambert Marsha Reimbold and Patricia Goin
Michael Shireman, Jim Menis, Larry Lambert
Marsha Reimbold and Patricia Goin

The North Judson-San Pierre School Board will consider final recommendations to slash $1.2 million from the corporation’s budget when they meet this evening. Superintendent Lynn Johnson has repeatedly stressed the committee tasked with finding places to cut wants to eliminate positions and not jobs. She says several faculty members are retiring this year, and those positions likely will not be filled in order to bridge the gap.

The board may also move forward with the implementation of wireless Internet access this evening. The goal is to have that infrastructure in place when school starts in August. Other items on tonight’s agenda include approval of textbook fees and school meal prices for the upcoming year and discussion of the summer swim proposal at the high school pool. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. in the board room at the N.J.-S.P. central office.

Pulaski County K9 Officers on the Job

Posted on Author WKVI
Deputy Travis Clark with K-9 "Gil" (L) and K-9 Deputy Ryan Austin with K-9 "Terror"
Deputy Travis Clark with K-9 “Gil” (L) and K-9 Deputy Ryan Austin with K-9 “Terror”

The Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department has two new K9 officers and they’ve already been out in the field, according to Sheriff Michael Gayer.

The pair, Travis Clark and Ryan Austin plus their K9 partners, recently graduated from a six-week training course and are being called out on a regular basis.

“They deploy the K9s just about on every traffic stop that they’re involved in,” said Sheriff Gayer. “They’ve also been called out by other agencies around us requesting K9 support.”

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Melody Drive-In to Feature Jimmy Buffett Concert Simulcast

Posted on Author WKVI

Melody Drive-InFins up, Parrotheads! Flock to the Melody Drive-In Theater at Bass Lake on Thursday, June 19 to enjoy a live Jimmy Buffett show via satellite on the big screen.

He’s performing at a drive-in in Fort Worth, Texas that night. The show is available via digital simulcast exclusively to drive-ins nationwide. Fans are encouraged to dress in grass skirts, Hawaiian shirts and other tropical costumes for the show.

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Do Not Call Registration Deadline is Today

Posted on Author WKVI
 
 

Enjoy the sound of silence from telemarketing calls by adding your land-line, cell phone or Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephone number to Indiana’s Do Not Call registry. Today is the deadline to add numbers to the list for the next update, which will take place later this summer.

Adding your numbers to the list will help cut down on potentially fraudulent calls and text messages, according to information on the Indiana Attorney General’s Office Consumer Protection Division website. Most telemarketers are forbidden from calling or texting telephone numbers on the Do Not Call list.

However, four types of callers are still allowed to contact you.  They are charitable organizations whose calls are made by volunteers or employees, newspapers whose employees make their calls and licensed insurance and real estate agents. Companies with existing business relationships are not allowed to call unless you give them permission to do so.

Add your number to the list by calling 1-888-834-9969 or visiting http://www.in.gov/attorneygeneral/

 

Mobile Food Pantry Servicing Starke County Residents

Posted on Author WKVI
 
 

Are you having trouble making ends meet? No need to worry about affording groceries this week because representatives from the Food Bank of Northern Indiana will be making rounds in the area providing food to less fortunate Indiana residents.

This Mobile Food Pantry works on a first come, first served basis. The only requirements needed are a valid Indiana driver’s license or ID and bags or boxes to carry your food.

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Emergency Medical Services Week Observed This Week

Posted on Author WKVI
 
 

The 40th observance of Emergency Medical Services Week is this week.

EMS week serves as a recognition to all the dedicated people within the profession and aims to increase awareness about what local EMS services have to offer. Officials aim to help promote the efforts of EMS services within the community, educate the public on safety and health-related topics and provide information on new EMS procedure and equipment.

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Passengers Injured in Crash at SR 8 and U.S. 35

Posted on Author WKVI
Wreck 051914 1
Firefighters from the Knox-Center Township Fire Department work to free the passenger from the wreckage.

At least two people were injured in a late morning crash on State Road 8 at U.S. 35. The driver of a red Chevrolet Cavailer was eastbound on 8 and ran the stop sign, according to witnesses and officials from the Starke County Sheriff’s Department. A northbound Chrysler minivan was unable to avoid hitting the car, which came to rest on the northeast corner of the intersection. Firefighters from the Knox-Center Township Fire Department had to cut the female passenger from the wreckage. She complained of neck and back pain but was alert and conscious. She was taken to IU Health Starke Hospital for treatment. Neither driver was injured, but two passengers in the van were hurt.

Starke County 1100 East Closed Due to Flooding

Posted on Author WKVI
 
 

A Starke County road is closed due to flooding. A berm on 1100 East between 750 and 850 South gave way, and water broke through. A crew from the county highway department is out there now working to reopen the road but aren’t sure how long it will take to repair.

Beach and Campground Report on Starke County Commissioners Agenda

Posted on Author WKVI

starke-county-courthouseThe Starke County Commissioners will get their first status report of 2014 from the manager of Bass Lake Beach and Campground when they meet this evening. Richard Callahan has a contract with the county to manage the amenities. He and his attorney, Dave Wallsmith, are first on the agenda for the 7 p.m. meeting. Starke County EMS Director Paul Matthewson will also discuss his desire to add a paramedic at the North Judson base to provide better emergency medical response for the county. Other items on the agenda include approval of a uniform contract for the highway department and modification of the county’s nepotism policy to mirror recent changes in state law. County attorney Marty Lucas told the commissioners at their last meeting that the county’s policy is more strict than what the state has on the books. Continue reading →

Marshall County Motorcycle Crash Claims a Life

Posted on Author WKVI
 
 

Marshall County authorities are investigating the cause of a fatal Sunday morning motorcycle crash. It happened around 4:30 a.m. In the 2000 block of State Road 331, just east of Bremen, according to our reporting partners at WNDU-TV. A motorcycle driven by Stephen Kessenger, 39, of Bremen, crossed the center line, ran off the road and hit several mailboxes, according to police. Kessinger was found in the front yard of a home and pronounced dead at the scene. His bike was in the middle of the road. The crash is still under investigation, but police do not believe any other vehicles were involved. Toxicology results are pending.