Starke County Landfill Methane Levels Rising; Solution to Be Determined

Posted on Author WKVI

The Starke County Commissioners this week approved a motion to authorize a representative of Weaver Boos Consultants to contact the Indiana Department of Environmental Management in the hopes of revising their remediation plan regarding the county landfill.

Brian Horvath presented the commissioners with a report detailing the results of the company’s groundwater monitoring at the landfill, and said nothing stood out too much. While he has no major concerns, he did note that the gas monitoring did show some upward trends in methane levels; anything more than five percent methane is potentially explosive, and some areas in the landfill were as high as 10 percent.

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Marshall County Commissioners Discuss Insurance Premiums

Posted on Author WKVI

The Marshall County Commissioners received an update on the county’s insurance plan from Mike Miley from Gibson Insurance.

The property and casualty premiums were discussed and Miley suggested that in order to save the county about $10,000, the commissioners approve an increase in the deductible for property insurance. The commissioners approved a motion to increase the deductible from $5,000 to $10,000 to reduce the premium cost.

Miley told the commissioners that the insurance has increased 3.95 percent. Most of the insurance claims have been filed with workman’s compensation and those have decreased since last year. As usual, the most of the claims come from within the Marshall County Highway Department and the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department.

Report Suspicious Activity to Starke County Police Immediately

Posted on Author WKVI

Sheriff Oscar Cowen
Sheriff Oscar Cowen
Starke County Sheriff Oscar Cowen is encouraging you to report any suspicious activity to the dispatch center as soon as it happens.

Cowen said that he has heard several reports of a Caucasian woman and an African-American man attempting to sell cleaning products door-to-door in the county during non-business hours. They are reportedly driving a white and green van and are attempting to force their way into homes.

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Starke County Health Advocacy Group to Hold Public Meeting Tomorrow

Posted on Author WKVI

Nancy Dembowski
Nancy Dembowski
A group advocating for a healthy Starke County is holding a community discussion on Thursday in an effort to raise awareness of a number of issues, including the county’s low health ranking, local drug abuse, and the necessity of a preschool project.

A number of local governmental entities have announced their support of Moving Starke County Forward, having declared 2013, “A Year of Health in Starke County.” The North Judson Town Board signed the proclamation in January, while the Starke County Commissioners and Knox City Council had done the same two weeks prior.

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DLGF Requests Readvertisement of Changes Made to Public Question Information

Posted on Author WKVI

Superintendent A.J. Gappa
Superintendent A.J. Gappa
The Knox Community School Board received notice that the Department of Local Government Finance has requested a change in the notice of adoption of the preliminary determination that was recently published.

Superintendent A.J. Gappa explained that the issue surrounded the public question that will be offered to voters in the Knox school district in May.

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North Judson Schools to Analyze Technology Initiative

Posted on Author WKVI

North Judson-San Pierre Superintendent Lynn Johnson
North Judson-San Pierre Superintendent Lynn Johnson
The North Judson-San Pierre School Board this week discussed their technology initiative, which Superintendent Lynn Johnson said will soon need to be addressed in order for the school to not fall by the wayside technologically.

Johnson told the board that in order for the lessons to be web-based and allow students to use mobile devices, the schools will need to be equipped with a full wireless network. Right now, she said the school is just utilizing hubs, but the corporation would need to look into a full-scale wireless network in order to accommodate a large number of devices.

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Starke County Farmer Gives Two Donations from Monsanto to Humane Society, Church

Posted on Author WKVI
Edward Mau (center) donated $2500 from Monsanto to the Starke County Humane Society.
Edward Mau (center) donated $2500 from Monsanto to the Starke County Humane Society.

A Starke County farmer was presented with the opportunity to make two $2500 donations to non-profit organizations of his choice. The Monsanto Fund selected Edward Mau as the Starke County winner for their third annual America’s Farmers Grow Communities program. This year, however, rather than make just one donation, Monsanto elected to give each county designated as a disaster relief area two donations, and Mau selected the Starke County Humane Society and St. Paul Lutheran Church Outreach to each receive $2500.

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Oregon-Davis Celebrates FFA Week

Posted on Author WKVI

Oregon-Davis School Superintendent Dr. Steve Disney
Oregon-Davis School Superintendent Dr. Steve Disney
The community in which the Oregon-Davis school is situated is rich in agriculture and students are celebrating that fact this week during National FFA Week.

Superintendent Dr. Steve Disney said agriculture teacher Jacob Riley and his students have several activities planned for the week.

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Bond denied for accused murder

Posted on Author WKVI
Kathleen Holt
Kathleen Holt

A Starke County woman police say fatally shot her boyfriend in the chest at their rural Knox home last week remains in jail. Bond was denied for Kathleen Holt, 51, during a Monday court appearance. She reportedly called 911 after shooting Ron Worker on Feb.13 and confessed to the crime. Holt pleaded not guilty during her initial court appearance last Friday. She faces up to 55 years in prison if she’s convicted. Investigators with the Starke County Sheriff’s Office have yet to release a motive in the shooting. Holt’s trial is set to start May 22.

 

Highway department saga dominates Pulaski Commissioners meeting

Posted on Author WKVI

Information is slowly emerging about the recent suspensions with pay of longtime Pulaski County Highway Superintendent Kenny Becker and office manager Lin Morrison and subsequent investigation by the county commissioners. Both are back to work, although Becker has not been restored to the superintendent’s job. He’s handling the day-to-day duties and reporting to commissioner Larry Brady. The suspensions occurred after commissioners received reports of criminal activity, which county attorney Kevin Tankersley acknowledges were unfounded. Continue reading →

Demotte man arrested on drug charges

Posted on Author WKVI
MUG Michael Baggerly
Michael Baggerly

A Demotte man faces multiple drug charges after the property manager at the Winamac Fish and Wildlife Area reportedly spotted him tossing beer cans out of his vehicle Monday afternoon. Tom Despot notified conservation officer Jeff Richwine, who caught up with the suspect and initiated a traffic stop. That’s when he found out that Michael Baggerly, 37, was wanted in Jasper County. Richwine says Baggerly dropped methamphetamine in the seat of his vehicle after he was arrested. Additionally, Pulaski County Jail officers reportedly found a bag of marijuana in his pocket during the booking process. Baggerly faces charges of possession of marijuana, possession of methamphetamine and trafficking with an inmate.

Fraudulent Text Message Sent to Starke County Residents

Posted on Author WKVI

If you get a text message from a source that suggests you may have an issue with an account with Demotte State Bank, it is fraudulent. Carla Musial from the Demotte State Banking branch in Knox stated that the text message will give the recipient a phone number to call and the number directs that recipient to another source. She urges you to ignore this text message and do not divulge any banking or other personal information to this source as it is fraudulent.

North Judson Fire Destroys Home; No Injuries

Posted on Author WKVI

The North Judson-Wayne Township Fire Department battled a house fire Saturday in the 200 block of Weninger Street in North Judson.

Police were notified of the fire who then alerted the Starke County Sheriff’s Department to dispatch the fire department. Firefighters arrived on the scene and extinguished the fire. No injuries were reported and the homeowner was not home at the time of the fire. The structure was a total loss.

The fire department was called back to the scene later that day for a rekindle.

Fire Chief Joe Leszek stated that the fire started by the water heater and while no suspicious circumstances were cited, the homeowner’s insurance company will be investigating the incident from here.

Starke County Radio Tower Still Causing Communication Issues

Posted on Author WKVI
Starke County Sheriff's Department
Starke County Sheriff’s Department

The crippled Starke County Sheriff’s Department radio tower is still causing trouble for the county, as a number of fire departments noted issues at the county council meeting last night. The department in Oregon Township has been experiencing issues with communications, causing a number of pages to not be received or suffer from static problems.

Mark Allen, trustee for Oregon Township, told the council that he received a quote for a system that had been suggested by an expert. The system, he explained, is a “record-and-repeat” system that would allow them to receive the pages sent out by county dispatch. The problem stems from last year’s storms in June and July that nearly toppled the tower, resulting in a shorter tower and, consequently, a shorter range for signals.

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Fundraiser Doubles Goal; Woman Shaves Head in Support of Sister Fighting Cancer

Posted on Author WKVI

A woman who set out to raise money her sister who had been diagnosed with stage four Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 1996 not only surpassed her goal, but shaved her head for the cause. Emily Larkin set a goal to raise $3000 by March 29 to fund the treatment and research at Riley Hospital for Children for her sister, Christina Pugh, but over the course of just more than a week Larkin has raised nearly $6000 – twice the amount she had set her sights on!

Larkin said she did not expect to raise so much money so quickly, and they’re still going to be taking donations.

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North Judson Man Arrested on Theft Charge

Posted on Author WKVI

A North Judson man was arrested Thursday after allegedly attempting to steal items from a Medaryville store.

The owners of Twice is Nice told police that a woman was in the store paying for items when Dalton Campbell told her that he was going outside while she finishes with her purchase. While he was walking out, one of the owners noticed a sleeve from a garment for sale hanging out from the back of his jacket.

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Hotel Chain Eyes Pulaski County

Posted on Author WKVI

A Wisconsin-based hotel chain is considering an expansion into Pulaski County. John F. Seibert with Cobblestone Development says the first step is a feasibility study, which will take a couple of months.

He says there are a number of fairly large businesses within the community that would utilize a hotel if they had one. Currently, Seibert says companies like Plymouth Tube, Braun Corporation, Galfab and Wastequip are sending folks elsewhere in order to accommodate their lodging needs. Seibert anticipates constructing a 36 to 44 room facility, perhaps with a swimming pool and other amenities.

Seibert has expressed his interest in making a formal presentation to the Winamac Town Council during their March 11 meeting. Cobblestone’s first upper mid-scale hotel opened five years ago. To date the company has 21 hotels open, eight under construction and 35 under development in seven states.

Marshall County Commissioners to Consider GIS Request

Posted on Author WKVI

The Marshall County Commissioners heard a request by Chris Marbach of Marbach, Brady and Weaver – a survey company working with NIPSCO on the 100-mile power line from Burr Oak to Topeka.

Marbach’s request was for the acquisition of the names and addresses of property owners along the proposed route that would be obtained through the county’s Geographic Information System, or GIS.

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Marshall County Drainage Board Approves Assessment Fee Increases

Posted on Author WKVI

The Marshall County Drainage Board held two public hearings yesterday concerning an increase in needs assessment fees.

In both instances, the board was faced with plenty opposition to the increase in fees and heard from several residents, along with Starke County Forester Bruce Wakeland, who claim their property doesn’t include the ditches in the watersheds mentioned in the published documents.

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