“It’s going great,” stated Mathewson. “When you have a committed staff of employees from the paramedics to the EMTs to the office staff and you’re on the same page to try to achieve the same goal of providing the best service around, great things can happen.”
The Winamac Town Council wants more information before allowing homeowners to raise chickens within the town limits. They deferred action on a request to allow residents to keep up to 10 hens in their yards. Arwen Fair spoke on behalf of Winamac CLUCK: Citizens for Legalizing Urban Chicken Keeping. She says Winamac is a 4-H community, and several residents are in favor of raising a sustainable food supply. She says supporters aren’t looking for large, commercial coops, just merely for enough to sustain their families and perhaps share eggs with neighbors. Council members questioned the number 10, which Fair says will adequately provide for a family. Members want to review similar ordinances from other municipalities before making any decisions. Council President John Plowman promised to keep members of Winamac CLUCK posted.
Along with the branches, the BMV’s website, www.mybmv.com, will be offline so maintenance can be performed. The website is expected to be offline beginning at 6 a.m. ET on Saturday. The website will be back online when the maintenance is completed.
License branches will resume normal hours of operation on June 17.
If you’ve got old appliances, tires, computers, televisions and household hazardous waste to get rid of, the Starke County Environmental Management District can help you out. The annual residential collection event is scheduled Friday and Saturday at the district office, which is located at 3835 East 250 North in Knox. Friday collection times are 2:30-5:30 p.m. Tires, appliances, computers and television sets will be accepted then. Saturday collections will include all of those items as well as household hazardous waste. Household hazardous waste includes oil, aerosol cans, pesticides, herbicides, unknown liquids or powders, cleaners, oil-based paint, degreasers, varnish, stains, drain cleaner, rat and mouse poisons, fluorescent tubes, batteries, medications and similar items. The residential collection event is open to Starke County property owners only. Each resident can dispose of up to five tires for free, but only one can be a farm type. Additionally, Starke County Environmental Management District employees have the right to refuse any item. Call (574) 772-7865 for more information.
“This is the first time we have had a bus inspection during the school year but things went very well,” explained Mellon. “All of the buses passed inspection. I want to thank the maintenance staff and the drivers for keeping their buses in good running order.”
Sign-up dates are Tuesday, June 11 from 5 to 7 p.m. at the North Judson Public Library; Thursday, June 13 from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Henry F. Schricker Public Library in Knox; and Saturday, June 15 at the Henry F. Schricker Public Library in Knox from 9 to 11 a.m. Call Anthony or Kelly Manning at (574) 772-0778 for more information.
FOP President Chris Kisela said the fundraiser was a success. Approximately $1,300 was raised toward their $6,000 goal and the organization members are planning to be at the Mint Festival and at the Starke County 4-H Fair to collect more donations.
Beginning at 1 p.m. ET that day, you are welcome to stop by the library for cake, punch and entertainment. A silent movie will be shown that may have played at the old Orpheum Theatre downtown.
EMS personnel in LaPorte successfully revived a Michigan City woman believed to have overdosed on heroin. LaPorte Police were called to an apartment in the 300 block of Park Street at 7:42 p.m. Sunday. The male tenant told the officers the 29-year-old Michigan City woman appeared to be very intoxicated when she showed up at his apartment. She eventually became unresponsive, and he called 911. Heroin is possibly to blame for last Tuesday’s deaths of a 20-year-old LaPorte man and a 17-year-old girl from Dyer. Toxicology results are pending.
The law enforcement aspect of locating and dismantling clandestine meth labs is just one aspect of combating the problems associated with this dangerous drug. Any location where a lab is found must be decontaminated by a contractor licensed by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management before it can be deemed fit for human habitation again. IDEM Safety Director Scott Froush says the state has strict guidelines for properties to be decontaminated.
Gus Ress, owner of Kostas Restaurant in Winamac, said the law took some getting used to but they have adjusted, and the customers have too.
It is the challenge of those involved to collectively walk the distance from the Statue of Liberty to the Golden Gate Bridge and so far 885 miles have been logged. The bar may be raised a little as the results have shown that a 3,000 mile trip will be easily attained.
Police dogs foiled a Plymouth fugitive’s Friday attempt to evade police. Otis Young was wanted for failure to appear on a meth charge as well as on a strangulation charge, according to our news partners at WNDU-TV. Police learned Young was staying at a home in the 11000 block of 19B Road. When they arrived, two men were reportedly fleeing, so officers turned the K9s loose on them. Young climbed a tree in an attempt to escape and ultimately surrendered. Officers found the second man, identified as Danny Clark, hiding in the weeds. An active meth lab was reportedly discovered near the house where the men were staying.
“San Pierre had a Lions Club, but they folded last year. There is no surrounding Lions Club with the exception of maybe Bass Lake or Winamac that would even help support the area, so I think it’s important that this area have a club to help support those needs that aren’t being met by other organizations,” said Roe.
The ordinance discussed the design, construction, installation, maintenance and operation of on-site sewage disposal systems located in the county. The purpose of the ordinance is to provide standards to eliminate disease and health risks in the utilization of this equipment.
