The Starke County Council has authorized the purchase of a blanket bond to cover the various elected officials. It’s less expensive than purchasing individual bonds for the auditor, recorder, surveyor, sheriff, coroner, assessor and clerk. The county pays about $1,000 per year for the policy from its insurance carrier. Continue reading
Past Due Utility Bills Results in Liens
Knox Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston informed the city council members last week that he sent 11 lien notices to the Starke County Treasurer’s office. He stated that those residents were behind in paying utility bills. Those liens will be collected when property taxes are collected in May.
Mayor Rick Chambers noted that he’s talked with John Julian with Umbaugh and Associates about doing an audit of the water department accounts. There are some properties that are not being billed properly. Mayor Chambers said he would talk more about the issues and bring a contract to the council for approval for Julian’s services. There was discussion about lowering the minimum amount of gallons billed and senior citizen discounts.
Winamac Town Council Closes 2014, Plowman Honored for Years of Service
The Winamac Town Council members approved ordinances establishing salaries and wages for town employees in 2015.
In a special meeting yesterday, the council members approved salaries and wages for town officers and employees plus the officers of the Winamac Police Department. The ordinances passed by a vote of three to one. Tom Murray was the lone member who was against the approval of the ordinances.
Hamlet Renews Trash Pickup Contract
Trash pick-up for residents of the Town of Hamlet for the next three years will be supplied byRepublic Services of Culver. The town’s renewal agreement is with the company previously
known as Allied Waste. There will be no change in rates.
Marshall County Commissioners to Meet Today
The Marshall County Commissioners will meet for the last time this year today at 8:30 a.m. ET.
The commissioners will review the county’s contract with the Muskegon River Youth Center. The probation department had a previous contract with the juvenile detention facility in Muncie but operations have moved to a new location in Evart, Indiana. The 2014 contract expires today.
Celebrate the New Year Safely with Fireworks
If you would like to celebrate the new year by discharging consumer fireworks, you may do so today beginning at 10 a.m. to 1 a.m. tomorrow morning.
Keep in mind that no person may use, ignite or discharge consumer fireworks on any public street or in any public park within the corporate limits of the City of Knox at any time. According to the ordinance, if the use of discharging consumer fireworks results in a fire and damage is determined to be caused by “negligence or the willful disregard or violation of any of the provisions”, that person will be fined an amount not to exceed $2,500 for the dispatch of firefighters and equipment.
Resources Available To Quit Smoking In New Year
Tomorrow may be the beginning of the New Year, but it can also be the beginning of some of those New Year’s resolutions.
Popular among those commitments is to quit smoking, a great idea to start quitting is to buy a mod from vape mod australia and start vaping.
ISP Names Suspect in Officer-Involved Shooting
An officer-involved shooting last night in the parking lot of a Plymouth store resulted in serious injury to a suspect in a domestic battery case. The man, identified as Lane G. Dodson, 33, of Plymouth, allegedly raised a gun at a state trooper and a Plymouth Police Officer when asked to get out of his vehicle in the KMart parking lot. The officers opened fire and struck him multiple times. Continue reading
ISP Investigating Officer-Involved Shooting in Plymouth Kmart Parking Lot
An officer-involved shooting last night in the parking lot of a Plymouth store resulted in serious injury to a suspect in a domestic battery case. The man, whose name has not been released, allegedly raised a gun at a state trooper and a Plymouth Police Officer when asked to get out of his vehicle in the KMart parking lot. The officers opened fire and struck him multiple times. Continue reading
Starke County Council Closes Books on 2014
The Starke County Council moved $50,000 into the rainy day fund to close the books on 2014 and approved a handful of transfers to balance the books. Continue reading
INDOT Planning New Plymouth Facility
Breaking ground won’t take place until 2016, but the Indiana Department of Transportation continues to work toward developing a new sub-district facility in Plymouth.
The current space is being used as a field office for various projects. That sub-district site, however, does not provide direct access to Highway 30.
Continue reading
Water Bond Refinancing on Hold until 2015
Umbaugh and Associates will be working on refinancing the water bonds after the first of the year.
Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston informed the Knox City Council members that John Julian said the markets should be better after the new year starts to ensure the city gets the best rate possible. Julian approached the council earlier this month to move forward with the process. The city has $1.5 million outstanding on bonds from 1988 and from 2006. Julian suggested that refinancing now could save the city up to $10,000 a year throughout the remainder of the life of the bond.
The council previously approved an ordinance to jump start the movement on the refinancing action. Houston said he should know more about the bond refinancing during the council’s second meeting in January.
Washington Township School Successfully Demolished
Only a few bricks remain of the demolished Washington Township School.
According to township officials, Chris Loehmer Excavating successfully took down the building in mid-November. All of the debris has been removed. The park is now open, but patrons are warned that some small pieces of glass are still present which could cause injury.
Resolve to Maintain a Better Budget in 2015
Money management is difficult and many people resolve to budget better as the new year starts. Devan Wallen from Financial Partners in Knox says the first step to a better budget is to cut out unnecessary expenditures.
“Probably one of the first things you can do is to rid yourself of the non-necessity things. A lot of times people engage in bad habits like smoking, drinking, dining out, and shopping too much and that can cause quite a hindrance to the budget,” said Wallen.
Paying for College: You Don’t Have to Do it Alone
It’s never too early to start thinking about a way to finance college. Students approaching the final semester of their senior year are faced with the responsibility of choosing a university and a major which can seem pretty daunting, not to mention figuring out the finances behind it all. Continue reading
Apply Now for Marshall County Community Foundation Grants
Officials at the Marshall County Community Foundation are accepting applications for the 2015 Community Found grant round that supports specific projects or programs throughout Marshall County focusing on the arts, education, health and human services, recreation and the environment.
Funding for the biannual Community Fund grants are made available through earnings on the endowment fund.
Organizations that hold a 501(c)(3) IRS status or a 501(C) IRS status whose request is charitable in nature are encouraged to apply. Requests may be for start-up costs for new programs or the expansion of needed programs or one-time projects or needs. Applications can be found online at www.marshallcountycf.org.
Community members who serve on the Community Foundation’s grants committee will evaluate the proposals and conduct site visits as it is a competitive application process. Grant applications are due by Monday, Feb. 2, 2015 by 4:30 p.m. ET.
Gleaners Ober Arbor Club Buys Cabinets for Senior Center
The Community Services of Starke County North Judson Senior Center site has new cabinets, thanks to the generosity of the Gleaners Ober Arbor Club. Members recently donated $1,249 to the agency to buy new upper cabinets. That’s in addition to a donation of $1,250 earlier this year for lower cabinets. Gleaners members Arlene Sellers and Ellen Stevenson presented the check to site manager Laura Mihalich, Community Services of Starke County Executive Director Joan Haugh and treasurer Frank Skronski.
Stop Sickness in Its Tracks
Sickness does not discriminate, on average adults get one to three colds every year and according to the Antibody Elisa Research at MyBiosource, colds are the most common illness experienced by children. Although colds can happen anytime of the year, winter is the prime time for a case of the coughs or sniffles to strike. Experts say there are a few things to consider before automatically turning to medications for symptom relief. Continue reading
BMV Reinstatement Relief Program Set to Expire
Hoosiers with suspended drivers licenses have one more day to take advantage of the BMV’s Reinstatement Relief Program. It offers a 50 percent discount to those who qualify on reinstatement fees obtained before July 1, 2013 for operating a vehicle without insurance. The program began in July of 2014, and more than 14,300 customers have paid back more than $3.1 million in reinstatement fees since. Customers may login or create a myBMV.com account to check their eligibility. Reinstatement fees cannot be paid at license branches. Continue reading
Sunday Traffic Stop Ends With Drug Arrests
Formal charges are pending against two men following a Sunday morning traffic stop. A deputy from the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department pulled a car driven by William A. Ferguson, 34, over in the area of U.S. 30 and Oak Road just after 11 a.m. Continue reading
