The Knox Board of Public Works was to approve bids Wednesday morning for the demolition of the old Knox theater and the former office of the Starke County Economic Development Foundation in the downtown area, but that process was put on hold.
A representative of the Office of Community and Rural Affairs was at the meeting Wednesday morning and informed the board members that since asbestos was found in the two buildings, the federal wage will have to be used by bidders. The representative informed Territorial Engineers, who then informed the four bidders that their bids would not be submitted as the wage system will have to reflect the federal Davis-Bacon wage system.
The entire process will be re-advertised with a pre-bid meeting set for July 12 at 9:30 a.m. and bids will be opened during the Board of Public Works’ next meeting on July 24.
A man and a woman were arrested in the overnight hours on Monday after Marshall County police responded to a suspicious person complaint.
The officer arrived in the area of Upas Road and 12th Road where he found a man he recognized leaning into a vehicle at a residence west of the intersection. The officer knew that that suspect, Pedro Pinion, did not live at the residence.
The town of Medaryville’s mowing ordinance is once again up for discussion as the town council will meet tonight to discuss a resident’s compliance issues. Resident Brian Capouch previously claimed that the town failed to inform him specifically of what his violations were and also asserted that the town’s ordinance was defective and in violation of state code.
A LaPorte man was arrested on Tuesday after allegedly stealing Freon from two businesses.
A witness at a business on E. Lincolnway told police that a man was messing around with the air conditioning units outside the building. The witness told police that the suspect was lying between the air conditioning units next to the building. As other employees were arriving to work, the suspect was seen messing with the air units. He was told to leave the property.
The Knox City Council this week discussed building permit fees after a resident left paperwork with Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston explaining he felt he was overcharged when he bought a permit to add an addition to a pole barn. The resident explained he was issued a building permit for a 24-foot-by-40-foot addition to an existing pole barn and was charged $192, though he thought the accessory building permit should have only been $75.
A LaPorte man was arrested Sunday after a hit-and-run accident.
The victim told police that she and her boyfriend, 31-year-old Joshua Creed, had an argument while driving home. She exited the vehicle and called her male friend to pick her up. When the man came to pick her up, she saw Creed sitting in his vehicle across the street.
Starke County’s unemployment rate decreased for the month of May compared to April.
Starke County reported at 10.1 percent unemployment in May which places the county eighth in the state in unemployment. The rate was 10.3 percent in April.
With the county fair season approaching, state health officials are encouraging you to take steps to protect yourself against the swine flu at county and 4-H fairs around the state.
Four cases of variant influenza A (H3N2), or swine flu, were found in fair-goers after the Grant County Agricultural Fair earlier this month. The Indiana State Department of Health and the Grant County Health Department are investigating these cases.
A Monday afternoon explosion destroyed the upper half of this grain silo.
Firefighters were called back to the site of a grain elevator explosion in Union Mills last night after a hot spot apparently rekindled. Smoke was spotted billowing from the silo at the Union Mills Co-Op around 8 last night. It exploded around 1:30 Monday afternoon, killing 67-year-old James Swank, who lived nearby. He was on top of the silo at the time, according to the LaPorte County coroner, who says he fell to his death. Federal, state and local investigators are still trying to determine the ignition source of the blast. That has proved challenging, as the structure is not yet safe for them to enter. Early indications are that the explosion took place near the top of the 175 foot tall structure.
The retail price of gasoline throughout the state of Indiana continues to decline at a rapid pace, having dropped from an average of $4.20 on June 6 to $3.57 on June 25, but how long can we expect these prices to continue to fall? According to Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst at GasBuddy.com, prices should continue to drop for a few weeks, but he said with hurricane season approaching, weather could become a problem.
The deadline to sign up as a contestant in this year’s Little Miss and Mister Pulaski County Pageant is quickly approaching. Friday is the last day registrations will be accepted, and entry forms can be picked up at Hickory Creek at Winamac until the day they are due. Contestants must be at least 5 years old by the July 1 and no older than 8 years old, and must be a resident or semi-resident of Pulaski County.
The company that pioneered the wheelchair-accessible minivan is rolling out a new product. BraunAbility officials unveiled their newest vehicle – a mobility SUV – during an event in Clearwater, Fla. The Winamac-based company partnered with West Coast Customs on the design of the tricked-out Ford Explorer. It is designed to be an improved option to the standard wheelchair accessible mini-van. The concept mobility SUV was presented to Wounded Warrior Veteran Lance Corporal Mike DeLancey, who was paralyzed by a sniper’s bullehttp://www.wkvi.com/wp-admin/post-new.php#t in Iraq in 2006.
Culver Community School Superintendent Brad SchuldtThe Culver Community School Corporation will soon begin the hunt for a new superintendent as the current superintendent, Brad Schuldt, announced that he will be retiring at the end of December. Schuldt and School Board President Ryan Sieber recently discussed what tasks need to be done to replace Schuldt and the pair explained new state laws regarding approval of a superintendent’s contract.
The goal for the Moving Starke County Forward walking challenge has been shattered, according to IU Health Starke Hospital Wellness Specialist Heather Skelly.
The goal was to walk from the Statue of Liberty in New York to the Golden Gate Bridge in California. So far, participants have walked all the way from the Statue of Liberty to Honolulu, Hawaii.
Wind from this month’s storm reduced screen one at the Melody Drive-In to a pile of rubble.
The Melody Drive-In Theater will be back to normal operations this weekend, weather permitting, after running with only one screen in operation following the destruction of the first screen by strong winds that toppled the screen and caused extensive damage to the ticket booth. The first screen was destroyed earlier this month and owner Fred Heise said the replacement was a huge expense to the business.
Last night’s vision meeting regarding Culver’s comprehensive plan project didn’t have the turnout that Town Manager David Schoeff was expecting, but he said it was still a fun and productive meeting. Schoeff explained that about 25 people showed up to discuss the comprehensive plan to allow officials to get an idea of where the residents of the town see their community developing towards the future. Residents identified places in and around town that can be developed and gave their insight on what residential areas, commercial areas, or infrastructure aspects could be improved.
The new salary ordinance for the city of Knox is one step closer to being adopted, as the city council this week approved the ordinance on its seconded reading. The salary ordinance includes raises for all elected officials and salaried employees. Mayor Rick Chambers explained that a few corrections needed to be reflected in the ordinance before it was passed on its second reading, and those changes were reflected in the reading passed unanimously by the council last night.
The Knox Board of Public Works will be meeting this morning at 9:30 a.m. at Knox City Hall.
The board members will be awarding the bid for the demolition of the old Knox theater and the building that previously housed the Starke County Economic Development Foundation.
A sentencing hearing in the case of Randall Rowe has been continued in Starke Circuit Court pending the research of case law brought up during Tuesday’s court hearing.
Randall Rowe, 36 of Hamlet, pleaded guilty in a plea agreement with the state in a previous hearing to charges of Robbery as a Class B felony, Battery as a Class C felony and Receiving Stolen Property as a Class D felony. Ten other charges would be dismissed. He was to be sentenced Tuesday but it has been continued.
Randall Rowe was arrested Dec. 30, 2011, along with his brother, after they allegedly entered the home of Wade Berg in Hamlet where Berg was beaten on the head with a handgun. Berg’s hand was also allegedly beaten to the extent that the tip of his finger became detached. The pair also allegedly stole various items from Berg’s home. After the battery, Rowe reportedly forced Berg to drive to 1st Source Bank and withdraw approximately $800 in order to bail out Berg’s sister, who was Rowe’s girlfriend, from jail. Berg claims all of that was done at gunpoint which Rowe disputes.
At the time of his arrest, Rowe was arrested on 13 counts including an enhancement charge of Habitual Offender.
Wade Berg made a statement to Judge Kim Hall Tuesday about the circumstances of the incident and told of the fear that he would experience when Rowe gets out of prison. Berg stated that Rowe has threatened his family and is afraid of their safety as well as his own.
Rowe’s mother also stated that a hardship would be put on her as she has to care for Rowe’s daughter and doesn’t have the financial means to do so. Rowe stated that he is sorry for what happened that night and that Berg is confused on some things that happened during the incident.
In Tuesday’s hearing, Starke County Prosecutor Nicholas Bourff asked that Judge Kim Hall sentence Rowe to 20 years on the charge of Robbery, eight years on the charge of Battery and three years on the charge of Receiving Stolen Property with no time suspended. Those sentences would be served consecutively for a total of 31 years in the Department of Corrections. Defense Attorney Timothy Lemon cited many case laws that support the fact that each charge to what Rowe is pleading guilty are a single episode of conduct which call for concurrent sentences and not consecutive sentences.
With that information, Judge Hall ruled to continue the hearing so he and the state can review those case laws. If Prosecutor Nicholas Bourff has any case laws to give to the judge then those would be taken under consideration as well.
The sentencing hearing as been rescheduled for Tuesday, July 23 at 11:30 a.m. CT in Starke Circuit Court.
