The board also discussed the Affordable Care Act.
Candidates Named for 4-H Achievement Royalty
Eight candidates have qualified for the Pulaski County Achievement Royalty. The program will be held on Saturday, June 29 at 3 p.m. ET at the Entertainment Stage. Dustin Dahn, Brooke Daugherty, Brandon Dickson, Kohl Hoover, Eric Newman, David Putt, Kaitlyn Rumsey, and Walker Wank.
The Achievement Royalty candidates in Starke County include Rachel Lenig, Taylor Kemble, Kamie Salkeld, Katie Back, Kayla Bailey, Katelyn Surfus, Kayla Grossman, Natalie Radtke, and Erica Pick. Royalty will be selected on Monday, July 15 around 6:15 p.m.
NASCAR Drivers Stir up Dirt at Plymouth Speedway
The regular season drivers left the NASCAR drivers in the dust in the Modified feature at Plymouth Speedway Saturday night.
Modifieds point leader, Frank Marshall, found the start/finish line first while Adam Williams and Tommy Beezley II rounded out the top three on top of the podium.
NASCAR drivers Kenny Wallace, David Reutimann, Justin Allgaier, David Stremme and Ken Schrader put on a good show and the fans were excited to see them race. Allgaier experienced equipment issues toward the end of the 30-lap feature as a result of a bounce off the front straightaway wall earlier in the race. Schrader missed the feature due to mechanical issues while running hot laps and Wallace, Stremme and Reutimann finished fifth, sixth and seventh.
Habitat for Humanity Accepting Applications for Home
ISBH Inspector to Visit Bass Lake Campground
An inspector from the Indiana State Board of Health will soon be visiting the Bass Lake Beach and Campground, according to Starke County Sanitarian Chris Dalton. Dalton told the county commissioners this week that he had inspected the beach not too long ago and noticed a few minor problems, such as weeds growing near the beach, bathrooms suffering from structural issues, rusty water, and other issues. He said he had been out to the business in the past to deal with complaints of garbage laying around and unsanitary bathrooms, but the owners have been good at fixing up what Dalton points out.
One Broken Tornado Siren Fixed in Plymouth
Marshall County Emergency Management Agency Director Clyde Avery explained that the siren at the Plymouth/Goshen Trail in Centennial Park has been fixed, but the one out at Plymouth Speedway is still in need of repair.
The Plymouth Fire Department had conducted routine tests earlier this week and worked quickly to repair the siren in the park, but a bigger issue is plaguing the siren at Plymouth Speedway.
The signal to start the siren is triggered at the Marshall County Dispatch Center.
Flooding in Pulaski County Not as Harsh as Predicted
Pulaski County Emergency Management Agency Director Larry Hoover said the National Weather Service has lowered expectations of flooding of the Tippecanoe River in the Ora and Winamac areas. Moderate flooding is forecast in Ora, but the river will not crest as high as predicted.
Check with Building Departments Before Hiring a Contractor
Pulaski County Zoning Administrator Dave Dare made a public announcement Friday reminding residents to check up on any contractors offering to do work on properties in the county. Because of the severe storms that tore through the area recently, many contractors have started to appear throughout the community, and Dare reminded residents that all contractors must be registered to perform work in the county.
Gilsinger Implement to Host 2013 Drive Green Challenge
Gilsinger Implement in Mishawaka will soon be hosting the 2013 Drive Green Challenge event and is inviting anyone interested in the latest utility tractors, lawn and garden equipment, loaders and other
equipment from John Deere to stop by the business on Friday, June 28, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday, June 29, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Inmates and Animals Benefit from FIDO Program
Faith Plus Inmates Plus Dogs Equals Opportunity, or FIDO for short, is a winning equation for animals and inmates at the state prison in Pendelton. Maleah Stringer with the Animal Protection League developed the program to save dogs from euthanasia and teach inmates new skills. While serving time for crimes ranging from theft to murder, they care for 16 dogs until the animals can be placed in permanent homes.
Fate of MPI Goes to Employee Vote
Glenda Stacy, spokesperson for a collected group of protesters who gathered outside of USA Cafe in Knox yesterday afternoon, says they are against the idea of the union stepping in. She thinks it would be detrimental to the company and feels Monomoy deserves a chance to prove themselves, and says their owner has already made some positive changes.
U.S. 35 Construction to Begin June 20
The winning construction bid for the replacement came in at more than $4.2 million. Superior Construction from Gary will replace the bridge at an exact cost of $4,258,856, and Ritzler said the construction will begin on June 20, to be wrapped up by Nov. 1.
Ritzler said the state detour will direct traffic from U.S. 35 to State Road 8, to State Road 39, to U.S. 30. A local detour, however, was also cleared with the state. The local detour will direct traffic from U.S. 35 to County Road 500 North, to 300 East, then to U.S. 30.
No Harvest Festival This Year
Bad news for festival-goers: there will be no Harvest Festival in Knox due to the lack of a coordinator. Mayor Rick Chambers explained that they still hope to have a parade and car show as well as a number of other events that weekend, but no formal festival will take place because no one stepped up to take the reins.
In October, Chambers announced that he was looking for a coordinator for the event after he learned the previous coordinator, Michelle Bachtel, would not be able to handle it this year. The event’s coordinator is responsible for putting together events, contacting vendors, lining up entertainment like live bands, getting dumpsters in town, and gathering volunteers to pick up trash, set up and tear down booths, manage the parade, and a variety of other tasks.
Pulaski County 4-H Fair May Have to Relocate
The Pulaski County 4-H and Community Fair may have to be relocated due to the recent rains and consequent flooding. County Purdue Extension Director Natalie Daily-Federer told WKVI that fair officials are currently coming up with possible alternatives for locations to perform the animal shows and conduct judging on projects, but they haven’t come up with anything solid yet as they hope for fair weather to dry the fairgrounds.
“Hopefully, the fairgrounds will dry out the following week and we’ll be able to move everything back down and still host a fair there, but we are also looking into other facilities for livestock shows and our dogs show is the week before as well. So, lots of research, lots of conversations happening. We’re looking into lots of different options and trying to put together a backup plan,” said Federer.
Tax Abatement Compliance Not an Issue With AMI
City Attorney Sean Surrisi told WKVI that the officials at Whitley Products had asked for a tax abatement years ago when they wanted to install $600,000–$700,000 worth of equipment at their Plymouth facility. The council was concerned about that equipment when Whitley had decided to close their doors as they had heard that some of that equipment might have been sold.
Work Continues on Monterey Bridge Despite Storms
Eastern Pulaski School Board Gets Update on Karen Pence’s Visit
The school was recently named a four-star school and Karen Pence toured the school in May and talked to the students and teachers. Superintendent Dr. Robert Klitzman explained that she was impressed with the school.
Starke County Community Foundation Scholarship Reception Held
The Starke County Community Foundation held a scholarship reception at the Knox Community Center Thursday night where over $27,000 in endowments were given to students.
One of those scholarship recipients is Miranda Ray who will be studying Digital Media and photography at Ball State. She was the winner of the WKVI/Ed Hasnerl Scholarship. Miranda said her love of digital media in doing projects in school prompted her to pursue it further.
North Judson Mint Festival Kicks Off Tonight
Exciting Night of Racing Planned at Plymouth Speedway
A big modified race featuring five NASCAR stars is taking place on the dirt track at Plymouth Speedway this Saturday.
A NASCAR analyst for the SPEED Channel, Bob Dillner, says it’s going to be quite the show.
“It’s going to wild this weekend at Plymouth Speedway,” said Dillner. “Anyone listening to this show here today, I would get out to Plymouth this weekend because I think you’re going to have the best racing of the weekend with those modifieds on the dirt! I’m just really excited for everyone at Plymouth to have the success that they’re having now because that’s really good for racing in general.”
