The hearing to re-establish the Town of Hamlet’s Cumulative Capital Development Fund, originally scheduled for last night’s regular Board meeting, was postponed to a special meeting Monday, June 15th. The postponement was necessary due to an error in the published notice of the hearing.
The fund has been an ongoing levy, but needs to be re-established every three years by the Town Board. Continue reading
The Starke County Initiative for Lifelong Learning is hosting an award ceremony to recognize the accomplishments of their 2015 class. The program takes place tonight at 1300 Kloeckner Drive in the Knox Industrial Park and will commence at 6 pm (CST) .
Starke County citizens who plan to get the golf carts out this season need to have their vehicle inspected and approved by a member of the Sheriff’s department before their first cruise. Inspections are annually required. Continue reading
Starke County postal patrons did their part to “stamp out hunger” during a recent U.S. Postal Service food drive. Donations placed next to mail boxes on Saturday, May 9 were picked up by mail carriers and given to the Community Services of Starke County food pantry. Executive Director Joan Haugh says they got 1,739 pounds of food. The Knox Post Office collected 1,230 pounds of food; North Judson picked up 475 pounds, and the Hamlet Post Office delivered 34 pounds of food.
The End of Course Assessment (ECA) test results at Oregon-Davis Schools have the administration excited about the progress the students are making in Math and English/Language Arts. The ECAs are taken at the end of the school year to measure student growth.
Superintendent Greg Briles boasted the efforts of the 10th grade students.
The newly restored veterans monument in one of Starke County’s oldest cemeteries will be dedicated during a special Memorial Day service. Members of the Fletcher Cemetery Association launched a fundraising campaign last year to rehabilitate the statue, which dates to the 1950s. There was no more room to add names to it, and the structure was giving way. Continue reading
Some extensive projects will be in the works this summer at the Oregon-Davis School Corporation.
Thanks to the federal E-Rate Program, Superintendent Greg Briles says the wireless access and switches will be upgraded in both school buildings.
One school corporation in the area will not worry about funding cuts for the 2015-2016 school year.
Oregon-Davis School Superintendent Greg Briles says that the school’s funding will stay status quo for the upcoming year. It’s all due to enrollment.
The Oregon-Davis School Board will consider vocational programs when they meet tonight.
The approval of programs is contingent on the number of students enrolled in the classes for the next school year. Those classes include Auto Tech 2, Cosmetology II, Criminal Justice 4, Early Childhood Ed 1, Graphic Imaging 3, Health Science I, Precision Machining 2, and Welding I and II.
The board will also consider awarding scholarships and Academic Honors Diplomas and the use of TMS-Engineering through Five-Star Technology Solutions. Changes in the handbook will also be reviewed.
A state appellate court weighs in on a conviction and sentence in Starke Circuit Court. A jury found Donald Frazier guilty of a felony offense of operating while intoxicated with a prior conviction and misdemeanor possession of paraphernalia. The charges stem from an Oct. 31, 2013 traffic stop and arrest in Hamlet. Continue reading
Downtown revitalization plans were discussed at Wednesday’s meeting of the Hamlet Town Board. After reviewing a proposal for work required before installing new street lights the Board took it under advisement.
Written reports of the Street Department and the Police Department were submitted. The replacement costs of body armor for police officers discussed. A citizen appeared to review the cost of water and sewer bills. It was discovered that there had not been a credit issued for an earlier adjustment to the bills. The credit was approved.
Prior to the Board meeting, the Zoning Board met to approve several building permits.
You are free to choose, but you are not free from the consequences of those choices. That’s the message Oregon-Davis Middle School language arts teacher Angie Radke shared with high school students there after a mock drunk driving crash in the school parking lot. Radke’s best friend, Brooklyn Boo, was killed by a drunk driver in 1998, a week after their junior prom at North Judson-San Pierre High School. Continue reading
Many residents will be shopping at their neighbor’s homes for deals when the yard sale season gets underway this summer.
The City of Knox requires residents to apply for a permit before hosting a sale. According to the ordinance, which can be found on the city’s website, a fee of $5 will be assessed for a one or two-day permit and $10 for a three or four-day permit. Four city-issued signs will be given with the permit. Any items not sold in the sale will need to be removed from the property. The only time the permit requirement and fee are waived is in the case of the city-wide yard sale. It is scheduled for the third weekend in May.
Starke County is generally known for growing three crops: corn. soybeans and peppermint. A local man plans to join a dozen or so other Hoosier farmers that are now planting hops – a main ingredient in beer that could become a major local crop.
Typically grown in the Pacific Northwest, there are half-a-dozen varieties adapting to Hoosier weather. Hops are essentially flowers that grow on a vine. The crop requires a tall trellis system about 20 feet tall and then every year you have to tie strings to the top of the trellis and anchor them down. Continue reading
A bid of $13,100 was accepted by the Hamlet Town Board last night to complete six improvements in Hamlet’s 2015 50-50 sidewalk replacement project. There was also discussion with engineer Lee Nagai about installing new street lights and sidewalks in a possible downtown revitalization project.
Another improvement under consideration includes solving the standing water problem at a street intersection near the Lutheran Church. Continue reading
The Starke County Commissioners want to make sure every veteran who is buried in the county has an American flag and grave marker for Memorial Day. They’ve agreed pay for both if the American Legion posts in Knox, North Judson and Hamlet will take care of placing the orders and putting them on graves. Commissioner Don Binkley has tried without success to reach the commander of the Knox American Legion to discuss the process and find out how many flags and markers need to be ordered. Auditor Kay Chaffins says she’s spoken with officials in North Judson, and their order has been placed. Hamlet officials have yet to place theirs. Continue reading
Six applications for Hamlet’s 50-50 sidewalk program were reviewed last night. One contractor applied to do the cement work. The board took all applications under advisement.
The Indiana State Fire Marshal has determined that the fire at a Hamlet business early Monday morning was accidental.
The Hamlet Fire Department arrived at the building on the northeast corner of Plymouth and Starke Streets around 3 a.m. Monday and called for assistance from the Koontz Lake Fire Department and the Knox-Center Township Fire Department. The firefighters remained at the scene for about three hours.
Davis Township Trustee Robin Latimer met with the Hamlet Town Board last night
to discuss details of the new firehouse, currently under construction east of the County Fairgrounds. A completion date of the end of May is expected, with focus on electrical and gas connections next week. Continue reading
