The public question presented to voters in North Judson was approved by more than 78 percent. Only 129 voters said no to the question of whether or not the town board should be increased to five members, while 480 voters voted in favor of the change.
A North Judson man was arrested Sunday after he was found to have been spotlighting deer from a motor vehicle while in possession of a loaded firearm.
An anonymous tip was called into the Indiana Turn-in-a-Poacher hotline for suspicious activity in the Starke County area. Conservation Officer, Keith Wildeman, saw the suspect vehicle shining a spotlight across open fields and along wooded areas in search for deer. At one point, the spotlight shone directly on the officer.
Formal charges are being sought after a North Judson man who allegedly threatened and assaulted four people.
North Judson police officers responded to a call in the 100 block of Arlington Avenue on Saturday night where it is alleged that Joseph Esposito reportedly threatened three adults and a three-year-old baby girl and sprayed them with pepper spray.
The WKVI staff has been on location this week broadcasting from great businesses here in the Kankakee Valley. Today, Jerry Curtis, Lenny Dessauer, Kay Gudeman, Tom Berg and Pat Dunn were at Good to Go in North Judson to help celebrate their grand re-opening after a remodel project. Free hot dogs and hamburgers were served along with a discount in gasoline!
Thursday, the staff was at Christos Family Restaurant in Knox and helped give away several gift certificates and the Twist and Smiles Balloon Lady made all sorts of balloon creations for those who attended.
Saturday, we’re on the road again! This time, we’ll be at Hensler Nursery for the Third Annual Giant Pumpkin Drop. Two pumpkins that weigh over 1,000 will be dropped on a vehicle and several other “normal” sized pumpkins will be shot out of a canon thanks to the Fahrfunflinger organization. We will broadcast live from Hensler Nursery from Noon to 2:00 p.m. We hope to see you there!
North Judson Town Marshal Doug Vessely is staying on top of efforts to bring the town up to ADA-compliance codes, and he said he just has a few intersections to look at as far as handicapped accessibility, but besides that, Vessely said everything else is just about up to snuff.
He said he has plans to install a few more handicapped ramps at a number of intersections, as well as permanent handicapped parking spaces at the civic center and community building. On top of that, he said there are plans to improve handicapped access to the parks for those in wheelchairs. Vessely said he has also already added some braille signage to restrooms in the community building.
North Judson Town Superintendent Marshall Horstmann told the town council this week that brush pickup has been completed for the town, and leaf pickup efforts will begin around Nov. 1. He said that’s just a preliminary date and depending on when the leaves start dropping at a steady rate, the date could change.
The town of North Judson is continuing their efforts to update the rules and regulations for town cemeteries, having passed the first and second readings of an ordinance updating those policies. Clerk-Treasurer Donna Henry explained the board will hold the third reading of the ordinance at their next meeting on Nov. 5, and the policy changes will take effect around Nov. 15.
The North Judson-San Pierre School Board approved a motion this week to advertise for the purchase of three new school buses. The bids will be opened in December and they will be delivered in the summer.
The board also learned that students involved in the FFA program will be attending the National Convention next week in Indianapolis. Superintendent Lynn Johnson said the organization has grown to 40 members which is the largest it’s been in several years.
Johnson said the next school board meeting on Nov. 20 will feature a representative from AdvancED who will be discussing the corporation-wide accreditation process. The individual schools were accredited in the past and now the entire corporation will go through the process as a whole. If the corporation passes, the accreditation will be good for five years. The process is part of a school improvement initiative.
Several firefighters from the North Judson Volunteer Fire Department recently underwent a training session at the department on extrication, and Captain Brad Brewer explained that the training will assist them in safely removing people trapped in vehicles.
Brewer said the training session took approximately three and a half hours on Sunday, and firefighter Doug O’Donnell conducted the training. O’Donnell had taken the course several years ago in Chesterton, and Brewer said he is very knowledgeable about the subject and did a great job in instructing his fellow firefighters.
North Judson is continuing its efforts to become compliant with regulations from the Americans with Disabilities Act. Town Marshal and ADA Coordinator Doug Vessely said he has been looking at city-owned buildings and has identified a few that are in need of additional handicapped parking spots and sidewalk ramps.
Vessely explained that he is currently drafting the ADA compliance plan which he will then put into writing and submit to the state with a timeline and financial information, such as how to pay for the changes laid out over a two to three year period. Fortunately, the town shouldn’t have too many buildings that need modified as Vessely said many of them are already up to ADA code.
The North Judson Town Council this week received a report from Town Superintendent Marshall Horstmann, who informed them that the water tower inspections have been completed for both water towers in town. He said that although he is currently waiting on the final report, a number of maintenance issues will eventually need corrected. However, Horstmann explained that until they receive that final report, they will not know how much the repairs will cost. He will present the council with an update when he receives the final report.
Horstmann also told the council that he is currently reviewing a number of local streets that may be in need of paving this season. He said he is currently gathering quotes on paving the roads, and he will present a final list of roads to be paved and an estimated cost on that in the future.
A North Judson man was arrested Friday after a battery incident.
Cody Barnett’s mother told a Starke County Sheriff’s deputy and a state trooper that Barnett was intoxicated and battered her. He also reportedly destroyed items in the house and pinned her down on a bed before locking her in the house.
The town of North Judson’s golf cart ordinance is nearly solidified after the town council this week approved its first and second readings. Clerk-Treasurer Donna Henry said two people in the audience expressed their objections to a part of the ordinance requiring child restraints.
Henry said the ordinance will require a safety restraint be used by any golf cart passengers that weigh less than 48 pounds, and two people objected to that requirement. The council noted their objections but proceeded to approve the first of two readings of the ordinance.
A North Judson man was arrested Thursday after a bullet fired from his gun allegedly went through a young girl’s bedroom window and grazed her in the back.
At 12:30 a.m., Donnie Greer told Starke County police that he was awoken to the sound of a crash in his daughter’s bedroom. He thought at first that it may have been a shelf that fell, but then he heard his daughter crying. When he entered her room, he saw a bullet hole in the window and found that a bullet had grazed his daughter in the back. After canvassing the area, police found that the shot could have originated from a neighbor’s house.
The Knox VFW yesterday welcomed home two local heroes: Clinton Jordon and Jared Dietrich, two U.S. Army veterans who returned home from one-year tours in Afghanistan. Jordon and Dietrich both hail from North Judson and even grew up together as they both attended the same school.
A sign was hung between flag poles at the VFW welcoming Jordon back to the community, and family and friends were present to welcome both Jordon and Dietrich home.
The North Judson-San Pierre School Board recently underwent superintendent evaluation training with three other school corporations. New requirements were discussed with the new evaluation. Superintendents, teachers, and principals at all corporations are all now being evaluated under a new state requirement.
The school board will hold a safety meeting on Oct. 5 to allow officials to explain crisis procedures and update current policies. The state has required the school to update the procedures and coordinate them with law enforcement and the health department.
Eastern Pulaski and Culver Community Schools reported a drop in enrollment after this year’s Average Daily Membership, or ADM, count.
North Judson-San Pierre School Superintendent Lynn Johnson reported an increase in enrollment. The preliminary ADM report indicates that the school corporation increased by 25 students. This is a $125,000 fund increase for the school.
Johnson said this is great positive move for the school as it has had problems with funding losses for the past few years.
A new position has opened up for the town of North Judson. Clerk-Treasurer Donna Henry explained that they held the third reading of an amendment to the town’s salary ordinance, authorizing the addition of a part-time clerical employee for the clerk’s and billing offices. The board adopted the amendment, and Henry said they will soon be taking applications.
Henry explained that the part-time employee would split his or her time between the two offices, but will spend the majority of his or her time in the clerk-treasurer’s office. The employee will be trained in both departments, and will be cross-trained on the billing side to allow the employee to substitute for the billing clerk during vacations. Henry says this employee will be similar to a floating employee between the two departments, but will concentrate on the clerk-treasurer’s side.
Two people were arrested following a traffic stop in North Judson Monday night.
Officers observed a car near Schricker and Talmer Street that was known to be driven by Randall Stone who has a suspended driver’s license. Police conducted a traffic stop and confirmed that Stone was driving the vehicle with a suspended license. During the traffic stop, a search of the vehicle was conducted and drugs were allegedly found inside the vehicle.
Randall Stone, 43, of Wheatfield, was arrested on preliminary charges of Possession of Methamphetamine Within 1,000 feet of a Public Park and Driving While Suspended With a Prior Conviction. His passenger, Patricia Ann Vega, 48, of North Judson, was arrested on preliminary charges of Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of a Controlled Substance within 1,000 feet of a Public Park. Stone’s vehicle was impounded for having false and fictitious plates.
The proposed golf cart ordinance for the town of North Judson is slowly gaining substance, as councilman Tim Cummins presented the ordinance to the town board this week. The board reviewed the ordinance and made a few grammatical revisions, and Clerk-Treasurer Donna Henry says they plan to have it advertised next week and have it presented for first and second readings at their second meeting in October.
