The road project along the Koontz Lake Dam is nearing completion.
State Road 23 in Koontz Lake has been closed since April 9 as crews work to rebuild the Koontz Lake Dam and straighten the road crossing over it. Officials at the Indiana Department of Transportation predict the road will be open to traffic some time this week.
Superintendent A.J. Gappa and three members of the Knox Community School Board recently attended a training session in Gary concerning the new superintendent evaluation model.
“According to the new law, it has to be implemented during the 2012 to 2013 school year,” said Gappa. “By the middle of September, we have to have an evaluation tool submitted to the State. We thought it was a valuable information session. It was information that we will need to proceed in that area.”
The session was facilitated by members of the Indiana School Boards Association.
The administration evaluation is a lot like the new RISE teacher evaluation which looks at a teacher’s professional practice and measures student learning.
The USDA Summer Food Service Program is in full force at the North Judson-San Pierre Schools. Superintendent Lynn Johnson encourages you to eat at the school – for free.
“Any student under the age of 18 can come and eat and there is no cost at all,” said Johnson. “I would encourage families, whether or not they fall under the guidelines of free and reduced lunch, it is open to every student, or every child, under the age of 18.”
The USDA Summer Food Service program continues through July 22. Breakfast is served from 7:45-8:15 a.m. CT and lunch is served from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CT in the North Judson-San Pierre Elementary School. Meals are free for those aged 18 years and younger. Adults may eat lunch for $2.
Most of the schools in our listening area are participating in this program. Free breakfast and lunch are available at most sites.
Knox City Police responded to a two-vehicle accident on U.S. 35 and John Street Monday morning. An investigation revealed that a northbound Ford passenger car had crossed the center line, striking a southbound minivan.
Police say the passenger car was occupied by a male and female, and one male was traveling in the minivan. The driver of the passenger car was pronounced dead at the scene and the passenger was airlifted to Memorial Hospital in South Bend in serious condition.
The Knox Community School Board approved an increase in breakfast and lunch prices for the 2012-2013 school year. Superintendent A.J. Gappa says a nickel increase will be incurred across the board.
“Breakfast at all schools will be $1.15 this coming school year,” explained Gappa. “Elementary lunch will be $1.75 and the middle and high school lunches will be $2. Those have all increased a nickel from last year.”
A fireworks ordinance prohibits residents from discharging any type of device until this Friday, June 29 in the Town of North Judson and the City of Knox. This includes all consumer fireworks with the exception of sparklers, cone fountains, ground spinners, snakes or glow worms, and smoke devices. Anyone in violation of the ordinance shall be subject to a $100 fine for the first offense, $250 for the second offense, and $500 for a third offense and every subsequent offense.
According to the ordinance, fireworks may only be discharged between 5 p.m. and two hours after sunset from June 29 to July 3, and July 5 through July 9. On the Fourth of July, fireworks may be ignited between the hours of 10 a.m. and midnight.
For more information, the ordinance is available in Knox City Hall and the North Judson Clerk’s office.
North Judson Town Marshal Doug Vessely reminds residents that you must be 18 or older to legally use fireworks.
Jasper Circuit Court Judge John Potter has yet to make his decision regarding the case between former Starke County Treasurer Linda Belork and the Starke County Commissioners. The attorney for the Starke County Commissioners and the attorney for Linda Belork and Ohio Casualty appeared before the judge on June 6 and presented evidence supporting their cases.
The attorney for the commissioners, Martin Lucas, told the judge that the commissioners were faced with a serious problem: $900,000 was reportedly misappropriated in the treasurer’s office, according to the State Board of Accounts. He said the commissioners acted according to statute in removing her from office and filing suit against her bond.
For those that wish to have a traffic sign as a decorative piece but don’t want to risk getting arrested for stealing one from the side of the road, good news – there’s an easier way.
Knox Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston says the city is currently selling stop and yields for $10 a piece. The signs are left over from the city’s recent upgrade of their traffic signs to newer, more reflective signs, and rather than let the older signs gather dust, the city has decided to sell them.
The signs can be requested at city hall.
Roughly 250 stop signs were replaced in the city to meet new regulations from the federal government which required all signs to be replaced with the new signs by 2018. Houston says they still have a number of stop and yield signs for sale.
The North Judson-San Pierre School Board approved an increase in the school lunch prices for this coming school year, but Superintendent Lynn Johnson said it was a small increase.
“We do see some slight increases and they are minimal as far as lunch prices,” said Johnson. “We have been behind with our increases and we’re trying to catch up just a bit. It’s just a slight increase.”
The prices are going up due to the inflation in the cost of food and a new diet guideline from the state.
“We are trying to get much healthier choices and the cost of food does increase over time. We do try to keep those at a minimum. Parents and families with multiple children know it’s an expense. We do try and keep that down as much as we can.”
Knox Community School Superintendent A.J. Gappa gave an update on the Facility Study Committee during the school board’s recent meeting. The committee will be looking at financing options and which direction to go with a possible project at the Palmer Wing of the Knox Elementary School.
“We’re going to try and meet with Curt Pletcher from Umbaugh and Associates in the next week with our committee of three of our board members to discuss how to proceed further with a possible elementary project,” said Gappa. “We’ve been giving reports on a meeting-by-meeting basis just to keep the public and the board informed. This is our next step.”
A workshop is scheduled to help you search for money in unclaimed properties and protect your credit.
Amanda Meyer from the Attorney General’s Office will help you perform unclaimed property searches. There are over $300 million in the state’s lost and found properties. Legally, places of business, banks and any other institution that is holding a person’s money has to turn it into the state, where it is kept for 25 years and, if not claimed, it goes into the state’s General Fund. This is an opportunity to see if you have any money coming to you.
On Wednesday, June 13, officers from the Starke County Sheriff’s Department traveled to a residence near 1000 East and 500 North in regards to a book bag that was reportedly thrown from a vehicle.
When the officers arrived, they discovered methamphetamine precursors inside the bag, along with identification belonging ato a Travis O. Davis. After an investigation, police located Davis on June 19 at a residence on Railroad Street in Hamlet.
Davis was arrested and faces preliminary charges of Possession of Precursors.
Three Starke County residents were arrested Thursday on drug charges after a search warrant was executed by the officers from the Starke County Sheriff’s Department.
Officers went to 6135 E. 100 N. in Knox and found one pot meth labs, generators, items used in the manufacture of methamphetamine, the finished meth product and drug paraphernalia.
An information session regarding the new statewide smoking ban was held last night at the Bass Lake Community Center, and the more than fifty people that attended learned not just what the law covers, but what procedures need to be followed in order for businesses that qualify for an exemption to receive one.
Knox Mayor Rick Chambers has confirmed that the Starke County fireworks celebration on Wednesday, July 4 will take place at the Starke County Airport. Get to the airport early so you can enjoy demonstrations from the Starke County Amateur Radio Club as well as a remote control plane club. Food and souvenirs will be available from several vendors. The gate opens at 6 p.m. and the firework show begins at dusk.
The North Judson Town Board this week discussed an audit report from the State Board of Accounts for the audit that had been performed for the town in January and February. Clerk-Treasurer Donna Henry says the report is available online at www.in.gov/sboa, and an official record is available in her office.
Henry says the meeting included some discussion over the audit, which identified financial discrepancies totaling $74,408.67 with the majority of discrepancies in the cemetery lot sales category. Based on the information posted in the cemetery book, and the confirmations that were returned with receipts, the examiners determined that $40,350 was collected for cemetery lots sales but that amount was not receipted to the records. Former Clerk-Treasurer Connie Miller was requested to reimburse the town for this amount, but in a letter to the state board of accounts, Miller wrote that she “strenuously objected to any allegations or suggestions” that she had “done any wrong for personal gain.”
The Starke County Council discussed the purchase of new software for the Sheriff’s Department to help automate tax warrants and the cash books.
Starke County Council President David Pearman said the biggest concern is the cost for both components which were explained in the proposal given by Rick Culiver from Lieberman Technologies.
“The biggest issue is that it has a pretty substantial cost behind it and it has a pretty substantial maintenance cost,” said Pearman.
A Forestry Field Day has been scheduled for the first week in August, giving participants the opportunity to take a tour of the new Starke County Forest. Forester Bruce Wakeland says the forest had opened last year, but because of some troublesome beavers, they have had their work cut out for them to get the forest to prime visiting condition.
While the beavers make the forest unique, Wakeland says they have a habit of damming up the nearby culvert, causing the water level to rise and flow over the top of the lane going through the middle of the marsh. When that lane is underwater, Wakeland says visitors don’t have access to the majority of the area, including the observation tower.
A Knox man was arrested Monday on an active arrest warrant for Intimidation.
On June 1st, it is alleged that 32-year-old Jason Danekas was attempting to move out of his brother’s home when an argument escalated. Danekas reportedly picked up a large knife and threatened the life of his brother. Their mother stepped in and tried to stop Danekas from doing harm and he allegedly threatened her as well. He then threatened to take his own life.
Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about the new statewide smoking ban will be presented in an informational session today from 2 – 3 p.m. ET at the Winamac VFW, and a town hall meeting will take place at the Bass Lake Community Center at 6 p.m.
Attendees will be educated about the new law, how it affects all businesses in Starke and Pulaski Counties and any questions will be answered. On July 1, most Indiana businesses will be required to be smoke-free and to post signs indicating that it is a smoke-free facility. Smoking will not be allowed in places of employment, public places, state-owned vehicles and school buses.
