Articles from The LaGrange Standard, published every Monday.
3-08-2010
Highway Dept. seeks funding for roads
After a directive from the Department of Local Government Finance (DLGF) to cut some $200,000 more from the 2010 County Highway Operating Budget, Highway Superintendent Jeff Brill approached the county council Monday morning with options available.
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Library Board to get construction bid recommendation
The LaGrange County Library Board will be getting a recommendation on the bids for the upcoming construction project at their March 17 meeting. The meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m. in the community room at the main library branch. This will likely be the last time the board meets at the current location, as construction on the new building could start before the end of the month.
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Indiana doesn’t make cut for ‘Race to the Top’ funds
Last Thursday, it was announced that Indiana was not among the Phase I Race to the Top finalists announced by the U.S. Department of Education. Sixteen states will travel to Washington, D.C. to present their applications for final consideration.
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High quality people
Shipshewana Town Council Member Chris Yoder presented Joanna and Levi King with the town’s Quality of Life Award at the SRMA’s annual dinner Thursday evening. The Kings were recognized not only for their participation in a variety of events in Shipshewana, but for working to bring new activities, such as the Ice Festival and others, to the area.
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Falcons hold off Warriors in semis
Three was the prime number in last Friday's 2A boys basketball sectional semifinal between host Fairfield and Westview. The Falcons defeated the Warriors, 52-48 in the two rivals' third meeting of the season on the same floor.
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3-01-2010
Library bids opened; come in below estimate
It’s been a day the LaGrange County Library Board has been working toward for 15 years. On Friday afternoon, the board opened 14 bids to build a new main branch for the LaGrange County Library, eager to find out how much the project was going to cost.
The news was good. Shawnee Construction of Ft. Wayne was the apparent low bidder, with a base bid of $4,459,870.
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Howe Revitalization Meeting March 9
LaGrange County will hold a public hearing on March 9 to give Howe residents an opportunity to comment on the completed Howe Revitalization Study. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. at the Paws & Claws Bookstore, located at 309 Defiance St.
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COA plans session on ‘Life Long Communities’
The LaGrange County Council on Aging (COA) has announced a seminar addressing “Life Long Communities.” The objective of the seminar is to bring together local elected officials, government staff, business leaders, and community groups to learn, plan, and take action that will plan for the growth and changing demographics of LaGrange County.
The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday, April 9, at American Legion Post 215 in LaGrange.
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2-22-2010
Local primary races finalized
Let the campaigning begin. Feb. 19 at noon was the deadline for potential candidates to file for the May 4 Primary Election, with two or more candidates contesting several county offices.For the rest of the story, subscribers call the office at 260-463-2166 or subscribe here...
Lakeland looking to staffing cuts to ease revenue loss
Lakeland School Corporation’s turn to begin solving the problem of the budget cuts dictated in January by the state will come Feb. 22.
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Utility District Board accepts resignation
The LaGrange County Regional Utility District accepted the resignation of board member Paul Gieseking at their meeting on Feb. 17. Gieseking had submitted his letter of resignation earlier.
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Conservation award
Ann Boots and Julie Diehm accepted the River Friendly Farmer Award from LaGrange County Soil and Water Conservation District Board Member Mike Holcomb at the district’s annual meeting last Thursday. The Boots family was honored for their use of conservation practices on their farm.
2-15-2010
Westview starts to look at where to trim its budget
The Westview School District was the first to go public with what it plans to do to meet the budget cuts that have been dictated by the state. Superintendent Randy Zimmerly and Director of Finance Tony Bontrager gave the board information at their Thursday meeting on what has already been done to save money, what they propose to do to meet the 2010 budget cuts, and what they might have to do if more cuts are needed. For the rest of the story, subscribers call the office at 260-463-2166 or subscribe here...
Prairie Heights to hold public meeting on budget cuts
Prairie Heights certainly isn’t alone in having to trim its 2010-2011 budget as directed by the state. According to a letter submitted by Superintendent Alan Middleton for today’s LaGrange Standard, the school district is facing a $400,000 reduction in its 2010 budget. Middleton also notes in his letter that the Department of Education has said additional reductions for roughly the same amount will likely take place in 2011.
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Challenge to assessor candidate filing successful
The list of candidates for LaGrange County Assessor dropped by one Friday afternoon. The LaGrange County Election Board held a meeting to hear a challenge by County Assessor Lori Carney against the filing for candidacy by Wayne Davis. The challenge was upheld, and Davis’s name was removed from the list of candidates.
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Citizens’ Checklist for School Budget Checklist
For a memorandom from the Indiana State Board of Education concerning the lowering of state tuition support funding as a result of the State’s declining revenues go to: http://www.doe.in.gov/news/2010/01-January/ChecklistMemo.html
and to view the checklist go to:
http://www.doe.in.gov/news/2010/01-January/documents/CitizensChecklist.pdf
MDA lockup
Help our editor, Guy Thompson, get out of jail & help the MDA at the same time.
Go to this link for more information: https://www.joinmda.org/lagrangecountyindianalockup2010/oneguy
2-8-2010
Suspicious vehicle in Pigeon River FWA leads to meth arrest
Detective Tad Oakley from the LaGrange County Sheriff’s Department was patrolling the Mongo area when he found a maroon Jeep Cherokee backed into the brush at a Pigeon River Fish & Wildlife Area (FWA) parking lot west of Mongo. The vehicle and driver were familiar to the officer because of recent drug-related tips.
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County told to cut more than $500,000 from 2010 budget
The LaGrange County Council was informed that the Department of Local Government Finance (DLGF) has told the county to reduce its highway fund and cumulative capital (cum cap) development funds for the 2010 budget. Final budget approval from the DLGF is expected within 10 days. The state agency has determined that the county needs to cut $167,492 from the highway fund. The cum/cap fund has been reduced by $379,448 from the proposed budget for a total reduction of $546,940.For the rest of the story, subscribers call the office at 260-463-2166 or subscribe here...
County asked to support regional business development center
Council member Jac Price, who also serves as president of the Region II-A Board of Directors, told the county council that they should expect a request from Region III-A for a $100,000 commitment to start a business development center in the near future. The center, if built, would be located at SR 8 and SR 3 near Avilla.
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2-1-2010
Commissioners award trending bid to Nexus
County commissioners awarded a bid for trending of 2010 real estate property values to the Nexus Group of Indianapolis at Monday’s meeting. The Nexus bid was $29,540 compared to the low bid of $29,390 submitted by Appraisal Research.
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Habitat announces informational meeting for partner families
Potential partner families are invited to attend a general informational meeting at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 6, at the Wolcottville Fire Department. The local Habitat for Humanity affiliate is seeking one or two families with whom they can partner for their home-building projects in 2010.
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Wolcottville sewer rates lead to lawsuit
A lawsuit against the town of Wolcottville is currently being heard in Steuben County Circuit Court over the recent proposed increase in sewer user rates for locations outside of the town limits.
The town recently approved a rate increase that would have seen rates for lake area residents jump from $20 per month up to $46 per month, plus the debt service fee, bringing the monthly sewer bill for those not in town close to $100 per month.
Lake associations representing Witmer, Dallas, and Westler lakes brought the lawsuit against the town.
The case is being heard by Special Judge Allen Wheat in Steuben Circuit Court in Angola.