Plymouth Board of Public Works and Safety & Plymouth City Council Meetings Tonight

The Plymouth Board of Public Works and Safety and the City Council meet tonight to discuss matters impacting the community. The Board of Public Works and Safety meeting will start first at 6 p.m.

Agenda items include a request from the utility superintendent about a water main extension at State Road 17 and W. Lake Avenue as well as an executive order from the city attorney regarding 408 Pierce Street.

Other requests consist of the Chamber of Commerce seeking permission to continue with downtown trick-or-treating this year and a temporary street closing by John Montgomery. The Mayor’s Youth Council will provide a request about the “Adopt a Street” project.

The City Council will convene at 6:30 p.m. or immediately following the adjournment of the Board of Public Works and Safety meeting. Continue reading

Bolt for Blessings Fun Run Fundraiser

Culver Community Schools currently assist one-hundred underprivileged students by providing backpacks filled with food to take home on the weekends. This year, during Culver Fall Fest on October 7th, you have the opportunity to help out and work out with the Bolt for Blessings fundraiser.

Annually, it costs around $125,000 to purchase the food and supplies needed. This event serves as the primary source of funding for the Blessings in a Backpack program. The race registration fee costs $15 for students K-12 and general admission is $25. If you register online prior to race day, you have will receive a T-Shirt. Businesses and interested individuals have a chance to be sponsors and have their name appear on the shirts for $150. Continue reading

Travelers Take to the Roads This Fall

If you’re planning on taking a trip before winter weather hits, you’re not alone. In a recent survey, Triple-A found that more than one in four Americans plan to take a vacation in the time between Labor Day and Thanksgiving. Fall season seems to be the preferred time to travel for people who prefer fewer crowds and children, more mild weather conditions and cost efficient traveling options. Continue reading

Demolition Starts at River Gate South Apartment Development Site

Demolition has begun on the River Gate South Apartment Development in Plymouth and City Attorney Sean Surrisi said construction will start soon. Surissi was one of the key players in getting this project off the ground by collaborating with members of the community and Regional Cities Initiative, which awarded $1.5 million of funding for the development. Continue reading

School Bus Safety

The new design of many school buses is causing some concerns about safety. A feature that was installed to give drivers more warning that children are in the area and the bus is about to stop is not being heeded.

In the past, when a bus would stop the arm would come out and the red lights would flash in unison. Now buses feature flashing yellow lights while the driver is coming to a stop, and once they stop completely they hit a button to put out the arm and start the red lights. Continue reading

Tread in the Shed: Environmental Education Presentations and Walking Tour at Centennial Park

If you’re interested in learning about the environment and seeing what local conservation looks like, come out to Centennial Park today for the ‘Tread in the Shed’ event hosted by Marshall County Soil and Water Conservation District. The event will feature presentations about topics such as, habitats, predator birds, stream bank stabilization, water quality, the importance of watersheds and rain gardens.

The District Coordinator of Marshall County SWCD Debbie Palmer said he whole event will take about 2 hours, running from 10 a.m. to noon, and there are a few 15-20 minute presentations. She said that the walking tour will take place primarily in the shade, so the heat shouldn’t be an issue. Continue reading

New Project Elements Revealed During Plymouth Redevelopment Commission Meeting

The Plymouth Redevelopment Commission provided a financial and structural overview of the Aquatic Center Project that will be built adjacent to the LifePlex when they met earlier this week. City Attorney Sean Surrisi explained that while 2.2 million dollars of grant money received through the Regional Cities Initiative will be used for the Aquatic Center, new funds have become available that will allow for more structures to be constructed with this project. Continue reading

Culver Superintendent’s Report Includes Proposed Programs for Students Young and Old

The report delivered by Superintendent Karen Shuman at the Culver School Board meeting Monday night contained some proposed programs for both older and younger students in the Culver community.

Shuman told the board about potential teen programs they are looking into with the assistance of a local group of community members. She said that with programs specifically targeted at teenagers, they are hoping to bridge the gap between Culver Community students, surrounding community schools’ students and students from Culver Academy. The potential program has been entitled ‘Teen Canteen’ and would provide certain activities for teen students to do on Friday and Saturday nights.

For younger community members, Shuman said the school corporation is looking into becoming an On-My-Way Pre-K school. Though they currently have some programs in place, they are looking to move those to their school corporation to help service parents more locally. Continue reading

Usher in Autumn with John Glenn’s Annual Falloween Festival

Autumn is officially upon us and that means that it is once again time for the Falloween Fest at John Glenn High School in Walkerton. This annual festival kicks off today  and runs all weekend. The festival features a variety food and crafts vendors as well as fun activities for the whole family.

The Skerbeck Carnival starts up at 4 p.m. and will stay open until 11 p.m. The craft vendors fair in the auxiliary gymnasium will run from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. The grand parade, sponsored by Walkerton Chamber of Commerce, commences at 5:30 p.m. and will traverse the streets of Walkerton and end at the fairgrounds on Georgia Street. Continue reading

Plymouth City Building Renovations Could be Completed Sooner than Scheduled

Updates about ongoing projects were provided at the Plymouth Redevelopment Commission meeting earlier this week. According to City Attorney Sean Surrisi, construction at the Plymouth City Building could be finished sooner than the proposed completion date.

Initially, the contract called for the renovations to be complete by June 29th 2018. Due to some changes in how construction is being conducted, that date could move up to late May or early June.

Surrisi explained that when the contract was drawn up, it was understood that contractors would have to work around the mayor and clerk-treasurer who planned to stay in the building during renovations. However, since the city rented the space at 118 N Michigan Street, contractors will no longer need to work around city employees.   Continue reading

Culver School Board Adopts Capital Project & Bus Replacement Plans

Resolutions proposing the adoption of the 2018 Budget, capital projects plan and bus replacement plan came before the Culver Community School Board following a public hearing held at their Monday evening meeting.

No public comments were provided during the hearing. The board then went on to adopt the resolutions for the 2018-2020 capital projects plan and the 2018 bus replacement plan. Continue reading

Free Trees Available to NIPSCO Customers

Did you know strategic tree planting can help conserve energy and reduce energy bills? The Arbor Day Foundation program Energy-Saving Trees is offering 375 free trees to NIPSCO customers to simultaneously assist clients and the environment.

An online tool helps customers estimate the annual energy savings that will result from planting trees in the most strategic location near businesses or residences. The Energy-Saving Trees tool uses peer-reviewed scientific research from the USDA Forest Service’s i-Tree software to calculate estimated energy savings. Additionally, the tool estimates other benefits including cleaner air and reduced carbon dioxide emissions. Continue reading

FAFSA 101: PHS Parent Workshop Tonight

Graphic Designed by PHS Senior Josie Koontz

Parents of senior students from Plymouth High School, Weidner School of Inquiry and surrounding schools are invited to attend an hour long FAFSA workshop at 5:30 p.m. tonight in the PHS cafeteria.

The FAFSA is an application that helps determine financial aid eligibility for students applying to college. The application must be filled out and submitted each academic year and in order to be considered for federal student aid for the 2017/18 award year, the application needs to be submitted by midnight on June 30th, 2018. Continue reading

Saturday Morning Collision Resulted in Vehicle Rolling, Injuries Sustained

Marshall County Dispatch received a report of a 2 vehicle collision in the 100-block of Lincoln Highway and Fir Rd in Bourbon around 11 a.m. on Saturday. Initial information included that one vehicle had rolled over and there were injuries at the scene.

According to the police report, at the scene it was found that a 2007 Subaru driven by 19-year-old Dawson Kratzchmar, of Plymouth, was traveling north on Fir Road when at Lincoln Highway he failed to yield the right-of-way at the intersection and was struck by a 1992 Oldsmobile driven by 58-year-old Lorre Osburn, of Bourbon. Osburn was driving west on Lincoln Highway approaching Fir Road. When he struck the passenger side of the 2007 Subaru it caused the vehicle to roll and both vehicles then traveled northwest off the roadway. Continue reading

ISP Provides Driving Safety Tips for Harvest Season

As harvest season is upon us, it is important for rural drivers to be cautious of the increased amount of farm machinery on the roadways. Large farm implements often need extra space on the road so motorists should be prepared to slow down, pull over or stop to avoid collisions.

In order to keep everyone as safe as possible, the Indiana State Police released these tips for motorists and farmers sharing the roadways this farming season. Continue reading

Marshall County Promise Program Inspires Young Students To Start Considering College

Local kindergartners and first-grade students will be taking trips out to Ancilla College through the Marshall County Promise Program Walk into the Future event. This is the second year the program has taken place Ancilla. The superintendent at Triton Schools, Donna Burroughs said the program is a way to get young students to start considering further education now.

“It’s a part of our promise program where we’re trying to encourage kids to think about the importance of education and where they might want to go in the future and just introduce them to the idea of what a college is.” Burroughs said. Continue reading

Triton School Board Establishes Shooting Club for THS, Appoints Sponsor

During their meeting Monday evening, the Triton School Board established a shooting club for Triton High School and approved a club sponsor. The club sponsor will be Ryan Meister, who has served as a coach for Triton in the past and is the owner of the ‘Back 40 Sporting Clays’ shooting range in Bourbon.

Superintendent Donna Burroughs said a number of students already participate in shooting sports in 4-H so there is an apparent interest in a club of this kind. She explained that target shooting competitions are a growing trend around the country. Continue reading

Plymouth Baptist Church Seeks Donations for Hurricane Victims

Pastor Thomas Keb of the Plymouth Baptist Church is working closely with the Sabine Neches Baptist Area Association to provide assistance to Texans impacted by the recent natural disaster. Keb said a semi-trailer will be parked at Plymouth Baptist Church and he’s looking to fill it with requested items that can help assist victims in regaining some type of normality in these trying times. Continue reading

Bond Project Addressed During Triton School Board Monday Night

A few building projects are in the works at the Triton School Corporation. The heating and cooling system at the elementary school needs replaced and the corporation is looking to build a high school gymnasium and replace the roof at the high school.

In an effort to move forward with those projects, the Triton School Board held a public hearing during the Triton School Board meeting. There were no public comments during the bond project hearing. Continue reading

Own a Piece of The Rees

In an effort to raise funds for the remaining renovations needed at the Rees Theater in downtown Plymouth, theater seats will be on sale at the Plymouth Farmers’ Market from 7:30 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. on Saturday. The Rees Theater was originally established in 1940 and doors closed in 2010. After being closed for seven years, the theater was purchased by Wythougan Valley Preservation Council in January of this year Continue reading