During the July 20th Fishers City Council meeting, an item on the agenda dealt with financing the next phase of the Geist Waterfront Park.  This would be a major park in the city’s system and the only public space on Geist Reservoir.

The agenda item up for a council vote dealt with some technicalities that, bottom line, would lead to a commitment by the city to finance the first phase of park construction in the amount of $16 million.

After the item was explained by City Controller Lisa Bradford, Mayor Fadness went into a more in-depth explanation, which you can listen to at the link below.  The mayor addressed how city debt that has been on the books for several years will be paid off soon, and the new debt for the park will simply replace that debt, leading to a tax-neutral situation not requiring any tax increase to finance the park debt.

Once the motion was made and seconded to approve the Geist Park item, Councilwoman Jocelyn Vare began asking questions of the mayor about how the park debt is impacted by reported cost increases on the State Road 37 construction and the possibility of a new fire station on the northeast part of the city, near Britton Falls.

The second part of the sound clip below captures that exchange.  The Council voted to approve the item related to the Geist Waterfront Park, with Jocelyn Vare the lone no vote.

The Fishers Health Department issued a Public Health Order July 20th requiring masks to be worn in indoor spaces, other than personal residences, and outdoors when 6-foot distancing is not possible.  The Order is effective Friday, July 24th at 8:00am.  It contains much more detail and is available to read at this link.

What surprised me about the order is what it does not say.  There is no specific provision on enforcement, except to state the local health department “may enforce this Order in accordance with Indiana law.”  There is no fine structure contained in the Order.

I realize the aim of the Public Health Order is not to be punitive, but the document is clear that this is a legal mandate.  By and large, I expect Fishers residents and visitors will abide by this order.  But there will be exceptions.  We have all seen the YouTube videos of some people that become aggressive, screaming at the top of their lungs they will not wear a mask and even some cases where people physically attack retail personnel.

Without any specific enforcement provisions I wonder how effective this Order will be.  Just referring to enforcement based on state statutes doesn’t say much.

I do salute the city for being one of the few localities in Indiana willing to take this step in the name of public health based on Fishers Public Health Department data.  This is a step our state and county governments have refused to take up to now.

Wearing a mask in public is  the most important action any of us can take to say we care about those around us.  The science is clear – masks mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

I have been covering Fishers news since January 2012, when we had a town council and no mayor.  I tried to move away from local news blogging in March, but with the novel coronavirus and racial issues at the forefront, I felt a responsibility to continue, at least for a while, as these large issues are being handled locally.

Now I am asking myself why I even bother.  The city is facing major health issues and we are finding that local citizens are not able to follow what is happening in our government.  That includes me.

I am a high risk individual.  If I contract COVID-19, I am at risk for major health problems.  With all these big issues locally, I have limited covering local events in person, although I have attended two outdoor demonstrations centered on racial issues.

Meetings of the school board and city government sessions have been reviewed by me through video live streams.  However, the city is stretching my patience.

A recent city council meeting was held at Launch Fishers.  I was assured that there would be a video live stream of that meeting.  That live stream never happened due to what the city described as “technical difficulties.”

Late Monday afternoon, the Fishers Health Department posted a Facebook message saying COVID-19 test results could take up to 10 days.  I had to scratch my head on that one.

One of the major reasons, maybe the most important reason, the city established its own health department a few months ago was to provide novel coronavirus testing available free to local residents and for a fee to local businesses.  A COVID-19 test that takes 10 days is of virtually no value – you might as well have no testing program at all.

I wanted to learn what the city officials had to say about all this.  I wanted to hear their side of the story so I could understand the situation more completely.

The city council had a work session scheduled Monday night all about the Fishers Health Department and I wanted to listen to it.  Once again, the city (or its contractor) was unable to provide the sound to the council work session.  I tested my equipment and everything was in working order, YouTube videos and podcast audio were coming through my computer just fine.  The city council meeting audio was not.

Since I could not hear the health department presentation or the questions from the council members, I cannot illuminate you on any of this and I wish that I could.

I have not always agreed with Mayor Scott Fadness on everything but we have agreed more than disagreed since he has been town manager, then mayor of Fishers.  I had always been complimentary of his ability to do the job of mayor and always felt he had competent staff.

Sadly, that confidence in the city’s competence has been shaken.  I wonder why I even try to blog about local news at all anymore.

I hope the city starts to get itself together.  I’m just not sure I will be writing about it, except in commentaries like this.  I am very sad to write this, but that is the view from here.

I will continue blogging about subjects like entertainment and will write commentaries on a variety of subjects.  I also plan to continue podcasting in some form.  I made a mistake even trying to cover local news at all.  Lesson learned.

It was late Friday afternoon when social media was abuzz with the rumor that HSE Schools would begin the school year virtually, at least through Labor Day, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  When I was able to confirm the rumor, comments have been flying throughout the community.

This is not the way anyone wants to begin the new school year.  Parents, staff, administrators and school board members all wanted students in the classroom to start the 2020-2021 school year.  But facts and data point to virtual learning.

The statement issued by the school district, in the form of a letter to parents, said the decision was “based on our local health indicators that are showing an increase in infections in our community and current staffing projections.”

The health indicators, just reviewing the numbers, are not encouraging.  At the level of the entire state, Sunday’s number shows 927 new positive tests….that is a lot and the number has been generally growing in recent days.

In Hamilton County numbers provided by the state Sunday, 45 new positive cases were reported, for a total positive tests of 1,933.  The positive test number in the county has been increasing steadily.

The Fishers City Health Department reports 105 positive tests in the past 14 days and a total of 591 tests coming back positive since the novel coronavirus pandemic began in March.  July has been a particularly difficult month for Fishers, with a high of 22 positive tests reported July 7th.

These numbers, particularly from the Fishers Health Department, had an impact on the local school corporation’s decision not to open the school year with in-person classes.

Note that the HSE letter to parents cites “current staffing projections” as a reason to start the school year virtually.  Many teachers are high-risk due to age, health condition(s) or a combination of both.  Do not blame the teaching staff, they have families and loved ones to consider just as we all do.

The decision to have virtual learning at least through Labor Day at HSE Schools has drawn a lot of reactions.  Just keep in mind school officials were balancing a number of important factors in reaching this decision.  School board members and administrators want in the worst way to get students back in their classrooms, based on everything I know and their public statements, but doing so safely, without major health risks, is a challenge with the number of positive cases in our local community.

This is the 4th largest school system in the state based on the number of students, so there will be a wide variety of opinions about all this.  However you may feel, and you are certainly entitled to whatever views you may hold, just understand the HSE Schools, and most school districts throughout America, are dealing with a once-in-a-hundred-year pandemic.  Whatever decision school officials make, it will leave a large segment of the community unhappy.

A legendary member of Congress has died, a member that accomplished more before serving in the House than most of us do during several lifetimes.  I am talking about John Lewis.

There is much to say about this man.  Allow me to just focus on two things I found fascinating about his life.

When John Lewis was a young man, he noticed that there were parts of his community in Alabama where Black people could not go.  He always was required to sit in the balcony of the movie theater, never on the main floor.

When he asked his parents and grandparents for an explanation, they just told him not to question it – that’s the way it’s always been, just don’t make any trouble.  John Lewis spent the rest of his life not following his parents advice.

He did what he described as “good trouble,” pushing for social justice and civil rights in the Jim Crow south.  He nearly died after having his skull fractured by police as he and many others attempted to cross a bridge in a peaceful march to the state capital in Montgomery.  There were other instances where Lewis and others came close to death making “good trouble.”

Secondly, John Lewis lived by a very important concept…when you are right and on the right side of history, never give up…..never, ever give up.  When Mississippi civil rights leader Medgar Evers was shot and killed outside his home in 1963, it would have been easy for Lewis to give up.  When Martin Luther King was assassinated on April 4, 1963, it would have been easy to give up.

But John Lewis never gave up.  Perhaps it was because he survived that he chose to run for congress and remained there for 34 years.  He fought for the causes in which he believed, and followed his own advice of never giving up.

John Lewis was a man not just of conviction, but a man willing to put his life on the line to fight for those principles.

I went to Washington and Capitol Hill several times as part of legislative conferences and always hoped to perhaps see John Lewis in the hallway, shake his hand and thank him for his service to the nation.  I never had that chance, but here is a story that may make you smile.

I did see the late Elijah Cummings speak, and he told us how many times people visiting the Capitol would mistake him for John Lewis.  It happened so often Cummings stopped correcting the tourists and just smiled and thanked them.

The Washington Post reported Saturday that Senators Marco Rubio of Florida and Dan Stevens of Alaska posted tributes to John Lewis, and used pictures of Elijah Cummings instead of John Lewis.

The Hamilton Southeastern schools will start the coming school year with virtual classes, not in the school buildings.  The district says the virtual instruction will continue from the first day of classes August 6th through at least Labor Day.

Athletics and extra curricular activities  will remain “status quo,” based on the statement from school administrators.

The entire statement from the school corporation is below:

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The construction at State Road 37 and 126th Street has not changed, with the area west of SR 37 on 126th closed to traffic and the east end open for right-in-right-out travel.  That is set to switch sometime this month, but we do not know when.

Also, be aware of continuing construction on 96th Street, 116th Street, as well as 106th and Mollenkopf Road.

The full road construction listing, as provided by the City of Fishers, is listed below.

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The novel coronavirus was the reason for the initial cancellation of the Nickel Plate Amphitheater concerts this season, but the city has now announced that there will be musical events on the Amp stage, including the Blues Fest.

Here are the concerts announced by the Fishers Parks and Recreation Department Thursday:

• Friday, July 24: Toy Factory
• Friday, August 21: Huckleberry Funk
• Friday, September 4 and Saturday, September 5: Fishers Blues Fest

As you would expect, there will be rules in place:

COVID-19 Safety Precautions:
In accordance with Governor Holcomb’s executive order, the NPD AMP is working alongside the Fishers Health Department to complete a COVID-19 Event Plan to ensure patron and event organizer safety. Currently, the NPD AMP will require the following safety guidelines:

• Capacity will be limited
• Face masks strongly recommended
• Patrons will be required to sit within the pre-determined socially distant seating arrangements
• Hand sanitizer and hand-washing stations will be available throughout the venue
• Vendor lines will require 6-foot spacing between each guest

Guests are strongly encouraged to follow the NPD AMP social media channels for the latest information and requirements for entry to these events. All details and schedules are subject to change without notice.

For more information, use this link.  Look for more on the Blues Fest as the date draws closer.

by

Fred Swift

Hamilton County Reporter

Hamilton County Commissioners officially appointed Lisa Charles as County Veteran Service officer at their Monday meeting. Ms. Charles was originally appointed in January, but her appointment was temporarily rescinded a few weeks later when it was learned that state law required a service officer to have lived in the county for five years.

The state legislature changed the law earlier this year to allow appointments after one year of residency. The statutory change became effective July 1.

Ms. Charles, a Carmel resident and military veteran, has been serving as interim service officer since the January rescinding decision and departure of the previous officer.

Following their Monday meeting, Commissioners met with representatives of Aspire, the mental health agency for the county.

Barbara Scott, director, told commissioners that Aspire is continuing to maintain services through the current pandemic crisis.

Outpatient clinics are located at 17840 Cumberland Road in Noblesville, and at 697 Pro-Med Lane in Carmel. They offer primary care and a variety of services.

Aspire serves about 5,000 clients annually in Hamilton County. Patients pay for service, but the county funds a significant portion of the agency’s budget.

When COVID-19 resulted in the cancellation of many big film festivals throughout America, the local Indianapolis-base Heartland Film Festival decided to keep going in a very creative way.  The Shorts Film Festival will go on for the third consecutive year as a separate event, with the festival going July 21-26 with virtual viewings and screenings at the Tibbs Drive-In.  Julia Ricci joined Adam Aasen and Alec Toombs and we all talked about short films.  Here is the podcast.