Democrat Jocelyn Vare was elected to the Fishers City Council in 2019, taking office in 2020.  She is announcing her candidacy for the newly drawn Indiana State Senate District 31 seat.  Several political commentators have suggested the new senate district can be competitive for Democratic candidates.

Vare says Fishers voters put their trust in her as an at-large council member and she will go on a listening tour seeking the trust of those in the redistricted seat.

“I earned that trust by listening to Fishers voters and I will continue listening whether I am at City Hall or the Statehouse,” Vare said. “During my State Senate campaign, people can be confident that I will continue my Fishers City Council service focused on resident representation and transparency.”

In the news release announcing her exploratory committee, Vare cites her independence in dealing with the Republican majority on the city council.

“Everyone deserves a public servant who represents them – someone who puts them first,
works hard, and thinks independently,” said Vare. “I am that public servant. I have
always been centered by local issues that make a difference in people’s lives, like caring for our neighborhoods and educating our kids.”

Vare and Samantha DeLong were the first Fishers Democrats elected to city office in anyone’s memory.  Ms. DeLong recently moved out of state and Crystal Neumann was appointed to complete the council term.

According to Vare, the new Senate District 31 “brings our city together for the first time to vote for our representative in the Indiana State Senate.”  The district includes Fishers, Geist, parts of Noblesville and the Northeast Side of Indianapolis.

When an opening in most Indiana elective offices occurs, it is up to the precinct officials for the political party of the incumbent office-holder to appoint a replacement for the remainder of the term.  With Delaware Township Board member David Giffel now a member of the Fishers City Council, Mike Colby has sent a letter to the precinct officials announcing his candidacy for the opening.

Colby served as a member of the Fishers Town Council, but was unsuccessful in two runs for a city council seat.  He has lived in Fishers for 26 years and is a military veteran.

Mr. Colby previously served on the Delaware Township Board, being selected to fill a vacancy in a 2008 caucus and was elected to the board in 2010.

The Republican caucus to select David Giffel’s replacement on the Delaware Township Board is scheduled to be held Tuesday, November 16.

The placement of 5G towers in Fishers neighborhoods is becoming a contentious issue, with Mayor Scott Fadness saying at a recent meeting of the Board of Public Works and Safety that the entire issue could be decided by the courts.

The November 4th board meeting had a list of requests for Verizon 5G towers in Fishers neighborhoods.  The process was paused during the pandemic, but has resumed in recent months.

It came to a head when residents of the Glen Abbey area of the Windermere subdivision made it clear to the board they want no 5G towers of any kind in their neighborhood.

The three member board, consisting of the mayor and his two appointees, have been dealing with neighborhoods coming to an agreement with Verizon on the placement of these towers.  In some situations, Verizon says it cannot provide service coverage in a given area without the placement of a tower in a specific place, for technical reasons.

During the November 4th session, the board:

–Approved 3 tower locations in Harrison Lakes and tabled 1 proposed location, allowing time for the neighborhood to find a solution with Verizon.

–Approved all 3 locations in Princeton Park.

–Approved 2 locations in Weaver Creek and allowing time for talks on 1 placement.

–In Weaver Woods, 1 location was approved.

When the Glen Abbey in Windermere locations were up for a vote, several residents in that area were clear that the only acceptable solution was no towers.

Mayor Fadness provided some historical context about his lobbying efforts on this issue at the Statehouse starting 7 years ago when the 5G tower issue first surfaced.  According to Fadness, the telecommunications industry pushed hard for no local government involvement, but the cities and towns were able to gain provisions in state law allowing some limited local government involvement.

Verizon has warned the city in at least two public Board of Works meetings that Fishers may already be exceeding its legal authority in considering these tower placement requests.

Verizon is entering the Fishers market for 5G service because of the quality of this community as consumers of technology in a relatively affluent area, according to the mayor. Fadness wants to give the public a voice in these 5G tower decisions, but the city is required to follow state and federal law at the same time.

The board tabled all the proposed 5G towers in the Glen Abbey area, allowing attorneys for the city, the neighborhood and Verizon to come to some sort of understanding about how these requests should be considered by the Board of Works.  The mayor is asking the lawyers to “come to some determination as to what is considered and what is not considered in our (board of works) decisions.”

Fadness conceded this may end up with attorneys “arguing with each other” and not reaching any understanding.  If that is the result, judges may become involved.

“If that’s the case, then (the city) will have to make a decision from a public policy perspective,” Fadness said. “That could end up in a court of law.”

Fishers will be constructing a new City Hall in the near future, and I sincerely hope that the new building will include the art work that has adorned our current structure.  The Fishers Arts Council has had a long-standing program to bring new art to the seat of our city each month.

November brings a new watercolor exhibit to the halls of city government.  The collection will be on display Monday through Friday, 8:30am-4:30pm.  A reception, free and open to the public, will be held Friday, November 12, 6-8pm.  There will be live music by Nick Ivanovich, refreshments, and a cash bar.

A special performance is set for the Fishers Community Chorus at 7:30pm.  There will be roughly 40 watercolor works on display at City Hall through November 27.  Saturday, November 27, look for special gallery hours of 1p-6p as part of the Shot Fishers small business post-Thanksgiving promotion.  Art classes and demonstrations will be part of the November 27 event.

There will be approximately 40 watercolors on display during the exhibit which is up through November 26th. On Saturday, November 27th, we will hold special gallery hours from 1pm-6pm for our free Shop Fishers! event which includes art classes, artist vendors and demonstrations, along with one last chance to see this incredible WSI exhibit.

The Fishers Arts Council is joining forces with the Watercolor Society of Indiana in providing this exhibit.

Late in the day Monday, November 1, I knew something wasn’t right.  Severe pain in the abdominal area would not let up.  Early the next morning, my wife Jane drove me to the emergency room.

Once admitted to the hospital, the doctors thought I had a case of colitis.  But it wasn’t long before I was told I had a case of E. coli, a very rare type.  That led to a few days in the hospital of observation and treatment.

In case you are wondering, the hospital did report this, as required, to local government.

It was clear that in the early stages I had a very serious condition that created a toxin within my body that could attack key organs.  I consider myself fortunate that I am recovering.

The doctor released me from the hospital late Friday afternoon.  I have some follow-up blood tests and another physician visit in the next few days, but it appears I am on the mend.  I most definitely feel much better.

This happened almost exactly one year after my bout with COVID.  Remember, there was no vaccine one year ago.  My primary care physician told me a few months later she was very close to putting me in the hospital for COVID.

Bottom line is, I am a very lucky man.  I have had two serious health challenges in the past year and I am still here to write about it.

I did not have access to updating the blog when hospitalized, but I didn’t want rumors to start about why I hadn’t been posting here.  I did have my cell phone, so I went on social media just to let everyone know I was in the hospital and would return to blogging when able.

I was shocked at the number of people wishing me well, offering their kind thoughts and prayers.  To each and every one of you reaching out to me from those social media posts, thank you.

But the medical staff at St. Vincent Hospital in Fishers has earned my biggest thanks.  Somehow, the nurses caring for me discovered I write this blog.  They asked me not to write about my stay or use their names.

I will honor half of that and will not use any names.  Let’s just say I owe this recovery to the doctors, nurses and entire medical staff involved in my care.  They are the reason I am able to write this piece. “Thank you” does not begin to express the depth of my gratitude.  We are fortunate to have so many good people working in our health care system.

I do have a little time to isolate myself at home, but once I have the green light, I’ll be out and about once again.  It looks like a lot of news has been happening in Fishers the past week.  Allow me to start catching-up.

Thanks for reading.

As we enter the month of November, the holiday highlight of the month is Thanksgiving.  We all know about the following day, Black Friday, the retail industry’s normally biggest day of the year.  The following Saturday is gaining traction as a special commercial day – Small Business Saturday.

The City of Fishers is joining with local small businesses in a Shop Fishers Holiday Series Saturday, November 27 through December 31.

Find more details about the Shop Fishers Holiday Series at this link.

Here is a full listing of local businesses participating in the 2021 Shop Fishers Holiday Series:

Continue reading Shop Fishers Holiday Series for 2021 →

Continuing work on State Road 37, the Saturday Boo Bash and much more make up this week’s road road reportt.

Here is the latest, as provided by the City of Fishers:

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STATE ROAD 37 IMPROVEMENT PROJECT

STATE ROAD 37 AND 146TH STREET
All left-turn lanes are currently restricted on SR 37 and on 146th Street with traffic moved to the interior lanes. Thru traffic and right turns on SR 37 and 146th Street will remain open. Drivers are encouraged to seek alternate routes for all left turn access. View an alternate route map here.

STATE ROAD 37 AND 131ST STREET
131st Street at SR 37 is currently closed as work progresses on the interchange. SR 37 will remain open both north and southbound. View the detour map here.

The anticipated completion of the 131st Street work that will allow right in/right out movements for southbound SR 37 and 131st Street  is scheduled for on/after Wednesday, November 10.

Please drive with caution through this area. To learn more about the State Road 37 Improvement Project and sign up to receive text updates, visit 37Thrives.com.

Road Closures will be in effect around the Municipal Complex on Saturday, October 30 between 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. for the annual Boo Bash event. The west side of Municipal Drive, between Fishers Center Drive and the Flexware building, will be closed, as well as the portion of Municipal Drive around Central Green in front of the Switch and Depot.

The Depot Garage will be open for access off of Fishers Center Drive, and cars will exit onto Municipal Drive (the portion of the road between the garage exit and 116th Street will be open). The Switch garage access from Municipal Drive will be closed during this time, but access is open on North Street.

For road closure locations, please see the event map here.

116th Street in downtown Fishers has fully opened to four lanes of traffic after the completion of the Nickel Plate Trail tunnel. Upon completion of the Nickel Plate Trail, slated for Spring 2022, pedestrians will access the trail via the tunnel to provide safe passage beneath 116th Street.

Paving of the northern portion of the Nickel Plate Trail is currently taking place, beginning at 131st Street and moving north of 146th Street over the coming weeks. The project is anticipated to take approximately six weeks to complete, pending weather delays. Until paving is complete, this northern portion of the railbed remains closed and no trespassing is permitted. The northern portion is anticipated to be open for pedestrian use in November.

Beginning on or after Monday, September 20, lane closures will be in effect for 116th Street between River Road and Eller Road for the rehabilitation of Bridge No. 160: 116th Street over the West Fork White River. One lane of traffic in each direction will be maintained at all times on 116th Street throughout construction. Lane closures are expected to be lifted by Tuesday, November 9.

In addition, River Drive West will be closed at 116th Street for the first project phase beginning on or after Monday, September 20. Residents are requested to utilize the signalized intersection at 116th Street and River Drive East for the duration of the closure.

Debbie Driskell has been the Delaware Township Trustee for a long time.  The west side of Fishers is part of Delaware township.  She has also been involved in township trustee issues at the state level for a long time.  She currently serves as the Executive Director of of the Indiana Township Association.

IndyStar reporter Ko Lyn Cheang wrote a story posted on the Star Web site October 29 about a letter Ms. Driskell sent to Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb which was never answered.  She offered the trustees’ help in distributing federal rent assistance.

“We are in an emergency situation and at this time, the Townships are seeing a substantial increase in financial assistance requests,” Driskell wrote in the April 1, 2020, letter, according to the Star report. “Trustees are the only ones that are equipped and trained to fairly and quickly assist our constituents in a time of need.”

The story goes into more depth on the issue.  You can read the story at this link. (Note:  If you are not an IndyStar subscriber, you may be limited on the stories you can access)

Youth Mentoring Initiative (YMI) is joining forces with Crew Car Wash for a fund raising event Friday, October 29, through Sunday, October 31.  You can get the $20 Ultimate Car Wash, just by making a donation to YMI.

“We are looking forward to partnering with YMI here in Fishers,” said Sally Grant, executive vice president of Crew Carwash. “We are so proud to continue to grow in central Indiana and are honored to play a role in making an impact on the youth and families in Hamilton County Schools.”

The fund raising event is tied to Crew’s  official grand opening of the facility at 11650 Exit 5 Pkwy, next to Topgolf.

“We are thrilled that Crew Carwash has selected YMI for their charity-of-choice for their first Fishers location,” said YMI executive director Brittany Rayburn. “The donations stemming from this event will directly support connecting students to a caring mentor. We’re grateful for this opportunity while celebrating this milestone with the Crew team.”

Donations at the fundraiser October 29-31 can be made by credit card or cash.  100% of the proceeds to to YMI.

A precinct is the most local form of politics.  Precincts are used for voting.  Generally, both major parties have precinct committeemen and committeewomen.

With the census data finally in hand, it is time to redraw precinct lines in Hamilton County.

“We typically do all of this in June or July,” says Hamilton County Clerk Kathy Williams in a county news release. “But with the delay in the census, approval of new house, senate and congressional districts was delayed. Our office has been working tirelessly to get these turned around in a timely fashion.”

The Hamilton County Commissioners made precinct changes official on October 25th.

According to Williams, nearly every precinct in Hamilton County will change. That includes size, location, annexation or name.  Hamilton County voters will get a notification of their precinct changes during the month of December.

Indiana is required by state and federal law to redraw Indiana’s Statehouse and congressional maps following the nationwide census every 10 years. The Indiana General Assembly approved the new congressional and state legislative district lines on October 1st. Governor Eric Holcomb signed them into law three days later.

State law dictates that each precinct must have at least 600 eligible voters and no more than 2,000. A precinct is not allowed to cross a congressional or state legislative district line.

State Senate and House of Representatives district lines must be in place for candidates to meet residence requirements by November 8, 2021. Article 4 Section 7 of the Indiana Constitution requires candidates to be inhabitants of the district for one year before the November 2022 General Election.

Hamilton County Commissioners are required by state law to review and redraw, if necessary, commissioner and county council districts. If needed, changes must be filed with the county clerk no later than Friday, December 31, 2021. City and town councils are required by state law to review and redraw, if necessary, their election districts no later than November 8, 2022. And school boards have until December 31, 2021 to review their school board districts that vote by district.