A consulting firm, Favorite Part of My Day, has been selected as the Diversity and Inclusion consultant for the  City of Fishers.  The city has previously hired the firm for the Fishers Police Department.

Favorite Part of My Day will be paid $115,000 for the duration of the one-year contract.

According to an attachment to the Fishers Board of Works and Public Safety agenda, the contractor will be responsible for:

– Establishing and publicizing a city committee.

– Business engagement – ensuring equitable opportunities for all residents of the City of Fishers & inclusive work environments

– Religious institution engagement – implementing skills as equity partners

– Programming for resident graduates of Interrupting Racism, giving them implementation skills of the information learned

– Equitable opportunities for residents to hold leadership positions in City of Fishers (committees, etc.)

The consulting firm will report directly to Mayor Scott Fadness.  This program is the next step after the city provided Interrupting Racism training to any Fishers resident wishing to take it, free of charge.

The city had paid half the salary for the diversity and inclusion officer for HSE Schools, but Fishers decided to take those funds and provide the programs to be delivered by the consultant, when the amount of work required was too much for the HSE Schools employee.

(Editor’s Note:  Previous versions of this story cite $155,000 as the amount of the contract.  The story has been changed to the correct amount of the contract, $115,000)

The City of Fishers will pay local neighborhoods $66,659 in Vibrant Neighborhoods Matching Grant money recommended by a committee to spruce up areas at least ten years old.  City officials told the Board of Works and Public Safety a requirement that a neighborhood may only apply for a grant one-out-of-three years resulted in some applications being denied.  As part of the action taken Tuesday, the board approved language removing the one-out-of-three year requirement.  You can find the full list of the applications approved and denied at this link.  Neighborhoods receiving the money will be responsible for compliance with all laws that apply.

In another action, the board voted to provide several fireworks displays this summer with a contract not to exceed $135,000 for Madbomber Fireworks.  Fireworks events include:

–A June 15 city celebration for high school graduating seniors

–Spark Fishers

–Geist Blast on the Bridge

For the first time, I recorded a Zoom podcast on video.  This one was with the new leaders of the Hamilton County Democratic Party.  The video version of that podcast is below.

When previous Hamilton County Party Chair Joe Weingarten chose not to run for another term, there was a contested election for officers.  A slate of candidates led by Dayna Colbert won over the votes of precinct official and were all elected.

Here is my podcast with Chair Dayna Colbert and Vice Chair Ronnie Saunders.

The school situation in the area is going to be a bit more complicated in the future, based on a presentation by Noblesville Mayor Chris Jensen before the Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) School Board Tuesday Morning.  If the mayor’s projections are correct, both the City of Noblesville and HSE Schools will see dramatic growth in Wayne Township during the next 5-10 years.

For as far back as I can remember, the local school district situation was fairly clear.  For the most part, the Noblesville School District handled students in the City of Noblesville and HSE Schools took in all of Fishers, unincorporated parts of Fall Creek and Delaware Township, as well as all of the mostly-rural Wayne Township.

Jensen made it clear his city plans to expand east into Wayne Township with both residential and commercial development.  The mayor told HSE School officials he expects Noblesville to double in size in the coming 5-10 years and most of that growth will be into Wayne Township.  That projection would mean HSE Schools would see dramatic growth in the student population.

Keep in mind that the HSE School Corporation is already the 4th-largest school system in the state, based on student population, with a count of roughly 21,500.  The largest district in Indiana is Fort Wayne (29,404), followed by Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) (26,410) and Evansville Vanderburgh Schools (22,601).  If Noblesville  expands as projected into Wayne Township, HSE Schools would rise on that list.

This would create a much larger school system than HSE is now and would bring burdens as well as opportunities.  More buildings would be required for more students but the tax base would also increase with all the projected growth.

After posting my original story on Mayor Jensen’s appearance before the board Tuesday, plenty of comments followed about HSE giving up any territory annexed by Noblesville into Wayne Township.  I have covered the HSE School Board for more than nine years and school officials have said consistently that there is no intention of giving up Wayne Township as part of HSE Schools.

So, with growth comes change. At HSE Schools, that change will likely come with more growth in the next decade, this time in Wayne Township & Noblesville rather than Fishers.  The new superintendent of schools yet to be hired by the HSE Board will be facing all that change.

Some people think this change is not a good idea, others say it will be good for all of us.  Only time will tell.  But I will be watching and reporting on whatever happens.

Fishers fire officials say an aroma of fuel was reported in the 9100 block of E. 146th Street Saturday afternoon, in the Weaver Woods neighborhood near Allisonville Road, and a fuel spill was found in a nearby construction company.

According to the Fishers Fire Department, there is no immediate danger to the public in the area of the four ponds affected but there is a noticeable odor.  It is undetermined how many gallons of diesel are involved.

Residents may see and hear equipment in the area from the spill clean up company.

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management is on the scene and assisting with mitigating the incident.

Hamilton Southeastern School Superintendent Allen Bourff covered a number of topics in a video message released Friday, including his recommendation on junior high school students moving to in-person classes.

“I will be making a recommendation to the school board…to shift Junior Highs to an in-person, 4-day week, beginning Monday, April 12,” said Bourff in the video message.  The final decision rests with the seven-member board of trustees, which is set to meet at 7pm Wednesday night.

Bourff points to a survey conducted with families of junior high school students, showing 86% support for in-person instruction, even if school officials are not always able to adhere to CDC guidelines.  With the new guidance of 3-foot social distancing, Bourff says “even that will be difficult in some circumstances.”

73% of the respondents favor 4-days-a-week in class over the hybrid system.

Of those families with in-person students, 38% did not respond to the survey.  64% of families with virtual students failed to respond.

“I want you to be aware that without a response, we will assign in-person students to an in-person schedule and virtual students will remain virtual until the end of the semester,” the superintendent said.

Hundreds of HSE Schools staff members are in the process of receiving COVID vaccinations, with the help of the Fishers Health Department.  Bourff says this “will bring a level of safety to our staff that they haven’t had since the pandemic began.”

The number of student COVID positive cases has declined over the last couple of months.  As of Friday morning, HSE Schools had 17 possible cases for the week. Bourff says the weekly positive student count in January was consistently in the 70s.  The Fishers Health Department community COVID  rating has recently been lowered from the highest, Level 4, down to Level 3, with numbers continuing to move downward.

In another matter covered in the video message, there will be a change in notifying families of individual school building closures.  Administrators will now use the telephone messaging system, along with other communication modes, to notify parents and students of a single building closure, as happened in recent days at Fishers Junior High School.  Bourff encourages families to keep information up-to-date on the Skyward system.

Finally, Dr. Bourff expressed the “shock and sorrow of the HSE family” at the death of Fishers High School Junior Raymond Jumper.  He collapsed while playing basketball at the Fishers YMCA and later died.

You can view the entire video at this link.

The summer festival of Fishers has a long history.  The Fishers Freedom Festival began in 1989 as first a one-day, then in the second year a two-day weekend event before the 4th of July.  Once the city stopped funding the nonprofit group that ran the Freedom Festival, it was replaced by the city-run Spark Fishers Festival (the marketing of the event shows it as Spark!Fishers).

Just a few weeks ago, the city said the Spark Festival would move to the week before Labor Day, likely to ensure COVID would be under better control.  Now, with vaccinations ramping up, Fishers has announced plans to have the Spark Fishers Festival at its normal time on the calendar and expand the celebration to a week-long event.

Last year’s Spark Fishers Festival went the way of most such events in 2020, cancelled due to the pandemic.  So the announcement that the city is planning the festival in 2021 is good news.

For more details, see the information below, as provided by the City of Fishers:

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The annual Spark!Fishers festival, ignited by First Internet Bank, will return to Fishers’ Nickel Plate Cultural District this summer. Kicking off on Tuesday, June 22 and running through Saturday, June 26, the weeklong festival will offer different ways for the community to celebrate each day. This year’s theme, Hometown Heroes, will honor the Fishers residents who have served our country and our community, from the U.S. Armed Forces to the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We’re excited to host these popular summer traditions to bring our community back together after a difficult year,” said Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness. “Our team is coming together to make sure we’re providing a COVID-safe environment while giving our residents a little bit of normalcy. Spark!Fishers is truly a celebration of our community and there’s nothing else I’d rather see than everyone back together again.”

Last year’s festival was cancelled due to COVID-19, and as vaccination adoption increases and cases decline in Fishers, Fishers Parks plans a full slate of summer events such as the Fishers Farmers’ Market, Summer Concert Series, and Spark!Fishers with safety as top of mind.

The patriotic celebration will be packed full of family-favorites and Independence Day traditions, while showcasing what it means to be uniquely Fishers.

“First Internet Bank was happy to learn the Spark!Fishers celebration was returning this year,” said David Becker, President and CEO of First Internet Bank. “As we move closer to the completion of our new headquarters in the Nickel Plate District of Fishers, this is a special opportunity that allows us to celebrate with our neighbors and support the community.”

The 2021 lineup includes:

Tuesday, June 22 / 7-9 p.m.
Tuesday Night Concert at the Nickel Plate District Amphitheater (band yet to be announced)

Wednesday, June 23 / 7 p.m.
5K Walk/Run around downtown Fishers, hosted by the Geist Half Marathon & Fishers YMCA
Registration opens April 1.

Thursday, June 24 / 6-9 p.m.
Spark!Fishers Car & Art Show around the Municipal Complex

Friday, June 25 / 8-10 p.m.
Friday Night Concert at the Nickel Plate District Amphitheater (band yet to be announced)

Saturday, June 26 / 3-10 p.m.
Spark!Fishers Street Fair around the Municipal Complex, with a community parade at 6 p.m. and fireworks at dusk

Applications are now open for festival vendors, entertainers, and parade participants at sparkfishers.com. Applications are due May 1.

Visit sparkfishers.com and follow @SparkFishers on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for festival news and updates.

The City of Fishers plans a special event honoring veterans of the Vietnam War March 29th.  The crowd is limited to 200 if held at the outdoor Amphitheater and will be reduced further if foreced indoors by the weather.

Below are the details, as provided by the City of Fishers:

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It is time to look at all the Oscar nominees this year in all the major categories, including acting, directing and the big prize, Best Picture.  Coronavirus has had its impact on the film business, just as it has for most of American life.

Adam Aasen, Alec Toombs and Larry Lannan look at the nominees in all the major categories.  We talk about who is in, and who was left out, in this episode of the Grade A Movies Podcast.