The nature of Fishers seems to change a bit during two weeks of the year – when Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) Schools are on spring of fall break.  We are right in the middle of fall break week now and you can feel the difference.

As someone that tries to keep up with local government happenings, note that there are virtually no government meetings of any consequence this week.  The Fishers City Council moved-up its monthly session by one week to allow council members to travel with their families this week, if they so choose.

It is normally a slow news week when there is a local school break.

But one item has been reported by a couple of Indianapolis news outlets that is not exactly Fishers, but it could impact people living here.  Both the Indianapolis Business Journal and Fox59 have reported that the local Alcoholic Beverage Commission has issued a license to Costco for a store to bel located just north of 146th Street along State Road 37 (148th Street and N. Point Blvd) just north of Fishers in Noblesville.

B.J.’s Warehouse has already opened in the Hamilton Town Center area of Noblesville (13210 Tegler Drive).

So, those of us in Fishers frequenting the Costco in Castleton may have another Costco option soon.

Whether you are reading this while traveling away from Fishers or you are just enjoying fall break at home, please enjoy.  I say that particularly to the hard-working teaching staff at HSE Schools, very deserving of a fall break.

The District 31 Indiana State Senate race appears to be a competitive one, with Democrat Jocelyn Vare and Republican incumbent Kyle Walker .  I receive messages from both campaigns on a regular basis.  It appears Senator Walker has garnered the most campaign cash, just based on watching television lately and seeing his ads.

Both candidates have been campaigning hard throughout the district, which encompasses all of Fishers and a substantial part of Lawrence.

Walker has listed a number of endorsements, the latest from the National Federation of Independent Business and the Indy Chamber’s Business Advocacy Committee.

Vare, an at-large member of the Fishers City Council, has recently revealed she was the victim of domestic violence about 12 years ago.  In a television interview on Fox59, she explained how the local organization Prevail helped her and her two children escape from an abusive situation.

Many local pundits following politics in the General Assembly are following this election campaign.  It is generally thought to be a competitive district.

As a reminder, early voting has started in Hamilton County.  For more details, use this link.

Fishers Police made an arrest Monday in connection with an October 11th armed robbery at the Star Financial Bank on 96th Street.

Authorities say Quinn Kellam, 20, from Lawrence, was taken into custody without incident and transported to the Hamilton County Jail.  Kellam faces felony counts of armed robbery, criminal confinement, intimidation and theft.

Local police say the arrest came after an extensive investigation was conducted leading to the identification, location and apprehension of the suspect.  Fishers Police credit help in the investigation and subsequent arrest from the FBI Violent Crimes Task Force, IMPD Covert Robbery Unit and the IMPD SWAT Team.

Fishers detectives say they were able to find evidence linking Kellam to additional unsolved business burglaries in Marion County.

What do the following Indiana cities have in common – Indianapolis, Evansville, Spencer, Bloomington, Lafayette, Mooresville, Martinsville, Muncie, Richmond, South Bend and Bedford?

All those Hoosier cities have newspapers owned by the largest chain in the nation, Gannett.  Why is this fact important now?

Because, after a wave of recent job cuts, Gannett is once again lowering the boom on its own employees.

Just last week, the top brass at Gannett gave its own workers some very bad news.  Each employee must take one week of unpaid leave in December and the corporation is looking for volunteers to take buyouts and leave the company.  That’s just the start.

On October 24th, the 401(k) retirement program will no longer match employee contributions to the plan.   This was announced 2 months following layoffs of 400 employees and a decision not to fill 400 open positions.

My understanding is the only reason the Indianapolis Star did not have any layoffs 2 months ago was due to the number of unfilled jobs.  Although no one at the Star lost a job, the remaining journalists will be covering more news with fewer people.

It is clear the business of journalism is not doing well, at least not at Gannett.  According to the Poynter Institute, a well-regarded nonprofit covering American journalism, Gannett had a $54 million loss in the second quarter of this year.

Gannett became much larger after a merger with Gatehouse newspapers but it saddled the company with $1 billion in debt.

From everything I am reading, Gannett is doing everything possible to avoid more layoffs.  But with the numbers publicly known, this will be a large task.

The Indianapolis Star is the state’s largest newspaper and news organizations throughout the state look to that staff for leadership in Hoosier journalism.  With the number of journalists there going down over a number of years, that has an impact on how news is covered throughout the state.

I know many of the journalists working at the Star and there is no doubt in my mind that each and every one of them is dedicated to the profession of journalism.  The Star continues to produce amazing reporting.  I just wonder how long that can continue with a reduced staff at a time when there is so much news to cover.

I saw a Twitter post recently from a reporter I respect, and was dismayed at the message.  That reporter can no longer recommend a career in journalism to students in high school and college today.  The business of news is not good and there is no prospect at the moment to find a business model that works better.

There is something you can do to help get journalism back on its feet – subscribe to your local media.  Online subscriptions are not that expensive.

In the meantime, my hearts go out to the reporters and editors that continue to pursue the news as best they can against the financial headwinds of today.

Thanks for reading this.  I may just be a small local volunteer blog, but I try to make this journalism as best as one person can.

Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) Schools released a statement Friday afternoon citing improvements planned after Fishers City Judge, and local attorney, Dan Henke submitted a report on a classroom incident, but local group Fishers One describes the statement as “vague.”

Fishers One Founder Diane Eaton says members of her organization “are simply appalled by the weak response of the HSE administration.  The lack of action items, accountability, discipline, sensitivity and transparency continues to demonstrate a lack of leadership and a school culture that fosters disrespect and contempt for law enforcement.”

The Friday HSE statement did not provide details of what Judge Henke included in the report that gave the results of his investigation into the classroom incident.  The school district said in the statement –  “The report has a significant amount of student information. The district does not have consent to release the report with this information.”

Instead, school officials laid out improvements it plans to implement as a result of Judge Henke’s report.

The classroom incident deals with Elwood Police Officer Noah Shahnavaz, who died in the line of duty.  Officer Shahnavaz’ brother was in a classroom at an HSE school and saw a “Defund The Police?” poster.  Judge Henke’s investigation was to determine what happened in that classroom incident.

Fishers One argues that HSE Schools has demonstrated a “lack of transparency.”  The organization is backing four candidates for HSE School Board – Tiffany Pascoe, Dr. Juanita Albright, Dawn Lang and Ben Orr.

If the City Council approves in November, sometime in 2023 you will begin to see placards in Fishers restaurants with a grade attached to their latest inspection by the Health Department

The Fishers City Council gave first reading October 10 to the plan that has already been presented to the city’s Board of Health and explained at a recent City Council work session.  The Council is expected to take a final vote on the proposal in November  The Fishers Health Department has held two Webinars explaining the plans to restaurant owners and managers.

If the City Council provides its final stamp of approval on the plans, the Health Department will begin to utilize the state inspection grading system for restaurant inspections, convert that to numbers and convert the numbers to a letter grade – A, B or C. An eatery with a grade of less than a C (or 60 points) would be temporarily closed and would re-open after all priority violations have been corrected and imminent health hazards eliminated.

How often an establishment is inspected depends on the grade.  For example, a restaurant earning an A grade  would likely be inspected again in about 12 months.  Those with a B grade should expect 1 or 2 more inspections in the same year.  A C grade would result in 3-4 inspections per year.

Fishers Public Health Director Monica Heltz says the Health Department will begin gearing up for the inspection program, if enacted by the City Council, in November, in 2023.

So it is possible you will begin to see those placards at Fishers restaurants with the grade from their Health Department inspection in 2023.

For more details on this program, use this link.

My series of podcasts featuring Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) School Board candidates continues.  In this podcast, Fishers High School student Casey Alexander joins me in questioning incumbent board member Julie Chambers, who is seeking another term on th board.

Fishers City Judge Dan Henke has submitted his report on a class incident at an HSE school and the school district says it will make improvements as a result, but is not disclosing details of Judge Henke’s findings, due to “a significant amount of student information.”

According to a statement issued Friday afternoon, the school district says it does not have the proper consent to release the report with this information.

Although Judge Henke’s findings were not released, the HSE District says it plans to use the report “to create and build upon current procedures for the  re-entry of students following a traumatic event.”

Below is the summary provided by school officials on improvements to be implemented:

• School administration, counselor and/or school social worker will contact the
affected student and family to offer a re-entry meeting to determine a plan for ongoing supports and what information they are comfortable with sharing to create
safeguards.

• Notify appropriate teachers and staff to discuss instructional and social emotional
supports needed, including changes to the classroom environment and/or student’s
schedule.

• School administration will provide oversight and regular check-ins with affected
student and applicable staff to monitor student’s transition to school and report any
possible stressors.

Judge Henke was asked to investigate an incident involving a “Defund the Police?” poster in a high school classroom.  According to school officials, the brother of Officer Noah Shahnavaz saw the poster in the class and that resulted in an apology from the school board, assuring the community the school district does not believe in defunding the police and the poster was a student project from the previous year.

Officer Noah Shahnavaz, a Fishers resident, died in the line of duty as part of the Elwood Police Department.

“HSE is committed to doing everything possible to ensure all students feel safe, accepted and supported while in school, and supporting teachers in this endeavor,” the HSE Schools statement says. “Additionally, HSE has already begun organizing a regularly scheduled meeting with local law enforcement and public safety officials to improve communications and cultivate the trust of the community.”

The HSE School District is establishing a part of its Web site to this commitment of making improvements, which can be found at this link.

STATE ROAD 37 AND 135TH STREET
135th Street at State Road 37 is open.  Access onto and off of SR37 at 135th Street is right-in/right-out only.   


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.

116TH STREET
The outside westbound lane on 116th Street at the Sand Creek bridge will be closed on Wednesday, October 19th, from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm to allow crews to do curb repair. 

116TH STREET
During the week of October 17th, eastbound lanes of 116th Street between Regency Drive and Municipal Drive will be restricted down to one lane between the hours of 7:00 am and 3:00 pm.  The restrictions will switch during the week as work on the road repair progresses.  Fishers Center Drive, on the south side of 116th Street will be closed completely to allow for staging of equipment and material.  Alternate routes to the businesses on the south side of 116th Street will be from Moore Street and Fishers Pointe Blvd. onto South Street.  See map here for details on closure.   

ADA ramp and curb reconstruction is currently taking place in Grey Eagle as part of the 2022 Resurfacing Project. Homeowners will be notified via door hangers prior to any curb reconstruction near their home. After ADA ramp and curb reconstruction is completed, those areas will be restored with topsoil and seed. It is the responsibility of the homeowner to water the seed for the seed to germinate. Prior to road resurfacing, residents will be notified via street signage for street parking restrictions.

At Monday’s City Council session, new district boundaries for council members were approved.  Six council seats are elected within their districts, three seats are at-large and elected by the entire city electorate.

The Gray Eagle neighborhood had been divided between two council districts and changes were made to include the entire subdivision under one council district at the urging of residents there.

Councilor Jocelyn Vare expressed concerns that another neighborhood would be divided under the new map and she could not see because, in her view, the map did not drill down into enough detail to see lines at the street level.

Council President Todd Zimmerman said, in his view, the map is good.

“We have a bipartisan council here, nobody was drawn out their…district, and we accommodated everything possible,” Zimmerman said.