It’s Friday, it’s the summer season, which means the City of Fishes has a new update on road construction.

The report, as provided by the City of Fishers, is below:

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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.  

On Tuesday, July 19 and Wednesday, July 20 there will be single lane restrictions on SR 37 to put traffic onto the newly constructed SR 37 pavement. Access to 146th Street will still remain the same with no left turns. 

STATE ROAD 37 AND 131ST/135TH STREET
135th Street, east of SR 37, is currently closed as work progresses on the project. This closure will be in place until early July. SR 37 will remain open both northbound and southbound and allow right in/right out access at 131st Street. View the detour map here.

On Wednesday, July 20 and Thursday, July 21 between 2 a.m. and 7 a.m. there will be single lane restrictions on SR 37 to mill and resurface the median lane between 126th Street and 131st Street. 

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.

The inside lane of the Technology Drive is currently closed to traffic to allow for construction of new pavement in the inside lane.  One-way traffic will be in place in the outside lane as shown here.  Access to all businesses will be maintained during the construction.

The intersection at Southeastern Pky. & Cyntheanne Road is currently closed for roundabout construction and is anticipated to reopen by the end of July. View the detour map here.  Schoolhouse 7 Café will remain open for business during construction. View how to access their business here. 

On Monday, July 18, there will be lane restrictions on Commercial Drive, just north of 116th Street, between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m. for utility work. 

During the week of July 18, road resurfacing work will be taking place on Cumberland Road between 126th Street and 131st Street. Flaggers will be in place. 

Olio Road between Geist Reservoir and Haven Cove Lane, the first road south of the Geist Reservoir Bridge, may have daily lane restrictions for the reconfiguration and installation of access to Geist Waterfront Park and the Marina. These lane restrictions will occur between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday thru Friday. The estimated completion date is August 1, 2022.  

The outside eastbound lane of 116th Street, just after the Nickel Plate Trail bridge, will be restricted between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. through Friday, July 22 for work on the FIB building. Arrow boards will be in place.

Comcast will have daily lane restrictions in place on westbound 116th Street between Cameron Drive and Allisonville Road and northbound Allisonville Road between 116th Street to the Kroger signal for overhead work. Restrictions will be in place between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.

ADA ramp and curb reconstruction has started taking place in Delaware Point and Overlook at Beaver Ridge 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.

The Fishers Health Department released the data in the graphic above Friday, showing the city COVID community level remains low, but hospitalizations are going up locally.

In an update for the City Council’s July 18 meeting, Fishers health officials say reported cases are increasing, likely driven by new Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5.  Although the city’s COVID level is low, it “may move into Medium category with the increase in cases and admissions. Cases are likely significantly underreported in part due to the availability of at-home tests. We are relying on community members to get vaccinated and boosted, test, isolate and quarantine as appropriate.”

FHD cites the city’s wastewater surveillance as indicating an increasing rate of COVID-19 cases locally.  In the past, if this data shows an increase, rates of COVID tend to increase.

Here is the latest Health Department data on vaccines & testing:

• Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccines for children six months to five years of age were
approved on June 21. 582 vaccines have been administered to this group by FHD as of 7/14/22.

• Current weekly vaccine and testing demand 300 and 250, respectively. Testing is by appointment.

• Estimated vaccination uptake for residents six months and older: 85.1% first dose and 80.5%
fully vaccinated.

The department is offering vaccinations and testing.  For more details, use this link.

Janet Pritchett is set to run for a second term on the Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) School Board.  She made the announcement Thursday.

She will run in District 2, which encompasses the district’s southwest area.

Ms. Pritchett has 3 children in the HSE Schools and lists as accomplishments being a PTA member and a Rotarian.   She says she is “dedicated to improving student experiences as well as parental access.”  Fishers has been her home for the past 18 years.

“An emphasis on early childhood education and hands-on learning opportunities will ensure that each child who passes through the Hamilton Southeastern school district will have the means and motivation to become the leaders of tomorrow,” Pritchett says in the statement announcing her candidacy.

She is anticipating a “competitive race” in the upcoming school board election.

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Political Action Committees (PACs) are becoming involved in the upcoming Hamilton Southeastern School Board election this fall.  HSEqual has already announced the formation of a PAC.

This week, another group, Friends of Fishers, announced its first fund raising event.

PAC President Michael Wilson listed the following candidates as having the support of Friends of Fishers:

District 1 – Tiffanie Pascoe

District 2 – Dr. Juanita Albright

District 3 – Dawn Lang

District 4 – Ben Orr

In this round of the local school board balloting, there are four districts, each candidate runs within the district lines.  Only voters living in that district vote on that district’s school board race.

The four listed above have announced their intention to run.  Official filing with the Hamilton County Election Office starts July 27th and ends at noon August 27th.

In an e-mail message to LarryInFishers, Wilson says the PAC supports candidates “committed to academic success.”  He goes on to say the PAC supports board members “who identify the steady decline in academic performance within the district as alarming and who are committed to lead the district back to one that prioritizes academic performance and post-graduation readiness of all students.”  According to Wilson, the PAC favors  “enforcing policies that require transparency and access as part of a partnership.”

Other Friends of Fishers PAC officers are Mark Hamelmann, Treasurer, and Tiffany Ditlevson, Secretary.

The first fund raising event for this PAC is set for August 10th at the Balmoral House, 5:00-7:30pm.  The reception is for contributors.  The keynote speaker is scheduled to be Greg Garrison, Republican candidate for Hamilton County Prosecutor.

The Lacrosse team at Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) High School has a lot to brag about.  The squad won back-to-back state championships and has been a championship contender for many years.

Coach Scott Beesly brought a contingent from his most recent championship team with him to the Wednesday night school board meeting.  He provided a history of the team for board members.  You can view his PowerPoint presentation to the board at this link.

Beesley explained that the team is self-funded, with players paying fees and the organization conducting fund raisers.  The IHSAA does not recognize Lacrosse.

The City of Fishers is embarking on two major construction projects and the increased cost of doing business appears to be having an impact on those plans.

Council President and Finance Committee Member Todd Zimmerman asked for an update on how inflation is impacting plans for the Arts & Municipal Complex, replacing City Hall.

Deputy Mayor Elliott Hultgren responded that about one-third of the construction bidding, the steel for the structure, is completed and within budget.     The next roughly one-third of the construction bids should be due by the end of July.  The remaining bids are due August 15th.

“Delv and Meyer Najem (project contractors) have been joined at the hip as far as every single design detail,” Hultgren told the committee.  “They are budgeting as best they can.  They feel pretty confident.”

Some decisions may need to be made about the details of the building’s design as the project moves forward, according to the deputy mayor.

Zimmerman expressed concerns he is seeing in the private sector, situations where contractors are needing change orders once construction starts as high as 30% due to their suppliers increasing prices.

When Finance Committee Member, Councilor Jocelyn Vare, asked Zimmerman about plans for a new city recreation center, costs are becoming an issue.  Jake Reardon McSoley’s addition to the city staff has helped due to his experience running the local YMCA, according to both Zimmerman & Hultgren. .

“We want to make sure the design is right before we present (the recreation center) to the council,” said Zimmerman.

Hultgren said there has been an issue with aligning what the public wants with the recreation center budget even before inflation took off in recent months.

Committee Chair John Weingardt asked how the city is handling fuel costs, and Hultgren reviewed the new software and hardware programs to city is utilizing to monitor energy use by all departments with an eye on cutting costs where it makes sense.

On the 2023 budget, City Controller Lisa Bradford detailed the process for next year’s spending plan. The state will provide numbers on how much Fishers should expect from the local income tax (LIT).  She will ask the Finance Committee to begin meeting sometime between August 22-26 to begin discussing the 2023 budget.  A session with city department heads is to be scheduled between September 7-9, with another on capital spending September 14. The full City Council will be receiving the budget proposal September 19 with a public hearing, and final Council vote is projected to be October 10th.

Vare expressed concern at the media reports that 141st Street interchange at State Road 37 had bids so high they are expected to be rejected, because it appears the media had the information before council members and the Finance Committee. Chairman Weingardt responded that this will be a delay in constructing that interchange, but the project will be done.  He cited the large number of highway projects in the general area as one reason the bids came in much higher than projected.

Weingardt expressed his concern about how dangerous the intersection is now at 141st Street and SR 37.  He wants improvements at that intersection, but there are financial and safety concerns.

Hultgren said Fishers Engineering Director Jason Taylor will attend the next Finance Committee meeting to further update members on the state of State Road 37 construction.

Vare recommended that Mayor Scott Fadness begin attending Finance Committee meetings, citing the State Road 37 & 141st Street situation.  Wiengardt responded with his view of having the mayor come to each Finance Committee session as “ridiculous.”  He says having the deputy mayor and controller at the Finance meetings should be enough for most meetings outside of the budget season.

Shop Fishers is back this summer with special deals and prices.  Shop Fishers 2022 starts July 16 and extends over one week.

With more on this event, Stephanie Perry joins the podcast.

When students want to report something that concerns them, they have been using the “HSE Report It” system, but that system is about to be updated.  The new system is “Stopit.”

Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) Schools Chief Operations Officer Jimmie Lake and Director of School Safety Mike Johnson told the school board Wednesday night the new system will be live monitored 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, which the previous system could not do.

The HSE Reports system will look the same on the front end, but Johnson said the “backend” of the system will be changing.

You can view the PowerPoint about “Stopit” at this link.

In other news from the school board meeting Wednesday:

–The board discussed several policy language changes on first reading, and approved previously discussed policies, with one amendment.  Board Member Suzanne Thomas wanted to reinsert language that encouraged outside stakeholders (students, parents, board members to name a few) to participate in job interviews when hiring top administrators.  The board voted unanimously to reinsert that language.

–Executive Director of Exceptional Learners Amy Selby made a presentation to the board all about the Special Education (Exceptional Learners) program in the district.  Selby said her department does have 16 opening as of now, but has applicants on file and is interviewing candidates.  You can see her PowerPoint presentation to the board at this link.   

–The board approved LED lighting for the HSE High School baseball and softball facilities.

–Changes in the fee schedule were approved by the board, including:

• HHS-Increase for Spanish I due to textbook adoption & decrease in consumables
• HHS-Increase for French V consumables due to increased pricing
• FJH & RJH-increase in Spanish consumables due to additional resources
• Jr Highs-Increase for Spanish due to textbook adoption

–The board is adding a regular meeting July 27th to handle start of school issues and a work session July 19th to discuss next steps on the renewal of the district’s operating referendum.  The July 27th meeting will be live-streamed and recorded on video, but the work session will not be available on video.  The July 19 work session is open to the public to attend in person.

–A new event for HSE Schools is set for July 30th.  The “Before the Bell” celebration marks the upcoming start to a new school year.  It will be held at the Nickel Plate Amphitheater.  More details are coming later.

Local school districts received their ILEARN testing scores from the Indiana Department of Education Wednesday, and Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) Superintendent Yvonne Stokes told the local school board the results reveal the local schools “are heading in the right direction.”

Dr. Stokes cited a 5% increase in the scores for Language Arts and Math.

The tests included students in grades 3-8 and biology students at the high school level.

The Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) School District is the fourth-largest in the state, so the Director of Nutrition and Food Service oversees a big operation, consisting of 200 employees in 22 school buildings.

The HSE School Board approved the hiring of Karen Ogden to assume that important position.  She replaces Andria Ray in that job.

Ms Ogden previously worked for a private food service operator, serving as the onsite general manager at Ivy Tech Community College and Westfield Washington Schools. While at WWS, Ogden was tasked with menu compliance with all federal, state and local regulations. She also implemented new school meal programs.

“Karen Ogden has a wealth of knowledge, and we believe she will be an asset in continuing to maintain our Food Service Department, said Superintendent Dr. Yvonne Stokes in a school district news reelease. “Our schools are responsible for serving more than 3 million meals a year.”

Ogden holds a BS in food and nutrition from Purdue University. Her first official day with HSE was Monday, July 11.

HSE Food Services is hiring for the 2022-23 school year.