Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) School Board members will introduce the new superintendent of schools at a special meeting set for Thursday, April 22, at 6:30pm.  Board members are also set to vote final approval for the new superintendent’s contract.  A public hearing on that contract is scheduled at this Wednesday’s regular board meeting.

Current Superintendent Allen Bourff has announced his intention to retire at the end of June this year.  The board has been using an outside firm and appears to have selected the new person to run the HSE Schools, 4th largest in the state based on student enrollment.

Samantha DeLong is one of only two Democrats serving on the Fishers City Council, but her husband’s new job will take her family out of state, meaning DeLong will resign her council seat effective April 30.

As a result, new Hamilton County Democratic Chair Dayna Colbert will be convening a caucus of party precinct officials to elect Ms. DeLong’s successor on the city council.  Colbert tells LarryInFishers there are already people interested in running for Delong’s council seat.  Potential candidates have until April 22 at 3pm to file their paperwork.

“Councilor DeLong is someone who wanted to get involved in politics to make her community even better,” Colbert said. “During her campaign, she put in the hard work of talking to her constituents, and has served admirably on the city council. We wish her the best, and look forward to welcoming our next City Councilor.”

DeLong says she is not looking forward to leaving the council. “It’s been a great pleasure working with the council and for the North Central District,” Delong told LarryInFishers.  “I am very sad to be leaving,”

Being a council member was complicated during her tenure with the COVID pandemic, not allowing her the opportunity to interact personally with constituents.  One thing she would like to see in the future is diversity among the city council members.  “I think we need more diversity on the council” said Delong.  “I hope whoever fills my seat can bring that.”

“I look forward to collaborating with the new Democratic member of the Fishers City Council to make government more transparent and accessible for residents, create policies that improve diversity, equity and inclusion, and represent Fishers citizen’s interests above all,” said the other Democrat on the council, Jocelyn Vare. “I join my colleagues in our shared appreciation of Councilor DeLong’s service to the City of Fishers and her constituents of the North Central district.”

The date and time of the party caucus to elect the new North Central District council member will be announced soon, according to Colbert.  With COVID to consider, local Democrats are looking at all options on how to conduct the caucus meeting, including having it out-of-doors.

My first date with the Moderna vaccine was March 2nd at the Fishers mass vaccination site on 116th Street just east of Brooks School.  I wasn’t late for that engagement.

Last Friday, April 9, Moderna & I had our second date and just as before, I was right on time.  The first shot left me with some nausea and desire to sleep, but nothing serious.  The second shot just led to a long nap Saturday afternoon.

Whatever small side effects one may have are small stuff compared to having COVID.  I know because I tested COVID positive in late October last year and had symptoms that were unpleasant but never sent me to the hospital.  For someone my age, recovering from that virus was fortunate because I know of so many people at or near my age that did not survive.

But I feel great today, the Sunday after the shot…not 100%, but very close.  I am just grateful to Kathryn, the lady that administered the shot and to all the volunteers that keep the vaccinations rolling at the Fishers Health Department facility.

My date to be fully vaccinated is April 23.  It is a good feeling.  My wife Jane recently became fully vaccinated and that was a special day for both of us.

I will tell you that being fully vaccinated will not change my personal behavior.  I will continue to wear a mask in public and follow the CDC & local health guidelines.  That is what the experts are saying and it is just the right thing to do….protecting people around me to the extent possible.

We all must recognize that this pandemic is not over.  The state of Michigan to our north is seeing new variants of the virus spread like wildfire.   Last Friday,  Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer urged a two-week suspension of in-person high school classes, all youth sports and indoor restaurant dining.  She did not, however, issue any orders, simply said it should be done.

One reason Governor Whitmer has concerns relates to hospital beds.  A large number of hospitals in the state are full and are postponing non-emergency procedures.

I would once again ask that the people of Fishers take heed of the Health Department’s advice.  Because variants are spreading and it is unclear how much vaccinated people can spread the virus, wear the mask in public, social distance and wash your hands.

I may soon be fully vaccinated, but plan to continue following that advice until the experts say differently.  In my view, it’s the right thing to do.

You may recall that Hamilton County agreed to take the Bell Ford Bridge in 2018 when it was in danger of collapse and s stored the disassembled parts.  It’s original home was Jackson County, but local officials there could not afford to save the historic post truss combination bridge. Hamilton county Commissioners accepted $2.77 million in federal highway funds to largely pay for the restoration of the nation’s last known bridge of its kind

Hamilton County is preparing to put the structure back together as a pedestrian bridge over Fall Creek at Geist Park, a county facility located in Fishers.

“A lot has happened since we first acquired this bridge,” says Hamilton County Commissioner Mark Heirbrandt in a county news release. “We don’t want people to think we forgot about it. Once complete, this historic bridge will really help create a distinct and special experience to all who visit Geist Park.”

The City of Fishers has been busy creating the trail connections that will lead up to the bridge while the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) and Hamilton County Highway Department have been working to secure grant funding. A design team of local citizens being led by VS Engineering has been working to determine the bridge’s aesthetics.

“The bridge will be reconstructed in the same style that it was first built with in 1869,” says Daniel Kurdziel, project manager. “But it will get a bit of facelift. The bridge will receive a more durable roof that mimics the original cedar shake roof and will be rebuilt with the addition of clear polycarbonate siding modeling the original open-air structure. These features will maintain the historic integrity of the original bridge while accenting and protecting the structural members that make this bridge one-of-a-kind.”

Construction on the bridge is scheduled to start in earnest in 2024, nearly 20 years after it was originally placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

If you are preparing to adjust your motoring routes for the east-west closure of 146th Street at State Road 37, that start has been moved back to April 12.  This closure is expected to last 7 days.

Several other road projects are either getting underway or continuing in the local area.

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

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You may recall that Verizon informed neighborhoods and Fishers city government officials last December that 5G tower construction would be “paused” for a few months.  It appears that pause will end in the summer months ahead.

Fishers City Spokesperson Stephanie Perry says Verizon has “notified us that they plan to move forward again with permits this summer.”  Some residential parts of the city may see stakes in the ground, but that is “preliminary work that Verizon is doing but does not indicate any finalized locations. These are underground utility installations.”

Perry also says AT&T is installing underground fiber networks this summer. Similar to Metronet, this will be below ground and not above ground towers.  Residents in both the Verizon and AT&T areas should anticipate receiving information about their specific neighborhoods either via the City to their HOAs or through the utility.

Holding a town hall is complicated in the era of a pandemic.  Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness will hold a virtual Twilight Town Hall allowing local residents to ask questions in a format that replaces the old in-person town hall model and allows distancing for all involved.

The mayor will also have Monica Heltz of the Fishers Health Department on hand to answer questions about COVID and other health-related issues.

The Twilight Town Hall is set for Thursday, April 15, at 8pm.

You must register to participate.  Sign-up at this link.

Here is the video version of my podcast with Richie Hall.

High school sports have struggled to get on the field and the court ever since COVID reared its ugly head more than one year ago.  Yet, Indiana has crowned state champions in football and basketball this school year.  Richie Hall, Sports Editor of the Hamilton County Reporter, joins Larry to talk about high school sports in Hamilton County.

After attending several community meeting early in the process for the rebuilding of State Road 37 in Fishers, one thing was clear from the start – one of the greatest engineering challenges of the project would be drainage.

The plans to construct changes to State Road 37 configuration of intersections, much like Keystone Avenue in Carmel, is an effort to end the rush-hour traffic tie-ups at along the state highway.

But that could not happen without a solution to the drainage issues.  Handling that problem has resulted in an award for the firm dealing with it.

According to my news gather partner, the Hamilton County Reporter, Indianapolis-based American Structurepoint and WSP USA have earned a National Recognition Award for exemplary engineering achievement in the American Council of Engineering Companies’ (ACEC) 54th annual Engineering Excellence Awards (EEA) for the State Road 37 Drainage Line Project.

Reaching depths up to 40 feet, the new gravity sewer line will transport stormwater about a mile from the revamped corridor where four signalized intersections have been transformed into a series of interchanges. Because each interchange has a 15- to 20-foot depressed mainline road section with no adjacent gravity sewer outlets, the stormwater trunk lines provide a positive outlet for stormwater and eliminate the need for additional lift stations to pump water away.

The project team’s simplified solution reduced traffic congestion and maintained access to businesses during construction. Along with providing an environmentally friendly, sustainable solution to keep the interchanges free of ponding hazards during heavy rain events, the trunk lines provide a much more aesthetically pleasing drainage solution in a high-traffic, urbanized area.

The project is eligible for additional honors as part of 173 entries this year representing engineering excellence from throughout the nation and the world. Judging for the awards program – known industry-wide as the “Academy Awards of the engineering industry” – took place in February and was conducted by a national 20-member panel of built-environment leaders, along with experts from government, media, and academia. Award criteria focused on uniqueness and originality, technical innovation, social and economic value, and generating excitement for the engineering profession.

Recognition of all award winners including top winners – 20 Honor Awards, 16 Grand Awards, and the prestigious “Grand Conceptor Award” for the year’s most outstanding overall engineering achievement – will take place during the 2021 Virtual EEA Gala, to be held on Thursday, June 17.