Matt Burke will serve another year as president of the Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) School Board.  The vote was unanimous.  Sylvia Shepler will serve as vice president, while Michelle Fullhart will be the board secretary during 2018.

In other board activity during the Wednesday night session:

–Final approval was given for new classes to be offered at both high schools.  The courses had been discussed at length at a previous board meeting.  For more details, use this link.

–The board unanimously gave its stamp of approval to new insurance contracts.  The board is using a new insurance broker and will spend roughly $893,000 on the revised policies with Liberty Mutual and Chubb.  This includes property/casualty and Cyber policies.  The previous insurance contracts cost the school system over $1 million.

–The board postponed a decision on a proposed contract with the Metiri Group to better publicize the HSE21 program.  Board members complained that the agenda item was added at the last minute and the board did not have time to review the proposal.  A vote is tentatively scheduled for the next board meeting.

–The board approved schedules of plans for 2018 meetings.  The board can call a meeting, if there is a need with 48 hours notice (not including weekends and holidays).  With that in mind, here is the schedule of regular board meetings for 2018:

January 10, 24
February 14
March 14, 28
April 11, 25
May 9
June 13, 27
July 11
August 8, 22
September 12, 26
October 10
November 14, 28
December 12

Note that there are some months the board will be meeting only once, a departure from the normal schedule of 2 sessions per month.

For a listing of planned work sessions, which are public meetings of the board, use this link.  

–The board honored Fall Creek Elementary Third Grade Teacher Bill Marquardt and his class, who raised nearly $2,000 dollars to support a family with five foster children for the holidays.

by

Fred Swift

Hamilton County Reporter

Mark Heirbrandt was elected president of the Hamilton County Board of Commissioners in the board’s organizational meeting Monday.  Steve Dillinger was named vice president. Election of officers and appointment of department heads and members of various county boards is an annual practice at the first meeting of the year.

All department heads under commissioners’ jurisdiction were reappointed. They include director of administration Dan Stevens, county attorney Mike Howard, highway director Brad Davis, human resources director Sheena Randall, information technology  Director Chris Martens, Veteran Service Officer Lynn Epperson and Safety and Risk Management director Dan Papineau.

Commissioners engaged a new director of public relations, Tammy Sander. She
becomes the first to hold that position. As a part time contract employee Ms. Sander
will be responsible for communicating with the news media to disseminate information
on county government plans and projects. She and her husband, Scott, reside
in Carmel.

Among other appointments, Dave Burtner was named a member of the County
Board of Health filling a vacancy created by the recent death of longtime board
president Garrick Mallery.

Justin Clevenger and Jonathan Globle were appointed to the County Airport Authority
replacing retiring members.

Andrew Dollard was appointed to the County Redevelopment Authority replacing
Jeanette Kassebaum.

There were no changes made in the membership of the Riverview Hospital
Board, county park board, county plan commission or community
corrections board.

by

Jeff Jellison 

Hamilton County Reporter

The City of Noblesville along with Atlanta, Sheridan and Westfield have joined the list of several other Indiana communities in filing a lawsuit against drug manufacturers
and distributors of opioids.

The suit was filed by Noblesville on Monday in the United States District Court
of Southern Indiana.

Representatives from Sheridan, Atlanta and Westfield confirmed their legal action
on Tuesday.

Noblesville’s suit lists 14 drug manufacturers and four distributors as defendants.

A statement released by Noblesville said, “The City of Noblesville has joined
other Hoosier cities to hold the manufacturers and distributors of highly addictive opioids
responsible for the crisis that our public safety departments are struggling to cope
with. Noblesville has filed a federal lawsuit – at no cost to taxpayers – to seek damages
that would pay for the rising costs of battling the opioid epidemic that is now the
leading cause of death for people under the age of 50.”

The suit alleges Indiana has been especially ravaged by the national opioid crisis
and Indiana has an opioid prescription rate of 109.1 per 100 persons, which ranks ninth
in the country (the median rate for states is 82.5) and a benzodiazepine prescription
rate of 42.9 per 100 persons, which ranks 17th nationally (the median rate for states
is 37.7).

Documents filed in Federal Court indicate Indiana opioid overdose deaths rose 52
percent between 2015 and 2016 and have more than double in the last three years.

Noblesville alleges the opioid epidemic is particularly devastating in its city. During
the period of 2011 to 2015, the number of non-fatal emergency department visits due
to opioid overdoses in Hamilton County has nearly doubled.

Hamilton County, with 410 non-fatal emergency room visits for opioid overdoses,
ranked fourth in the state during the period of 2011 to 2015. Marion County led
the state during the reporting period with 2,557 visits.

The lawsuit states, “This incredible harm to not just the victims of opioid addiction,
but the communities in which those individuals lived, stems directly from the
Defendants’ intentional choice to pump opioids into Plaintiff’s Community in violation
of state and federal law.”

(Editor’s note:  The City of Fishers says there are no plans to join this lawsuit at this time.)

Hamilton County Reporter

Pictured is Wes Shealey, with his wife Jennifer on his right. Wes has been the announcer for multiple sports for Fishers High School. Wes was recognized before Tuesday’s Tigers boys basketball game for his service and dedication to the Tigers community.

Wes was diagnosed almost three years ago with ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and has continued to be the voice of the Tigers. At halftime, the Reporter’s Kirk Green spoke with Wes, and he shared how appreciative he is of the community support, and it’s what keeps him fighting.

by

Richie Hall

Hamilton County Reporter Sports Editor

Fishers boys basketball coach Matt Moore made an interesting point after his Tigers team beat Arsenal Tech on Tuesday night.

“It’s not what you talk about, it’s what you emphasize,” said the coach.

In its past two practices, Fishers worked on its offense, taking “a lot of reps offensively,” said Moore. The Tigers got a chance to put that preparation into a game situation, and it paid off in the form of a 69-54 win over the Titans. With the victory, Fishers is back to .500 for the season at 6-6.

Moore said some of the things the Tigers were working on included trying to get good shots and making sure the team understood its timing and spacing.

“It’s good to see that that’s paying off now in a game situation because I thought we took good shots, I thought our ball movement was really good in that first quarter,” said Moore. “And it just goes to show that if you do the right work, outcomes will eventually happen the way they’re supposed to.”

The first quarter was fantastic for Fishers, as it ended with the Tigers leading 25-14. The game was tied at 14-all late in the period, but Fishers scored the last 11 points of the quarter. Jeremy Szilagyi scored five of those points, including a 3-pointer; he had a total of three in the first period. Jordan Jones added four points and Josiah Matthews had two.
“I thought our guys did a good job of being aggressive,” said Moore.

After their fast start, Fishers kept its lead at or above 10 points for most of the game. Consecutive rebound baskets by Tech in the second quarter got the Titans within 31-23, but the Tigers answered with a layin by Brendhan Russom and a three-point play by Craig Yoho. That pushed Fishers’ lead to 36-23, and it never dropped below 10 points again.

The Tigers had remarkable balance, with five players reaching double figures. Jones came off the bench to wind up Fishers’ leading scorer with 13 points. Matthews and Jeremy Szilagyi both added 11 points, while Willie Jackson and Terry Hicks both scored 10. Five other players scored at least two points.

“I think the fans enjoyed, probably, the tempo more than the last few games for us,” said Moore. “I think still, we’ve got areas that we can improve and we’ve got to get back to work tomorrow, knowing that we can’t be satisfied with showing up and winning. We need to win in the right fashion and dominantly in a lot of different areas.”

Fishers has a quick turnaround, as it will host Brownsburg on Friday. The game is a Hoosier Crossroads Conference girl-boy doubleheader, with the girls playing at 6 p.m. and the boys at 7:30 p.m.

The Bulldogs will come into the Tiger Den with a 10-2 record. Brownsburg has lost only to prep school powerhouse La Porte LaLumiere and defending Class 4A state champion Ben Davis. In the HCC, the Bulldogs are 1-0, having beat Avon 63-33 on Dec. 15.

“They’re really good,” said Moore. “They’re 10-2 for a reason and up there on a lot of boards and rankings. They’ve played in the regional three of the last four years. They got a lot of players that understand what these Friday night games can be. Most of our guys are in it for the first time. It’ll be a good challenge for us. We just got to go back and understand that there’s areas that we can get better at defensively and we got to do that this week.”

If you want to know what it is like to go through the Fishers City Government Academy, just talk with someone that graduated from the program.  Then you will know what a great experience it is.

The City of Fishers is preparing to conduct another academy and you can join.  There is no cost, but you are required to register.

What is the City Government Academy?  It’s a ten-week program. You learn how local government works.  There is even a session with local school superintendent Allen Bourff.

Those enrolled in the academy learn about such city departments as parks & recreation, public safety and engineering.  Many graduates walk away from the program saying the most interesting part of the academy was the explanation of how the wastewater treatment plant operation works.

Bottom line, you find out so much about your local government.  And joining is easy.  You just need to carve out the time in your schedule and register.

You can review all the scheduled sessions and register at this link.  Only a limited number of spots are available so do not wait if you are interested

If you have questions, the man to contact is Dan Domisic.  You can send him an e-mail at   domsicd@fishers.in.us or contact him by phone at (317) 595-3151.

It all starts February 13th.  This is your chance to learn what local government does for you each and every day.

Fishers Police Chief Mitch Thompson sits down with Larry to talk about a wide range of local law enforcement issues.

Shelby Bowen spent nearly two years working for the City of Fishers as the Assistant Director of Redevelopment, and now he is one of three people opening a private redevelopment firm in the Fishers Nickel Plate District.  Bowen is joining Jerry Ewing and Jim Ratliff to form Rebar Development.

The new firm plans on pursuing opportunities to partner with local governments on development projects.

Based on a news release announcing the firm’s opening, Ewing will handle the corporate business side of the house, while Ratliff plans to deal with investments and banking.

Rebar’s office will be located at 8937 Technology Drive.

The world of women’s competitive ice skating and Tonya Harding’s place in that world is explored in the film :I, Tonya” – here is my review..

The Surface Transportation Board has ruled on two major issues in its consideration of the Nickel Plate Rail Line’s future.

Officials in Fishers and Noblesville are asking that the stretch of the line from downtown Noblesville south to 96th street be rail banked, which moves forward plans by the two cities to construct a hiking and biking trail, much like the Monon running from Indianapolis north through Carmel.

First, the board ruled that all comments will be accepted, and there have been a lot of comments submitted over this issue.  A large number of those comments have come from supporters of the “Save The Nickel Plate” organization, advocating keeping that rail line as a modem for train travel.

The second decision by the board denied a motion by “Save the Nickel Plate” for a probe, calling for a suspension of consideration into the rail banking request by the cities in order to “investigate all of the filings and claims submitted.”

“The arguments presented in the motion do not provide any reason for the Board to suspend this proceeding and conduct an investigation,” the board wrote in its ruling.
“The Board has provided ample time for comments on the petition and the building of an adequate record, especially when balanced with the Board’s obligation to issue a decision within a statutory deadline.”

You can read the entire document on both board rulings  at this link.

In a podcast interview recorded January 3rd, Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness indicated his administration will continue to move forward on the rail banking process with the goal of building a trail along the Nickel Plate line.

“It’s a project I just really, absolutely believe in,” the mayor said.  “(I) stood on the rail line and told everyone that, and I stay consistent with that.  I’m hoping we get some forward progress in the coming months.”

During that podcast interview, I asked the mayor if he has any concerns about those opposing the rail banking process in the Surface Transportation Board proceedings.

“Concerned in the sense that anytime a resident strongly disagrees with what I believe is the right thing to do, I always take pause to think about that,” said Mayor Fadness.  “But, in that sense, I’ve given a lot of thought to this particular project and still believe it’s in the best interest of our city.  So, we will continue to try to move this project forward. I understand their disagreement with my stance on this, I do.  And, I appreciate all the comments that they’ve made.  We will just have to respectfully agree to disagree.”

You can listen to the entire podcast with Scott Fadness at this link.