Two Intermediate schools in the Hamilton Southeastern School System, Fall Creek and Sand Creek, will have start and dismissal times a few minutes later in the coming school year.  Below is a message sent to parents:

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In preparation for the start of school, our safety teams, in consultation with the Fishers Police Department, have reviewed current traffic patterns. Traffic congestion in the area on Olio and Promise Roads has prompted a slight modification in start/dismissal times at two of our campuses: Fall Creek and Sand Creek Intermediate Schools. The new 2016-2017 start/dismissal times for SCI and FCI are:

·         Sand Creek Intermediate: 7:45 AM bell time and dismissal 2:55 PM.

·         Fall Creek Intermediate: 7:45 AM bell time and dismissal 2:55 PM.

The start times for Riverside Intermediate Junior High and Hamilton Southeastern Intermediate Junior High will remain the same at 7:35 AM bell time and dismissal 2:45 PM.

Indianapolis Business Journal reporter Lindsey Erdody reports on plans to demolish the vacant Marsh Supermarket building and adjacent space to construct a new center with a new Kroger store.

You can read the story at this link.

The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) has been providing regular updates on what to expect as several construction projects continue along I-69 in the Fishers area.

Below is the latest INDOT status report on the I-69 situation.

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• Preparing for southbound traffic shift
• Starting construction of northbound added lane
• Widening Campus Parkway bridge
• Building new interchange ramps
• Patching continues north of Exit 210
• Paving set to begin north of Exit 210

Interstate 69 added travel lane

Milestone Contractors is setting temporary concrete barrier along southbound I-69 in preparation for a traffic shift scheduled for early August.  Both southbound traffic lanes will be moved toward the right-hand shoulder to accommodate construction in the median of an additional lane betweenCampus/Southeastern Parkway (Exit 210) and 116th Street (Exit 205).

Northbound lanes in the same section have been shifted, and signs direct large trucks to use the left lane through the shifted section of interstate.  The speed limit is reduced to 60 mph and further reduced to 50 mph when workers are present.

This week, as crews install concrete barrier along the interstate median, the left lane of southbound I-69 will be closed each night between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m.

Campus/Southeastern Parkway Exit 210

Construction of the new double-crossover diamond interchange configuration is underway as Milestone has narrowed Campus Parkway traffic lanes to 11 feet wide, is installing temporary concrete barrier at the interchange and is building up the new interchange ramps.

Motorists will notice an increase in construction activity at the interchange and should be alert for workers in the area and trucks entering and exiting the roadway.

The first phase of interchange construction is widening the bridge over I-69 and building the new ramps.  Later this summer, traffic will be shifted into a double-crossover diamond configuration, which is intended to improve traffic flow during construction of the permanent interchange improvements.

Interstate 69 patching & paving

Milestone Contractors is patching existing northbound pavement north of Campus Parkway Exit 210.  The patching operation will continue north past State Road 38 (Exit 219), before returning southbound on I-69 back to Exit 210 in August.

About 15 miles of interstate is being repaired before a new asphalt overlay is paved on existing lanes.  Paving on northbound I-69  north of Exit 210 is scheduled to begin as early as next week.  Motorists may temporarily experience rough pavement after sections are patched and before sections are paved.

Weather permitting, patching and paving operations require alternating lane closures six nights a week on Monday through Saturday nights from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.  One lane of I-69 will remain open at all times, and two lanes will remain open during peak daytime travel times.

The speed limit through the work zone is reduced to 60 mph and further reduced to 50 mph when workers are present.  Speed detection and LED display signs have been installed in the work zone to alert motorists driving at unsafe speeds.  Indiana State Police are patrolling the work zone to promote public safety and compliance with traffic laws.

Mayor Scott Fadness will have an easy time keeping track of the newest Municipal complex construction project…he can look out of the window of his office and watch the building go up.  Braden Business Systems plans to move its headquarters to the structure, relocating 70 jobs to Fishers with the possibility of 90 more positions by 2020.  The $5.6 million project will be located at the corner of North Street and Municipal Drive, next to the Switch Building.

The City of Fishers has approved roughly $1 million in incentives and up to six years of tax abatements to lure Braden into the downtown area.  Braden is expected to occupy about 20,000 square feet in the four-story building, with 15,000 square feet available for the City of Fishers to lease.

Here is a video of the ground breaking ceremony Wednesday morning.

Hamilton Southeastern (HSE)Schools projected the number of kindergartners expected to be signed up for classes this fall at this point in the enrollment period, and so far the actual number of new kindergartners is 200 pupils below projections.

HSE Schools Chief Financial Officer Mike Reuter says there could be a flurry of parents enrolling their children at the last minute, but even with that. the numbers are likely to be below the projection.

If you need to sign your child up for kindergarten at HSE Schools, use this link for more information.

The enrollment numbers were discussed as part of a wide-ranging work session with school board members and administrators on what to do about the 30 portable classrooms being utilized for the coming school year to allow for smaller class sizes.

School administrators provided several options to board members, including doing nothing and continuing with the portable classrooms.  Other options discussed were:

–Expanding Durbin Elementary by adding 16-18 classrooms.  However, a sewer line would need to be extended, which would be expensive for the school system.

–One additional elementary school could be constructed.

–Additional classrooms could be constructed at all but 3 elementary school buildings.

Several board members said they wanted a new demographic study.  The last study was presented to the board in 2014 with a ten-year enrollment projection that has been very close to accurate up to now.

Reuter says the largest enrollment in the upcoming school year is in the 7th grade.

School Superintendent Allen Bourff says the next step is the look at the financial picture for HSE Schools and fit that into any option the board may consider.

The board also received an update from Facilities Manager Harry Delks on projected maintenance needs for school building over the coming ten years.  The most money would go the Hamilton Southeastern High School with $15.4 million over the ten years.  Fishers Junior High would get $8.3 million, Fall Creek Junior High $7 million and Cumberland Road Elementary $6.7 million.    The plan would spend $5 million on maintenance for the remainder of 2016 and $10 million per year from 2017 through 2025.  Delks emphasized to board members that this plan is his best educated guess and it is a “living document.”

In a unanimous vote, the Fishers City Counil approved a memorandum of understanding between the City of Fishers and the  Indianapolis Airport Authority (IAA), laying out the way airport land can be developed by the city.

A map provided to council members shows the areas to be developed and also defines parts of the property to remain as either parks or open space.  The area adjacent to Ritchey Woods is designated as open space.  You can view the map at this link.

The Council also approved an economic development agreement to bring a new building to the Saxony area of Fishers.  The structure is to be built by Central Indiana Orthopedics.

Fishers city officials have selected 3 artists to create artwork to be placed along the east end of the Edge building parking garage, facing Interstate 69.

Deputy Mayor Leah McGrath named the three artists for Fishers City Council members Monday.  The are Rachel Johnson, Warren Miller and and Kyle Ragsdale.

Councilman Todd Zimmerman served on the selection committee, and said Fishers is especially fortunate to have an artist of Kyle Ragsdale’s reputation as part of the project.

Once the art is complete, each artist’s work will be rotated about every six months.

Below are some samples submitted by the artists.

Fishers Police Sergeant Troy Fettinger was honored Monday night by the Fishers City Council for 20 years of service to the local department.

Sergeant Fettinger was credited with helping to save a 12-year-old boy’s life in February of 2014.  The boy collapsed while playing basketball at Fishers Junior High.  Fettinger used an AED machine and with the help of a medical doctor also at the game, they were able to revive the 12-year-old, and he later recovered at Riley Children’s Hospital.

The officer received a standing ovation from the council members and the entire crowd.

If you drive to the new Launch Fishers Building, you will pass a vacant structure along Visionary Way.  The site was once a Charles Schwab regional client center, but it has been vacant for a very long time.

There was a hint at the Fishers City Council meeting Monday night that there is some serious interest is someone making use of that vacant office building.   Council members unanimously approved a resolution designating the property as an Economic Revitalization Area (ERA).  That clears the way for the council to act quickly on a tax abatement should a deal be reached for a business interest to occupy the building.

City officials say the recent declaration of the area by the State of Indiana as a Certified Tech Park has renewed interest in the property.  The designation allows up to $5 million in state tax revenue generated in the area to remain in the area for infrastructure improvements and other uses.

When asked after the council session if an announcement for a new tenant in the former Schwab building is expected before the next council meeting one month from now, the mayor said, “Potentially.”

There was no indication from any city officials as to who may be interested in the building.

All we can do now is wait and see what happens next.

David George sat down and talked to me about his time on the Fishers Town Council and City Council.