The Hamilton Southeastern Education Association has endorsed one candidate in each of the four HSE School Board races on the Nov. 3 general election ballot.

The local teachers union announced its support for Faiza Maqsood in District 1, Cyrus Keck in District 2, Michelle Fullhart in District 3 and Stephanie Braden in District 4. The endorsement graphic, carrying the message “Creating a New Vision for HSE,” did not provide candidate-specific reasons for the selections.

HSEA represents teachers working in Hamilton Southeastern Schools and advocates on issues affecting educators and students.

Three of the four races are contested. According to the Hamilton County Election Office, Maqsood faces Republican Greg Wright and Libertarian Anthony Jason Wren in District 1.

Keck is running against Josh Perry and Ferras Abdalla in District 2. In District 3, Fullhart faces Republican David Turk. Fullhart previously served on the HSE board, including a term as board president.

Braden is the only candidate who filed for the District 4 seat.

None of the four HSEA-endorsed candidates will appear with a Republican or Democratic designation. Maqsood, Keck and Fullhart filed without party affiliations, while Braden is listed as an independent.

The election will be the first in Hamilton County conducted under a new Indiana law allowing school board candidates to use political-party labels. Candidates may also run without a party designation, and school board races do not have primary elections.

Each HSE seat represents a geographic district, and voters will choose among the candidates running in the district where they live.

Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Nov. 3.

Early in-person voting begins Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026, at two Noblesville locations:

• Judicial Center: 8 a.m.–4:30 p.m.
• Hamilton County Fairgrounds: 9 a.m.–4 p.m.

Fishers satellite locations begin voting Wednesday, Oct. 21. See the full schedule on the Hamilton County early-voting page.

The Indy Fuel have brought back three players this month, adding defenseman Kyle Aucoin and forwards Michael Marchesan and Anthony Petruzzelli for the 2026-27 season.

The signings come while the Fishers Event Center tenants still have no head coach. Duncan Dalmao, who led the team for four full seasons, left earlier this month to take an assistant coaching job with the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League. The Fuel have not announced a successor, and the club’s 13th ECHL season opens in October.

Aucoin, 24, returns after appearing in four regular-season games and five playoff games for Indy, recording two assists. The 6-foot blueliner from Hinsdale, Illinois, spent one season at Miami University of Ohio, where he was named an NCHC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete, following four years at Harvard University. He won an ECAC title as a freshman and majored in entrepreneurship.

Detroit drafted Aucoin in the sixth round of the 2020 NHL Draft, 156th overall. Hockey runs deep in the family — his three younger siblings play, and his father, Adrian, spent 17 seasons in the NHL.

Marchesan, 25, joined the Fuel in April 2024 after being claimed off waivers from the Atlanta Gladiators. The 6-foot-5 forward from Burlington, Ontario, posted seven goals and six assists last season while piling up 88 penalty minutes, leading Indy in that category for much of the year.

Before turning pro, Marchesan put up 58 points in 46 games for the Danbury Hat Tricks of the Federal Prospects Hockey League in 2022-23, then added 13 points in 10 playoff games as Danbury won the Commissioner’s Cup. He was named playoff MVP. The previous season he led the St. George Ravens of the Greater Metro Jr. A Hockey League with 101 points in 32 games.

Petruzzelli, 33, gives the Fuel a veteran presence and a familiar Indiana résumé. He first arrived in Indianapolis during the 2023-24 season in a trade with Jacksonville, playing 48 games and collecting 21 points.

The 5-foot-10 forward from Federal Way, Washington, spent six seasons with the Fort Wayne Komets before that stint, serving as captain for two of them, and returned to Fort Wayne for the past two seasons as an alternate captain. He recorded 40 points in 117 games over that span and helped the Komets reach the Kelly Cup Playoffs both years. He was called up to the AHL’s Chicago Wolves for four games in 2019-20.

The Fuel remain affiliated with the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks and the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs.

Residents with a Hamilton East Public Library card can save money at more than 40 local businesses during September as the library launches the return of its annual “Show Your Library Card and Save” campaign.

The promotion runs from Sept. 1 through Sept. 30 and coincides with Library Card Sign-Up Month, an annual effort to encourage more residents to take advantage of library services. Cardholders can present their library card at participating businesses in Fishers and Noblesville to receive discounts, free items with qualifying purchases and other special offers.

Now in its third year, the campaign is designed to benefit both library patrons and locally owned businesses by encouraging residents to explore shops, restaurants and other establishments throughout the community.

“We love that this campaign creates a benefit for everyone involved,” said Kelsey Sweet, Hamilton East Public Library’s director of marketing and communications. “Our cardholders get access to great deals, our local businesses get the opportunity to welcome new customers, and together we’re encouraging people to get out and explore all that our community has to offer.”

A complete list of participating businesses and their September offers is available on the Hamilton East Public Library website and will also be promoted throughout the month on the library’s social media channels and email newsletters.

This year’s Library Card Sign-Up Month theme is “What’s Your Next Chapter?” The campaign highlights the variety of resources available through a library card, from books and audiobooks to educational materials, hobby resources and other learning opportunities.

Throughout September, library staff and community members will share book and audiobook recommendations while inviting patrons to recommend their own favorites.

“Sometimes the best way to discover your next chapter is through a recommendation from someone else,” Sweet said. “This month is about encouraging people to explore, try something new and see where their library card can take them.”

Residents who do not already have a Hamilton East Public Library card can sign up at either the Fishers or Noblesville library branch. Adults living in Delaware, Fall Creek, Noblesville or Wayne townships may also apply online for a digital library card.

Hamilton East Public Library serves Fishers and Noblesville through its two library branches, offering books, digital resources, educational programming, community events and public gathering spaces. Library officials say the September campaign is intended to showcase both the value of a library card and the businesses that help strengthen the local community.

More information about obtaining a library card and participating businesses is available at the library’s website.

Fishers High School and Hamilton Southeastern High School have once again earned recognition among the top public high schools in Indiana and the nation, according to the newly released 2026-27 U.S. News & World Report Best High Schools rankings.

Fishers High School was ranked eighth in Indiana and No. 428 nationally, while Hamilton Southeastern High School placed 12th in the state and No. 736 in the nation. Both schools were also recognized among the top public high schools in the Indianapolis metropolitan area.

The latest rankings represent significant gains from 2023, when Fishers High School ranked No. 740 nationally and Hamilton Southeastern High School was No. 893.

Superintendent Dr. Matt Kegley said the improved rankings reflect both student achievement and a growing willingness among students to challenge themselves academically.

“These rankings reflect the high expectations our students and educators bring to the classroom each day,” Kegley said. “What is especially meaningful is that more students are choosing challenging courses and succeeding at record levels. That speaks to the dedication of our students and staff and our commitment to preparing every student for what comes next.”

The U.S. News & World Report rankings are based on factors including state assessment performance, graduation rates and college readiness, measured largely through Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) exam results. District officials noted the rankings do not fully account for dual-credit and concurrent enrollment courses that also allow HSE students to earn college credit while in high school.

The district reported continued growth in AP participation during the 2025-26 school year. A total of 2,801 students completed more than 5,600 AP exams, with 2,448 students earning at least one qualifying score of 3 or higher.

At Fishers High School, a record 1,539 students enrolled in AP coursework and completed 3,253 AP exams. Among graduating seniors, 58 percent earned at least one qualifying AP score, the highest percentage in both school and district history. Since 2022, AP participation at Fishers has increased 21 percent, while the number of exams taken has risen 49 percent.

Hamilton Southeastern High School also posted record results. Fifty-six percent of graduating seniors earned at least one qualifying AP score, the highest in school history. HHS students achieved an 89.3 percent AP exam success rate, the highest in district history. Since 2022, AP participation at the school has increased 38 percent, while the number of qualifying scores has grown 59 percent.

Fishers motorists who use Hazel Dell Parkway to reach Carmel’s south side are facing a detour that may last far longer than a typical construction season.

The Hazel Dell Parkway bridge over Blue Woods Creek, between 96th and 106th streets, collapsed Aug. 15 as the White River crested at a record 24.6 feet — surpassing the 23.8-foot mark set in the Great Flood of 1913. Hamilton County Highway Director Bradley Davis said flash flooding washed out the dirt and pavement around the bridge opening, undermining the structure until it failed.

Hamilton County Commissioner Christine Altman has since called the bridge a total loss. Early estimates put the damage at roughly $10 million. Altman said state rules allow the county to expedite bridge reconstruction after a disaster while still controlling costs.

Although the bridge sits inside Carmel city limits, Hazel Dell Parkway is a county bridge, so replacing it falls to the Hamilton County Highway Department — not the City of Carmel.

Where the two-year figure comes from

Carmel City Councilor Adam Aasen, who represents the city’s southeast district, told constituents in a social media post that a replacement could take about two years. The county has not published an official schedule, and Davis said last weekend that crews did not yet have a timeline for reopening the road.

A two-year window is plausible for a full replacement. Bridge projects normally require design, permitting, environmental review and bidding before construction begins, and this one carries an added complication: a sewer main beneath the crossing carries roughly 90 percent of Carmel’s wastewater to the treatment plant at 96th Street and Hazel Dell Parkway. Mayor Sue Finkam warned this week of a high risk that line could fail. Stabilizing it will likely have to happen before, or alongside, any bridge work.

Emergency federal and state disaster funding could compress that schedule. Until the county says otherwise, the two-year estimate should be treated as one official’s expectation rather than a firm date.

What it means for your drive

Hazel Dell Parkway is one of only a handful of continuous north-south routes between Keystone Parkway and Allisonville Road, and the closed segment sits directly above the 96th Street commercial corridor that draws heavy Fishers traffic.

Drivers coming from Fishers have two practical options. Allisonville Road remains the most direct north-south path on the east side, feeding into 96th, 106th and 116th streets. Keystone Parkway, about a mile and a half west, is the faster route for anyone bound for central or north Carmel, reached via 106th, 116th or 126th streets.

Expect the squeeze at the 96th Street intersections with Allisonville Road and Keystone Parkway, especially during morning and evening peaks. Neighborhood streets in the Hazel Dell corridor are also likely to absorb cut-through traffic.

Hamilton County is posting closure updates on its highway department page. Residents needing flood assistance can call 317-645-3261 or visit the hub at the 4-H Fairgrounds in Noblesville.

The Fishers Police Department welcomed seven new officers Monday evening during a swearing-in ceremony before the Fishers City Council, marking another step in the department’s ongoing effort to maintain staffing as veteran officers reach retirement eligibility.

City officials have said the department is experiencing a generational transition. Many officers hired during Fishers’ rapid population growth in the late 1990s and early 2000s have now reached retirement age, creating the need to recruit and train a new generation of police officers while maintaining public safety services for one of Indiana’s fastest-growing communities.

The newest members of the department are:

• Officer Matt Mobley
• Officer Nicholas Butts
• Officer Anthony Lenane
• Officer Kevin Roach
• Officer Madison McPhearson
• Officer Scott Spillman
• Officer Darren Jones

The officers took the oath of office before family members, friends, city officials, and members of the Police Department during the council meeting.

Fishers has continued to add police personnel over the years as the city’s population has grown to more than 100,000 residents and the community has expanded with new neighborhoods, businesses, and entertainment venues. In addition to replacing retiring officers, the department periodically adds positions to keep pace with increasing service demands.

The swearing-in ceremony reflects a challenge facing many law enforcement agencies across the country. Departments are working to recruit qualified candidates while also replacing experienced officers who are retiring after careers that began during earlier periods of community growth.

Fishers first responders spent much of Thursday through Saturday pulling people out of floodwaters — both inside the city and in neighboring communities — Mayor Scott Fadness said in an update on the city’s flood response before the City Council Monday night.

While Saturday drew the most public attention, Fadness said the effort actually began early Thursday morning, when Fishers firefighters were dispatched to the Pendleton area and performed water rescues for most of the day.

That evening, after crews returned home, a resident called Fadness to report that water was running unusually high and fast through a Fishers neighborhood. Crews went out again and conducted a rescue operation that pulled five people from floodwaters.

At the same time, Fishers was sending resources to other communities, including Hamilton County partners and Tipton.

The night did not end there. Around 2 a.m., after the local rescue wrapped up and displaced residents were being sheltered, another call came in from the Lapel and Anderson area, where several people needed rescue. Fishers firefighters headed back out.

“A lot of those individuals literally went about 24 hours straight,” Fadness said.

By Friday, with residents sheltered, the city shifted to watching the White River ahead of the expected crest. Only a handful of Fishers homes sit directly adjacent to the river, Fadness said, and crews went door to door with those households to discuss evacuation. Some residents left; others chose to stay.

Saturday brought another round of rescues, this time involving the fire department, a police dive team and the Department of Public Works. The last person was pulled to safety around 2 or 3 p.m., Fadness said.

A small number of displaced residents remain in hotels, in part because shelters could not accommodate pets.

The city is now turning to recovery. Public works crews are taking the lead on distributing resources and information, including cleaning supplies for residents beginning to dig out. A staff member in the mayor’s office with FEMA experience is leading documentation of damage for potential reimbursement.

Damage to public infrastructure is not significant in Fishers. Fadness said Hazel Dell Parkway in Carmel is expected to remain closed for the foreseeable future, with the river having effectively rerouted itself in one location. Two city parks along the river sustained damage, though he said other facilities came through largely intact. Crews walked every affected road, and Fadness said no industrial or hazardous-materials problems were found.

Fadness described surreal scenes from a bridge over the river — a propane tank off-gassing in the current, 30-foot trees washing downstream and horses running loose on a nearby street. Rescuers also lost a boat motor during Saturday’s operations; a local marina supplied a replacement so crews could keep working.

The mayor said many of the people Fishers crews helped do not live within city limits.

“They’re not afraid to jump in regardless of who they are,” he said. “They’re neighbors nonetheless.”

There is now a real question as to whether Citizens State Bank will open another branch in Fishers.

The Fishers City Council voted Monday night to table a rezoning that would have cleared the way for the financial institution to build a banking center on the north side of 116th Street, just west of Olio Road — sending the proposal back to the administration with no guarantee it returns.

The petition covers a small parcel at 13562 E. 116th St., a lot of less than an acre that was rezoned from residential into the Drive Planning planned unit development by a 9-0 council vote in January 2024. The bank has been working to amend that PUD to allow a single-tenant, owner-occupied banking center of up to 4,500 square feet, capped at 24 feet in height, with fewer than 30 parking spaces and heavy landscaping intended to keep the building at a residential scale.

The bank has already given ground once. When the proposal first came before the council July 20, several members were openly skeptical about drive-through banking at that location, and neighbors in the surrounding subdivisions raised objections. Citizens State Bank removed the drive-through entirely from its revised plan, and the Fishers Advisory Plan Commission responded with a unanimous favorable recommendation on Aug. 5.

That was not enough Monday night.

Council members who spoke voiced serious concerns about eastbound traffic on 116th Street attempting a left turn into the parking lot, given the placement of the median. Traffic engineers who reviewed the site did not foresee a problem with the left turn — but the council was not persuaded. Some members also pressed the bank to drop signage from the building itself.

A motion was made to approve the rezoning with two conditions: removal of the building sign, and a right-in, right-out access restriction that would eliminate left turns into the banking center altogether. Bank officials told the council flatly that those restrictions were unacceptable.

At that point Mayor Scott Fadness suggested the council table the issue and give his staff an opportunity to find a creative solution. The council passed the motion to table unanimously.

The bottom line: there is no certainty the branch will be built at that location.

(Disclosure: Citizens State Bank sponsors the LarryInFishers podcast series.)

In other items before the council Monday night

Two DORAs approved. The council signed off on designated outdoor refreshment areas for two parts of the city — the Nickel Plate District downtown and the Fishers District south of 116th Street (see maps below). Hours of operation are set at 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Inside a DORA, patrons may carry alcoholic beverages purchased from participating establishments in marked, nonbreakable containers within the mapped boundaries. The districts are not official until the Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission acts on them.

Buckhaven approved 8-1. The residential development on 131st Street near I-69 won approval over the lone no vote of Councilor Brad DeReamer, who cited concerns about setbacks. The Pulte Homes project, which received its first reading in May, calls for roughly two dozen single-family homes in the $600,000 to $700,000 range near Fishers High School.

Patch Development incentives approved. The council approved an economic development package for Patch Development’s $7.3 million project on Masters Road near the Indianapolis Metropolitan Airport. Patch, currently based in Westfield, has been assembling property in the airport-area business park and plans a flex office building at the site.

New traffic and right-of-way ordinances enacted. The council adopted a set of ordinances that:

• regulate pedestrian occupancy of travel lanes and certain medians;
• require a city permit for booths, tents, canopies, tables, kiosks and other temporary structures placed on public sidewalks, multi-use trails or pedestrian portions of the public right-of-way;
• restrict unauthorized entry into construction zones and interference with traffic movement or traffic-control devices.

Violations are subject to enforcement by the Fishers Police Department and fines through the Ordinance Violations Bureau.

Owners must file Indiana Form 137R by Dec. 31, 2027, to request a disaster-related reassessment.

Hamilton County property owners whose homes or other taxable property sustained significant physical damage during the recent flooding may qualify for future property tax relief.

The announcement follows record-setting flooding along the White River. The river crested at approximately 24.6 feet in Noblesville, surpassing a record set in 1913, according to The Associated Press.

To request relief, property owners must complete Indiana State Form 137R, a petition asking the county assessor to survey and reassess property partially or totally destroyed by a disaster. The form must be submitted to the Hamilton County Assessor’s Office by Dec. 31, 2027.

Filing the form does not guarantee a reduction. Each property will be reviewed individually, and properties with severe damage will require a site inspection.

“We know many property owners are dealing with significant damage, and we want to make sure they understand what options may be available to them,” Hamilton County Assessor Kevin Poore said. “Each property will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, so we encourage anyone who believes they may qualify to contact our office with questions and submit the required form.”

Under Indiana law, the disaster process applies when a substantial amount of property in a township has been physically damaged or destroyed. Form 137R is a request for reassessment, not an application for insurance payments or direct financial assistance.

Any approved adjustment would apply to the Jan. 1, 2026, assessment date, which is used to calculate property-tax bills payable in 2027. It would not reduce property taxes currently payable in 2026.

State law generally does not allow relief from current-year property taxes after a disaster. The exception is narrowly limited to parcels that become permanently inaccessible by land because a river changes course.

Property owners may submit the form to the Hamilton County Assessor’s Office, 33 N. Ninth St., Suite 214, in Noblesville. The office is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, according to the county’s website.

Questions about Form 137R or potential eligibility may be directed to the assessor’s office at 317-776-9617.

Hamilton County Harvest Food Bank and the county’s trustee association are collecting buckets, bleach and heavy-duty trash bags for residents digging out from record White River flooding.

Hamilton County residents who want to help their flooded neighbors now have seven places to drop off supplies — and they are the same township trustee offices where locals already go for emergency assistance.

Hamilton County Harvest Food Bank, working with the Hamilton County Trustee Association, has launched a countywide donation drive for residents whose homes were damaged when the White River shattered a 113-year-old flood record last week. Township trustee offices across the county are serving as collection points, and the food bank will coordinate distribution of what comes in.

The need is for cleanup and recovery supplies rather than food or clothing. Organizers are asking for:

• Heavy-duty trash bags
• Buckets
• Heavy-duty sponges
• Paper towels
• Cleaning products
• Bleach
• Rubber gloves
• Mops and brooms
• Disposable face masks
• Scrub brushes

Where to drop off donations

• Clay Township — 10701 N. College Ave., Ste. B, Carmel, IN 46280
• Delaware Township — 9090 E. 131st St., Fishers, IN 46038
• Fall Creek Township — 11595 Brook School Road, Fishers, IN 46037
• Jackson Township — 506 W. Main St., Box 456, Arcadia, IN 46030
• Noblesville Township — 836 Division St., Noblesville, IN 46060
• Wayne Township — 18441 Durbin Road, Noblesville, IN 46060
• Westfield Washington Township — 17400 Westfield Blvd., Westfield, IN 46074

Residents should check office hours before making a trip, as trustee offices generally keep weekday business hours and several staffs have been stretched thin by storm-related assistance requests.

Why cleaning supplies

The list may look mundane next to images of boat rescues and submerged neighborhoods, but flood recovery experts consistently rank cleanup gear among the most urgently needed and least donated items after a flood. Floodwater that has passed through streets, storm drains and sanitary systems leaves behind contaminated silt, and homeowners are advised to remove soaked drywall, insulation and carpet quickly to stay ahead of mold — work that consumes gloves, masks, bags and bleach at a rate few households keep on hand.

Cleaning products are also among the items federal food assistance cannot cover: SNAP benefits may not be used for soap, bleach, paper towels or trash bags, which leaves flooded families buying them out of pocket at exactly the moment their budgets are gone.

The flood behind the drive

The White River at Noblesville crested at a record 24.6 feet on Sunday, Aug. 16, topping the 23.8-foot mark set during the catastrophic statewide flood of 1913. More than 11 inches of rain fell across parts of central Indiana beginning Tuesday, Aug. 11.

Hamilton County commissioners declared a state of emergency Friday, Aug. 14, as more than 60 roads closed countywide, including stretches of State Road 37, State Road 19 and U.S. 31. The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office helped more than 160 families and several business owners evacuate voluntarily from the Riverwood community north of Noblesville.

Damage assessments released as the water receded counted roughly 552 residential units affected in Noblesville and about 230 properties in Carmel, where 40 residents were relocated and 14 were evacuated from senior living facilities. Fishers crews rescued an estimated 16 to 18 people from homes and along the river. Westfield reported no displaced residents. The Hazel Dell Road bridge between 96th and 106th streets sustained damage significant enough to require an engineering review.

Statewide, at least seven deaths have been attributed to the storms. Gov. Mike Braun declared a state of emergency, mobilized the Indiana National Guard and asked the federal government for an emergency declaration.

Other ways to help

The American Red Cross is operating a 24-hour resource center at Exhibition Hall on the Hamilton County Fairgrounds, 2003 Pleasant St. in Noblesville; the number there is 317-645-3261. About 1,300 volunteers have registered through Noblesville Serve. Cash donations for flood recovery are being routed through the Hamilton County Community Foundation, and Hamilton County Harvest Food Bank is running its own emergency relief fund, with contributions going toward groceries and restaurant gift cards for displaced residents staying in hotels without kitchens.

Hamilton County Harvest Food Bank is based at 89 S. Byron St. in Cicero and supplies pantries and feeding programs across the county. By its own estimate, roughly 33,666 county residents were food insecure before the river ever left its banks — about 7,136 of them children.