Fishers city staff has now moved into the new City Hall after a long period of time scattered around the city as the new building was under construction.  Tuesday morning marked the first meeting of the Fishers Board of Works and Public Safety in the new center of city government.

Most of the items on the agenda were routine, but it featured the first time the board heard a utility bill appeal hearing.  Former Fishers City Planner Adam Zaklikowski says his state tax refund has been put on hold because he is named on a debt to Fishers for stormwater and sewer service.  Zaklikowski told the board he does not contest the debt is owed, but said this related to a dispute between himself and his ex-wife.  The board agreed the debt is due, but also agreed to take Adam Zaklikowski’s name off the debt, since he did not own the property for the period of service related to those bills.  Zaklikowksi now works for the Town of Fortville.

Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness said he was hoping for 3-4 bids when the request for proposals (RFP) was issued for a city-wide trash collection contract.  Fishers Deputy Mayor Elliott Hultgren tells LarryInFishers the city has received 3 bids.

Hultgren says the 3 bidders include Republic, WM (formerly known as Waste Management) and Priority Waste.  Republic and WM currently have most of the Homeowners Association (HOA) contracts for trash collection in Fishers.  Priority has some contracts in Fishers.

It will take time for the city staff to sort through the RFP responses, which are quite detailed.  It is possible the trash contract will be on the Fishers Board of Works and Public Safety agenda at the Tuesday, June 25th meeting.  The city has also indicated a public hearing would be held in July.

Sarah Parks-Reese has filed her candidacy for another term on the Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) School Board.  She is completing her first term representing Wayne Township.

In a news release posted on Facebook, Ms. Parks-Reese is described as one providing “a consistent voice for all students, with a particular focus on those students in Wayne Township, who are Noblesville residents, as well as those with exceptional needs and other student groups who are underrepresented.”

She points to her involvement is securing a number of grants for HSE Schools.  Parks-Reese and her family have lived in Noblesville, in the HSE district, for 18 years. She has a Bachelor’s Degree and Master’s Degree from Ball State University and has spent 25 years working in Early Childhood Education.

She is the second candidate to file for the Wayne Township board seat.  John F. Stewart has also filed for that board seat.

This round of HSE School Board elections is at-large, with 3 seats up for grabs.  All residents of the HSE School District vote for each seat, with candidates required to reside within the townships of Wayne, Delaware and Fall Creek Townships.  Suzanne Thomas has filed for re-election in Fall Creek Township, and as of early Tuesday morning is the only candidate filed for that seat.  No one has yet filed for the Delaware Township seat, currently held by Sarah Donsbach.

The deadline to file as a school board candidate is noon, Thursday, June 20th

After moving to Fishers in 1991, I faced a daily commute to and from work.  Most years, that meant a daily round trip to and from downtown Indianapolis.

Let’s just say I have seen my share of road construction during that time.  Each improvement promised to make the commute easier once completed.  Sometimes that happened, sometimes it did not.

I have seen my fair share of social media posts complaining about traffic challenges during construction in and around Fishers and Noblesville.  No doubt, those complaints are valid.

But let’s remind everyone why these road projects are needed.  We live in a growing suburban area.  People want to move here, and they are voting with their actions in choosing a place like Fishers in which to live.

When you live in a growing community, road construction projects will happen.  Improved and expanded streets and roads will happen when an area grows, through population and commercial activity.

The latest update is the opening of Allisonville Road north & south at 146th Street.  Vehicles will be restricted with no left turns.  There will be a traffic signal now so be aware of that.  This project has another year or more to go before completion, which will feature an overpass at 146th Street for unobstructed travel and a roundabout at ground level on Allisonville Road when all is said and done.

I am no fan of sitting in traffic.  I know how it feels and dealt with it many times in the past.  But remember this is a sign of growth and vitality when a community needs road work.

I know this is not much consolation, but try to remember next time you are waiting in traffic.

Yvonne Stokes resigned last September as Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) School Superintendent, with a separation agreement from the school board.  Dr. Stokes was named as the new Superintendent for Gary Schools Friday.  She is the first Gary superintendent in 7 years, because Gary Schools are just emerging from a state takeover.

Use the link below from Capital B Gary News for more details.

Gary Selects Stokes as Its Next Schools Superintendent

The warmth of summer is upon us, which means the Fishers area road construction report is becoming longer each week.  Note that Allisonville Road is set to reopen at 146th Street, and the construction at 141st & State Road 37 is preparing to get underway.

For more details on those projects, and much more, here is the weekly road construction update, as provided by the City of Fishers:

Continue reading Fishers road construction for the week beginning Monday, June 10 →

An employee of a Fishers Day Care facility has pleaded guilty and has been sentenced to a 9-year prison term.  Television station WTHR has more details on the story at this link.

If you were driving along 126th Street between HSE High School and Thorpe Creek Elementary Thursday around 1pm, you may have seen some activity at a crosswalk. It was the ribbon cutting ceremony for a major trail connection now open along the Geist Greenway.

“This has been a long time coming,” said Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness.  “This is a really good stretch of trail.”

The Geist Greenway is open from 104th Street to Geist Park (10979 Florida Road) and from Geist Park to 126^th Street. Once completed, the 5-mile pedestrian path will stretch from 96^th Street to 131^st Street.  With the addition of this trail, Fishers’ trail system will total 131 miles.

Hamilton County is working to restore and relocate the historic Bell Ford Bridge—a covered bridge from Jackson County near Seymour, Indiana—to provide safe crossing over Fall Creek along the trail.

The Fishers Health Department has issued an advisory, saying Fall Creek, in the area of Geist Park, has E.coli, based on recent testing conducted by the department.  The full text of the advisory is below.  (Note:  Geist Park is a different facility than Geist Waterfront Park…Geist Park is a Hamilton County Park….Geist Waterfront is a Fishers City Park)

It was such a moving ceremony held in France for the 80th Anniversary of the D-Day landing by Allied forces.  So many thoughts crossed my mind as I watched the event on television.

The long friendship between America and France came to mind.  Not that our two nations have not had our occasional differences, but our Revolutionary War with the British would never have been won without the help of the French.

When Jane & I watched the Statue of Liberty from a New  York tourist boat a few years ago, that was a gift to America from the people of France.  It was a special moment thinking about the many immigrants, including many of my own ancestors, gazing upon the Statue of Liberty as they first entered America decades aga.

I was also reminded how opposed Winston Churchill was to the D-Day invasion.  He realized the risks and the catastrophic consequences of an unsuccessful operation.  Dwight Eisenhower even drafted a statement in case D-Day failed, putting all the blame on himself.

Those servicemen knew the risks and knew the very good possibility they would not survive the storming of Omaha Beach and other places along the French coast, but they knew the stakes for the future of the world.  They were willing to make that sacrifice.

Each year we lose more World War II vets and lose the memories only they can share.  I would sincerely hope we never forget what Americans in the military services have sacrificed.

I appreciate how the City of Fishers, Mayor Scott Fadness and the Fishers Armed Services Commission have done such good work remembering our military veterans and supporting their families. It is one reason Fishers is a special place.