Thursday, January 18, 2024
Merrick Announces County Council Candidacy
ABOVE: Troy Merrick, left, files election paperwork with county election deputy Jeff Sponsel. | submitted
Troy Merrick yesterday announced his candidacy for an At-Large Shelby County Council seat. “With a deep commitment to the betterment of Shelby County, Troy Merrick brings a fresh perspective to the upcoming election,” a campaign statement said.
Mr. Merrick has worked for the City of Shelbyville for 19 years, mostly as code enforcement. He has been a reserve officer for the Shelbyville Police Department for over 20 years and currently serves as president of the Shelbyville Central Schools board.
“Troy invites residents to join him on this transformative journey towards building a stronger, more vibrant Shelby County,” the statement said. “Together, the community can create a future that benefits every member and ensures the continued prosperity of Shelby County.”
Information on the campaign is posted on a Facebook page, also available by searching Troy Merrick for County Council At-Large.
NOTEBOOK:
The Shelby County Council on Tuesday heard an update regarding remodeling the former Shelby County Highway office and garage for the county’s Emergency Management Agency. Shelby County EMA director Denis Ratekin presented a wish list and cost estimates for converting the building, constructed in 1961 with an addition in 1993, into an area that allows for a warming shelter, distribution room and rooms for equipment storage. The council encouraged Ratekin to start with basic needs, with additional funding to be discussed later.
NATIONAL NEWS: In an attempt to put the kibosh on employees’ concerns about transparency, Adidas CEO Bjørn Gulden gave his personal number out to all 60,000 employees. He told the Wall Street Journal that he was then contacted about 200 times per week, mostly by staffers asking him to change the company. (Morning Brew)
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This Day in Shelby County History
2014: Shelbyville teen Carson Diersing, 16, played with his band in the Youth Showcase of the International Blues Challenge in Memphis. He had started playing guitar by taking lessons with locals Warren Cost and the late Tony Cooley. Diersing had also performed at The Strand.
2004: Downtown business owners reported optimism for 2004, but expressed concerns about lack of people coming downtown to shop. “You could almost shoot a cannon on the Square and not hit anything or anyone - it’s dead as a funeral home,” Dick Conger told The Shelbyville News.
1994: Shelby County Commissioners approved razing the 120-year-old Shelby County Jail. They would first need to have the building checked for asbestos. Sheriff Mike Herndon suggested allowing the furniture and equipment to be used in other county buildings.
1984: Morristown Chamber of Commerce members Bob Wortman and John Thomas and President Kim Terry met with Indiana Department of Commerce officials to show sites for possible expansion in the town’s industrial park. Kos-Mar Sales, a cheese processing company, was set to begin operations Feb. 1 in the former Ernie’s Slaughter House building.
1974: The Bears Den at the southeast corner of Second and Tompkins Streets, across from the junior high school building, was demolished. The location was to be used as a school parking lot.
Wiring was underway to install security cameras as the Shelby County Jail. The five cameras would focus on cell doors and other critical areas, with monitors in the radio dispatcher’s room. Sheriff Norman Murnan said the system included audio, and that videotaped incidents could be played back “on a big 23-inch screen for possible use in court.”
1964: Charles Cole, manager of J.C. Penney’s store downtown, announced plans to construct a new store in the Belaire Shopping Center. He said plans called for Penney’s on E. Washington St. to move to their new facility by mid-1965. The two-story facility would have air conditioning and be two and one-half times the size of the present store. There was parking for 1,200 cars in the Belaire lot.
Shelby Rambler Fair signed a deal to become a franchise dealer for Jeep. Oris Baxter was president of the dealership, located at 1530 S. Harrison St.
1954: Moral Township school took the day off for the Hawks to celebrate their third county tournament title in four years. Activities were planned starting at 9 a.m. to honor the team and Coach Art Cook. Eddie Shipp and Dave Sullivan were co-captains and the team’s only seniors.
1944: Dr. E.B. Miller, 78, physician in Fountaintown for 47 years, died. He had been a Fountaintown teacher before becoming a doctor.
The War Department announced plans to cease using Atterbury for active training of soldiers and transition it to a general hospital. There were 1,960 beds available at the camp.
1934: The Shelby County Medical Society announced plans for a smallpox immunization drive to reach 500 local children.
Nearly $2,500 in gold and gold certificates was taken in by Shelbyville banks, following order of the Treasury Department ordering everyone to turn in their gold for other currency. Updated federal guidance had made it unclear if penalties for missing a deadline would be enforced, so local banks issued certificates instead of currency to those who turned in the gold. “The penalty originally imposed was the full amount of the gold submitted,” The Republican said.
1924: Betsy Edwards of Shelbyville was appointed western manager for President Coolidge for the coming pre-convention. The local Republican paper commented, “Perhaps there is not another woman in all this country who has visited a larger number of states or who has come in personal contact with as many men and women of real importance as has Miss Edwards.” She was the daughter of John C. and Margaret Edwards. Mrs. Edwards had been a member of the first Shelbyville High School graduating class.
Waldron M.E. church pastor Rev. R.O. Pearson returned from Washington D.C., where he had attended an Anti-Saloon League convention. William Jennings Bryan had provided the closing message.
1914: Louis Bogeman’s slaughter house, located on Blue River in the northwest part of Shelbyville, burned down. The fire department did not have a hose long enough to reach the building to fight the fire.
OBITUARIES
None today