Wednesday, October 16, 2024
FLASHBACK PHOTO: Feb. 11, 1965
Shelbyville High School Courier
Council Approves Step Toward Local Company’s Tax Abatement Request
The Shelby County Council last night approved the first step toward a tax abatement for a Morristown area company planning to install an anaerobic digester, which will take organic food waste and convert it to natural gas for sale on the interstate pipeline. But the 5-2 vote to establish an Economic Revitalization Area (ERA) was preceded by a series of “Who’s on first?” actions.
The proceedings opened in usual fashion, with Briane House, attorney for petitioner Caldwell Land Co. II, listing the benefits of the $53 million investment, which would add six “high paying” positions totaling $750,000 in salaries and benefits to their existing 135-employee payroll, not counting the construction process. The digester would be located adjacent to the company’s existing organic composting facility, which is used to produce fertilizer for area farmers. (The Addison Times profiled the company in 2022, then three years old and employing 70.)
The Council then voted in favor of the ERA, 6-1, with council member Kyle Barlow opposing, setting the stage for a tax abatement request at next month’s council meeting. A couple of area residents then approached the podium with questions and concerns, and Zoom caller Blake Newkirk pointed out the meeting notice used the phrase “public hearing.” Attorney Jason Clark, counsel for the county council, noted that a public hearing was only required for the abatement request, but recommended hearing out all members of the public and then reconsidering the vote, which the council did.
It became apparent that several in the audience were confused about the process. Some noted they were unaware the project had been discussed in detail at the Shelby County Board of Zoning Appeals meeting in May. (That meeting was covered in The Addison Times, and Mr. House responded that the room then was packed. “There were people in the hallway, and, again, that had been posted in the paper as required by statute,” he said.) Notice of the project on last night’s council agenda was published in The Shelbyville News on Oct. 5, but several in attendance said they had still been caught off guard.
“I found out on Facebook,” area resident Michelle Highers said. She turned to the audience, asked how many had been unaware of the project, and counted a few hands raised.
“Not everybody gets the newspaper,” one person called out. (By state statute, legal notices in Indiana appear in publications that meet certain criteria, including paid subscriptions.)
Chad Franer said he was similarly unaware. “There's not enough information out there about (ERAs),” he said. “How do we find out more about the zoning…?”
After questions arose about the need for a tax abatement and the type of land that qualifies for ERA, Mr. Clark said ground that is farmed is eligible. (The property, 11599 N 200 E, Morristown, located near landfill property, is identified in the Shelby County Comprehensive Plan’s Future Use Map as Industrial.)
Clark also clarified that the establishment of an ERA can be rescinded by the council. The ensuing abatement request, to be heard next month, will be a 10-year declining abatement on the building. The county will still collect over $5.5 million in tax revenue over the 10 years, according to a local economic development report, House said.
Following the additional discussion and revote, Councilman Brett Haacker joined Barlow in voting against the ERA. Councilmembers Terry Smith, Ryan Claxton, Tony Titus, Nick O’Connor and Leigh Langkabel voted in favor.
NOTEBOOK:
The Shelbyville Board of Public Works gave the resident of 321 Howard Street an additional 30 days to clean up the property. “I think we’re on the right track,” Troy Merrick, city code enforcement officer, said. The board also gave the owner of 309 E. Mechanic St. an additional 60 days.
Police issued a summons to appear in court to a woman for leaving the scene after crashing into a car, and causing that vehicle to hit a parked car on Colescott Street. A witness helped police locate the driver who left the scene.
A police officer who had turned around on North State Road 9 to apprehend a motorcyclist traveling at a high rate of speed was struck by a second motorcycle. The motorcyclist in the accident suffered multiple lacerations, contusions and had active bleeding. The motorcyclist was also investigated for a DUI.
The 6th Annual Community Trunk or Treat is set for this Saturday, October 19, 12 p.m. to 3 p.m., downtown. A huge “thank you” to Title Sponsor, Kroger; Gold Sponsors, Runnebohm Construction, Gigabite Now, and Meltzer for Indiana; and Silver Sponsor, Major Health Partners. Cars need to be parked between 10 a.m. - 11 a.m. to allow for road closures. Public Square will be closed from Franklin Street to Broadway and from Tompkins to the activated alley. Anyone who wishes to have a trunk can register here: Trunk or Treat Registration. The event is free to the public.
NATIONAL NEWS: Signing a check at a restaurant or for a rudimentary purchase paid by credit card is still incredibly common, but Visa, Mastercard, Discover and American Express all dropped the requirements to sign back in 2018. It’s been years, and still people continue to unnecessarily sign papers that will never be read, scrutinized, seen or even required under audit. (Wall Street Journal/Numlock)
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SHS Courier Archive Highlights:
April 26, 1995
May Festival planning was underway. Floyd Neeb and Gail Wildman were in charge of the stage, and had plans to add more arches and expand the set. The May Court included Rebecca Henderson, escorted by Cory Speece; Jill Ingle, escorted by Kyle Hobbs; Amy Letzler, escorted by Tim Kamleiter; Lori Livingston, escorted by Pat McNeely; Brooke Manning, escorted by Bob Decker; Jamie Wilcox, escorted by Brady Campbell; and Richelle Winkler, escorted by Derek Ricketts. The Lady Mayor was Michelle Tungate, escorted by Lord Mayor Brad Hook.
Theresa Anderson was a candidate for State Student Council, hosted at Ball State University, for District 10. It was the first time there was a representative from SHS. Jennifer Williams, Andrea Durham and Melanie Beglin were on a state committee called Leap Into Leadership. Lori Livingston, Williams and Durham were helping with the Salvation Army canned food drive.
Prom would be set to the theme, “A Walk on the Ocean.” The prom court included Michelle Anewalt, escorted by Sam Shuppert, Carolynn Baker, escorted by Daniel Kincaid; Jamie Haggard, escorted by Corey Branam; Teresa Harrold, escorted by Ryan Claxton; and Emily Young, escorted by Steve Creel. Post prom would be themed “Late Nite at Shelbyville High,” and include a casino atmosphere and auction.
“College Brochures” got a D+ in Jim Burnes’ “Make the Grade” column. “Idaho Institute, Trinity of Alaska College, Transylvania State? Who are these people and why are they calling? Why hasn’t Harvard called?”
Competing editorials debated whether underclassmen should be allowed to prom with their junior and senior partners.
This Day in Shelby County History
News around Shelbyville and the surrounding area as reported on or about this date in history. Selections are curated from the Shelby County Public Library Genealogy Department.
2014: Editor’s note: Due to a microfilm processing error, the 2014 section for the next couple of weeks will serve to memorialize a local individual who passed away that year.) William “Bill” Alvis, 63, passed away March 13. He graduated from Shelbyville High School in 1969 and attended Lincoln Tech. He married Barbara Perry in 1974, and she survived. Bill retired as a forklift operator in 2006. He worked at IPC for five years, Knauf for 18 years and Great States for three years. He attended Fenns Community Church, where he led praise and worship and Royal Rangers.
2004: Runnebohm Construction received the ABC Excellence Award for a church the company built in Greenwood. The new worship facility was built on a 34-acre site and featured more than 24,000 square feet of space. The roof peak cleared 44 feet, with a complex roof design a unique combination of multiple pre-engineered buildings with different roof planes.
Ricci’s Deli, 20 S. Harrison St., nearly closed, but the owner changed his mind and decided to adjust advertising strategies. He said he had been focusing on his Greenwood restaurant and “treating (the Shelbyville location) like the poor stepchild.”
1994: Hubler Ford Lincoln Mercury found its blimp. The car dealership’s 25-foot-long blimp had broken loose from its tether and flown away during a heavy wind storm. Hubler contacted the FAA. Arthur Thurston founded the deflated dirigible on a bank of Lewis Creek near his home. He and neighbor Larry Fox pulled the blimp off the bank. Hubler promised to change the oil in Thurston’s car as a reward for returning their wayward zeppelin.
1984: A group of local seniors on a Parks Department-sponsored trip arrived home after an eight-day trip and a frightening experience. The bus had stopped downtown Detroit just as the Tigers won the World Series and riots were underway. The bus driver stopped, and a mob attacked the bus luggage compartment, grabbing luggage and ripping it open. When clothes tumbled out, people in the crowd did their best to destroy it. Only 13 of 49 pieces of luggage were left intact. The rioters pounded on the bus windows and rocked the bus back and forth. The bus driver was finally able to move the bus and take a different route home.
1974: Members of the Northwestern District School Board heard a variety of reports regarding year-round school, which the board was considering. The board also debated whether to hire a full-time principal at Triton West Elementary School or a teaching principal to succeed Sam Sandefur, who was retiring at the end of the school year. With enrollment of 155, the board said it was leaning toward a teacher principal.
1964: A 6.4-mile section of the new I-465 was opened between U.S. 31 and Indiana 100. Eventually, 465 would circle Indianapolis, linking seven interstate highways, the most to enter any urban area in the U.S.
William McFerran startled his second period physics class as well as himself when a seemingly harmless physics experiment went awry. McFerran was demonstrating centrifugal and centripetal forces. He used a hollow glass globe with a loose metal ball in its center. He placed them on a rotating machine which spun the glass ball and the inside metal ball around, and the metal ball began bouncing and hit a thin spot on the glass globe. Centrifugal force then took over as the ball flew out, scattering about four square inches of broken glass. Both hit the wall, and the ball rolled to a stop on the floor at student Dave Bremer’s feet. McFerran promised to never try the experiment again.
1954: Police Chief Lloyd Mellis said he was tired of Halloween pranks, and had a plan. “If it is necessary for us to arrest parents in order to prevent damage to or destruction of property, or to prevent acts which may endanger life or limb, then we will do just that,” Mellis stated.
1944: Second Lt. Robert Bennett, 19, son of Mr. and Mrs. Allen Bennett, 318 South West St., wrote that his first air raid over enemy territory had been “the tough one, but now I have that one under my belt, and I feel lots better.” His first raid had been after a railroad bridge near Budapest. “When we left, you could have bought that bridge for five cents - it was really plastered! We experienced a bit of flak, but no fighters.” Bennett had graduated from SHS in 1943.
1934: “Shelbyville night life grows apace, and a tour of the city at, say 10 p.m., when all good villagers were formerly long abed, reveals that there are a number of these bright spots, each with its coterie of adherents who sit around and drink beer and swap the day’s news,” The Republican noted.
Several Shelby County men agreed to participate in a corn husking contest on Ernest Fischer’s farm on Oct. 23. Contestants would be Ed Hepner, Raymond McClain, Ernest McClain, Ed Braunaugel, Ed McColley, Clyde McNamara, Walter Haehl, Wade Fair, Charles Tindall, Weldon Fansler and Roy Taylor. Wade Fair was defending champion.
1924: The Sunshine Society at SHS was reorganized. Reeta Clark was the faculty sponsor, with Gail Hammond, Jane Durrenberger and Eulalia Mull assisting.
Three interurban cars were used to transport local teachers to Indianapolis for a training session.
1914: Eva Lee was arrested on a charge of intoxication. She had been arrested before and released by Mayor Schoelch on the promise to leave town and never return. “Eva broke her promise and got drunk besides, so she will now finish the sentence,” The Republican reported.
OBITUARIES
None today.