Jasper Arts: Hoosier Desk tax credit application completed
City officials have applied for a tax credit through the Indiana Economic Development Corporation to potentially cut $3.5 million dollars off the Hoosier Desk pricetag. The Jasper Public Library and Jasper Community Arts Commission has been exploring a potential partnership in purchasing site and building to create the Jasper Cultural Center. Plans for the development…
16 arrests and $7.5 million in marijuana tallied with Operation Smoke Out
The Indiana State Police partnered with several federal, state and local agencies to find and eradicate 146 marijuana grow operations throughout Southern Indiana during a marijuana eradication blitz named Operation Smoke Out. According to authorities, the state police, Indiana National Guard Counter Drug Task Force, US Drug Enforcement Administration, US Forest Service, Civil Air Patrol,…
269 marijuana plants found in SW Dubois County cornfield
Officers with the Dubois County Sheriff’s Department and the Indiana State Police confiscated about 269 marijuana plants the southwestern part of the county this morning. According to authorities, officers had located three separate plots of marijuana growing inside cornfields near Holland. Both the Indiana State Police and the Dubois County Sheriff’s Department frequently fly over Dubois…
Jasper Redevelopment Commission: Cabinet tax district discussed and resolution passed
The Jasper Redevelopment Commission approved a declaratory resolution to create a tax increment finance district encompassing the Jasper Cabinet property called the Jasper Riverfront TIF. In August, the redevelopment commission announced a private developer was interested in the Jasper Cabinet property and had entered into a purchase agreement with the owner, Jerry Fuhs. However, before…
Kids Fun Run and Festival this Friday
This Friday, the Dave Buehler Plaza at the Jasper Riverwalk will be filled with booths, games and fun for the entire family. The Heartland Kids Fun Run & Festival will be held from 5 to 7:30 p.m. on Friday, September 4 at the Dave Buehler Plaza and Jasper Riverwalk, with the Fun Run beginning at…
City pays tribute to longtime employee
Employees with the City of Jasper gathered along 2nd Street in front of the Schroeder Sports Complex to pay their respects to the passing motorcade carrying longtime Assistant Park Department Director Mike “Otis” Oeding to Ireland. Oeding, 60, passed away at home last Wednesday.
Springs Valley Bank & Trust donates $10,000 to Lange-Fuhs Cancer Center
A group of employees at Springs Valley Bank & Trust teamed up with Rosie Uebelhor of David’s Beauty Salon to raise $10,000 for the Lange-Fuhs Cancer Center at Memorial Hospital and Health Care Center. Springs Valley employees, on their own initiative, worked with Rosie, to create and sell a variety of specially designed bracelets to…
VUJC hosting speaker Kevin Hines – Mental Health Advocate
The Campus Activities Board at Vincennes University Jasper Campus will be bringing in Kevin Hines to speak on suicide prevention and mental health. The event will take place on Tuesday, September 1st at 12:00 p.m. in the Jasper Campus Classroom (JCCB) Lecture Hall at VUJC. Kevin Hines is an award-winning global speaker, bestselling author and…
Encore performance of Voices of Schnellville this weekend
After a highly successful show in October last year, the Voices of Schnellville will return for an encore performance tonight and Saturday night at 8:30 p.m. The encore performance features the addition of the stained glass windows from the original church as part of the production’s backdrop. The windows have been in storage for nearly…
Huntingburg Council notes from August 28, 2015
The Huntingburg Common Council’s second meeting for August was brief and only required one action. Before beginning the regular reports from the power and water departments, the council and Mayor Denny Spinner took a moment to recognize Angie MacDonald and Carolyn Bartelt for their years of service as at-home on call emergency utility dispatch. The…
Cravener joins Community Foundation
Dubois County Community Foundation announced Jill Cravener was recently hired as the Office and Grants Administrator. Jill brings nearly 13 years of proficiency in office management and public service, most recently with the City of Jasper as the Street Department’s Administrative Assistant. Cravener participated in the 2014 Dubois County Leadership Academy and was instrumental in…
Man arrested in double homicide investigation
Dover Hill — Two men were found dead at a home north of Shoals and another is in custody charged with murder after a short car chase Wednesday. On Tuesday, law enforcement officers in Martin County started searching for Tom Tharp, 52, 8720 Cale Road, Shoals, after his family reported him missing Tuesday evening. Wednesday…
Michigan man arrested for allegedly soliciting sex from a Jasper Middle School girl
A Grand Rapids, Michigan man was arrested for allegedly soliciting sex from a 14-year-old Jasper Middle School student through a series of online chats over a five-month timeframe. According to the Jasper Police Department, they obtained warrants for 44-year-old Michael P. Van Houten, of Grand Rapids, for Level 5 felony counts of child solicitation. On…
Astra Theatre to open for weekend of events in October
2012 Guitar Center national “Battle of the Blues” Winner Boscoe France to Headline the Activities Guitar Center’s 2012 national “Battle of the Blues” winner, Boscoe France, will perform at a Next Act, Inc., fundraiser in the historic Astra Theatre on Saturday, October 3. In addition to the performance, the 30-minute PBS documentary “Shoeless Blues: The…
Tri-County YMCA creates endowment to support its missions
The Tri-County YMCA has created an endowment with the Dubois County Community Foundation to support its programs and operations. “We’re setting the stage for our future growth,” said Mike Steffe Executive Director of the organization. “This endowment was part of our strategic plan and gives our donors an opportunity to contribute to the sustainability of…
Ferdinand to host community planning meeting Thursday
The Town of Ferdinand is inviting members of the community to attend a special meeting Thurday to provide input as the town updates its comprehensive plan for future developments. In 2007, the Town of Ferdinand updated and adopted a Comprehensive Plan. This plan looked out over 10 years and addressed ideas for the town to…
Whitney Hulsman, a Forest Park senior, announced as new Ferdinand intern
Whitney Hulsman, 18, a senior at Forest Park Jr./Sr. High School, will be the Town of Ferdinand’s new intern for the fall semester. “I am happy to have Whitney continue the strong tradition of Forest Park students who have interned with the town,” said Town Manager Chris James. “It is my hope that she will…
Sheriff ticked off at council’s decision on corrections director’s salary
Jim O’Neal, WITZ AM/FM News Director contributed to this report “In 2011, I came to this facility and said ‘hey, people aren’t being paid fairly,’” Sheriff Donny Lampert told the Dubois County Council after they voted 4-3 to give the new community corrections director a $5,000 raise. Lampert unleashed on the council after they approved…
Greater Jasper Schools: Corp. asks parents to be patient as bus routes are smoothed out
“The first day of school was ugly,” according to Greater Jasper Schools Superintendent Dr. Tracy Lorey in regards to to the new bus routes established this school year. It wasn’t surprising to find several parents speaking to the Greater Jasper School Corporation board of Trustees at its regular meeting Monday night in regards to bus…
Jasper couple ends up on Dave Ramsey Show
This is cool. A Jasper couple, Matthew and Bridget Fleck, ended up on the Dave Ramsey Show to do the “Debt Free Scream!” after eliminating over $35,000 in debt.
Hicks: More deportation follies
Because of our strict legal immigration policies, poorer folks have little choice but to come here illegally. Immigration is once again a policy topic, so it is good to apply a bit of arithmetic to proposed solutions. It is best to begin with legal immigration, where much of the later problems and costs accrue. Legal…
Dubois County 4-H members finish well at state fair
Members of the Dubois County 4-H did very well at the Indiana State Fair this year. In a rare occurance at the fair, three Dubois County participants were Sweepstakes winners. They were Jackson Clark in Computers, Gabriella Eck for Soil and Water Science, and Katherine Hurst in Woodworking. Then, 18 4-Hers were Merit Award winners….
Beaver Lake Spillway Elevation project funding approved
The Jasper Common Council cleared up the confusion surrounding the funding of the Beaver Lake Spillway Elevation Project. Last week, the council approved $180,000 be appropriated from the Riverboat Gambling Fund to the project. The council took this action over the former route of loaning The Friends of Beaver Lake $180,000 from the water utility….
Memorial Hospital’s Prayer and Presence offers unique volunteer opportunity
Memorial Hospital and Health Care Center is inviting individuals of the community to consider a very special and unique volunteer opportunity with a service called Prayer and Presence. Prayer and Presence is a program that allows patients and their loved ones to use the time of suffering, illness and dying as a path to wholeness….
Mailed marijuana intercepted
The sheriff’s department intercepted 110 grams of marijuana being mailed to a Jasper residence Thursday. The investigation began Thursday when the Dubois County Sheriffs Department Narcotics Detective received an anonymous tip about possible drug activity at 228 W. 15th St., Jasper. During his investigation, the detective sought the assistance of the Dubois County Prosecuting Attorney’s office…
2015 Athenian named; six local organizations receive generous donations
Before the 2015 Athena was named, the 280 attendees of the annual award benefit dinner were brought to their feet by keynote speaker Linda White. The master of ceremonies, Bob Bleemel, even had to take pause saying he was tearing up after Linda White, CEO and President of Deaconess Health System, gave each Athena nominee…
Birdseye gears up for 25th annual party
Both the Birdseye Park Department and Fire Department depend on an annual picnic for help with funding. As with most in Dubois County, the Fire Department is a volunteer endeavor. The Birdseye Park Department is almost such when it comes to funding. Although an appointed board under the auspices of the Town Council governs the…
Jasper Cabinet building and tax increment district discussed
Earlier this month, the Jasper Redevelopment Commission revealed a developer had an option to purchase the Jasper Cabinet building. Redevelopment Commission President John Bell gave a brief presentation to the Jasper Common Council on the upcoming process with the proposed development. Ed Curtin, principal at CWC Latitudes LLC of Columbus, appeared before the Jasper Redevelopment…
Jasper Common Council pays $180,000 from gambling fund for Beaver Lake project
Jim O’Neal, News Director at WITZ AM/FM contributed to this report The Friends of Beaver Lake won’t be saddled with a $180,000 loan from the water utility. Wednesday night, the Jasper Common Council appropriated money from the Riverboat Casino Fund to pay the balance of the project to raise the lake level about 11 inches….
Haunted Huntingburg adds Blues Festival; Boscoe France Band to headline
Destination Huntingburg’s third annual Haunted Huntingburg event will take place Friday, October 9 and Saturday, October 10, 2015. A new event added this year includes a blues festival on Market Street, featuring headliner The Boscoe France Band. France was the 2012 winner of Guitar Center’s Battle of the Blues competition, defeating over 4,000 competitors nationwide….
Tyner: High gasoline prices likely to stay around for a while
Gasoline prices that spiked in Indiana and some other Midwest states in recent days likely will remain high until a unit at a refinery in northern Indiana is repaired, Purdue University energy economist Wally Tyner says. One of three lines at the BP’s refinery in Whiting, Indiana, is down and is expected to remain so…
