Haake named as new Huntingburg Library director
Angela Haake was named the new director of the Huntingburg Public Library by the board of trustees effective Oct. 1, 2013. Haake succeeded Kathleen Lett, who retired on Sept. 30, 2013 after 28 years of service to the library. Angie has been at the library since Oct. 2006, most recently serving as head of technical…
Board of Public Works approves plan to repair Jasper City Mill
The Jasper Board of Public Works approved a plan to repair the city mill’s collapsed wall. Nick Jahn of VS Engineering, a firm that specializes in hydrological projects, was contracted to make recommendations for the repair of the wall which collapsed with the rise and fall of the river in early-spring. The wall is not…
Dubois County Communications improvement plan started
The Dubois County Council approved advertising for $80,000 to be allocated to begin updates to the county’s communications system. County Commissioner Larry Vollmer requested the Dubois County Council fund a plan to improve the county’s communications system at the council’s meeting Monday night. The request comes after Vollmer commissioned a study of the communications system…
Dubois County Council not happy to hear community corrections requests
County Councilman Greg Kendall informed Judge Mark McConnell that community corrections was owed over $600,000 in unpaid fees from inmates. Those numbers were slapped in front of the Dubois County Superior Court Judge, who also serves as president of the Dubois County Corrections Advisory Board, when he appeared at the Dubois County Council meeting to…
Jasper Downtown Master Plan draft available for viewing
Jasper Downtown Riverfront Master Plan draft from Matthew Crane Jasper — The City of Jasper has released the draft of the Jasper Downtown and Riverfront Master Plan for the public to download and view. David Gamble of Gamble and Associates and Barry Alberts with CityVisions have met with members of the public in several open sessions…
Movie planned for Christmas Lake Village
"Just Be Claus" Location Scout in America's Christmas Home Town: Santa Claus, Indiana! @ Town of Santa… http://t.co/ujXVzdE1rZ — Silver Sail Entertainment (@SilverSail_Ent) November 21, 2013 Lights, Camera, Action! A film crew representing Silver Sail Entertainment is interested in shooting large section of the feature film “Just be Claus” in the Santa Claus area between…
No charges in Huntingburg bus incident
Update: Astrike will return to driving his bus route Friday morning. Don Astrike won’t face any criminal charges, according to Kevin Crouse, the Dubois County Prosecuting Attorney. Astrike was involved in an incident on Wednesday of last week involving three juveniles, two boys and a girl, on the bus he drives for the Southwest Dubois…
Jasper Arts Center seeking alcohol license
The Jasper Common Council approved the Jasper Arts Commission’s request to obtain an alcohol license for the Jasper Arts Center. Jasper Arts Commission Board President Mike Jones and Arts Center Director Kit Miracle appeared before the council to ask for approval to move ahead with obtaining an alcohol license for the arts center so that…
Jasper council questions selling property to school corporation
“Mayor, what if the council decides that we don’t want to sell any of the land to the school,” Jasper Councilman Kevin Manley asked Mayor Terry Seitz at the end of the council meeting Wednesday evening. Manley was referring to the city’s purchase of the former Jasper Country Club and the agreement the city informally…
Longtime bus driver disciplined kids in incident
Huntingburg — Video of Don Astrike, a contract bus driver for Southwest School Corporation, shows he placed his hands on a student and jostled him but witnesses say this was a disciplinary action. The mother of a student reported her daughter was the target of bullying by the boys and Astrike was disciplining them at the time…
Inmates not cause for community corrections budget shortfall
Dubois County Community Corrections’ budget issues are not due to lack of payments by the inmates, according to Dubois County Superior Court Judge Mark McConnell. McConnell presides over the Dubois County Community Corrections Board. On Monday, he addressed the county commissioners about the department’s budget shortfalls. Shortfalls that prompted county officials to allocate $44,000 in…
Utility Service Board: Ultraviolet water treatment addition needed
The City of Jasper is facing an expensive addition to the Water Treatment facility. Water Commissioner Dave Hurst reported on a water committee meeting held on November 14 to discuss ultraviolet treatment for the water treatment plant. The UV treatment will reduce the likelihood of cryptosporidium, a protozoa that can sicken humans. Additionally, the UV…
Huntingburg launches new website
Huntingburg – The City of Huntingburg has launched its redesigned website, http://www.huntingburg-in.gov. The website was created in a joint effort between the City and eGov Strategies, an Indianapolis-based web services provider. “The website is a direct response to our residents’ request for more communication with the City of Huntingburg, and it is going to be…
NE Dubois Jeeps claim 18th State Spelling Title
Northeast Dubois High School took its 18th spell bowl crown at the 29th annual Indiana Academic Spell Bowl State Finals. They placed first in the Class 4 senior division of the annual contest held on the Purdue campus in West Lafayette. Dubois has won the title more any other team in state history. Dubois Middle…
Police and SW School Corp Officials investigating assault allegation against bus driver
Huntingburg — The Huntingburg Police Department and Southwest Dubois County School officials are investigating an alleged assault on two students by a contract bus driver. According to Al Mihajlovits, the corporation transportation director, a parent filed a complaint with Principal Kelly Murphy and the Huntingburg Police Department stating her child and another child were assaulted by the…
Dubois County Commissioner Larry Vollmer announces state senate run
County Commissioner Larry Vollmer (D) announced on Thursday he would be running for the District 48 Senate seat being vacated by Senator Lyndel Hume next year. “As county commissioner, I understand how much we need conservative leadership and common-sense people in government,” he said in his announcement. “We need more and better-paying jobs. Our education…
Jasper will print 2014 calendars
Jasper — On Friday, Jasper Mayor Terry Seitz announced that there will be a printed City Calendar for 2014. During the Jasper Board of Public Works and Safety meeting on Tuesday, Mayor Seitz announced the city would not be printing a 2014 City Calendar. “When I made the decision to forego the traditional printed calendar based on increasing costs…
Huntingburg Common Council: New website and new superintendent announced
The City of Huntingburg has two new things; a website and Water Utility Superintendent. The council approved offering Todd Williams the position recently vacated by Tony Trayler as the city’s new Water Utility Superintendent. Williams comes from Winslow where he was the town’s Utilities Superintendent. He previously worked for Neikirk Engineering as a business manager/water,…
Less inmates part of community corrections budget shortfall
J.P. Weisheit, director of Dubois County Community Corrections, told his board that the numbers at the corrections center were down about 20 inmates. The declining numbers of inmates and participants, down to 201 individuals at the time of the meeting, is one ingredient in the department’s continued budget shortfall. The department is funded through fees…
Ferdinand Town Council: A monster of a deal – curbside recycling collection comes to Ferdinand
If all goes as planned, Ferdinand will have the premiere curb side recycling service in Dubois County by Christmas. The Ferdinand Town Council entered into an agreement with Monster Recycling of Jasper during the council’s meeting Tuesday night. The town will purchase 920 recycling bins (118 over the number of households served). Monster will deliver…
Sisters of St. Benedict program benefits from Ferdinand Fondo proceeds
Ferdinand — DC Multisport presented a check in the amount of $5,071 to Sister Barbara C. Schmitz and Sister Barbara L. Schmitz, Sisters of the Monastery Immaculate Conception and representatives for the Family Scholar House Program on Tuesday. The money was raised through entry fees for the inaugural Ferdinand Folk Fest Fondo cycling event. Ferdinand…
Choices for updating county communications topic of discussion
The recently released study of the county’s communications system dominated the conversation at the 9-1-1 Communications Board meeting Monday night. The study was conducted by Jack Hart, a consultant for Tusa Consulting Services in Kansas City, MO, and he presented it to the county commissioners at their October 21 meeting. The study was prompted after recent…
Same-sex marriage meeting in Ferdinand on Wednesday
Ferdinand — A Ferdinand business owner is hosting a community meeting regarding the opposition of a proposed amendment to the Indiana Constitution that would ban same-sex marriage in the state. The amendment, House Joint Resolution 6, states (HJR 6), “Only a marriage between one (1) man and one (1) woman shall be valid or recognized as a…
Share (or sell) unused tickets for Jasper Arts performances
Jasper — Clint Black is performing at the Jasper Arts Center Sunday evening and every ticket is sold, but Director Kit Miracle is concerned about empty seats. Regardless of the scheduled performance, sold-out shows invariably have empty seats and the Jasper Arts Commission would like to ensure those seats are filled. Miracle informed the Arts Board that…
Jasper Library Board meeting notes; November 7
The Jasper Library Board met at 4:00 pm Thursday afternoon – about 45 minutes earlier than normal – the Contractual Board usually meets first, however the combined boards held an executive session at 5:30 pm, hence the need for the earlier start time. Library Director Rita Douthitt reported to the board that the front steps…
Potential lawsuit against the City of Jasper includes demand for $500,000
In April the City of Jasper received a tort claim notice demanding $500,000 for the victim of an alleged sexual assault by one of the city’s police officers. The tort claim notice — a letter giving notice to a government entity of a potential lawsuit — was filed against the City of Jasper, the Jasper Police…
Readers sent in these photos of local veterans
[wooslider slider_type=”attachments” limit=”20″ thumbnails=”default”] [wooslider slider_type=”attachments” limit=”14″ thumbnails=”default”] Descriptions can be found on the #MyDuboisCounty page.
Koatz4Kidz impacts thousands locally; seeking more contributions
The annual Koatz4Kidz campaign is winding down and the warm weather this fall may have kept folks from donating to the annual drive which ends on Monday, November 11. It’s not cold yet but the temperature is expected to drop over the next few days and many residents will be in need of warm coats,…
Tricap Mudslinger a success (results included)
This 360 degree view can give you an idea of the beautiful fall day the runners were able to enjoy on Sunday. The Tri-Cap Mudslinger, a grueling 6k and half-marathon, was held Sunday. The first mile was on the paved road of the Ferdinand State Forest but afterward, runners slogged through mud, water, and hills…
Dubois County Marching Bands end season with strong finishes
Saturday was a good day for Marching Bands from Dubois County in the ISSMA State Finals at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Jasper Marching Wildcats — whose class performed earlier in the day — finished fourth in Class B behind three strong performances by perennial favorites; Greenwood, who took first place, followed by Concord of Elkhart and Northview of…
Marching Wildcats take fourth at State
The Jasper Marching Wildcats took home a fourth place trophy at the ISSMA State Marching Band finals in Indianapolis on Saturday. The Wildcats marched a solid program called “Divine Messengers,” but competition was heavy this year in class B. After the awards were handed out band director James Goodhue said “we don’t have any complaints,…
