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Government & School Board

Maintenance building shell to be included in plans for water treatment facility

Plans for a water treatment and distribution facility north of Huntington will include the shell of a maintenance building that could be finished later, with the option of omitting that building from the project if bids come in too high, members of Huntington Common Council decided Tuesday, Sept. 14.

Huntington Common Council to outlaw sale of K2 in city limits

An anti-drug activist says synthetic marijuana is a potential killer that should be taken off store shelves; a store owner argues that it's a legal product and, as such, should remain readily available to adults.

In the end, Huntington's Common Council voted Tuesday, Sept. 14, to outlaw the sale of the substance - sold under a variety of names including K2 and Spice - within the city limits, joining several other northeast Indiana communities in attempting to regulate the chemical compound.

Andrews council has busy evening Monday

Vandalism at the Andrews Park, a new town council member, a system to digitize the town ordinances and resolutions and a number of large purchases were hot items at the Andrews Town Council meeting on Monday, Sept. 13.

Clerk/Treasurer Bill Johnson, on behalf of Linda Wright, Park Commission liaison, as well as Parks Commission member Glen Fisher, discussed a growing concern over vandalism at the Andrews Park in light of recent renovations.

HCCSC board unanimously approves hiring of new food service director at Monday meet

The Huntington County Community School Corporation Board of School Trustees unanimously approved the hiring of a new food service director on Monday night, Sept. 13, following Tom Lentes' resignation last month.

Ken Akins, originally of Illinois, has spent the last 11 years as the food service director at Huntington University, where he oversaw food served to university students as well as the catering service.

Roanoke council tables A-7 ordinance to tweak language

The Roanoke Town Council decided to table the somewhat-controversial "Section 920: Employment Zoning Overlay District," also known as the "A-7 Corridor Ordinance," in order to change some language in the document at its meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 7.

Council Vice President Troy Karshner said the changes are needed to better specify language concerning what current property owners may do with their property.

National small business group gives Rep. Leonard high scores

State Rep. Dan Leonard (R-Huntington) received an 89 percent score for his voting record from the National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB).

The NFIB is a membership organization that focuses on the impact on small business of current and proposed state and federal legislation.

The scores were determined by floor votes that the state legislators made on key small business issues. The NFIB singled out nine bills that had a direct effect on small businesses. Some of the issues that the bills touched on were:

• Age discrimination.

Making the cut


Photo by Andre B. Laird.

Teresa Rody (left) assists Bridget Bailey with cutting a piece of wood on Wednesday, Sept. 8, at the Salamonie Interpretive Center. The center hosted "Forestry with Paul Bunyan," which taught youth about foresters and also included games and crafts.

Markle meeting moved

The location of the Sept. 15 meeting of the Markle Town Council has been changed.

The meeting, which includes a public hearing on the town's proposed budget, will be held at the Markle Fire Station, 150 W. Sparks St., Markle.

The meeting begins at 7:30 p.m.

 

SWCD announces tree sale deadline of Sept. 22

The Huntington County Soil and Water Conservation District will again sponsor its fall tree sale.

Varieties available for purchase include October glory maple, prairiefire crab, crimson king maple, Cleveland pear, red oak, autumn blaze maple, Norway spruce, blue spruce, tulip poplar, exclamation London plane, lilacs and knockout roses.

Order forms are available at the district office, 2040 Riverfork Drive, Huntington. Tree orders are due by Sept. 22.

For more information call the district office at 356-6816, extension 3.

 

Residents can register for emergency notifications

Huntington County Emergency Management Director Brandon Taylor says anyone in Huntington County can register phone numbers in the county's CodeRED system and receive notification in case of an emergency.

The system, which was implemented by the county about 18 months ago, says Taylor, is used only for emergency purposes.

Occasions when the system would be used could include drinking water contamination, evacuation, missing persons, hostile situations and releases of hazardous material.

Rokita reminds Hoosiers about voter reg. deadline

Indiana Secretary of State Todd Rokita is reminding Hoosiers of the approaching Oct. 4 voter registration deadline and encouraging those not yet registered to complete or download a registration form online at www.indi anavoters.com.

"September is dedicated to raising awareness about the Oct. 4 voter registration deadline and highlighting the many tools available to voters including our new online registration option," Rokita says. "National Voter Registration Month helps drive home the message that every voter and every vote counts."

Lifelong Huntington resident is hired as new chief sanitarian

Joe Rakoczy sits at his new desk on Friday, Sept. 3, a day after his first full day as chief sanitarian for the Huntington County Health Department. Rakoczy is a lifelong resident of Huntington.
Photo by Jessica Williams.

Joe Rakoczy, a lifelong Huntington resident, has been hired as the Huntington County chief sanitarian.

Rakoczy graduated from the Huntington University Excel program in 2005. He has spent the last 19 years in healthcare in Huntington hospitals, from Huntington Memorial to Parkview Huntington. He was in charge of regulatory guidelines issued from health governing bodies such as the state board of health, and he spent about 10 years in employee health and safety.

Treasurer’s office to be closed Sept. 15 for employee conference in Indy

The Huntington County Treasurer's office will be closed on Wednesday, Sept. 15, so that the employees can attend a one-day conference in Indianapolis.

The software company Manatron will be offering this conference dedicated to educational product sessions, says Huntington County Treasurer Brenda Hamilton.

The office will re-open on Thursday, Sept. 16, at 8 a.m.

 

City to again be sprayed for mosquitoes

The city of Huntington will again be sprayed for mosquitoes following last month's discovery of mosquitoes carrying the West Nile virus.

Traci Clor, of the Huntington County Department of Health, says the second round of spraying will begin on Thursday, Sept. 9. It will take more than one night to cover the entire city, Clor says, so the spraying will continue on Friday, Sept. 10, and possibly on Saturday, Sept.11.
The mosquito-killing spray will be applied during the evening hours, Clor says.