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There are a lot of things you don’t learn in journalism school. Don’t get me wrong — I got a great education from Indiana University but there are certain things that you just don’t learn until you’re actually out there covering a community. It’s all about the public’s right to know. “Seek truth and report it,” the Society of Professional Journalists tells us, in an “accurate, comprehensive, timely and understandable manner.” So off you go, to a meeting of elected Michelle Laird DIALS officials. And suddenly, they’re tossing around Editor/publisher terms like “CEDIT,” and “TIF” and “encumbrance.” They’re voting on ordinances and resolutions and sometimes one vote puts them into effect and sometimes it takes another meeting or even another committee before it actually takes effect. There are boards and commisINFO is a free, monthly newspaper sions and sometimes serving Cass County, Indiana and their decisions are the surrounding areas. It is part of the Cass County Communication final and sometimes Network, published by their recommendaExistential Media LLC. Published by Existential Media LLC tions have to go Calendar Items 206 Fourth St. P.O. Box 314 Community events that are open to before other boards, Logansport, IN 46947 the public and have a specific date, committees or time and location can be submitEditor/Publisher ted FREE to Michelle Laird Dials commissions to CassCountyCalendar.com. (574) 721-4636 (michelle@ Use the submit link on the website become final. And existentialmedia.com) or e-mail details to your job, as a contact@cassnetwork.com. Cover Photo We reserve the right to select courtesy journalist, is to Cass County specific events to feature on our Historical Society extract from it what Facebook page, in e-mail newsletters, in Cass County INFO One copy of INfo: is free. the public needs to or in other community updates. Additional copies are $.50 each. know. And sometimes, CAUGHT ON CAMERA The views expressed they need to know Photos posted on our Facebook by our fan pages may be selected, at writers are not before the decision our discretion, to be published in necessarily those of INFO. Photos can also be is made. The other Existential Media LLC. e-mailed to contact@cassnetwork. night, I attended a For advertising com. information, meeting of landowncontact Advertising information Phill Dials ers who oppose the (574) 721-4635 The Cass County Communication (phill@ Network offers print, web and city of Logansport’s cassnetwork.com) mobile advertising solutions. For information about advertising, annexation. They e-mail contact@cassnetwork.com want to file a “remonor call (574) 721-4635. strance.” I used that word on the news and Editorial Information Views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect someone said “I have the position of the Cass County Communication Network or its parent company, Existential Media LLC. Our publications provide information no idea what that is.” about events and activities happening in or near Cass County, Indiana. The other thing they The information is provided by Existential Media LLC for general information purposes only. We strive to keep the information up-to-date and don’t tell you in correct, however we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitabiljournalism school is ity or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, that just because you services, or related graphics contained in our publications for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at write something, it your own risk. In no event will Existential Media LLC be liable for any loss doesn’t mean people or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or are going to read it, profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of our publications. or understand it. And Interested in advertising with Cass County Communication sometimes, the way Network? Call (574) 721-4635 for more information! you word things may
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Assessment notices mailed
Notices of assessment, or Form 11s, were mailed to Cass County property owners on Sept. 3. If you think your assessment is too high, you have until Oct. 18 to file an appeal. A different mailing system was used this year, so if you received multiple envelopes with only one or two pages in them, call the assessor’s office at 574-753-7710. They are working to correct the problem. If you own property in Cass County and did not get a Form 11, please call 574-753-7710.
Avoid Huston Park work zones
Community Foundation awards $90,000+ in community grants This year’s Cass County Community Foundation grant recipients include the Lewis Cass Band Boosters who will receive $15,000 for a new building to house the band’s equipment; $23,319 for renovations to the Twelve Mile Community Center and $24,000 for the Young America Lions Club and Lewis Cass FFA for a new greenhouse to provide educational experience and produce for local food pantries. The Cass County 4-H Association received $17,625 for building renovations at the 4-H Community Center and the Domestic Violence Task Force received an $820 grant for a laptop and software. The Pulaski Health Foundation and Friends of the Panhandle Pathway received a $9,250 challenge match for trail equipment. Funding for community grants is made available through the generosity of donors to the community foundation’s unrestricted endowments.
Light Up Logansport announces changes
AT LEFT: Volunteers sort food donated during the Downtown Christmas Open House, which is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 5.
“Light Up Logansport” will take a new and different direction for the 2013 holiday season. Instead of the parade which is traditionally held on the day after Thanksgiving, there will be a “Light Up Logansport Celebration” in cooperation with Logan’s Landing’s Downtown Christmas Open House on Thursday, Dec. 5. The celebration will include music, activities for children and a special lighting of the holiday displays at Little Turtle Waterway and Heritage Park. Questions about Light Up Logansport can be directed to the Parks Administrator, Janet Fawley at 574-753-6969 or e-mail at admin@loganparks.comcastbiz.net.
The Logansport Parks & Recreation Department has announced that additional work is being completed at Huston Park. The work is estimated to be completed through the month of September, and possibly some of October. The Parks Department has requested that the public stay out of work zones during this time. Additional excavation, grading & reseeding are being completed in the field to be known as the Mike Anderson Community Complex. This work is extremely important to the field’s primary use – soccer and football practice fields.
Heartland to open in October
Portions of the new State Road 25 Hoosier Heartland Highway between Logansport and Delphi will open in phases beginning the week of September 15 through late October. INDOT is working with the Hoosier Heartland Industrial Corridor, Inc. to organize a ribbon cutting for this $334 million Major Moves project when the last portions of pavement open to traffic in late October. For information about the Downtown Christmas Open House which is scheduled on Thursday, Dec. 5, contact Logan’s Landing executive director Becki Harris at 574-7229345.
September 2013 | Cass County INfo: | 3
Power plant agreements to be revealed in October BY MICHELLE LAIRD DIALS It’s been less than a year since the City of Logansport announced that it was requesting proposals from private companies interested in building a new electric generating plant powered by trash instead of coal. On Oct. 1, the LMU Utility Service Board will see the first draft of a purchase power agreement with Pyrolyzer LLC, the Florida-based company whose proposal was recommended in January by a study team hired by the city and LMU. LMU Superintendent Paul Hartman and Mayor Ted Franklin took an “under the radar” mission to Germany Aug. 17-21 to look at a pilot facility that uses the Pyrolyzer process to produce a synthetic gas from municipal solid waste. Franklin says some other local officials also went along, but neither he nor Hartman has publicly announced the names of those who accompanied them on the trip. While there, they also visited a materials recycling facility, or MRF, where the waste is sorted and a pellet plant where it’s converted into pellets.
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Hartman told the utility service board at their August meeting that although the Pyrolyzer process does not require pellets to generate the gas that’s burned instead of coal to generate the electricity, they may use the pellets if the revenue stream allows. A few days later, Hartman and Franklin and other representatives visited another materials recycling facility in Canada. The Utility Service Board normally meets on the fourth Tuesday of the month, but due to scheduling conflicts with some of the board’s members, they’ll meet a week later, on Tuesday, Oct. 1. At that time, Hartman said, the first draft of the purchase power agreement with Pyrolyzer LLC will be presented to the board, for them to consider for a vote at the regular October meeting three weeks later on October 22. Board member Todd Miller said he would like to see more time for the public to review and comment on the agreement. In an interview on WSAL’s Talk of the Town on Sept. 3, Hartman and Franklin said a public hearing would likely be held, but that it would be a time for the public to voice their comments, not a question and answer session. To date, the city and LMU have appropriated about $1.5 million dollars toward consulting fees, and legal fees continue to mount for a lawsuit filed by Logansport resident Julie Kitchell. The Indiana Supreme Court heard an appeal of Judge Rick Maughmer’s ruling to dismiss the lawsuit on Sept. 5. Many Logansport residents agree that something must be done to address the problems LMU faces with an aging electric generating plant that won’t be allowed to burn coal much longer because of federal regulations. But many remain skeptical — of the fact that, according to Pyrolyzer’s proposal, the longest a facility has continuously run using the technology was 15 days from August 28 through September 11, 2002; of the types of emissions that will come from the facility and of the potential impacts of bringing 6,000 tons of garbage per day into the community by rail. The proposed location for the plant hasn’t been revealed, but in July, the city finalized annexation of two large areas of land south of Logansport, along the Hoosier Heartland Highway. The annexa-
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Photos provided tion is set to take effect in October, and those areas will become part of the city. What local officials will say is that it’s a $600 million dollar public private partnership investment that will pay $5 million dollars a year in property taxes, doubling what the city collected last year, according to Franklin. He also predicts that the city will eventually be able to purchase its own trash trucks. The council has already included funds to eliminate trash pickup fees paid by residents as part of the 2014 city budget. Franklin revealed in an August 22 appearance on WSAL’s Talk of the Town that he has a verbal agreement to dump all of the city’s trash at the new facility for free. He also said that he expects electricity costs to decrease by about 20 percent. The agenda for the October 1 utility service board meeting will be posted on CassCountyCalendar.com when it is received. More information about the project is available on CassCountyOnline.com by clicking on “LMU Rate Stabilization Initiative.”
Be part of cancer prevention study Cancer is a word heard too often in our community. One hundred years ago, the American Cancer Society began the fight of a lifetime – the fight to end cancer. Cancer Prevention Study-3 (CPS-3) will get us closer to finishing the fight. The ultimate goal of CPS-3 is to enroll men and women from various racial/ethnic backgrounds from across the U.S. to participate in a study that will help researchers better understand the lifestyle, environmental and genetic factors that cause or prevent cancer and will save lives. American Cancer Society studies began in the 1950s and involved hundreds of thousands of volunteer participants. These studies have led to discoveries such as the link between cigarette smoking and lung cancer and the role obesity plays in the risk of several cancers. The new CPS-3 will help researchers build on evidence from previous studies, and help bring us closer to eliminating cancer as a major health burden for this and future generations. If you are between the ages of 30 and 65 years old and have never been diagnosed with
cancer, you are eligible to enroll. Enrollment will be available at All Saints Catholic Church on Friday, September 20 from 4 – 7:30 p.m. Participating is easy and involves the following: • Read and sign an informed consent form. • Complete a survey packet which will ask for detailed information on lifestyle, behavioral, and other factors related to your health. • Be measured for waist circumference. Give a small blood sample (similar to a doctor’s visit). The blood sample is drawn by a trained, certified phlebotomist. • Complete a mailed survey every few years over the next 20-30 years All personal information and any individual results of blood analyses that may be performed will be kept strictly confidential by CPS-3 research staff. There will be no cost to you to participate. For more information about CPS-3, please visit cancer.org/cps3, email cps3@cancer.org or call toll-free 1.888.604.5888. To schedule your appointment please visit: cancer.org/ northcentralincps3
Donations sought for trip to China Ten members of court. the Logansport High The invitation from School Girls Basketthe Chinese officials ball Team have been includes all the team’s invited to travel to expenses within ChiChina during fall na but the group must break in October raise $30,000 locally as part of the sister to fund the travel to schools cultural exChina. Businesses and change between the individuals are urged Ten members of the Logansport HS girls local community and to consider supportbasketball team have been invited to visit China in October. A basketball from Logansport the Zhejiang proving this opportunity High School was one of the gifts presented ince. for the athletes. when the Chinese Consul General visited The team will presDonations are being Logansport over the summer. ent clinics to Loganaccepted at the Cass sport’s sister schools County Community that include not only basketball skills but also Foundation to the Cultural Exchange Fund for emphasize the importance and value of develthe trip and are tax deductible as allowed by oping leadership in young women. The agenda Section 170 of the IRS code. includes visits to our sister schools in Jinhua, For more information about the trip, please Beijing, the Great Wall, and Shanghai. contact Michele Starkey, Superintendent of LoThe trip is a once in a lifetime opportunity gansport Schools, 722-2911 or Deanna Crispen, for the team members to learn firsthand about President, Cass County Community Foundaanother cultural and share their skills on the tion, 722-2200.
September 2013 | Cass County INfo: | 5
Calendar
BOO!
Trick or Treat! Halloween is right around the corner and local organizations are already adding spooky events to Cass County Calendar. Add yours, or find the complete list by clicking on this little guy, affectionately known around our offices as “Ghostieman” who makes an appearance every fall on www. casscountycalendar.com.
2 Rivers on 2 Wheels Bike Tour Saturday, Sept. 14 This event features 15, 32, 42, 50 and 60 mile bike routes, with a mass start at 8:30 a.m. from Riverside Park. Register at the Cass County Family YMCA or online at active.com
Great Grown-Up Spelling Bee coming in October
Art on the Avenue Saturday, Sept. 14 Join the Cass County Arts Alliance at this one-day festival at Little Turtle Waterway. Visit artave.org for more info! Kids’ Flu Clinic Wednesday, Sept. 18 The Cass County Health Department will be offering free seasonal flu vaccines to children 6 months to 18 years of age today by appointment only. This clinic is only for children ages 6 months to 18 years of age who have Medicaid, no health insurance or have health insurance that does not cover flu vaccine. Flu vaccine for adults 19 years and up will be offered soon at the health department for $15, cash or check. Clinic dates for adult influenza vaccine will be announced in the future. The Cass County Health Department is located at 512 High Street. Call 574-753-7760 for an appointment. “With a Little Help for my Friends” Concert Saturday, Sept. 21 Brandt Carmichael Entertainment Presents “With a Little Help for My friends,” a benefit concert for the Emmaus Center. A night of family fun Rock N Roll starting at 6 p.m. featuring Harvesting Murphy, Shiny Penny and WrongWay at McHale Performing Arts Center. Tickets are $10. Biblical Fashion Show Saturday, Oct. 12 Come - See - Hear - Feel - Discover “Two Thousand Years of Biblical Fashion” at The Salvation Army Church. The narrative story accompanying the fashion show will not only describe the colorful costumes of twenty-seven Bible women but a brief story of each woman’s life will be told. Show will last just over 1.5 hours. Cost is $12 with a delicious meal. River Bluff Run & Fun Walk Saturday, Oct. 12 Rain or shine, the River Bluff Trail, 800 Michigan Avenue, Logansport, will be the starting point of the River Bluff Run and Fun Walk. This annual event, sponsored by the Logansport Memorial Hospital Foundation, promotes Breast Cancer Awareness.
Live United Day
Friday, Sept. 20 The United Way of Cass County announces a free health fair open to the public on Live United Day, September 20, 2013, from 9 am to 2 pm at Revolution Community Church. The first 50 attendees who visit 25 booths will receive a free gift. The first 50 people will also receive free biometric testing, including cholesterol panel and blood glucose. All attendees can choose from several free health checks, including blood pressure, depression, anxiety, oral cancer screening, dental, vision, and hearing. Free health and wellness information will address senior care, children’s services, senior housing, fitness, smoking cessation, home healthcare, public transportation, cancer prevention, hospice, developmental disabilities, yoga, veteran’s services, and Pilates. Purdue Extension will present cooking demonstrations and healthy eating ideas. The Logansport Police Department will be doing fingerprinting for children and the Cass County Reading Railroad will be distributing free books. The American Cancer Society will seek enrollees for their upcoming national cancer research project and the American Red Cross will have a blood drive. Ivy Tech nursing students will conduct a demonstration about hand washing and germs. Flu shots will be available with no copay for people with Medicare Part B. For information about Live United Day or the free health fair, call the United Way of Cass County at 574-753-3533.
Find more local events Check out www.casscountycalendar. com to find or submit upcoming events. It’s available 24/7 and new events are added daily!
6 | Cass County INfo: | September 2013
Know what's going on Turn to www.casscountyonline.com for local news stories from our community!
The Literacy Volunteers of Cass County will find out who is the best speller in the county when it hosts its 22nd annual Great Grown-up Spelling Bee next month. Teams of three spellers plus one alternate will compete for first, second and third place. The team displaying the most spirit will receive the “Spirit Award”. Last year the “Spirit Award” went to Pioneer Schools. Spelling Bee winners were Columbia Middle School first place, Steinberger Construction second place, and Calvary Presbyterian came in third. Last year there were 17 entertaining teams. It’s a lot of fun, and always very competitive, but in a friendly manner. A lot of teams know each other from working together, it’s going to be very fresh fun. Paul Kroeger will be returning as the Bee Master. This is a written bee with 50 regular words and 10 tie-breaker words. The event will be held Tuesday, October 8 at the Calvary Presbyterian Church at 701 Spencer St, Logansport. Doors will open at 6:00. If your organization or business would like to enter a team, or you just want to sponsor your own team, contact Dave Miller at 574-721-2502. The cost to sponsor a team is $100 and is tax deductible. Registration deadline is October 1. There is no general admission. If you cannot participate in the spelling bee but still want to support the cause, donations can be sent to Literacy Volunteers of Cass County at 600 Regency Place, Logansport, IN 46947. All proceeds support the LVCC mission, which is to provide tutoring for adults who need help with literacy skills, including those working on their citizenship. You do not need to be bi-lingual to be a tutor. To find out how you can become a tutor, call Carolyn Killion at 574-355-0986 or 574-753-5906
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2 make total sense to you, but not to someone else. So I’m always glad to hear from someone who asks questions and wants to know more about a story I’ve covered. I’ll be honest — I’ve been going to these meetings for years, and I still don’t always get it. And your question might lead me to another question that I could ask to tell the story better. Lots of decisions are being made that affect everyone in Cass County. One of the biggest issues on the table is a new power plant that will burn gas made from trash instead of coal. At their meeting on October 1, the LMU Utility Service Board will look at the purchase power agreeement that a team of highlypaid consultants hired with the CEDIT funds I mentioned earlier have been negotiating since the beginning of the year. They’re expected to vote on it about three weeks later. If the project goes through, local officials say it will inject millions of dollars — more
than $500 million to be exact, into our community, and the money they’ve spent so far will be reimbursed by company they’re working with. But there are still a lot of unanswered questions with respect to the project and there are likely still more questions to be asked with a project of this magnitude. I’m planning to be at the meeting on Oct. 1, and I encourage you to join me. You can read more on page 4. Until next month, keep up with us online at www.cassnetwork. com or catch me weekdays on Mix 102, Hoosier Country 103.7 and 1230 WSAL with news at the top of the hour. I also host “Talk of the Town,” a one hour show on WSAL weekday mornings from 8-9 a.m., where I talk with local people about events, issues and opportunities in our community. If there’s something you’d like to know more about, I’d love to hear from you. EDITOR’S NOTE: Matthew Paul’s column, “No But Seriously ...” will return next month.
There’s more value To ivy Tech than its low tuition
qualiTy insTrucTion. As a former director of a large, regional childcare center, Jane Horner brings years of professional expertise to the classroom. She’s more than book smart. She’s life smart. early childhood educaTion program learn more at ivytech.edu/academics or jmhorner@ivytech.edu
The Logansport High School Class of 78’s 35th reunion included an introduction of those present who were members of the 77 championship football team, plus one cheerleader and two coaches! Wes Peters, Vickie Coppock Walker, Jeff Jones, Chris Breach, Coach Gaumer, Brian Wilson, Randy Hughes, and Coach Don Baldini. Shared by Jane Vandermark Williams Have a photo you to share? Post it on our wall at facebook.com/casscountycalendar.
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OUR NEW DOCTOR
WILL SEE YOU NOW. Jessica McClintock, MD Obstetrics and Gynecology
Logansport Memorial Hospital is pleased to welcome Jessica McClintock MD to the Logansport Memorial Physician Network. She is an obstetrician/gynecologist who will join the physicians of the Women’s Health Center, caring for women of all ages and stages of life. Dr. McClintock received her medical degree from the Ross University School of Medicine in Portsmouth, Dominica, West Indies. She completed her residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Medstar Franklin Square Medical Center in Baltimore, Maryland. Jessica McClintock, MD | OBGYN 1025 Michigan Avenue, Suite 115 | Logansport, IN 46947 574.722.3566 | www.logansportmemorial.org
Dr. McClintock is now accepting new patients. Her practice is located inside the Women’s Health Center in Medical Office Building East at Logansport Memorial Hospital. If you would like to make an appointment with Dr. McClintock, please call
574.722.3566.