Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus (IUPUC) has announced the latest speaker to take part in the school’s “Excellence in Leadership Initiative.” School officials says that Haitian-American photographer Cendino Temé will make a presentation on Wednesday, Feb. 24 at 4 p.m. in Room 1000 of The Columbus Learning Center.

IUPUC officials say that the presentation will include an artist address and exhibition of his work titled “No More Blues.” Temé says the collection was inspired by the experiences of black youth who participated in the December 2014 peaceful protests held during the Art Basel event in Miami. He says that the protest was in response to police brutality and the deaths of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Israel Hernandez and others.

IUPUC officials say that this presentation, like all that are part of the Excellence in Leadership Series, is free and open to the public.

A Bloomington man is facing charges after allegedly robbing a Columbus bank.

Columbus Police Department (CPD) Spokesman Sgt. Matt Harris says that 49-year-old Stephen Lee was arrested early Wednesday morning,

several hours after the robbery. Authorities say that at approximately 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Columbus Police responded to the robbery at Main Source Bank, at 529 Washington Street. Bank employees told police that a man entered the branch, then passed a note demanding money while displaying a handgun. The suspect later fled the bank on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash.

Harris says that evidence ultimately led police to a residence in Bloomington. He says that CPD detectives, assisted by the Bloomington Police Department SWAT Team and Crisis Negotiators, executed a search warrant at the residence in the 3700 block of Mesa Drive. Harris says that Lee was taken into custody shortly before 2:30 a.m.

Lee was later transported to the Bartholomew County Jail. Harris adds that Lee is being held on two Counts of Armed Robbery and is currently being detained on a 48 hour hold. In addition to Tuesday’s robbery, police say that Lee is being held in connection with a second Columbus bank robbery that occurred at a Jackson County Bank branch on Nov. 2nd, 2015.

The Columbus Police Department is thanking the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department, Bloomington Police Department, Monroe County Sheriff’s Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for their help in this investigation.

The Purdue Extension office in Bartholomew County is offering a workshop Friday on Code Red Training, a farm or small business tool to keep businesses operating if a key member of the team is incapacitated.

Kris Medic, an extension educator, says the Code Red tool helps a family or small business to collect important information such as account numbers, passwords, rental agreements, insurance papers and power of attorney documents in one easy location.  This can help farm families and businesses continue to operate in the event of an emergency.  It can also be a tool that helps families to get started on estate and/or succession planning.

The class will be held at the Bartholomew County 4-H Fairgrounds Family Arts building from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. The cost is $10. For information, call 812-379-1665.

Columbus Township Fire and Rescue is reporting an accident Monday night at a mobile home park that ruptured a natural gas line.

According to firefighters, the department was called out at 9:33 p.m. to North National Road and found a car had struck a house and the natural gas line, causing a large gas leak. Firefighters evacuated all nearby homes while trying to stop the leak, a process that was complicated because the front bumper of the car was against the gas shutoff valve.

After gently prying the pipe away from the car, firefighters were able to turn off the gas line. Vectren was called in to secure the pipe and neighboring residents were allowed to return home. Firefighters also used fans to ventilate the home and remove gas that had seeped inside.

No injuries were reported.

For more information, follow Columbus Township Fire and Rescue on Facebook.

The Town of Hope has agreed to a contract with its volunteer firefighters after a stalemate that has lasted longer than a year.

For most of last year, the firefighters went without any payments from the town and after a temporary agreement reached in October, the department ended up with about half of the normal amount it requests from the town.

The Town Council voted 3-2 last night to approve the contract.

Council President Clyde Compton opposed the contract and raised the most questions. Among his concerns were the parity of the money paid by the town versus the money paid by the township. The town pays more, even though most of the runs go to the township.

Compton and Councilman Greg Sims voted against the proposed contract. But after the vote was cast, Compton said he accepted the majority decision and hoped to work to improve the contract going forward. Specifically he said he was interested in hearing feedback from the town’s financial advisers, Reedy Financial Group.

02-16 Clyde Compton-1

Councilman Jonathan Titus was the deciding vote. He said he was won over by the department’s efforts to be more transparent with the council on how money is spent.

02-17 jonathan titus-2

Fire Chief Randy Wood said he was happy that the department and the town have put the dispute behind them. And he was happy with all of the support the department has received in the community.

02-17 Randy Wood-2

Round-Up for Jennings County students entering Kindergarten in the fall will start in April. Jennings County School officials say that students must be five-years-old on or before August 1, 2016, to enroll in Kindergarten.

The school district says that each school sponsors a Kindergarten Round-Up at their respective school. When attending a Round-Up session, parents must enroll their child in the school where they presently reside. An immunization record and an original birth certificate must accompany each child that is enrolling in school. If you are unable to make your child’s school scheduled Round-Up, you are encouraged to participate in one of the other Round-Up sessions.

“Round-Up” events are scheduled for the following:

Hayden Elementary
Wednesday, April 6, 2016
9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Noon – 2 p.m.

Scipio Elementary
Wednesday, April 13, 2016
9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Noon – 2 p.m.

St. Mary’s
Friday, April 1, 2016
9 a.m. – 11 a.m.

NVE
Wednesday, March 30, 2016
9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Noon – 2 p.m.,
Thursday, March 31, 2016
9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Noon – 2 p.m.

Graham Creek Elementary
Thursday, April 7, 2016
9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Noon – 2 p.m.

Sand Creek Elementary
Tuesday, April 5, 2016
9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Noon – 2 p.m.

Brush Creek Elementary
Friday, April 8, 2016
9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Noon – 2 p.m.

The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department is asking for your help in finding its most-wanted suspect.

Department Spokesperson Judy Jackson says that deputies are searching for 44-year-old Steven L. Vanhoosier. He is described as a

white male, five-feet, seven-inches tall and weighing 185 pounds. He has brown hair and hazel eyes, as well as a tattoo on his right upper-arm, that says “LDC.”

Authorities say that Vanhoosier is wanted on two outstanding arrest warrants.

If you have information regarding Vanhoosier’s whereabouts, you are asked to call Capt. Dave Steinkoenig at (812) 565-5940. You may also call the Sheriff’s Department Tip Line at (812) 379-1712. Jackson stresses that you can leave tips and information anonymously.

Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop has announced a plan to help diversify the city’s economic base. This includes increasing the funding of the Columbus Economic Development Board (CEDB).

The Mayor says the Board has provided invaluable help to the city over the past four decades. “If somebody would have told me that we would lose Irwin-Union and Dolly Madison and Arvin, I just wouldn’t get that,” said Lienhoop in describing the important role that the CEDB plays in the economic health of the city, as a whole.

Mayor Lienhoop says that the CEDB put together a report that told the city many things that it already knew, as well as identify possible solutions to current economic issues. The problem, he said, is that the city has “too many eggs in to few baskets.” Lienhoop was speaking about the importance that Cummins and auto-part manufacturing plays in the city. While noting that both industries have been incredibly good to the city over the long-haul, he also noted that both industries are cyclical. As the fortunes of these industries go, so go those of Columbus, said Lienhoop.

The Mayor says that the answer is in expanding Columbus’ economic base. He says that the report put together by the CEDB identified a number of areas that the city should consider pursuing to set up shop in Columbus. Three specific areas include: pharmaceutical and medical-device manufacturing, administrative support services and research and development with an engineering focus.

To aid in the recruiting of these new businesses, Mayor Lienhoop announced plans to increase the amount of money the city pays to the CEDB each year from $14,000 to $150,000. This increase comes with a minimum three-year commitment. Lienhoop explains that the money would come from re-captured Economic Development Income Tax, or EDIT, funds. In order to implement this, the Mayor explains that he will have to file an amendment in the coming weeks to redirect those funds. He adds that the expense, which will create no new overhead or employees, is a good one, noting that the increase is less than five-percent of the EDIT funds captured by the city.

CEDB Director Jason Hester agrees that the arrangement is a good one for the city. He noted that for every dollar his non-profit organization receives in public funds, it receives two-dollars in private funds. He adds that with Bartholomew County’s contribution of $14,000 per year, the CEDB will be receiving $164,000 from local government. Hester says this increase will allow the Board to focus on the mission set forth by Lienhoop to recruit new businesses to the area.

Both Lienhoop and Hester say this plan is a good step forward in growing Columbus’ economic base. The Mayor added that he wasn’t looking to bring in a few new jobs in the coming weeks, instead concentrating on growing and attracting new businesses in the years to come. Hester also noted that the progress will be measurable, with every company asking about the city, driving through Columbus and making a commitment to set up shop.

Columbus Police are searching for a man who allegedly robbed a downtown bank Tuesday afternoon.

Department Spokesman Lt. Matt Harris says that the armed robbery took place at the Main Source Bank, located at 529 Washington Street. He says that at approximately 1:30 p.m., a suspect entered the bank and passed a note to a bank employee while displaying a handgun. Harris says that the suspect left the bank with an undisclosed amount of cash and was last seen running south.

The suspect is described as a white male, approximately 35 to 45 years of age. He was last seen wearing a black Indiana University sweatshirt, black sunglasses, and a tan colored hat. Police say that no employees were injured during the robbery.

Anyone with information in regards to the robbery is asked to contact the Columbus Police Department at (812) 376-2600. Tips and information can be left anonymously.

The Columbus Fire Department is working on getting firefighters quicker access to the Columbus Municipal Airport.

Fire Chief Mike Compton told the Board of Public Works and Safety this morning that a project to allow the firefighters to directly access the airport from Fire Station 2 is proceeding. He said a special security gate will be installed for the firefighters and there are changes that still need to be made to the doors and the exhaust system in the station. And there will need to be approval by the FAA, Compton said.

As things stand now, the fire trucks have to drive onto Arnold Street, then circle back around before they can go onto the airfield, Compton said. He said the new arrangement will be quicker and safer.

The fire station just off of the airport houses specialized equipment for aircraft rescues and fires.