A new initiative called Exhibit Columbus will hold a citywide art and design festival including a new architecture and design contest to honor the legacy of J. Irwin and Xenia Miller.

The biennial event will start with a symposium to be held later this year with a first exhibition in the fall of 2017.

According to Landmark Columbus, the goal is to create an event similar to the Chicago Architectural Biennial.

The inaugural symposium for Exhibit Columbus, called “Foundations and Futures,” will be held Sept. 29 through Oct. 1. A keynote session will feature Deborah Berke, Will Miller, Robert A. M. Stern, and Michael Van Valkenburgh.

The Miller Prize will be awarded to five designers and design teams who will design, build, and install temporary projects at one of five sites, each a Columbus icon. A committee has invited 10 architects, artists, and furniture designers to compete for the award.

Exhibit Columbus will also include projects with Columbus school children and Indiana University Center for Art+Design students.

Founding support for Exhibit Columbus comes from the Columbus Area Visitors Center, Columbus Museum of Art Design, Cummins Inc., Efroymson Family Fund, Haddad Foundation, Heritage Fund – The Community Foundation of Bartholomew County, Irwin-Sweeney-Miller Foundation, Johnson Ventures, Schumaker Family and SIHO Insurance Services.

A kickoff event will be held at 5 p.m. today at the Bartholomew County Public Library plaza.

A Columbus area dentist’s office will be offering some free dental procedures this weekend on a first-come first-serve basis.

Dr. Chris Miller with Renaissance Dental Group says people can have a tooth pulled, a teeth cleaning or a filling replaced. The first appointments will be at 8 a.m. Saturday and they are meant for those who can’t afford to have dental work done.

This is the third year for the project, and people have started lining up as early as 4:30 a.m. for the free dental work, Miller says. He believes that shows how needed the service is.

The Renaissance Dental Group offices are on Middle Road behind Rural King. You should wear clothing appropriate for the weather. Miller says that he, and other volunteer dentists, will see 65 patients.

The Columbus Area Arts Council is unveiling the lineup for the free JCB Neighborfest concerts this summer. The shows are on the first Thursday of the month, June through September, in front of The Commons.

Geri Handley with the arts council says that the schedule will be:

June 2nd, Fistful of Bacon — Indiana Blues

July 7th Jai Baker — Country/Alternative Rock

Aug. 4th, Groove Essential — Current music and greatest hits

Sept. 1st, Hudson Hornet —  Rockabilly/Country/Swing

The free shows start at 5:30 p.m.

Columbus officials are taking steps to prepare for, and deal with, a massive increase in train traffic coming through the city, possibly by the end of the year. Early indications are that traffic will increase from two trains per day, to 17.

To help the city determine it’s options, the Redevelopment Commission held a special meeting Wednesday and approved the funding of a Railroad Impact Study. The Redevelopment Commission approved American Structurepoint, of Indianapolis, as the consultant, with funding not to exceed $125,000. Heather Pope, the city’s Redevelopment Director, explains that the consultant will determine what the increased traffic will do to the area’s economy. She adds that the study will also include a time-study to compare the delays caused by current traffic, as well as what is expected with the increased train traffic. Pope went on to say that American Structurepoint will also provide possible remedies to the problem, some of which, could be very expensive. Pope noted that public safety is of the utmost importance, but added that the economics of limited funds means that the city will have to come up with a solution that adequately addresses safety, as well as economic concerns.

Noting the importance of the project and the need for it to be completed quickly, Pope says that the Redevelopment Commission has given the consultant “an aggressive timeline” for the project’s completion. She says that she is hopeful that a presentation will be made to the city by sometime in September. The important thing, Pope noted, is for the project to be finished quickly and correctly.

An observant Jennings County Sheriff’s Deputy was able to arrest a wanted man, but not before catching him during a foot-chase.

Lt. Mike Mowery, Sheriff’s Department Spokesman, says that at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, Deputy Drew Heilers responded to the area of Honey

Locust after the department received complaints of four-wheelers driving up and down the road. While in the area, Deputy Heilers reported seeing several people standing outside of a home. He recognized one of them as Jerade James Bonds, who was wanted on a warrant. According to the deputy’s report, Bonds took off running towards the rear of the home with Heilers in pursuit. The chase lasted about 250 yards before Bonds was taken into custody.

Along with warrants for False Informing and Risk of Fleeing Jurisdiction, Mowery says that Bonds is facing preliminary charges of Resisting Law Enforcement (a Class A Misdemeanor), Possession of Paraphernalia (a Class A Misdemeanor) and Possession of Methamphetamine (a Level 6 Felony). His total bond has been set at $9,310.

Area firefighters helped clean-up a hazardous materials spill Wednesday afternoon.

Capt. Mike Wilson, spokesman for the Columbus Fire Department, says that their Squad 1 helped the Hartsville Volunteer Fire Department with

the spill, which occurred after a traffic crash on State Road 46, near Hartsville at about 1:30 p.m. Wilson says that Squad 1 provided vehicle stabilization and spill support Hartsville firefighters.

The specifics of the crash have not yet been released.

The Columbus Fire Department is partnering with the National Fire Safety Council for an effort aimed at fundraising and fire safety.

Capt. Mike Wilson, fire department spokesman, says that the Columbus Fire Department is committed to providing fire prevention education to

the community. As a part of this mission, he says that local firefighters utilize fire safety and prevention materials to educate children and adults about fire safety. These topics cover things like smoke alarms, fire extinguishers, alternative heating sources, campfire safety and home fire escape planning.

Wilson says that purchasing these items can be expensive to fire departments. To aid local departments in making this program work, he says that the National Fire Safety Council contacts businesses and organizations in the area to ask for donations to offset these costs. Wilson says that contact comes via a letter from Columbus Fire Department explaining the program. This letter will include suggested sponsorship levels.

Wilson says that businesses and organizations that choose to help will mail their tax-deductible contribution, in the form of a check, directly to the Columbus Fire Department. He adds that the contribution check will be made out to the National Fire Safety Council. Wilson notes that by sending the contribution directly to the Columbus Fire Department, this assures businesses of the legitimacy of the program and helps the department keep track of donated funds. Wilson stresses that local donations will be used only for the Columbus Fire Department Fire Prevention Bureau.

If you would like more information about the National Fire Safety Council, visit the group’s website at www.nfsc.org.

A project to increase the number of drivers in rural areas wearing their seat belts is being called a success in Jennings County.

Robbie Amos, Sheriff’s Department spokesman, said Wednesday that Indiana’s Rural Destination Project lasted three weeks. During this period, he says that officers wrote 15 tickets for seat belt violations, one child-restraint violation and two tickets for running a stop-sign, among others. In addition, Amos says that 16 speeding arrests were made and 25 warnings were written.

Jennings County Sheriff Gary Driver praised the Rural Destination Project. “Ensuring even one more driver wears their seat belt while behind the wheel is a success for us,” he said. Sheriff Driver went on to say, “This project allows us to increase our seat belt usage conversations and enforcement within counties that currently carry the highest percentage on non-resistant fatalities, and for that, we are grateful.”

The Rural Destination Project is paid for via federal highway safety funds administered by the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute.

North Vernon Police arrested two people on theft charges Tuesday afternoon.

A department spokesperson says that officers responded to a complaint in the 2000 block of State Road 3 at 5:45 p.m. After an initial investigation, police arrested Cameron S. Stewart, 19, and Robert E. McGaughey, 28, both of Commiskey. Authorities say that each man is facing a Theft charge.

Police say that the allegedly stolen items were recovered and returned to the rightful owner.

Bartholomew County deputies stopped a vehicle for switching lanes without signalling on Interstate 65 Monday morning, but ended up arresting the driver after more than 3,000 pills were found inside the pickup.

A deputy pulled over the vehicle at 9:52 a.m. Monday after seeing the truck switching lanes headed southbound on the highway. The driver, 20-year-old Natasha Jones of Iris Street in Columbus was allegedly driving without a license, says Judy Jackson, spokeswoman for the police department.

A sheriff’s department police dog alerted to the smell of drugs in the vehicle and marijuana and a marijuana pipe were found in the glovebox, Jackson said. And bottles of pills with medication prescribed to someone else were allegedly found behind the driver’s seat.

Jones is facing preliminary charges of possession of a controlled substance, marijuana and paraphernalia.