Columbus police are crediting a resident with tackling and holding onto a fleeing suspect until police could get him handcuffed.

The incident happened around 4:30 p.m. yesterday when Officer Travis Harbaugh saw 37-year-old Derek B Woodson near 25th Street and U.S. 31. Harbaugh knew Woodson was wanted on a warrant but when the police officer got out of his cruiser, Woodson allegedly took off running. Harbaugh shouted for Woodson to stop, which alerted a bystander who grabbed onto Woodson, took him to the ground and held on until police could arrest the man.

Harris said the police department was thankful for the help and said the citizen’s quick actions and willingness to assist made a difference. Harris also said that the department doesn’t advocate residents putting themselves in harm’s way.

Woodson was arrested on the original Bartholomew County warrant, as well as new preliminary charges of resisting law enforcement, possession of methamphetamine, possession of marijuana and
possession of drug paraphernalia

The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department is continuing to ask for your help in finding its most-wanted fugitive, Kenneth Cole Sidwell.

Judy Jackson, spokeswoman for the sheriff’s department, says this is the second week that Sidwell is the most-wanted fugitive. He is wanted for failing to appear in court to answer a theft charge.

Sidwell is described as a 30-year-old white man, 5-feet, 10-inches tall and 170 pounds. Sidwell has brown hair, blue eyes and several tattoos. He also goes by the nickname “Cole Train.”

If you have any information regarding Sidwell’s whereabouts or activities, no matter how seemingly insignificant, you are asked to call the Sheriff Department’s Tip Line at (812) 379-1712. Information can be left anonymously.

The Columbus Indiana Architectural Archives is hosting a forum tonight  talking to two people who had a big impact on the recent redevelopment of downtown — Glenn Gareis and Tom Vujovich.

Gareis is an architect who worked with the Vision 20/20 committee to come up with a strategic plan downtown and Vujovich is a former president of the Redevelopment Commission.

The forum, “Redevelopment – The Columbus Way, A Conversation”  is part of a special display the archives is holding at the IU Center for Art and Design on Jackson Street looking at the history of downtown redevelopment. Tonight’s event starts at 6:30 p.m. at the center.

KC and the Sunshine Band is slated to perform at this year’s Rock The Park concert, the Columbus Area Arts Council is reporting.

The show is scheduled for Saturday, August 13 at Mill Race Park. Geri Handley, spokesperson for the Arts Council, says that her organization puts on this annual show to bring national musical acts to Columbus, at an affordable price.

Tickets will be $20 in advance or $25 on the day of the show, according to our news-gathering partners at The Republic. For more on this event, including advance ticket sales when they become available, visit www.artsINcolumbus.org.

A Bartholomew County park is on its way to being annexed by the city of Columbus. However, city and county officials stress that the park won’t be taken over by the Columbus Parks and Recreation Department.

The Columbus City Council heard a request during its Tuesday night meeting to annex Dunn Stadium park, just north of the Bartholomew County 4-H Fairgrounds. Mayor Jim Lienhoop says that the city was approached by the County Commissioners to add the nearly 20-acre site to the city in order to bring city sewer and water service to the property. Jeff Bergman, city-county planning director, says that the property is currently served by a septic system and as plans to update restrooms on the site grow closer to reality, county officials recognized the benefits of connecting to the city’s sewer system. He says that, by law, the septic system there cannot be expanded, due to its proximity to wells used for the city’s water supply. That makes tapping in to the city’s water service, and annexation, the only option. Bergman also told council members that this request isn’t a surprise, as Keith Reeves, and other officials with Columbus City Utilities, have been kept up-to-date on the project.

Council members voted unanimously to approve the annexation on first reading. The second, and final, reading is expected to take place during the June 21st meeting of the Columbus City Council.

Indiana Department of Transportation’s contractor for changing hundreds traffic signals as part of a statewide effort to reduce crashes at intersections will begin work along U.S. Highway 50, at Seymour, on Thursday.

Harry Maginity, INDOT spokesman, says that old units will be removed and new signal heads will be installed over the next week-and-a-half. He says that drivers should expect lane closures at sites where crews are working.

INDOT officials say the traffic signals have better visibility for drivers, especially at sunrise and sunset. They include retro-reflective back-plates with yellow reflective borders and a black back-plate that improves visibility. INDOT adds that the new signals also have a three-inch yellow, reflective border to alert drivers of the signal’s presence during a power outage.

INDOT is touting the safety of these new signals with one Federal Highway Administration study documenting a crash reduction rate of 28.6 percent after installation. In addition, they say that the reduction in personal injury crashes was 36.7 percent, while the reduction in late night/early morning crashes was 49.6 percent.

Michiana Contracting of Plymouth is the state’s contractor for this $295,763 project.

The Indiana Department of Transportation is in the process of making safety improvements at the intersection of State Road 46 and State Road 9, about 4.5 miles east of Columbus. These include:

• The removal of existing pavement markings;
• Installation of new thermoplastic striping and crossbars;
• Installation of oversized STOP signs;
• Utilization of buzz strips

Harry Maginity, INDOT Spokesman says that the work is in response to safety concerns at the intersection, though he was unable to give specifics. He adds that solar-powered, continuous-flashing beacons will be situated 750 feet in advance of the intersection along eastbound and westbound lanes of State Road 46, and northbound and southbound lanes of State Road 9.

Signal Construction, of Greenfield, is the state’s contractor for this $94,000 project, which Maginity says is to reduce crashes at the rural intersection. He says that foundations for the solar-powered beacons will be poured on Friday, weather permitting. Maginity adds that the project has a completion date of September, but he expects it will be finished well in advance of then.

The Johnson County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a crash that took place Wednesday morning on County Road 100 North.

Sheriff Doug Cox says that when a deputy investigated the scene, he found the pickup truck sitting in a drainage ditch with a cracked driver’s side window. The deputy could not find a driver, but he did report the odor of alcohol coming from inside the truck. While taking inventory of the vehicle’s contents before having it towed, deputies reportedly found a binder that contained a small bag of marijuana.

Investigators say that the pickup likely went off the road at the intersection of County Road 700 East and County Road 100 North. It then likely travelled northwest before ultimately striking, and coming to rest inside, of the drainage ditch.

Sheriff Cox says that the vehicle is registered to a resident of Nashville, IN. He says that investigators will be speaking with him soon, as this investigation is ongoing.

Columbus police have made two arrests recently of suspects wanted on warrants.

Lt. Matt Harris, spokesman for the Police department, says that officers arrested 25-year-old Justice P. McIntosh after a short foot chase in the parking lot near 17th Street and Gladstone Avenue Tuesday afternoon. He was wanted on two warrants for failing to appear in court or to comply with a court order. Harris said that police allegedly discovered drugs in McIntosh’s wallet and in a backpack inside the car he was riding in.

He is now facing new preliminary charges including possession of meth, heroin, a legend drug injection device and drug paraphernalia, as well as resisting law enforcement.

On Monday afternoon, police arrested 33-year-old Clifford Roberts and seeing him in a vehicle in the 1500 block of 13th Street. He was wanted on an outstanding Jennings County warrant and Bartholomew County warrants for failing to appear in court on charges of driving while suspended, a probation violation and conversion, Harris said.

The Luckey Climber playground equipment in The Commons will be closed down for the rest of the week for repairs, starting this evening.

Shanda Sasse, manager of The Commons, says that the maintenance will start at 9 p.m. tonight and will last until 7 a.m. Friday.

She said part of the maintenance will include new tread on the wooden platforms and that will take 24 hours to cure. The rest of the playground equipment will be open as normal to guests Thursday, from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.