Ivy Tech Community College is holding two more special enrollment events in December. Express Enrollment Days will be from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 6th, and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 8th, at Ivy Tech Columbus, 4475 Central Ave.

At Express Enrollment Day residents can:
• Complete the first steps to enroll as a student, known as FYIvy;
• Get financial aid questions answered;
• Learn about and meet assessment requirements;
• Meet with an advisor;
• Register for the semester;
• And find out about orientation.

If you would like to take part in Express Enrollment Day, you are encouraged to RSVP at ivytech.edu/18794.html.

You should bring high school or college transcripts and SAT/ACT/PSAT scores to assist with assessment and course placement. If you have already completed some college courses, bring an official college transcript to have credits evaluated.

If you are unable to attend Express Enrollment Day, you can complete the enrollment process at any time by calling Ivy Tech Columbus at (812) 372-9925.

Bartholomew County officials are looking at major changes to the county parks department — whether that means hiring a full time parks director or closing some of the parks that are beyond repair.

County Commissioner Larry Kleinhenz said that the current situation, where the volunteer members of the parks board do a lot of the maintenance themselves, cannot continue.

Kleinhenz said the county is considering hiring a hands-on parks director, both to be working in the parks and to be in the office planning for improvements.

Kleinhenz said said the parks director would be looking for grant opportunities to repair and upgrade the county facilities.

Kleinhenz updated the County Council on the parks operations review at the council’s work session last night. Kleinhenz stressed that no decision has been made and they are still waiting to see the result of a consultant’s report on the parks.

Kleinhenz said he would like to have a proposal ready for the County Council to consider during next year’s budget negotiations.

Council President Mark Gorbett said that he was glad the commissioners and county parks board are even considering closing some of the county’s parks that are in bad shape.

The county consultant will give a report and recommendations at a meeting at 4:30 p.m. Thursday in the commissioners’s chambers at the Governmental Office Building on Third Street.

For more on the county parks, click here.

The City of Columbus continues to prepare for the expected massive increase in train traffic through the city. On Monday, city officials announced the launch of a web-based train status page that will allow you to see if a train is approaching the intersection of Indiana 11 and State Road 46. Heather Pope, with the city’s Redevelopment Department, says the technology behind the page was designed by Isaiah Bowman, a senior at Purdue Polytechnic Columbus who is completing his Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Information Technology.

A report prepared for the Surface Transportation Board, completed by CSX, indicated that train traffic may increase from an average of eight trains per day to an average of 22 trains per day. CSX invested $100 million in improvements into the Louisville and Indiana Rail Line. The resulting disruption at the intersection of Indiana 11 and State Road 46 is expected to cause delays in travel in and out of Columbus for an estimated 60,000 residents and visitors each day. EMS services will also be negatively impacted. The development of a status page will now allow users to find alternate routes or make other adjustments.

City officials say that Bowman began work on the notification system in August of 2017 as part of a special class tasked with creation of a train notification system for those in Columbus. With a team of three other students, the group assisted City of Columbus officials with selection of detection cameras and tools that would allow a notification system to work reliably. However, programming work on the status page was not completed by the end of the semester.

Bowman volunteered to stay on with the project through completion, working with both Columbus and Bartholomew County officials to develop a web-based status page that will work on desktop and mobile devices and will not require users to download an “app” to use it. City officials say that Bowman took on this responsibility in addition to his full-time course work and his work study responsibilities at Cummins. Bowman is slated to remain with the project through early 2019 to make additional adjustments to the status page as necessary.

A network of cameras has been installed by city and county officials to allow for live video feed of key intersections along the train route for use by EMS officials, specifically the intersections at 950 S, 200 S and Indiana 11/ State Road 46. When motion is detected at these intersections, an email alert is sent to the web notification system, triggering the signal to turn from green (“All Clear”) to red (“Train Detected”). officials explain that the status page is intended to allow users to choose alternate routes to reach their destinations when a train is detected.

“The City of Columbus and Bartholomew County residents have been eagerly awaiting a status page to better inform them of potential delays in their travels,” said Mayor Jim Lienhoop. “We are thoroughly impressed with Isaiah’s work on this project and are excited to share this tool with residents and visitors to allow travel in and out of Columbus to be much smoother and safer. We encourage all to use the status page responsibly while obeying State and local vehicle laws, allowing them to arrive at their destinations safely.”

The notification system may be accessed by visiting www.columbusrailroadproject.org.

The city of Columbus is looking for your thoughts on the city transit system, the ColumBUS. They are conducting what they are calling a major review of the operations. Cindy Setser, ColumBUS transit coordinator, explains that the expected increase in train traffic has necessitated this discussion…

City officials will be having a public meeting from 5 to 7 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 10th to discuss the study. The formal presentation will start at 5:30 and the event will be held in the Cal Brand Meeting Hall on the 1st floor of Columbus City Hall. You are encouraged to attend and take part.

A local man was arrested Saturday morning after being accused of running from police and trespassing at an apartment.

A Bartholomew County deputy noticed 26 year old Kyle L. Tews of Columbus outside an apartment in the 1600 block of W. County Road 650N in Taylorsville at about 12:38 a.m. Saturday morning and recognized that Tews was wanted on two outstanding warrants.

When the deputy tried to arrest Tews, he allegedly took off running instead. Other deputies arrived on the scene and Tews surrendered. That’s when officers found out that Tews was trespassing at the apartment in the first place according to police reports.

He was arrested on the two warrants, as well as new charges of resisting law enforcement and criminal trespass.

Bartholomew County Sheriff Matt Myers is warning about a new phone scam deputies are seeing in the community, where a caller pretends to be with the Social Security Administration to get access to your personal information.

The sheriff warns that you should never give someone personal information over the phone. That includes your bank account, credit card number or your Social Security number.

He also suggested that you should no longer trust that the name or phone number you may see on the caller ID is actually the person calling you. Scammers are using technology through the Internet to spoof their name, area code and phone number. While it may seem like they are calling from Washington, D.C., they could be calling from anywhere in the world, he says.

Also, if the Social Security scammers try to get you to go on the web and send you to any site other than the official Social Security site at ssa.gov you should not comply.

If you come across one of these scams, you can report it to the Social Security Administration’s Fraud Hotline at 1-800-269-0271

Indiana State Police say they took nearly five ounces of methamphetamine off the streets Friday with arrests in Bartholomew and Jennings counties.

Troopers located and arrested 48-year-old Patrick R. Sweany, of North Vernon, Indiana who was wanted on a Jennings County warrant for possession of methamphetamine. Sweany was found to be carrying about an ounce of suspected methamphetamine as well as other drug related items. He was arrested on preliminary charges of dealing methamphetamine and possessing methamphetamine, as well as the outstanding warrant. 

47-year-old Jose Luis Hernandez-Barrera, was arrested after troopers received reports of drug activity at a home in the 2600 block of Hawpatch Drive. Troopers discovered 3.5 ounces of methamphetamine and arrested Hernandez-Barrera on preliminary charges of dealing and possessing methamphetamine.

A Shelbyville man was killed Friday night near Edinburgh, struck by a driver after he survived the wreck of his own car moments earlier.

27-year-old Evan Stewart died in the second accident near County Road 1000N and Base Road at about 9:30 p.m., according to Indiana State Police.

Troopers report that Stewart’s car left the road, striking a concrete barrier and flipping over, landing in the roadway. He got out of the wrecked vehicle and was struck by a pickup driven by 25-year-old Andrew Adams of Columbus, who then struck the wreckage of Stewart’s vehicle, says Sgt. Stephen Wheeles, spokesman for the state police.

Stewart was pronounced dead at the scene by the Bartholomew County Coroner’s office. Adams was uninjured.

Wheeles said that alcohol was believed to be a factor in both crashes and toxicology results are pending.

A third vehicle on the scene left before State Police arrived. Troopers would like to speak to the occupants of that vehicle.  Anyone with information about this crash is urged to call the Indiana State Police-Versailles Post at (812)689-5000

State police were assisted on the scene by the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department, Shelby County Sheriff’s Department, Shelby County EMS, Flatrock Fire Department, Bartholomew County and Columbus Collision Towing Services.