Exhibit Columbus will be unveiling  18 design and architecture installations at Columbus landmarks this weekend.

Richard McCoy with Exhibit Columbus explains some of what you will see around town.

He said the installations at City Hall, at the former Republic building and at the Bartholomew County Courthouse will be eye catching. And the cluster of installations at North Christian Church are already drawing attention.

McCoy said that many of the installations have interactive components and should be an invitation to explore the work. Most of the works will be along the Fifth Street and Washington Street corridors.

Bartholomew Consolidated Schools students will again be participating with an installation across from St. Peters Lutheran Church on Fourth Street, McCoy said.

This is the second year for the biannual displays. Exhibit Columbus operates on a two-year schedule with a symposium year alternating with an exhibit year.

Events start at 5:30 p.m. today on the Bartholomew County Public Library Plaza with a Spanish language tour of the installations created by three Mexican firms.

There will be public conversations with the designers of all the locations starting at 4 p.m. on Friday at North Christian Church and continuing at 10 a.m. Saturday at First Christian Church. The Saturday session will include the introduction of the BCSC student team.

Saturday night there will be a ticketed gala party in Mill Race Park.

You can get more information at exhibitcolumbus.org.

Columbus Regional Health has been recertified as a baby-friendly facility. That means the facility offers the optimal level of care for breastfeeding mothers and their babies.

The hospital first received the rating in 2014. The designation is given after an on-site survey looking at things like programs that support bonding between babies and parents, education on feeding practices and baby care and on the hospital following a process to support lifetime health benefits.

The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative is  a program sponsored by the World Health Organization and UNICEF.

There will be a celebration of the certification from 3 to 5 p.m. on Monday, August 26th in the Kroot Auditorium at CRH. August is World Breastfeeding Month.

The body of Greenwood soldier who died during training will be returning home tonight.

The Indiana National Guard is reporting that there will be a planeside honor ceremony by the guard’s ceremonial unit when Staff Sgt. Andrew M. St. John’s body arrives tonight at Indianapolis International Airport.

St. John died earlier this month during a military training accident at Fort Hood in Texas. He was 29. Among his survivors are his wife and two children. He was also a firefighter and EMT, serving with the Nineveh Volunteer Fire Department.

There will be visitation from 3 to 8 p.m. Friday at Hoosier Harvest Church in Martinsville.

St. John’s obituary is available here

Indiana conservation officers are reporting that a Jackson County homeowner needed help, after finding a timber rattlesnake in his garage. But when officers arrived, they found two more nearby.

DNR reports that the officers summoned retired Capt. Tony Wilson, who serves as the quartermaster. Wilson, a trained and renowned reptile expert, was able to capture and remove the snakes.

Timber rattlesnakes are one of four venomous snake species in Indiana. Those also include the copperhead, cottonmouths and eastern Massasauga rattlesnake. The timber rattlesnakes are an endangered species, according to DNR, and are only found in south central Indiana.

It’s that time of year when many local governments are putting together their budgets for 2020. That work is underway in Columbus. The city council on Tuesday night had the first reading of a salary ordinance for city employees and elected officials…

Lienhoop says this is the second year of implementing the changes suggested by that salary study. He says it’s important to him to make sure city employees are being compensated fairly.

City council approved a pair of ordinances. One adjusted the pay scale for city employees. The other gave elected officials a two-percent increase. Both ordinances were approved unanimously.

The second reading for each ordinance is set for Sept. 3.

A school bus manufacturer in Georgia says that more than 100 buses, powered by Cummins fully electric drivetrains, have been ordered from Blue Bird Corporation.

Blue Bird officials say that electric buses are already operating in California, North Dakota and Washington. Additional buses on order will transport students in California, Colorado, New Jersey, New York and Quebec by 2020.

“The amount of interest has been outstanding; people are very excited about a 100-percent electric-powered school bus,” said Phil Horlock, president and CEO of Blue Bird Corporation. “The nation is increasingly influenced in electric vehicle transportation in general, and we anticipate rapid growth of electric school buses as more districts are educated on the zero-emissions and low-maintenance benefits they bring to their local communities.”

Blue Bird officials say the company has been working with electric technology in school buses since 1994 and has recently partnered with the Cummins Electrified Power business segment.

“Cummins and Blue Bird are committed to supporting customers and ensuring that we are safely transporting our children and improving air quality for communities,” said Julie Furber, vice president of electrified power at Cummins Inc. “Schools can count on Cummins to deliver the same level of support and service network for these electric buses that we’ve always delivered through our more than 200 wholly-owned branch locations and 3,200 service technicians in North America.”

The Blue Bird electric bus produces zero emissions and require less maintenance. Company officials say the buses are capable of up to 120 miles of range and can be recharged in approximately eight hours.

The Columbus Engineering Department says that crews with Dave O’Mara Contractors will be closing the intersection of Sixth Street & California Street Friday morning. Work to complete the tie-in of the new water main as part of the State Street Phase 2B project will be done.

The work is expected to be complete by Friday evening. Once the tie-in is complete, the road will be re-opened.

If you are looking for more traffic information, download the WAZE app for your smartphone and join the WCSI Traffic team powered by Crew Car Wash. You can find updated traffic information on our website, on-air and on the app.

A corrections officer for the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department is out of a job after a drunk-driving arrest over the weekend.

Indiana State Police say that shortly after midnight on Friday morning, Aug. 16th, a Columbus Police officer executed a traffic stop on State Road 46. The officer reported seeing a Jeep swerving and making unsafe lane movements in the westbound lanes near Morgan Willow Trace.

Police say the driver, 42-year-old Kimberly Cruser, of Morgantown, showed signs of being intoxicated. The Columbus Police Department then requested the Indiana State Police take over the investigation after learning of Cruser’s employment with the county. An ISP trooper arrived and gave Cruser field sobriety tests, then transported her to Columbus Regional Hospital where a search warrant was served for her blood.

After the search warrant was served, Cruser was arrested on preliminary charges of Operating While Intoxicated and Operating While Intoxicated (Endangerment). She was also cited for an Open Container Violation.

The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department says that Cruser is no longer employed there.

The investigation is ongoing.

Columbus Township volunteer firefighters will be holding a flapjack fundraiser on Saturday.

That will be at the Columbus Applebees from 8 to 10 a.m. Tickets are $10 and are available through EventBrite. Breakfast will include pancakes, bacon, breakfast potatoes, coffee, milk, juice and soft drinks. Proceeds will help the department purchase new equipment and pursue more training opportunities.

You can get more information on the Columbus Township Fire & Rescue Facebook page.

Seymour police are inviting you to celebrate the retirement of Sgt. Jack Swindell after 35 years of service to the community.

Swindell became a probation officer for Seymour on Jan. 11, 1985, and graduated Sept. 25, 1985, from the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in Plainfield.

The celebration will be in the lobby of the Seymour Police Station on Ewing Street from 1 to 3 p.m. on Friday.