Clarifications: An earlier version of this article had information that was incomplete. It has been updated.

Emergency dispatchers and paramedics are seeing an increased workload.

The Columbus Emergency Ambulance Board met Thursday afternoon at city hall. Mary Ferdon, the city’s director of administration, explains that this is an annual meeting required by ordinance, as CRH is contracted with the city and county to provide ambulance services through the end of 2020.

Adam Hoskins, EMS manager for Columbus Regional Health, delivered the presentation. Figures from 2018 indicated a one-percent increase in overall call volume over 2017. Hoskins says that of those 11,380 calls, about 27 percent were “non-emergency.”

Response times were a bit slower compared to 2017. Hoskins says the average city response time in 2018 four-minutes and 50 seconds. That’s 20 seconds slower than 2017. The average county response time of 10 minutes and 43 seconds is 21 seconds slower that 2017 figures. CRH says these delays were anticipated due to construction on I-65 between Columbus and Seymour and flooding issues throughout the year.

The number of ambulance sites have also decreased from five to four. One ambulance was removed from Fire Station 6 in Walesboro and moved to the ambulance station on Central Avenue. That change was made because the Walesboro ambulance was not utilized as often as originally hoped.

Hospital officials say that they are still beating the response times required under their contract. The city/county contract requires that an ambulance be on scene within 9 minutes, 90% of the time. CRH met that goal 91.6% of the time.  County responses require arrival in less than 18 minutes, 90% of the time.  CRH  hit that mark 92.2% of the time.

CRH says their ambulance service had a net-loss of approximately $72,000 in 2018. Hoskins explains that their largest provider is Medicare, which pays $247 per ambulance trip. Second is Medicaid, which pays only $97 per trip. Hoskins says the average non-emergency ambulance ride is billed at $701. Officials say they will continue to take steps to reduce the red ink. This includes taking additional non-emergency runs and other measures.

City Councilman Frank Miller, a member of the EAS Board, expressed concerns about the increasing number of calls. He says that there is a need for new dispatchers at the Emergency 911 Center. To better study the issue, Miller is set to spend time at the dispatch center Friday afternoon to observe. Miller says he expects additional discussions at the county and city levels next month to address his concerns.

Two elementary schools in Johnson County will be closed to students and staff on Thursday.

Franklin Community Schools says a second round of air and soil gas sampling took place over the winter. Samples of air were taken from below the concrete floor at Needham Elementary and Webb Elementary and sent to a lab for analysis. FCS received preliminary results Wednesday. They indicated that three out of seven samples at Webb Elementary and two out of 10 samples at Needham Elementary were above the Indiana Department of Environmental Management’s screening levels.

The latest testing comes after testing done over the summer cleared both schools. That came about after parents expressed concerns about possible contamination, as both schools are located near an old manufacturing site. Additional sampling is set for over spring break, which is set to begin after classes on Thursday.

FCS will be implementing an E-Learning Day for Thursday, March 21st for Needham Elementary and Webb Elementary only. Other schools in the district will remain in session.

FCS officials say they will provide an update on Thursday.

The proposed donation of just over 1.5 acres of land to Columbus Parks and Recreation is a step closer to happening.

The Columbus City Council gave final approval Tuesday night to rezone the site at the west end of 26th Street near the Hawcreek People Trail. The property was zoned for commercial use, but has since been changed to “Residential: Single Family 2.”

Jeff Bergman, city-county planning director, explained the land is being donated by Discount Tire, which purchased the property for a new location next to Burger King. He explained that this 1.5 acres is in a 100-year flood plain that was severely impacted by the 2008 flood. Company officials decided to not risk building in that particular area.

Parks officials say the site has the potential for a new trailhead, but no final decision has been made.

The Columbus Emergency Ambulance Board is set to meet Thursday afternoon. Mary Ferdon, the city’s director of administration, says this is an annual meeting required by ordinance. The purpose, she explains, is to get an update from the Oversight Committee on ambulance metrics including usage, placement and response times.

The board meets Thursday at 1:30 p.m. in conference room 3 at city hall.

February 2019 pended sales in Bartholomew County decreased by 17.3 percent over February 2018, while home prices increased by 5.8 percent to an average of just under $214,000. Monthly real estate stats from F.C. Tucker Company indicate a small decrease in homes sold, but higher sale prices and increased inventory.

Home prices in Jennings County dropped over the same period by 2.3 percent. The average sale price is just over $108,000. That, in spite of the fact that active listings in that county decreased by 22.5 percent.

Brown County home prices dropped 0.6 percent to an average of nearly $194,000.

Home prices in Decatur County were down 2.4 percent compared to February of 2018. The average sale price was just under $136,000.

Johnson County saw a considerable increase sale price over the same period. The average sale was nearly $214,000.

Home prices in Shelby County also increased. Prices were up 6.5 percent to an average of just over $147,000.

F.C. Tucker says 2019 pended home sales decreased 1.3 percent compared to February 2018 while the average year-to-date sale price for the 15 county Central Indiana region increased 6.7 percent to $206,941.

A developer seeking the annexation of over 45 acres at 6970 West State Road 46 received initial approval during Tuesday night’s Columbus City Council meeting.

R.L. Rynard Development Corporation wants to build a retirement, nursing and assisted living facilities on 29 of those acres which would be rezoned from “Agriculture: Preferred” to “Residential: Multi-Family with Commitments.” The developer is proposing 56 independent-living spaces in 28 units, a 50-unit assisted-living facility and a 45 room skilled-nursing facility.

A few neighbors expressed concerns with proposed project, including increased traffic and drainage.

Council voted unanimously, 6-0, to approve both the annexation and rezoning. Both measures are set for a second reading on April 2nd.

A Seymour High School student took home the top honor at the 11th annual Jobs for America’s Graduates Career Development Conference in Indianapolis on March 15th.

Carina Muñoz won the Outstanding Senior Award at the event, which is the culmination of months of regional competitions focusing on several disciplines critical to future employment.

The top students in each category from the regional competitions advanced to state competition in Indianapolis for a chance to earn monetary awards by showcasing the employability skills they learned through the program.

JAG is a state-based, national not-for-profit organization that assists high school students by helping them overcome academic challenges and achieve graduation. JAG Indiana is administered by the Indiana Department of Workforce Development.

Muñoz competed against 11 other seniors from throughout the state to win the Outstanding Senior Award. She is a member of the National Honor Society and plans to attend Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus. Her career goal is to be an elementary teacher.

Eastern Bartholomew Water Corporation has issued a Boil Advisory for customers in Waynesville. The utility stresses that customers outside of Waynesville are not affected. Any water that is to be consumed should be brought to a rolling boil for at least one minute before consuming.

This boil advisory is in effect until noon on Friday, March 22nd.

The Columbus Redevelopment Commission is issuing a Request for Qualifications, or RFQs, from developers and/or development teams regarding the development of a conference center hotel on one of two sites downtown. In addition, officials say there is an opportunity for an urban grocery, as well a residential apartment component on the site.

In 2018, the Columbus Redevelopment Commission engaged the Hunden Strategic Partners Team, including design professionals from American Structurepoint, to conduct a market and financial feasibility analysis for the proposal. City officials say the Hunden market analysis revealed that Columbus could support a conference center hotel located with walkable access to the downtown amenities.

The primary elements of the project include a branded conference center hotel with the following elements:

 140 +/- Guest Rooms
 9,000 +/- Square Foot Divisible Ballroom
 4,000-5,000 Square Foot of Divisible Breakout Meeting Rooms (at least 5 divisions)
 3-Meal Restaurant
 Parking for Conference Hotel Center Estimated to be 380 +/- Spaces
 Additional Potential Element (preferred, but not required): Urban Grocery
 Additional Future Potential Phase (not required): Urban Apartments

Firms are invited to submit their qualifications no later than 5 p.m. on Friday, June 7th.

Officials say the current RFQ process will result in a short list of developers by this summer. They will be invited to the submit proposals. After reviewing proposals by the short-listed firms and conducting interviews, the developer is expected to be chosen by this fall.

Ginny Whipple, Bartholomew County Assessor, is reminding taxpayers that the deadline for filing Personal Property Forms is May 15th. In Indiana, personal property is self-assessed. It is the responsibility of the taxpayer to obtain the appropriate forms and file a return with the correct assessing official in the county where the personal property is located.

Assessor Whipple states that the staff at the assessor’s office can submit the forms electronically while the taxpayer is in the office. This only takes a few minutes and can save taxpayers the time and effort of filling out the forms themselves.

Indiana taxes both real estate and personal property. The taxpayer is responsible for reporting all tangible personal property used in their trade or business for the production of income or held as an investment. This includes among other things office equipment, office furniture and industrial and farm machinery.

Vehicles subject to excise tax are not considered personal property. Excise taxes are collected by the BMV at time of licensure. This includes cars, RVs, semis and farm trucks.

If the total acquisition amount of personal property county wide is under $20,000 the owner is exempt from taxation. However, the taxpayer is still required to file a return each year. Forms not submitted or postmarked by the May 15th deadline are subject to penalty.

If you prefer to complete the forms yourself, they can be obtained online at in.gov/dlgf. Forms and reminder postcards are no longer mailed to taxpayers.

For more information, call the assessor’s office at (812) 379-1505.