Bartholomew Consolidated School teachers and staff members are now able to get their COVID-19 vaccinations.

Superintendent, Dr. Jim Roberts explains that vaccines are available to all school staff under federal guidelines. Those are available at retail pharmacies such as Walmart and Kroger.

Starting on Monday, educators will be able to sign up and get their vaccinations at anywhere in Indiana that is distributing vaccine doses, Roberts said.

He said getting the school staff vaccinated will be a key piece in getting schools fully open and back to normal.

High school students in BCSC are the last grades who have yet to return to full-time, in person learning. However they are currently scheduled to come back to the classroom after spring break on March 22nd.

You can sign up to get vaccinated if you are in one of the eligible groups at ourshot.in.gov

The Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce is hosting its next monthly Third House session on Monday, March 22nd.

It is a chance for you to hear from and talk with local legislators. This year’s sessions are being held virtually.

The session will be from 8 to 9 a.m. via Zoom. You can get a link and more information at columbusareachamber.com.

You can expect to see rolling roadblocks on Interstate 65 just south of Columbus today. Indiana Department of Transportation says that traffic will be slowed in the southbound lanes for five to 10 minutes at a time between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. while equipment and stone is delivered for the Deaver Road bridge replacement project.

INDOT suggests that you use extra caution in the area and watch for slowed traffic. You will see electronic message boards and queue trucks at the site to alert motorists.

After three years of service to the people of Jackson County, a Seymour police dog has retired.

Edi helped Seymour police with over 160 arrests over the last three years, the Seymour Police Department said on Facebook.

Edi’s last day on the force was Tuesday, March 9.

Seymour PD says Edi was an “immeasurable asset” to the department.

Edi will live out his retirement with his handler and family.

Story courtesy of Network Indiana.

North Vernon Police Chief James Webster has announced his plans to retire later this month after more than 27 years on the force.

Webster was appointed chief in 2006 and said he was believed to be the youngest police chief in North Vernon history. He has served under three mayors.

Looking back on his time in the post, Webster said he was proud of the initiatives, programs, and accomplishments under his tenure. he also praised the professionalism of the department staff and their desire to better serve the community.

Webster said he plans to go to work for Columbus Regional Health Police Department as assistant chief and captain.

Mayor Mike Ochs has formed a selection committee and a new chief will be officially appointed at the March 22 meeting of the North Vernon City Council.

Cummins has plans to distribute $3 million to aid black-owned businesses in cities including Columbus.

The Columbus based engine manufacturer announced this week that agreements are in place to work with non profit groups, municipal partners and community development financial institutes, to disburse capital to black-owned businesses. Locally, Cummins announced partnerships with the Columbus and Bartholomew County branch of the NAACP and the Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce.

The Community Development Financial Institutes are private financial institutions that exist to deliver affordable lending to low-income and low-wealth communities.

Cummins launched the Cummins Advocating for Racial Equity or CARE initiative last July as a way to help undo the systemic discrimination against the Black community in the U.S., according to the company. Cummins identified four areas it wants to affect, including creating empowerment by building Black wealth and income.

Other cities to benefit from the funds include Indianapolis, Minneapolis, and Memphis. In Indianapolis, the company will be working with the Local Initiatives Support Corporation and the Indy Black Chamber of Commerce.

Bartholomew County is seeing fewer home sales, due to a reduced number of homes on the market and increasing costs.

According to monthly real estate statistics compiled by F.C. Tucker Company for February, there was a 17 percent decrease in the number of Bartholomew County homes sold compared to February of last year. Home prices also increased 16.9 percent to $237,105. Available housing inventory was down 67.2 percent compared to this time last year.

According to the company’s analysis of a 16-county region, Jennings County saw the biggest decrease in homes sold, with a 54.2 percent decrease this February compared to this time last year. Jennings County also recorded the highest average year to date home sale price increase at 48.2 percent. Jennings County also had the lowest inventory decrease compared to last year, 20.7 percent.

Charts courtesy of F.C. Tucker Company.

The Columbus Redevelopment Commission is clearing the way for new owners of the Garage Pub in the Jackson Street parking garage downtown. The commission approved a new lease holder for the space in the city-owned parking garage and endorsed a riverfront liquor license yesterday.

The redevelopment commission acts as landlord for the retail spaces in the city-owned parking garages and Commons downtown.

The commission held a special meeting to hear the requests from new business owners BCP Holdings LLC, who are buying the restaurant and bar from the previous owners. The company plans to continue to operate the Garage Pub with a similar menu and will be enhancing the sports-watching theme of the business on Fourth Street. They plan to add newer model televisions but otherwise will leave the property largely the same.

Commission attorney Stan Gamso said the lease will remain the same under the new owners, with rent of about $4,800 per month.

The new owners expect to close on the deal next week and hope to reopen the business by the end of April or early May. Most of the employees would be asked to return to the business, which has been closed due to COVID-19.

After the commission’s positive recommendation, Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop will write a letter to the liquor license board requesting the company be approved for one of the limited number of riverfront liquor licenses.

Indiana State Police are kicking off an annual multi-state effort to crack down on criminal acts through high volume traffic enforcement.

Indiana is joining with agencies in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia for the Six-State Trooper Project. The crackdown effort on the highways lasts today through Saturday and you can expect to see more troopers on the roads conducting traffic stops.

Troopers say that criminals frequently must navigate the roadways while moving from point A to point B in their activities. By conducting large scale coordinated road patrols troopers create a bigger net for law enforcement. The effort also achieves safer roadways through increased traffic enforcement.

If you see someone taking part in high-risk driving behavior, if you suspect impaired driving, or suspect criminal activity on the road, you are encouraged to call 911.

Bartholomew County is back in the blue according to yesterday’s update to the statewide COVID-19 spread map by the Indiana State Department of Health. Blue indicates the lowest level of disease spread according to state statistics.

The county returned to the blue milestone, with 93 new cases per 100,000 residents and a 7-day positivity rate of 4.36 percent.

However, while the weekly statistics shows improvement, the county’s overall advisory level remains unchanged at yellow. Counties must reach the lower weekly spread levels and maintain those levels for two weeks before the advisory level changes.

The only remaining surrounding county in the yellow or moderate spread category is Jennings County.

Statewide Indiana had 863 new positive cases, a 3.1 percent 7-day positivity rating and 16 new deaths from the disease. In our surrounding area, Decatur County counted for one of those deaths.