Local News

News Release National Park Service: The National Park Service (NPS) has selected Jason Taylor as the new superintendent of Indiana Dunes National Park in Porter, Indiana. Taylor is an experienced resource and land management leader who currently serves as the Director of the Aldo Leopold Wilderness Research Institute (ALWRI) for the United States Forest Service (USFS) located in Missoula, Montana. He will assume his new role at Indiana Dunes later this spring. “I am excited to welcome Jason back to the NPS as the new superintendent of Indiana Dunes,” said NPS Midwest Regional Director Bert Frost. “His ability to manageesources

Police in Portage are asking for the public’s help after a report of a vehicle being struck by gunfire Wednesday. At about 5:14 p.m. officers from the Portage Police Department responded to the intersection of U.S. Highway 6 and County Line Road regarding a shooting that had just taken place. Officers met with the complainants, who were a 19-year-old man and his passenger, a 31-year-old man. The men reported they had been traveling eastbound along U.S. Highway 6 in Hobart prior to the shooting. At the intersection of County Line Road the two began to turn northbound when they reported

At this week’s Portage City Council meeting the Mayor Austin Bonta swore in four new Portage police officers. Officer Bryce Kissinger is a Portage High School graduate and life-long Portage resident.  Officer Kissinger left a career in the transportation field to pursue a career in law enforcement. Officer Logan Rhodes is a Munster High School graduate and holds a degree in Criminal Justice through Ball State University. Officer Trevor Leonhardt is a Merrillville High School graduate who left a career as an ASE certified automotive technician to join the ranks of the Portage Police Department. Officer Markus Bachman holds a

News Release, Franciscan Health: Franciscan Health Crown Point and Michigan City are offering new monthly stroke support groups for stroke survivors, their families and caregivers. Beginning Tuesday, March 12, the Michigan City group will meet at 2 p.m. Central on the second Tuesday of each month in the Mother Maria Theresia Conference Room at Franciscan Health Michigan City, 3500 Franciscan Way. Attendees can park in the main entrance parking lot and enter through Entrance A. The Crown Point group meets at 1p.m. Central the first Wednesday of each month in the San Damiano Conference Room B at the new Franciscan

Press Release, Rotary Club of Michigan City: Kevin McGuire of MCAS selected as the 2023 Paul J. Alinsky Award recipient Kevin McGuire, Director of Technology for Michigan City Area Schools, has been selected as this year’s recipient of the Paul J. Alinsky Excellence Award, presented by the Rotary Club of Michigan City. This award is presented annually by the Rotary Club of Michigan City in honor of Paul Alinsky, a past Rotarian who passed away in 1997. It honors Alinsky’s commitment to innovation and leadership by recognizing those in the Michigan City community who demonstrate these traits through “Service Above

Press Release, Michigan City Chamber of Commerce: The Michigan City Chamber of Commerce is excited to announce the commencement of a comprehensive search for a dynamic and visionary leader to assume the role of President. As the heart of Michigan’s business community, the Chamber is seeking an individual with proven leadership skills, strategic thinking, and a passion for fostering economic growth and community development. The Michigan City Chamber of Commerce is inviting qualified candidates to submit their applications to Nora Akins at: nora@managepeopleright.com. A detailed job description and information on the application process can be found on the Chamber’s website

The City of Michigan City is now accepting lifeguard applications for the 2024 season. Requirements and information is provided on the flyer. Contact information is also provided on the bottom of the flyer.

The Indiana Department of Transportation announced Wednesday that $155.6 million in federal transportation funding is being awarded to 51 cities, towns, and counties in rural portions of Indiana to invest in local road and bridge improvements and sidewalk projects. For this round of funding, rural communities will design, develop and purchase right-of-way for local projects. INDOT will also financially participate in design, engineering, and right-of-way acquisition components. INDOT says this round of funding awards emphasizes improving local bridge conditions. Nearly $90.3 million in federal funds were awarded for projects to rehab or replace 32 local bridges currently rated in poor

Press Release, Purdue University Northwest: Purdue University Northwest recognized several exemplary students, faculty and staff members, nominated by their institutional peers, for accomplishments relating to their on-campus community-building and leadership. The awards were announced at the university’s 2024 Founders Day celebration. PNW’s Founders Day is an annual campus tradition celebrating the anniversary of the university’s founding and the institutional mission of delivering transformational change for the metropolitan region. Founders Day serves as an opportunity to recognize nominees who advance the university mission of academics, scholarship and service to the campus and Northwest Indiana communities. PNW also honors select employees for

Press Release, Health Foundation of La Porte: The third cohort has completed the Nonprofit Leadership Academy, funded by Health Foundation of La Porte (HFL) through a partnership with the O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University. The Academy consisted of ten full-day classes, held at HFL’s Conference & Learning Center, from September 2023 through February 2024. Nineteen local nonprofit leaders participated in the Academy, and 13 received a certificate of completion from IU for attending all 10 sessions. All participants were invited to a celebration event on Friday, February 23, 2024, following the last course. HFL President

In Lake County an Indiana Department of Transportation contractor will close State Road 51 between Ainsworth Road and 62nd Place on or after Monday, March 11. State Road 51 will be closed through mid-July for a bridge superstructure replacement project over Deep River. INDOT says motorists should seek an alternate route. The official detour will follow U.S. 6, I-94, I-65 and U.S. 30.

The South Shore Line is advising passengers that track construction at Hegewisch Station is scheduled to begin on Monday, March 11, and will temporarily impact platform availability. The South SHore Line says that beginning March 11 after rush hour, the Track 1 platform at Hegewisch will be closed for several weeks to accommodate the construction. For the duration of this closure, all trains will utilize the Track 2 platform. There will also be various closures within the Hegewisch parking lot in order to allow equipment to access track and signal infrastructure. The parking lot located east of the station building

Lake Station- This morning at approximately 4:00 a.m., Indiana State Police received a call from an individual who stated he had been involved in a road rage incident that had resulted in a shooting on westbound I-80/94.  At this same time, reports began to come in of a single vehicle crash on I-80/94 westbound at the 12.8 mile-marker.  The original caller stopped their vehicle on I-65 near 61st Ave.  This is approximately 2 miles south of I-80/94.  Troopers responded to both the crash scene and to the caller’s location. As troopers arrived at the scene of the crash, they attempted to render

The following statement is from Hammer's Food & Drink regarding the restaurant permanently closing: "It is with an extremely heavy heart, LOTS of deliberation, and SO many mixed emotions that Hammer’s is saying “last call”. As I said in a previous comment, just a couple days ago, we wanted to stay open through the Summer, but we had a meeting yesterday, and it just isn’t feasible at this point. Even if we were busier than we’ve ever been, it just wouldn’t make up for the loss we have taken. . It breaks our hearts to be permanently shutting the doors

An employee of the La Porte Police Department was honored Tuesday for actions taken when he helped tend to a person involved in a crash back in January. On Jan. 16, LPPD Evidence Custodian Tony McClintock was driving home from work on Johnson Road nearing the Waterford Inn when he observed the vehicle directly in front of him cross the center line and collide head-on with an oncoming vehicle. Tony immediately stopped his vehicle, exited, and checked on the driver of the vehicle in front of him. He found her to be unconscious. He then checked the condition of the

A driver of an SUV died after a crash Monday on I-94 in Porter County, according to Indiana State Police. At about 7:19 p.m., troopers were called to an injury involved crash at the 31.6 mile-marker, eastbound lanes of I-94. This is about five miles east of State Road 49. A trooper responded and located a semi-truck in the right lane, and an SUV with heavy damage in the ditch off the right shoulder. The trooper was told that the driver of the SUV was unresponsive and needed medical assistance. The driver, who was the only occupant of the SUV,

The Michigan City High School (MCHS) Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (MCJROTC) competed in a military drill meet at Ft. Wayne Concordia High School on Saturday, March 2nd.   The meet was very competitive with many of the best Army JROTC schools from Chicagoland drilling, along with Marine powerhouse schools Indianapolis Ben Davis and Louisville Fern Creek.  Concordia is an Army JROTC school, and all but one judge were Army soldiers.  MCHS earned a 4th place trophy for Color Guard out of 20 teams, as well as being very competitive in Armed and Unarmed Regulation, Armed Exhibition, and

Press release, Porter County Aging & Community Services: Porter County Aging & Community Services Executive Director Bruce Lindner is retiring after almost two decades of service. For 17 years, he has led the nonprofit, which serves seniors, low-income families and people with disabilities who live in Porter County. The agency’s offerings include: door-to-door transportation, energy assistance, emergency assistance, food box distribution, medical loan closet and ramp building. Lindner said his role has been a platform for purpose and servant leadership. “I’m very thankful for a fun and rewarding 17 years that have added meaning to my life,” he said. “I

An Indiana Department of Transportation contractor will close State Road 49 between County Road East 400 South and County Road East 500 South on or after Monday, March 11. State Road 49 will be closed for a bridge replacement project over Ahlgrim Ditch through mid-June. INDOT says motorists should seek an alternate route. The official detour will follow U.S. 30, U.S. 421 and State Road 8. The project will be utilizing NEXT Beams, a bridge beam that INDOT is piloting. Two bridge projects in other areas of the state used these beams in 2023, but this will be the first

A woman is in critical condition and a shooting investigation is underway in Michigan City, according to police. On Sunday at approximately 5:50 p.m., the LaPorte County Regional Dispatch Center received a 911 call indicating a person had been shot at the 500 block of Tremont Street. Officers and EMS responded to the residence. Upon arrival a 24-year-old female was located in a bedroom, and police determined she had sustained a gunshot wound. Life saving measures were immediately started, police said. The female was transported from the scene by EMS and flown to South Bend Memorial Hospital for advanced care.