News

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) recently announced a request for information from the public on blocked railroad crossings.  U.S. Senators Todd Young (R-Ind) and Mike Braun (R-Ind) and Congressman Pete Visclosky (D-Ind-1) are urging Hoosiers to provide input to the FRA.On June 14th, the FRA issued a federal register notice in order to obtain information regarding the frequency, location, and impacts of highway-rail grade crossings blocked by slow-moving or idling trains.  The solicitation notes the potential safety concerns with crossings that are blocked by trains, including that emergency response vehicles may be significantly delayed from responding to an incident or

Portage Police have had several reports of vehicles broken into with items taken and several vehicles stolen from the West side of Portage over the weekend. A video shows a person of interest in these cases, which can be found on the Portage Police Facebook page.

Makers, crafters, and performers from across the region will be on hand for what is being billed as the “Greatest Show & Tell on Earth” -- the South Shore Mini Maker Faire. The event will be held on Saturday, June 22, at Charles R. Westcott Park in Michigan City. The free, family-friendly event will be open to the public from 11:00am to 5:00pm. The South Shore Mini Maker Faire takes after its enormous parent event, Maker Faire, which originated in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2006 as a project of the editors of Make: Magazine. Maker Faires have expanded

The Michigan City Police Kiddie Parade will be taking place on Saturday June 22nd. This year’s theme is “Candyland” so MCPD is urging participants up to age 12 to dress as their favorite candy or a candy theme entry. Trophies and ribbons will be awarded. A host of celebrity judges will present. After the parade ice cream will be served to all participants. Registration begins at 1pm at Healthlinc located at 7th & Franklin St. Treat bags will be given to all participants. Judging will be at 1:15 pm through 1:45 pm. The parade begins at 2pm and runs north

Master Motor Carrier Inspector Joe Robinson has announced his retirement from the Indiana State Police following a career which has spanned nearly 40 years. During his career, he has held certifications in the Motor Carrier Service Assistance Program (MCSAP), Hazardous Materials, Motor Coach, and he has also been involved in the training of new Inspectors at the District and the with the certifications for Troopers involved with MCSAP. Presently Joe has accepted a position with a wrecker service in Fort Wayne, where he will be employed as their Fleet Safety Coordinator.

Long time spokesperson for the Indiana State Police, Capt. David Bursten, retired Friday.  Though retired from the state police, his service to the State of Indiana will continue with the Indiana Department of Correction (IDOC) where he will serve as the Chief Communications Officer.  He starts this chapter of public service today that will include management of internal and external communication of activities of interest at IDOC facilities located across Indiana.David will maintain his membership with the Indianapolis Public Relations Society (IPRS) as well as with the National Information Officers Association (NIOA).  Recently promoted F/Sgt. Ron Galaviz is assuming the

People interested in a career in physical therapy can learn more about jobs available at Franciscan Health during a recruitment open house from 9AM to noon on Saturday, June 29th at Franciscan Health Dyer.Clinicians will be on hand to share their experiences and discuss treatment areas, including inpatient rehabilitation, acute care, and the ICU early mobility program. Outpatient physical therapy services include pediatrics, cancer-related fatigue, lymphedema, Parkinson’s disease, women’s health, orthopedics, home health, sports medicine and industrial medicine.Job seekers are encouraged to bring multiple resumes. The event will be in the Reginald Boardroom via the main entrance of the hospital

SR 55 is closed in Crown Point for replacement of a box culvert. The road will be closed between Greenview Drive and Greenview Place, with work expected to wrap up by the end of August.

Governor Eric Holcomb announced that Zachary Jackson will serve as state budget director effective today. Jackson has served as the state deputy budget director since 2013. As the deputy budget director, Jackson helped produce the Governor’s biennial budget and managed state spending. From 2008 to 2012, Jackson served as assistant director of the State Budget Agency overseeing the Health and Human Services Division. Prior to that role, he worked at SBA as a budget analyst with responsibilities for transportation, general government, and state employee pay and benefits. He also worked as a policy analyst in the Indiana Office of Medicaid

The Michigan City Commission for Women will meet on June 20th at 5:00 pm in the West Conference Room, City Hall, 100 E Michigan Boulevard.

The St. Joseph County Metro Homicide Unit (CMHU) is asking for the public’s help in locating two individuals that it would like to speak to in connection with its investigation into the June 7, 2014 shooting of Isaiah Durham, which resulted in his death (2700 block of Buckskin Lane, South Bend) . CMHU would like to speak with: 24 year old Diquan Kadeen Weeks and 23 year old Dominique Herron. Both individuals have last known addresses in South Bend, IN, but might have left the area. Investigators would like to speak with them as they are believed to have been

People interested in a career in physical therapy can learn more about jobs available at Franciscan Health during a recruitment open house from 9AM to noon on Saturday, June 29 at Franciscan Health Dyer. Clinicians will be on hand to share their experiences and discuss treatment areas, including inpatient rehabilitation, acute care, and the ICU early mobility program. Outpatient physical therapy services include pediatrics, cancer-related fatigue, lymphedema, Parkinson’s disease, women’s health, orthopedics, home health, sports medicine and industrial medicine. Job seekers are encouraged to bring multiple resumes. The event will be in the Reginald Boardroom via the main entrance of

Yesterday, U.S. Senators Todd Young (R-Ind.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), and Representatives Trey Hollingsworth (R-Ind.-09) and Pete Visclosky (D-Ind.-01) announced that TPG Chicago Dry Dock LLC will receive a $1.2 million Maritime Administration Small Shipyard Grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). This grant will aid in the construction of the largest dry dock in the Lower Lake Michigan region. In May, the Senators and Representatives wrote a letter to MARAD Administrator Mark H. Buzby in support of TPG Chicago Dry Dock’s construction project, which highlighted the substantial economic impact for the Great

The Michigan City Urban Enterprise Association will be holding their monthly board meeting on Monday, June 17, at 6 pm. It will be held at 601 Franklin Street, Suite 100. The public is invited to attend.

The La Porte City Police Department will be conducting Aggressive Driving patrols from June 21st – July 14th.  Officers will be working approximately 120 hours of extra patrols under the Operation Pull Over grant. Aggressive driving patrols will target those dangerous moving violations that cause or directly contribute to traffic crashes.  The 4th of July celebration, as well as the La Porte County 4-H fair, will be in progress during this enforcement period.  Officers will focus their efforts on these dangerous violations as well as other dangerous moving violations such as Texting and Driving violations.  For more information on Operation

Attorney General Curtis Hill has joined a 16-state coalition supporting a Trump administration policy enabling self-employed people and those working for small businesses to participate in Association Health Plans (AHPs). Following an executive order by President Trump, the U.S. Department of Labor finalized the AHP rule in the summer of 2018.AHPs provide access to quality, affordable health coverage to segments of the population that otherwise find it difficult to obtain such coverage. Earlier this year, however, a federal district court stated that aspects of the Department of Labor’s rule were unlawful.This month, Attorney General Hill joined 13 other attorneys general

Five students from La Porte County received scholarships named in honor of fallen La Porte County Sheriff’s Patrolman Neil Thompson on Wednesday. The students were presented the scholarships at the La Porte County Sheriff’s Merit Board monthly meeting.Riley Ott (daughter of Captain Al Ott), Cedric McCoy (son of Deputy Marvin McCoy), Gabriel Chavez (son of Deputy Corey Chavez) and Tyler Benn (son of Fleet Technician Sam Benn) all recently graduated from La Porte High School and received scholarships. This year’s scholarship essay winner is Katherine Doperalski. Katherine recently graduated from Michigan City High School and is the sister of Deputies

The Valparaiso Police Department is accepting applications for Probationary Police Officer. Applications are available at the Valparaiso Police Department, 355 Washington St., or at the department website, www.valparaisopolice.org. The applications may be completed on-line, mailed back to the department or returned in person. The minimum requirements to be considered for this opportunity are that the applicant must: be 21 years of age or older, hold a high school degree or GED, be a United States Citizen, possess a valid driver’s license and have no prior felony convictions. For more information about employment as a Valparaiso Police Officer, including a job

The National Endowment for the Arts is awarding Lubeznik Center for the Arts (LCA) a grant of $10,000 to support The Chicago Imagists: Before and After exhibition and related programming. This vibrant exhibition featuring some of Chicago’s most famous artists, those who inspired them and those they influenced will span LCA’s three major galleries and be open to the public free of charge from June 17 through October 19.A variety of community engagement events are planned during the exhibition’s run, including an opening reception on July 5, a curator-led tour on July 13 and a Family Day on September 21.

Purdue University Northwest’s Center for Innovation through Visualization and Simulation (CIVS) has been awarded a 2019 – 2020 research grant under the Naval Engineering Education Consortium (NEEC) program, through the Department of the Navy, Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division (NSWC Crane). The project, “Visualization of Repair Operations Management for Networked Systems Resilience,” will research and develop visualization approaches to help efficiently find solutions for optimizing repair operations and mitigating network failure, for a model-based decision support system. The research team includes faculty both from Purdue University Northwest, who provide expertise in advanced visualization technologies and machine learning applications, and