News

Yesterday, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue announced that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is offering up to $600 million in loans and grants to help build broadband infrastructure in rural America. Telecommunications companies, rural electric cooperatives and utilities, internet service providers and municipalities may apply for funding through USDA’s new ReConnect Program to connect rural areas that currently have insufficient broadband service. Answering the Administration’s call to action for rural prosperity, Congress appropriated funds in the fiscal year 2018 budget for this broadband pilot program. USDA Rural Development is the primary agency delivering the program, with assistance from other

For select Saturdays in December, the South Shore Line will provide an eastbound extra “shoppers special” train to help accommodate holiday travelers.On Dec. 15th, this extra will depart Millennium Station at 4:25p (Van Buren St. at 4:28p), run non-stop to Hegewisch and make all local stops terminating at Carroll Avenue. The train will not serve Hudson Lake or South Bend.

Michigan City Police Department’s Uniform Patrol Shift 3 was dispatched to the 100 block of East US Highway 20 on December 14, 2018 at 03:21 AM for a single vehicle motor vehicle crash involving property damage. A pickup truck was found to have struck a utility pole on the south side of the roadway. Power lines are down across the entire roadway which resulted in traffic being shut down for safety concerns. All lanes of East US Highway 20 are closed at US 421 (Franklin Street) and Cleveland Avenue. NIPSCO is on scene and expects the roadway to be closed

The Indiana Department of Homeland Security received nearly $1.3 million in federal grant awards recently to enhance training and resources for Indiana first responders and kickstart a statewide campaign to install 10,000 smoke detectors in Hoosier homes.The funding will impact three specific areas across Indiana: 1) equipment and training for firefighters and emergency responders 2) fire prevention and safety in homes and 3) additional equipment and training related to hazardous chemicals. The total for the three awards is $1.29 million.The grants, which were awarded following a lengthy application process, supplement the nearly $800,000 in federal funding IDHS returned to Indiana

U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) joined his Senate colleagues yesterday in voting to advance the Farm Bill Conference Report, which is a bipartisan agreement between the House and Senate versions of the Farm Bill. This Farm Bill compromise improves risk management tools for farmers, strengthens food security while eliminating wasteful practices, and ensures Hoosiers can continue innovative conservation efforts that increase yield and prioritize soil health. The Senate passed the bill by a vote of 87-13. It must now pass the House before heading to the President’s desk to be signed into law.

Franciscan Physician Network is meeting the increasing need for primary care physicians with the addition of three board certified family medicine doctors in Michigan City. Jennifer England, MD, Kumari Singh, MD, and Liping Zhong, MD, Ph.D, have joined the Franciscan Physician Network Coolspring Health Center, 1225 E. Coolspring Ave. Dr. England has been at Coolspring since the summer, while Dr. Singh and Dr. Zhong joined more recently. For more information or to make an appointment, visit FranciscanDocs.org or call (219) 879-6531.

“The Duneland School Corporation always places the safety and well-being of our students as its highest priority. We value the quality communication from our students and families allowing us to address concerns swiftly. A referral was made to administration that concerned a Chesterton Middle School teacher and a student. An investigation was conducted by the schools and was referred to local law enforcement. Duneland School Corporation took measures to immediately remove the teacher, who has since resigned, from the school and all school-related activities. This situation is unrelated to previously released information regarding the seven student suspensions that took place

The Indiana Department of Homeland Security received nearly $1.3 million in federal grant awards recently to enhance training and resources for Indiana first responders and kickstart a statewide campaign to install 10,000 smoke detectors in Hoosier homes.The funding will impact three specific areas across Indiana: 1) equipment and training for firefighters and emergency responders 2) fire prevention and safety in homes and 3) additional equipment and training related to hazardous chemicals. The total for the three awards is $1.29 million.The grants, which were awarded following a lengthy application process, supplement the nearly $800,000 in federal funding IDHS returned to Indiana

The LaPorte County Sheriff’s Office is currently investigating a single vehicle fatality crash that occurred in Galena Township along County Road 1000 North. On Tuesday, deputies from the Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to County Road 1000 North, east of Beverly Lane, in reference to a vehicle crash in which the vehicle involved was fully engulfed in flames. Deputies arrived at the scene with Kankakee Fire Department and La Porte County Emergency Medical Services and found that a single vehicle was involved in the crash and was on fire. The fire was extinguished, and it was determined that the driver had

As a proactive approach to interacting with the community and the new State of the Art Franciscan Hospital, the Michigan City Police SWAT Team (Special Weapons and Tactics), will take their monthly training to the hospital grounds on Tuesday evening December 11th beginning at 4:00pm to an undetermined conclusion time. Corporal Jeff Piotrowski, Officers Dave Cooney and Steve Forker, commanders for the elite SWAT team, approached the new hospital facility to receive permission to conduct their Active Shooter “walk through” and “training” inside the grounds and building of the new hospital. As the police will be present with numerous vehicles,

State Department of Health officials from both Indiana and Illinois were in attendance on last Thursday, for a blessing and open house for a first-of-its-kind clinic in the state that aims to fill an urgent need to test and treat patients for hepatitis C and HIV. The Multi-Specialty Hepatitis C and HIV Clinic is located on the first floor of Franciscan Health Hammond at 5454 Hohman Ave., and will serve both the Northwest Indiana and South Suburban Chicago communities. In the beginning, providers at the clinic will offer services from 8 a.m. to noon on Wednesdays. There will also be

Chesterton Police asking for public assistance to locate two teenagers that have ran away from home. Sixteen year old Aiden Moran and 15 year old Madaline Paugh last had contact with their parents during the evening hours on 12/05/2018. If you have any information please contact the Chesterton Police Department at 219-926-1136. Possible destinations are California, New Orleans, and Florida. (More information and photos are posted to the Chesterton Police Facebook.)

U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) announced that his bipartisan legislation to increase oversight of taxpayer dollars spent by federal agencies has passed the Senate. The Good Accounting Obligation in Government (GAO-IG) Act requires federal agencies to provide annual reports to Congress on the status of implementing recommendations from the Office of Inspector General (IG) and the Government Accountability Office (GAO). “This bill keeps our government in check and protects Hoosier taxpayers. Increasing accountability in our federal agencies will better serve all Americans,” said Senator Young. “I’m proud that this legislation has passed out of the Senate and I look forward

State Rep. Jim Pressel (R-Rolling Prairie) was recently selected to serve as vice chair of the House Government and Regulatory Reform Committee. Pressel was also reappointed to the House Elections and Apportionment Committee, and newly appointed to the House Roads and Transportation Committee and the House Utilities, Energy and Telecommunications Committee. Standing committee assignments are made biennially after each election. On Jan. 3, House lawmakers will convene in the House Chamber for the first day of the 2019 legislative session. Standing committee hearings, which typically occur at the Statehouse in Indianapolis, can be viewed live online at iga.in.gov. This site