Everyone has a part to play in bettering the place they live, according to Brad Bowman. His place — Cambridge City — honored him as its 2024 Citizen of the Year for his many activities in community betterment. It didn’t take long for Bowman to realize he had been chosen when Beth Leisure, the 2023 […]
Author Archives: Bob Hansen
Bob Hansen is a reporter for the Western Wayne News.
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3 Hagerstown property owners explain plans for blighted houses
Owners of three properties have until next spring to repair or demolish houses as the result of agreed-to orders resulting from Hagerstown’s first unsafe buildings code hearings. A fourth house will be scheduled for demolition. The town called the Nov. 20 hearings after notifying owners of apparent violations of the town’s unsafe building code. The […]
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Hagerstown weighs its future with EDC
President Valerie Shafer of the Economic Development Corp. of Wayne County, Indiana, asked the Hagerstown Town Council to renew its contract for four years. Hagerstown is one of several towns that pays the county one-half of its economic development income tax, which is then used for the EDC and economic development projects. Hagerstown is paying […]
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Town’s council discusses variety of topics
A wide variety of topics kept Hagerstown Town Council on its toes during its Nov. 4 regular meeting. Among matters addressed: a railroad crossing, contract renewal for economic development, a countywide planning process, the unsafe building ordinance, a resident’s concerns about construction on a neighbor’s property, town festivals and conditions at a vacant house. Railroad […]
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Nettle Creek teachers will average nearly $60K
Nettle Creek teachers will see a 3% increase in base pay for 2025-26 under terms of a tentative contract that the school board will vote on Nov. 6. Base pay will be $47,000 under the contract terms, an increase from $45,000 this year. Teachers who are rated as effective or highly effective will get $1,125 […]
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Northeastern schools’ budget about 6% higher
Northeastern Wayne School Corporation anticipates spending about 6% more in 2025 than it planned to in 2024. The school board approved budgets for the general fund, bus replacement and capital projects during its Oct. 23 meeting. All told, next year’s budget is $19.2 million, compared to just over $18 million this year. Northeastern plans to […]
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Township wants change in fire plan
Twice in the past year, Hagerstown Town Council has given a 12-month extension for Jefferson Township’s fire protection agreement rather than the traditional three-year contract. Members said both times they wanted more information about changes advocated by the township trustee. The Hagerstown Town Council extended the fire contract on Dec. 4, 2023, asking Jefferson Township […]
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Town grappling with building code mistakes
Mistakes in applying the town building code are haunting the Hagerstown Town Council, according to discussion during an Oct. 14 special meeting. About a dozen residents of the Graceland Heights subdivision attended an Aug. 5 council meeting to ask why they had been without power for several days after a storm. Town officials said they […]
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Nettle Creek collecting food for weekends
Nettle Creek schools are collecting food to send home with students on weekends. “We are going to ask the community to donate food items for weekend backpacks,” Superintendent Emily Schaeffer told the school board on Oct. 16. It’s intended to help children who are “food insecure,” meaning that they might not be getting three meals […]
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Neighbors complain about property
Hagerstown finds itself without a building commissioner for the third time in a year as pressure builds for the town to take action on unsafe properties. Several residents asked the Town Council on Oct. 7 for action on a house and yard that has become an eyesore over the past year. The building commissioner’s resignation […]