A new hotel is planned for Richmond’s east side, near the Interstate 70 interchange with U.S. 40. Ani Lodging LLC of Chicago has requested a variance of development standards to increase the maximum allowable structure height to accommodate the four-story hotel. The Richmond Board of Zoning Appeals is scheduled to consider the variance petition during […]
Author Archives: Mike Emery
Mike Emery is a reporter and layout editor for the Western Wayne News.
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BZA gives cheese business its OK
Cheese lovers could have a new location to purchase fresh cheese after a decision by the Wayne County Board of Zoning Appeals. During their April 10 meeting, BZA members granted a variance of use to allow the processing and sales of cheese and other dairy products at 5091 Palmer Road, which is northwest of Webster. […]
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Property taxes due May 12
Property tax bills aren’t necessarily good news, but it’s better to find the bill than miss a payment. The bills are arriving in Wayne County residents’ mailboxes about a month before spring payments are due. According to Treasurer Beth Fields, the bills were mailed April 10. They include two payment coupons for payments due this […]
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RP&L saves on mobile power unit
Richmond Power & Light will purchase a new mobile power unit for almost $12,500 less than its budget. During its April 7 meeting, the RP&L board, which is comprised of Richmond Common Council members, unanimously accepted the $87,583 bid from Altec Fenex of Sandoval, Illinois, to provide the new unit. The purchase had been budgeted […]
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Council approves bonds for Smith Hill funding
The question of how to pay for an east-side Richmond housing development now has one more part of the answer. Richmond Common Council passed a resolution and two ordinances April 7 for the Smith Hill planned unit development, which occupies 80 acres south of Backmeyer Road between South 37th Street and Garwood Road. The development […]
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Threat to smack officer’s mouth leads to RPD demotion
The demotion of a Richmond Police Department officer resulted from a 26-second incident during which he threatened to smack another officer in the mouth. During an April 3 special meeting, RPD’s Merit Commission, which had conducted a March 24 hearing, rejected the administration’s request to fire Jeremy Worch, an 11-year RPD officer. Instead, Worch, who […]
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Resources available to protect children
The Wayne County Health Department provides childhood vaccines to keep children safe from disease, but that’s not the only way it works to protect children. Trauma and injury prevention is one of the key performance indicators measured by the Health First Indiana program. With the HFI funding, the department and its partners have developed a […]
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Helpers rally to clean up flood debris
Volunteers pitched in to help schools, neighbors and even sports foes after significant flooding in Wayne and surrounding counties that damaged roads and delayed events. Throughout the April 4-6 weekend, widespread rainfall totaled more than 6 inches over a three- to four-day period, according to Matthew Cain, director of Wayne County Emergency Communications and Emergency […]
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Infrastructure funds set for 82 home sites
Infrastructure costs ground some Wayne County subdivision expansions to a halt, remaining stagnant despite plat approvals. Helping restart those projects was prioritized during Hoosier Enduring Legacy Planning, with more than a million dollars allocated to infrastructure projects. The Economic Development Corporation of Wayne County has vetted developers and their projects to determine a funding plan […]
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Town’s fire bill lowered for 2025
Spring Grove will pay Richmond Fire Department less this year for fire coverage than anticipated. A discussion among Mayor Ron Oler and Spring Grove’s town board at the board’s Feb. 11 meeting set the change in motion. The city believed that Spring Grove owed a past-due amount for fire coverage; however, Oler blamed the situation […]