As Richmond Fire Department chief, Jerry Purcell knew the danger boarded windows on vacant houses posed for firefighters. He began working on a shuttering ordinance to remedy the situation. Now, as a Richmond Common Council member, Purcell has presented an ordinance that amends the city’s unsafe building code for council consideration. On Feb. 10, council […]
Author Archives: Mike Emery
Mike Emery is a reporter and layout editor for the Western Wayne News.
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Auditor pleads not guilty to 2 charges
Wayne County Auditor Mark Hoelscher pleaded not guilty to two misdemeanor counts of intimidation during a Feb. 11 initial hearing in Superior Court 3. Special Judge Matthew Cox of Union County informed Hoelscher, 77, of his rights and special prosecutor Jason Ray, also of Union County, read the charges against Hoelscher during the five-minute hearing. […]
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Amended food and beverage tax bill raises county concern
Richmond’s pursuit of a food and beverage tax has switched from Indiana’s House to the Senate, and it now directly impacts Wayne County and other county towns. Food and beverage tax requests from Richmond, Marion and Shipshewana have been combined into Senate Bill 304. State Rep. Brad Barrett, a Richmond Republican representing District 56, authored […]
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Sheriff proposes way to fill jail staff
Sheriff Randy Retter needs six more jail deputies, and he presented Wayne County Council with a creative approach to filling those positions. During council’s Feb. 6 meeting, Retter explained that hiring trained jail deputies is difficult. Deputies are usually promoted from civilian corrections officers trained by jail staff. With that in mind, Retter proposed hiring […]
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Despite hurricane, RP&L reliability exceeds 99.9%
Squirrels posed a problem for Richmond Power & Light during 2024. So did trees. Those are normal issues causing outages each year, but Hurricane Helene was an anomaly that impacted RP&L’s service the most last year. General Manager Tony Foster reported to the RP&L board, which is comprised of Richmond Common Council members, the utility’s […]
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Property tax rates drop in Wayne Co.
Property tax rates in all 35 Wayne County taxing districts are lower for 2025 payments than in 2024. That seems like good news, but it doesn’t necessarily mean lower property tax bills. The 2025 total payments, with half due in May and half due in November, are based on 2024 property assessments. Higher assessments lead […]
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Council considers bonds for 6Main build
With demolition of the former Elder-Beerman complete, construction nears for the luxury apartment development planned for the corner of South Sixth and East Main streets. The estimated $37 million 6Main development promises 150 apartments and 3,200 square feet of retail space, according to a presentation from Deron Kintner of developer Flaherty & Collins Properties during […]
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Commissioners shift gears on truck drivers’ tuition benefit
The Wayne County Highway Department invests more than $10,000 when it hires truck drivers without Class A commercial drivers licenses. The new drivers are enrolled in a six-week course to obtain their CDLs. Tuition costs $5,245, and the drivers earn $22.27 per hour while taking the class. Those drivers are required to pay back some […]
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Sheriff touts support for federal immigration policy
Sheriff Randy Retter doesn’t know why Wayne County was labeled a sanctuary county by an anti-immigration think tank, but he made sure the county didn’t stay on that list. Retter told Wayne County’s commissioners during their Jan. 29 meeting that he worked with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Indianapolis to assure the […]
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Upcoming bridge projects carry $14M price tag
With 250 bridges maintained by Wayne County, there’s never a shortage of projects needing work, whether rehabilitations or outright replacements. Federal funding passed through the Indiana Department of Transportation expands the county’s ability to tackle bridge projects. Brandon Sanders, the county highway engineer, updated the eight federal bridge projects during the Jan. 29 commissioners meeting. […]