Richmond Power & Light’s line department will soon have a new mini-excavator and trailer. RP&L’s board, comprised of all Richmond Common Council members, approved the purchases during its July 1 meeting. RP&L will buy the mini-excavator from New Holland of Richmond for $70,965, the lowest of three bids received. RP&L General Manager Tony Foster expects […]
Author Archives: Mike Emery
Mike Emery is a reporter and layout editor for the Western Wayne News.
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Plan substitutes 110 townhomes for apartments
A development plan for 80 acres on Richmond’s southeast side now includes townhomes rather than apartments. Bryan Stumpf and 11th Street Development LLC have again applied for zoning changes necessary to construct the Smith Hill planned unit development south of Backmeyer Road between South 37th Street and Garwood Road. Richmond Common Council denied an original […]
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Mayor requests $300K for parks, projects
Mayor Ron Oler is asking Richmond Common Council for $300,000 for parks, downtown parking and community branding. Oler presented his request during council’s July 1 meeting. The city’s economic development fund received $673,236 from the state’s 2024 supplemental local income tax distribution. Oler said he’s now asking for only $300,000 because of anticipated expenses later […]
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County insurance premiums rise 18.4%
Wayne County will pay nearly $130,000 in additional insurance premiums the next 12 months than during the past 12 months. The county’s insurance runs July 1 to June 30, and county commissioners heard a presentation by Andy Brown of Gregory & Appel Insurance of Indianapolis during their June 26 meeting. Commissioners unanimously voted to use […]
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Deputies duel for Grand Prix victory
Wayne County Sheriff’s Deputy Brad Dwenger slipped past Deputy Luke Sheridan to win the inaugural Safety Village Grand Prix pedal car competition sponsored by Birth to Five on June 25. Eight competitors pedaled around Safety Village in Richmond in quarterfinal, semifinal and championship rounds. The event, which also included giveaways and information from other children’s […]
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Richmond aims to spend development dollars on public safety
The Richmond Redevelopment Commission has embarked on the process to permit public safety expenditures from tax dollars collected in special economic development districts. That process required Richmond Advisory Plan Commission approval of a resolution adding public safety expenditures, both capital and operational, to its Tax Increment Finance district development plan, which is the TIF district […]
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Cleanup proceeds on plastics fire site
Rubble from the April 2023 plastics fire in Richmond remains on just one lot, and cleanup efforts now appear underway there. Large equipment has worked onsite at 308 N.W. F St., the parcel owned by Seth Smith and Cornerstone Trading Group. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency informed Smith that he would be responsible for cleaning […]
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Mayor: Baby box ‘will save lives’
Wayne County now has a safe place for the anonymous and legal surrender of infants. A Safe Haven baby box was introduced June 20 at Richmond Fire Station 1, 101 S. Fifth St. The large, black box on the station’s east exterior wall is the 242nd installed in the nation and the 128th in Indiana […]
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Developing crisis center ‘very exciting stuff’
Centerstone of Indiana has received funding that’s planned to reduce barriers to behavioral care for Wayne County residents. Centerstone is one of eight Indiana community health organizations to receive Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic Medicaid Demonstration program funding through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, according to Amanda Mullins, a Wayne County Board […]
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Resident request: Kill the weeds, please
Howard Price wants Richmond to look better. Price, who finished third in last year’s mayoral election, moved from litter to weeds when he addressed Richmond Common Council during its June 17 meeting. He expressed disappointment at weeds 2 feet tall in cracks between the sidewalk and curb and near stormwater drains along North J Street. […]