COLUMBIA CITY-The Whitley County Libertarian Party passed a unanimous resolution Saturday morning endorsing Jarrad Lancaster for Congress. A longtime resident of Whitley and Kosciusko County, Lancaster is a retired third-generation firefighter and NFPA instructor, current volunteer Whitko wrestling coach, and Whitley County hobby rancher.

LARWILL-After two weather-related reschedules, Whitko’s January School Board meeting finally took place. Though the clocks on the walls of the lecture room at WCA were still absent, the wall TVs displayed the evening’s agenda, complete with a ticker across the bottom that ran the 148-word long statement that specifically outlines all the allowances for the presiding officer’s ability to prohibit public comment. An executive session proceeded the meeting (at 5:30) to discuss “individuals over whom the governing body has jurisdiction,” but further information was not provided publicly.

LARWILL-Whitko’s administration has received new scrutiny lately, due in part to a small Facebook group, “Whitko Community Discussions 2.0.” This private group formed in early December as a way for parents and community members to practice free speech, as some members had complained that the “Whitko Community Discussions” group (of 1.2k members) removed comments and/or did not approve posts. With the new ability to freely discuss issues, the leadership of Little Cats came under fire almost immediately. While the small victory of “investigation into the issue” was earned, some are waiting for resolution before celebrating. Either way, hopes are high that things are moving towards change in the right direction.

COLUMBIA CITY-Tuesday night’s Common Council meeting had presentations from ProPEL US 30 and Mission 25, as well as the swearing in of a new police officer, Casey Hershberger.

Columbia City-A Facebook page called “Whitley County Adventures in Shitposting” has made waves in the community again recently. With more than 2,000 followers, the page began in March of 2023, using memes to express frustration at the perceived failings of local government. From anger about the lack of the promised rural high-speed internet, to the rising costs of the $40,000,000 new jail, “Adventures” delivers free speech in a blatant manner.

LARWILL-After Wednesday’s Board of Finance Meeting at 4pm and the Reorganization Meeting that followed (both in the lecture room), the normal work session took place in the WCA TAP room. Amid the rattle of the noisy radiator, the board opted to wait a few minutes to be certain to start at the printed 4:45, which had been an estimate for when the two prior meetings would end, though the absence of any clocks in the lecture room may have been a factor in the time difference. Superintendent Tim Pivarnik shared that starting early and depriving the public from their right to attend had gone very poorly for other organizations in the past.

LARWILL-Following Whitko’s Board of Finance Meeting at 4pm on Wednesday, a Reorganization Meeting was held (also in the Lecture Room). For President, Georgia Tenney nominated Annette Arnold; this passed 4-1 with Lynn Studebaker voting against. Deb Thomas nominated Georgia Tenney for Vice President; this also passed 4-1 with Studebaker voting against. Finally, Thomas nominated Scott Werstler for Secretary, which also passed 4-1 with Studebaker voting against.

LARWILL-Scott Werstler led Wednesday’s Whitko Board of Finance meeting, where the Finance President, Vice President, and Secretary were elected. Georgia Tenney nominated Scott Werstler for president, which was seconded and passed 4-1, with Lynn Studebaker voting against. Annette Arnold nominated Deb Thomas for vice-president, which passed 5-0, as did Arnold’s nomination of Lynn Studebaker as secretary.

LARWILL-In addition to the regular monthly business, Whitko’s December School Board meeting approved the bid from Schenkel Construction for the D-wing remodel project that was discussed at the Work Session on Dec. 13. This bid of $6,660,000 included some options for cutting costs, including one that changed the standard cast iron pipe to PVC, which the school has opted to not do as the potential problems could end up costing far more than the savings. Unspecified field trips were also approved.

LARWILL-Whitko School Board pushed back Wednesday’s regularly scheduled work session to 4:15 in order to allow time for both an executive session and a special session prior. According to the literature posted on the door of the Whitko Career Academy, the reason for the executive session was to discuss pending litigation, and the special session would consider a settlement agreement.

COLUMBIA CITY-All department heads and common council members were in attendance at Tuesday’s Common Council meeting. Although Nathan Bilger of the Plan Commission sent his regrets at being unable to attend, Councilman Dan Weigold relayed information on the Plan Commission’s recently approved rezone project involving a bank located near Connexion Way and Lincolnway. Weigold mentioned that the bank has also expressed a desire to have an entrance on each road, something he vehemently opposes. Weigold says the speed on Lincolnway is too high to allow for a safe entrance, and Mayor Ryan Daniel said he concurred with Weigold. Though conducting a study on the subject was mentioned to the commission, Weigold said there were no set plans or details on who would conduct the study or when, and he reiterated that he doesn’t agree with the need for a second entrance. Approval of the rezone by Common Council was unanimous.

Now that I have your attention, I hope you let me explain. The world is full of great people...and awful ones. We see it in all genders, ages, races, religions, etc., and just as it isn't right to lump "all Millenials," or "all women," or "all white people" into assumptions on who they are, we shouldn't be specifically backing people soley because of their occupation.

COLUMBIA CITY-Although Councilpeople Tad Varga and Jennifer Romano both joined Tuesday’s Common Council meeting virtually, business continued as usual. The ordinance increasing salaries for non-elected officials by 4% passed unanimously, and discussion was had about changing the ordinance governing the salaries of elected officials to increase salaries.

LARWILL-Monday’s school board meeting included recognition of each building’s Student of the Month, a presentation by the Ag department, and reports from the principals and directors. (Full agenda posted at article end)

COLUMBIA CITY-Tuesday’s Common Council meeting ran a bit longer than usual, as a significant portion of time was devoted to a presentation about the Downtown Revitalization Project. Those involved with the project have been excitedly waiting for several years now for progress. Catherine Puckett of HWC Engineering praised Columbia City’s success and growth, saying that many other cities do not have the activated alleys, downtown art projects, facade grants, and downtown activities that Columbia City does. Through the efforts of a 12-member steering committee, a public survey, an event at First Fridays, a public meeting, and discussions with the Youth Council and department heads, collected input was used to plan. Public statements included requests for a public place to skate over the winter, feedback for the trails that bemoaned the lack of bike racks large enough for a family of four, complaints about blighted buildings, praise for First Fridays and the Farmers’ Market, and a suggestion to make Van Buren a 1-way street to create more greenspace downtown. A repeated complaint for many years now, specifically from mothers of small children, has been Columbia City’s lack of an indoor play option, and that made the board as well. Since the loss of the indoor playplace at Burger King and later McDonalds, the closest (free) option for littles with the “winter zoomies” is the Chick-Fil-A playplace in Fort Wayne.

SOUTH WHITLEY-Wednesday night’s school board meeting at South Whitley Elementary began at 4:30 instead of the usual 4:00, which Whitko had updated on the official Facebook page two days prior. The calendar on the school’s website still incorrectly listed 4:00 and a location of the Whitko Career Academy, which may have contributed to the low turnout.

COLUMBIA CITY-Tuesday's Common Council meeting marked a unanimous approval on the 2024 city budget. Mayor Ryan Daniel reassured those present that it did not include a bunch of changes and only added two new positions. As previously mentioned, the new budget sets aside funds towards the trail extension, Eagle Park, and a text alert program to help announce street closings, outages, events, etc.; the budget also adds a 4% raise to employees across the board.

PIERCETON-October 11th’s Whitko School Board meeting included an American Reading Company (ARC) curriculum update from Chris Evans, the TAP director. ARC automatically tracks specific skills and adjusts in real time to help students improve their reading with color-coded, easy to read data for the district and individual schools. Evans reported that Whitko has, "4th and 5th graders still struggling with foundational skills" and says once testing has been completed on all students to set their baselines, Whitko will be able to set growth goals specific to WHY which kids can't read well, not just know that kids don't read well. Evans emphasized that a great deal of factors play into low reading scores and reiterated his hopes in ARC.

COLUMBIA CITY-Councilwoman Jenny Reffitt Middleton missed Tuesday's Common Council Meeting, where the yearly budget was discussed and unanimously given its first of two needed approvals. Proposed changes include cuts to the Housing Authority, an increase in funding for the Plan Commission, Phase Two of the Westgate Project, and continuing to set aside funds towards Eagle Park, a trail extension, and a text alert program to announce street closings, outages, and community events. The budget also adds two new city employee positions: a Community Engagement Specialist (to aid in downtown beautification efforts, including weeding and managing the pocket parks) and an Administrative Assistant for the Parks Department, as the current position reportedly has far too much work for the one person handling things.

COLUMBIA CITY-With every seat taken, Wednesday night's County Plan Commission meeting began. John Woodmansee arrived at 7:59, and Thor Hodges was absent. Executive Director Nathan Bilger gave a refresher on Columbia City's jurisdictional boundaries since 1955, shared a chart comparing zoning categories, and explained some of the considerations that have occurred so far on the proposal, including diminishing the desired acreage (from 6,000 to 1,430) and scrapping Rural Residential and Commercial designations, leaving only Agricultural and seventy acres of Industrial.