Board Vice President Chris Kiefer announced at the beginning of the board meeting how the process to fill the vacancy on the board will work. He said that tonight, six questions will be asked of each of the six candidates. Then, next Monday – Dec. 9 – the board will again meet in executive session at 4 p.m. Then, they will meet in public session at 5 p.m. to take a vote on a candidate.
Last week the City County Observer was the first media outlet to take the City of Evansville to task over threatening to fine businesses on Franklin Street $500 for non compliance with local ordinances and today the City and County backed down.
Evansville and Vanderburgh County governments are suspending fines related to the business sign ordinances so the rules can be changed to be more business friendly.
In a joint announcement Vanderburgh County Commissioner Marsha Abell and Mayor Lloyd Winnecke mandated that the Area Plan Commission staff to “restart the process to review and modernize the city and county sign ordinances, starting with ordinances that regulate temporary signs.” Both offices issued press releases to that effect.
Local merchants have stood solidly against the threats of fines over story boards and actually coined the term “Sign Nazis” to describe the ordinances that have been on the books in Evansville and Vanderburgh County for some years. Only when the threats were made did these businesses even know of the laws.
At this time the identity of the person(s) who sent the threats of fines has not been released. Â Please read the CCO IS IT TRUE tomorrow morning because you shall recive additional information on this developing story.
Today, Vanderburgh County Commissioner Marsha Abell and Mayor Lloyd Winnecke directed the Area Plan Commission staff to restart the process to review and modernize the city and county sign ordinances, starting with ordinances that regulate temporary signs.
To assist businesses during this review process, the assessment of fines for violations for banner and sidewalk signs will be suspended until further notice. Standard non-compliance notice letters will still be issued for violations of current codes; however, fines will not be assessed.
“It is our goal to make local government more business friendly and this is a step in the right direction,†said Mayor Winnecke.
In late 2012, Mayor Winnecke and Commissioner Abell requested that the previous attempt at updating the sign ordinance be halted due to concern over new regulations being proposed at the time. It was agreed that the process be restarted following a leadership change in the department and inclusion of input from interested parties.
“APC Director Ron London and his staff are now ready to restart the process to modernize the current sign ordinance, which is largely complaint driven and has been in place since 2009 without any changes, starting with temporary sign requests,†said Abell, President of the Vanderburgh County Board of Commissioners.
As the Area Plan Commission is a joint city-county department that enforces both the city and county sign ordinance, a comprehensive overhaul has been requested by Commissioner Abell and Mayor Winnecke. With this new process, a committee composed of representatives from civic organizations, the business community and regulators will be convened to review and provide recommendations to the Area Plan Commission.
Following consideration and approval by the Area Plan Commission, the recommendations will be considered by the city and county legislative bodies for final adoption.
Feld Motor SportsSM announced tickets for the Dairy Queen presents Monster Jam® brought to you by Casey’s General Stores, the world’s premier monster truck series, are now on sale at the Ford Center and surrounding Ticketmaster locations. Monster Jam is revving into Ford Center, January 10-11, 2014.
Monster Jam® events are affordably priced for the whole family with $20 adult tickets and $5 kid’s tickets (ages 2-12) with a limited amount of $22 Gold Circle tickets. Participating Casey’s General Stores are offering a $5 off adult ticket coupons while supplies last. Free Pit Passes, valid for Saturday 11 a.m.- 12:30 p.m. ONLY, are available at participating Dairy Queen stores. The Party in the Pits gives fans the opportunity to get a view of the trucks up close and meet the drivers of the massive monster trucks. The Party in the Pits will be held on Fri., January 10 from 4:30 p.m.-5:45 p.m. and Sat., January 11 from 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Pit Passes are available for purchase for $10 adults and $5 kids (ages 2 -12) at the Ford Center Box Office or online at www.ticketmaster.com. Pit pass and an event ticket are required for entry to the Party in the Pits. Fri., January 10, 7:00 p.m. event ticket along with Pit Pass required for Friday entry. Sat., January 11, 2:00 p.m. event ticket along with Pit Pass required for Saturday entry.
The Evansville show will feature: King Krunch driven by David Smith, Nitro Hornet driven by Darron Basl, Spike driven by Brad Allen, Mechanical Mischief driven by Jim Burns and local favorite Quadzilla driven by Roger Gauger and Mega Bite! All appearances subject to change without notice. Approximately 12 feet tall and about 12 feet wide, monster trucks are custom-designed machines that sit atop 66-inch-tall tires and weigh a minimum of 10,000 pounds. Built for short, high-powered bursts of speed, monster trucks generate 1,500 to 2,000 horsepower and are capable of speeds of up to 100 miles per hour. Monster trucks can fly up to125 to 130 feet (a distance greater than 14 cars side by side) and up to 35 feet in the air.
Monster Jam® is the most popular monster truck tour, performing to over 4 million fans annually at the most prestigious arenas and stadiums throughout the world. Monster Jam® shows consist of three main fan-favorite elements – the pit party, racing and freestyle.
For more information on Monster Jam, log on to www.MonsterJam.com. ###
About Feld Motor Sports, Inc.
Feld Motor Sports, Inc. is the world leader in specialized arena and stadium-based motor sports entertainment. Feld Motor Sports, Inc. productions include Monster Jam®, Monster Energy® Supercross, AMA Arenacross Series, Freestyle Motocross, and IHRA® Nitro Jam®. Feld Motor Sports, Inc. is a division of Feld Entertainment, the world’s largest producer of live family entertainment. For more information on Feld Entertainment, visit www.feldentertainment.com.
Evansville, IN – Below is a list of felony cases that were filed by the Vanderburgh County Prosecutor’s Office on Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Renee B. Dean            Battery by Means of a Deadly Weapon – C Felony
Matthew A. Green    Burglary – C Felony
Theft – D Felony
Criminal Mischief – A Misdemeanor
Terry L. Hebrard      Resisting Law Enforcement – D Felony
Joseph H. Jackson     Attempted Residential Entry – D Felony
Intimidation – D Felony
Criminal Mischief – A Misdemeanor
Timothy T. Rice        Auto Theft – D Felony
Francis S. Smith       Battery Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury – C Felony
Danny J. Steward II  Theft – D Felony
(Habitual Offender Enhancement)
Gabriel Appel            Maintaining a Common Nuisance – D Felony
Possession of Paraphernalia – A Misdemeanor
Logan A. Bruns        Operating a Vehicle with an ACE of .15 or more – A Misdemeanor
(Enhanced to D Felony Due to Prior Convictions)
Tommy I. Buggs        Possession of Marijuana – A Misdemeanor
(Enhanced to D Felony Due to Prior Convictions)
Maintaining a Common Nuisance – D Felony
Obstruction of Justice – D Felony
Tiffani M. Colschen  Receiving Stolen Property – D Felony
Michael T. Cooper    Battery Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury – C Felony
Strangulation-D Felony
Domestic Battery-Class A Misdemeanor
Cameron P. Manion  Dealing in Marijuana – D Felony
Michael R. Maxey     Resisting Law Enforcement – D Felony
Operating a Vehicle with an ACE of .15 or more – A Misdemeanor
(Enhanced to D Felony
Operating a Vehicle with an ACE of .15 or more – A Misdemeanor
Herbert R. Moore      Intimidation – D Felony
(Habitual Offender Enhancement)
Edward T. Nance Jr. Possession of Marijuana – A Misdemeanor
(Enhanced to D Felony Due to Prior Convictions)
Possession of a Controlled Substance – D Felony
Possession of a Controlled Substance – D Felony
Possessing a Look-a-Like Substance – C Misdemeanor
(Habitual Substance Offender Enhancement)
Glynn A. Petticord Jr Possession of Cocaine – C Felony
False Informing – B Misdemeanor
Christopher Wolf     Domestic Battery – D Felony
Domestic Battery – A Misdemeanor
For further information on the cases listed above, or any pending case, please contact Kyle Phernetton at 812.435.5688 or via e-mail at KPhernetton@vanderburghgov.org
Under Indiana law, all criminal defendants are considered to be innocent until proven guilty by a court of law.
December’s Southern Indiana Democracy For America Town Hall will discuss, What’s Right? What’s Wrong with Obamacare? The event will take place in the Browning Room A of the Central Library beginning at 7 PM on Wednesday, December 4.
The political right wants it eliminated, the political left had sought a single payer system similar to that of Canada to the north, what came about was a plan offered by Republicans as early as 1996 but now hated by that same party. The result: it is an unpopular law.
Now, in States where it was embraced, it is working but in States where it has been fought, like Indiana, it is mired in negativity. Instead of promoting a law that will insure millions with policies that cover pre-existing conditions and offer generous subsidies for people at the lower end of what is considered middle class, those opposed are doing everything they can to make it fail.
SOINDFA believes that civil discussion of a broad range of issues important to the Tri-State will reveal factual information and correct misinformation that happens when there is such a political divide.
Citizens are encouraged to attend and participate in our “first Wednesday” Town Halls. Events are free to attend.
Check out the Valley Watch website at: http://valleywatch.net
By Roy M. Arnold MD
Anyone who watches television or reads magazines knows that advertisers would have you believe that every ache or pain of men over 40 is a direct result of low serum testosterone. After age 30 some men’s testosterone level declines by about 1% annually. It varies from person to person and the only way to really know whether you are affected is to have your blood testosterone level measured.
The prescription testosterone industry generates $1.6 Billion annually and is predicted to hit $5 Billion by 2017. The over-the-counter supplement industry revenue is not available but is probably about half as much. Not every man over 40 needs to be taking a testosterone supplement or booster. This article will reveal what works, what doesn’t and some non-pharmaceutical ways to boost your testosterone.
First, what does testosterone do? Testosterone or T is a hormone produced by the gonads (testes and ovaries) and adrenal glands that stimulates muscle development, hair growth and sex drive in men and women. Women produce significantly smaller amounts than men do. The T levels do decline in both sexes with age. Testosterone is also stored in body fat so it stands to reason that the higher the percentage of body fat, the less testosterone is available to work on the target organs like muscle cells, sex organs and the brain. In contrast to what you may have heard in advertisements, testosterone is not a cure-all for the signs and symptoms of aging and poor physical conditioning.
An important non-pharmaceutical way to boost your testosterone is through diet and exercise. A low carbohydrate diet with plenty of lean protein paired with an exercise regimen that focuses on sprints and weight training will reduce total body fat and boost your own testosterone level. The best exercises include both upper and lower body weight training with fairly high weight loads. Yes, it will take some time and effort but it’s much less expensive and provides excellent long term health benefits.
There are any number of over-the-counter supplements that promise to boost your testosterone levels. Most of them don’t work at best and at worst can have very undesirable side effects. Testosterone analogs in OTC supplements were removed from the market in 2005 because of the potential for liver damage. The so-called natural testosterone boosters like Tribulus terrestis or DHEA have not been shown to increase serum testosterone levels in double-blind trials, and more importantly they often lower HDL or “good†cholesterol levels and can cause breast enlargement. Men’s Health magazine published an article online November 5, 2013 that has more information about OTC testosterone boosters.
If losing weight and exercise don’t help, you should consider having your total and free testosterone levels measured. If they are low, your doctor may prescribe a testosterone supplement. Because of the potential for abuse these drugs are considered Schedule 3 controlled substances just like some painkillers. Also because of the potential for liver damage when taken orally, they are only available by injection or in topical form. If you aren’t needle phobic and don’t mind getting an injection every 2 weeks or so, testosterone injections are the least expensive testosterone supplements. Compounded mixtures containing testosterone in moisturizing cream or transdermal patches are somewhat more expensive but require daily dosing. The most expensive route is the prescription gels applied under the arm or to skin which cost $300-400 per month. Any testosterone supplement applied to the skin can be transmitted to another person by close contact. If contact with a woman or a child transfers the drug, hair growth, deepening of the voice and early puberty in children can result.
The goal of T supplementation in men or women is not to boost the level as high as possible but to raise it to mid-normal levels, around 4-500 nanograms per 100ml of blood for men and 30ng for women. Too vigorous supplementation has been shown to increase all-cause mortality and in particular the risk of cardiovascular events. The most recent publication on this topic was in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, November 20, 2013 edition.
In summary, don’t believe all the hype about miraculous vigor and instant strength from either testosterone supplements or OTC boosters. They are expensive and often don’t provide the promised results. First and foremost, see your primary healthcare provider for a checkup. Ask about having your testosterone measured. If you are overweight and/or out of shape do what you can to improve that situation. If your level is low and your healthcare provider agrees, start on a low replacement dose with periodic monitoring to ensure your level hits the target.
By Lesley Weidenbener
TheStatehouseFile.com
Lesley Weidenbener, managing editor, TheStatehouseFile.com
INDIANAPOLIS – The message that Indiana Public Access Counselor Luke Britt sent in his commentary last week about a State Board of Education dispute is more important than his actual ruling.
In an advisory opinion, Britt said he could not rule “definitely†that education board members broke the state’s Open Door Law when they signed and sent a letter to legislative leaders requesting asking them to get involved in A-F grading for schools.
So that’s a win for those board members and a loss for Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction Glenda Ritz, who chairs the board and yet didn’t know anything about the action other members were taking.
But at this point, with A-F grades on the verge being finalized, the ruling is all but perfunctory.
Britt’s larger message, though, is far from it.
“Final decisions are meant to be open and transparent,†Britt wrote in an unusual commentary that followed his advisory opinion.
Essentially, Britt said the education board might not have broken the letter of the law. But it sure teetered on the edge of its spirit.
The point of the law is to make sure that the public knows what a government agency or board is doing. That’s it. The goal is simple. The law requires boards and commissions and councils to take all actions in meetings that are announced to the public and follow published agendas.
There are a few exceptions. Boards can have private discussions about economic development, legal issues, personnel issues and a few other things. But all official action must take place in public. Period.
And Britt warned public officials that it’s a law that should be followed.
“I encourage all public agencies to be especially attentive to the purpose of public access laws to avoid ambiguous situations and arousing suspicions of prohibited activities,†Britt wrote. “Regardless of the intent, the appearance of action taken which is hidden from public view is particularly damaging to the integrity of a public agency and contrary to the purposes of transparency and open access.â€
In the education board case, email made it possible for a majority of the board members – basically everybody except Ritz – to sign off on a letter requesting action from legislative leaders without ever meeting in public, Britt said. That’s because state law exempts email from a ban on so-called serial meetings in which officials meet in small groups to come to a consensus without ever making a quorum for action, he asid.
It also appears from Britt’s ruling that another reason the education board action may not have broken the law is because the group’s staff – at the Center for Education and Career Innovation – wrote the letter and circulated it. It’s not clear who directed the staff to do so. But Britt said that if a majority of the board had directed the staff to write the letter outside a public meeting, a violation of the law would have occurred.
(On a side note, that certainly raises questions about how much authority the Center for Education and Career Innovation has in setting or establishing policy.)
What this analysis says to me is that the education board’s actions fall through the cracks of the Open Door Law – intentionally or not. And now that the board has exposed those gaps, they’re available to any government council or commission that wants to exploit them.
Britt suggests in his opinion that lawmakers take a look at whether an email chain among board or council members should be considered a public meeting or a serial meeting and require public notice or other treatment.
I hope lawmakers will go a step further and look at the entire situation. Technology is changing how people – including public officials – communicate, and lawmakers have tried to keep up. But the law deserves another look in light of recent actions to see if there are yet more changes that will keep the public business in the public eye.
Lesley Weidenbener is executive editor of TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.
IS IT TRUE December 2, 2013
IS IT TRUE Evansville City Councilmen John Friend and Dan Adams are now jumping on Mayor Winnecke’s “work like the dickens†bandwagon to get the IU Medical School to choose downtown Evansville?…as we at the CCO agree that wherever the IU Medical School lands will positively benefit we encourage these two and the other seven members of the Council to “work like the dickens†to secure the IU Medical School for Evansville as opposed to go “ALL IN†with a downtown or nothing mentality?…any and all locations in Evansville public or private that wish to respond to the forthcoming RFP should have equal financial support from the City of Evansville?…to do otherwise constitutes unequal protection under the law just like the selective enforcement of building codes and sign ordinances does?…there is nothing more disgusting in a country that purports to espouse democratic principles and the rule of law than for elected powerbrokers to pick and choose winners?…it is time for the people of Evansville to demand that their elected officials start to treat all people and all businesses in this jurisdiction equally?…the machine politics of the past that have recently reared their ugly head on Franklin Street and in the IU Medical School debate are a serious deficiency in local governance?
IS IT TRUE we are pleased to learn that City Councilmen John Friend and Al Lindsey are taking the bull by the horns to bring a bit of practical common sense to the laws governing signage for retail establishments?…the Area Planning Commission and the overzealous enforcement official(s) whomever they were that went postal on the businesses along Franklin Street over daily special storyboards that are typical in all significant American cities need to have their wings clipped?…while we believe this was probably just a few Deputy Dog types who were drunk with their own authority, the system that allowed such things to happen and continually hands out political appointments to Deputy Dog types needs to be changed to allow for reasonable signage?…even after the changes are codified the Deputy Dog types have got to go if Evansville will ever shed its growing image of being a great big Shawneetown?
IS IT TRUE former Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., voted for Obamacare, and admitted Sunday it hasn’t worked out like he expected?…”Clearly, the rollout has been a disaster, and it’s still a work in progress,” Bayh opined on one of the talking head shows and continued that the program has been “very problematic, and first impressions tend to be lasting?”…Bayh even forecasted that “If things don’t turn around in the next year it will be “problematic” for Democrats in the 2014 midterm elections?â€â€¦James Capretta of the Ethics and Public Policy Center stated it may be a month before anyone can tell if there has been success in fixing the site, even while government officials were struggling to celebrate some improvements to the appearance of a better-working site he stated that looks does not mean the site is working the way it should be and expanded that “The real test of HealthCare.gov is whether you make the right payment to the right people to the right insurance plans?…it’s very easy to fix the front-end enrollment if you turn off controls on the back end?…it is very clear from multiple media reports that the system is still not accurate when it makes payments to the insurance plans?
IS IT TRUE the technicians are working around the problem instead of fixing it?…the government currently is making bulk payments to insurance companies who are self-reporting their sign-ups because the back end of the system isn’t properly keeping an accounting?…as for the claims of traffic counts in the millions per day that is bunk too as internet site analysis website STATSHOW.COM reports that www.healthcare.gov has an average of 18,625 pageviews per day which is only about 5 time the pageviews associated with the City County Observer yet less than the Courier Press?…as a point of reference for a real website in the retail business Amazon.com successfully manages 95 MILLION pageviews per day?…locally the closet website that is about the size of healthcare.gov in terms of traffic is SHOECARNIVAL.COM?…we would like to be a fly on the wall in the board room of Shoe Carnival if an 80% success rate on connecting to any customer was deemed to be acceptable?…the only word to describe the technological performance of the Obama Administration when it comes to a retail website is ABYSSMAL?
