The Vanderburgh County Redevelopment Commission will hold a meeting on Wednesday, December 10, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. in Room 301 of the Civic Center Complex, located at 1 N.W. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard, Evansville, Indiana. This meeting was previously advertised to begin at 1:00 p.m.
The meeting will be hosted virtually on Webex pursuant to IC 36-7-14-3.1 and IC 36-7-14.5-9.5. Participants will be provided registration instructions. To Watch the Meeting Via Granicus:
https://www.evansvillegov.org/egov/apps/services/index.egov?view=detail;id=13 Dated this 5th day of December
Preston Arts Center to host Closing Shift: USI Capstone Artists exhibition
The Preston Arts Center, in Henderson, Kentucky, is hosting the group exhibition Closing Shift: USI Capstone Artists now through Friday, December 12. This exhibition features the creative work of six USI artists majoring in studio art, photography, illustrations, graphic design, interactive media and art education.
USI inaugural “Mock The Halls” to be held December 12
The USI Mock Trial Team will host an exhibition of the 2025 competition case: State of Midlands v. Charlie Martin from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Friday December 12 at the Old Evansville Courthouse, located at 201 NW 4th St Suite 104, Evansville, Indiana 47708.
The Fall Semester comes to a close on Friday, December 12. The University will be closed December 23 through January 3. It will reopen on Monday, January 5.
USI to celebrate, recognize Fall 2025 graduates December 13
The University will host two Fall Commencement Ceremonies on Saturday, December 13 in Liberty Arena, Home of the Screaming Eagles.
The 10 a.m. Commencement Ceremony will recognize graduates from the Kinney College of Nursing and Health Professions; Pott College of Science, Engineering, and Education; and School of Graduate Studies. The 1 p.m. ceremony will recognize graduates from the College of Liberal Arts; Romain College of Business; and School of Graduate Studies.
FOOTNOTE: EPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT information was provided by the EPD and posted by the City-County-County Observer without opinion, bias, or editing.
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Men’s Basketball closed out its road swing with a 77-55 loss at Indiana State University Sunday afternoon at the Hulman Center in Terre Haute, Indiana. The Screaming Eagles go to 3-7 in the non-conference schedule, while Indiana State is 6-4. USI got off to a fast start with a 7-3 lead four minutes into the contest. ISU responded with a 6-0 run to take its first lead of the game and eventually built a nine-point advantage, 22-13, before USI rallied back. USI junior guard Kaden Brownstarted the rally with back-to-back three-pointers before junior guard Sheridan Sharp pulled the Eagles to within three points, 24-21, on a pair of free throws with 6:29 left in the half. The Sycamores pushed back with an 11-6 dash to halftime to lead 35-27 at the break. Brown and senior guardCardell Bailey led USI at the break with eight points each. The second started by going the way of the Sycamores. ISU exploded on a 14-2 run to lead by 20, 49-29, with 14:39 to play. USI would cut the deficit 14 points, 51-37, after a free throw by senior forward Ola Ajiboye with 12:02 on the clock before ISU exploded on another 15-2 run to take command, 68-41. The Eagles could not close the gap again, as the Sycamores closed out with a 77-55 final. Brown and Bailey led the Eagles in scoring with 13 points each, while Sharp closed out the double-digit scorers with 10 points. Next Up For USI: The next home game for USI is December 15 when the Eagles host East-West University for the start of a three-game homestand. The homestand includes the start of the Ohio Valley Conference season when USI hosts the University of Arkansas at Little Rock December 18 and Morehead State University December 20.
ST.LOUIS – The University of Evansville women’s basketball team battled hard, but came up short on Sunday at Saint Louis, dropping a 72-55 decision to the Billikens.
Camryn Runner (Cicero, Ind./Hamilton Heights) led the Aces in scoring for the sixth time this season, scoring 12 points. Logan Luebbers Palmer (Union, Ky./Randall K. Cooper) added 11 points for the Aces for her seventh double-digit scoring effort of the season, while nine different Aces found the scoring column. Elle Snyder (Latrobe, Pa./Greater Latrobe) grabbed nine rebounds, adding to her team-leading rebounding total of 61 boards for the year.
Saint Louis started the game hot, opening up a 13-5 lead in the first five minutes of play. Evansville battled back in the second half of the opening period, cutting the deficit to five at the end of the quarter.
The Purple Aces continued their positive momentum in the opening minutes of the second quarter, as a three-pointer from Luebbers Plamer, a layup by Mireia Mustaros (Barcelona, Spain/Ins Argentona), and another layup by Runner gave the Aces a 7-0 run, tying the game at 22. However, Evansville would go ice cold from the floor for the remainder of the quarter, scoring just three points as SLU took a 34-25 edge into halftime.
In the third quarter, Sydney Huber (Cedar Falls, Iowa/Mount Vernon) and Mustaros knocked down three-pointers in the first four minutes of the period to try to break the Aces out of their offensive funk. Despite a three from Snyder and four points by Runner following the Huber and Mustaros triples, Evansville was held to 2 points in the final three minutes of the quarter as the Billikens controlled a 55-38 lead heading into the fourth.
Daniela Llavero (Malaga, Spain/Ies Mediterraneo) put together a strong finish in the fourth quarter, knocking down a three and a layup with dishing out a long-distance assist in transition to highlight a strong four minutes of play. However, Saint Louis controlled the game to the buzzer, taking a 72-55 win.
The Aces return home to Meeks Family Fieldhouse next Sunday to take on Austin Peay. Tip-off is set for 3 PM.
Indiana House Republicans voted Friday to go along with President Donald Trump’s demand for redrawing the state’s congressional maps.
The House action sends the congressional redistricting issue to the state Senate, where its future is in real doubt. The Senate’s Republican leader has said for months that too few senators are in support for it to pass.
House members voted 57-41 in favor of the new maps crafted to produce a 9-0 Republican delegation by carving up the districts currently held by Democratic Reps. André Carson in Indianapolis and Frank Mrvan in the area along Lake Michigan near Chicago.
Twelve Republicans joined all Democrats present in opposing the bill.
Friday’s House debate occurred while a couple hundred people attended a pro-redistricting rally inside the Statehouse, where a Turning Point Action leader vowed major spending by the group to defeat Republican senators who vote against new maps.
The GOP lawmakers that voted no:
Rep. Stephen Bartels, Eckerty
Rep. Becky Cash, Zionsville
Rep. Ed Clere, New Albany
Rep. Mark Genda, Frankfort
Rep. Dave Hall, Norman
Rep. Mike Karickhoff, Kokomo
Rep. Matt Lehman, Berne
Rep. Danny Lopez, Carmel
Rep. Peggy Mayfield, Martinsville
Rep. Jennifer Meltzer, Shelbyville
Rep. Greg Steuerwald, Avon
Rep. Tim Yocum, Clinton
At least 14 of the 40 Republican senators have publicly indicated opposition to redistricting, according to the Indiana Capital Chronicle’s tracking. Combined with the 10 Democratic senators, that total is just short of a majority in the 50-member Senate.
About 10 GOP senators have not made their position known.
Gov. Mike Braun maintained Friday he believed the Senate would approve the new maps, with opponents being “out of sync with most Republicans and conservatives in the state.”
Braun stood by threats that he and Trump have made to support Republican primary challengers against recalcitrant senators — and to keep up the pressure campaign if the Senate were to reject the new maps next week.
“Hopefully we won’t have to drag them through this more than what we’ve done so far,” Braun told reporters. “But it’s not over if they don’t do it.”
David McIntosh, president of the Washington-based Club for Growth and a former Indiana congressman, posted what he called a “FINAL WARNING” on social media to Republican Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray.
“Pass the new congressional map supported by President Trump and Hoosiers,” the post said. “Failure to get this done means you and any other opposition will be defeated and removed from office in your next election. Let’s get it done!”
The Senate is set to begin consideration of the redistricting plan on Monday, when the Senate Elections Committee will hold a public hearing lasting a maximum of four hours, according to Bray’s office.
A spokeswoman for Bray did not respond Friday to a request for comment from him about the House-approved maps. Bray has previously said he did “not feel that redrawing our Congressional districts mid-cycle is the best way to achieve that goal” of maintaining a Republican majority in the U.S. House.
The Senate is expected to take a final vote Thursday on the redistricting plan.
House debate one sided
Democratic House lawmakers denounced the proposed redistricting as a racial gerrymander for dividing Carson’s 7th District in Indianapolis — the state’s most urban and racially diverse — among four new districts. Those extend far into rural heavily Republican counties, with two of the proposed districts stretching to the Ohio River and another nearly reaching Lake Michigan.
Republican Rep. Ben Smaltz, author of the redistricting plan in House Bill 1032, repeated his stance that the new districts were drawn “purely for political performance” of GOP candidates and didn’t consider racial or other demographics.
House Speaker Todd Huston talks to reporters on Organization Day, Nov. 18, 2025. (Photo by Leslie Bonilla Muñiz/Indiana Capital Chronicle)
House Speaker Todd Huston told reporters that the proposed map “is aligned” with the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling this weekallowing Texas to use its new Republican-friendly map.
Justice Samuel Alito wrote that it was “indisputable” that Texas’ motivation for redistricting was “pure and simple” partisan advantage, which the court has previously ruled is permissible.
The Indiana House debate lasted for more than three hours, with 25 of the 30 Democratic members speaking against the bill and only two Republicans — Smaltz and Huston — speaking in favor of it.
Rep. Carolyn Jackson, D-Hammond, mocked Republicans as being largely unwilling to say anything positive about the redrawing.
“You may have said it at home, in your closet, in your basement, in the backroom where only you heard it,” Jackson said. “But you have not said it here. You have not said it to your neighbors. You’ve not said it to any of us.”
Huston said while he supported the current Indiana congressional districts drawn by Republicans in 2021, he argued the national political landscape had changed since then.
“We don’t operate in a vacuum and states are doing this all across the country, red and blue states,” Huston told reporters. “We felt like it was important for us to be a part of that, and to make sure that we used every tool we could to support a strong Republican majority.”
Huston did not predict success in the Senate for the redistricting plan and declined to say what the next step would be if it was defeated in that chamber.
“It’s been a long week,” he said. “We’ll deal with whatever happens.”
Friday’s House vote showed a divide among the chamber’s Republican leadership on the issue.
The 12 GOP members voting against the bill included House Majority Floor Leader Matt Lehman of Berne, Speaker Pro Tem Mike Karickhoff of Kokomo and Majority Caucus Chair Greg Steuerwald of Avon, who was the lead sponsor of the 2021 redistricting bill.
Democrats on Friday lambasted Republicans for the map proposal that lacks compactness and divides several cities.
Rep. Matt Pierce, D-Bloomington, said the new maps indicate the Republicans believe that Democrats “really shouldn’t exist.” He argued that having an all-Republican delegation would hurt Indiana if Democrats regain control of the U.S. House.
“Now the state of Indiana has no one within, potentially, the majority party to talk about things like appropriations, to work together on getting specific things done for the state,” Pierce said. “You lose that.”
After Friday’s debate, Huston was asked by a reporter whether he was “proud” of the redistricting plan. He responded by saying “I am very blessed to lead the Indiana House of Representatives. I support this, and I support what we’re doing.”
Attorney General Todd Rokita today issued the following statement:
“Hoosiers deserve to have their say on the issues of the day. Our voices are being drowned out by other states that exploit the redistricting process for their own leftist gains. That needs to stop, if the country is to be saved from the radical Left.
This specific map is legally solid. If any group or individual is silly enough to sue, we will defeat their attack in court.
As the United States Supreme Court emphasized once again last night, redistricting for political reasons is constitutional.
In fact, the Court has said that redistricting belongs in the legislature—in the hands of the people’s elected representatives, not judges. And by the way, Rep. Ben Smaltz did a great job with his bill detailing the map.
We can no longer bury our heads in the sand while other states redraw their maps so the Left can destroy what we built over the last 250 years. No more bringing a knife to a gunfight. The Indiana House has acted decisively, and now it’s time for the Senate to follow suit.”
INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs today announced the relaunch of Beat the Heat, a program focused on community health and resilience in heat emergencies. The program is in partnership with the Indiana University Luddy School of Informatics, Computing and Engineering and the Environmental Resilience Institute, and is now open for applications.
The Beat the Heat program will support two Hoosier communities by building capacity to adapt to heat emergencies and addressing public health impacts associated with heat.
“Summer should be a time when neighbors gather, kids play outside and families slow down to enjoy the sunshine,” Lieutenant Governor Micah Beckwith said. “Beat the Heat supports local leaders with the resources they need to protect our communities when temperatures climb, helping ensure extreme heat does not become a serious concern.”
Selected communities will receive heat-specific data and heat mapping tools to turn their heat resilience strategies into actionable projects. This includes building cooling shelters, increasing tree canopies, developing heat alert systems and more to adapt to extreme heat emergency risks. Selected applicants are required to provide a local match toward at least one heat resiliency project implementation through fundraising or local contribution. Non-entitlement cities or communities with a population under 50,000 are eligible to apply for the program.
“Having heat-resilient communities is vital for the health and safety of Hoosiers during extreme heat situations,” OCRA Executive Director Fred Glynn said. “The Beat the Heat program supports community-driven solutions, empowering local leaders through data analysis, community engagement and capacity building.”
In addition to heat-specific data, the selected communities will receive guidance from the Indiana Resilience Funding Hub and ERI experts to identify relevant funding opportunities and write grant applications.
Communities that implement high-impact heat resilience strategies will earn bonus points on future OCRA Community Development Block Grant applications. A designated heat fellow, affiliated with Indiana University, will support each community throughout the program cycle in implementing program activities and workshops as well as the implementation of heat resilience projects.
“Extreme heat is responsible for more annual fatalities in the US than all other natural disasters combined,” Dana Habeeb, assistant professor at IU’s Luddy SICE said. “With temperatures increasing across Indiana, we are excited to work with local government leaders to create strategies designed to protect at-risk residents. The communities selected will be prepared and empowered to respond to the challenges of extreme heat by pioneering a model that could guide heat mitigation strategies for other communities in the state.”
A pre-recorded informational webinar is available to furth explain the program opportunities and application process. Interested applicants can view the webinar here: bit.ly/BtH-Webinar.
Local governments must submit a Letter of Intent through the application portal here: bit.ly/BtH-Application2025.
Communities must submit a Letter of Intent through the application portal no later than 11:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Jan. 19, 2026. Selected communities will be announced in February 2026.
Indiana University will host office hours on Wednesday, Dec. 10, from 1-2 p.m. ET, to provide assistance and answer questions for interested applicants. Register for the office hours here: bit.ly/Register-BtH-OfficeHours.
