The Columbus Area Arts Council is announcing the appointment of an interim director, local graphic artist Brooke Hawkins.

Previous executive director Kathryn Armstrong announced last month that she is leaving on May 27th to take a position in Michigan. That comes after six years leading the local arts group.

Hawkins will serve in the interim role while the council’s board of directors conducts a search to find the new permanent executive.

Hawkins has been the arts council’s brand manager for 5 years. She has also twice served as co-chair of Uncommon Cause, the non-profit’s largest annual fundraiser.

Hawkins said she wants to create a solid, welcoming, and engaging environment for the next executive director to begin their work in the arts in Columbus.

Bartholomew County Commissioners have approved a nearly $2 million contract with a Bloomington company to upgrade the mechanical systems in the county jail.

Two weeks ago, the County Commissioners chose Harrell-Fish of Bloomington for the heating and cooling system project, and also authorized four alternates for the project that would bring the total cost  to $1.98 million dollars. Monday morning the commissioners approved the agreement with Harrell-Fish.

Charlie Day with DLZ Engineering said the next steps will be a pre-construction meeting with the contractor. The project is estimated to take up to 300 days, or about 10 months to complete, but that could be further affected by material shortages, Day said.

The county budgeted $1.3 million for the project to come from federal COVID-19 relief funds instead of the county general funds. Auditor Pia O’Conner pointed out that the American Recovery Plan specifically allows funds to be used to improve air handling systems in correctional facilities.

County Commissioner Larry Kleinhenz said that if weren’t for the federal funding, the project would probably have been delayed for up to three years to line up the funding through the regular county budget.

INDOT is planning a virtual open house this week to talk with residents about electric vehicle infrastructure.

Indiana is expected to receive nearly $100 million in federal funding to improve electric vehicle infrastructure under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Each state must submit an electric vehicle infrastructure deployment plan, detailing how the funds will be spent and that they are meeting Federal Highway Administration guidelines on developing the vehicle charging network.

INDOT officials will be updating the state on the goals and vision of the state infrastructure deployment plan and gathering public comments throughout the development of the plan.

The webinar will be from 1 to 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon. You can find a link to sign up here.

INDOT crews will be working on State Road 250 in Jackson and Jennings Counties starting tomorrow.

You can expect to see parts of the highway closed between 8 and 5 starting Tuesday in the area between Interstate 65 at Uniontown and State Road 3 near Paris Crossing while crews chip seal the roadway. Chip seal operations typically last three to four days per location depending upon weather.

Access will be maintained for local residents, school buses and emergency personnel.

An area educator is being honored for her work in teaching dual credit classes for high school students.

Ivy Tech Community College recently announced that Paula Workman of Brownstown is one of 19 educators across the state selected for the first round of Excellence in Dual Credit Instruction President’s Awards. The award winners were nominated by dual credit students, secondary and post-secondary administrators, and Ivy Tech K-14 team members. They were then chosen by a selection committee made up of Ivy Tech faculty, program chairs, and college administrators.

Ivy Tech faculty and staff nominated Workman for her student-focused classes. Dr. Aaron Miller, an Ivy Tech Columbus associate professor of history, said that Workman’s classes are “rigorous, assuring her students will succeed in college.” He said “Her hard work creates a pathway from high school to Ivy Tech.”

The college will honor all the winners at a ceremony on June 8 in Indianapolis.

Photo: Paula Workman with Brownstown Principal Joe Sheffer; Suzanne Summers, Ivy Tech Columbus Dean of the School of Arts, Science, and Education; and Travis Gabehart, Ivy Tech Director of K-14 Initiatives. Submitted photo

Seymour Mayor Matt Nicholson is holding a series of Curbside Chats around the community, with the next coming up later this month.

The mayor and department heads will be meeting with residents at local parks to foster conversations, to spark ideas and to get to know each other better. The next Curbside Chat will include Jeremy Gray, city building commissioner. It will be at 6 p.m. on May 24th at the Shields Park Shelter House.

Upcoming chats will also be held on June 13th, July 12th, August 18th and September 14th. You can get more information on locations and who will be attending on the city website at seymourin.org. You can also call 812-216-5644.

A local legislator is urging you to look out for farm equipment on area roads.

State Representative Jim Lucas, a Seymour Republican, says that Hoosier farmers are out on the road in planters, sprayers, tractors and large trucks for this year’s planting season. These vehicles often take up much of the roadway. When you find yourself driving behind the large equipment, you need to be patient. Some of the apparatus move slow, with speeds as low as 25 mph.

Many accidents involving farm equipment happen on hills and curves on the road. If you do need to pass farm equipment, make sure to do so slowly and safely, keeping an eye out for oncoming traffic. And be alert if a piece of equipment pulls off on the right side of the road because instead of making way, they could be preparing for a wide left turn.

Lucas urges you to share the road and to be safe. His district includes part of southern Bartholomew County.

INDOT says that the right lane and shoulder of southbound Interstate 65 will close north of the Columbus exit tonight.

INDOT’s contractor, Force Construction, will be completing pavement patching about two miles north of the Columbus exit, starting at 7 p.m. tonight. The lane and shoulder will remain closed until late Tuesday to let the concrete cure.

Additional lane and shoulder closures are planned at the same location next month for pipe lining work.

INDOT reminds you to slow down, to drive without distractions, and to be alert to worker safety when traveling through active construction zones.

The National Weather Service says we are in for some unseasonably and possibly record-setting heat later this week.

Forecasters are expecting a warming trend this week with highs of 89 on Wednesday and 88 on Thursday. Those numbers would match previous record highs in the Indianapolis area set in 1896 and 1881.

The highest temperature ever in the first few weeks of May, was set today in 1895 with 93 degrees. On average, the first 90 degree day of the year comes on June 14th.

The National Weather Service says there is a chance of thunderstorms today and tonight, with isolated strong to marginally severe thunderstorms possible east of Interstate 69 this afternoon and early evening.

You can expect damaging winds, large hail and heavy rain, along with localized flooding and lightning. Even outside of the thunderstorms, heavy rain is likely.