Exhibit Columbus is announcing the recipients of this year’s J. Irwin and Xenia Miller prizes.

The Miller Prize recognizes architectural and design excellence. Miller Prize recipients will design, build, and install temporary projects at iconic downtown Columbus sites. They are:

• Tatiana Bilbao ESTUDIO in Mexico City will be working at the Cleo Rogers Memorial Library Plaza in partnership with Community Curator Jason Hatton, executive director of the library.
• Practice for Architecture Urbanism from Manhattan will be working at The Commons in downtown Columbus with Community Curator Dave Hayward,  the Columbus city engineer,
• PORT working out of Philadelphia and Chicago will be partnering with the Mill Race Center and Community Curator, Dan Mustard, the center’s executive director.
• Studio Zewde from Harlem will be at Mill Race Park working with Community Curator, Mark Jones, director of the city Parks and Recreation Department.

Exhibit Columbus, launched in 2016, has two year cycles with a symposium hosted one year, and the installation of exhibits around the city next year. This year’s symposium will be October 21st and 22nd in downtown Columbus.

You can get more information at ExhibitColumbus.org.

Bartholomew County is making plans to buy more cameras to scan license plates on county roads, looking for stolen vehicles, those involved in abductions or whose owners are wanted on outstanding warrants.

Bartholomew County Commissioners agreed at their meeting this week to support a proposal to add five more cameras to the existing network of four cameras.

The camera system, known as FLOCK, was purchased by Bartholomew County last year. The cameras are positioned to watch traffic coming into the county. They have the ability to read license plates and quickly process those against a database to alert police with various pieces of information, such as recognizing the plate of a stolen vehicle, or a vehicle suspected in a child abduction. That information is processed within moments and then forwarded to on-duty deputies via a computer program in their vehicle.

Columbus and Bartholomew County law enforcement has touted the camera system for its help in several recent cases. Capt. Chris Roberts with the sheriff’s department said that the cameras have been used in 11 cases since being installed.

Commissioner Tony London stressed that the camera system is not used to catch speeders or traffic offenders, instead being used for serious crimes.

Commissioners approved spending $27,400 for the five new cameras. The money would come from drug forfeiture funds.

INDOT says that ongoing work on State Road 39 has moved to a new location in Jackson County.

Crews from Force Construction will be working on replacing a box culvert about two miles south of State Road 250 on a tributary to Pond Creek. The road will close until mid-November while the work is ongoing. The detour State Road 250 to U.S. 31 to State Road 256.

The work schedule depends on the weather.

INDOT reminds you to slow down, to use caution and to be alert to worker’s safety in all construction zones.

Two suspects are in custody after an armed robbery in downtown Columbus early Sunday morning.

According to Columbus Police Department reports, officers were called to the 1000 block of Ninth Street at about 4 Sunday morning after two men robbed a victim at gunpoint. The men took money from the victim, then fled the area in a dark-colored vehicle, police say.

Police soon found the vehicle and stopped it on U.S. 31 near County Road 450N. Police saw a large amount of cash inside the vehicle. A search of the vehicle revealed drugs, drug paraphernalia and a handgun with the serial numbers removed.

22-year-old Justin D. Allen, of Columbus and 21-year-old Carter E. Kappel of Washington were arrested on preliminary charges of:

• Robbery w/Deadly Weapon (Firearm)
• Possession of a Handgun w/Obliterated Serial Number
• Possession of a Handgun by a Serious Violent Felon
• Intimidation with a Deadly Weapon
• Pointing a Firearm
• and Possession of Controlled Substance

A contingent of Indiana National Guard soldiers are headed to Kosovo under the leadership of a Columbus officer.

The Indiana National Guard announced yesterday that 300 troops under the command of Col. Chris Mabis of Columbus departed from Camp Atterbury on Friday. They are with the 38th Infantry Division’s 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, headquartered in Lawrence. They are operating as as Task Force Nighthawk.

The soldiers will lead Regional Command – East under the command of NATO in support of Operation Joint Guardian. Their mission is to provide a safe, secure environment and ensure freedom of movement for all Kosovo citizens. That comes under the mandate of a 1999 United Nations Security Council Resolution and this will be the 31st rotation of United States military forces based at Camp Bondsteel in Kosovo.

Troops from Poland, Latvia, Switzerland, Turkey, Slovenia, Greece, Hungary, and Italy serve in Regional Command-East.

Photo: Indiana National Guard Col. Chris Mabis, 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team commander, speaks to soldiers, families and friends in attendance for the 76th Infantry Brigade Combat Team departure ceremony at Camp Atterbury near Edinburgh, Friday. Indiana National Guard photo by Sgt. Jonah Alvarez

There will be nightly lane and ramp closures at the Columbus exit on Interstate 65 lasting through the next few weeks.

Crews will be maintaining and rehabilitating the bridge beams underneath the overpass at Interstate 65 and State Road 46. INDOT say that the road work and closures will be between 9 p.m. at night at 5 a.m. in the morning.

Through Wednesday night, you will see:

• I-65 NB to S.R. 46 WB ramp closed
• S.R. 46 WB to I-65 SB ramp closed
• S.R. 46 EB left-turn lane to I-65 NB reduced to one lane
• S.R. 46 EB thru lanes reduced to one lane
• S.R. 46 WB thru lanes reduced to two lanes

Thursday, October 6 and Monday, October 10 to Tuesday, October 11:

• I-65 NB to S.R. 46 WB ramp closed
• I-65 SB to S.R. 46 EB ramp closed
• S.R. 46 EB left-turn lanes to I-65 NB reduced to one lane
• S.R. 46 WB to I-65 SB left-turn lanes reduced to one lane
• S.R. 46 EB and WB thru lanes not affected

Wednesday, October 12 to Thursday, October 13 and Monday, October 17:

• I-65 SB to S.R. 46 EB ramp closed
• S.R. 46 EB to I-65 NB ramp closed
• S.R. 46 WB to I-65 SB left-turn lanes reduced to one lane
• S.R. 46 EB thru lanes not affected
• S.R. 46 WB thru lanes reduced to one lane

The work schedule is dependent on the weather.

Columbus Police say that they have received several reports recently of scammers making victims of those hoping to rent a home.

The victims discover the low-priced unit online and after sending money via a digital payment system such as Zelle, the victims discover the house was not for rent, already occupied or has even been sold.

The Better Business Bureau says that people regularly report to the bureau that would-be renters or purchasers frequently show up at a home, thinking they have made a rental agreement, only to find out that they have been scammed. According to the agency, more than 5 million people lost money to rental scams in a recent survey.

The Better Business Bureau says the most common type of scam is where the scammers simply copy information about a home and photos from an online real estate sales listing, posting it online as bait.

The scams have common elements including poor grammar or spelling errors in e-mail, social media or text conversations. The scammers will frequently claim that the pretend homeowner or landlord is out of town due to a family emergency and that the would-be renters should ignore any “For sale” signs at the home if they stop by.

The scammers normally use online payment services because a credit card would allow the victim to ask for a refund or chargeback from the scammer, according to the Better Business Bureau.

Columbus police say you should use caution if you are trying to rent or purchase a property. You should never send money online to people you do not know.

Walgreens and Lincoln-Central Neighborhood Family Center are teaming up for a flu shot clinic on Monday at Yes Cinema.

The clinic will be open to the public and is for those with insurance, those who are underinsured or uninsured.

Vaccines will be administered on a first-come, first-served basis. Moderna COVID boosters and pneumonia vaccines will also be available.

YES Cinema will also be giving out free bags of popcorn to those who get vaccinated.

The clinic will be from 3 to 4:30 p.m. at YES Cinema, on Jackson Street, in downtown Columbus.

You don’t need to register in advance, but you call in to make sure enough vaccines are available. For more information you can call Lincoln Central Neighborhood Center at 812-379-1630

The Bartholomew County Health Department is offering a drive-thru flu clinic tomorrow at the Bartholomew County 4-H Fairgrounds.

Most insurances can be billed for flu vaccines. If you are uninsured or your insurance does not pay for flu vaccines, you are eligible to receive a free vaccine.

Children under the age of 18 must have a parent or guardian present.

The flu clinic will be from 10 to 4 on Tuesday.

You can get more information at 812-379-1555, option 1.

The Brown County Community Foundation is unveiling a new mural and pollinator park on its Van Buren Street property in Nashville.

The mural on a large concrete retaining wall, was created by Christina Hollering, and features milkweed pollinators such as butterflies, milkweed tussock moth caterpillar and a milkweed beetle. She said she wanted to remind viewers that milkweed plants are an ecosystem in and of themselves.

The Foundation partnered with the Brown County Pollinators group to construct a garden surrounding the wall.

Their work is inspired by the effect of pollinator habitat loss in Indiana. The National Wildlife Federation reports eastern monarch butterfly populations have declined 90 percent from their high in 1969 due to habitat loss. Milkweed and other natural habitat are removed to make way for roads, farms and homes. The pollinators group has secured nearly 100 acres in Brown County for pollinator habitat restoration and created more than 2,000 milkweed seed bombs in the last year alone.

The pollinator space work at the foundation property is being done by the foundation, local volunteers and a group of volunteers from Cummins.

A dedication reception is planned for October 20 at 5 p.m. at the Brown County Community Foundation.

Photo courtesy of Brown County Community Foundation.