Bartholomew County Road 500N is expected to be closed today as crews work in the area.

According to the Bartholomew County Highway Department, 500N will be closed from about 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. today between State Road 9 and the Hartsville town limits , weather permitting. That is so that crews can replace a culvert.

You should avoid the area if you can and find an alternate route.

Thrive Alliance will be offering a seminar to try to help seniors fight against attempts to defraud them.

According to the local agency for aging, the alliance is partnering with Senior Medicare Patrol to offer a free lunch and learn program called “Are you Smarter than a Scammer?”

The program will help participants learn how to protect themselves and others from Medicare fraud, identity theft and other scam attempts.

It will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Thursday, July 18th at the Doug Otto United Way Center on 13th Street in Columbus.

Lunch and the presentation are both free, but you are asked to pre-register to ensure a lunch is available. You can register by calling 812-372-6918

Columbus city officials are asking you to help prevent trash fires over the holiday, by watching where you are throwing away any used fireworks.

The Columbus Department of Public Works says that before you throw those potentially hot materials in a trash Toter, that you should first soak them in water and place them in a metal trash can until the next day. That trash can should be kept away from any buildings or other combustible materials.

You should not put hot fireworks in your trash Toter and never put those into your recycling or yard waste Toters.

According to the Columbus Fire Department, city ordinances regulate when you can set off fireworks and are in line with state laws.

That means tonight and Friday through Tuesday nights you can set off your fireworks between 5 p.m. and two hours after sunset, or no later than 11 p.m. in the evening. On the Fourth of July you can set them off between 10 a.m. in the morning and midnight.

You can find a link more fireworks safety tips from Columbus firefighters here: https://www.columbus.in.gov/fire/safety-information/fireworks-safety-tips

Columbus officials also want to remind you that there won’t be any trash or recycling pickups tomorrow due to the holiday. Instead the trash routes will be running a day late with Thursday routes picked up on Friday, and normal Friday routes running on Saturday.

In Seymour, there will be no trash pickups tomorrow. Instead, both Thursday and normal Friday routes will be collected on Friday.

We could find it dangerously hot this afternoon, but it should be more bearable over the holiday weekend.

According to forecasters with the National Weather Service, temperatures in the mid 90s today and high humidity could make it feel like it is more than 100 degrees outside by this afternoon. They say that could be hazardous for those who are sensitive to the heat. They suggest that you take extra precautions if you are going to be outside this afternoon.

Afternoon highs are expected to be in the low to mid 80s on the Fourth of July and through the weekend.

The weather service also says that thunderstorms are expected across our area this afternoon, and there is a chance that some of those could produce high winds.

Muscatatuck National Wildlife Refuge will be hosting an event celebrating pollinators on Saturday at the refuge east of Seymour on U.S. 50.

Organizers say that there will be pollinator themed activities for children, face painting, pollinator programs along with information about gardening and on conserving pollinators. Free starts of pollinator plants will also be given away.

The event is from 10 to 2. There will be a butterfly Identification stroll around the Visitors Center at 11 am and a program on creating pollinator habitats at the center starting at 12:30 p.m.

The event is free and you are invited to attend. For more information you can call 812-522-4352 x 12.

Photo courtesy of Donna Staley with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The Columbus Fire Department is announcing the promotion of Firefighter Cory Hampton to the rank of lieutenant.

According to the department, Hampton is a graduate of Hauser High School and has served ten years with the Columbus Fire Department. He has served as a member of the CFD Hazardous Materials Response Team also served as a Co-Chair of the Columbus Firemen’s Cheer Fund for several years

Hampton was awarded the department’s Medal of Valor in 2021 for his actions which resulted in the rescue of an occupant trapped in a residential fire.

Lt. Hampton has been assigned as Fire Station 5 Company Officer of Battalion B.

Hampton holds certifications as State of Indiana Fire Officer I , Confined Space Rescue Technician, Advanced Emergency Medical Technician, Hazardous Materials Technician, Rope Rescue Technician, Swift Water Rescue Technician, Vehicle and Machinery Rescue Technician and Fire Instructor.

Columbus Parks and Recreation Department and the city’s Park Foundation are celebrating July as Park and Recreation Month, with events and fundraising activities.

The parks system is celebrating with a theme of “Where You Belong” and emphasizing how the city is stronger, more vibrant and more resilient due to its extensive parks system. Columbus Parks and Recreation is asking you to share your experiences, memories and stories about what parks and recreation means to you. The department is encouraging you to post your thoughts on social media with the hashtag #WhereYouBelong.

Celeste Reynolds with the parks department explains:

Activities this month in celebration will include a Community Party at Mill Race Park on July 11th

Reynolds explains

There will also be Yoga and Mimosas at Donner Park on Saturday, July 20 and a Movie in the Pool at Donner Aquatic Center on July 26th, with the Disney film “Moana.”

The Columbus Parks and Recreation system was founded in 1947 and now operates 23 parks, nearly 1,000 acres of park land and 23 miles of People Trails. It also operates facilities ranging from the Hamilton Ice Arena, to Greenbelt Golf Course, and The Commons along with the recently completed parks headquarters at Nexus Park and the Circle K Fieldhouse.

The Park Foundation is also encouraging donations in support of the local parks system. You can donate here: https://www.columbusparkfoundation.org or find more information on the parks month activities here: https://columbusparksandrec.com/parks-month/

Park and Recreation Month is an initiative of the National Recreation and Park Association.

It will cost slightly less than originally expected for Bartholomew County to construct a pickleball complex at Dunn Stadium.

County Commissioners approved a bid from Case Construction from Edinburgh of just over $573,000 at their meeting yesterday.

Last month, eight bids were opened for the project with two alternative options including a reinforced concrete surface instead of asphalt and furnishings at the site such as picnic tables and bike racks.

Base bids ranged from a low of just under $531,000 from Case Construction with a high bid of more than $837,000.

However, engineer Charlie Day with DLZ Corp said that there was an error in the Case bid, with an incorrect calculation on some materials, that actually lowered their base bid to just over $510,000. Day recommended that the county approve the Case bid with the site furnishings alternate at an additional cost of about $62,000.

Commissioners had estimated that the cost could be up to $600,000 to build the facility. The county also saved money by doing the site work with county workers.

The county is building a tournament quality, 12-court pickleball complex at the park, the only courts on the west side of Columbus. The goal is to finish the complex by October.

As of Monday, IUPUC is officially no more. In its place is IU Columbus.

According to the school, the campus has officially finished the transition from the old name and identity to the new branding. In June of 2023, the trustees at both Indiana University and Purdue University approved the separation of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, which also carried over to Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus.

The Columbus institution began life as the Columbus Center of IUPUI, then became IUPUC. IU Columbus Vice Chancellor and Dean Reinhold Hill said “We have been a part of Indiana University since 1970, and now our name more clearly reflects that association.”

The campus has created a new logo, moved to a new website, columbus.iu.edu, and email is moving to the “iu.edu” domain.

IU Columbus offers 10 undergraduate and two graduate degree programs. Two programs have been affected by the change, with mechanical engineering no longer being offered and the biology major is now an Indiana University degree program.

Hill emphasized that IU Columbus remains committed to the Columbus community. He pointed to recent initiatives such as a seamless admissions path for Bartholomew Consolidated School students, and the iEngage summer civics camp for kids.

The school has also been expanding its Crimson Pride athletics, which now will include 13 sports teams for the upcoming school year. The newest sports will see men’s and women’s basketball playing home games at the Circle K Fieldhouse at NexusPark.

Local government offices in Columbus will be closed Thursday and Friday for the Independence Day holiday.

There will be no trash or recycling pickups in Columbus on Thursday. Instead, Thursday and Friday collections will be delayed by one day, with normal Thursday routes on Friday, and normal Friday routes on Saturday.

You should have your Toters to the curb by 7 on your delayed trash day.

You can get more information on the city website at columbus.in.gov and going to the Department of Public Works or through the Columbus Collects App on your phone.

Columbus City Utilities offices will also be closed. If you have a problem with your water or sewer service, you can call 812-372-8861.