Governor Eric Holcomb gave a State of Indiana Covid-19 update yesterday and signed Executive Orders 21-31 and 21-32 to continue the public health emergency and the executive order for provisions that address the impact of COVID-19. Dr. Box indicated that while the Delta variant is the most abundant variant in Indiana, the Omicron variant is expected to surpass Delta in the very near future. You can view the entire presentation on the Governor’s Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/GovHolcomb
1925 PubHouse, which operates a restaurant in Anderson on the Grandview Golf Course, has signed an agreement to open a new location at the Courtyard Marriott hotel in downtown Muncie. Kim Dodson of the ARC of Indiana, the building owner, said renovations to the restaurant inside the hotel will begin in January with a hoped for opening date of April 1st, 2022. The restaurant offers an American themed menu. Visit munciejournal.com for more information.
On Tuesday, we reported the Indianapolis Colts had placed starting quarterback Carson Wentz on the reserve/COVID-19 list. That made him questionable for this Sunday’s game against the Raiders. At approximately 5pm that same day, the NFL changed their protocols to match new CDC guidelines that allowed a 5 day quarantine instead of what had been a 10 day quarantine. Barring complications, that means Wentz can be back in the lineup Sunday–looking for a win that would clinch a playoff spot for the Colts.
Making a realistic budget and sticking to it, looking for a better job and staying on top of your credit are among the Top 10 New Year’s Financial Resolutions for 2022 according to a new Wallethub survey. However, only 42% of resolution-makers expect to keep their vow for a full year.
Local artist Debra Gindhart Dragoo will be debuting her new project — “GIRL POWER—Real Babes Recycle—#METOO” at January’s First Thursday at MadJax. Meet the artist on January 6 at Madjax Muncie, 514 East Jackson Street in the 2nd floor gallery from 5-8pm. The event is free and open to the public.
Google was unseated as the most popular website in 2021—getting upset by the popular TikTok website. In September, TikTok hit a new record, reporting 1 billion monthly active users. The rest of the Top Ten include: Number 2 Google, then Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, YouTube, Twitter and WhatsApp.
Due to the New Years holiday, Muncie City Hall will be closed on Friday of this week and next Monday. The January 3rd City Council Meeting has been rescheduled to January 10th due to city hall being closed on Monday.
The head of Indiana’s largest business group says the new, shorter coronavirus quarantine requirement will help a lot of businesses. Indiana Chamber CEO Kevin Brinegar says allowing people to get back to work in half the time as the old quarantine period will mean more workers on the job. Brinegar says it’s not just businesses that will benefit. He expects to see more doctors, nurses, and techs return to Indiana hospitals as well.
The local Salvation Army, which received $10,000 in matching funds from an anonymous donor earlier in this year’s kettle campaign, has raised enough to win a second $10,000 match. Major Mark Litherland, leader of the Muncie Salvation Army, said he believed it was likely that donations would fill out the rest of this season’s $173,000 campaign goal.
Students at the University of Indianapolis will have to have a COVID booster in order to return to campus. The school says that students, staff, and faculty will all have to have a third COVID shot by March 1st. UIndy will acknowledge any exemptions that were allowed under the school’s first vaccine requirement.
The new district boundaries for elected positions on the Madison County Council and Board of County Commissioners have been approved. The Madison County Commissioners voted to approve the new boundaries for the three seats on the Board of County Commissioners and the four district seats on the county council.
The Ball Brothers Foundation will be moving their online grant application to a new format on January 1st. The foundations encourages anyone interested in applying for funding to visit their website and check out the “How to Guide” and other resources that will explain more about GoApply. Visit www.ballfdn.org for more information.
The Town of Yorktown has announced that live Christmas tree disposal will take place on Saturday, January 15th. Curbside pick-up of live trees will begin at 6:00 am for Yorktown trash customers. The town asks you to remove all decorations and lights as the trees will be chipped and mulched.
Yesterday was the last day for the Covid-19 clinic at the Coliseum in Ft. Wayne. Allen County used the Coliseum as its vaccine hub for the first half of the year, then re-opened it in mid-October when coronavirus numbers started to rise. Public health managers say there are plenty of other places in the county to get the shot, including at the health department’s office.
The City of Anderson Transit System will not be operating on Saturday, Jan. 1. They will resume their normal hours on Monday, Jan. 3.
Bids for three projects to replace curbs and sidewalks in Anderson all came in over the estimated cost, according to the Herald Bulletin. The Anderson Board of Public Works on Tuesday took the three bids under advisement. The project is being funded through the Anderson Community Development Department.
The new district boundaries for elected positions on the Madison County Council and Board of County Commissioners have been approved. The Madison County Commissioners voted to approve the new boundaries for the three seats on the Board of County Commissioners and the four district seats on the county council.
The Madison County Plan Commission will be providing local residents several opportunities to comment on the draft of the new solar ordinance. Planning director Brad Newman said there will be three public informational sessions. A session is set for 9 a.m. Jan. 11th in the council chambers of the Madison County Government Center and on the same day from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Madison County 4-H grounds in Alexandria. A third session in Pendleton has yet to be scheduled.
ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY— The British government announced that electronic sensors would begin to replace canaries as early-warning detectors of carbon monoxide in coal mines.
