The Greentown Grapevine – 2000-04, 07:04

              . The Greentown
Volume 7, Issue 4 " a paper for the people" April 2000
Chemistry on the Creekbank
Wildcat Guardians Jolene Rule and Garry Hill recently did some water
quality testing of Wildcat Creek in the Jerome area. The chemical tests
included dissolved oxygen, fecal coliform, and nitrates & phosphates.
Biological tests were done to determine the type of macro invertebrates in
the water. The types of invertebrates found is an indicator of water
quality.
Jolene and Garry, Greentown residents, received Level I & 2
certification from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources in water
quality testing. The testing kit was provided to the Guardians through a
grant from the IDNR. In return for the kit, the pair are required to test the
local water 4 times per year and send reports to IDNR.
The Wildcat Guardians is a group dedicated to improving the health and
beauty of Wildcat Creek from its source to its mouth where it empties into
the Wabash River. It was founded in 1990. The 1DNR has set a tentative
date of May 20 to conduct training in water quality testing. For more
information on the training or other activities of the Guardians, call Jolene
Rule, President, at ( 765) 628- 3460.
By the way, Jolene reports that the tests showed the Wildcat near
Jerome to be fairly clean.
Parkina Meters Comina To Greentown ~ ~~- ~- -
Greentown is one of three central
Indiana towns that will be participating
in innovative test marketing of state- of-the
art parking meters. Our town is the
smallest of the Indiana marketing sites
selected by ENORPA, Inc., a Norwegian
f m that has been instrumental . in the
design, development and distribution of
the ultra hi- tech parking meter system.
During three days in October 1999,
Derf Sniknej, ENORPA's demographic
consultant visited and evaluated
Greentown for project suitability.
analyzed in the 2,000 to 3,000
population parmetef, Greentown was
rated superior in each of several aspects
compared to several other towns
- -
of t o b viability.
In late November 1999, " quiet"
negotiations between ENORPA and
Greentown began with the intent of
paving the way, so to speak, for the
initiation of a one year trial parking
meter program. Why quiet? Well, in all
probability some normally unflappable
and peaceable citizens would b&
powerfully tempted vyith " road rage at
curb side" at the very thought of parking
meters in Greentown, hence meticuloul
examination of the projected benefits
and extensive plans regarding
implementation had to precede the
program's announcement.
( continued on page 3)
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Annexation, Sidewalks, 6% Truck
Among Requests
Jay Freeman, representing the Robert
E. Freeman Irrevocable Trust, appeared
at the Greentown Town Council
meeting March 7 to discuss possible
annexation of approximately sixty- five
acres. The land is east of town, across
from The Meadows, ' and includes an
area from Brunk Ditch north to the
railroad tracks and west including the
land behind the residence of Jack Hunt.
His intention is to develop the land for
single family and duplex condos.
Council President, Roger Wolfe, gave
him an annexation request form to
complete and bring back.
Don Downs, 612 E. Grant, was
present at the Council meeting to
express a concern about the lack of
sidewalks on Grant Street from Mill St.
to Maple St. He said small children live
in the neighborhood and often play in
the street because of lack of sidewalks.
President Wolfe suggested that the
street committee meet with Town
engineers and look into right- of- way
issues and costs. He explained to
Downs that curbs are the responsibility
of the Town and that sidewalks are the
responsibility of the homeowners.
Councilman Don Flaok suggested
at Town Council
for state money for the project. The
matter was tabled.
Councilman James Harris presented a
proposal to purchase a new police
vehicle to replace the 1996 Crown
Victoria which is currently being driven
by Deputy Cranor. Marshal Jeff
Bennett said he would prefer a 4- wheel
drive Explorer over a Crown Victoria.
The truck would have an advantage in
high water and in winter. The
equipment on the 1996 car would fit on
the Explorer. The request was granted
to purchase the 2000 Explorer XLS, 4
door, 4x4, at a cost of $ 25,353.25 from
Brad Howell Ford.
A ' previous request % om Water
Superintendent Kevin Moss for a
generator for the Uncle Tom Street
pumphouse was brought back to the
Council by Don Flook. James Harris
stated that the town had a power outage
on Saturday February 26 and a back- up
generator had to be brought in. He
commented that if a power outage lasted
more than two hours and no generator
was available, residents would have to
boil water for a few days because of
contamination. The request for the
generator and' wiring, at a cost of
Some Questions Answered
Why there was not an arrest in . the truckkhurch accident
Last monthk front page story about
the truck entering the Christian Life
Fellowship Church ended without
resolution about whether of not there
would be an arrest. After conversations
with Major Larry Shipman and Deputy
Todd Everling, both of the Howard
County Sheriffs Department, here is
" the rest of the story".
The public intoxication issue is not as
clear- cut as it might have seemed,
considering a blood alcobol r& g of
.21% was obtained. It seems the driver
of the truck walked home after trying
unsuccessfblly to back his truck out of
the church. Deputy Everling came to
the scene in response to a call fiom
someone in the nearby apartments who
complained that a truck had been
running for 45 minutes and the caller
was having trouble sleeping. It took
Deputy Everling 7 minutes after the call
to arrive at the scene, making the time
the truck had been running a minimum
of 52 minutes. The driver, Daniel E.
Cain, age 23, then appeared, being
brought by his mother. It was at this
point that the blood alcohol test was
given by Greentown Deputy, Rick
Cranor, who was assisting Everling.
This chain of events presented a
scenario which, according to Everling,
would leave an opening for a defense
& mey to suggest that the driver might
have continued to drink after he got
home and that if he had not been
brought back to the scene, the
breathalyzer test would not have been
administered. In addition, field tests of
blood alcohol are not admissible in
court. Even though the facts might
seem to be a " no brainer" to a layman,
the lesson to be gained here seems to be
that we have " LAW" enforcement
officers and do not live in a police s t h .
Any action by a member of law
enforcement must be examined by a
court before punishment is meted aut.
Training and experience in the field led
Everling to believe that a conviction in
this situation was not likely.
( continued on page 2)