Government

By State Representative Sue Errington— INDIANAPOLIS—Indiana is severely lacking in accessible, affordable child care options. Brighter Futures Indiana’s Data Center indicates that over 502,000 children in Indiana may be in need of child care. Despite the sheer amount of children needing service, providers can only meet 41% of this demand, leaving many parents scrambling to find facilities to accommodate their children. This issue is especially present in rural communities where child care deserts persist. In Delaware County, four county subdivisions have no child care options at all, according to the Center for American Progress. Even for those in Delaware County…

By Michele Owen— MUNCIE, IN—On Tuesday, April 30, the City of Muncie received notice of a $266,000 grant award from Indiana Trails Program to complete the third phase of trail expansions at Prairie Creek. This grant will allow the City and its partners to continue to fill the vision of a trail connecting the Cardinal Greenway to the North Shore Campground as detailed in the 2007 Prairie Creek Master Plan. The first two phases were completed in 2013 and 2016, and included 2.6 miles of ADA accessible trail. Now, the trail expansion will connect the trail from the northern end…

By Keith Roysdon— DELAWARE COUNTY, IN– Some of the most-needed road paving jobs in Delaware County are on tap for 2024. The roads will be repaved thanks to a $1.5 million Community Crossings grant from the state of Indiana. “We were awarded everything we asked for. This really will help stretch our local paving dollars,” said Angela Moyer, project director of Delaware County’s Engineering Department. “We’re very appreciative.” In addition to roads paved with grant funding, Delaware County also has plans to pave an additional 60 lane miles and chip/seal 130 lane miles of road. In the past eight years Delaware…

By Michele Owen— MUNCIE, IN—On Thursday, the City of Muncie announced the appointment of Joshua Taulbee as the new director of Muncie Animal Care and Services (MACS). Taulbee is a lifelong resident of Muncie, graduated from Ball State in 2015, and has worked for Delaware County for the last 7 years. He serves in multiple board positions, and has a strong background in budget and project management. “I’m passionate about serving my community,” commented Taulbee. His primary goals include building a comprehensive understanding of each role within MACS, developing stronger working relationships with other shelters and animal rescues within the…

April is child abuse prevention month By Eric M. Hoffman, Prosecuting Attorney— MUNCIE, IN—In his New York Times best seller, A Child Called It, author Dave Peltzer said that “childhood should be carefree, playing in the sun; not living a nightmare in the darkness of the soul.”Unfortunately, we know all too well that doesn’t always happen. A report issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services noted that in the Federal Fiscal Year 2022 in the United States, approximately 559,000 children became victims of child abuse. This is a national rate of 7.7 victims per 1,000 children in…