Bear Creek Park input sought — Carmel Clay Parks & Recreation invites the public to participate in a public input meeting on Sept. 1 to discover the community’s vision for Bear Creek Park at 146th Street and Shelborne Road. The public workshop will be held at 6:30 p.m. in the Jill Perelman Pavilion at West Park, 3000 W. 116th St. CCPR and its consultant will gather public input throughout workshops and focus groups to develop the Bear Creek Park Master Plan, prioritizing park amenities and programming valued by the community.
CPD joins task force — On Aug. 17, the Indianapolis Crime Gun Intelligence Center became a regional task force known as the Indiana Crime Guns Task Force, which includes the Carmel Police Dept. As part of the team, CPD will collaborate with other Central Indiana agencies to track violent perpetrators who travel beyond county lines and throughout the state. Members of this task force will address violent crime in Boone, Hamilton, Hancock, Hendricks, Marion, Morgan, Johnson and Shelby counties.
HCLA leader resigns — Hamilton County Leadership Academy Executive Director Andrea Marley submitted her resignation. Her last day with HCLA will be Sept. 8. She has been an employee of HCLA since 2018 and served in the executive director role since 2020. A search will begin immediately for a new executive director.
Parking garage thefts — On Aug. 8, the Carmel Police Dept. received reports of multiple thefts from vehicles in the Midtown north and south parking garages. The person pictured exited a green 2016 Ford F-150 truck with a Wisconsin plate and is wanted for questioning. The vehicle was previously reported stolen. Anyone with information is asked to contact CPD at 317-571-2500 or Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana at 317-262-8477. Reference CPD case number 2021-53908 and 2021-53879.
State appointments — Governor Eric J. Holcomb has appointed several Carmel residents to state boards and commissions. Cheryl Ackerman, CFO of Proteus, has been appointed to the All Payer Claims Database Advisory Board; Michael Lucas of Barnes & Thornburg has been appointed to the Indiana Bond Bank Board of Directors; and John Duffy, director of Carmel Utilities, has been appointed to the Task Force on Wastewater Infrastructure Investment and Service to Underserved Areas.
Treasure Our Children gala — The Indiana Center for the Prevention of Youth Abuse and Suicide will hold the Treasure Our Children gala on Sept. 25 at 502 East Event Centre in Carmel. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with dinner served at 7:30 p.m. The event will include live music, an auction and more. Learn more at indianaprevention.org.
Learn about solar panels — Solarize ECI, a grassroots community group affiliated with Solarize Indiana, will hold a free virtual meeting at 6:30 p.m. Aug. 30 to provide information on the federal tax credit for installing solar panels on homes, farm structures and places of business. The 30-minute presentation will be followed by an hour for questions and answers. Register at facebook.com/solarizeECI.
Resources for veterans — Helping Veterans and Families is hosting its annual Stand Down event from noon to 3 p.m. Sept. 9 at the Indiana National Guard Armory, 3912 W. Minnesota St. in Indianapolis. The open fair will offer information about resources and services available to veterans, including food, clothing, hygiene items, employment services, financial counseling, VA benefits assistance and more.
Invasive plants webinar — The Hamilton County Invasives Partnership is holding a free online webinar at 1 p.m. Aug. 26 covering emerging invasive plants in Central Indiana. Mary Welz, Southern Indiana Cooperative Invasives Management regional specialist, will guide attendees through identification and background on species to watch for and options for reporting. Register at hcinvasives.org.
Homework help — A new school year has added video tutoring services to help middle school and high school students better understand their math and science homework through Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology’s free AskRose Homework Help program. Rose-Hulman tutors are available Sunday through Thursday from 7 to 10 p.m. for tutoring sessions to help students in grades 6 through 12 by video, telephone call, email or chat. Tutors can be accessed via the AskRose website, AskRose.org, or calling by 877-275-7673.
Golf fundraiser — AECOM Hunt will hold its annual charity golf outing on Sept. 9 to support the Assistance League of Indianapolis. Organizers are accepting sponsorships and donations. Learn more at alindy.org/charity-golf-outing.html.
Pups & Pints — Clay Terrace is hosting the fifth annual Pups & Pints series from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. the third Friday of each month through October at the shopping center’s dog park, 14395 Clay Terrace Blvd. Participants can socialize with other dog owners at the free event and purchase beer from Bier Brewery. Water will be available for the pups.
Bike sharing resumes — The Carmel Bike Share program has relaunched under a new vendor, Movatic. To access the bikes, users must download an app from Movatic. The bikes cost $1.50 per half hour to rent with a cap of $24 for up to a 24-hour period. A $30 annual fee includes unlimited rides under one hour, with additional hours being charged at $1.50 per half-hour to a maximum of $24 for up to a 24-hour period.
Pedal Perks — Hamilton County Tourism’s Pedal Perks promotion returned this month for its fourth year. The goal is to incentivize locals and visitors to explore Hamilton County by bicycle. From May 1 through Oct. 31, more than 30 participating Hamilton County businesses are offering deals and discounts redeemable on a smartphone. Visit PedalPerks.org to learn more and register.
Host families needed — ASSE International Student Exchange Programs is looking for local families to host students ages 15 to 18 for the next academic year. Students come from all over the world and have received scholarships to study in the U.S. To learn more or fill out an application to become a host family, call 1-800-736-1760 or visit host.asse.com.
Weed Wranglers — The Hamilton County Invasive Species Partnership will debut Weed Wranglers events this year to remove invasive species at various locations. Volunteers will learn how to manage a targeted invasive species and work as part of a collaborative effort to improve a natural area. Learn more at hcinvasives.org/weedwrangle. Registration is required.
Merchants Bank appointments — Merchants Bank of Indiana has appointed Mark Harville, as vice president, small business administration business development officer, and John Rinker as vice president, business banking. Harville joined Merchants Bank as a business banker in 2018. Prior to joining Merchants, he spent 12 years with PNC Bank working with small businesses and commercial clients in various capacities. Rinker will work with small businesses to large commercial companies, providing business loans, deposit services, and more for organizations around the U.S.
MAHC president named — Local nonprofit Merchants Affordable Housing Corp. announced Bruce R. Baird will serve as president and CEO. Baird has been involved with MAHC for more than seven years, having served on the organization’s board of directors since 2014 and as board chair since April 2019. In his new role, Baird will serve in a key leadership position for all service and consulting initiatives within MAHC, as well as for the company’s partner project, HomeNow Indy, in partnership with the City of Indianapolis and the Coalition for Homelessness Intervention & Prevention.
Haven Technologies opens warehouse — Carmel-based Haven Technologies has opened a warehouse in Ontario. It is the company’s third international facility. Haven Technologies has four warehouses globally to receive, store, distribute and ship ISOtunes products to its customer base.
Advisory level moves to orange — The Indiana State Dept. of Health has changed Hamilton County’s COVID-19 Advisory Level from yellow to orange. That means community spread is medium to high and the county has a point score of 2.0 or higher on the ISDH monitoring scale. To reach a score of 2.0, a county must have 100-199 weekly cases per 100,000 residents and a seven day all test positivity rate of 10-14.9 percent.The vast majority of those getting sick from COVID-19 are unvaccinated. While there have been a number of breakthrough cases among those who were fully vaccinated, most have had minor to moderate symptoms and are not often hospitalized.
Blood donations needed — Versiti Blood Center of Indiana is issuing an emergency appeal for blood donations. As the available blood supply has dropped to critically low levels, communities throughout the state face a potential crisis with less than a one-day supply of lifesaving blood available. Because of the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Versiti’s mobile blood collections are down more than 16,000 units of blood this year, with more than 4,500 units in Indiana alone. Versiti Blood Center has a location in Carmel at 726 Adams St. Suite 150. Schedule an appointment by calling 317-916-5150 or visit versiti.org/Indiana.
