The Latest Hometown Happenings Around Fishers
Writer / Larry Lannan
Photography Provided
Jennifer Kehl has been the city clerk since Fishers switched from being a town to a city. Ms. Kehl will be running for re-election on the Republican general election ballot in November, defeating political newcomer Rachel Segars in the May primary election. Kehl received 1,766 votes (68%) and Segars had 820 votes (32%).
For the 2023-2024 school year, the Teacher of the Year for Hamilton Southeastern Schools will be Johanna Kitchell, orchestra teacher at Riverside Intermediate and Junior High School. There were two other finalists for Teacher of Year, Heather Skaggs, fourth-grade teacher at Brooks School Elementary, and Erin Ingwersen, math teacher at Fishers High School. The announcement was made at the end-of-the-school-year celebration in May.
HAND Inc., a local nonprofit focused on affordable housing, has broken ground on the group’s first Fishers development, Cumberland Cottages, located on less than two acres along Cumberland Road just south of 141st Street. There will be 11 rental units. Five will be at market rate and six will have rents based on the tenant’s income. Plans call for building four two-bedroom units and seven three-bedroom units in what’s known as a cottage court layout, clustered around shared green space. Construction is projected to be complete by early 2024.
HAND held its annual housing conference on May 3. Community organizations attending the event agreed that there is a widening gap between household incomes and housing costs. According to real estate experts, so far in 2023, Hamilton County has had more million-dollar home sales (58) than home sales under $200,000 (38).
Kroger received approvals from the Fishers Board of Zoning Appeals, allowing the grocer zoning variances for a freestanding ATM, landscaping, associated signage for a new grocery store, fueling center use without an associated convenience store, a kiosk, an associated fueling-center canopy, landscaping, and signage for a new grocery store fueling station. The allows Kroger to move forward with plans to move across Allisonville Road to a much larger location north of 116th Street.
Fishers held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Geist Waterfront Park on May 24, with the facility open to the public for the first time May 27. The city charges a $50 parking fee if no Fishers resident is in the vehicle. City residents may park for free through a phone app.
In response to allegations of racial profiling, the Fishers Police Department conducted an internal investigation looking into the incident. Police Chief Ed Gebhart issued a statement saying the investigation “confirmed officers responded in accordance with department policy and procedure.”
The Fishers City Council gave first-reading approval for a new public nuisance ordinance. The measure calls for a system so city officials can deal with businesses creating constant calls for public safety service. If given final council approval, the new ordinance would be effective on August 1 of this year.
The Hamilton Southeastern school board is considering a proposal to deal with academic dishonesty, when a student uses artificial intelligence and says it is her/his work. The board is also considering a proposed change for students absent from school for more than 10 consecutive school days, whether for vacation or family emergencies (in or out of the country), or for cultural/religious reasons – those students will be asked to unenroll from the school. No action has been taken on these changes.
Brooke Lawson has led the Hamilton Southeastern Schools mental health program since its inception, but has left the local school district. She accepted a similar post in Carmel.
