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Brett W. Todd – Page 3 – Clinton County Today
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Brett W. Todd - page 3

Brett W. Todd has 930 articles published.

Brett W. Todd is the managing editor of Clinton County Today. Clinton County Today is a community-focused website to provide individuals of Clinton County Indiana and surrounding areas with information impacting their lives. Clinton County Today is a service of Progressive Partners of Indiana, LLC where Brett W. Todd is its managing member.

Clinton County Coroner Ed Cripe Named President of Indiana Coroners’ Association

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Clinton County Coroner Ed Cripe has been elected president of the Indiana Coroners' Association. (Photo provided by Clinton County government)

FRANKFORT, Ind. (February 14, 2024) – Clinton County Coroner Ed Cripe has been elected president of the Indiana Coroners’ Association. The not-for-profit organization supports coroners across the state through education, training, and the provision of resources essential for effective death investigations.

Cripe, who served as the association’s Vice President last year, assumed the presidency January 1. In his new capacity, he will oversee all association meetings and serve as the Legislative Chairman, advocating for coroner-related issues at the state capitol.

“It is an honor to be entrusted with the presidency of the Indiana Coroners’ Association,” Cripe stated in a media release. “I am committed to upholding our mission and ensuring that coroners across the state have the necessary resources and support they need to carry out their vital responsibilities.”

With a tenure spanning over two decades, Cripe’s dedication to the coroner profession is evident through his active involvement in organizations such as the Association of Indiana Counties, where he serves on the Legislative Committee. He is also an instructor for the Indiana State Coroners Training Board. Cripe, who previously served as Clinton County Coroner from 2005 to 2012, resumed office in 2021 and is currently on the Republican 2024 primary ballet for coroner.

Long to Leave FHS for Indiana Association of School Principals

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Frankfort High School principal Cindy Long shown in a video frame from her November 10, 2023, address announcing the creation of the Frankfort Virtual Academy. Long will leave FHS June 30, 2024, for a position with the Indiana Association of School Principals. (Video frame / Community Schools of Frankfort, Facebook Page - 11/10/23)

FRANKFORT, Ind. (February 14, 2024) – Frankfort High School principal Cindy Long has accepted a position with the Indiana Association of School Principals (IASP) and will leave FHS June 30, 2024.

The Frankfort School Board accepted her resignation at its Tuesday evening meeting.

Long has been employed with the Community Schools of Frankfort (CSF) for 23-years as first a teacher, then FHS assistant principal and since August 2019 FHS principal.

At IASP, Long will join a former FHS principal, Dr. Todd Bess. Dr. Bess serves as the executive director.

CSF Superintendent Dr. Matt Rhoda described Long’s new role with IASP as an “assistant director and work with law makers to help impact laws that affect public education.”

He shared Long has been a “great leader at the high school and will be missed.”

Dr. Rhoda is hopeful to have a candidate selected to fill the position in time of the May 14 school board meeting noting June is a busy hiring time for schools and wanted the new person to be in place by June to “(work) with Cindy” and have “the opportunity for any open positions to be able to hire.”

County Commissioners Forced to Find New Insurance Coverage

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County Commissioners Forced to Find New Insurance Coverage
Archive photo of the Clinton County Indiana Courthouse located in Frankfort, Indiana. The Clinton County Commissioners selected a new insurance carrier for properties and assets. Great American was selected during a special meeting Thursday, February 1, 2024. (Photo Brett W. Todd/September 2023)

FRANKFORT, Ind. (Feb. 2, 2024) – The Clinton County Commissioners were presented with only two insurance companies willing to insure county properties and assets during a special meeting of the commissioners held Thursday at the Clinton County Courthouse.

The force to find new coverage was the result of being served with a 60-day non-renewal notice from Tokio Marine, the county insurer for the past three years. The county received the letter on November 27, 2023, stating Tokio Marine was withdrawing from the market place.

Todd Jackson with McGowan Insurance Group, the county insurance broker, made the presentation and commented only two companies presented offers – Trident and Great American. He recommended the commissioners select Great American with a 15 percent premium increase over 2023, while Trident was 22.7 percent.

Jackson shared only “ten to twelve” companies work to insure public entities with the “least desirable being counties due to landfills, county homes, and jails.”

The new coverage comes with an additional “$9 million in property value that needed to be done to maintain replacement cost on everything” according to Jackson.

The coverage went into effect Thursday – running February 1, 2024 through January 31, 2025.

The 2024 premium at the time of signing on February 1st was quoted at $636,457 which will fluctuate with additional assets purchased or new employees due to workers compensation coverage.

The premium includes the Great American coverage as well as carriers for workers compensation, cyber security, and liability coverage for the county home – the county home property is covered in the Great American policy.

Jackson explained the “real rate” increase to be closer to “ten to eleven” percent.

“I would say the property bump, exposure we added probably accounts for three-and-a-half to four percent of that and pull the payroll rate back and we are at ten to eleven percent,” Jackson said.

The county had budgeted an insurance premium cost increase during its August 2023 budget sessions.

Commissioner Jordan Brewer shared his thoughts on the increase and what might be a “silver lining” in all of this.

“We list the prior premiums and it looks like a large jump, but that prior doesn’t include what an increase would have been if Tokio Marine would have stayed,” Brewer said. “The silver lining is – I don’t know if this is a good thing or a bad thing – we budgeted enough so we don’t have to go back and ask for more from council.”

Frankfort School Board Approves Middle School Renovation Bids, Construction To Begin April 2024

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Construction bids for the renovation of the Frankfort Middle School came in $1.76 million under budget. work will begin April 2024. (Photo: Brett W. Todd, design rendering October 2023)

FRANKFORT, Ind. (January 10, 2024) – Construction bids for the renovation of the Frankfort Middle School came in $1.76 million under budget.

Community Schools of Frankfort Superintendent Dr. Matt Rhoda called the news a “blessing.”

The ‘blessing’ now allows CSF to approve the bids for the originally planned-for renovations as well as approval of select alternate project bids.

At the top of the alternate list – a new walkway allowing access to second floor space and construction of three new classrooms in this open space.

“To come in, in this market, with increasing construction costs – it’s nothing more than a blessing to come in $1.76 million under budget,” Dr. Rhoda said. “That’s a testament to our architect and to Tecton.”

“A lot of times when people bid on projects if there is guess work in it for the people bidding, they tend to pad [their bids]. What Tecton has done is taken a lot of that guessing game out so that we can get hard numbers and people are not padding their numbers.”

Dr. Rhoda shared how the savings will be used and the costs of those alternates.

“We knew if we had money available that we would go down that list. The big one is getting that walkway that is up in the wrestling area. By getting that walkway in – it’s about $200,000 to put a walkway in with a roof over it – that will give access to three additional classrooms upstairs. Those classrooms come in around $1.3 million.

“By being $1.76 million under budget we’re able to get those two things in and allow us to move our art classrooms and business classroom up and allow [the architects] flexibility of putting in another classroom or a place to expand.”

The art and business classrooms were initially designed to be on the first floor.

Prior to an April 2024 renovation start, CSF will need to receive the construction documents for school board signatures as well as prepare for the issuance of the finance bond.

The $25 million renovation will allow for secure entry into the building, expanded cafeteria space, the addition of a new performance arts wing – allowing for choir, band and orchestra to have its dedicated space plus a public auditorium, the expanding of existing classroom space to name a few of the overall items.

As previously reported, the renovation of FMS will not cause an increase to tax payers as the bond used for the construction of Suncrest will be paid for in 2024. Dr. Rhoda provided an explanation in a November 2022 interview why the retired debt would negatively impact CSF in the future should a current project not be available. “Our tax rate goes down, which means that if we want to do any big projects in the future, we would have to go the referendum route to raise that tax rate again in order to be able to generate those funds. And so we want to stay tax neutral so that we are able to continue to use debt drop off to be able to fund future projects without going to the public to ask for a tax increase.”

In addition to Tecton, CSF worked with KJG Architecture Inc and Fanning Howey to bring this multi-year project to the construction phase.

The planned construction is to begin April 2024 and have 14 classrooms renovated by August 2024 to mitigate the moving around for students during the school year with a Summer 2026 completion date and final punch list complete by December 2026.

Clinton County Sheriff’s Office Motorcycle Patrol Presence Leads to Arrest of Crawfordsville Man on Multiple Outstanding Warrants

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Michael Walker, 35, of Crawfordsville was arrested on outstanding warrants for FTA Possession of a Synthetic Narcotic (Montgomery County), Dealing Methamphetamine (Howard County) and Carrying a Handgun without a License (Howard County) on Wednesday, January 3, 2024, at approximately 3:30p.m. in Clinton County Indiana after a brief foot pursuit. (Photo: Clinton County Sheriff's Office)

CLINTON COUNTY, Ind. (January 8, 2024) – According to the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO), Michael Walker, 35, of Crawfordsville was arrested on outstanding warrants for FTA Possession of a Synthetic Narcotic (Montgomery County), Dealing Methamphetamine (Howard County) and Carrying a Handgun without a License (Howard County) on Wednesday, January 3, 2024, at approximately 3:30p.m.

CCSO Sergeant Tom Farlow and Sergeant Thomas Pelling were returning to the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office on their Harley Davidson patrol motorcycles following the completion of a funeral escort, when they observed a suspicious vehicle in the area of County Roads 500N and 300E. The vehicle, a Black 1995 Dodge Dakota pickup truck pulled into a residence familiar to both sergeants. After notifying the homeowner, they learned the vehicle did not belong at the property. Deputy Nick Light and Deputy Nevin Creasy were also returning from the same funeral escort in their fully marked Tahoes and arrived on scene to assist.

Upon pulling into the residence, Sergeant Pelling observed a male subject fleeing the vehicle on foot. At this time, Sergeant Joey Mitchell (K9 Rip), Deputy Nevin Creasy, Detective Mark Pinkard and Detective Jon Greiner responded, along with Frankfort Police Department Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Operator Officer Brett Waggoner.

Officer Waggoner deployed his UAV and quickly located the suspect. During the investigation, deputies determined the truck had been reported stolen out of Montgomery County.

Deputies have requested additional charges of Theft of a Motor Vehicle, Possession of a Syringe and Possession of Marijuana; formal charges are pending review by the Clinton County Prosecutor’s Office.

Former Clinton County Sheriff, Frankfort Police Chief Paul Underwood Dies

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Former Clinton County Sheriff, Frankfort Police Chief Paul Underwood died January 5, 2024, at the age of 92. (Photo: Clinton County Sheriff's Office)

FRANKFORT, Ind. (January 8, 2024) – Former Clinton County Sheriff and Frankfort Police Chief Paul Underwood died January 5th at the age of 92.

Underwood joined the Frankfort Police Department in 1960 and served as chief from 1980 to 1984. Upon retirement from FPD in 1986, he was elected sheriff two-times serving from 1987 through 1994.

Prior to a career in law enforcement, Underwood served in the U.S. Army from 1951-1953, making the rank of Corporal.

Visitation will be from 12 Noon-3 p.m. Friday, January 12, 2024, at Goodwin Funeral Home, 200 S. Main St., Frankfort. Funeral service will begin at 3 p.m. at the funeral home. Burial will follow in Bunnell Cemetery.

Clinton County Election Results

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CLINTON COUNTY, Ind. (November 8, 2023) – Clinton County voters saw little in regards to contested elections in the 2023 November general election held November 7th.

Below are the results for the contested races in Clinton County:

Frankfort City Council
Clarence Warthan defeated David Riggs in the race for District 1

Rossville
Brooke Meeks defeated Gwin Hanna in the race for Clerk-Treasurer
Stanley Cox, Sally McGill and Benjamin Kellogg were elected to the Town Council

Mulberry
Paula Bennett defeated Jeannie Fife in the race for Clerk-Treasurer
Dave Jones, Randy Ravenscraft, Lewis Wheeler, Lindsey Foster and Joey Mitchell all were elected to the Town Council

Electrical Issue Caused Press Box Fire at FHS

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The remains of the Frankfort High School football field press box after a fire on Halloween evening 2023. The fire has been ruled accidental due to an electrical issue. (Photo by Brett W. Todd, November 1, 2023)

FRANKFORT, Ind. (November 8, 2023) – A fire that began after 9 p.m. on Halloween evening in the Frankfort High School football field press box has been ruled to be have been accidental, caused by an electrical issue according to a joint statement from the Community Schools of Frankfort (CSF) and the Frankfort Fire Department (FFD).

The annoucement comes after a thorough investigation by the FFD and NEFCO Insurance Investigators.

According to the press release, CSF “will now move forward with plans to demolish the damaged press box and construct a new facility in its place.”

Bud McQuade Named Frankfort Building Inspector, Former HPC Chair

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Bud McQuade was named Frankfort, Indiana building inspector during a September 25, 2023, meeting of the city's Board of Works meeting. McQuade begins October 2nd. (Photo CSF)

FRANKFORT, Ind. (September 25, 2023) – Mayor Judy Sheets has named James (Bud) McQuade as the city building inspector upon approval of the Board of Works (BOW) during Monday’s meeting.

McQuade had served as the chair of the Historic Preservation Commission until Mayor Sheets dissolved the HPC at the September 11 city council meeting – all enforcement of city historic standards and city building ordinances will now be enforced by McQuade.

Currently working for Structure Point as a construction project manager, McQuade will officially take on the city job October 2nd – he previously served as building inspector when Don Stock was mayor.

McQuade is excited to get started and sees his role as building inspector to help safeguard residents.

“I am excited about it,” McQuade said after the BOW meeting. “I have been a former city building inspector – I still feel I want to be part of the city’s growth, the vision going forward. This is a new, old chapter for me.

“My main concern is going out to make sure things are being built appropriately – to help safeguard the residents, the owners that they are being taken care of adequately.”

When asked how the enforcement of the city’s historic standards, he described a change in how it is approached.

“It’s not a thing of the past, but of the evolving future,” McQuade elaborated. “So, whether or not we’re going to be changing things – we’re just going to be changing how we approach and go from there.”

Mayor Sheets spoke of McQuade’s experience and knowledge of the city building and historic district codes.

“I’m excited to have Bud on our team – I believe he brings a lot to the table; he comes with a lot of experience,” Mayor Sheets shared after the meeting.

“I think it is going to be very beneficial to the city, because he is very much aware. He worked with those standards all those times while he was on the HPC. So, I think he brings a lot of expertise in that way as well. He genuinely cares about the historic districts and knows the importance of them.”

McQuade becomes the second Community Schools of Frankfort School Board member to also work as a city department head – Joel Tatum is the other and is the city parks superintendent.

Exterior Renovation of Courthouse To Begin September 25th

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The Clinton County Courthouse will undergo a years long restoration beginning September 25, 2023. The public will begin to see scaffolding erected around the site next week. (File Photo Brett W. Todd, September 4, 2022)

FRANKFORT, Ind. (September 18, 2023) – Exterior renovation of the Clinton County Courthouse will begin next Monday, September 25th, according to commissioner Jordan Brewer.

Commissioner Brewer provided the update during this morning’s meeting stating the public will begin seeing scaffolding going-up next week.

The exterior project is the first of a $9,442,080 restoration project of the Courthouse with phase two being interior work. Interior work will not begin until completion of the Annex building at the corner of Washington St and Main St. The cost of construction of the Annex is pegged not to exceed $17,750,000.

Annex construction should begin soon with preliminary work on site taking place now.

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