The Press-Dispatch

August 12, 2020

The Press-Dispatch

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B-3 Wednesday, August 12, 2020 The Press-Dispatch Locally-owned and operated with generations of heating and cooling experience. e knowledge has now been passed to a new generation. Be sure your home is ready for the upcoming seasons by calling 812-881-6307 My name is Cameron Scholmer. I am here to provide quality and timely HVAC services to you and your family. 8–7 . Mon. 8–noon . Tues. 10–7 . Wed. 8–5 . Thur. 8–5 . Fri. Trouble with vision at school? Now Locally Owned and Operated Dr. Clint Shoultz 715 S. 9th St., Petersburg 812-354-9400 Call For Appointment parent that most of the SE col- umns have also had corrosion problems in the past because there are steel plates welded to the north face of most of the columns, just above the floor level." Blake said no engineer was available for the meeting to give specific information, but one would attend the next meeting. She said the project is run- ning into a gray area of do they repair the pool or replace it. "At what point do we contin- ue with repairs or do we start looking at replacing it. Neither are cheap. At the next board meeting, we should be able to ask more questions," said Blake. A summary in the school board's meeting packet stat- ed the air flow issue could cost between $400,000 and $500,000. This did not include the steel beam repair. The sum- mary states the project could run between $750,000 and $1 million. An email from Ron Stein- hart, of Hafer Design, stated the air supply system in the pool area had changed from its original design and was ex- changing only about half the volume it should. It also states: "We do not believe any of the steel structure was treated to this potentially corrosive air (chlorine) since it was origi- nally designed to be a positive- ly pressurized space with re- spect to the pool area. The air handler was also not designed to serve a pool area where the humidity is very high." Steinhart recommended a new air handler system for the pool area, with an estimated cost of $400,000 to $500,000. "When we first approved replacing the liner it was in April. We were thinking, the school is shut down with COVID. It is a good opportu- nity to have it repaired and it will be opened by school. We knew there were some con- cerns. We had firm come in and check the steel. We put the liner and everything else on the hold. They have as- sured us the beams are okay. But because of the decay on the steel, it is definitely go- ing to need some reinforce- ment. My question is, is the repair affordable or is it going to need to be replaced? When you start looking at the cost, what is going to get the pool back in place, but that is go- ing to last for several years? I don't want another board in a few years to have to address this again," said Blake. "I'm concerned about the numbers I'm going to hear back. I originally thought we were going to have the kids back in the pool by start of the year, fall break at the lat- est. Right now, I don't know if that is an option," said Blake. There is more testing that is going to have to be done on the structure. "We just need to take a step back and make sure we are all on the same page," she said. She said it will be a topic at the August 18 meeting, which has been moved from the nor- mal meeting date of August 11. The water tower at Pike Central was looked at by an engineering firm as well. Mid- western looked at it. There are some more steps to be looked at next week. Yhey are going to drain it and look at it. "We have a firm coming in to look at the flow capacity for fire pro- tection. We allocated a little more than $200,000 for that," said Blake. Engineer Derek Wiggins said the planned inspection is to evaluate the thickness of the tank and evaluate the structural integrity of the tank, and determine the costs and next steps to take. "If we have to do anything at all, we will have to increase the capacity," said board pres- ident Steve Potter. Blake said the inspection is to determine what repairs need to be done and the cost of them to see if it warrants re- pairing it or replacing it. In a summary letter to the board members, Blake said the inspection will take place on August 6. She states they have asked Heinz Associates to give them information on flow rates and if the flow is ad- equate for fire protection. She said the third project is renovations at the Peters- burg Elementary School. "Ev- er since my return, there have been some issues regarding the entry area. It is built dif- ferent than other buildings." She said they need to imple- ment some measures to help with pickup and drop-off se- curity. They also are looking at making changes to the nurse's clinic area. She said it is a lit- tle smaller than other schools and they need to have an iso- lation area, especially now that they are dealing with COVID-19. They have asked for the two projects to be separate so the board can decide to do one or the other or both. Chris McKinney asked about the cost of the construc- tion at Petersburg. They were $200,000 and $150,000 for the cost of each project, with $20,000 and $15,000 being the engineering costs. David Schafer represent- ing Lancer + Beebe, LLC said, "We try to put the esti- mates high." He added, "Since COVID-19 hit, bids are com- ing in more competitively, typ- ically less than the cost of proj- ects 18 months earlier." He emphasized these are not hard bids. Schafer said the bids would come after the engineering design work. McKinney pressed Scha- fer about the estimate. "Cost won't go over the verbal esti- mate, no way shape or form? " "That is our intention, but I can't guarantee that." "If we don't move on this, it won't ever get do- ne. I would like to have it done before school starts," said Potter, as he moved to approve both projects. It was approved by a 4-1 vote, with McKinney voting against it. PERSONNEL MATTERS • Jill Estey was granted a leave of absence for the first semester from Petersburg El- ementary School due to med- ical reasons. • Karis Miller was hired to teach the first semester leave for Jill Estey. • Kelley McDivitt was granted a maternity leave from October. 26 to January 4. • Katelyn Letterman Con- way resigned from her enrich- ment teacher position at Pike Central Middle School. • Cynthia Harrison re- signed as the accompanist for the Pike Central Choral De- partment. • Jake Robinette resigned as head custodian at the Pe- tersburg Elementary School. •Rachel Cook was hired as computer tech at Petersburg Elementary School. • Jenna Horrall was hired as the girls' soccer volunteer assistant. • Missy Sparks was hired as the sixth grade volleyball head coach. • Mikayla Feldpausch was hired as the seventh grade cheer coach. • Kailee Russell was hired as the assistant band director for Pike Central High School. • Amelia Woolery and Ab- by Hess were hired as assis- tants for the high school band. • Lisa Reed was hired as a teaching assistant at Peters- burg Elementary School. The next school board meeting will be 7 p.m. on Tues- day, August 18 in the school corporation building. By Andy Heuring A Petersburg man was ar- rested after police stopped him for having a taillight out. George Askren, 46, of 2013 E. Main St., Petersburg, was arrested on a charge of operat- ing a vehicle while intoxicated with a prior conviction. Petersburg Officer Scott Ar- nold said he stopped Askren after seeing him driving a Jeep with only one taillight. While talking to Askren, Officer Arnold said he noticed the odor of marijuana and ner- vous behavior by Askren. He said Askren admitted smok- ing marijuana earlier in the day. Askren failed field sobriety tests and was taken to the Da- viess Community Hospital, where he tested positive for marijuana. He was then taken into cus- tody and transported to the Pike County Jail. A Florida man was arrested after other motorists report- ed he was driving erratical- ly and at high speeds on I-69. Matthew Bowden, 25, of Tal- lahassee, Fla., was arrested at about 1 p.m. Saturday. Pike County Deputy Sher- iff Cody Jones said central dis- patch received a call about a light green or gray sedan driv- ing all over the road and at a high rate of speed, heading south toward Petersburg on I-69. Deputy Jones said he went to I-69 and located the vehi- cle. He said while following it, he saw it driving in the mid- dle of the two lanes and weav- ing from one lane to the oth- er. Jones stopped the vehicle and talked with Bowden. He said when Bowden attempted to hand Jones his license, he missed Jones' hand. Jones also said he smelled alcohol and noticed Bowden's speech was slurred. Bowden failed field sobri- ety tests and tested .28 per- cent for blood alcohol content on a portable breath test. He was transported to the Da- viess Community Hospital because of his high blood al- cohol content. At the hospital, a blood test revealed Bowden had a BAC of .33 percent, which is more than four times the legal lim- it in Indiana. A fter being cleared by the hospital, Bowden was trans- ported to the Pike County Jail, where he was charged with operating a vehicle with a blood alcohol content of 0.15 percent or more. By Andy Heuring A Petersburg man was ar- rested on dealing meth and neglect of a child after police heard a tape of him threaten- ing to stab his oldest son for stealing drugs late Sunday night. Michael R. McCandless, 43, of 308 N. Fourth St., Peters- burg, was arrested on charges of dealing in meth, a level 5 fel- ony, possession of meth, less than five grams, a level 6 fel- ony; possession of marijuana; possession of paraphernalia; maintaining a common nui- sance, a level 6 felony; and ne- glect of a dependent, a level 6 felony. Petersburg Officer Scott Arnold said, while talking with a confidential informant, he listened to a recording of the claimed transaction. In it, he said he heard McCandless threatening or wanting to stab someone for stealing drugs. Officer Arnold said the infor- mant told him the person Mc- Candless wanted to stab was his oldest son. Officer Arnold also said he heard what sounded like the voice of a child. The informant said there was a five- or six- year-old in the house. Arnold asked the infor- mant if McCandless was like- ly to stab someone. He said the informant told him if Mc- Candless was high enough, he might. The informant said Mc- Candless had been doing meth for about two days. Arnold then called Deputy Prosecutor Sarah Christian- son and told her about it. He then met with Christianson and Prosecutor Darin McDon- ald, and they requested and received a search warrant for McCandless' house from Pike Circuit Judge Jeff Biesterveld. Arnold and Petersburg Po- lice Chief Chuck Baumgart, Deputies Cody Jones, Jared Simmons and Michael Willis, and Trooper Vennekotter went to McCandless' residence and executed the search warrant at about 11 p.m. The repeatedly requested McCandless open the door before they kicked it open. McCandless was standing at the door and Billy Moore was "hurrying through the kitch- en. Both were taken to the ground and placed in hand- cuffs." During a search of the house, police said they found three baggies of a green plant- like substance believed to be marijuana. All three weighed 9.7 or 9.6 grams. A spoon con- taining white residue was also found and field tested positive for methamphetamine. In a bedroom, they found a glass jar containing a bag- gie with 12.3 grams of a green plant-like substance. In a kitchen cabinet, they found a glass smoking device with a white crystal-like substance, burnt residue and a white vape pen, which McCandless said would test positive for THC. Officer Arnold said police also took possession of six cellphones. Moore, 36, of 4799 N. CR 200 E., Petersburg, was charged with visiting a com- mon nuisance. McCandless faces multiple drug, neglect charges Two charged with OVWI in separate incidents yeah, it's that fast! net edition Z M www.PressDispatch.net/Subscribe The Press-Dispatch. No matter where you live. PC POOL Continued from page 2 Kendell injured in motorcycle crash An Ohio man was injured Friday night on Sugar Ridge Road (CR 150 S.), near the Littles General Baptist Church. David Kendell, 53, of Ohio, was driving his Harley Davidson motorcycle west on Sugar Ridge Rd. and he crossed the centerline, then ran off the right side of the road and went into a deep ditch at 9:23 p.m., ac- cording to Pike County Deputy Cody Jones. Jones said Kendell was riding at a slow speed. He had a cut on his head and complained of pain on his knee and ankles, but was conscious and alert. He was taken to the hospi- tal by Pike County EMS. Above: Pike County Deputy Cody Jones investigates the accident scene.

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