Governor Eric Holcomb signed an executive order to support the anticipated needs of Indiana’s emergency response, transportation, communication and critical infrastructure systems due to the expected high-number of visitors traveling to the state to view the total solar eclipse.

The executive order will allow Indiana to utilize resources from other states who are members of the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC). Once a governor issues an order, EMAC members can and will share equipment and communications systems to help support state resources to ensure the safety, care and welfare of residents if an emergency event occurs due to such a large event.

In case of an emergency residents can text or call 911.

The Indiana Department of Transportation announces temporary, alternating lane closures coming to State Road 32 in Crawfordsville between Englewood Drive and County Road 550 E.

Beginning on or after Monday, April 1, crews will be paving, patching, and installing ADA ramps and pedestrian signals at S.R. 32 and Englewood Drive.

During the work, flaggers will be directing traffic.

Work will take place during the daytime hours only, with the exception of Monday, April 8 during the solar eclipse where no closures will be in effect.

McDonald’s USA and Krispy Kreme are teaming up for a national expansion.

Fans will begin spotting Krispy Kreme doughnuts in their local McDonald’s restaurants later this year as part of a phased market rollout across the country. Nationwide availability at participating restaurants is expected by the end of 2026.

Three of Krispy Kreme’s most popular doughnuts will be delivered fresh to McDonald’s restaurants every day. They’ll be available individually, or in boxes of six, starting at breakfast and lasting throughout the day – while supplies last:

• The iconic Original Glazed® Doughnut: A melt-in-your-mouth doughnut covered in Krispy Kreme’s signature glaze. The doughnut that started it all.
• The Chocolate Iced with Sprinkles Doughnut: A chocolatey twist on the original, dipped in chocolate icing and covered in rainbow sprinkles.
• The Chocolate Iced Kreme™ Filled Doughnut: Made with a light, fluffy dough and filled with a smooth Kreme™ filling then dipped in chocolate icing.

This follows a successful test at 160 McDonald’s restaurants in the Lexington and Louisville, Kentucky areas where consumer excitement and demand exceeded expectations. These pilot restaurants will continue to serve Krispy Kreme doughnuts during the nationwide rollout.    

“Since the launch of breakfast nearly 50 years ago, we’ve continued to offer new menu items, flavors and experiences that have made McDonald’s an irreplaceable part of fans’ morning routines,” said Tariq Hassan, McDonald’s USA’s Chief Marketing and Customer Experience Officer. “This partnership is an exciting next step in that journey and a chance to unlock new business opportunities in the breakfast category and throughout the day. Our fans’ love for Krispy Kreme runs deep, and we can’t wait to make it even easier for them to satisfy their sweet tooth at McDonald’s restaurants across the country.”

“The top request we receive from consumers, every day, is, ‘please bring Krispy Kreme to my town.’ Partnering with McDonald’s on a national scale will provide our fans and doughnut lovers unprecedented daily access to fresh doughnuts and the joy that is Krispy Kreme,” said Krispy Kreme President and CEO Josh Charlesworth.

“Significantly, by making Kreme Krispy accessible to fans nationwide through this partnership, we expect to more than double our points of access by the end of 2026. The partnership accelerates the development of our existing Delivered Fresh Daily channel, creating operating leverage through distribution density and production utilization,” said Charlesworth.

Krispy Kreme has been scaling its supply chain, building a support team, adding technology and new equipment, and enhancing field training to support its Delivered Fresh Daily expansion, which includes this phased rollout.

Krispy Kreme and McDonald’s will provide more details regarding the nationwide rollout in the coming months.

The Indiana Department of Transportation announces a temporary closure of State Road 75 in Hendricks County between County Road 200 N and C.R. 350 N. 

Beginning on or after Tuesday, April 9, crews will be doing bridge rehabilitation work over Hunt Creek, located between North Salem and New Winchester.

The official detour around the closure will be from U.S. 36 and S.R. 75 to U.S. 36 east to S.R. 39, then, north to S.R. 236, and north back to S.R. 75. 

S.R. 75 will be open to local traffic only.

Work is expected to be finished by the end of May but is weather permitting and subject to change.

INDOT encourages all drivers to seek an alternate route during this project.

The Indiana Department of Transportation announces new turn lanes on U.S. 231 onto County Road 800 S.

This is part of a project that started in early March, that had a temporary crossover to allow for a lane shift between I-70 and County Road 700 S on U.S. 231.

Beginning on or after Wednesday, March 20, crews will begin installing a right turn lane and left through lane going northbound to County Road 800 S on the northbound side of U.S. 231. The southbound side of U.S. 231 will be getting right and left turn lanes.

During this construction, there will be a temporary traffic barrier to separate traffic from the work site.

Construction has prompted the Greencastle Parks and Recreation Department to move its two big Easter egg events, but don't fret. 

Greg Ruark, director of the Parks and Recreation Department, made it known at the Greencastle City Council meeting, the Easter Bunny knows the way to the new location as construction at Robe-Ann Park has moved events to Big Walnut Sports Park. 

"It is a big space," Ruark said of the Big Walnut Sports Park. 

On March 23, the Parks and Recreation Department will host a Woofy Egg Hunt Adventure at 2 p.m. at Big Walnut Sports Park's dog park. Treats and toys will be hidden for dogs to find. 

"We anticipate a successful event. Please bring pets for an opportunity to take part in an Easter Egg hunt," Ruark said. 

Mayor Lynda Dunbar admitted her dog is looking forward to the festivities, which cost $5 per family. Pre-registration is available at www.cityofgreencastle.com/departments/parks-recreation.

A week later, April 30, the annual Easter Egg Hunt will take place at Big Walnut Sports Park. Festivities are slated to begin at 10 a.m., with the egg hunt starting at 10:30 a.m. The event, which is open to children ages 1-10 is free. 

Ruark noted it will also be the opening day for youth baseball and softball at Big Walnut Sports Park on March 30.

"I have met with organizers of both sports and each sport will be sequestered to their own area. It should be a tremendous event," Ruark said. 

The Indiana Department of Transportation announces alternating lane closures coming to the eastbound lanes of U.S. 40 in Brazil, between Raridan Street and Tower Road.

Beginning on or after Monday, March 18, crews from Joink will be working in the area to expand their services.

The restrictions will be in place between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., and last for a few days.

A virtual information session for small business is set for Thursday to prepare for the April 8 eclipse.

Tuesday is the second of four scheduled dates through May to offer free legal service in Putnam County.

Clocks will "spring forward" one hour at 2 a.m. on Sunday, March 10.

It won't be until Nov. 3, the first Sunday of November, when they "fall back" to standard time.

The Putnam County Sheriff's Office posted information related to training that is being conducted Thursday.

The post simply wanted area residents to be aware that there is a large police presence at the Cloverdale Conservation Club. No problems at the site. It's just related to training.
 

The Putnam County Fair is seeking a key sponsor for the 2024 event.

The Putnam County Fair posted on its social media that it is looking for businesses interested in being featured on the 2000 parking passes sold for the Putnam County Fair?

The fair is in search of a new sponsor for the parking passes beginning in 2024. They  are accepting closed bids to sponsor the passes annually for the next three years. For those interested, you're askied to submit your bid to putnamcountyfairbookings@gmail.com by noon on March 18.

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) announced today that the deadline for acceptance of nominations for the 2024 Governor’s Awards for Environmental Excellence has been extended until Friday, March 15.

The previous deadline was March 1.

Citizens, government agencies, businesses, organizations, and educational institutions are invited to submit nominations. Self-nominations are encouraged. Nominated projects must have occurred in Indiana and been implemented in 2022 or 2023.

“It is always an honor for IDEM to recognize these outstanding Hoosiers who are choosing to go above and beyond to make a difference in Indiana’s environment,” said Commissioner Brian Rockensuess. “I encourage Hoosiers to submit their applications for their innovative projects, and I look forward to celebrating this year’s honorees and their many contributions to our state.” 

The Governor's Awards for Environmental Excellence are the most prestigious environmental awards given in the state. This year, IDEM and Governor Eric J. Holcomb’s office will present seven awards, one in each of the following categories: Energy Efficiency/Renewable Resources; Environmental Education/Outreach; Five Year Continuous Improvement; Greening the Government; Land Use/Conservation; Pollution Prevention; and, Recycling/Reuse.

Awards will be presented in September. A panel of conservation, environmental, and academic professionals review nominations. The awards will be based on project innovation, measurable results, and transferability. Nomination forms and instructions are available at idem.IN.gov/partnerships/governors-awards-for-environmental-excellence/.

In 2023, award winners included: GM Fort Wayne Assembly, Red-tail Land Conservancy, VA Northern Indiana Healthcare System, Michigan City Sanitary District and Delta Institute, DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc. and Carroll Elementary School - Flora.

A local banking leader will serve as the Future Leadership Division President of the Indiana Bankers Association.

Michael Clampitt is the senior vice president of commercial lending for North Salem State Bank. He joined the bank in 2008. He specializes in commercial lending to businesses, municipalities, churches and agriculture. Clampitt is also the liaison for the bank's legal and collection matters.

He currently serves as president of the Putnam County Economic Development Board and is a member of the Scott College of Business Dean’s Executive Council at Indiana State University. Clampitt volunteers coaching youth league basketball at Wabash Valley Family Sports Complex in Terre Haute as well as the South Putnam Youth League. He was named to the IBA Future Leadership Division Advisory Board in 2016 and currently serves as the president.

Clampitt is a 2007 graduate of Indiana State University and a 2014 graduate of the Barret Graduate School of Banking in Memphis, Tennessee.

Last March, participants had a great time learning about legal issues related to land leasing, hunting rights, and fence law during our Legal Side of Agriculture program. 

Therefore, we have invited Roger McEowen,professor of Agriculture Law and Taxation at Washburn University School of Law, back to Putnam County to share more of his knowledge of ag law issues.

This year, Roger McEowen will be talking about:

• Structuring the farm business from to minimize self-employment and income tax;
• Fences, boundaries and common farm lease issues;
• Wills, trusts and asset ownership;
• And more!

Professor McEowen conducts seminars annually across the United States for farmers, agricultural business professionals, lawyers, and other tax professionals.  He also conducts two radio programs each airing twice monthly.  In addition, his 2-minute radio program, “The Agricultural Law and Tax Report,” is heard daily by over 2 million listeners on farm radio stations from New York to California as well as SiriusXM 147. Roger can also be seen as a weekly guest on RFD-TV, where he discusses various agricultural law and tax topics.

The Legal Side of Agriculture program will be held on March 15 from 10:00 am - 12:00 pm at Ivy Tech Community College in Greencastle.  If you would like to participate in The Legal Side of Agriculture, please register at <https://purdue.link/AgLaw24> or call 765-653-8411.  There is a $20 per person fee to attend the program.  We do ask that you register by March 11^th.  If you have any questions, concerns, or need reasonable accommodations, please contact 765-653-8411.

Visit our homepage at www.extension.purdue.edu/putnam or you can contact the local Purdue Extension Office by calling 765.653.8411 for more information regarding this week’s column topic or to RSVP for upcoming events. It is always best to call first to assure items are ready when you arrive and to RSVP for programs. While many publications are free, some do have a fee. Purdue University is an equal access/equal opportunity institution. All times listed are Eastern Time.

Upcoming Events:

Mar. 6 – Breakfast with a Forester, 8-10 am, Fairway Restaurant, register at
              765-653-5716 ext. 3

Mar. 9 – Ag Day Breakfast & Mini Farm Fest, Fairgrounds

Mar. 15 – The Legal Side of Agriculture, 10 am – 12 pm, Ivy Tech-Greencastle, $20,
                 register at https://purdue.link/AgLaw24
Mar. 16 – Garden Fair, Fairgrounds

Mar. 22 – Weather & Climate Tools to Mitigate, 12 Noon, register at https://bit.ly/WIAWebinars2024

Mar. 29 – Extension Office closed in observance of Good Friday

April 8 – ServSafe Food Manager course and exam in Montgomery County – register at https://cvent.me/zEnyl3 by April 1st

Apr. 26 – Artificial Intelligence in Farm Management, 12 Noon, register at https://bit.ly/WIAWebinars2024