This and that for a Saturday
Plus, last day on a BiL deal for new full-access subscribers. And Dining Divas take in Jump Start Coffee in Lafayette.
Support for this edition comes from Greater Lafayette Family Shelter. From July 20 through July 25, donate to Greater Lafayette Family Shelter’s Christmas in July campaign to support our community’s only shelter dedicated to serving families. Your gift helps parents and children stay together while they work toward safety, stability, and a new beginning. Give today at bit.ly/GLFSDonate
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THIS AND THAT/OTHER READS …
Wabash Avenue in Lafayette will be closed near the Cargill plant, starting Monday, July 27, to make way for cranes used in a construction project at the facility, the city announced this week. Wabash Avenue will be closed north of the Lafayette Wastewater Treatment Plant and approximately 100 feet south of Manford Street from 6:30 a.m. July 27 through 8 p.m. Aug. 1. It will be closed again from Aug 10-12.
J&C reporter Ron Wilkins had the initial details of the Thursday night shooting death of Dallas Winger-Gant, a Lafayette teen, and the arrest of Kwanta Crawford, 18, of Lafayette, on suspicion of criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon at a Carroll County house along the Tippecanoe River. The Carroll County Sheriff’s Office had not released many details, but here’s the first set: “Lafayette teen shot and killed and another jailed in Carroll County.”
The state’s Public Access Counselor office was bound to slip after some in the General Assembly and at the Statehouse took issue with opinions issued by Luke Britt, eventually pushing the former PAC out two years ago. Just how much the drop off has been is a bit clearer after Indianapolis Star reporters Cate Charron and Grace Randolph analyzed the performance by Jennifer Ruby, Gov. Mike Braun’s appointee. The upshot, from a report this week: “During her 16-month tenure, her office took an average of nearly 250 days, or about eight months, to issue an opinion, a first-of-its-kind IndyStar analysis found. That is far outside the public access law’s requirement and more than three times longer than that of her predecessor, Luke Britt, during his final two years in office. Ruby is also far more likely to favor the government when it denies access to citizens. The analysis, which examined published opinions, found that Ruby favored the government two-thirds of the time. Britt was the exact inverse. He found in two-thirds of the cases that the government violated state law or could act differently to improve transparency.” The reporting confirmed the rumblings across the state, not just from media but also from citizens who turn to the Public Access Counselor for help to sort out what is or isn’t a public record and how to deal with it. As West Lafayette resident Zach Baiel, president of the Indiana Coalition for Open Government, put it, there’s a greater temptation to stonewall at a local government level: “Slow down, don’t release, roll the dice with the PAC.” This is definitely worth a read: “Under Braun’s watchdog, government secrecy grows harder to challenge.”
Here’s one that could be playing soon at a university in your backyard. Via Indiana Capital Chronicle reporter Mackenzi Klemann: “The Indiana Commission for Higher Education is seeking to restore outcomes-based performance funding for the state’s public colleges and universities in the next biennial budget. The formula rewards additional funding to colleges and universities for positive outcomes like on-time degree completion and graduate retention.” Read the rest here: “Higher education commission looks to revive college performance funding. Commission OKs formula; final decision rests with lawmakers.”
This is good heads up, via Indiana Capital Chronicle editor Niki Kelly, who sent this reminder that Gov. Mike Braun’s gas tax holiday is set to run out a week into August. Be ready to plug about 61 cents a gallon back into pump prices: “Gas tax holiday coming to end at terrible time.”
This development came Friday evening, via IndyStar reporter Kristine Phillips: “Gov. Mike Braun has directed the Indiana Department of Correction to “fully review” claims of massive medical backlogs and severe staffing shortages at Miami Correctional Facility, where the Trump administration is housing hundreds of immigration detainees. … The move follows an IndyStar investigation that found the state and its for-profit prison health care provider, Centurion Health, were woefully unprepared for the influx of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees under a deal Braun’s administration struck with the federal government last year.” Here’s a way into Phillips’ initial investigation into conditions at Miami Correctional Facility: “Deaths, delays, ‘fake’ data: How Braun’s ICE prison deal fueled a medical crisis.” And here’s the word from Braun’s reaction: “Braun orders review at Indiana ICE prison after IndyStar investigation.”
The chairman of SK Group, the South Korean conglomerate that includes the $3.87 billion SK hynix semiconductor facility incoming in West Lafayette, was in the news Friday, after an appeals court there awarded his ex-wife the equivalent of $644 billion. The New York Times had this to lead off the story of Chey Tae-won and the original demand by Roh Soh-yeong for half his $5.3 billion wealth: “The spectacular rise and fall of their marriage has played out like the best of K-dramas. When they wed, they personified the infamous collusion between politics and big business that long plagued South Korea’s economy. By last year, they were officially exes, their split branded by local media as the ‘divorce of the century.’ On Friday, a Seoul court ruled on their bitter, yearslong war over the ex-husband’s personal assets — a fortune that has ballooned, supercharged by the global artificial intelligence boom.” Read more here: “Tech Titan’s Ex-Wife Wins Big Divorce Payout but Misses Out on A.I. Riches.”
The Downtown Blues & Jazz Festival runs from 4-11 p.m. today/Saturday, July 25, on Fifth Street, between Main and Columbia streets. Indy-based Queen Delphine and The Crown Jewels will the festival’s headliner. For details and more going on around town, here’s a replay of this week’s Tim’s Picks:
The animals and exhibits are closed and packing out at the Tippecanoe County 4-H Fair, wrapping up today at the Tippecanoe County Fairgrounds, 1406 Teal Road. But the rides are still open, starting at 5 p.m. Here’s the schedule to line up one last shot at Fair week. As a bonus, check these photo galleries collected by BiL correspondent Vincent Walter:
Jump Start Coffee: Coffee, Bites & Classic Car Charm
Dining Divas and Dudes is a team that has been reporting and rating new restaurants, hidden gems, international fare and updated menus from old favorites for years now via Visit Lafayette-West Lafayette at homeofpurdue.com. Here at Based in Lafayette, we feature some of Dining Divas and Dudes’ latest finds.
The latest edition: The crew went to Jump Start Coffee, 1020 Union St. in Lafayette, recently opened by owner Sandy Briggs in what had been space for the neighboring auto repair shop.
One take from the visit: “Upon entering, the car-themed coffee shop charmed the quartet with its decor — especially the up-cycled booth made from the same model of the owner, Sandy’s, first car. Originally intended as a waiting area for the neighboring Autotorium garage, Sandy’s interior design expertise has transformed the space into a cozy, chic coffeehouse with a lovely variety of drink and dining options. … Its playful touches like jumper cables attached to the menu board or golden monkey lamp hanging from the ceiling curate an environment of palpable mirth.”
For a full taste, here’s the whole review: Jump Start: Coffee, Bites & Classic Car Charm
Thanks, again, for support for this edition from Greater Lafayette Family Shelter. From July 20 through July 25, donate to Greater Lafayette Family Shelter’s Christmas in July campaign to support our community’s only shelter dedicated to serving families. Your gift helps parents and children stay together while they work toward safety, stability, and a new beginning. Give today at bit.ly/GLFSDonate
Thank you for supporting Based in Lafayette, an independent, local reporting project. Free and full-ride subscription options are ready for you here.
Tips, story ideas? I’m at davebangert1@gmail.com.
Thanks, Dave. A great roundup of reading for this weekend.
I appreciate the coverage of the Indy Star piece that included the Indiana Coalition for Open Government.
It's becoming a darker and darker place out there in the world of transparency and public's right to know.