This and that: Of pedal pubs and pickleball

Trolley Tap debuts Friday in downtown Lafayette. A $2.8M second phase starts for McCaw Park. Chief Justice Loretta Rush seeks position again. And Rokita makes good on threat to sue ‘sanctuary cities'

• Thanks today for ongoing help from Based in Lafayette sponsor Long Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Lafayette, presenting a summer lineup of concerts and shows at Loeb Stadium. For tickets for the Loeb Stadium shows and other events, go to longpac.org.

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This and that for a midweek in Greater Lafayette …

THE TROLLEY TAP ROLLS OUT FRIDAY IN DOWNTOWN LAFAYETTE: Look for the introduction of The Trolley Tap, a pedal pub cart, in downtown Lafayette starting Friday.

(Photo provided)

Owners DaAsia Johnson and William Clay will start booking rides — $30 for individuals, $350 for private groups of 13 – for parties or special events. Customers bring the coolers and drinks. A driver guides the pedal-powered trolley through downtown for 75-minute sessions that kick off at 17 S. Sixth St.

“We picked Lafayette because of the vibe of a small city but big culture,” Johnson said about the business’ first outlet. “We definitely will go wherever the community wants us.”

Johnson said the plan is to book rentals in downtown 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Thursday through Sunday from the spring to the fall, as long as the weather holds. Customers need to be 21. The Trolley Tap doesn’t sell alcohol but is set up for customers to bring beverages other than hard liquor on the rides.

Lafayette has no regulations covering pedal pubs, Dennis Carson, the city’s economic development director, said. West Lafayette passed a set of permitting rules for pedal pubs in 2019.

“Now we don’t plan to go over the bridge,” Johnson said. “But if the demand is, hey, let’s go over the bridge to West Lafayette, then that’s what we’ll do.”

• For hours and booking information, check @thetrolleytap on Instagram or at www.holm.online/thetrolleytap.

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(Photo: Dave Bangert)

ROUND 2 AT LAFAYETTE’S MCCAW PARK: The number of pickleball courts at Lafayette’s McCaw Park will more than double – from 12 to 26 – and a new walking trail will surround the park near Union Street and Creasy Lane, part of a $2.8 million contract signed Tuesday by the city’s board of works. The project bid went to J.R. Kelly. The project will leave pickleball players scrambling for much of the rest of 2024, as the city closes the 12 courts at the park to add 14. The work follows a McCaw Park renovation that started in 2023 and included a larger, 146-space parking area, a new restroom facility and construction of the McPaw Dog Park, which opened in spring 2024. The new work is expected to be done by late fall 2024, with additional seeding work in spring 2025, Claudine Laufman, parks superintendent, said.

The McCaw Park project will include new pickleball courts (in green) and a trail that runs through the park. (Image: Lafayette parks)

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CHIEF JUSTICE RUSH SEEKS REAPPOINTMENT: Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Loretta Rush will seek another five-year appointment as chief justice when the Judicial Nominating Commission votes Aug. 21. According to a release from the court Tuesday, Rush has the backing of the other four justices on Indiana’s high court. Rush, a former Tippecanoe Superior Court 3 judge, was appointed to the Indiana Supreme Court by then-Gov. Mitch Daniels in 2012. In 2014, Rush became Indiana’s first woman to be chief justice. She was reappointed to that position in 2019. Indiana Capital Chronicle’s Niki Kelly had more from Rush and about the process here: “Rush to seek retention, Indiana chief justice post.”

Indiana Supreme Court Chief Justice Loretta Rush (Photo: Indiana Supreme Court)

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IT'S SUMMER LEAGUE, BUT STILL … ZACH EDEY’S NBA DEBUT: A great start for Zach Edey with the Memphis Grizzlies in his NBA Summer League debut. A double-double, four blocks and picking up where he left off in a Purdue career that included back-to-back National Player of the Year awards. Highlights, courtesy of the NBA:

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‘GOD & COUNTRY’ DOCUMENTARY: We All Belong Greater Lafayette – a group that touts itself as “committed to counter the intolerance and harm to others and the U.S. Constitution by Christian nationalism” – will host a showing of “God & Country” at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, July 18, at First United Methodist Church, 1700 Mitch Daniels Blvd. in West Lafayette. The film, produced by Rob Reiner, is based on author Katherine Stewart’s 2019 book, “The Power Worshipers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism.” Admission to the showing is free.

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ROKITA SUES EAST CHICAGO, AFTER ‘SANCTUARY CITY’ LEGAL THREATS THAT INCLUDED WEST LAFAYETTE: Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita followed through on his threats to sue communities over what he called language that put the city crossways with a state law that banned “sanctuary cities.” His opening salvo came with a lawsuit filed Tuesday against East Chicago, saying it was because the Northwestern Indiana city operates “as a sanctuary city, giving safe harbor to illegal aliens, against federal and state law.” Rokita's “sanctuary city” legal threats initially came May 31, aimed at four Indiana communities. That included targeting a West Lafayette Police Department policy about immigration detainers and when officers would contact federal authorities after making an arrest. The city said the policy was not meant to get around state or federal immigration laws and was cut-and-paste from a policy adviser that more than 100 police departments in the state use. Still, the West Lafayette adjusted the language of the policy to satisfy Rokita. The attorney general’s office said in June that the city’s move was enough to stave off a lawsuit authorized by Rokita. Then again, Rokita said in a statement Tuesday: "As we continue to evaluate other local governments, this may not be the last lawsuit we file on this issue. Stay tuned." Indiana Capital Chronicle reporter Casey Smith had more on Tuesday’s court action: “Indiana AG Todd Rokita sues East Chicago over ‘sanctuary city’ policies.”

Here’s a look at how West Lafayette dealt with the threat:

Thanks, again, to Based in Lafayette sponsor Long Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Lafayette. For information on upcoming events, including the summer season at Loeb Stadium, go to longpac.org.

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Tips, story ideas? I’m at davebangert1@gmail.com.