Local News

Fallen officers memorial is Sunday; county looks into drainage at Fairland wetlands

 

Residents are invited to pay respects to Shelby County law enforcement officers who gave their lives in service to the community.

 

A ceremony to honor the county's seven fallen officers is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Sunday at the First United Methodist Church, 34 W. Washington St.

 

Each year the Shelby County Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #84 organizes the memorial service. It's being held at the church due to on-going construction work at the FOP lodge, 1237 N.  Knightstown Road.

 

Sheriff Louis Koch told the Shelby County Commissioners at their meeting on Monday that people will be welcome to stay after the ceremony.

 

“There'll be some gathering after the event, so everybody can kind of hang out there and mingle. It was a nice turnout last year,” he said.

 

In addition, after the ceremony Sunday, the local FOP is due to hand out its Fallen Officer Memorial Scholarships to students from the county schools.

 

More information is on the Facebook page of the Shelby County FOP Lodge #84 under “Events.”

 

In other actions, the commissioners renewed service contracts for the Recorders office and the sheriff's department.

 

And Commissioner Kevin Nigh (R-Center District) noted that Bridge 219, which is replacing Bridge 13 on County Road 875 West in the northwestern part of the county, is expected to open this week.

 

The state required the county to preserve Bridge 13 because of its historic nature. Bridge 13 has been moved to Blue River Memorial Park where it will become part of Shelbyville's bike-pedestrian trail.

 

Reconvened as the Shelby County Drainage Board, the commissioners heard from John Coy about water problems related to a wetlands area near Fairland.

 

Coy owns a large tract of farmland east of Fairland between County Roads 400 North and 450 North.

 

During the Fairland Road reconstruction several years ago, the state of Indiana required Shelby County to create a wetlands area to replace some wetlands lost due to the road project.

 

Coy told the commissioners that a dam used to create the new wetlands is also creating flooding issues on his farmland, and others.

 

“It's even now starting to affect my neighbor's field. If you happen to drive by the cemetery just outside of Fairland, and look at the field directly north, you'll see a big pool of water. That hasn't been there forever, that's just the last couple of years that's developed,” Coy said.

 

The commissioners' office will work with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources to try to resolve the issue.

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