Clayton Baumgarth

2 days ago | indianapublicmedia.org | Clayton Baumgarth

It’s a sunny afternoon in a field just south of Columbus. Students are out gathering sensors from the land. Master’s student Garret O’Hara is reading data being transmitted from a drone overhead. The IU geology students are studying the impact of the recent heavy flooding, a so-called “50-year flood,” meaning the chances of it happening are 2 percent each year.

1 week ago | indianapublicmedia.org | Clayton Baumgarth

The Indiana Department of Transportation shared a draft purpose and need statement and preliminary access options for the Mid-States Corridor project during a public information meeting Wednesday at the Jasper Middle School. “We want to hear from folks on what's the priority for you, what areas most need to have access to the new highway, and which areas need to maybe have connectivity, where you'd be able to cross it,” said Nicole Minton, the project’s public outreach manager.

2 weeks ago | indianapublicmedia.org | Clayton Baumgarth

The Indiana House passed a bill Thursday seeking to lower property taxes for homeowners and farmland owners. Senate Bill 1 provides $1.4 billion in property tax relief for homeowners over the next three years. Farmland owners save roughly $140 million over the same period. In a video on Facebook, State Rep. Kendell Culp (R-Rensselaer) said that he had hoped farmland owners would get a larger tax break.

2 weeks ago | indianapublicmedia.org | Clayton Baumgarth

The Martin County Commissioners issued a local disaster emergency declaration on Thursday afternoon due to sustained flooding in the area. The National Weather Service said the East Fork of the White River at Shoals isn’t expected to crest until early Friday morning and won’t fall below flood stage levels until around April 17.

2 weeks ago | indianapublicmedia.org | Clayton Baumgarth

Five additional cases of measles have been reported in the state, according to the Indiana Department of Health. That brings the total to six in 2025. The new cases include three minors and two adults in Allen County, the same area where the initial case was reported earlier this week. All six are connected to each other, but there are no known links to outbreaks in other states. The four minors were unvaccinated. The adults’ vaccination status is unclear.