Hebron acts to prevent loss of water

HEBRON | It was only a $1,474 purchase, but it could prevent a 650,000-gallon water spill at the north end of town.

Grants help Valpo, East Porter schools buy laptops

VALPARAISO | The laptop computer stocks must be about to soar thanks to funds provided to the Valparaiso and East Porter County Schools by the city's Redevelopment Commission.

Kouts officials consider changing well ordinances

KOUTS | What happens when Kouts' residents' wells aren't well?

Left turn signal approved for Calumet, Evans avenues

VALPARAISO | The city liked a resident's suggestion for a left-turn arrow on northbound Calumet Avenue at Evans Avenue so much it decided to install arrows on the southbound side, too.

Valpo downtown favors the right, not the left — turns

VALPARAISO | With the closing of one block of Lafayette Street for much of the summer and then permanently once Central Park Plaza expands, the city is looking for new options for turning south.

Work to start on new Laborers local headquarters

VALPARAISO | Construction will start this week on the new Laborers International Union of North America Local 81 headquarters in Eastport Centre industrial park.

Valpo studying Harmel Dr. signal activation

VALPARAISO | After hearing requests from Streamwood Subdivision residents for years to activate the traffic signal at Harmel Drive and LaPorte Avenue, the city is having a study done of the proposal.

Vale Park pathway back to original alignment

VALPARAISO | With costs and opposition from residents rising, Valparaiso's Redevelopment Commission voted Wednesday to go back to the original, direct alignment for the Vale Park West pathway.

Annexation could fill Valpo need for shovel ready sites

VALPARAISO | The numbers favor Valparaiso's annexation of a 54.25-acre parcel on U.S. 30 by a wide margin.

Valpo expected to get federal funds for intersection

VALPARAISO | The city learned Friday about $2.2 million in federal funds for Silhavy Road/LaPorte Avenue intersection improvements are expected to be approved in the NIRPC 2014-2017 transportation plan.

Valpo School Board candidates face council queries

VALPARAISO | Round one of the City Council's interviews of the Valparaiso Community Schools Board candidates was reduced to a two-man contest before the session even started.

Valpo OKs facade grant for new restaurant

VALPARAISO | The city could be getting another downtown restaurant soon.

Von Tobel seeks to annex U.S. 30 site to city

VALPARAISO | The city is being offered a chance to grow and add a "shovel ready" industrial site it wants so much.

Valpo to consider School Board appointments

VALPARAISO | As proponents of an elected school board continue to gather signatures, a change could be coming in how the appointed board is selected.

Grand Oaks apartments to sprout Tuesday

VALPARAISO | Groundbreaking for the first phase of the long-proposed The Preserves at Grand Oaks luxury apartments will be held Tuesday.

PHIL WIELAND: Saving NIRPC from those alligator jaws

I can't help but wonder if Portage Mayor James Snyder was a fan of "Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom."

Five-points roundabout work uncovers bad soil

VALPARAISO | The city's Redevelopment Commission will be asked next week to chip in about $5,200 to cover the city's share of replacing poor soil found beneath Roosevelt Road.

Public, leaders provide ideas on Valpo school buildings

VALPARAISO | In deciding what to do about its buildings, the Valparaiso School Board is getting input from several sources, including a couple of studies and, on Wednesday, the public.

Valpo Police Department gets two new high-tech rifles

VALPARAISO | Two high tech rifles, described by Police Chief Mike Brickner as the "weapon of choice in an active-shooter situation," were donated to the city's Police Department on Tuesday.

Center Township to choose from six for Valpo School Board

VALPARAISO | Two former assistant principals at Valparaiso High School are among the six-pack of candidates seeking to be appointed to the school board position now held by Mark Maassel.

Only three apply for Valpo School Board post

VALPARAISO | The Valparaiso City Council's planned Monday executive session to narrow down the candidates for the annual Valparaiso Community Schools Board appointment to at least three wasn't needed.

Dash riders getting new bus shelter

VALPARAISO | Riders on the ChicaGo Dash will soon have a new place to wait for their bus.

Survey says Valpo utilities customers happy with service

VALPARAISO | The vast majority of the city's water and sewer utilities customers is satisfied with the department's handling of problems and complaints.

PHIL WIELAND: Census Bureau is counting on you, not your name

The U.S. Census Bureau has an insatiable curiosity about us. And who can blame them?

Valpo church finally finds a home

VALPARAISO | After a bit of a transient existence for its first six months, Acacia Church of Valparaiso is looking forward to having a permanent home soon.

Caterpillar picnic shelter almost ready to rent

VALPARAISO | The Parks Department will begin accepting reservations June 10 for one of the two new picnic shelters at Butterfly Meadows.

Valparaiso board OKs Hawthorne storm sewer project

VALPARAISO | The city's Utilities Board approved a contract with de Boer Egolf on Tuesday to install a 48-inch storm sewer to complete the drainage for the Hawthorne subdivision.

Valpo seeking answer to parking zone problems

VALPARAISO | Although she owns an ice cream parlor, Pat Berning wasn't at Thursday's meeting of the city's Board of Public Works and Safety to sweet talk the members.

Consultant sought for V-Line route study

VALPARAISO | Proposals from consultants on doing a route study of the V-Line intracity bus service will be opened in a month.

Children offer lemonade for Oklahoma tornado relief

VALPARAISO | As lemonade stands go, it was a resounding success, generating more than $200 in just two hours. But Wednesday's effort wasn't a typical kid's beverage sale, and it's now snowballed into a much larger relief effort for those affected by the tornado strike in Oklahoma.

Valpo Dash has outgrown site

VALPARAISO | The success of the ChicaGo Dash is forcing the city to find a new location for the transportation station and parking lot.

Labor pains save Valpo native, family from tornado

Picking through the debris of his tornado-demolished home Wednesday in Moore, Okla., Valparaiso native Jacob Schroeder hoped he might find things like baby books, the computer with the family's stored pictures or his daughter's favorite stuffed toy.

Hebron approves 5-year master plan for parks

HEBRON | After taking a year to prepare the town's five-year park and recreation master plan, Steve Sibbrell can now try to find the money to implement it.

Kouts ponders front yard parking ban

KOUTS | The Town Council is expected to vote on an ordinance at its June meeting to prohibit residents from parking vehicles in their front yards.

Laborers union getting new office, training space

VALPARAISO | After operating out of a historic house near downtown Valparaiso for more than 35 years, the Laborers' International Union of North America Local 81 is ready to expand.

Valpo board unhappy about paying for sidewalk

VALPARAISO | A proposed sidewalk to provide public access to view the Thorgren Basin detention pond on Roosevelt Road brought questions from the city's Utilities Board as to who should pay for sidewalks.

Hebron schools unhappy ISTEP will continue

HEBRON | Hebron school officials were still upset Wednesday about the snafus with the state's ISTEP test and the legislature's move that will doom schools to one or two more years of giving the test.

On the road to preventing pavement ruin

VALPARAISO | The city's Public Works Department expects to kick off its annual street resurfacing program June 27 on Montdale Drive in the Montdale Industrial Park.

Porter County museum raises money for facade work

VALPARAISO | The Porter County Museum Foundation has reached one milestone in its quest to transform the former Valparaiso City Hall into the new Porter County Museum.

Officials: Don't trash those grass clippings

VALPARAISO | The city's Public Works Department would like a word with those residents planning on putting their grass clippings in with the trash: Don't.

Boone Twp. considers calling for recount

HEBRON | A decision whether to seek a recount of the four-vote defeat of the May 7 Boone Township Schools referendum will be made in the next couple of days.

Valpo lines up new helicopter landing sites

VALPARAISO | The departure of Porter hospital from Valparaiso has created a different kind of parking problem. Not for cars, but for emergency medical helicopters.

Valpo public works project proceeds

VALPARAISO | A collective sigh of relief from the Valparaiso Public Works Department crew could probably be heard for miles Thursday as the deadline passed for anyone to remonstrate against the proposed bond issue to building a new public works campus.

Owners refuse offers for detention basin land ... again

VALPARAISO | It's a case of detention basin deja vu.

Valpo council urged to support anti-bullying efforts

VALPARAISO | In the battle against bullies, a growing number of people are getting involved, ranging from the U.S. Army to a Valparaiso middle school student.

Valpo buses can now be tracked on cellphone

VALPARAISO | You're waiting at the Village Station parking lot for a loved one to arrive on the ChicaGo Dash, but it appears the bus is late and you want to know when it will arrive. What do you do?

Mother, daughter getting double dose of doctorates

Nadine Burns and her daughter, Amie Burns-Scharnke, are taking the family's nursing tradition to the next level next week.

5-points roundabout construction starts Monday

VALPARAISO | The five-points roundabout was five years in the making and will take about five months for the building.

Study to determine Valpo water's future

VALPARAISO | The future of water and, indeed, the future of life in Valparaiso and the rest of the planet is a combination of finding an adequate supply, conserving water to make the supply last and restoring the infrastructure needed to bring the water to homes and businesses.

New art walk sculptures arrive in Valpo

VALPARAISO | William Walther watched with some concern as workmen carefully placed his sculpture "To Hope" on the concrete pads next to Cumberland Drive on Thursday.