WEDNESDAY November 6, 2013
Gingerbread Festival Page A3 Kits available for children’s contest
Ready To Lead Page A3 Auburn Kiwanis install officers
Weather Cloudy with rain all day today. High 61. Low 41. Partly cloudy Thursday. High 45. Page A6
GOOD MORNING
The Auburn, Indiana
Serving DeKalb County since 1871 kpcnews.com
Auburn raising power rates Home rates up 20% BY DAVE KURTZ dkurtz@kpcmedia.com
AUBURN — The city-owned electric utility for Auburn needs an 8.9 percent increase in income, a consultant told the Auburn Common Council Tuesday night. The resulting increase in rates would not be the same for all types of customers, however.
Most residential customers would see a 20 percent increase under proposed new rates passed by the Auburn Common Council on a first reading at City Hall. The city’s two largest industrial customers — Metal Technologies Inc. and Guardian Industries, who together use more than one-third of all power — would see a 1.4 percent increase. The next 10 largest users consume about
City plans to annex 18 homes AUBURN — The Auburn Common Council took steps Tuesday toward annexing 16 acres on the city’s northwest side. The area to be annexed includes 18 homes on the west side of the North Indiana
Find schedules for area high school basketball, gymnastics, swimming and wrestling events in today’s special section, Big Ticket.
Judge could rule soon on Ritz lawsuit INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — A Marion County judge could decide by Friday whether School Superintendent Glenda Ritz’s lawsuit against the other members of the State Board of Education may proceed. Deputy Attorney General David Arthur told Judge Louis Rosenberg Tuesday that Ritz could not file suit as a state official without approval from the attorney general. But Ritz lawyer Michael Moore argued the suit should proceed because the state school superintendent has standing as a separate constitutional office. Ritz claims the board members violated the state’s open meetings law when they asked that calculation of “A-F” school grades be conducted by the General Assembly’s bill-drafting arm.
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Index
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Classifieds.................................B7-B8 Life..................................................... A5 Obituaries......................................... A4 Opinion .............................................B4 Sports.........................................B1-B3 Weather............................................ A6 TV/Comics .......................................B6 Vol. 101 No. 306
SEE ANNEX, PAGE A6
Democrat wins in Virginia
Inside Today
MARION — A Garrett man died in a highway crash in Grant County on Tuesday afternoon, WRTV-6 of Indianapolis reported. Robert Wilcox, 35, was killed in a collision on S.R. 22, just east of S.R. 9 and south of Marion shortly before 4 p.m. Authorities said Wilcox was driving a van that traveled left of the center of the road and collided with a semi rig. S.R. 22 was closed for several hours after the accident, officials said.
Avenue, across from Rieke Park, and along Orchard Drive, which extends west from Indiana Avenue. The council adopted a fiscal plan for the annexation on a first vote Tuesday. The initial vote
SEE POWER, PAGE A6
Fine Finish
Garrett man killed in van, semi colliaion
75 cents
BY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Democrat Terry McAuliffe narrowly won the job of Virginia governor Tuesday, leading what Democrats hoped would be their first sweep of statewide offices in decades. In New Jersey, Republican Gov. Chris Christie cruised to re-election — on track for a large margin of victory — amid talk of a 2016 presidential run. New Yorkers chose PHOTO CONTRIBUTED CHRISTIE wins Bill de Blasio Members of Eastside’s Marching Blazer Pride Class A championships Saturday at Norwood easily in New as mayor, band, shown during one of two performances, High School in Cincinnati, Ohio. Jersey, PAGE A6. electing the placed 10th at the Mid-States Band Association first Democrat since 1989. In other, widely scattered odd-year balloting, Colorado was setting a tax rate for marijuana, Houston was deciding the fate of the Astrodome and Alabama BY JEFF JONES jjones@kpcmedia.com Republicans were choosing CINCINNATI, Ohio — between two of their own — from Eastside High School’s Marching different wings of the party — in Blazer Pride band put a nice a special congressional runoff cap to its marching season with election in a conservative state. a 10th-place finish at the Class In Virginia, McAuliffe turned A Mid-States Band Association back a late-game push by state championships. Attorney General Ken CuccinThe contest, featuring 25 bands nelli, a Republican. Both Bill and from Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, Hillary Rodham Clinton made took place Saturday in Shea appearances for McAuliffe in the Stadium at Norwood High School final weeks, and so did President in Cincinnati. Barack Obama over the weekend. Of the 25 bands competing, 10 The Democrat also dramatically were named finalists by one set outspent his GOP rival in TV ads of judges and performed again in the final weeks. at night for a new judging panel. Cuccinelli had sought to prove PHOTO CONTRIBUTED that a tea party-backed conservaEastside tied for seventh in the preliminary round. tive could win the governorship of Eastside’s Marching Blazer Pride band performs in a recent “The Eastside Marching a swing-voting state. He brought contest. The Blazers placed 10th at the Mid-States Class A Pride gave two of their strongest big-name supporters to the state, championships in Cincinnati, Ohio, Saturday. performances of the year,” said too, including Sen. Marco Rubio director Damon Newell. “I can experience overall, and the kids Second place went to Rising Sun of Florida, Sen. Rand Paul of say, with complete honesty, had a blast doing it.” of Indiana; followed by Holmes, Kentucky and Louisiana Gov. their final performance of ‘These Mid-States shows are based on Ky.; Archbishop McNicholas, Bobby Jindal. Gifts’ was their very best perforband size, not school size. Class A Ohio; Taylor, Ohio; Nelson Co., Virginia Democrats hoped they mance of the show. was for bands with 35 musicians Ky.; Bullit East, Ky.; Norwood; were on their way to holding all “To finish the season having or fewer. Crawfordsville and Eastside. statewide-elected offices for the them play it as well as they did First-place Alter, Ohio, swept Other Indiana bands placing first time since 1970 and turning will be a memory they will have caption awards for music general were: 13. Eastern (Pekin), back of the conservatism that has for the rest of their lives,” Newell effect (two sets of scores), general 14. Bluffton, 16. Blue River dominated for the past four years added. “I was incredibly impressed effect, music performance and Valley; 17. Morristown and 19. under one-term limited Gov. Bob with the kids. It was a great visual performance. Southwestern (Hanover). McDonnell.
Eastside band ends on high note
Albion company shipping swine to China FROM STAFF REPORTS
ALBION — A Noble County agricultural enterprise continues to ship its products to China. Last month, Whiteshire Hamroc, based in rural Albion, exported its largest international shipment of swine breeding stock to China. The latest shipment consisted of 1,180 pigs representing three of the four major breeds of swine in the United States: Yorkshire, Landrace and Duroc. This was not the first nor will it be the last shipment of Indianabred hogs headed to China, the world’s most populous country, officials of the company said. Whiteshire Hamroc has made several previous shipments of live animals to China, but the Oct. 14 shipment is the largest for the Noble County company. The shipments are coordinated for Whiteshire Hamroc by Clayton Agri-Marketing of Jefferson City, Mo. A specially equipped cargo plane was used to transport the
hogs out of a Chicago airport, after they were trucked to Chicago from Noble County. The Chinese government has endorsed the project because American farms, such as Whiteshire Hamroc, are considered the world’s foremost experts in swine genetics. Whiteshire Hamroc is the largest U.S. recorder of Yorkshire, Landrace, Duroc and Hampshire combined, according to the National Swine Registry 2012 recordings. Whiteshire Hamroc has been exporting swine breeding stock for more than 20 years to more than 22 different countries and started its relationship with the Chinese about three years ago. “International interest in U.S. swine genetics continues to grow and represent a larger percentage of Whiteshire Hamroc’s business,” said Dr. Mike Lemmon, CEO of Whiteshire Hamroc. “We are very active within the Chinese market, with Whiteshire Hamroc having an office and support staff in
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED
Workers had their hands full loading more than 1,100 hogs onto a plane at a Chicago airport last month. The swine from the Whiteshire Hamroc farm in Albion were destined for China.
Beijing, China.” Whiteshire Hamroc plans to export several additional
shipments of swine breeding stock to China over the next several months, Lemmon said.