T
P C N SINCE 1882 Successor to The Poseyville News & New Harmony Times POSEY COUNTY’S ONLY LOCALLY OWNED AND OPERATED NEWSPAPER
Volume 140 Edition 1
Tuesday, January 7, 2020
$1.00
MV City Council puts halt on APC turbine ordinance
By Lois Mittino Gray The Mount Vernon City Hall meeting room was packed with reporters furiously scribbling notes and television cameras filming from three local stations, as the new Mount Vernon Common Council held its first meeting of the year on January 2. An anticipated vote on the third and final reading of the wind and solar amendment to the zoning ordinance proposed by the Posey County Area Plan Commission was on the agenda. The controversial zoning ordinance amendment was passed on first and second readings in December by the five members of last year’s council. Four of them, except for Third District Councilman Andy Hoehn, were replaced by Third District Councilman Andy Hoehn was interviewed by three television stations newly-elected officials who took over at this as cameras rolled after the Mount Vernon Common Council’s negative vote on passmeeting. Last month, Hoehn voiced concerns ing the new wind and solar ordinance. Photo by Lois Mittino Gray with sections of the 25-page document and
voted against passing it on second reading and suspending rules to push it through with a third reading. This resulted in Mayor Bill Curtis putting the third reading on the agenda for the new council to tackle. Hoehn opened the discussion by moving that the ordinance to amend its energy generating systems pass on final reading. It was seconded by First District Councilman David Dodd. Hoehn did this because, technically, a motion should always be made in the positive, with those opposed just voting against it. “I saw several broad loopholes in this ordinance. The Doppler Effect on wind turbines is an uncertainty. One time a tornado was hidden on Doppler radar by wind turbine action. I think that is a gross safety violation and I’m not comfortable
Continued on Page A7
Cynthiana Clerk-Treasurer Cindy Schmitz swears in newly-elected Cynthiana Town Poseyville Town Board members were sworn in December 30, 2019. Pictured left to right are: Justin Collins, Mike Baehl, Bruce Baker, and Clerk-treasurer Christy Board members, left to right, Andrew Porath, Jeffrey Gee, and Steven Sims. Photo by Theresa Bratcher Foster. Photo by Theresa Bratcher
Works Board OKs final project money
Members of the Mount Vernon Common Council and other elected officials were administered the oath of office by Superior Court Judge Travis Clowers, assisted by Circuit Court Judge Craig Goedde, on New Years Day. From left: Judge Travis Clowers, Dana Baldwin, David Dodd, Andy Hoehn, Rusty Levings, Mayor Bill Curtis, Clerk-Treasurer Cristi Sitzman, Jillian Brothers, and Judge Craig Goedde. Photo by Lois Mittino Gray
By Lois Mittino Gray Mayor Bill Curtis made two new appointments to the Mount Vernon Board of Works for 2020, Third District Councilman Andy Hoehn and First District Councilman David Dodd. Both elected officials hit the ground running and heard reports and voted on motions at the January 2, first board meeting of the year. Curtis explained he made his choices based on discussion with the five members of the council and the interest level expressed for the appointment. Hoehn’s first motion of the meeting officially wrapped up a long-ongoing infrastructure project, the East Side Gravity Flow Sewer Project. He moved to approve sending the final claim of $638.74 to the State Revolving Fund (SRF) for payment to Lochmueller Engineering, ending the
build on the books. The vote to approve the wrap was a noteworthy action, as Hoehn spearheaded the project through when work was stalled after the original contractors declared bankruptcy, involving a legal morass. Lochmueller Engineering came up in discussion again when Utilities Superintendent Chuck Gray announced that the sewage lift station on Water Street is down, due to the electrical panel that needs to be replaced. Gray would like to get an engineer to look at the issue and make a recommendation on the pump size. With Astra Zeneca expanding, the city will definitely need bigger pumps. Lochmueller has done all of their engineering in the past and they are familiar with the electrical system, so he would like to
Continued on Page A7
Going long and strong Juanita Slygh has seen over a century come and go and keeps the faith By Pam Robinson At 101 years old, Stewartsville native Juanita Slygh admits, “I can tell I’m getting a little bit forgetful, but it’ll come to me.” It does. She can usually recall a forgotten name or detail within the space of a conversation. Perhaps working find-a-word puzzles daily keeps her mind sharp. She finishes a quarter-inch thick puzzle book within a week. Affectionately known to everyone as Grandma, Slygh talked recently at her home with long-time family friend, Keith Oeth, nearby. Her memory served her well as she surveyed her long life. She was born December 15, 1918, to John and Ovella Brandenstein. After she married George E. Slygh, the couple settled on his family’s farm in the Bufkin area until 28 years ago when they retired to Mount Vernon. “I learned through his folks,” Grandma states with satisfaction. She fell in love with farm life and enjoyed helping her mother-in-law, Elizabeth Slygh, with the dairy and the egg route while her fatherin-law, Walter Slygh, taught school. She grew particularly fond of caring for the farm animals. “When I got married, I knew nothing
(USPS 439-500)
about a chicken or a duck or a pig, but I soon learned. I took care of them all and raised them from babies with bottles and lived a happy life,” she recalls. “I walked behind a walking plow before the tractors came. Then, I rode tractors. I helped plant corn and beans. I became a farmer.” George and Juanita were married nearly 60 years when he passed away 23 years ago. During their marriage, they became dedicated parents as well as farmers. Before their retirement, they opened their home to at least a dozen foster children, and adopted two of them. “They still come home,” Grandma comments, noting with pride all of them, at the least, graduated from Mount Vernon High School. They all came home last year to celebrate her 100th birthday at a surprise party Keith Oeth hosted in Mount Vernon’s Young Life building. There was standing room only for guests to honor Grandma. Grandma owns she’s known “many heartaches” alongside the good times. Losing her only daughter, Margaret, was one of the most painful. Despite her grief and sorrow, Grandma declares, “You always have to overcome them [heartaches]. You can’t let it get the best of you.” This advice rings true from a woman who has lost her husband and watched her home burn also.
Until she broke her hip three years ago at age 98, Grandma stayed active. She put up the outside Christmas lights on her home in Mount Vernon and got around without a walker, a necessity now, much to her chagrin. She still misses the holiday task of hanging the outdoor lights. Flowers once filled her front porch. She is content now to sit on the porch in summer, a favorite pastime. At age 85, she had voluntarily quit driving her car. She wanted to stop while she could boast about a clean, accident-free driving record. She misses also running errands and driving friends to doctor’s appointments. Television has replaced her regular movie-going. Her prized cuckoo clock blurts out the time to watch “Dancing with the Stars” on Monday nights, a throwback to her youthful dancing the jitterbug with George. The cuckoo clock reminds her to check in as well for her favorite programs on the game show network. Her living room reveals also her abiding love for animals. The ashes of her beloved dog, Lizzie, rest there in an ornate box featuring Lizzie’s picture. Grandma wants Lizzie buried with her.
Continued on Page A7
Juanita “Grandma” Slygh