Run Away, Run Away!

Here is a nice little quote from the Fort Wayne City Council President as reported in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette.  It deals with a study that found the air to be cleaner in restaurants and bars since Fort Wayne adopted a smoking ban.  Analysis after the quote:

Fort Wayne City Council President Tom Didier, R-3rd, considered the study’s findings a no-brainer.

“It’s pretty apparent (air is) going to be cleaner with no smoking,” he said.

But Didier – the sole council member to vote against the ban – still has reservations about government regulation of smoking.

Generally speaking, he thinks it should be the decision of private businesses whether to allow smoking. That sentiment has been echoed by other opponents of the ban, including bar owners who say it has driven away business.

“A lot of bars are struggling,” said Didier, a territory manager for U.S. Foodservice, which serves some local bars and restaurants. He said some restaurants have been negatively affected by the ban as well.

Still, he’s not sure whether the ban will change, even with some new council members pledging to revisit it. What’s more, he isn’t sure how he’d vote if an amendment were proposed. A provision allowing smoking in 21-and-older establishments could help some bars he works with while hurting other restaurant customers, he said.

“I do have a huge conflict of interest in this,” he said, adding that he might have to abstain from voting if such a change was proposed. He didn’t see a conflict of interest with his previous vote on the smoking ban because it affected businesses across the board, not just one type of business, such as bars, he said.

Of course an abstention would have nothing to do with the citizens of Fort Wayne unceremoniously kicking to the curb Councilor’s who voted for the ban now would it?  What a convenient awakening of ethical judgement on Didier’s part.  Come on Councilor, if you believe this is a good idea, that your constituents elected you to enact, stand up and vote your conscience.  This really looks like a scared politician who can’t take the heat.

We’re from the Government and We’re Here to Help

Here is another in a long list of articles about the opening of the prosecutor’s moble office at Phoenix apartments in Indianapolis.  While the Blogmeister has supported the prosecutor’s office in their efforts to DO SOMETHING at the troubled site, it is unfortunate the Indianapolis Star continues to rerun the same news with different quotes, especially when we still don’t know who made the decision to return 3 year old TaJanay Bailey to her mother, who allegedly killed her at the site.

Regardless, here is a part of the story, which made the Blogmeister chuckle:

“I can’t force them to take advantage of these services, but I can sure encourage them,” Prosecutor Carl Brizzi said, standing in front of the portable office.

Soon after, Erica Andrews answered her door to find Brizzi and Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard standing in the stairwell. They gave her the first edition of a planned weekly newsletter, “Phoenix Rising,” that lists services offered in the trailer each weekday during business hours.

Andrews, 24, said later that she probably won’t have a reason to visit. But she appreciated the efforts from the prosecutor’s office, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and other organizations.

Huth Leaves CCHS

The Fort Wayne Journal Gazette has this really local piecetoday regarding Columbia City assistant principal, Jim Huth.  He is apparently leaving his current position to be the main dude at the Imagine MASTer Academy.  The Blogmeister has worked with Jim on a few cases and in other capacities over the years.  To say Jim is a “decent guy” is a massive understatement.  The Blogmeister wishes Jim well in his new role and knows he will do a great job.  However, this is the second announcement of a key person leaving CCHS (the first was principal Steve Doepker), since the appointment of new superintendent, Dr. Laura Huffman.  Coincidence, or is something going on there that they keep losing these key people?  Anyway, here is the story:

The assistant principal of Columbia City High School was tapped to be the principal of the charter school opening on Broadway this fall.

The Imagine MASTer Academy board Wednesday approved the hiring of Jim Huth as leader of Imagine Schools on Broadway, which will open in August at the former Emmaus Lutheran Church site. The school will be run by Imagine Schools, a charter school management company based in Arlington, Va., which also oversees Imagine MASTer Academy on Wells Street.

Huth was among 30 to 40 applicants for the position and one of four interviewed by a committee, said Jason Bryant, regional vice president for Imagine Schools.

“We all thought that this gentleman would be the man to do it for a variety of reasons,” Bryant said.

One of those reasons was Huth’s tie to the Broadway area, Bryant said. Huth grew up in that neighborhood, and his mother still lives there, he said. Bryant thinks the new school, set to serve kindergarten through fifth-grade students, will draw children from the neighborhood, and he thinks Huth’s connections will give the school more credibility.

Huth will begin his new job Feb. 5 at an annual salary of $80,000, Bryant said.

Huth, 45, said he’s interested in trying a new venture.

“It’s the right time in my life … to do something different,” Huth said.

Board members who sat in on Huth’s interviews and Imagine MASTer Academy Principal Guy Platter commended Huth during Wednesday’s meeting.

“He has a reputation of being a decent guy and treating people well,” Platter said.

The new charter school is projected to serve 550 students, and officials will begin enrolling Feb. 1 through March 31.