Intro

Erika Malone 0:00

This week on Beyond the Headlines. Franklin Residents helped draft City's Future, Franklin Extends JAG program amid funding cuts, a voter forum recap, and a look at special activities going on in Johnson County this weekend. From the Daily Journal, this is Beyond the Headlines, a local news podcast focused on story shaping Johnson County. Hello everyone and welcome back. It's Erica Malone, again here with Noah Crenshaw. How are you doing, Noah?

Noah Crenshaw 0:26

I'm good, Erica. What's going on with you?

Erika Malone 0:28

It's been a very busy week.

Noah Crenshaw 0:31

It's always a busy week.

Franklin residents help draft city's future

Erika Malone 0:33

It's always a busy week. We say this every single time, but it seems like I It's like our catchphrase. Yes, it is. Busy week. And let's talk about it, shall we?

Noah Crenshaw 0:45

First up, we have a story from Franklin last week. Uh Franklin residents helped draft the city's future with their comprehensive plan update they have going on. And so last week, about 58 residents and community leaders gathered at the Franklin City Hall to help consultants drafted a new comprehensive plan, which is designed to guide Franklin's growth for a set number of years, like the next, I think, couple decades, if I remember, right? Yep. The current plan dates back to 2013, which was means it was created before some of the major industrial growth fall in US 31, the east side annexations and new housing developments, making this update long overdue. And for other people to have context, the last time this plan was updated, I was a freshman at Franklin High School.

Erika Malone 1:39

I was in middle school.

Noah Crenshaw 1:41

It's also pre-Chick-fil-A.

Erika Malone 1:43

Yes, pre-Chick-fil-A as well.

Noah Crenshaw 1:45

So for those of you who use that as the benchmark.

Erika Malone 1:48

Yeah. I think this is technically over it's over 10 years old now.

Noah Crenshaw 1:53

Yeah, so I'm all close to 15 years. Yeah. Because it's 2026. So that'd be about 13 years. So it's it's time, as you said. And so the city hired HWC Engineering with planning studio lead Rachel Christensen being one of the lead people behind this. She spoke at the public meeting they had last week. Uh, she explained the process and emphasized the need for public input being or taking place early, especially before the city council makes a decision because the city council ultimately adopts the plan. Right. I hate to say this. We're in the planning stages of the plan, which sounds a little weird when you think of it.

Erika Malone 2:36

We're planning the plan.

Noah Crenshaw 2:38

Literally. Yeah. It's literally what's happening right now.

Erika Malone 2:40

Yeah. Well, speaking of planning the plan, what does a comprehensive plan entail?

Noah Crenshaw 2:46

Well, typically, and especially just like in Franklin's case, you know, it guides decisions on land use. So like zoning, what type of things go where, um, businesses, houses, et cetera. And also sidewalks, trails, parks, utilities, housing development standards. And this is also used to later inform zoning updates. And it can also kind of help some cities also do like a future uh transportation plan. Um, so it gets into that to like where roadways might be like future roadways, what roadways might be to be upgraded, like future improvements, like roundabouts, stoplights, etc.

Erika Malone 3:24

Bargersville has a comprehensive plan as well, very uh extensive one. Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 3:29

Every community is required to have one, or is it secret to have one? They are required in for in order for certain types of like grants if they want to get something to state. I mean, every community around here pretty much has one. Greenwood just updated theirs last year. And then they're already on the second phase doing zoning updates, because usually when you update your comprehensive plan, you have to do a zoning update. And uh I think it's also required in state law. Gotcha. In terms of the meeting last week, if there were poster boards set up around a room, and that's typically what a lot of these planning firms do, because it allows you to get a quick snapshot and then give feedback. Because after all, it's a comprehensive plan for the city, it's for the public.

Erika Malone 4:09

Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 4:09

And like it's also a guide. So like land use is a big thing people have an opinion about, which they have every right to. It's it's important. You want to have a say in a way of what happens next to you.

Erika Malone 4:22

Yeah. What happens in our backyard. Yeah. Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 4:25

And one thing about comprehensive plans, just as an aside, um, that I notice in Greenwood and it's also come up in Franklin, is there's the idea of because comprehensive plans also there's also like a planning boundary, which is different than the city limits. Cities and communities, towns, they often plan beyond their limits to parts that are within the city limits, have an annexed in, but could be because it's close by and it can legally can that someone might come in the future and do it.

Erika Malone 4:53

Right.

Noah Crenshaw 4:53

And so when it comes to comprehensive plans, cities will include the stuff in the planning boundary as potential uses. So they have an idea of what should go there if it ever comes up, because it's designed to be a planning document, it's a guide. And sometimes people get upset, they see something in it, and it's like, well, that's my property, or well, I don't think that's in the city. Why are you guys even considering it? It's this planning so that if it does happen, not saying that it's going to, but people have an idea.

Erika Malone 5:21

Right.

Noah Crenshaw 5:22

And so, you know, it tends to get a lot of feedback, which is why I brought it up because at the meeting, attendees use sticky notes and blue dots to agree or disagree with proposed visions, goals, and action items. And it also is a way for them to say, yes, this is what we should, Franklin should be doing in this case.

Erika Malone 5:39

Or like I I like where this is going, or no, you should do this instead.

Noah Crenshaw 5:44

Or uh definitely no. You know, like people can be honest, or like they can also suggest things, and sometimes I don't know necessarily specifically about Franklin, but I know Greenwood did it. There were some suggestions that were definitely outside of the city's control. Because if if someone owns their land, they can do whatever they want with it, like development-wise within Reece. Like, yes, they have to file plans with the city, go through permitting processes, uh, zoning processes, stuff like that. But yeah, and you can't prevent someone from like selling their land to a developer who wants to build something there.

Erika Malone 6:20

Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 6:20

So that happens.

Erika Malone 6:22

Yeah, that happens. Um, I've noticed that happening quite a bit in Bargersville as well. People selling their farmland to developers.

Noah Crenshaw 6:29

Yeah, it's very common here. And I know some people have talked about it, but like ultimately it's up to the property owner in that case.

Erika Malone 6:36

Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 6:37

And if what they want to do, what's best for them and their family.

Erika Malone 6:41

Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Well, like I said, this was meant for public input as far as what the future of Franklin could look like. So, what were some of those focus areas and goals?

Noah Crenshaw 6:52

So, some of these we kind of already hinted about. You know, transportation, housing, economic development, environmental protection, and land use definitely sparked the most discussion. Goals. So let's go through each of those. So, first for transportation. Goals included improving connectivity, a pedestrian safety, transit access, I'm assuming referring to public transit, trails, infrastructure funding. And there was also a discussion about a potential I-65 exit off Orwood Drive, which doesn't exist right now. But there's a lot of industrial type buildings on Orwood Drive. And right now they kind of have to take a truck route. They take basically to take a truck route through the city, going through several roundabouts to get to the 65 exit. Because that's Franklin's only interstate exit.

SPEAKER_01 7:44

Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 7:44

I mean, I say 65 exit, I meant King Street exit. That's Franklin's only interstate exit. The next closest is in Whiteland. You have to go north. You have to take Graham Road all the way to Whiteland Road. Um, and you know, for a lot of companies, time is money. And so having an exit right there obviously would encourage more of that type of business to come to Franklin.

SPEAKER_01 8:09

Yeah. Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 8:10

Or other types of people. I mean, like I for my mom's house, if I wanted to take 65 to go north, because of where my mom lives in Franklin, I can't take I mean I could take King Street, but it's more out of the way because she lives on the north side of Franklin. So I'd have to go all the way to Whiteland.

Erika Malone 8:28

Oh, yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 8:29

So like it's also a matter of convenience for some people. So like this has been talked about for a while.

Erika Malone 8:33

Oh, okay. Yeah. I didn't know that. So yeah, I could see where that would uh have some benefits for sure.

Noah Crenshaw 8:38

And also it could probably alleviate some of the traffic at the Whiteland exit, too, because like obviously there's more options.

Erika Malone 8:47

Yes.

Noah Crenshaw 8:48

I mean, that interchange is always very busy if you've ever been through it.

Erika Malone 8:53

Well, yeah, I was on it last weekend, and grant there might have been uh uh There's also construction going on. Yeah, there's construction air. But I was stuck in traffic last weekend on the interstate, so that was new.

Noah Crenshaw 9:03

Yeah, the closer you get to Indianapolis, the more traffic there is.

Erika Malone 9:06

And so the small town and not just just so much traffic.

Noah Crenshaw 9:11

I I get I get it. I do. Yeah, I'm just saying. Like it's but this could help with some of that by giving it another outlet.

Erika Malone 9:19

Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. Well, what else was talked about?

Noah Crenshaw 9:22

And I should say um, I'm not endorsing this in any way. I'm just saying, like, from my own experience, I do understand where they're coming from with this. Nope, people have opinions about that, so I just want to make that clear. Yeah. It's just from my own experiences, I could see how it could help.

Erika Malone 9:34

Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 9:35

But also can see how maybe some people might be concerned because that is bringing more traffic, regardless. And that area is very rural. It's farmland. So I do I just want to put that out there. I see both sides of the Yes.

Erika Malone 9:47

No one wants an easier way to get to his mom's house.

Noah Crenshaw 9:50

Well, not necessarily to get to my mom's house, so like if I'm at my mom's house to go visit family and maybe Naples. But anyways, let's talk about housing. So, some of the housing priorities include expanding housing choices for different ages and incomes, modernizing development rules, kind of like with the zoning ordinances and stuff, protecting the character of existing neighborhoods, and addressing concerns about corporate-owned rental homes. This has been a big concern. Some communities try to do some rental caps and they and a northern, I won't say northern, the north side, like Hamilton County, Fisher's and I think Carmel did, another house build-out housing eliminated the ability for people to implement those caps on the number of uh like rental homes in a single community or neighborhood.

Erika Malone 10:39

Right. Yeah. I remember talking about that.

Noah Crenshaw 10:42

So obviously those certs are present here because it is happening. Um and there's not really a whole lot that can be done about that. When we talk about economic development, the city kind of has a vision for some of what could happen or what they think would be ideal. So that includes strengthening key corridors, that includes East King Street, US 31, Karmas Parkway, preserving our downtown, Franklin's downtown, which is beloved by a lot of people, and especially the people who live here.

Erika Malone 11:18

Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 11:18

Expanding uh arts and culture and guiding growth east of I-65, because right now that area a lot of it hasn't been fully developed yet. The plan also includes improvements to stormwater systems, uh, including protecting uh flood-prone and quote unquote sensitive land, along with preserving farmland and expanding parks and green spaces. Franklin has a lot of parks, so I'm interested to see what yes happens with that.

Erika Malone 11:45

Interesting.

Noah Crenshaw 11:46

And what they're planning.

Erika Malone 11:47

Yeah. Well, and like I said, uh the public was invited to kind of share their feedback and as kind of like a check-in to what they agree with and what they disagree with. So, what did some of the residents have to say about this, these future plans?

unknown 12:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 12:01

Yeah, so there were a lot of comments.

Noah Crenshaw 12:04

We summarized some in a story, and I'm trying to summarize them here. So if your comment wasn't included, I am sorry. But don't worry, it's included where it matters most, which is with the city planners and the people working on this. Yes, because they're gonna incorporate that feedback. So, what was that feedback? Some residents raised questions about drainage, lighting, warehouses, interconnectivity, and farmland loss. During a meeting, officials stress that the Paprose land use map is not rezoned or annexed land automatically. That's kind of what I was getting at earlier. It's just they have to plan for what could logically just because of how the annexation statutes work, what could come into their city, and also what the city might want to have in terms of like talking about like what you want to know what's next to you. Like uh what people wanted next to them, like Franklin's was just celebrated uh 200 years. They were established in Q23. Um what worked in like the night early night 1910s, like having a house next to like a factory, because people it wasn't really considered there weren't really like research into like environmental effects, for example. Yeah. Or like an example, like I don't know if that's a good thing.

Erika Malone 13:18

Or like needification, like wasn't like a big thing.

Noah Crenshaw 13:20

Yeah, like the streets were smaller, like some streets weren't planned for as busy as become like think like Jefferson Street in downtown Franklin. Um, it's a very busy street. Right. Uh I think if they had known what they know now, they probably would have made it so that the buildings weren't so close to the street, so you could widen it, for example.

Erika Malone 13:38

Right.

Noah Crenshaw 13:39

But you can't because of how it is. It's just like an idea of like, well, this is how we could do it differently in the future if for some reason something changed. Like, you know, like for example, if your house is in a flood zone, like Franklin's had some pretty significant issues with flooding in the past. We hopefully won't have anything like that, knock on wood anytime soon. Yeah. There are certain rules about building in a floodplain. Like, for example, if your house is in a FEMA floodplain or your building is, and it's a certain type of floodplain, um, or flood zone, you can't rebuild it if it's demolished. Right. Or like has to be torn down. Like you can't, by federal law, you can't rebuild it. And so like you gotta plan for that. Like, how does that become like a park, most likely? Because some things can't be built in certain areas. Yeah. Because of existing laws. That was kind of an aside. Sorry, everyone. But you know, some other things that residents comment about back to this meeting was, you know, calls for more trails. Like I said, Franklin's pretty big um park city, public restrooms, outdoor dining, indoor activity for kids, and downtown parking solutions.

Erika Malone 14:48

Yes, downtown parking solutions.

Noah Crenshaw 14:50

That's always been a common complaint. People always, you know, when you think about it, it's kind of logical, like you want to be as close to where you're going as possible. We all do it at the store, we do it everywhere. So that's always been a common complaint. There's also some concerns about sprawl and corporate influence. Interesting. Which I thought, yeah, that is interesting. Oh. More attendees supported the proposed goals and opposed them. So it seems like Franklin, like they have no way if they're on the right track. Sounds like they are, but in some ways. Though there were some strong emotions expressed about development, pace, and scales.

Erika Malone 15:24

There's no in the comments. Too much growth too fast, you know. I've hear that a lot in any way.

Noah Crenshaw 15:30

But you know, Franklin's kind of been compared to some other communities around the state, like they haven't grown as fast as what they probably could have, I would say, in terms of development. Because we just see how like so many places are booming, like on the north side or like even Boone County right now. Yeah. Uh the north side of this county as well. There's been a lot of growth. But you know, Franklin's kind of just taken it kind of slow and steady. I mean, I think Steve of Arnett, the mayor, he said that on our episode we had slow and steady a few weeks ago. Well, something to that fact, a few weeks ago. And he said it was kind of intentional. He's kind of repeatedly said that over the years. Yep. About taking it slow and waiting for the right things to come. Exactly. Um, so it's not over for this plan. Um, they're gonna incorporate the feedback over the next month or so. By May 18th, a draft plan is expected, and I'm sure that'll be available for the public review ahead of adoption.

SPEAKER_01 16:27

Right.

Noah Crenshaw 16:28

Uh there will be public hearings at the city's plan commission in June, and the city council will review the anticipated plan in July and adopt it at some point after that. So we'll keep following this. And if you weren't able to give feedback at that meeting, you can always reach out to the city and find a way to give feedback. We have a copy of the presentation that was given at the meeting a few weeks ago on our website. If you go to the online version of that story.

Erika Malone 16:54

Awesome. Yeah. Great.

Noah Crenshaw 16:57

And so we're gonna have another Franklin story here, but we're gonna shift to the schools. Is that right, Erica?

Erika Malone 17:02

Yes. So I actually I had the opportunity to talk to some JAG students after they got back from spring break about the JAG program, which, if a lot of people don't know, funding was scaled back for jobs for America's graduates, which I will explain what that kind of program is later. But currently, right now, Franklin is the only school that has a JAG program in the county. And JAG's$8 million annual state appropriation was removed from Indiana's budget during the summer, with responsibility of the program folded into a broader reduced education fund by the IDOE. Their budget also got reduced quite a bit, but that's not all. An additional 20 uh 23.1 million in federal dollars intended to expand JAG also became unavailable in August last year. And since then, this has caused Indiana, which was the leading state with 250 JAG sites to drop to 30 or fewer without stable funding.

Noah Crenshaw 18:02

Oh wow, that's um that's a pretty big drop.

Erika Malone 18:06

Yeah, it is. And then as JAG programs kind of disappear across the state, Franklin Community High School was approved to continue theirs for one more year.

Noah Crenshaw 18:14

So when you say they were approved, was that like through the state or it was through the school board. Yeah, they're okay.

Erika Malone 18:21

Yeah, so they were able to secure some funding with the limited funding they're already getting from the state for the JAG program. The school is helping the school board is kind of helping with that as well. The corporate catching up with what's that we're so this is providing them an extension for one more year to have their JAG program, but after that, it's we're still unsure.

Noah Crenshaw 18:42

So let's talk about JAG. You know, what what what is that exactly? For because some people, including myself, are still a little unfamiliar with that.

Erika Malone 18:51

Yeah. So the acronym is Jobs for America's Graduates, which I said before. It actually dates back to 1979 in Delaware, but former governor Mitch Daniels brought it to Indiana in 2006 to address the state's growing dropout crisis. That was a huge um, that was a huge thing during that time. Again, I was six. I don't know how old you were, but we were in school.

Noah Crenshaw 19:16

I was like probably eight, maybe.

Erika Malone 19:17

Yeah, so we were just starting school at that point. So JAG supports students who are less likely to graduate, and and this includes a number of students for various reasons. It could be low-income students, first generation students, maybe those facing transportation behavioral problems at home or employment barriers, just a lot of different factors that are affecting maybe their success and likeliness to graduate. So Franklin launched their JAG program the same year. Funding cuts were announced. This they already started their JAG program, and then this news came out. So it was kind of putting the new program immediately at risk.

Noah Crenshaw 19:56

That's very unfortunate timing.

Erika Malone 19:58

Yes, it was very unfortunate timing. With this disheartening news, principal Ryan Wagner and JAG specialist Deanna Hayes work to bring a plan B called Leap. So it's a JAG-inspired program that would prevent services, uh, service gaps in JAG that would have been dissolved. So think career readiness employable skills that uh maybe not a lot of uh the regular classes would teach you. So, you know, you have your math, your science, you know, your social studies, but think how how do you prepare for an interview? How do you keep a job? How do you make a resume? All of these soft employable skills is what JAG teaches. And with this funding extension, the program that they were thinking of, Leap, has been put on pause for now. So good thing.

Noah Crenshaw 20:50

And so do you know if there's a like because obviously there's people who are still gonna be in JAG when it ends, are they gonna be transitioned over to Leap at that point?

Erika Malone 21:02

So a lot of the students that I talk to are some there's a couple seniors, but most of them are juniors right now. So they will get to finish out their year or their high school career in JAG.

Noah Crenshaw 21:13

But they wouldn't be accepting people in the JAG.

Erika Malone 21:15

Uh not necessarily. They are still accepting people into JAG for next school year.

Noah Crenshaw 21:19

Okay, so so would those people that they'd be transitioning to LEAP?

Erika Malone 21:23

Yes. Okay, yes, they would be.

Noah Crenshaw 21:25

So they're they're not left like if they don't get the Jaguars. They can still just transition in.

Erika Malone 21:32

Yeah. And if you look at my story, there's a couple of uh schools uh in the state that have trained that have done LEAP before. Again, it's a JAG inspired program, so it also uh encompasses a lot of those employability skills as well.

unknown 21:47

Okay.

Noah Crenshaw 21:48

So let's uh talk about this JAG program Franklin has. Like how many uh people how many students has it impacted?

Erika Malone 21:56

It has uh impacted a a lot of students and I'm just gonna share from personal experience. I necessarily wasn't in JAG, but my I would like to say my journalism career started by interviewing a JAG teacher. So that's how I kind of got started with my, you know, interest with JAG and what it does for students. So they've already had with just within their first year measurable success was 72.7% of students raising their GPA.

Noah Crenshaw 22:28

Yes, Sat Franklin, right?

Erika Malone 22:29

Yes. Okay. 75.8 of students earn the same or more credits than the previous year, which is great. And then 93.9% of the students improved in at least one measurable success category.

Noah Crenshaw 22:43

Okay. And so uh, you know, what did students have to say about how it's helped them?

Erika Malone 22:47

Yeah, so a lot of students credit JAG with um improving their confidence, self-control, and communication skills, along with leadership skills and clarity about careers and college paths. Uh, a lot of students that I've talked to said that they had no clue what they were gonna do, uh, and these are juniors and seniors, about what they were gonna do after high school. But now, after JAG, they found a career path that they want to go down. And some of their stuff, some students shared very uh personal stories, calling Jag a lifeline and like one big family, and the first place they felt seen, supported, and prepared for the future. Uh, I also asked the students with such funding uncertainty what kind of message they would have for legislators, and students uh wanted to caution uh, you know, if any legislators are listening to this or read the story or are looking into JAC that eliminating this kind of program could leave many at-risk students without a bridge from high school to adulthood.

Noah Crenshaw 23:52

Wow. How can if people wanted to advocate about this or talk to people about this, what can they do?

Erika Malone 24:00

Yeah, so educators encourage the community to kind of advocate for these career readiness programs and invite community members to help support JAG through donations, and that can be monetary or through other means such as partnerships. Uh, you you don't have to just donate m money for the JAG program. They take, um, I know they uh offer clothes and food for um students in need as well. So those donations are always uh, you know, happily taken as well. So you can call the high school and you know, ask see how you can get involved.

unknown 24:34

Okay.

Erika Malone 24:35

Well, even though the program uh has some uncertainty, the it's very clear that you could see students are impacted um through this program. So and it means a lot to me as well on a personal note. So I was glad to be able to talk to some kids.

Noah Crenshaw 24:51

Yeah. And so speaking of talking, it's round table time, everyone.

Erika Malone 24:56

Yay, round table. What do we got?

Noah Crenshaw 24:59

You just finished writing a story here about an event we had with some partners this week.

Erika Malone 25:04

I did, yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 25:05

We were been talking about with you guys for a few weeks now.

Erika Malone 25:08

Yeah, we were out late last night, not too late, but now it's like eight o'clock. That's late for me. I'm in bed by 10.

SPEAKER_02 25:16

Whatever.

Erika Malone 25:17

Uh, we had our voter forum and we had a really great turnout, I would say. We had a roughly 120 voters and over 30 candidates from nearly every level of government attended, underscoring strong local interests in down ballot races. So, and the purpose was this to kind of educate voters and hear directly from candidates across federal, state, and local races. And you were taking pictures, so you got um you got to take pictures of the whole crowd that was there. We had to bring in more chairs, yeah. So that was that was fun.

Noah Crenshaw 25:47

And uh candidates also got along with the voters, they also got a little bit of uh like some mini lessons, right?

Erika Malone 25:55

Mm-hmm. Yeah, so there were uh we had speakers there to discuss how federal, state, and local governments overlap and why local control still matters. There was also uh some speakers to talk about property taxes and income changes. So I know a lot of residents have uh major concerns over the reduced local revenue from property taxes. We also talked about childcare and the high costs and lack of after-school uh programs that are that is causing a big gap here in our community as well. And voters were able to have face-to-face access with these candidates as well afterwards.

Noah Crenshaw 26:35

Yeah, well, that that's great. Yeah, we've done this with some partners for a few years, and it's always interesting to hear what everyone has to say and seeing who comes.

Erika Malone 26:44

Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 26:44

And you know, it's gotten bigger every year.

Erika Malone 26:46

Yeah. And if you want more in depth about what the speakers um talked about or what the candidates had to say, you can look at our the story that we did, or we have the whole we live stream the whole thing, it's on YouTube.

Noah Crenshaw 26:58

Or and if you're a dedicated follower of this podcast, you would have noticed that we posted a special episode with the recording of the voter forum. So all of it in its entirety, basically, except for the parts where people were able to meet with candidates one-on-one.

Erika Malone 27:12

Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 27:13

Because there's no way to really record that.

Erika Malone 27:15

Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 27:15

But unless we you were to take the mic around uh to the different areas, but and like eavesdrop on like all like a hundred something people individually with people or with other candidates, you know. Yeah, it's logistically impossible.

Erika Malone 27:30

Yeah, um, but there's many ways for you to check it out, so and then what else do we got?

Noah Crenshaw 27:36

Well, we're gonna talk a little bit about a couple of events happening this weekend. First, on Saturday, we have the Positivity Palooza. Do you know what that is?

Erika Malone 27:49

I do not. So tell me.

Noah Crenshaw 27:52

Positivity is paw, like animal paw. It's a play of positivity. Just have to explain that. Because this is uh supposed to be a tail lagging good time. Animal lovers right to this. Yeah, this is a direct quote. I'm just reading the notes, guys. Uh, Positivia Palooza is something that Johnson County Senior Service is presenting on Saturday from 10 to 2. It's at Herring Hall on at the fairgrounds in Franklin. And people can meet award-winning author Gail Scotts and a four-legged friend named Puma to celebrate the book release of Puma: A Shelter Dog Becomes a Hero. So, did you know there was a local connection with this book, by the way, before we continue about this event?

Erika Malone 28:34

I didn't actually.

Noah Crenshaw 28:35

Yeah, so the book is about a dog that Johnson County deputy director of Animal Control Mike Clark has.

Erika Malone 28:42

Oh, okay.

Noah Crenshaw 28:43

And it's a mostly fictional story based on The Real Lives of Clark Puma and Johnson County Senior Service Executive Director, Kimberly Smith. It is inspired by a true story of courage, second chances, and unconditional love. Following the senior services. So for Puma, let's just talk a little bit about Puma. Uh Puma is more than two years old now. She came to the animal shelter, the county animal shelter as a puppy, and she was in a room across the hall from Clark, who has an office at the shelter, because that's animal control animal shelter, the same thing.

SPEAKER_01 29:16

Yes.

Noah Crenshaw 29:16

Same building, I should say, here. And every time she would hear his voice, he he recalled when he talked to us about this a few years ago, she would look at him with a face of excitement. And he was looking for a shelter dog to train, and she came to mind, and he fostered her in November of 22 and adopted her in February of 2023. And the author got the idea for the book after meeting Clark at a product expo in 2023, and here we are now. Well Scotts and Puma. I'm assuming Clark will be there too, since it is his dog.

Erika Malone 29:55

Puma's getting his own ride somehow.

Noah Crenshaw 29:56

Yeah, Puma Puma's just gonna appear, guys. Yeah. But it's gonna be there, and you can also buy some copies of the book because the book's out now. And all of the proceeds will go towards the Positivity Program, which is the senior service's name of their program that uh provides pet food to ensure seniors don't have to surrender their dogs or cats or whatever pets they have just because they can't afford essential items.

SPEAKER_01 30:23

Okay, yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 30:25

And uh there will be pet-related vendors along with games, food, and a pet parade.

Erika Malone 30:31

Oh wow.

Noah Crenshaw 30:32

And you can even bring pet food donations to further support the Positivity Program if you like. And like I said, that's 10 to 2 at a Hearing Hall.

Erika Malone 30:40

Man, uh if I didn't have uh already have plans this weekend, uh I would think about taking my cat there, but I don't uh he uh he's kind of a menace to society, so I think he would embarrass me in public, honestly.

Noah Crenshaw 30:52

I also think with cats and dogs sometimes it can be a little dicey. Yeah, and there might be a lot of animals running around because depending on how your cat is around dogs, because some people don't know until they break up.

Erika Malone 31:08

Yeah, he hasn't really been around dogs too much, but I always thought about getting one of those baby strollers that people put cats in. Or do you think that's too much?

Noah Crenshaw 31:16

I think it could work and to each their own.

unknown 31:19

Okay.

Noah Crenshaw 31:20

But you know, this isn't the only thing happening on Saturdays, isn't that? Right, Erica?

Erika Malone 31:24

Yes. We also have Death and Taxes Day at Tax Men Brewing. It's their annual outdoor beer release and tasting festival timed annually around Tax Day. Which was this past Wednesday. Yes. It what started as a small uh parking lot celebration has grown into one of the county's biggest spring events, drawing thousands across central Indiana. So it's a big, big, big event and a great way to celebrate after getting your taxes done.

SPEAKER_02 31:50

Oh, yeah, absolutely. It's always a huge hit.

Erika Malone 31:53

Yeah. Uh it is Saturday, April 18th from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Tax Men Brewing Company, and that's located on 13 South Baldwin Street in Bargersville. Uh the festival spans downtown Baldwin Street and nearby plaza areas will be since straight closures.

Noah Crenshaw 32:09

Yes, there will be aware.

Erika Malone 32:11

And there will be uh over 40 Indian Indiana craft beverage producers participating, including breweries, cideries, distilleries, and you guessed it, select wineries as well. Uh there's gonna be tons of beer, live music, and local food trucks as well. So you can get your tickets. They range from festival-only entrance to full tasting and quote unquote experience packages, which may include a commemorative glassware and packaged beer.

Noah Crenshaw 32:41

And uh I'm assuming there's some restrictions, right?

Erika Malone 32:44

Yes, this is uh this is not meant for children, obviously.

Noah Crenshaw 32:48

Um we have to state it, you know.

Erika Malone 32:51

It's a 21 and only event, valid ID required, and yes, it is rain or shine. So if it is raining, you can still enjoy beer in the rain.

Noah Crenshaw 32:59

You should bring an umbrella or a jacket though, just in case.

Erika Malone 33:01

Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 33:02

I don't know what the forecast is, but it's spring in Indiana, weather changes.

Erika Malone 33:07

Who knows? I mean, I imagine if there's a tornado, it would probably get cancelled.

Noah Crenshaw 33:12

Um I don't think they don't speak that on Texas.

Erika Malone 33:16

I'm just saying, I don't think they want to deal with, you know, a bunch of people drinking beer while a tornado warning is happening.

Noah Crenshaw 33:24

Yeah, but isn't that peak Midwest?

Erika Malone 33:25

It is peak Midwest.

Noah Crenshaw 33:27

So isn't that uh running joke on the internet now?

Erika Malone 33:30

Hey, who needs who needs live music when you got a performance of a tornado nearby?

Noah Crenshaw 33:35

Yeah. And so the proceeds of this is going to tax men or like how is it?

Erika Malone 33:40

Yeah, so a portion of the event proceeds will go to benefit Bargersville Main Street.

Noah Crenshaw 33:44

Oh, so it gets back to the community too.

Erika Malone 33:46

Yeah, absolutely. That's cool. And uh so there's some events for you guys to check out uh this weekend. Noah, do you have any plans this weekend?

Noah Crenshaw 33:55

We're gonna try to install a tree at my house because we had to cut down a tree last year because it was splitting. And it was also a tree that was known to do that, but had been planted years, years before I ever lived there. Sounds like it's also on the street, so it's limited space, and the tree was way too big for it to space it. Anyway, it was a different like again back to the other thing. It was a different time, there were different standards. And so now we're gonna plant a smaller tree nearby to try to bring back that vibe. Although, since it's a tree, it'll take years and won't be as tall as a tree. I still miss that out of a tree. It was such a pretty tree. Oh, yeah. It was a nice shade tree. Oh, well, people know what that means, you'll understand.

Erika Malone 34:35

Yeah, yeah. Well, it's that sounds like a good plan for um for you to do all over the weekend. This is explore your green thumb.

SPEAKER_02 34:42

What are you doing?

Erika Malone 34:43

I am going to I'm actually I'm attending a friend's wedding. I'm in the wedding. And believe it or not, it's a Star Wars themed wedding. Yes. I said Star Wars themed wedding.

SPEAKER_02 34:58

So like what are you are you going at something?

Erika Malone 35:01

Or is it just like, oh, you're just gonna wear So I the regular bridesmaid dresses, like nothing crazy. I'm not doing the Princess Leia buns because I was already denied from the bride for that, which is fine. But our bouquets are actually this like the stems of them are gonna be lightsaber hilts. Oh, that's cool. Yeah, she uh got them like um custom made. Yeah, custom made. Um, so it's gonna be really cool. I'm excited to help celebrate my longtime friends uh marriage. So well, that's great. Yeah.

Noah Crenshaw 35:38

And for you guys, thanks for listening. And thank you so much for tuning into this week's episode of Beyond the Headlines. And let us know what you'd like to hear by submitting your thoughts to news tips at dailyjournal.net. Please follow us wherever you get podcasts and leave a review. And you know, we recently got, after some technical difficulties, finally officially got listed on iHeartRadio. So you were just expanding to more platforms. So uh please, if you know someone who prefers that platform, they can check it out. You can also go to our website, listen to it. Yep. Uh but with that, you know, uh tune in next time. Yeah, you better.