Williamsburg Youth League asks county for help protecting ballfields, players

RICHMOND, Ind. — Children playing baseball and softball on Williamsburg's diamonds shouldn't worry about traffic.

Because of the ballfields' location where Fountain City Pike ends at North Centerville Road, traffic has become a concern for Williamsburg Youth League President Michelle Peed.

"I just want to keep our kids safe," she told Wayne County's commissioners Wednesday while asking for a barrier to be placed at the T intersection.

The reason: Vehicles ignore a stop sign, run through the intersection and down an embankment and into the parking area and diamond. It's happened several times, including two this summer, Peed said.

A July 7 incident involved a vehicle leading a high-speed police chase. The vehicle ended up smashing into a dugout, which is currently being rebuilt. Jason Ashcraft of Richmond has a trial scheduled Nov. 7 on two felony and three misdemeanor charges related to the incident.

Luckily, no ballplayers were present, but Peed said, it was just luck. Her 12-year-old daughter's team should have been practicing on the diamond, but it was invited to practice with older players in Fountain City instead.

A second incident, which was a hit-and-run that involved clipping a utility pole, occurred Aug. 10.

"I am coming to you because we have to protect our kids," Peed said.

Commissioners had previously received a request for a guardrail at the intersection; however, Mike Sharp, the county's highway superintendent, said guardrails are not engineered for head-on impacts. Putting one at the intersection would not be considered legally safe.

An engineering firm would need to design a safe guardrail that would then be specially built, Sharp said, costing tens of thousands of dollars. When commissioners originally, heard this, they had Sharp install a "stop ahead" sign to warn drivers about the upcoming intersection.

"I don't believe a stop-ahead sign is going to stop somebody who's impaired," Peed said. "If they don't stop, how else are we supposed to keep them out of our parking lot and ballfield?"

Peed said Williamsburg Youth League has little money to erect a barrier. She hopes the county can provide something, whether a guardrail or other barrier.

"We're open to suggestions, but leaving it open, we're not open to that," Peed said.

After listening to Peed's impassioned presentation, commissioners said they would consider the situation.

Opioid settlement

Commissioner Mary Anne Butters has created a draft scoring mechanism for commissioners to select projects for Wayne County's share of the state's opioid settlement money.

The county is scheduled to receive more than $1.9 million through 2038 from the settlement with Johnson & Johnson and three opioid distributors. That includes about $411,000 this year.

Commissioner Ken Paust suggested the county coordinate with other county entities to possibly create stronger programs with pooled money. Richmond is scheduled to receive about $320,000 of its $1.6 million this year, and 13 county towns are receiving 2022 payments ranging from $30 to more than $18,000.

Commissioner Jeff Plasterer also said the county should at least coordinate with Richmond and have conversations about pooling money.

Butters said she does not want to slow distribution of the county's money by working with the city or towns. She said the county should ask programs applying for money if they are also applying to the city or towns and should find out how long the proposed programs will be sustained.

Transitional housing for those in recovery has been identified as a priority,

"We just do not have adequate housing that allows the recovering addict to remove himself or herself from an environment that triggers relapse," Butters said.

Later during Wednesday's meeting, Elisa Worland, who works for Purdue Extension as Wayne County's health and human sciences and community development educator, spoke with commissioners about what Indiana Healthy Opportunities for People Everywhere, a Purdue pilot project in Wayne County, has discovered about the county's addiction problem.

The program has identified deficiencies, such as transitional housing, transportation and child care that effect a person's ability to receive treatment and stay clean. Worland also said finding services available and negotiating the process is difficult. People also need training in how to react to an overdose and how to use naloxone to prevent overdose deaths.

K-9 Ozzy

Sheriff Randy Retter informed commissioners about the unexpected death of K-9 Ozzy.

Retter said an autopsy discovered several internal issues that could have caused the 7-year-old dog's death.

Ozzy and his handler, Sgt. Adam Blanton, took millions of dollars of drugs off the street and assisted in apprehending a number of criminals, Retter said. Ozzy served the sheriff's department for five years.

Retter said he is attempting to secure donations to fund the nearly $20,000 necessary to purchase and train a new K-9 and handler.

WCTV

Eric Marsh, the executive director of Whitewater Community Television, updated commissioners about WCTV's work.

WCTV's fiscal year ended June 30. During that fiscal year, WCTV produced about 120 local information programs, broadcast 280 government meetings and covered 74 other county events.

Marsh also presented Paust with a Commitment to Community Media Award.

Vehicles

Commissioners opened and awarded a bid for two dump trucks for the highway department Wednesday.

Stoops Freightliner in Anderson was the only bidder, offering two options. Mike Sharp, the county's highway superintendent, selected the option with a Clark Truck Equipment package on the Freightliner chassis. The two trucks will cost $299,928, a price that includes an $11,000 reduction for two trade-in trucks.

Commissioners also approved Retter purchasing a jail transport van from Wetzel for $52,990. By using a Dodge, the interior security unit from a current vehicle that's not repairable will fit the new van.

Retter had previously contracted with a Salem dealer that no longer can guarantee delivery of a van's delivery.

This article originally appeared on Richmond Palladium-Item: Williamsburg Youth League asks county for help protecting players