Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Halloween 2019: Trick or Treat Times

Beech Grove, IN (October 29, 2019) IBG — Your Halloween candy supply is looking plentiful, you've assembled the family costumes, and all the Halloween decorations are placed accordingly—you're officially ready for Halloween. With the prospect of sweet treats and (possibly) an extended bedtime, we know that your little ones are eager to put on their kids' costumes too.


But when it comes to planning your Halloween activities, it can all start to feel like a bunch of hocus pocus, especially since parents all seem to end up asking each other, "What time does trick-or-treating start?"

Whether you're taking your dressed-up crew out around the neighborhood or staying home to greet eager guys and ghouls, it's important to know when you should be on duty during the evening.

RELATED | Marion County Halloween Safety Map


Below are the times we have for Halloween night, Thursday, October. 31. We will continue to update the list as more become available.

Marion County - October 31 
  • Indianapolis: 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. 
  • Beech Grove: 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. 
  • Lawrence: 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. 
  • Southport: 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. 
  • Speedway: 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. 
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Locations:



Indianapolis Fire Department Locations:


And no matter what time you and your family set out to trick-or-treat, it's important to review safety guidelines with your children ahead of time. To ensure your night is spook-tacular and fun, follow these guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

  • Swords, knives, and other costume accessories should be short, soft, and flexible. Avoid trick-or-treating alone. 
  • Walk in groups or with a trusted adult. Fasten reflective tape to costumes and bags to help drivers see you. 
  • Examine all treats for choking hazards and tampering before eating them. Limit the number of treats you eat. 
  • Hold a flashlight while trick-or-treating to help you see and others see you. WALK and don’t run from house to house. 
  • Always test make-up in a small area first. Remove it before bedtime to prevent possible skin and eye irritation. 
  • Look both ways before crossing the street. Use crosswalks wherever possible. 
  • Lower your risk for serious eye injury by not wearing decorative contact lenses. 
  • Only walk on sidewalks whenever possible, or on the far edge of the road facing traffic to stay safe. 
  • Wear well-fitting masks, costumes, and shoes to avoid blocked vision, trips, and falls. 
  • Eat only factory-wrapped treats. Avoid eating homemade treats made by strangers. 
  • Enter homes only if you’re with a trusted adult. Only visit well-lit houses. Never accept rides from strangers. 
  • Never walk near lit candles or luminaries. Be sure to wear flame-resistant costumes.

But you can usually expect candy-hungry youngsters—especially toddlers—to show up at your door as soon as the sun begins to set, or even earlier. (Think between 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m.) Teens and tweens will likely wrap up their door-to-door visits around 8 p.m. to 9 p.m., or the time stated by your local curfew laws.

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Sunday, October 27, 2019

Marion County Halloween Safety Map

Beech Grove, IN (October 27, 2019) IBG — There are nearly 10,000 sex offenders in the state of Indiana and more than 2,300 registered sex and violent offenders living in Marion County. We have inserted an interactive map of registered sex offenders throughout the State to help you to be aware of what is in your neighborhood.


The Indiana Sheriffs' Association also maintains an interactive sex and violent offender registry, including a map tool which allows you to search within a 2-mile radius of your house for listed offenders. The Indiana Sheriffs' Association also maintains an interactive sex and violent offender registry, including a map tool which allows you to search within a 2-mile radius of your house for listed offenders.

You can search Indiana's Sex Offender Registry and view the map here: iCrimeWatch.net

To search for offenders in your area, select your county from the map shown at the link above. After accepting the terms and conditions, click the "Search for Offenders in Your Area" button in the top left-hand corner of the screen.

TO VIEW A MAP: Enter your address, city and ZIP code into the forms presented. The website will create a map of all registered sex and violent offenders within a radius of .25-2 miles of your area, depending upon your settings. Offenders are listed by name and with photo and offense information as available.

TO VIEW A LIST: In the "Offender Search" screen, you can also generate a list of all sex and violent offenders in your city. Simply click the "City" tab and enter the name of the city you would like to search. Again, offenders are listed by name and with photo and offense information as available. The database also allows for searches of individual offenders by first or last name.

In Marion County, sex offenders are required to hang a sign on their front door, turn off the lights and not pass out any candy.

"We require who we're watching to stay at their homes, unless they are pre-approved to go to work. We have them stay in their homes, shut off their lights in front of their house and have a sign up that they aren't go to participate in Halloween this year," said Drew Adams, District Supervisor, Dept. of Corrections.

OUR QUICK SEARCH: You can also use our interactive map below to see how many predators are in your area. This interactive map is Statewide. To zoom in or out, use the + or - feature at the bottom right of the map. Once you zoom, you are able to click on a dot and an information window will pop out. You can also click on satellite on the top left that shows houses and streets.


Halloween is just around the corner and kids will be out in force, even though the weather may not cooperate, as a community, lets keep our precious ones safe.

SOURCE: Indiana Sheriffs Association
SOURCE: WRTV

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Monday, October 21, 2019

Trial begins for Beech Grove man facing felonies

Beech Grove, IN (October 21, 2019) — Over the summer, a woman who lived in a Greenwood apartment complex was grazed with a bullet when a drug deal went wrong. The marijuana-sale-turned-robbery that led to her injury was arranged via a social media application and happened in early July, police said.

The Beech Grove man accused of shooting at the ceiling in the botched drug deal and causing the injuries to the woman is facing a jury trial this week.


Brandon D. Saloane’s trial starts Tuesday in the Johnson County Circuit Court. He is facing four felony charges from the events that happened on July 4. The trial is expected to last two to three days. Charges include two level 3 felonies of armed robbery and robbery, a level 4 felony of unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon and a level 6 felony of battery with moderate bodily injury.

Chief Deputy Prosecutor Daylon Welliver will argue the case and is expecting to call at least six witnesses, although more could be called for the prosecution’s case, he said. Saloane has opted to represent himself in the proceedings, Welliver said.

RELATED | Beech Grove man arrested on felony charges

The charges and trial stem from the July 4 robbery in the 900 block of Coventry Court, which is in an apartment complex west of U.S. 31, between Fry Road and County Line Road in Greenwood.

The resident of the apartment told police he had received a message from a woman on Snapchat who was wanting to buy marijuana, according to a probable cause affidavit. Snapchat is a cell phone application where messages and photos are only available to users for short periods of time.

A man was going to come to the Greenwood apartment to pay for the marijuana, according to court documents. Saloane arrived and paid the resident $180 in cash and, in return, was given marijuana. Saloane used the restroom, then shoved a gun into the resident’s side and told him to give him “everything,” court documents said.

A female resident of the apartment was hit in the face with the gun, then Saloane fired the gun at the ceiling, or it went off while he was hitting her. The bullet grazed her cheek, and she and the male resident fled the apartment and called 911, a Greenwood police report said.

While they were waiting for police outside, they saw the robber, later identified as Saloane, leave the apartment with items shoved up his shirt, the report said. They later determined he had taken $2,000 and about a quarter of a pound of marijuana, police said.

The victim was taken to Community Hospital South, where she received eight stitches in her cheek. The next day, police learned about a possible suspect when a woman reported to police she had set up the drug deal and Saloane had stolen her gun.

The woman who set up the drug deal had met Saloane about a month earlier, and the two smoked weed together, she told police. She said she arranged for Saloane to buy the marijuana, but he then took her handgun and robbed the people he was supposed to be purchasing marijuana from, she told police.


Saloane was arrested after the robbery at an apartment in Beech Grove, and police found marijuana and digital scales in the apartment and his vehicle, the report said. He told detectives he had thrown the gun in a river because he did not want his parole officer to find it, court documents said.

Saloane had been on parole for two attempted robbery convictions in Hendricks County, and a drug possession conviction in Marion County in 2014. He was sentenced to more than five years in prison for those convictions.

SOURCE: Daily Journal

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Friday, October 18, 2019

Amtrak rolls out more comfortable cars

Beech Grove, IN (October 18, 2019) — If you haven’t traveled by train in a while, Amtrak is summoning you to a new level of comfort on the rails.

For coach trips on Midwestern routes, Amtrak is introducing refurbished Horizon cars that make some riders mistakenly think they’re in business class. From the carpets on up to leatherette seats that promise more lumbar support, it’s an overhaul of cars that have been around since the 1980s. “These cars are workhorses. You’ll find them all over the Midwest,” said Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari.

Amtrak Executive Vice President Roger Harris in a refurbished Horizon coach used in the Midwest.

On overnight runs to the East Coast, Amtrak is now using remodeled coach cars, also dating from the 1980s, with plusher reclining seats, suitable for sleeping on the cheap. Called Amfleet II, they still have legroom that puts airlines to shame. “This is like first class but it’s coach,” said Roger Harris, executive vice president at Amtrak.

For those who book the sleepers, the railroad is getting a new fleet with more room for luggage, softer linens, a sturdier pullout table and more power outlets.

The smallest accommodation, the roomette, no longer has a toilet in the compartment in the new Viewliner II railcars. Amtrak executives said passengers never liked the in-room toilet anyway because it took up precious space and your traveling companion had to scram if you wanted privacy.

The new cars have shared bathrooms and shower facilities, but each room still has a sink that flips out of view when you don’t need it.

Reclining seats in Amtrak’s refurbished Amfleet II coach cars available for long-distance runs.

Amtrak officials showed off the cars Wednesday as centerpieces of new efforts to boost ridership. For routes serving Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan and Missouri, the national passenger railroad works in close partnership with state transportation agencies, which fund 75 percent of the $3 million cost for the new and improved equipment.

Harris said the cars will make Amtrak more competitive both on long-distance and short haul routes already in demand in the Midwest, such as Hiawatha Service from Chicago-to-Milwaukee and Wolverine Service from Chicago-to-Detroit/Pontiac.

He also said the public is gravitating to rail travel as a more relaxed and environmentally responsible way to get around. “I think the trend has definitely caught hold more in Europe, but we’re seeing it today also with customers in congested urban areas [and] with younger customers,” Harris said.

Overall Amtrak ridership was up about 1 million last year to 33 million people, he said.

Magliari said the Midwest routes also have gotten more popular, especially with service to college towns as debt-conscious students decide to forgo a car.

The refurbished coach cars are being added to Midwest trains through next spring, while the overnight routes to the East Coast all will have them by yearend, Amtrak officials said. The work is being done at Amtrak facilities in Chicago, Beech Grove, Indiana, and at a contractor in West Quincy, Missouri, Magliari said.

The new Viewliner II’s are made by CAF, a firm headquartered in Spain and with U.S. manufacturing in Elmira, New York. Larry Chestler, vice president for long distance service at Amtrak, said two of 25 cars have been delivered, with the rest due to arrive in 2020.

SOURCE: Chicago Sun Times

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Thursday, October 17, 2019

Milestone Contractors building new headquarters

Beech Grove, IN (October 17, 2019) — An Indianapolis-based contracting and construction firm plans to spend $11 million to build a new headquarters and maintenance hub in Beech Grove.

Milestone Contractors LP received approval Wednesday for incentives from the city of Indianapolis tied to an effort to build a 25,000-square-foot office building and 52,000-square-foot garage near South Emerson Avenue and Subway Street. There would also be infrastructure improvements to the site as part of the development.


The company, a subsidiary of Indianapolis-based The Heritage Group, often works as a contractor on road projects for local governments and the Indiana Department of Transportation. Its current headquarters is on the south side, at 5950 S. Belmont Ave., but it has multiple satellite offices in Indianapolis and the rest of the state.

RELATED | Brownfield property group purchases site


The addresses listed on documents filed with the city are 2851, 2900 and 2961 Connection Ave. and 3101 S. Emerson Ave. None of the addresses are yet listed as owned by the company, according to the Marion County Assessor’s office, though they could be under contract.

General location of Milestone's new headquarters

Milestone asked the city for a five-year property tax abatement for the project. It said it expects to create 25 new jobs and retain 110 existing workers as a direct result of the project.

According to city documents, the abatement should save the company an estimated $778,195 in property taxes over the five-year period, but it would still pay $445,092 in taxes relative to the new investment. The properties are currently tax-exempt.

Once the abatement period concludes, Milestone would pay about $246,657 annually in real property taxes.

A staff report from the city’s Department of Metropolitan Development indicates the 25 new jobs created would pay an average of $37.10 per hour. The average wage for the 110 retained positions is about $36.85 per hour.

Rick Skirvin, Beech Grove Mayoral Candidate had this to say, "I would like to Welcome Milestone to Beech Grove and thank them for choosing our city to grow in."

The incentives request, which city staff recommended for approval, was OK’d by the Metropolitan Development Commission. The plan also requires final approval from Beech Grove.

SOURCE: Indianapolis Business Journal


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Saturday, October 12, 2019

Northern Tool + Equipment lands in Beech Grove

Beech Grove, IN (October 12, 2019) — A growing tool and equipment retailer with more than 100 stores in 21 states is entering Indiana with two Indianapolis area stores that are set to open October 31st.

Burnsville, Minnesota-based retailer Northern Tool + Equipment is targeting busy retail areas near Interstate 465 on the south and north sides of the cities with the new stores. One is at at 5236 Victory Drive in Beech Grove, is just south of I-465 and east of Emerson Avenue. The other one is at 9345 Waldemar Road, just west of Michigan Road and south of I-465, near the Pyramids office complex.

Northern Tool + Equipment at 5236 Victory Drive in Beech Grove 
Photo: Invisible Beech Grove

The stores will open in newly constructed buildings of more than 22,000 square feet each and will employ 20 people apiece, the company said.

“Indianapolis is a perfect market for our business given the city’s size, its vibrant Midwest economy and its strong concentration of our core customers of both homeowners and business owners,” Vice President of Sales and Marketing Wade Mattson said in a written statement.

Mattson said the company also was attracted to Indianapolis because of the city’s “larger-than-average distribution and warehousing sector, along with its unique convergence of five interstate highway corridors.”

Northern Tool + Equipment at 5236 Victory Drive in Beech Grove 
 Photo: Invisible Beech Grove

The company said it plans to open additional stores in Indiana over time, but hasn’t determined how many or how soon.

Northern Tool + Equipment, founded by Don Kotula, is a family-owned company that opened its first store in Burnsville in 1981. Today, the company has more than 105 stores, most of them in the eastern half of the country, with Indiana becoming its 22nd state.

The company is in expansion mode. It recently opened stores in O’Fallon, Illinois; Metairie, Louisiana; and Abilene and San Antonio, Texas. Texas is by far its busiest market with 29 stores, followed by Florida with 13 and Minnesota with 10.

Geared towards both construction professionals and do-it-yourself customers, Northern Tool + Equipment sells everything from hand tools and power tools to pressure washers, semi trailer accessories and metal fabrication equipment. The stores also offer a parts, service and repair department.

The stores carry more over 9,000 products and more than 1,500 types of parts.

Northern Tool + Equipment at 5236 Victory Drive in Beech Grove 
 Photo: Invisible Beech Grove

The company, which manufactures its own North Star line of pressure washers, generators and compressors, has estimated annual revenue of nearly $1.5 billion.

Real estate broker Gary Perel, a principal at Indianapolis-based ALO Property Group LLC, said Northern Tool + Equipment’s likely competitors include places like Tractor Supply, Lowe’s and Home Depot.

Real estate is booming in Indianapolis, Perel said, including both new construction and redevelopment projects—so it makes sense that a new retailer serving that market has come to town. “I think where you’ve got residential growth, you’ve certainly got increasing demand for that type of product.”

Beech Grove Store Job Openings HERE
Beech Grove Store Information HERE

SOURCE: IBJ

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Thursday, October 10, 2019

Jostens 2020 Photo Contest

Beech Grove, IN (October 10, 2019) — Attention Middle School, Junior High School and High School students. Get those photos ready and get them to Jostens for your chance at a cash prize and more in the 2020 Photo Contest.

Upload photos any time between 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time on Tuesday, October 1, 2019 – through 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time on Sunday, March 1, 2020 (“Entry Period”). A team of industry professionals will judge all photo submissions to select the winners of the Jostens Photo Contest. Winners, Finalists, and Honorable Mentions will be announced in April.


To be eligible for the contest, entrants must be a legal resident of the fifty United States, the District of Columbia, or a legal resident of the provinces or territories of Canada (excluding Quebec) AND a current middle school, junior high school or high school student. All entrants must also be 13 years of age or older.

Each individual photo will need its own model release form signed by all individuals who are personally and substantially identifiable in the photo (including crowds, landscapes and illustrations). Photos submitted without a completed model release will not be accepted in the competition.

More information at Jostens Photo Contest

Saturday, October 5, 2019

Indiana voter registration ends Oct. 7th

Beech Grove, IN (October 5, 2019) — Hoosiers must register to vote by the end of the day Monday if they want to cast a ballot in this November’s election. Indiana law cuts off voter registration 29 days before the election. That means this year, it’s Monday, October 7th.

Hoosiers can register at their local county clerk’s office or online, at IndianaVoters.com. If they’re signing up at the clerk’s office, the cut-off time is the end of the business day. But online registrations are available until midnight.


Those registering to vote must have a driver’s license or state identification card. They must also be 18 years old by Election Day and have lived in their precinct at least 30 days prior to Nov. 5.

In addition to registration, the Indianavoters.com and the app allow you to look up your polling location, get directions to your polling location, find out who’s on your ballot, track your absentee ballot application and contact election officials.

In order to be eligible to register to vote, you must:
• be a citizen of the United States,
• be at least 18 years old by Election Day,
• have lived in your precinct for at least 30 days before the election; and
• not currently be imprisoned after being convicted of a crime.

If you have any questions, call the Hoosier Voter Hotline at 866-IN-1-VOTE.


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