FC Commission President Tom Linkel made an announcement about the recent uptick in COVID-19 positive test results

By John Estridge from Tom Linkel Franklin County Commission President Tom Linkel usually gives a COVID-19 update during a Franklin County Commissioners meeting. However, this week the commissioners moved their twice-monthly meeting from Tuesday, October 20, to Tuesday, October 27. Thus, with the large increase in positive test results in Franklin County, Linkel made an …

Commissioners approve replacing courthouse belfry for more than $250,000

By John Estridge It will cost more than a quarter of million dollars to fix the belfry on top of the Franklin County Courthouse, as well as a bevy of cranes. FC Commission President Tom Linkel recently spoke about the different quotes the county has received. The first action will be to remove the bats …

Fayette and Union counties numbers of COVID-19 positive test results increase

By John Estridge from ISDH data and Franklin County Commissioners’ reports Franklin County Commission President Tom Linkel gave an in-depth COVID-19 update at the commissioners’ meeting Tuesday morning, October 6. Linkel does that at each commissioners’ meeting because the Franklin County Health Department disbanded the COVID-19 task force, which gave weekly updates until it was …

FC not only has bats in its belfry but also a bell

Photos provided by Franklin County Commission President Tom Linkel Franklin County Commissioners and county council members are looking at an extensive repair of the courthouse’s belfry. Officials knew there were bats in the belfry, but they did not know if a bell was still there. As most know a picture is worth 1,000 words.

Council, commissioners talk about cost and paying for leaning bell tower of Franklin County

By John Estridge In 1624, the poet cleric John Donne wrote the line “for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee.” While it is claimed he was thinking metaphysically at the time because he had just survived a life-threatening illness, he might have had an inkling to the future of a situation in Franklin …

FC commissioner Tom Linkel gives update on county’s COVID-19-related numbers; ISDH daily report also

By John Estridge from commissioners meeting and ISDH numbers On Tuesday morning, September 22, Franklin County Commission President Tom Linkel read an update of numbers concerning COVID-19 in Franklin County. Linkel said the number of positive test results in the county stands at 303. Of those, 24 have recovered, 34 are being monitored and seven …

FC commissioners enact county-wide burn ban

By John Estridge Franklin County Commissioners unanimously approved a burn ban for Franklin County at their meeting Tuesday morning, September 22. Commissioners Tom Linkel and Gerald Wendel are both farmers and said it would be nice to get some rain at this point, especially for the crops to help in their development. On the state’s …

Two area residents dispute a road in question is a county road or any type of road during FC commissioners’ meeting

By John Estridge It was another Franklin County Commissioners meeting so the main topic of discussion, as it has been for months, is County Line Road. Some members of the Wilhelm family have property off Indiana 1 South they say is landlocked, and the county needs to improve and reestablish a road that is called …

For the last several FC commissioner meetings, an attorney and affected landowners have been trying to get a road opened or reopened

By John Estridge For decades, and probably longer, people have come to the Franklin County Commissioners wanting the commissioners to reopen old roads. Usually, the roads in question were old township roads. That means, prior to the 1930s, roads within the county were maintained by townships. Farmers and other property owners worked off their property …

FC Health Nurse reveals recent COVID-19-related hot spots in county

By John Estridge Franklin County Health Nurse Angie Ruther told commissioners and others the recent uptick in the COVID-19 positive tests in Franklin County comes from a nursing home, a spring dance held this summer and a church. She was answering a question via Zoom during a Franklin County Commissioners meeting Tuesday morning, August 11. …