Latest news with #ChestertonMiddleSchool
Chicago Tribune
08-04-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Duneland Y and school renew lease as Y continues development plans
The Duneland Family YMCA is lining up financing so that construction can start by summer's end on a 15,000 square-foot Wellness Center addition on the former Chesterton Middle School site. Dave Kasarda, CEO for the Duneland Family YMCA, and Elizabeth Adcock, who is the chair for the Healthy Living Campus project, gave a short update during Monday's Duneland School Board meeting. The school board unanimously approved an amended lease and user agreement with the Duneland YMCA. Superintendent Chip Pettit said the new contract clarifies building maintenance responsibilities, parking and signage issues. In 2023, the school district agreed to lease for $1 a year the Chesterton Middle School building to the Duneland YMCA. The Duneland School Corporation has kept its administration offices and some programs on the east side of the building. 'Without the school board and Dr. Pettit, none of this would have happened,' Kasarda said. The Duneland YMCA has moved aquatics and many other programs over from its current facility at 215 Roosevelt St. in Chesterton to the old middle school building. The project is being called a Healthy Living Campus because several community service agencies will move into the building. 'It's really been quite an evolution in the last year,' Kasarda said, noting that there have been some changes with the design and plan to accommodate new partners. Since the school permanently closed its doors in June 2024, the west side of the middle school building has been demolished. The Y decided to keep the auditorium and there is a theatre committee that is looking at that portion of the project, Adcock said. This spring, sitework will be done to remove rubble and develop a parking lot on the western side of the building. The old athletic fields that cover 20 acres will also be prepared for conversion into the Cleveland-Cliffs Community Park. The 15,000-square-foot Wellness Center on the southwest side of the complex will house the exercise programs along with cardio and strength equipment. A new, improved entrance will also be developed off of Porter Avenue, Adcock said. Adcock and Kasarda wouldn't say how much the new building is expected to cost as Kasarda noted that construction costs could rise because of tariffs. Kasarda recently stated the cost was projected to be $500 per square foot, which would total $7.5 million. When the new construction is finished, the YMCA will close its current facility. Adcock said that the Y has set aside space on the west side of the building on Morgan Street as the site for a future gymnasium that would also include a walking track. Kasarda said the Y has also had ongoing discussions with the Chesterton Parks Department leadership about how Chesterton Park on the east side of the building can be incorporated into the site. 'It's exciting that all the entities involved in this are at the same table, really looking at this at a higher level,' Kasarda said.
Chicago Tribune
11-03-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Duneland Y to build a 15,000-square-foot Wellness Center addition
The Duneland Family YMCA plans this year to build a new 15,000-square-foot Wellness Center addition to its Healthy Living Campus on the old Chesterton Middle School site. Dave Kasarda, CEO of the Duneland Family YMCA, revealed what's next for the ongoing transformation of the middle school building into the Y campus during Monday's Chesterton Town Council meeting. 'The town of Chesterton has really stepped up and done an outstanding job in getting us to the point we are now, which is getting ready for construction,' Kasarda said. When the new addition is finished, it will allow the Duneland Family YMCA to close its present facility at 215 Roosevelt St., said Amy Curtis, the Duneland YMCA's director of programs and partnerships. Duneland YMCA has already taken over the old Chesterton Middle School and moved its aquatics, youth sports and senior programs into the east side of the building. The Y also offers a walking club, STEM and robotics programs. Along with the Y, the Duneland School Corporation retained its administration offices and some programs on the campus. There are a number of community agencies that will become part of the Healthy Living Campus. Construction crews in recent months have been working on demolishing the western portion of the old building, including the Goldsborough Gym. The school auditorium, though, was saved and is now part of the Y campus. The projected cost of the addition is expected to be around $500 per square foot, Kasarda said after the meeting. That would calculate to around $7.5 million. Kasarda said the addition would allow the Y to move all of its exercise programs along with cardio and strength equipment from its present building on Roosevelt Street. The Y will carry out projects over some years as money becomes available from an ongoing fundraising campaign. Site preparation work is expected to start next month, which includes the old football stadium and track facility. Cleveland-Cliffs has donated money for the development of a 20-acre park that will stretch east of 8th Street between Morgan and Porter avenues. Among its features will be walking paths, gardens and a gathering space. The Dunbar Family Foundation is sponsoring an events pavilion that will be located within the Cleveland-Cliffs Community Park. Councilman James Ton, R-1st, said that he believes the Duneland Y project will help revitalize the west side and bring economic development to Broadway. 'This is very much a positive step. The west side has needed this for a while,' Ton said. Councilwoman Jennifer Fisher, R-5th, added that it's also believed the downtown businesses will benefit. 'People are so excited in the downtown area for this project,' Fisher said. In other business, town officials are going to be meeting with Norfolk Southern Railroad officials to discuss potential safety enhancements at the Calumet Avenue crossing downtown. A bicyclist was killed at the crossing on Feb. 28. Town officials are concerned because a new downtown parking lot at Grant Street and N. Calumet Avenue will require pedestrians going to the European Market on Saturdays to cross the tracks. Council also: *Authorized the town attorney to proceed with eminent domain court proceedings, if necessary, for the town to acquire the Duneland Collision Repair property at the corner of 15th Street and Broadway. The town wants to convert the property into a vehicle compound. *Approved amending the Coffee Creek Center Planned Unit Development to allow the Dunkin Donuts at 502 Pintail Trace to install another digital menu board to serve the second of two drive-thru lanes. *Heard from Town Engineer Mark O'Dell about a resident's request to be able to keep ducks. The town does allow residents to have chickens. O'Dell said that Portage allows residents to have up to two ducks.
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- Yahoo
Man who killed Chesterton teacher in high-speed crash gets 5 years in prison
PORTAGE, Ind. — A man was sentenced to five years in prison for killing a Chesterton Middle School teacher in a 2022 high-speed crash. Lauren Thompson, 24, who taught eighth grade at Chesterton Middle School, was sitting at a red light on the evening of Nov. 8, 2022 at the intersection of Willowcreek and Lute. Arthur Schmidt, driving an SUV, was traveling southbound on Willowcreek over 100 mph and slammed into the back of Thompson's vehicle. Thompson's vehicle was struck with such force that it hit a third vehicle and caused secondary collisions between three other vehicles. She died at the scene. Schmidt was airlifted in serious condition. He was charged with reckless homicide and criminal recklessness. Thompson was in her second year of teaching English at Chesterton Middle School when she was killed. 'We are devastated': Chesterton teacher dead following 6-vehicle crash; speed blamed 'Lauren was a shining star on the CMS faculty and was loved by her students and fellow staff members,' Principal Mike Hamacher said in a statement after the crash. 'This is a great loss to our students, faculty, and staff members.' Schmidt was sentenced to five years in prison with one year suspended for probation to follow. 'We are comfortable with the sentencing but uncomfortable that this is the maximum punishment,' family told the Northwest Indiana Times after the hearing. The Porter County prosecutor Gary Germann told WGN News he wanted to explain and clarify the sentence. He sent the following explanation of the sentencing to media, saying if Schmidt was sentenced on both counts it would have been double jeopardy. The max sentence in the case was six years. 'I am told there is a great deal of concern in our community about the result in the above case. This may be the first time in six years I have felt the need to explain and clarify as best I can the decisions we made in a case. Arthur Schmidt was initially charged with two counts: Reckless Homicide and Criminal Recklessness with a Motor Vehicle Causing Death. Both counts are Level 5 felonies and per our legislature each count carries a sentencing range from 1-6 years in the Indiana Department of Corrections along with a maximum of a $10,000 fine. This gets a little tricky but our courts have held that double jeopardy would limit the sentencing in this particular case to a maximum of six years. The facts of the crime are virtually the same so the law of double jeopardy is such that the defendant while he may be convicted of both offenses the convictions would 'merge' for sentencing purposes. Said another way he would have only been legally sentenced on one of the Level 5 felonies. Thus, the maximum sentence in this case was from the outset always six years. It did not matter to us to which count the defendant entered a guilty plea because we could still pursue the maximum sentence which we did. By doing so we saved the family the stress of a week long trial. For us we were able to get what we wanted without the risk and the expense of a trial. For us it was a win/win situation other than our community tragically lost an amazing young woman as a result of the crash. I am not sure this explains the legal/factual issues with which we dealt but I hope this gives the community some insight from the perspective of the attorneys assigned to the case.' His sentencing date is not available at this time. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Chicago Tribune
28-01-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Chesterton expands its TIF district to help pay for capital improvement projects
Chesterton is expanding the boundaries of its Tax Increment Financing district as the funds will be used to help finance a number of capital improvement projects. One of the major initiatives is remodeling Chesterton's fire station, which will include a two-story, 2,000-square-foot addition along with a reconfiguration of offices and sleeping quarters. The fire station and Town Hall remodeling are expected to cost around $2.8 million. The town along with a consulting firm is working on a breakdown of projected costs for the Town Hall and fire station portions of the building at 8th Street and Broadway. Chesterton's Redevelopment Commission on Monday before the council meeting gave its final approval to the new TIF district boundaries that include 300 new industrial and business parcels. The district now will go west on Broadway from Calumet Road to 16th Street. Properties south of Broadway would include the new Duneland YMCA Healthy Living Campus being developed on the old Chesterton Middle School site. The new TIF will also stretch south along Calumet Road, north of the U.S. Post Office. North of Broadway, the new district would take in some properties on Woodlawn Avenue and Locust Street before ending at Calumet Road and Indian Boundary Road. Residential properties aren't included in the TIF area. TIF districts allow the town to divert a portion of collected property taxes from a parcel to help pay for capital improvement projects. The town of Chesterton has about $10 million available in diverted taxes from its original TIF district that was established in 2000. That district mostly lies east of Calumet Road and is bounded to the north by Indian Boundary Road and the Indiana Toll Road to the south. The new TIF boundaries allow the town to use funds for the fire station and Councilwoman Erin Collins, D-2nd, said that's the financial plan. The Town Council during its meeting Monday touched on two other projects that will involve the use of TIF funds. Bids were opened for the paving and improvement of two new downtown parking lots in the 100 block of Grant Avenue and Calumet Road, and the 100 block of Indiana Avenue. There were four bidders with Grimmer Construction Inc. of Highland submitting the apparent lowest bid of $1,269,149. A contract will be awarded after all the bids are analyzed. The Town Council also unanimously approved an offer of $377,500 to buy the property of Duneland Collision at 107 N. 15th St. If an agreement is reached, the town would use TIF funds to convert the property into a vehicle compound for the street and police departments. Another possible use of TIF funds would be to make infrastructure improvements around the new Duneland Y being developed at the Chesterton Middle School site. Councilwoman Jennifer Fisher, I-Dist. 5, acknowledged to the Post-Tribune that there have been some planning discussions between town and Duneland Y officials, but nothing has been settled. In other business, the council voted 4-1 to re-examine the town's options concerning its contract for legal services. The Harris, Welsh & Lukmann firm has been used by the town for at least 40 years. Chuck Lukmann has been the town attorney with other members of the firm attending meetings and doing legal work. Fisher said that the town's legal costs had been high last year and there is a need to explore options. She and other council members emphasized that they are satisfied with the legal work performed and hope that Harris, Welsh & Lukmann would be among those interested in a contract with the town. Councilman James Ton, R-Dist. 1, said he was 'not astounded that the bill for 2024 was a little higher.' Ton said that the town called upon the firm to do more legal work than normal. Among the projects the law firm worked on were land acquisition for the Westchester-Liberty Trail and downtown parking lots, the situation concerning a data center proposal and the new police station. Collins said that for her, the concern was the town paying $362,000 for legal services 'was more than we can afford and more than we should be paying.'
