Hobart Mayor Brian Snedecor

Today:  David Wright with the Gary Public Transportation Corp. is with us to review the new and improved bus schedule that takes effect on Tuesday, September 8th.  It's a schedule that brings riders closer to more locations that they say they want to visit, like the Adam Benjamin VA Outpatient Clinic in Crown Point.  Find more information here.  We also bring back our conversations with a LaPorte County PFLAG board member about a new social media group called "Out in LaPorte," and with Hobart Mayor Brian Snedecor, who made a major decision to switch political party affiliations.    

Today:   Hobart Mayor Brian Snedecor joins us to talk about how his city is coping with the coronavirus pandemic, and he explains in detail his reasons for switching political affiliations from Democrat to Republican.  Indiana Youth Institute president and CEO Tami Silverman's produced another public column about helping Hoosier youth during the COVID-19 pandemic and the important role that teachers play in the process.  She talks about the column, as school systems attempt to reopen during the pandemic.  Susan Bannwart, the community engagement manager for the LaPorte County Public Library, explains how its new Mobile STEAM Classroom can help prepare for high-skilled and good-paying jobs in northwest Indiana.  And Brad Miller, the northwest field director for Indiana Landmarks, talks about the latest Ten Most Endangered List and one of this year's additions is Gary Roosevelt High School.  It is one of the three high schools that provided unprecedented learning opportunities to African Americans.

Today:  Northwest Indiana financial advisor Greg Hammer is back with some tips on being financially healthy -- even though this is "Healthy Aging Month." William Streitberger with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in Washington D.C. talks about some important and high-tech enhancements to the agency's Rehabilitation and Education Service programs that assist veterans with disabilities.  And Hoosier Environmental Council assistant attorney Aaron Corn spoke to a citizens' group in Porter County about the recent pollution concerns coming from the U.S. Steel and ArcelorMittal plants at Portage.  Aaron joins us to talk about his remarks and the reaction to them from residents.

Today:   We begin with the latest news on the impending closing of the Southlake Mall Sears store and the impact on the city of Hobart.  Mayor Brian Snedecor talks with us about what mall owners have told him and his own thoughts on the future of the space (that, by the way, belongs to Sears and not the mall).  He also talks about the expanding business and industrial sector in Hobart -- the need for more housing -- and what two developers are doing to meet the future need for new homes.   Purdue University Northwest athletics director Rick Costello is in the studio to talk about the annou

Shovels pierced the dirt to commemorate the start of a mitigation project that has been years in the making in Hobart, with a goal of ultimately restoring nearly 350 acres of various native wooded and wetland habitat types.  

Rep. Pete Visclosky says the project will improve the environment and the overall economy of the area.

"Two often we look at places such as this as a dumpsite in Northwest Indiana," said Visclosky.  "I'm convinced that what you have done today is change that.