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Dave Askins

Dave Askins

Bloomington, Indiana

Dave Askins is editor and publisher of The B Square Bulletin. A Hoosier native with a background in math and linguistics, he previously co-founded the Ann Arbor Chronicle with his wife, Mary Morgan.

County councilors give final OK for $100K for Monroe County township assistance

County councilors give final OK for $100K for Monroe County township assistance

At their Tuesday work session, Monroe County councilors gave the final approval needed to authorize up to $100,000 to augment the assistance that township governments normally give their residents. Helping residents bridge gaps to pay for essentials like utilities, housing, food, healthcare, funerals and emergency shelter is a routine

Up to $100K in Monroe County rainy day funds to go towards township resident assistance

Up to $100K in Monroe County rainy day funds to go towards township resident assistance

On the Monroe County council’s work session agenda for Tuesday is the approval of an interlocal agreement that will boost township assistance programs by up to $100,000. The money would come from the county’s rainy day fund. County commissioners already gave their approval at their regular meeting

Partisan case for partisan judges: Who rules on lawsuit over Bloomington plan commission seat?

Partisan case for partisan judges: Who rules on lawsuit over Bloomington plan commission seat?

On June 9, a lawsuit was filed in Monroe County’s circuit court disputing the mayoral appointment of the plan commission seat where Chris Cockerham had sat the day before. In the lawsuit, Andrew Guenther asserts that he has been duly appointed by GOP Monroe County chair William Ellis, and

Initial thoughts on policing from public to Bloomington city council committee: Sell Bearcat armored vehicle; re-open Joseph Smedley case

Initial thoughts on policing from public to Bloomington city council committee: Sell Bearcat armored vehicle; re-open Joseph Smedley case

A meeting held last Thursday by Bloomington city council’s four-member public safety committee got some initial comments from the public on the topic of policing in the city. Opening remarks from committee chair Jim Sims included the statement: “We are here to listen to you, the public.” Sims

Bloomington’s city council awards $319K in social services grants

Bloomington’s city council awards $319K in social services grants

At its meeting on Wednesday, Bloomington’s city council accepted the recommendation of its Jack Hopkins social services funding committee and approved the allocation of $318,795 in funding for requests from 24 different nonprofits. The program has awarded almost $4.5 million dollars to local social services nonprofits since

12 new COVID-19 cases in Monroe County most on single day since outbreak started

12 new COVID-19 cases in Monroe County most on single day since outbreak started

In a press release issued late Wednesday afternoon, Monroe county’s health department said it’s investigating a spike in confirmed COVID-19 cases, after the state’s dashboard, updated every day at noon, showed 12 new cases for the county. The 12 new confirmed COVID-19 cases reported on

Bloomington public bus ridership starts to claw back a bit from COVID-19 impacts

Bloomington public bus ridership starts to claw back a bit from COVID-19 impacts

Last month the Bloomington Transit (BT) board got clear look at the impact the COVID-19 pandemic was having on fix-route bus ridership. The April numbers were down about 90 percent from April a year ago. On Tuesday, the May monthly ridership numbers reported at BT’s board meeting