Tag: Ashley Cranor

Health board member removed by Monroe County commissioners before she could resign

Feb. 9, 2023 board of health meeting.
B Square file photo of Ashley Cranor at the April 4 2022 Democratic Primary forum.
Monroe County health building at Walnut and 7th streets.

When the Monroe County board of health convened its regular meeting last Thursday (Feb. 9), Sarah Ryterband was seated at the table, instead of Ashley Cranor.

Ryterband had been appointed to the board of health, as the replacement for Cranor, just the day before—by the  county board of commissioners at their regular Wednesday meeting.

Cranor had apparently indicated to county commissioners she would eventually be relocating to the Pacific Northwest, and thus resigning from the board of health. But Cranor had not yet submitted her resignation.

Cranor told The B Square she had planned to attend Thursday’s board of health meeting. She wanted to convey some concerns about county codes on various health fees, including private sewage disposal systems, and for rental property inspections. Setting those fees is a part of the board’s core responsibilities, she said.

Cranor said she had wanted to ask Monroe County health administrator Lori Kelley about the county codes on fees, among other issues, and she wanted her remarks on the public record.

But Cranor said she got a phone call from the county’s legal department on Wednesday afternoon—after the commissioners appointed Ryterband as Cranor’s replacement—telling her she was no longer on the board.

Commissioners moved forward with a decision to take Cranor off the board, based on a provision of Indiana state law that says a board of health member can be removed, if they miss four board meetings in a calendar year. Continue reading “Health board member removed by Monroe County commissioners before she could resign” →

Map of racially restrictive covenants released by Monroe County recorder

“None of the above tract of land is to be ever sold to colored people.”

That is the text of a covenant recorded on a deed dated Nov. 6, 1912 for some land located at the northwest corner of 17th Street and College Avenue in Bloomington, Indiana.

A point in time that lies over a century in the past might seem like ancient history.

But the same parcel is part of a plat that is dated just 77 years ago—June 16, 1946.

The covenant on the plat reads: “The ownership and occupancy of lots and buildings or parts thereof in this addition are forever restricted to members of the white race, except that domestic help, not of the white race may occupy a room in said dwelling during the period of employment.”

Information on racially restrictive covenants on deeds and plats in Monroe County is now within easy reach of anyone with an internet connection.

This past week, Monroe County recorder Amy Swain released a project that maps out racially restrictive covenants on deeds and plats, which the county recorder’s office has unearthed, scanned and made accessible on a web page.

The map is embedded in an explainer website, but can also be accessed through a direct link.

Swain is the newly elected recorder, sworn into office just about six weeks ago. Her statement announcing the release of the map gave credit to the office led by the previous recorder, Eric Schmitz: “[O]f course, the bulk of the work was done during former recorder Eric Schmitz’s administration.” Continue reading “Map of racially restrictive covenants released by Monroe County recorder” →

2022 Democratic Party primary election notebook: Breakdown of results by precinct for recorder, county commissioner

The precinct-by-precinct numbers for Tuesday’s primary elections are now available on Monroe County’s website.

Numbers are still unofficial.

For county offices, Democrats saw four contested races on the ballot. The race for the nomination for circuit court judge was a four-way contest, won by Emily Salzmann. The race for the nomination for sheriff was a five-way contest, won by Ruben Marté.

The B Square took a closer precinct-by-precinct look at the other two races, which were two-way affairs. The race for recorder was close, almost a dead heat. The county commissioner’s race was not as close—about a 3:2 margin for the winner.

What both races showed was a detectable, even if not dramatic difference between inside and outside the city limits of Bloomington. In both races there was about a four-point difference in results inside and outside Bloomington. Continue reading “2022 Democratic Party primary election notebook: Breakdown of results by precinct for recorder, county commissioner” →

Monroe County campaign finance: 4 races, 17 candidates, $115K

Primary Election Day is May 3.

One limited measure of how much support candidates have among voters is the amount and range of financial contributions to their campaigns so far.

text is "pre-primary campaign finance filings" overlaid on top of a bag with a dollar sign on it

For the 2022 election season in the state of Indiana, pre-primary campaign finance forms were due at noon last Monday, April 18. Those forms are supposed to cover donations and expenditures for the period between Jan. 1, 2022 and April 8, 2022.

The B Square took a look at some of the early campaign finance filings by candidates in four Monroe County races— county commissioner; sheriff; circuit court judge; and recorder.

Those are races that have contested primaries this year for the Democratic Party.

The winner of those races will face a Republican Party candidate in the fall. None of the four races are contested in the Republican Party’s primary. The B Square has included Republican candidates in this roundup, which is compiled in a shared Google Sheet, with links to individual filings.

[Shared Goog Sheet 2020 pre-primary]

The 17 candidates in the four races have raised a combined total of around $115,000.

Counting money raised last year, six candidates for sheriff have raised a combined total of $58,000. The five candidates for judge have raised a combined total of around $28,000. The three candidates for county commissioner have raised a combined total of around $22,300. And the three candidates for county recorder have raised a combined total of around $7,000. Continue reading “Monroe County campaign finance: 4 races, 17 candidates, $115K” →