Lucabe expansion a win for city
An iconic Columbus building will soon have new tenants.
Lucabe Coffee Co. owners Alissa and Tyler Hodge recently announced that they will be opening a new location in the former Irwin Union Bank branch at 25th Street and National Road in Eastbrook Plaza.
The building, designed by the late Harry Weese, was completed in 1961. It has been vacant for about a year after First Financial Bank closed its branch there and moved to a new office.
Landmark Columbus, formed in 2015 as a caretaker of the city’s cultural and architectural heritage, connected the Hodges with the location.
In addition to reopening the historic site for business, the Hodges said they’ve reached out to J. Irwin Miller’s relatives to see if they would like to participate in art installations to pay homage to the history of the building.
Both Landmark Columbus and the Hodges should be commended for their work in finding ways to make the building functional while still preserving its legacy.
Lauer’s bill set to become law
A bill authored by Rep. Ryan Lauer, R-Columbus, has made its way to the desk of Gov. Eric Holcomb.
House Bill 1230, which looks to expand Indiana’s Safe Haven Law, awaits the governor’s signature after passing 88-0 in the House and 49-0 in the Senate.
Among its contents, the bill provides that a parent in crisis can call 911 to anonymously surrender a baby less than 30 days old to emergency medical service providers before the Indiana Department of Child Services assumes custody. In addition, parents could voluntarily surrender newborns to medical staff after hospital deliveries.
Currently, the law provides safeguards for parents or caregivers who surrender an infant fewer than 30 days old to any emergency room, fire station, police station or Safe Haven Baby Box without facing prosecution.
Lauer’s bill has gained the support of several organizations including the National Safe Haven Alliance and Indiana Fire Chiefs Association.
Hopefully the law will be signed to help ensure more newborns have healthier futures.
The madness comes to an end
The 2021 men’s college basketball tournament came to a close on Monday, but it’s one that fans inside and out of Indiana won’t soon forget.
March Madness brought plenty of drama this year — and it was for all the right reasons.
The games were thrilling, and Indiana was put on an international stage for three weeks, but most importantly the tournament was held in a safe manner.
Despite having the challenge of hosting 68 teams from across the country, just one program had a COVID-19 issue, and it stemmed from an incident that occurred outside of the state.
During the tournament, only 15 of more than 28,0000 COVID-19 tests came back positive — a positivity rate of .05%.
The amount of time and work put in to make the tournament a success was remarkable, and will be looked back on for years to come.
