Below are the Neighborhood Association General Meetings and Events scheduled for this week 6/27/2022 – 7/4/2022.
Before attending any meetings or events please confirm with the contacts the event is taking place. Additional event information can be found by following the links in the Organization column.
FSSA encourages Hoosiers to participate in survey to measure addiction treatment, recovery resources in Indiana
The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration’s Division of Mental Health and Addiction today announced the launch of the Recovery Capital Index, designed to measure the sum of resources necessary for an individual to initiate and sustain recovery from addiction and to help track the overall recovery capital of the state and communities.
“People in recovery have been telling us for decades that there is more to recovery than just maintaining sobriety,” said Jay Chaudhary, DMHA director. “A well-rounded, fulfilling life is the key to a thriving recovery. The Recovery Capital Index will help the state measure the quality of life for Hoosiers in recovery and ensure that Indiana remains a great place to recover.”
Recovery capital is the overall measure of internal and external resources available to an individual with a substance use disorder to ensure their continual success in recovery. The RCI provides a comprehensive picture of a person’s whole well-being using an online, automated 68-question survey. Generally, the higher the level of recovery capital, the better the chances of someone maintaining success in recovery.
The state of Indiana has invested more than $45 million of federal State Opioid Response grant funding over the past four years to combat the drug epidemic and improve mental health. DMHA plans to use aggregate and geographically analyzed results from the Recovery Capital Index to drive future decisions about funding and resource allocation. Chaudhary said mapping and measuring recovery capital will also allow DMHA to see the effect of its investment and track it over time.
To complete the Recovery Capital Index survey, text “RECOVERY” to 833-638-3784. All Hoosiers are encouraged to complete the survey, not just those directly affected by addiction.
To help drive participation, Overdose Lifeline, Inc., an Indiana nonprofit dedicated to helping those affected by substance use disorder, will place stickers on over 200 NaloxBox units and 19 naloxone vending machines across the state. The stickers will prompt users to scan the QR code or text “RECOVERY” to 833-638-3784 to access the survey and additional information about naloxone, including training videos.
NaloxBox – Accessible 24 hours a day for naloxone pick up at an outside location with no personal interaction needed. Distribution Center – A community partner that can distribute naloxone to the public, hours and accessibility vary, please contact center to confirm availability.
To find a naloxone distribution site near you, visit www.overdoselifeline.org. DMHA has contracted with Commonly Well to administer the survey statewide. Commonly Well is a public benefit company that uses technology and data to help communities and organizations employ well-being initiatives.
Presented by F.C. Tucker Emge Realtors and Evansville Teachers Federal Credit Union. Enjoy live music, food trucks, late swimming hours at Lorraine & Howell Pools on July dates. Bring your picnic blankets, lawn chairs and enjoy this free event.
Evansville Water and Sewer Utility Opens Bill Relief Program Application to Customers July 1st
The Evansville Water and Sewer Utility (EWSU) is launching the Bill Relief Program July 1, 2022, to help income-eligible individuals and families in the community lighten the cost of their utility bill. Customers with a total household income of $50,000 or less may qualify for assistance.
Customers with active city water service who apply for the program and qualify will receive a $3 monthly credit applied to their account each month for one year. The credit offsets the 2022 water rate increase, which will be $2.27 per month effective July 1st (assuming an average monthly water use of 5,000 gallons). After one year, customers may have the opportunity to reapply for the program for additional 12 months. Dollars not used for the utility bill relief credit will be allocated to provide assistance to income-eligible customers in disconnected status.
Who’s Eligible
Eligibility is based on combined annual household income. EWSU customers with a household income of $50,000 or less may qualify for assistance.
Fill out the application, including EWSU account number and household income.
Applicants will receive an email verifying the application was received and whether the request was approved or denied.
Program Funding
Funding for the Bill Relief Program is provided by the American Rescue Plan, which provides direct relief to Americans and the economy during and as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The City of Evansville has allocated $4 million in federal funds for up to two years. EWSU is working toward sustaining it as a long-term program, dedicated to offering assistance to individuals and households in greatest need.
Find Out More
To learn more about the Bill Relief Program, visit ewsu.com/ReliefProgram or contact EWSU Customer Service at ewsu.com/contact or by calling 812-436-7846.
Indiana Lifts Water Bill Tax
Also starting in July – unrelated to the EWSU Bill Relief Program – water customers across the state of Indiana will benefit from changes in Indiana utility tax regulations that lift the state tax on water consumption. Beginning July 2022, all EWSU customers will see a decrease in rates and charges on their utility bill. This reduction comes from the amendment to the Public Service Commission Act, submitted by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission and passed by the Indiana State Legislature in April 2022. A residential customer who uses an average of 5,000 gallons of water per month will see a $0.46 decrease in their bill each month.
About EWSU
Evansville Water and Sewer Utility (EWSU) provides high-quality, safe and dependable water and sewer services to more than 63,000 customers in Vanderburgh County and parts of Gibson, Posey, and Warrick counties. EWSU maintains more than 1,000 miles of water lines, 800 miles of sewer lines, 15,000 hydrants, seven water storage facilities, two wastewater treatment plants and one water filtration plant. The utility also manages the City’s street sweeping and trash and recycling contracts. EWSU meets or exceeds all state and federal Safe Drinking Water Act standards while protecting land and water resources for future generations.
At this time of the year, it is not uncommon for large branches to suddenly drop from oak trees without warning. Although this phenomenon is not limited to oaks, the sheer size of their branches makes summer branch drop (also known as “sudden limb failure”) in oaks much more hazardous for life and property than branch drop by other tree species.
Summer branch drop is not related to wind and often occurs in the afternoon on hot, calm days. Unlike most breaks due to wind, which occur where a branch attaches to the trunk, a break due to summer branch drop usually occurs 3 to 12 feet away from the trunk, along the length of the branch. The branches that break are usually long and horizontal, as opposed to upright, frequently extending to or beyond the average tree canopy. While some limbs that drop show evidence of wounds or decay, many of these failed limbs appear to be quite sound. Older, less vigorous trees seem to be more prone to this problem. Once a tree has lost a limb due to summer branch drop, it is more likely to lose another.
Another consideration is that these long, horizontal branches may have been damaged by earlier storms. While there is usually no visible cracking on the outside of the limb or bark, the branch may have over-flexed in heavy winds, sort of like how we get a sprained ankle. A number of the interior wood fibers snapped in the wind, but not enough for the branch to immediately fail. The weight of the branch continues to snap these wood fibers one by one, until “the final straw that breaks the camel’s back” occurs, and the limb fails.
Although there is no guaranteed way to prevent summer branch drop, several things can be done to mitigate this hazard in oaks and other commonly affected tree species. On mature trees, shorten and lighten long horizontal branches and open up the tree by thinning to healthy lateral branches to reduce branch weight. (This does NOT mean topping the tree!) Inspect the tree for externally visible defects and prune out damaged or sickly low-vigor limbs that have decay or cavities. Finally, do not park cars or place play structures, benches, or picnic tables beneath older, susceptible trees. Falling limbs can’t harm people (or property) if they aren’t under the tree.
No Fruit This Year?
I’ve had numerous complaints this year about a lack of fruit in home orchards. I meant to discuss this in an earlier newsletter, but it get slipping my mind. It came back to me as I was examining the complete crop failure on my bush cherry this weekend.
We had a a lot of strange weather this spring. It was very cool and wet most of the spring…especially during bloom time for many of our home fruit trees. We did not have any killing freezes during bloom time, so we can rule that out. However, the weather did play a minor role in our problems: it reduced bee flying.
I noticed that my bush cherry was absolutely loaded with flowers this spring. But, unlike previous years, I did not notice any bees working the blossoms. Neither my neighbors nor I use any insecticides, so there should have been plenty of bees in the neighborhood. But the problem is, bees don’t like to fly during cold, wet weather. Bees CAN fly in the rain, but they don’t like to; the rain (even mist) adds heavy droplets to the bees’ furry bodies, which inhibits their ability to fly, and reduces the amount of pollen they can collect.
There’s nothing to be done for this year. Keep up with irrigation this summer; be sure to prune properly this winter (or have me come out and prune your fruit trees for you!); and if you are spraying fungicides for foliar disease, continue to do so. Also, try to reduce insecticide usage, especially on blooming plants
Japanese Beetles Flying
Japanese beetles are flying throughout the tri-state. They were a little slow getting started this year, most likely due to the prolonged cool spring we had. But, they are out in abundance right now…at least, in some neighborhoods.
Adult Japanese beetles are about 1/2 inch long, metallic green and bronze in color, with a row of white hairy tufts along each side of the body.
Japanese beetles have an annual life cycle. The adult beetles emerge from the soil, usually in early June in southern Indiana. They will feed on the foliage, flowers, and fruits of over 350 species of plants. After feeding for a few weeks, the beetles will mate. The females will drop to the ground and, if the soil is soft and moist enough, will burrow down several inches to lay their eggs. The eggs will hatch after 2 or 3 weeks into white, C-shaped grubs. The grubs feed on the roots of turfgrass throughout the summer. As the weather cools, the grubs move downwards into the soil profile, where they will spend the winter. In the spring, the grubs will move back towards the surface, where they will pupate. After several weeks in the pupal stage, they will emerge as adult beetles and start the life cycle again.
An interesting observation I’ve made over the years: Japanese beetles will appear in a new neighborhood in huge numbers. They will be very troublesome for three years or so. After the third or fourth year, the population crashes, and from that point on, they are more of a nuisance than a serious pest problem.
Controlling Japanese beetles is difficult, partly because the adults do not emerge from the ground all at once. While there is a wide range of insecticides that will kill the adults, the beetles have to eat some of the plant in order to be poisoned, so your plants will still be damaged. Also, the beetles you kill today will be replaced by a new emergence of beetles tomorrow. Avoid over-applying insecticides, because this can be harmful to bees and other pollinators.
For non-flowering ornamentals, the best product to use is a soil application of imidacloprid, sold as Bio Advanced Tree and Shrub Insect Control. This systemic product is applied to the ground next to the plant and watered in; it will move upwards through the entire plant, providing about 90 days worth of control. This product should not be used on summer-blooming plants, as the product has been reported to be harmful to bees.
Control the beetles on food plants with foliar applications of insecticides. Bifenthrin, carbaryl, cyfluthrin, neem, and permethrin are safe to use on fruit and vegetables if harvest restrictions on the label are followed. Sevin is also available as a 5% dust to be used at the rate of 1/2 pound per 1,000 square feet (be aware: the dust form of Sevin is extremely toxic to honeybees!). For other products to use on ornamentals, check out this publication: https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/publications/E-75.pdf
Beetle traps are not very useful for controlling Japanese beetle, because the traps tend to bring more beetles to the property than would have been there anyway. If you use a trap, try to place it as far from the garden beds you are trying to protect as you can. The idea is lure the beetles away from your garden, not toward it.
I’m Here to Help!
If you have questions or wish to have me visit your property, please contact me! Phone and Text Messages: 812-449-7067 Email: Larry@CaplanTree.com
Learn how to access and report on the safety and walkability of your neighborhood and inspire needed change.
In too many communities, people can’t safely walk to where they need or want to go due to a lack of sidewalks, crosswalks, or other safety features which allow streets to be safe for pedestrians and drivers.
A walk audit is a simple activity in which an individual or team observes and evalutes the walkability of a location to document how and if pedestrians can safely travel along a street, navigate and intersection and get from point A to B, C and so on.
The AARP Walk Audit Tool Kit can be used by local leaders, advocates, community organizations and residents to:
Inspire the developmet of pedestrian friendly streets
Gather input about community infrastructure needs
Help reduce traffic congestion and pollution
Educate residents about street design elements that support safety
Increase exercise opportunities for people of all ages
Encourage social interactions among neighbors
Enable people to get around without having to drive
Give a boost to property values
Empower community leaders and residents to be the agents of change
The tool kit publication provides step-by-step instructions and checklists for examining intersections, sidewalks, driver behavior, public safety and more.
Since the walk audit survery is user-directed, it can take as little or as much time as desired by, spending 15 minutes at one busy corner or devoting several hours to documenting several roadways in a neighborhood.
The documented results can be shared with elected officials and other local leaders when advocating for safe street features.
Below are the Neighborhood Association General Meetings and Events scheduled for this week 6/20/2022 – 6/26/2022.
Before attending any meetings or events please confirm with the contacts the event is taking place. Additional event information can be found by following the links in the Organization column.
Public hearing planned of US 41 pedestrian bridge near Bosse High School
The Indiana Department of Transportation will hold a public hearing for a proposed pedestrian bridge over.
Public Hearing Benjamin Bosse High School 1300 Washington Avenue, Evansville
June 29th Doors open at 4:30pm Formal Presentation begins at 6:00pm
The public will have a chance to view project displays and speak with project representatives before formal presentations begin. Attendees will have the opportunity to provide comments on the project.
An open house on a proposed intersection improvement at US 41 and Washington Avenue will be held in conjunction at the school. Attendees will have the chance to view project displays and talk with representatives for this project. However, no formal presentation is planned.
This public hearing will include appropriate COVID-19 safety measures. Masks and sanitation stations will be made available for attendees.
To accommodate those unable to attend in person, the public hearing presentation and comment session will also be broadcast live on the INDOT Southwest Facebook page:
The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration Division of Mental Health and Addiction is providing a funding opportunity for organization working to stop the stigma of mental health.
Stigma, distrust and lack of a clear informational education on mental health continues to be a barrier to access mental health services for communities of color which include BIPOC, Latino-Hispanic and members of the LGBTQ+ community. The Division of Mental Health and Addiction is granting funds to increase mental health awareness to Stop the Stigma in the Black and Latino-Hispanic communities to help overcome barriers to seeking mental health services. Priority will be given to respondents with knowledge and expertise of any organization or grassroots agencies that have well-established relationships with these populations.
Details about the RFF and how to apply are available on the DMHA funding page.
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