• The 2017 Luminaria in Irvington was a huge success! Thank you to all the volunteers and helpers, as well as the homeowners, who participated throughout the community. Wouldn’t it be great if other historic neighborhoods in Indianapolis joined in this great event next year?
• All Indianapolis Public Library locations will be closed on Sunday, Dec. 24 and Mon., Dec. 25 in observance of Christmas. In addition, the Flanner House Branch, located in the Flanner House Community Center at 2424 Dr. M.L. King, Jr. Street, will be closed on Fri., Dec. 22. All Indianapolis Public Library locations will be closed on Mon., Jan. 1 for New Year’s Day, except the InfoZone, located within The Children’s Museum at 3000 N. Meridian St., which will be open from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
• Indiana Recycling Coalition’s Executive Director, Carey Hamilton, has announced she will leave the organization in March of 2018 after more than 9 years leading the organization.
• Paramount School of Excellence on the east side recently received funding for two E-STEM (environmental, science technology, engineering and math) projects. The first was from the Indianapolis Rotary Foundation, which gave them a $25,000 grant to realize the vision of a rooftop Eco Discovery Center. This unique learning space will provide students with a year-round area to study micro-habitats, grow plants, and observe wildlife. It will also be used during the summer STEAM (Success Through Education, Agriculture and Mentoring) initiative as well as after-school programs. The second was from the Marion County Farm Bureau Foundation, which will provide funding for PSOE to build a new chicken coop, which houses Paramount’s flock of 23 chickens.
• The Lawrence Fire Department’s Holiday Assistance Program was wildly successful, with firefighters distributing food boxes and donated items to 200 needy families on Dec. 16. They had hundreds of volunteers to help pack and distribute the boxes throughout Lawrence. This was the 29th year for the program.
• While a “white Christmas” is something many dream of, driving and getting around in snow is something out of a nightmare. In case of a snow event, check out the Indy Snow Force Viewer before you go out. It’s available online at indy.gov/snow where you can find helpful driving tips and more.
• The city’s trash and recycling schedule will slide for Dec. 25 and Jan. 1. Trash to be picked up on Monday will be picked up on Tuesday, Tuesday on Wednesday, and so on. On a safety note, remember that the bad guys are also looking at your trash, particularly noting if you got some nice new electronics — break down those boxes and put them in bags so it isn’t obvious you just got a brand new Earsplitter 2000 with extra pixels.
The Weekly View office will be closed the week of Dec. 25-29. We’ll be in regularly to check on the feral cats and make sure Office Manager Lola is fed. The next issue will be dated January 5, 2018. We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!