2 January 21, 2014Current in Noblesvillewww.currentnoblesville.com

Lasting impact – Prior to the end of his 21-year career as Noblesville Parks director, Don Seal, right, was honored by President Mark Boice and the Noblesville Common Council on Jan. 15. Seal began his parks career in Anderson in January 1972. After 20-and-a-half years, he was recruited to come to Noblesville and transform the city’s amenities. Noblesville’s landscape and parks department were quite different when Seal started in August 1992. Since then he has affected every facet of Forest Park.

Update – Former chairman of the Hamilton County Republican Party Charlie White won’t need to wear an ankle bracelet in the immedi-ate future. On Jan. 3 Daniel Pfleging, Hamilton County Superior Court 2 judge, granted a stay of White’s previous home-detention sentence pending a possible appeal.

Milestone win – Coach David McCollough earned his 300th win at Noblesville High School when the Mill-ers defeated the McCutch-eon Mavericks at home by a score of 47-44 on Jan. 11. The victory makes McCol-lough’s record 300-135 at Noblesville and 457-230 for his 31-year career.

Safe sitter – The Noblesville Parks Dept. is offering a class to teach babysitters how to handle crises, keep their charges secure, and nurture and guide a young child. Safe Sitter will be held from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Jan. 25 at Forest Park Lodge. Cost is $35. Pre-registration is required and registration will close on Jan. 22 or when the class is filled. For more infor-mation or to sign up, call 770-5750.

COMMUNITY

Director Paul Greengrass is not a man who deals in moral absolutes. In “Captain Phillips” he, along with screenwriter Billy Ray and star Tom Hanks, relate the true story of an American cargo ship captain who was kidnapped at sea by Somali pirates. But rather than mak-ing the bad guys faceless, soulless villains, he portrays them as real, thinking individuals who feel pressured to commit acts of piracy. Read more at currentnightandday.com

Interior design is about the big picture and the big picture works when it is the result of a carefully planned compilation of elements and principles. Good taste, on the other hand, is the sum of life experience and exposure. Columnist Vicky Earley explains the differ-ence in this week’s column. Read more at currentnoblesville.com

Columnist Mike Redmond recently went with his family down to Disney World. Every group has a Grumpy, but even Redmond must admit Dizzily World also made him, by turns, Happy, Sleepy and Sneezy – not to mention nauseous and footsore. Read more at currentnobles-ville.com

With the sour taste of unwanted development in 2003 of the northeast corner of Spring Mill Road and 161st Street, neighboring subdivi-sions have worked col-laboratively to create a plan for those highly attractive pieces of land. To read more, visit www.currentinwestfield.com.

ON THE WEB

DVD ReviewDecorating

Humor United development

McCollough

DISPATCHES

ACHIEvEMENT

Stinky job earns stake award2013 Common Council President Roy Johnson, left, presents Ray Thompson, wastewater department director, with the annual Stake in the Ground Award on Jan. 14. (Photo by Robert Herrington)

By Robert Herrington • robert@youarecurrent.com

Ray Thompson has served as Noblesville’s waste-water director for the past four years and has

worked for Noblesville for the past 34 years. On Jan. 14, the Noblesville Common Council

honored him for his work with the annual Stake in the Ground Award.

“I’m humbled. I had no clue it was coming,” Thomp-son said.

Thompson is overseeing the long-term implemen-tation plan for the city’s sewer collection system. In basic terms, Thompson said the city and state have an agreement for Noblesville to make improvements.

“We have to do ‘X’ amount of modifications in so many years,” he said, adding the city has 15 years to finish the project. “It started prior to my becoming director. We have until 2022 to complete it.”

Thompson said part of the project was install-ing a new sewer on Maple Street along with a new roadway.

“There is a total of five phases. We tackled the most expensive first,” he said.

The current project is installing 1,100 feet of 60-

inch sewer line. Thompson said the top of the sewer line will be a city trail from Maple to Division Streets right along the bank of White River. The trail will at-tach to Riverwalk and connect the sewer treatment plant to Forest Park.

“It’s almost a three-year project. It officially began in July,” he said.

Like they have with other wastewater projects, Thompson said the departments try to make improve-ments within the city with sidewalks, streets or trails.

“We’re going to go in and tear up an area, why not restore it or make it better than it was before?,” he said.

2013 Common Council President Roy Johnson de-scribed Thompson as an “unsung hero.”

“He’s out there working his tail off,” Johnson said. “Nobody knows all the effort and time he puts into his job.”

Johnson said the award was designed to recog-nize – at the director level – city employees “who obviously go way above and beyond their jobs.”

“We had really good candidates this year,” he said, adding that each councilor makes a nomination and then all members vote on it.

Founded Sept. 15, 2009, at Noblesville, IN

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On the CoverSharon McMahon has been the head of the Hamilton County Chamber of Commerce for the past 20 years - 13 in Noblesville and seven in Fishers. (Photo by Robert Herrington)

The views of the columnists in Current in Noblesville are their own and do not necessarily

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Conceptual Plans 4.1

Conceptual Plan “A”

SPRING MILL

STATION

Enclave at Maple Knoll

Mulberry Farms

Countryside

Crosswind Commons