Nappanee Advance-News, Volume 130, Number 2, Nappanee, Elkhart County, 11 January 2007 — Page 1

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DIME STORE The Wakarusa Dime Store will be unveiling its newest Jumbo Jelly Bean flavor on Thursday, Jan. 11 from 10a.m. to noon. This newest flavor was chosen in honor of the Dime Store's 100th year in Wakarusa. BASEBALL HOSTS CHILI SUPPER The North Wood baseball team will sponsor its 30th annual chili • supper on Friday, Jan. 19 before the Goshen-NorthWood varsity basketball game. Tickets for the all-you-can-eat supper are $6 for adults and $4 for students. Pre-school children eat free. In addition to chili, the menu includes Jell-0 fruit salad, home made cookies, carrot sticks, celery sticks, crackers and milk or coffee. Tickets will be available from North Wood baseball players or at the door. Serving time is 5 to 7 p.m. in the North Wood cafeteria. HOME AND GARDEN CLUB Nappanee Home and Garden Club will meet Tuesday, Jan. 16 at 7 p.m. at Pages and Ivy in Nappanee. Cathy Gillam will pre-' sent the program on books and members will enjoy shopping and browsing time in the store. The meeting will continue across the street at Main Street Coffee Shop for refreshments. Nappanee Home and Garden Club meets on the third Tuesday of the month January through October at 7 p.m. The group's mission statement is "To provide fellowship, information and beautification of our community." Guests are always welcome. For further information call Jane Leavitt 773-2180 or Linda Thompson 7734196. CONCERT Willie and Rodi Longenecker of Gospel group Grace Again will be See AROUND, page 3 Contact Us Advance News 158 W Market St. PO. Box 230 Nappanee, IN 40550 Office Hours: 10 aan. to 3 pm. Tuesday and Thursday 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday 'fkMt 574-773-3127 (news) 1-800-933-0356 (ads) Fax: 574-775-3512 E-mail advince9tqicc.net

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Mayor: 2007 looks promising

By Mandy McFarland Editor NAPPANEE As 2007 progresses, Nappanee will be embracing many changes. In his State of the City address on Wednesday, Jan. 3, Mayor Larry Thompson made a number of positive projections for Nappanee in the upcoming year. According to Thompson, the year will continue to see numerous improvements, both to the appearance of the downtown area and to the city as a whole. Among the major improvements that the mayor cited were the new Nappanee Center, the continuation of downtown beautification, the combining of Nappanee's Tax Incremental Finance (TIF) districts and other pertinent areas of concern. Thompson challenged everybody, "from the Chamber of Commerce to the dog catcher" to seize the day,

Chamber and Redevelopment make the move

By Mandy McFarland Editor NAPPANEE Moving day can be a hassle. There are boxes to pack, items to keep track of and vehicles to load and unload. Yet, according to Larry Andrews, executive director of the Nappanee Area Chamber of Commerce, relocating the Chamber and Redevelopment offices could not have gone smoother.'"' The move took place on Thursday, Dec. 28. "We had great cooperation from the city," said Andrews. "The street department, the park department, the water department, the Mayor they all came with their trucks and we had all of it moved in two hours." While the move may have gone quickly, getting everything ready took a little bit longer. "We spent a couple of weeks readying things," said Andrews. "Everything had to be boxed and labeled what room it went to." The Chamber and Redevelopment offices were formerly located in the same complex as the Elder Haus, the Nappanee Boys and Girls Club and the Main Street apartments. The offices are now located

Tiki Hut tanning brings color to downtown area

By Mandy McFarland Editor NAPPANEE Those wishing to go beyond the pale of a winter complexion need look no further than the new Tiki Hut tanning salon in downtown Nappanee. Tiki Hut, located at 109 E. Market St., opened its doors on Tuesday, Jan. 2. Owner Bemie Todd enjoys the location of her new business. "Why not Nappanee!" she commented. "What better place to be?" Todd's enthusiasm shows in the hours she is willing to work. Tiki Hut will be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 to 7 p.m. on Sundays. "We will play with the hours as time goes on," said

take hold of all opportunities presented and to pursue the vision for the future. Below is a reprint of the mayor's speech as it was delivered before the Nappanee Common Council at its weekly meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 3: STATE OF THE CITY 2007 You Can't Harvest if You Haven't Planted Some leaders find it hard to invest resources because they seem so deficient feeling their commodities are about to run out. Good leaders see the same resources as sufficient seed to be sown, knowing the harvest will come and more will be created. Our challenge as leaders of Nappanee is to be on the offense, not the defense; to create, not just maintain; to escape loss and pursue vision; to release our gifts, not contain them; be proactive, not reactive; not only guard

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ADVANCE NEWS PHOTO/MANDY MCFARLAND As things get settled in at the new Nappanee Center, visitors will be seeing more and more historical items arriving from the Nappanee Public Library’s Evelyn Lehman-Culp Heritage Collection. Just a few historic items already at the center include an old-fashioned cash register and a cage that was originally inside of the Coppes Hotel, now the Key Bank. A collection of brochures has also been placed inside of the center in anticipation of the tourist season, which will begin later this spring.

at inside of the new Nappanee Center. They occupy the portion of the building that is known as the Welcome Center, where visitors will be able to go for information and to plan an itinerary of their visit to Nappanee. While the move is complete, there is still work to be

Todd. Currently, Tiki Hut offers three tanning beds, two 100watt beds and one 160-watt bed. Sessions for the 100-watt tanning bed last no longer than 20 minutes, while sessions for the 160-watt tanning bed are 12 minutes at a time. Spray tanning is also available. Todd hopes to begin offering services for hair and nails. The schedule for the hair dresser and nail technician will be slightly different from that of the tanning side of the business, depending on when they are available. "Hair and nails seemed an obvious extension," said Todd. Originally from New See TIKI, page 2

Pages & Ivy & TIME FOR COZY OFF WINTER READING! 11

and protect but to risk and seize opportunity; multiplication, not stagnation; not to be paralyzed holding on but to be dynamic and let go; not to be narrow and closed, but to be wide and open. We must think win-win, not winning and losing. This year promises to be a very exciting year for Nappanee. We are positioned to see over $lO million in retail and professional development alone. Our enlarged Tax Incremental Finance District could grow to half a million dollars per year by 2008. We will consider $1 million investment in the Elkhart Community Foundation, which will trigger major returns for generations to come. It is anticipated this $1 million will return close to sls million over the next 75 years and the principal will grow to over sl2 million. This does not take into account the many other ways the foundation helps Nappanee.

done. Doors still need to be added to the offices and there is some remodeling work yet to be completed. Overall, Andrews is happy with the new location. "1 like my office a lot," he said. The Nappanee Public Library has also been in the

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Left to right: Mayor Larry Thompson, Nappanee Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Larry Andrews, Tiki Hut employees Tami CoquiUard and Jessica Ferrell, Tiki Hut owner Bemie Todd, employee Angie Martin, landlords Brandon Myers and Carl Bate and Chamber of Commerce chairperson Dianne Debelak cut the ceremonial ribbon marking the official opening of the Tiki Hut, Nappanee’s newest tanning salon. - _

We will work with other elected officials to improve our taxing system. New ways must be considered to lower our property taxes. The "Hometown Matters" being discusses and promoted by cities and towns provides property tax relief by allowing locals to raise funds in other ways. The challenge is to lower our overall tax commitment, not to create new ones without lowering or eliminating others. Forever, leaders have been challenged to paint the big picture for others. Our state leaders need to remember that good partnerships do not foster co-dependence or independence but interdependence. Both parties feel secure; they are stretched and enjoy synergy. Good partnerships multiply the productivity of both parties. Locally, we should see many infrastructure improvements. We anticipate both U.S. 6 and S.R. 19 (Market and

process of moving their Evelyn Lehman-Culp Heritage Collection from its current location in the library building to the new Nappanee Center, where it will where it will be a centerpiece of local history.

Main streets) to receive some major improvements. As. East Market Street is improved our water services, curbs, sidewalks and lighting should also be improved. We anticipate much of this cost to be part of the state's portion. The extension of three lanes on U.S. 6 West continues to work its way through engineering. We are hoping for 2008 construction. Plans are underway to improve Oakland Avenue from U.S. 6 north to Woodview Drive. These improvements could include a slight widening, possible curbs, drainage improvements, elevation changes and other safety issues. The downtown enhancement project will be completed by year's end. We will begin planning with future enhancement dollars to extend Lincoln Street through the old Coppes property on our near east side. We will support INDOT's See MAYOR, page 2

Nappanee Center seeks volunteers B u kknnAit MfTnrlnnrl oy manay rvKranarKi Editor NAPPANEE The move is for the most part complete, but there is still much work to be done as far as the new Nappanee Center is concerned. This, according to Larry Andrews, executive director of the Nappanee Area Chamber of Commerce, is where local volunteers come in. "We're needing volunteers for our Chamber office," said Andrews. According to Andrews, there is an available volunteer position for just about everyone. "Really it can be anything from stuffing envelopes to making phone calls, that sort of thing," Andrews said. "They could manage the gift shop, see to items and proper display and arrangement. When visitors come in, they would greet See CENTER, page 2

ADVANCE NEWS PHOTO/MANDY MCFARLAND