This is the WFHB Local News for Tuesday, March 2nd, 2021.

Later in the program, we'll turn to WFHB Correspondent Aaron Comforty, for part two of an interview with Claire Frohman and Frankie Figeuroa. They are the founders of Fauna, a new Bloomington-based skin care company, which aims to make local, sustainable, and healthy skin care products. Stay tuned to hear the interview during today’s feature reports.

Also coming up in the next half hour, we have Art Beat - your weekly arts segment, where Dr. Filiz Cicek  interviews artists, activists and educators about their work.

But first, your local news brief:

Photo courtesy of University of Michigan.

COVID-19 cases have remained under 1000 for nearly a week, with 582 new cases of COVID-19 reported in Indiana on Monday.

The Indiana State Department of Health reports that Monroe County saw 13 new confirmed cases yesterday, and reported 2 new COVID-19 deaths.

Lawrence County reported two new positive cases and one COVID-19 death. Brown county reported no new cases.

Starting today, Hoosiers ages 55 to 59 are now eligible to sign up and receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Hoosiers who are first responders or healthcare workers can also get their vaccines.

If you qualify, you can sign up online by visiting ourshot.in.gov, over the phone by calling 211 for assistance, or by contacting one of Indiana’s Area Agencies on Aging.

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This past weekend, Indiana University added the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity to its quarantine list.

Phi Kappa Psi is the third greek house directed to quarantine during the spring semester, and it’s the second time the house has been asked to quarantine this school year.

The Evans Scholars house is also on IU’s quarantine list. It’s been on the list for about two weeks.

Early in the Fall Semester, the University provided specific data on each greek house, which included the number of positive cases per house, and statistics on mitigation testing results.

The web page that provided this information has not been updated since September of 2020.

Bloomington Redevelopment Commission 

The Bloomington Redevelopment Commission approved EV Connect charging stations for electric cars in the Fourth Street and Trades District parking garages. Attorney Larry Allen stated the charging stations were a garage requirement during their March 1st meeting.

Allen mentioned the agreement would cost approximately $38,000. He stated around $18,000 would be covered with an Indiana Department of Environmental Management Grant. Commissioner Nick Kappas stated the entire garages could be wired for EV parking and questioned Allen about potential expansion.

Allen stated the charging stations would be free of charge to any person with an electric car.

Bloomington Utilities Service Board 

Bloomington Utilities Department Director Vic Kelson introduced the Smart Meter Customer Portal during the March First Utilities Service Board meeting. He mentioned customers can view their usage details.

Kelson stated the data is updated every hour. He reported emailed usage alerts can be set to detect leaks or over usage.

Kelson said an alert can be sent to multiple people of the customers choosing. He mentioned customers need an email address and their account number to register. Residents can sign up for the customer portal by going online to My-blmgt.sensus-analytics.com

Monroe County Council Work Session

Monroe County Council held a Work Session to discuss a Stormwater System User Fee Increase. Attorney Dave Schilling stated the rate would approxi...