This is the WFHB Local News for Thursday, May 29th, 2025.

In today’s broadcast, WFHB News Correspondent Harley Babbitt speaks with Christine Herring, executive director of PALS, about the recent tornado which took out their horse barn. More today’s feature report.

Also in the newscast, the Monroe County Election Board struck down vote centers in their latest meeting. That’s coming up next in your local headlines.

Monroe County Election Board Strikes Down Vote Centers in Split Vote

The Monroe County Election Board held a public hearing at their meeting on May 19th. The public hearing was the final opportunity for community members to give their input on the Vote Center Study Commission’s report.

Vote Center Study Committee Member Ami Gandhi started the public hearing by sharing that the committee believes that vote centers would help ensure fair and equal access to voting in the county.

Gandhi explained that the main purpose behind switching to a vote center model is to eliminate the confusion of having to find the right polling location.

Gandhi added that Monroe County’s current system of assigned polling locations can be confusing for residents who have moved here from other parts of the state since most counties in Indiana have moved to a Vote Center Model.

Gandhi said that the committee worked to ensure that all members of the community would have access to vote centers, for example Indiana University Students and citizens who live farther out in the county so they wouldn’t have to travel as far.

First to the podium to give public comment on Vote Centers was County Resident, Laramie Wilson, saying she is in support of vote centers. She shared that she has worked as a poll worker and has seen many voters get turned away because they were at the wrong poll site.

She also expressed concern about the staffing at the 29 proposed locations of the vote centers. She said that the poll sites need to be better staffed moving forward due to the increased amount of voters showing up.

County Commissioner Penny Githens gave public comment expressing her support for vote centers. Githens highlighted the fact that the majority of Indiana Counties have adopted Vote Centers.

Githens also addressed concerns about the costs associated with moving to vote centers saying that in the long term vote centers could save money.

Many other County Residents spoke in support of Vote Centers. To hear more, you can find the full meeting on CATS.

Also during public comment, County Resident Jack Schmidtt shared that they think the current model is working very well. He said he has worked as a poll worker and has seen many people not being able to find their polling location, however, he believes that it should not be made simpler for them.

Democratic Chair John Fernandez shared why he is in support of moving to a vote center model.

Republican Chair Danny Shields shared why he is not in support of vote centers.

For the Vote Center Report to be adopted it needed a unanimous vote from the Election Board. The vote did not pass, with County Clerk Nicole Browne and Democratic Chair John Fernandez voting yes, and Republican Chair Danny Shields voting no.

The Monroe County Election Board will meet again on June 5th.

MCPL Board Discusses ICE Procedures, Library Fees and Storage Space Concerns

The Monroe County Public Library Board of Trustees met on May 22nd. The meeting involved adjustments to the fee for non-resident subscription cards and dealing with a surplus of furniture.

During the Director’s Monthly Report, Library Director Grier Carson was asked by Board Member Kathy Loser if the library had procedures in place in the event that ICE agents entered the

When asked if the library would take an active stance in providing information regarding “Know Your Rights”, Carson explained that information would be provided upon request but would not be encouraged.

Continuing to the action items, Carson explained that an error had been made regarding calculations to the pricing of non-resident subscription cards and requested an updated fee. It was unanimously approved.

Director of Finance Gary Lettelleir laid out the issue of storage space, describing many items of surplus as “obsolete”. He asked the board to declare the list of items as surplus in order to be able to get rid of it.

The motion was passed with unanimous approval. The next meeting of the Monroe County Public Library Board of Trustees will be held on June 18th.

Feature Report:

On May 16th, an E-2 level tornado struck Bloomington causing significant damage, injuries and power outages. The storm impacted one place in particular – the People and Animals Learning Services, also known as PALS. PALS is a non-profit, equine assisted learning facility. The storm destroyed their horse barn and caused their services to be temporarily halted. In today’s feature report, WFHB News Correspondent Harley Babbitt speaks with Executive Director Christine Herring about the damage to the property, the condition of the horses and how the community can help following the storm. We turn to Babbitt for more.

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