AREA • STATE •
SUNDAY, AUGUST 4, 2013
KPC News of the Week • These are some of the top news stories that appeared in KPC Media Group daily newspapers that were written by KPC staff or compiled from wire reports.
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Rudy’s hopeful for a hit Looking to take advantage of traffic from Parkview Field, other nearby venues, Rudy’s opens in long-distressed neighborhood BY RICK FARRANT rfarrant@kpcmedia.com
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED
Steuben County Sheriff Tim Troyer, left, presents Deputy Rich McCarty with the 2013 Indiana Sheriff’s Association County Police Officer/Deputy of the Year Award from the Indiana Sheriff’s Association.
Steuben deputy earns statewide honor ANGOLA — Veteran Steuben County Sheriff’s Deputy Rich McCarty survived being shot at numerous times during an altercation surrounding a high-profile murder case and was honored for his professionalism last week. McCarty received the 2013 Indiana Sheriff’s Association County Police Officer/Deputy of the Year Award from the Indiana Sheriff’s Association. “As sheriff, I am amazed at the evil our deputies face every day, and they do so unwaivered,� Steuben County Sheriff TimTroyer said. “I am very thankful. Thankful that Deputy McCarty is OK and thankful that Deputy McCarty is one of the many keepers of the peace in Steuben County.� McCarty was cited for his work early June 3, 2012, when he was investigating the murder of 40-year-old Brent Dombroski of Angola. Zao Garth Burrell, 25, who shot at McCarty, was found guilty by a jury and was sentenced to 105 years in prison in early April.
Courier expanding, adding 40 jobs KENDALLVILLE — Courier Corp. announced Wednesday plans to double its digital printing capacity at its Courier Digital Solutions plant in Kendallville through the addition of a second T410 color inkjet web press. The expansion represents about $13 million investment and will create approximately 40 jobs, the company said. With its 42-inch web width, the T410 offers exceptional flexibility in meeting a high volume of diverse printing needs across a full range of run lengths, a Courier news release said. The new press from Hewlett Packard will be set up next to the existing T410 and is scheduled to begin operating later this year, said Christine Bitner, Courier Kendallville Inc. plant manager and vice-president. Courier employs 600 people in two plants on Kendallville’s east edge.
West Nile virus found in DeKalb County AUBURN — This summer’s first sign of West Nile virus in DeKalb County has arrived, the DeKalb County Health Department said Friday. A sample pool of mosquitoes collected July 17 in the county by the Indiana State Department of Health has tested positive for the virus, said Bernie Sukala, the county’s environmental health specialist. Sukala said mosquitoes that carry West Nile virus tend to lay their eggs in ditches and catchbasins with high organic matter, septic system discharge sites, unused wading and swimming pools, vehicle tires and other containers of water. Sukala said to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes, people should avoid heavily wooded areas or tall weeds, if possible.
Former Indiana school chief resigns TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida’s education commissioner resigned Thursday amid allegations that he changed the grade of a charter school run by a major Republican donor during his previous job as Indiana’s school chief. Commissioner Tony Bennett announced his resignation, effective immediately, at a news conference. He said that while he did nothing wrong, he didn’t want to be a distraction to ongoing efforts to overhaul Florida’s education system. Emails published by The Associated Press this week show that Bennett and his Indiana staff scrambled last fall to ensure Republican donor’s Christel DeHaan’s school received an A, despite poor 10th-grade algebra scores that initially earned it a C.
Rudy Mahara Sr., with his well-sculpted Hemingway-esque beard, stout build and blue eyes that have the look of great distances and even greater stories, might pass for a veteran sea captain. But the 60-year-old Mahara is not a sea captain. He is the president of Mahara Wealth Partners in Fort Wayne. And he has chosen to dock his dreams on a land-locked island of 25 mostly worn older homes and buildings on West Brackenridge Street, immediately southwest of Parkview Field. It is a somewhat distressed downtown block the city hopes will one day emerge as a thriving multiuse area, and Mahara is the first since Parkview Field’s debut in 2009 to arrive on the island with a commercial enterprise: the aptly named Rudy’s. It is an unlikely business for the area: a quaint, first-floor retail outlet in a renovated 1891 Queen Anne that will sell Indiana wines, Indiana microbrews, cigars and DeBrand Fine Chocolates. The second floor is zoned residential and will be occupied by a private corporation of cigar aficionados. Mahara, who officially opened Rudy’s on July 31 after investing about $200,000 in the place, has all kinds of reasons for thinking the unique business will be a success, not the least of which is a small, beckoning red neon sign perched near the peaked eaves of the building. “One thing for sure is that the stadium is 250 feet away from me and there’s (thousands) of people 70 times a year that walk by the stadium and when they leave, they can’t help but see the neon sign up there,� he said. “The other thing for sure is that housing is going in across the street and there will be development there. And so that will only enhance this.� But even if the business doesn’t flourish, Mahara believes it could easily be transitioned back to living quarters that in this era might fetch a better-than-decent rental price because of the building’s location. City Redevelopment Director Greg Leatherman is among those rooting for Mahara. “I give Rudy credit for blazing a trail,� Leatherman said. “He’s stepping out. He’s doing it with passion. Time will tell, but I want him to be successful. I’m just hoping the success will be long-term and year-round.� Mahara, one of the founders of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Fort Wayne and in the financial-planning business for 30 years, said the idea for Rudy’s came gradually and pretty much by accident.
RICK FARRANT
Rudy Mahara Sr., with wife Susan, envisions solid patronage for his wine, beer, cigar and chocolate business from people attending Fort Wayne TinCaps games.
I give Rudy credit for blazing a trail. He’s stepping out. He’s doing it with passion. Time will tell, but I want him to be successful. I’m just hoping the success will be long-term and year-round.� Greg Leatherman City Redevelopment Director
• “In no way did I envision anything like this,â€? he said. “It just evolved.â€? He purchased the building at 409 W. Brackenridge three years ago, thinking he might move his financial-planning business there from its location on West Jefferson Boulevard near Jefferson Pointe. One thing led to another. On a whim while he was surfing the internet, he applied for a liquor license and to his surprise received one. Then he bought the assets of the Esquire Cigar Club on Thomas Road, including the club’s inventory of cigars, humidor lockers, couches, tables, chairs, flat-screen televisions and wooden Indian sculptures. The next development was pure serendipity. “My wife (Susan) was tasting some wines in Madison, Indiana, and they gave her a sweet wine and a piece of chocolate,â€? he said. “And her mouth exploded like a chocolate-covered cherry. And she said, ‘We’ve got to see if we can put DeBrand’s in Rudy’s.’â€? DeBrand co-owner Cathy Brand-Beere agreed to offer the Fort Wayne company’s chocolates for sale at Mahara’s enterprise, and the concept for Rudy’s began to take shape. It is more than a quick-transaction business. There is a walk-in cigar humidor, although no smoking is allowed inside the first floor at Rudy’s
or immediately outside; a 15-seat wine-tasting area in a cozy dining room; 60 seats under umbrellas in a spacious “beer garden� at the rear of the business; and about 20 seats on the front porch and lawn bordered by a white-picket fence. On game days, Mahara said, Rudy’s will fire up a grill and offer hot dogs and sausages to patrons. “Beer and wine and chocolates and hot dogs: Who doesn’t like that?� he asked. When baseball is not in season, he envisions Rudy’s as a place where people can settle in for a drink or two, friendly conversation and perhaps a bite of chocolate. “I think the biggest business,� he said, “will be women coming in and tasting a sweet wine and having a piece of chocolate in the afternoon during happy hour. It’s a happy-hour kind of place. “It will be a fun atmosphere and the types of things that we might do with entertainment would include the symphony to some type of acoustic-guitar performances. There are so many possibilities.� Although the impetus for the business was the proximity to Parkview Field and the minor-league
baseball games played there, Mahara also expects to see patrons from the nearby Grand Wayne Convention Center, the Harrison apartment complex, hotels and the soon-to-be-developed four-acre plot across the street from Rudy’s. The city has bought most of the properties on that plot west of Parkview Field between Brackenridge and West Jefferson, and Leatherman said demolition of roughly a dozen structures will be carried out through the end of September. The city will then seek development of multifamily housing, and “we’re going to try to create a situation that provides us with the highest quality housing we can get.� Mahara owns up to the fact that one of his goals with Rudy’s is to plan for his retirement. Money from the retail business will help, as will the lease to the corporation that will use the well-appointed and well-ventilated second floor as a drinking, smoking, TV-watching, card-playing hangout. Mahara identified the corporation as Maduros LLC, but declined to reveal the corporation’s members. He said the corporation’s activities have nothing to do with Rudy’s downstairs and noted that corporation members will access their lair through a private entrance. Money aside, there are other, more altruistic reasons for Rudy’s. Mahara said he wants to be one of the catalysts for a better downtown and encourage others, particularly some of the well-off customers of Rudy’s, to take a similar interest in improving the area while at the same time appreciating the struggles of his neighbors on Brackenridge.
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