News Flash

Temporary Road Closures on Outer Drive and around the Morgan County Courthouse

Work planned on State Road 39 in Martinsville

Indiana Department of Transportation contractor E&B Paving, Inc. is scheduled to begin signal modification work along State Road 39 on or after Monday, March 31, in Martinsville.Work will take place on S.R. 39 between Rogers Road and West Morgan Street. Flagging operations will be periodically used while signal work is in progress.Pavement rehabilitation work will take place on S.R. 39 as part of the contract following the completion of signal modification work. INDOT will provide additional infromation as work progresses. Overall work on S.R. 39 is expected to be complete in late October, weather permitting.This work is part of a contract awarded E&B in February 2025. INDOT reminds drivers to slow down, use extra caution, and avoid distractions when traveling in and near work zones. All work is weather-dependent and schedules are subject to change.

Stay InformedMotorists in Southeast Indiana can monitor road closures, road conditions, and traffic alerts any time via:

• Facebook: facebook.com/INDOTSoutheast
• Twitter: @INDOTSoutheast
• TrafficWise: 511in.org
• Mobile App: iTunes App Store and the Google Play store for Android

UPDATE: As of Friday, August 1, 2025, work has begun. Please watch for changes to traffic patterns.

Martinsville Awarded Grant Funding to Assist with Home Repairs

In the fourth quarter of 2024, The City of Martinsville, Indiana was awarded $350,000 in grant funding from the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs to assist homeowners with certain home repairs through the Owner Occupied Rehabilitation Grant program. The Owner Occupied Rehabilitation Grant program empowers Indiana communities to establish local home repair programs. With these awarded funds, the City of Martinsville will create programs that directly fund repairs on owner-occupied residential properties at no cost to homeowners who meet certain guidelines. Special consideration will be given to elderly (65+), disabled, veteran, or single-parent head of household applicants.

The City of Martinsville was one of eight Indiana communities selected to receive Owner Occupied Rehabilitation Grant funding. Owner-Occupied Rehabilitation grants will be used to empower these communities to directly fund homeowners of low-to-moderate income to make needed repairs on their homes. “Each of these grant programs will contribute to improving the lives of Hoosiers across our state,” said Lt. Gov. Crouch, Indiana’s Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development. 

Eligible repairs include roof repair or replacement, ADA accessibility, heating and cooling replacement, lighting and electrical upgrades, and water heater replacement.

“Congratulations to the communities receiving these important grants, these funds are vital to improving the quality of life throughout the Hoosier state,” said OCRA Executive Director Duke Bennett. “I look forward to seeing how these improvements will benefit our rural cities and towns and encourage others to apply when the next round opens.”

Funding for OCRA’s CDBG programs originates from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant program and is administered for the State of Indiana by OCRA. For more information, visit in.gov/ocra/cdbg/.

Applications for the program are closed. Residents who are selected for the program will be contacted in February to submit income verification documents and schedule an initial home inspection.

Notice Concerning Lead and Copper Rule Changes

For the last several years the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been revising the rules regarding lead and copper in our nation’s water infrastructure.  On October 8, 2024, the EPA announced the final Lead and Copper Rule Improvements otherwise known as “LCRI”. Under the LCRI, drinking water systems will be required to proactively replace lead services lines within 10 years. This includes the service line from the main to the meter and from the meter to the front wall of the home.  

The City of Martinsville completed the lead and copper inventory of our system early last month, in October 2024, and submitted that inventory to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) and the EPA.  

IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THAT EVERY SYSTEM IN THE ENTIRE COUNTRY IS FACING THESE SAME RULE CHANGES AND INCREASED EFFORT TO IDENTIFY AND REMOVE LEAD PIPES.  WE ARE NOT ALONE IN THIS EFFORT

Of the roughly 4700 service connections in our system, 

Also, as part of the new rule changes, every water system in the country is now required to send out annual notices to any customer whose service line is categorized as either “LEAD, GALVANZIED REQUIRING REPLACEMENT, OR UNKNOWN”.  

The timeline requirements for these annual notices are as follows:

We will continue to work to identify unknowns as time goes by, thereby reducing the number of annual notices that will go out.  

This will be a huge undertaking and is contingent on continued cooperation and financial support from the state and federal governments.

Read on...

City of Martinsville Begins Grant-Funded Tree Planting Program

The City of Martinsville, Indiana, will plant approximately 50 new trees annually as part of a multi-year street tree planting program funded by a grant from the non-profit Beautify Martinsville. This grant will allow the City of Martinsville to make trees available to property owners within the city limits and result in more than 200 trees being planted in the tree plots in front of local residences over the next five years. Funding includes the cost of the trees as well as delivery and labor costs associated with their installation. Details on the program may be found at Martinsville.IN.gov/tree-program.

The trees to be planted are from a variety of species approved by Beautify Martinsville and chosen because they will grow to be old, large, mature street trees. Along with beautifying our streets, trees reduce energy costs, moderate temperatures along city streets, and provide numerous health benefits. Residents can state their preference for tree type when applying for a free street tree.

Trees will be planted annually in September and October. Applications can be submitted all year and will be maintained in the order they are received. Residents can apply for one free tree each year during the program.

All trees for the 2024 planting season have been allocated. Applications received after October 8, 2024 will be held for consideration for the fall 2025 planting.

If you are interested in having a free street tree planted in front of your property, submit an application at Martinsville.IN.gov/tree-form.

Read on...

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