August in Rising Sun epitomizes the lazy days of summer... live music from the Main Street Stage on the river front on Saturday nights, homemade ice cream, park benches, free boat hook ups, an eclectic array of dining options, and a free shuttle to the Grand Victoria Casino, golf course and hotel, featuring "Elvis" every weekend! Check out the website www.risingsunchamber.com for current events scheduled for August.
Every First Friday of the month, the Pendleton Art Center opens its doors for visitors and anyone interested in seeing artwork and meeting some talented artists. Our Rising Sun artists, photographers, sculptors, glass artisans, potters, and musicians invite you to come to their studios to see their works; or just come hang out for refreshments and some great music on a Friday night in Rising Sun along the Ohio River. From contemporary to realistic expressionism, our artists enjoy opening their studios to the general public on First Friday's and Second-Look Saturday's to show their wares.
Artists featured this month in the Pendleton Main Gallery are:
--Andrea Grimsley, Landscapes and Abstract Art, from Rising Sun, IN
--Joni Huber, Mixed Media, from West Harrison, IN
--Donald Niehaus, acrylic, watercolor and oil paintings, from Crestview Hills, KY
--Cheryl Reiniger, watercolorist from Lawrenceburg, IN
--Christine Shipley, Mixed Media, from Aurora, IN
--Marianne Wiggers, Watercolorist from Milan, IN
Entertainment will be provided by the Riverblend Barbership Quartet... Don Gray, Chuck Watson, Dutch Speidel and John Byerly were named the Seniors Quartet Champions for Ohio, West Virginia and Western Pennsylvania. Riverblend delights in entertaining audiences with their rich blend of elegant barbershop harmony.
WHERE - Pendleton Art Center
at 201 Main Street in Rising Sun IN, (812) 438-9900,
www.pendletonartcenter.com
WHEN - First Friday of August, 8/4, 5 - 9 pm
and... Second-Look Saturday, 8/5, 10 - 5 pm
COST - FREE to general public, sponsored by The Friendship Bank of Rising Sun
July 31, 2006
July 3, 2006
Threat to casino communities' share of revenue may die down
Lesley Stedman Weidenbener of the Louisville Courier-Journal reports on one little-noticed detail of the deal to bring a Honda assembly plant to Greensburg that could have significant implications for Rising Sun, Ohio County and other places that get money from riverboat casinos.
It's a move that Gov. Mitch Daniels' hopes will quiet criticism that casino communities -- and Lawrenceburg in particular -- are reaping too much benefit from their gambling boats.
Last year, some Republicans in the House and Senate drew up plans to redistribute some of the money that local communities receive from the casino.
Much the cash communities enjoy results from local development agreements -- contracts between the casino and the community that spell out how much the boats will give to local foundations, programs and governments.
But lots of it also comes from admissions and wagering tax revenues of which a portion also are distributed to local governments.
Lawrenceburg, which has the biggest revenue casino and by far the most lucrative development agreement, has not in the past shared its money. That caused big problems at the General Assembly, where lawmakers from districts with no casino and no source of ready cash were prepared to nab some for either the state budget or their own communities.
The Senate passed a plan last year that would have raised $75 million for the state budget by reducing the amount of money that riverboat communities could collect in casino taxes.
Ohio County and Rising Sun would have lost nearly $5.9 million annually -- about 80 percent of its tax collections.
The plan eventually failed, but talk about taking the money in the future hasn't completely subsided.
Early this year, Lawrenceburg Mayor Bill Cunningham developed a plan for sharing about $10 million of the city's wealth annually for area economic development projects. The original idea was that surrounding counties could request cash for projects.
So when the Honda deal came up, Daniels came calling. Cunningham said last week he was happy to oblige.
"We wanted to do what was needed," he said.
But will such generosity truly put to rest any legislative raid of communities' casino cash? Maybe not.
House Speaker Brian Bosma commended Lawrenceburg officials last week for their contribution to the project and said it was appropriate. But he wasn't willing to say the issue is over.
"I know there are legislators from around the state who would like to see a different distribution of those funds," he said, "but we'll have to have a thorough discussion about it before anything is changed."
The city of Lawrenceburg, home of the Argosy Casino, has agreed to provide $10 million of its gambling proceeds toward the $100 million in infrastructure improvements that will be made to benefit the plant and future economic growth in the region.
It's a move that Gov. Mitch Daniels' hopes will quiet criticism that casino communities -- and Lawrenceburg in particular -- are reaping too much benefit from their gambling boats.
"That's exactly the sort of investment that those revenues ought to go for and probably the legislature originally anticipated," Daniels said. "It really should end the debate about those dollars being stripped away from Lawrenceburg or other river communities."
Last year, some Republicans in the House and Senate drew up plans to redistribute some of the money that local communities receive from the casino.
Much the cash communities enjoy results from local development agreements -- contracts between the casino and the community that spell out how much the boats will give to local foundations, programs and governments.
But lots of it also comes from admissions and wagering tax revenues of which a portion also are distributed to local governments.
Lawrenceburg, which has the biggest revenue casino and by far the most lucrative development agreement, has not in the past shared its money. That caused big problems at the General Assembly, where lawmakers from districts with no casino and no source of ready cash were prepared to nab some for either the state budget or their own communities.
The Senate passed a plan last year that would have raised $75 million for the state budget by reducing the amount of money that riverboat communities could collect in casino taxes.
Ohio County and Rising Sun would have lost nearly $5.9 million annually -- about 80 percent of its tax collections.
The plan eventually failed, but talk about taking the money in the future hasn't completely subsided.
Early this year, Lawrenceburg Mayor Bill Cunningham developed a plan for sharing about $10 million of the city's wealth annually for area economic development projects. The original idea was that surrounding counties could request cash for projects.
So when the Honda deal came up, Daniels came calling. Cunningham said last week he was happy to oblige.
"We wanted to do what was needed," he said.
But will such generosity truly put to rest any legislative raid of communities' casino cash? Maybe not.
House Speaker Brian Bosma commended Lawrenceburg officials last week for their contribution to the project and said it was appropriate. But he wasn't willing to say the issue is over.
"I know there are legislators from around the state who would like to see a different distribution of those funds," he said, "but we'll have to have a thorough discussion about it before anything is changed."
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