News

Robin Hilber announced as Director of Community Development

Mayor-Elect Mary Ferdon announced today that Robin Hilber will serve as Director of Community Development for the City of Columbus effective January 1, 2024.  Hilber joined the City in 2016 and has most recently served as Assistant Director. Hilber will oversee the Housing Study and Community Needs Assessment, Code Enforcement, the Community Garden, and other [...]

2023-12-15T16:37:25-05:00December 11th, 2023|News|

Eric Frey to Join New City Administration

Mayor-Elect Mary Ferdon announced today that Eric Frey will serve as the Executive Director of Administration for the City of Columbus effective January 1, 2024. Supporting the Ferdon administration, Frey will oversee multiple city departments, and key strategic initiatives such as the city’s involvement in Mental Health Matters, ASAP, housing initiatives, and more. Frey served [...]

2023-11-20T14:25:48-05:00November 20th, 2023|News|

Japan to Host the 38th Annual Ethnic Expo

Columbus, IN — Japan will be celebrated this year as the host country of the 38th annual Ethnic Expo presented by First Financial Bank in downtown Columbus. The two-day festival, which fosters understanding and an appreciation of Columbus’ diverse population, will take place on October 13th-14th outside Columbus City Hall. Japan is an island country [...]

2023-09-08T08:44:56-04:00August 31st, 2023|News|

Office of Downtown Development Launches Text Messaging Program

The office of downtown development has launched an events promotion program via text notification. When community members sign up to receive the notifications, they are sent one text weekly that provides a summary of upcoming weekend events and entertainment opportunities in downtown Columbus. The text program offers a quick, convenient way for participants to learn [...]

2023-08-30T09:30:21-04:00August 30th, 2023|News|

Regina D. McIntyre, C.P.A. joins the City of Columbus

Columbus, IN — The City of Columbus has announced the addition of Regina D. McIntyre, C.P.A. as the new Finance Director for the city. McIntyre will oversee the financial, budget, and accounting strategy for the Mayor for the remainder of 2023. Beginning in January 2024, McIntyre will serve in the newly created Controller position, which is created due to [...]

2023-07-05T16:24:05-04:00July 5th, 2023|News|

First Columbus Homes Ready for Connection to New Fiber Internet Network

Columbus, IN June 14, 2023 – Mayor Jim Lienhoop, fiber internet service provider GigabitNow and Meridiam’s Hoosier Fiber Networks today announced that Columbus’ first homes are ready for fiber internet home connections and order availability for GigabitNow fiber internet service.   More than 450 homes in the “Big Block” downtown Columbus area are ready for connection [...]

2023-06-14T14:13:07-04:00June 14th, 2023|News|

Planning Department Recognized for Infill Development Approach and 2022 Bicycle & Pedestrian Plan

The City of Columbus - Bartholomew County Planning Department has been recognized by the Indiana Chapter of the American Planning Association (APA) for its work in planning Columbus’ future bicycle and pedestrian network and promoting the development of “infill” sites, underutilized properties within the city. The awards, Outstanding Transportation Planning for the Bicycle & Pedestrian [...]

2023-05-19T15:27:39-04:00May 19th, 2023|News|

Columbus firefighters test new location technology

Reprinted with permission from The Republic newspaper, April 20, 2023 Four Columbus Fire Department firefighters participated in the live testing phase of a prototype technology competition designed to identify 3-D tracking technology that will enable successful tracking of first responders who are performing their duties inside of a building. Held at Muscatatuck Urban Training Center [...]

2023-04-21T09:53:08-04:00April 20th, 2023|News|

Regional Leaders Launch Project 46: New Bipartisan, Cross-Sector, Multi-County Climate Change Alliance

Bloomington, Ind. – On Friday, March 24, Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop, Nashville Town Manager Sandie Jones, and Bloomington Mayor John Hamilton gathered at the Nashville Town Hall to announce the launch and next steps of a bipartisan, cross-sector, multi-county effort to address climate change. A new regional alliance, Project 46, named for the state highway linking [...]

2023-04-03T10:07:16-04:00April 3rd, 2023|News|

Arbor Day Foundation Names Columbus a 2022 Tree City USA®

Lincoln, Nebraska (2/28/2023) — Columbus was named a 2022 Tree City USA by the Arbor Day Foundation to honor its commitment to effective urban forest management. Columbus achieved Tree City USA recognition by meeting the program’s four requirements: maintaining a tree board or department, having a tree care ordinance, dedicating an annual community forestry budget [...]

2023-03-21T10:55:06-04:00March 20th, 2023|News|