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| ·This weekend at Patoka Lake - 08/29/08 | [On: 2008-08-28 04:00:00] | [ More in News Section ] |
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 | This weekend at Patoka Lake - 08/22/08 |
SpringsValley.com News Lexington, KY USA By SpringsValley.com News Staff
Lots of fun this weekend at Patoka Lake Visitor Center.
Friday, August 22nd 1pm. Friday Nature Flicks ~ With snacks provided by the naturalist, enjoy an indoor matinee for all ages. Join in the cool summer fun at Patoka! vc
Saturday, August 23rd
1p.m. Canoe/Kayak Adventure ~ Bring your canoe or kayak (canoes available while supply lasts) and join the
naturalist as we look for the wildlife of Patoka. We will
meet at the Visitor Center and car caravan to Little Patoka
boat ramp for this afternoon adventure. vc 9:30p.m. Night Hike ~ Let’s explore how nocturnal creatures use their five senses to survive in their environment. Meet at the modern campgrounds center shelterhouse. ccs
Sunday, August 24th
9a.m. Roving Interpreter ~ Visit with the naturalist and a special guest at a campsite near you. Ask about the NEW
Hoosier Quest Program. Begin the adventure. 1p.m. Why RESERVOIRS? ~ Enjoy a presentation by special guest Steve Hall, U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, about
the construction of the Patoka dam and why the reservoir
was built for flood control and drinking water. Hear tips
for water safety. vc 2p.m. Hoosier Quest (Old Patch Program) ~ Learn about the NEW Parks and Reservoirs Patch Program. Begin the adventure. Earn points and enjoy visiting your public properties. vc For more information call (812) 685-2447 or visit Patoka Lake Visitor Center August Schedule
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Posted by Editor on Thursday, August 21 @ 04:00:00 EDT (22 reads)
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 | Area News: Aztar adrift |
Aztar adrift Evansville Courier & Press - Evansville,IN,USA Editorial
The Issue: Tropicana may not want to sell casino. Our View: That would be awful. |
Although we cannot recall the exact location, somewhere in the immediate Evansville area on a recent day we saw a colorful, inviting billboard promoting the still-new casino at French Lick, Ind. The sign was advertising the upcoming performances of the Beach Boys, and, we seem to recall, Huey Lewis and The News at the casino complex. Say what you will about these golden oldies, their memories still assure them and their sponsors of good crowds at places such as the French Lick casino.
It was more than a week ago that we saw that billboard, and yet we haven't been able to get our thoughts past it and the excitement it projected. That's because it reminded us of the excitement once generated in this community by our own Casino Aztar
Unfortunately, Casino Aztar is a riverboat enterprise adrift, an entertainment complex desperately in need of a new owner and a new infusion of energy and excitement.
Just how far the once thriving Evansville casino has drifted was brought home this past week by news stories in the Courier & Press.
One reported that annual income from the casino to local government continues in decline, which is no surprise. The report said the city of Evansville, which has used riverboat funds for various public capital projects over the years, has seen annual funding drop from $13.5 million in 2006 to $9.8 million in 2007. It is expected to fall to $9.6 million by the end of this year, and $9.3 million next year.
The other, more alarming story reported that the current owner, Tropicana Entertainment LLC, may attempt to keep the Evansville riverboat.
That would be awful.
The best course for Evansville and its once popular casino would be for Tropicana to go ahead and sell the complex to Eldorado Resorts, which is said to be willing to pay as much as ...
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Posted by Editor on Wednesday, August 20 @ 08:15:44 EDT (37 reads)
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 | Area News: Funds from casino again pay school book rental fees |
Funds from casino again pay school book rental fees Times-Mail (subscription) - Bedford,IN,USA By Roger Moon, roger@tmnews.com
Schools receive final checks from last year’s program
Students in Orange County have returned to school for the second year in a row with the benefit of having casino-related revenues paying for their textbook rental.
Having the cost covered is a practice that Orange County leaders say will continue.
The decision for casino-generated revenues to be applied toward textbook rental first was announced in June 2004, months before construction even began on a casino in French Lick. The Orange County board of commissioners endorsed the creation and organizational structure of a supporting organization with the Orange County Community Foundation.
At that time, it was reported that the supporting organization, before expending funds for any other purpose, would pay for the student portion of required textbook rental for classes that earn academic credit for all kindergarten through 12th-grade students in an Orange County public school corporation. The decision stipulated that the portion to be paid was that which was not paid by any other public sources (for families that already had textbook assistance).
Orange County’s three school corporations each received a payment in June, wrapping up the textbook expenses for the 2007-08 school year. During a presentation ceremony, checks totaling $21,291.90 went to the superintendents for students moving to each school district during the second semester.
At the time the checks were presented, the Orange County Commissioners Supporting Organization’s president, Frank Hall, said, “We have also established an endowment at the Orange County Community Foundation to ensure textbooks be paid for, thereby benefiting our students for many years to come, regardless of what the future may hold with casino dollars coming to the organization. We intend on contributing a portion to the fund each year for continued growth.”
When funds first were applied to textbook rental last year, OCCF Executive Director Imojean Dedrick said the ...
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Posted by Editor on Monday, August 18 @ 10:38:27 EDT (34 reads)
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 | Area News: Gambling's woes more than a wager gone bad |
Gambling's woes more than a wager gone bad FinancialWeek (subscription) - New York,NY,USA By Matthew Monks
The high-flying gambling industry, long thought to be recession-proof, is having its wings clipped, and its woes may say as much about the economy as about the industry.
So far this year, a handful of debt-laden casino operators have filed for bankruptcy, and several others have shelved or slowed ambitious expansion plans as financing has become tougher to secure.
“Obviously, this is a time of great uncertainty within the gaming business,” said Jim Perry, chief executive of Isle of Capri Casinos, on a recent conference call with analysts. “A lot of it is caused by uncertainty regarding gas prices and the economic slowdown.”
The extent of the industry's troubles is all the more shocking because casinos had performed moderately well during the recessions of 1990-91 and 2001.
That's not proving to be the case this time around. Through June, gambling revenue in Las Vegas is down 5.6% year over year, according to data from Standard & Poor's. Revenue in Atlantic City has dropped 6.1%. In both locations, sales had continued to grow through the prior two recessions.
Part of the problem may be that the industry's revenue stream isn't as tied to gambling as it used to be, particularly in ...
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Posted by Editor on Saturday, August 16 @ 04:00:00 EDT (38 reads)
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 | This weekend at Patoka Lake - 08/15/08 |
SpringsValley.com News Lexington, KY USA By SpringsValley.com News Staff
Lots of fun this weekend at Patoka Lake Visitor Center.
Friday, August 15th 1pm. Friday Nature Flicks ~ With snacks provided by the naturalist, enjoy an indoor matinee for all ages. Join in the cool summer fun at Patoka! vc
Saturday, August 16th
10a.m. – 3p.m. Bald Eagle C52 and Redtail Hawk will be in the backyard viewing area of the Visitor Center. vc 10a.m. Dam Tower Tour ~ Travel by car caravan to the Patoka U. S. Army Corps of Engineers dam for a tower tour and
water safety program. Learn the fascinating facts of
flood control and reservoir management. vc 1pm. Nature Flicks ~ With snacks provided by the naturalist, enjoy an indoor matinee for all ages. Join in the cool
summer fun at Patoka! vc 2p.m. Hoosier Quest (Old Patch Program) ~ Learn about the NEW Parks and Reservoirs Patch Program. Begin the
adventure. Earn points and enjoy visiting your public properties. vc
Sunday, August 17th 10a.m. – 3p.m. Bald Eagle C52 and Redtail Hawk will be in the backyard viewing area of the Visitor Center. vc 1p.m. Raptors of Patoka ~ What is a raptor? Where do they live? Learn amazing facts about these wild raptors. vc 2p.m. Hoosier Quest (Old Patch Program) ~ Learn about the NEW Parks and Reservoirs Patch Program. Begin the
adventure. Earn points and enjoy visiting your public
properties. vc
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Posted by Editor on Friday, August 15 @ 10:24:32 EDT (33 reads)
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 | Area News: Valley of the Springs taking shape |
Valley of the Springs taking shape Times-Mail (subscription) - Bedford,IN,USA BY ROGER MOON roger@tmnews.com
| FRENCH LICK — Youngsters will barely be inside the doors of the Valley of the Springs Resort before the anticipation stops and the fun kicks in.
The resort, featuring an indoor water park, will open this year in Orange County.
The anticipation, of course, will relate to the thrills children are expecting to get when they walk into the resort’s Big Splash Adventure Indoor Water Park.
Overnight guests at the facility will need to make a stop at the hotel’s front desk upon arrival. And, as adults check in, children will direct their attention to a wall that will be covered with interactive games.
“We’re going to entertain kids from the minute they walk in,” Vickie Lincks said. She is director of marketing and communications for Valley of the Springs.
Lincks also said resort visitors soon will realize they’re in a setting that has “a tropical theme with a pirate motif.” One element of the water park experience will find children meeting up with costumed characters playing a pirate, a crab, a dolphin and an octopus and participating in an organized search for “the treasures of Lost River.”
The resort’s construction is progressing quickly.
An update provided by the resort’s owners reads, “As each day passes, more of the prominent features are starting to take shape inside the resort and water park. In the weeks leading up to our opening, expect the work to progress quickly.”
“We’ve always ... anticipated opening mid to the end of October,” owner Jerry Fuhs said during an on-site interview with the Times-Mail this week. “Right now, due to a supply issue on our dehumidification system, it looks like it will be about a week or two, basically, after that.”
He added, “We’ll be open in November for sure. We may end up with a soft opening in October. Our real goal is to be open by Thanksgiving.” | Resort and water park features Valley of the Springs Resort is located on 75 wooded acres in French Lick. Visitors will enjoy nearly a 360-degree view of Springs Valley. The hotel will offer 154 rooms in a variety of configurations to accommodate up to eight guests. The resort will feature a 40,000-square-foot indoor water park. Twelve themed water features will include four slide tubes, a lazy river, a wet deck play area, an activity pool, a toddler wading pool, toddler bouncers and a tropical hot tub. A large arcade and prize redemption area will include an interactive play and learning center for children ages 1 to 5, focusing on developing curiosity, challenge and confidence. Five on-site options for dining will be available. Meeting and conference areas will be available for groups up to 120 guests at Valley of the Springs Conference Center and up to 250 guests at a related and nearby property, The Ranch of Valley of the Springs (formerly Wilstem Ranch).
Employment opportunities The resort will employ about 160 people. A job fair will be scheduled within a few weeks. Ten workers, all management, have been hired. Over the next few weeks, food and beverage workers will be needed. The complex is set to open by November, with a possible soft opening in October. More information is available at www.valleyofthesprings.com.
 Photo: Times Mail photos / PETE SCHREINER
FRENCH LICK — Robert Corman works on the inside of a water slide at the Valley of the Springs Resort and Big Splash Water Park Wednesday. The park is scheduled to open by November.
 Photo: Times Mail photos / PETE SCHREINER
FRENCH LICK — The exterior of Valley of the Springs Resort and Big Splash Water Park.
 Photo: Times Mail photos / PETE SCHREINER
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Fuhs, who with his wife, Carolyn, is developing the $20 million-plus property, said, “Obviously, we’re very pleased with the progress we’re making. The project has grown in scope and scale from its original plans. We’re at that point in construction where, as we would say, ‘you get a big show every day.’ The progress really starts showing now as you start finishing your walls and your hotel and you start putting your granite tops in and so on and so forth. ... All the pool equipment is getting installed. Everything gets a better definition to it.”
The water park is being built inside glass walls and ...
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Posted by Editor on Thursday, August 14 @ 04:00:00 EDT (53 reads)
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 | Area News: Casino works to let fresh air in |
Casino works to let fresh air in Times-Mail (subscription) - Bedford,IN,USA By MIKE RICKETTS miker@tmnews.com
FRENCH LICK — Work to create a non-smoking casino within a casino at French Lick continues, with a projected opening date in the first part of September, said Brian Marsh, vice president of casino operations.
“The absolutely nice part, aside from the non-smoking area that will be created, is we have a great amount of fresh air coming into the building — even in the smoking area,” Marsh said. “We’re already seeing those accomplishments with the new HVAC. We are hearing people saying, ‘I’m a little colder now, but I can breathe.’”
The project began in May.
The new non-smoking “room itself is looking very good,” Marsh said.
And many casino visitors are anxious for it to open, he added.
“We have a lot of people commenting that they can’t wait to play in that room, and they hope put the games in there they like,” Marsh said.
Despite having to take a few slow machines out of play so the work could be done, Marsh said the disruption to casino visitors has been extremely limited.
“The team works extremely hard to keep things clean and orderly,” he said. “They know how much I hate caution tape.”
When the non-smoking room opens, it will have nearly 300 games, Marsh said.
Marsh said in addition to a variety of slot machines, the room will have ...
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Posted by Editor on Tuesday, August 12 @ 04:00:00 EDT (36 reads)
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 | Area News: French Lick will have two world class courses |
French Lick will have two world class courses Terre Haute Tribune Star - Terre Haute,IN,USA By Jennifer Myers Special to the Tribune-Star
A couple of years ago I wrote a column about the changes that were going on at the French Lick Springs Resort. My husband and I finally got a chance to go back there, so I can report first-hand on the changes.
My overall impression is, “Wow! What a difference a half a billion dollars makes!”
That’s for the whole complex, including the West Baden Springs Hotel, which used about $200 million of that.
When we first arrived in French Lick we were too early to check in so we visited the West Baden hotel. I had been in it in the past when it was a dilapidated hunk of concrete and tiles.
After West Baden, we met with Dave Harner, Director of Golf, who took us for a drive up to see the work in progress at the new Pete Dye Course.
This course is going to be unbelievably beautiful while being very nasty and mean at the same time. The site is on a hill behind the resorts magnificently appointed with an historic mansion, built in the 1920s by the son of Thomas Taggart, the entrepreneur behind the French Lick Resort.
It will be used as an inn for high rollers and VIPs. The view from the mansion is spectacular, being on the second-highest point in Indiana. The building that was at one time the carriage house and servants quarters will be used as the pro shop.
The course will be one of Pete Dye’s best — or at least most feared — and friends of his have told me that he thinks it is his best. It will be over 8,000 yards from the back tees, with narrow fairways and small greens. If you miss the fairway, you’re not just in the rough, you’re down a steep slope or in a lake.
There are three man-made lakes on the course, with ...
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Posted by Editor on Sunday, August 10 @ 04:00:00 EDT (44 reads)
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 | Area News: Writer leaps beyond rails to buildings and businesses |
Writer leaps beyond rails to buildings and businesses Times-Mail (subscription) - Bedford,IN,USA By Barbie Jenkins barbie@tmnews.com
David E. Longest59, New Albany
Day job: Retired principal/elementary teacher
Latest book: “The Monon Railroad in Southern Indiana” (Images of Rail series)
Other publications: “Railroad Depots in Southern Indiana” and “The Railroad Depots of Southern Indiana,” both in the Images of Rail series
What is your connection with Lawrence County? The Monon Railroad. I got to talk to some of the nicest people from Bedford, Borden, Bloomington, Salem, Orleans and West Baden Springs, and other southern Indiana areas while researching. When you talk to people about their life and livelihood it just brings such a good connection. It goes beyond just throwing things in a binder and writing it for a book — it’s a bond.
How did you become interested in the Monon rail? Growing up, I didn’t have that keen of an interest in the Monon Railroad, but I gravitated toward it after my dad died. He lived it, worked it and loved it. Then one day, I realized what a big part it played in my life too … the history, the buildings the businesses. I’m one of those people when I start something, it’s hard to stop. |  Photo: tmnews.com
David E. Longest
 Photo: David E. Longest
Images of the Monon Railroad in Southern Indiana |
So, how did you begin writing books about the rails? It was during a time when I was recuperating from a brain stem stroke. I started taking pictures of old train depots. One day I talked to a friend, David Barksdale, who had an interest in old postcards from the New Albany area and he was doing a book about them. It got me to thinking that perhaps my train depot pictures would be of interest to others. He was working with Arcadia Publishing. I contacted Arcadia and, as they say, “The rest is history.” What makes this one different from your other two railroad books? On this one I wanted to go beyond the track, the engine and the train car, because what’s all of that without the businesses and industries that connect to the railroad?
What did you find most difficult about ...
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Posted by Editor on Friday, August 08 @ 04:00:00 EDT (42 reads)
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 | Amazon rain forest now open in Evansville Zoo |
SpringsValley.com News Lexington, KY USA By SpringsValley.com News Staff
Visitors to Southern Indiana can now explore the Amazon and follow the clues left by researchers who visited the rain forest long ago.
Evidence of these researchers is apparent through the clipboards (educational signage) and the research station (classroom with interactive activities) they have left behind.
Mesker Park Zoo & Botanic Garden is pleased to present AMAZONIA, Forest of Riches.
This is the largest and most spectacular exhibit to open in the Zoo’s 80 year history. |  Photo: meskerparkzoo.com
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As you journey through AMAZONIA, you will encounter dozens of rainforest residents from high in the canopy to the forest floor below. Tropical trees and palms soar to the 45-foot tall roof and create a breathtaking tropical setting.
Monkeys and beautiful birds welcome you to their treetop homes. A waterfall roars and a suspension bridge beckons. |  Photo: meskerparkzoo.com
The Amazonia exhibit at the Evansville Mesker Park Zoo includes the elusive and majestic jaguar as well as tapirs and other odd creatures to greet you around each bend in the trail. | For more information visit the Evansville Mesker Park Zoo website at meskerparkzoo.com
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Posted by Editor on Thursday, August 07 @ 04:00:00 EDT (43 reads)
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| Wednesday, August 06 | | · | Moonlight Big Band Afternoon Dance at West Baden Hotel |
| Monday, August 04 | | · | Hotels feeling travel slump |
| Sunday, August 03 | | · | New Pete Dye Course at French Lick Resort Slated for Spring Opening |
| Saturday, August 02 | | · | $200,000 Gift Provides for On-Campus Living Experience |
| Friday, August 01 | | · | Top Democrats look to weekend events in Valley |
| Thursday, July 31 | | · | ALS fundraiser drive kicks off Thursday at Aztar |
| Wednesday, July 30 | | · | Fruit Flies, Donald Ross and the Star Spangled Banner |
| Monday, July 28 | | · | Appeals court sides with Lauth in casino suit |
| Sunday, July 27 | | · | IDEA returns to French Lick |
| Friday, July 25 | | · | Renowned Performers to Headline at French Lick Resort |
| Wednesday, July 23 | | · | Brown County hotel plans to rebuild after '07 fire |
| Tuesday, July 22 | | · | Open house at Patoka Lake floating cabins |
| Monday, July 21 | | · | Saturated market squeezes state's take |
| Sunday, July 20 | | · | Colts linebacker has big impact at cancer retreat |
| Saturday, July 19 | | · | Experts see benefits to area's slow growth |
| Friday, July 18 | | · | Two HomeGrown Arts events planned in Valley |
| Thursday, July 17 | | · | Appeals court sides with Lauth in casino suit |
| Wednesday, July 16 | | · | Our Opinion: Don't bet too much on casinos |
| Tuesday, July 15 | | · | Book brings Monon to life |
| Monday, July 14 | | · | Unkind economy hits home |
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