Hey Locals, 

Tonight, City Council will vote on funding the FWPD’s controversial contract with Flock Safety surveillance cams, and while we don’t have much more information yet, we did meet someone who can help you get more plugged into local decision-making and other issues you care about, like Downtown parking. Catch our interview with City Clerk John McGauley in this week’s Above the Fold.

In Briefs, we fill you in on the city's latest plans for its Downtown corridors, including a potential revitalization of the historic Rialto Theatre, as well as developments with Allen County’s new fire and EMS model designed to reduce emergency response times. We also have a Local Spotlight on an exciting new vendor at the YLNI Farmers Market. 

In our To Do List, we share ways you can have some free fun around town, or shop a new mercantile stocked with local vendors’ products! 

Don’t forget: In July, we’re extending our partnership with Club Soda to bring all paid subscribers to The Local a free small smoked Gouda dip with the order of two entrees. 

Now, let’s get started.

NOTE: Links to Journal Gazette articles are marked(*) and may be behind a paywall.

More residents are showing up at City Council meetings.

A key official shares how you can get plugged in.

What's happening?

Tonight’s City Council meeting is likely to be a big one. Council will vote on the FWPD’s request for $120,250 to renew its controversial contract for Flock Safety surveillance cameras. (For details, see our previous reports here and here.)

While we don’t have much new information to share about Flock, we’re using Thursday’s Above the Fold newsletter this week to introduce you to a member of city government you might not know much about, but whose job might matter to you more than you'd assume.

Here are a few quick things to know:

• John McGauley is Fort Wayne’s new City Clerk this year, who holds two important roles: 1) acting as a bridge between residents and City Council, and 2) managing Downtown parking and parking control. He was appointed by the Allen County Republican Party in January to carry out the remainder of Lana Keesling's term until 2028. (Keesling made headlines last fall for holding a second job as Indiana’s Republican Party Chairperson.)
• A few weeks ago, McGauley reached out to tell us about changes he’s making behind-the-scenes in local government. Fun fact: He’s a fellow Fort Wayne journalist, circa. 1994-1998 at the News-Sentinel (RIP), who says his goal is to improve government transparency and parking accessibility.
• He also thinks we’re seeing a “historic increase” in the number of residents speaking at council’s bi-weekly public comment sessions, talking about Flock cams, data centers and more. “It’s a big jump in public interest, and it doesn’t bother me in the slightest,” McGauley says. “For a long time, one of the biggest problems facing people in positions, like mine, was a lack of public engagement. Government and community life, in general, are better when people participate.” 

So… how are City Council meetings becoming more accessible to an increasingly engaged public? And what changes are coming soon to a Downtown parking meter near you?

Stay tuned for our Thursday interview with McGauley – available to paid subscribers only – where he fills us in on all things government transparency, parking accessibility and more.

• Vice President of Indiana’s Fraternal Order of Police issued a statement yesterday, urging City Council to support the FWPD’s Flock Safety license plate reader (LPR) cameras in tonight’s vote. President Mitch McKinney says the technology is “an important tool for investigating violent crime and protecting public safety,” arguing that: “The system is tightly governed, only cleared officers can search it, every search is logged, and data is automatically purged after a short window. Eliminating the use of this critical technology would leave investigators with fewer leads and give violent offenders a freer hand to harm the people of our city.” McKinney is the immediate past president of Fort Wayne’s Fraternal Order of Police, Indiana Wayne Lodge 14, who also served on the FWPD for 26 years. (See our previous reports on Flock cams here and here.)
• More dining destinations, public spaces and a long-awaited revitalization of the Rialto Theatre are among the top suggestions shared yesterday in the City of Fort Wayne's new corridor retail study report. The report, led by Fort Wayne’s Community Development Division, includes plans for three corridors: South Calhoun Street, East State Village, and Waynedale, WANE 15 says. For South Calhoun, the study recommends revitalizing the Rialto as a "historic asset" and increasing programming for culinary tours, markets, and cultural festivals. Suggestions for East State Village involve transforming the alley between Crescent Ave. and the Tecumseh Library Branch with public art and events, similar to Downtown's Porch off Calhoun, as well as turning the Village into a "dining destination" with more groceries, cafes, restaurants and retail. Suggestions for Waynedale include making the area of Lower Huntington Road and Old Trail into a “commercial district” with events like farmers’ or makers’ markets, as well as the "cleanup of heavy-truck traffic impacts, enhancing connections to the nearby Pokabache Connector Trail and adding bus shelters."
• Allen County leaders created a unified Fire and EMS district to improve emergency response times, following the county’s controversial withdrawal from its TRAA contract with the City of Fort Wayne last year. For years, city and county officials have debated the merits of TRAA’s independent, monopolistic model of EMS service,* as opposed to an integrated fire and EMS model more commonly used across the U.S. Now, Allen County officials are opting for integration with hopes to improve challenges, like long ambulance response times for residents outside city limits – which have reached 35 minutes or more in some locations under TRAA. Jeremy Bush, former president of Fort Wayne Metro Professional Firefighters, is the county’s new Executive Fire and EMS Chief. He says the consolidation, which takes effect in January, will result in a new unified countywide fire tax levy, expected to be about 31 cents per household, replacing various rates currently paid throughout the county. Fort Wayne will continue to keep its fire and EMS services separate, utilizing TRAA within city limits.
• A Fort Wayne-based defense industry company is diversifying its business with at least 50 new jobs and a new $10M+ facility on the Northwest side. Last week, Riverside Mfg. LLC, celebrated its new headquarters at 7310 Innovation Blvd. with several state representatives and Mayor Sharon Tucker in attendance. The company employs about 200 local residents and also operates in Ohio and Connecticut with about 350 employees total. Officials say they’re investing in advanced manufacturing, engineering and long-term growth in Northeast Indiana, and their new HQ will support diversification across a broader range of industries, like aerospace, industrial automation, medical equipment, marine, telematics and data centers. The JG* reports that the company’s business “has shifted from 90% defense to 20%.”
• A wrongful death lawsuit regarding the FWPD’s officer-involved shooting of Linzell Parhm in 2024 is moving to a national court – but without legal representation for the family. Parhm was the 22-year-old passenger in a car pulled over by FWPD Officer Mason Wills, whose viral bodycam footage shows Wills shooting Parhm seconds after telling him not to reach for a gun on the floor. In October 2024, the Allen County prosecutor’s office ruled Wills was not criminally liable, but in June 2026, Parhm’s family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Wills and the City of Fort Wayne, WANE 15 reports, noting that the case has been transferred to U.S. District Court, and Parhm’s family is no longer represented by the renowned civil rights attorney Ben Crump, but will be representing themselves.
• The Fort Wayne Museum of Art (FWMoA) is receiving a $2.5M grant from Lilly Endowment – one of 12 such grants offered to Indiana art museums to contribute to the state’s cultural vibrancy. “Our goal is that through this support, we will increase our capacities to bring a higher quality of life to an ever-widening audience and a growing region,” says Museum President & CEO Charles Shepard. FWMoA plans to use the funding to support building improvements, as well as collection storage, professional development, best practices research, increasing the museum’s online presence, and developing new approaches to inclusivity. 
• The Hoppy Gnome launched a refreshed menu, returning to its roots* as a scratch kitchen gastro pub, with separate lunch and dinner menus. Enjoy shareables, like sushi, shrimp, and charred Brussels sprouts, plus new additions like the Beer Cheeseburger, Thai Lamb Chops, and Nashville Hot Fish ’n’ Chips.

New YLNI Farmers Market Vendor:

Build Your Own Bouquet with Z2B Gardens.

What’s happening?

As an official media partner for the YLNI Farmers Market, we stopped by last Saturday and happened to catch an exciting new vendor on their very first day. Z2B Gardens, out of Ligonier, Ind., set up a large (and affordable) Build Your Own Bouquet booth near Brunch on Barr (between Wayne and Washington streets). For only $13, we put together a beautiful bouquet of unique stems from their garden, which you can visit for special events and U-Pick hours, starting July 19, 10 a.m.- 3 p.m., followed by more hours the rest of July on Sundays, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., and Tuesdays-Thursdays, 5-8 p.m.

• Shop local: at the grand opening of Mercantile Collective (aka “the Merc”) on July 18, noon-4 p.m., at 5655 Coventry Ln. The shop of clothes, jewelry, home goods and more is made up of local vendors displaced by the closure of the Painted Tree at Jefferson Pointe, calling themselves “a gathering place for local makers, small businesses, and meaningful community connection.”
• Watch: a free film showing of “Jurassic World Rebirth” tonight at the Main Library Theatre, 6-8:30 p.m. (Register)
• Celebrate: Bell’s Skating Rink’s 100th anniversary with a two-day celebration July 17-18 featuring door prizes, $1 admission, and $1 skate rentals. (Check out their short documentary highlighting the history of the rink, and skaters’ most treasured memories.)
• View: a live performance of the hit musical ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ at Three Rivers Music Theatre, with showings beginning on July 17 at 8 p.m. ($25)
• Prepare: for the start of the school year with the Pontiac Street Market Pack 2 School event, where students can receive free haircuts, hair braiding services, food, snacks, and beverages. (Register before July 30 for the August 1 event.)
• Learn: about the value of vintage fishing lures in a recent feature by 21Alive, highlighting the National Fishing Lure Collectors Club’s recent 50th anniversary at the Grand Wayne Convention Center.

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Have a great week, Locals!

-Your Editor, Kara Hackett

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