I-69 planners on 'high alert'

INDIANAPOLIS — An Evansville engineering firm that is a lead consultant on the Interstate 69 extension was on "high alert" Monday, after an environmental organization known for its colorful protest tactics summoned its members to Southwestern Indiana over the weekend to plan resistance to the road project.

The last time the Web site of the group Earth First convened its members, in July, four offices of I-69 consultants along the route were struck by demonstrators who briefly disrupted operations, officials said.

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Based on information from the same Web site about another Earth First gathering this past weekend, officials at Bernardin Lochmueller &amp; Associates in Evansville weren't taking any chances. They notified all local police agencies, state officials and other consultants along the potential interstate route, as well.

"Past history suggested that when those type of 'seminars' or 'campouts' have been scheduled, there have been direct-action-type activities taking place," said David Goffinet, director of public involvement at Bernardin Lochmueller &amp; Associates Inc. The firm, which is project-management consultant for the I-69 project, has an office at 6200 Vogel Road in Evansville.

As of Monday afternoon, no incidents had been reported. "We certainly don't know what might take place, and we hope nothing does," Goffinet said.

During the 1990s, Earth First became known for opposing logging and development by staging tree-sitting protests, roadblock blockades and sabotage, according to published reports.

The organization's anonymous Web site bragged of demonstrations it staged July 9 at the I-69 consultant offices in Bloomington, Petersburg and Oakland City, Ind. To protest the coming "eviction" of landowners from the interstate's path, pickets barged into the engineering offices and announced that they were "evicting" the employees. "While the office workers watched helplessly, the movers quickly and efficiently emptied the offices of maps, offices supplies and other items, leaving it all on the curb. Before the police's arrival, the moving teams were able to hop in their vehicles and leave, with no one arrested or identified," the anonymous Earth First posting said on its Web site.

Then the Web site was updated to urge members to convene last Friday, Saturday and Sunday at an undisclosed location in Southwestern Indiana. It recommended they bring large tents to serve as meeting spaces.

Based on the warnings shared by the state and Bernardin Lochmueller &amp; Associates, Gibson County Sheriff Allen Harmon said deputies conducted extra patrols. So far, no criminal mischief or vandalism has been reported there, he said. "We don't know if they didn't show up or decided against it," Harmon said.

One of the biggest concerns, he said, is empty houses purchased to make way for the interstate project. "Empty houses are a big target for vandals," Harmon said.

Extending Interstate 69 from Evansville to Indianapolis has been planned and debated for many years, but funding for the first leg of the project, from Evansville to Oakland City, only became available this year. Groundbreaking is set for next year.

Bernardin Lochmueller &amp; Associates has a security protocol at its Evansville office and was on "high alert" Monday, Goffinet said, after an incident in August 2005 in which protesters masked with bandannas tried to get through the office doors and were stopped. Later they picketed outside the homes of two BLA employees, he said.

"I would suggest the more legitimate forms of protest that have taken place have been very mainline and certainly respectable opposition efforts," Goffinet said.

An e-mail message was sent through Earth First's Web site, requesting the organization make available a spokesman for comment.


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Comments » 38

doRight writes:

Ok EarthFirst, I'm going to call it like I see it. You are a bunch of idiots. Your going to protest a route that will save gas thereby reducing CO2 emissions for traveling to Indy from Evansville? How much sense does that make. Given that they are installing stoplights on highway 41 faster than rabbits can reproduce you are not convincing me that not building a direct route to Indy will save the environment. Why don't you all just go back to the woods and hug your trees. Oh BTW did you pay attention in your 3rd grade science class? The trees take CO2 from our cars and turn it into oxygen. So go back and worship your trees while we use common sense and build a direct route to our state capital.

DAVE writes:

I-69, better known as the "NAFTA" Highway, linking the US to Mexico & Canada will do nothing more than allowing illegal Aliens, Drugs, and more Crime into our area. Also destroy valuable farmland and wildlife habitat, while displacing many homes & Families.

Blackstone writes:


This is different, how?

dp writes:

I have just one word to describe Earth First: eco-terrorists. It also goes to show that most of the opposition to I-69 is coming from outside of Indiana, contrary to what opponents want you to believe. Round 'em all up and charge them with committing terrorist acts.

dayers#201906 writes:

These tree huggers need to get a life.

The "new" I-69 will reduce emissions (more efficient route) and stimulate economic progress by a larger margin than anything that is lost along Hwy 41.

iubud#25676 writes:

I69 would give students from Evansville a safer road to travel to school on. Right now, there isn't a good route to IU in Bloomington. The route would also help those going to Butler, IUPUI, and Ball State. I only wish the road would have been completed before my children began college. Using less fuel and making it a quicker trip are two additional benefits.

BigMoe writes:

NO to I-69, we are good christian community, we are in the bible belt, and you want a road going right through our heart called I-69, damn liberal, we don't want your west coast values here in the MidWest, you can your I-69 in your own community, not in Gods Country...

tractordaddy writes:

BigMoe, what you just posted makes ABSOLUTELY no sense. We have I-64, and that sure brought in the "west coast values," didn't it? NOT!

Mar10 (Inactive) writes:

Perhaps they got on I-57 and ended up in Evansville TN!

BigMoe writes:

Just like all the lives we are saving in the middle-east, maybe they need a good I-69, we should donate our I-69 to the poor people of there, as sign of freedom and good will, who really cares about the fuel saved, we can always get more, we know where it is, --NO TO I-69--- What kind of logic is this "The highways after WWII made this country", did you even go to high-school... If you only knew what made this country great, one word - Jesus... enuf's said...

ladylippan#107685 writes:

BigMoe, our TVs bring in much more "west coast values" than any road. My faith is strong enough to not let a strip of asphalt (or concrete) take me to hell.

DAVE writes:

"....Posted by NOYB on September 18, 2007 at 9:37 a.m.
No one cares about the lives saved, the fuel saved. People would rather destroy the opportunity of Evansville to become a key city in Indiana. They would like to keep us isolated....."

I think Evansville has done rather well without I-69. Why turn it into another St Louis or Chicago? Smaller cities are the best cities to live in not some Drug infested street gang areas found in larger cities. <<<NO TO I-69!!!!!>>>>

Cynic writes:

BigMoe – I don’t know what are they spiking your kool-
aid with these days because I am fairly certain based on a reasonable interpretation of the Bible that Jesus not only fully supported the building of I-69 in Southern Indiana he also wanted it built as a new road as opposed to using the US-41 route.

ekeller#214140 writes:

This is tiresome, but "cut & paste" helps:
Listen, there WILL BE an Interstate 69! It is a FEDERAL project, like all other interstate highways! It WILL come to pass! The Feds are kindly allowing us some feedback on exactly WHERE it will be, but it WILL exist, whether WE want it to or not! Kindly step away if this upsets you, because you will NOT stop it!

I-69 will NOT be the only interstate to connect Canada to Mexico, but it will be one of a very few. Sites along the line will be VERY attractive to multi-national corporations for possible relocations of factories, offices, etc.. It will be good for this area to have.

The fact that the Indiana, state government officials are trying to use the Federal highway to also fulfill the long-standing promise of a direct route between Evansville and Indy is immaterial. If it becomes a problem, the Feds will simply remove Evansville from the equation.

And, let's face it, we NEED new a bridge over the Ohio. The old ones are in pretty rough shape.... If we can accomplish that using Federal money, then that is a GOOD thing!

Sancho writes:

To BigToe and others:

Why should normal citizens pay any attention to anything that Earth First says because they do not believe in the rule of law. If the law ignores their breaking the law, it should also ignore other citizens who ignore the law by beating the living carp out of them.

The_joke_is_Evansville writes:

I say shut down all roads going into and out of Evansville, KY to keep all of the inbreads in Eville!! I would hate to see the geen pool disrupted.

blackbear#27350 writes:

Dave I69 will save lives after it is done.Hy 57 has taken a lought of lives. Some was good frends of are family.Look at the people it will put to work.There is some good in all things.

topsyturvy writes:

BigMoe....christian? Then why can't you type a response without cursing? And by the way, last time I checked, the entire world was "God's country."
Evansville and Southwestern Indiana have been ignored by the Hoosier government powers-that-be since the railroads were built.
We are way overdue to have decent roads from here to Indy. Period. I-69 will happen and the sooner the better.
As for it being a highway for drug dealers....well, the drugs are already here without I-69.
Whether or not the rest of I-69 gets built, we still need a major freeway between Evansville and Indy.

lovemykids writes:

Go Earth First! Someone needs to take a stand, the majority of Southwest indiana DOES not want the stupid Interstate. The amish community and small communities in the path will suffer the most, so anyone wanting the damn interstate to link up Evansville is being SELFISH!!!!!!

loulou99 writes:

lovemykids....sorry, but you do not speak for the majority of Southwest Indiana - in fact, if you look at the majority of the posts here, I'd say it's for I69. Personally, I want a safe, quick route to IU for my children and any other child that goes to any of the colleges north of us. It would bring us more jobs and more opportunity...change is good. And I'm not liberal. Earthfirst is just ignorant, much like the people that back them.

doRight writes:

I-69 will pass through these small towns, but it will not destroy them. If anything it will build them up and help them to grow. As for the Amish, I'd love a nice easy way to drive my pickup truck into Amish country to buy some good quality Amish furniture rather than driving on back country, curvy, and hilly highways.

Before you start making judgments that we are SELFISH, you really need to come up with a good argument that will back your case.

Taceas writes:

US-41 and I-70 have worked for 30+ years. 41 could definitely use the removal of stoplights and asinine road crossings, and Terre Haute could use a run-around. We don't need a brand new highway that only saves you 15 minutes of driving time.

At this point in time our property taxes are going through the roof, and yet our government keeps spending and spending. I have to curtail my spending on basics because I have to save for taxes, why can't government do the same? Enough is enough.

Most of SW Indiana doesn't want I-69, fact. Only Evansville does. Its not their homes, their farms, or their heritage being torn up...its easy to dictate from a distance. Think outside your city limits for a change and think about the people who grow your food and have been on the same land for generations.

Rework what we've got, save some of our money, save some people's land, save our heritage, save our green spaces which are already in short supply.

loulou, Bloomington does not want I-69 and I can't say that I blame them. It would completely ruin the small town feel that town miraculously still has despite the population of IU. I drove between IU and Princeton every weekend for a year, I'm no worse for wear. Tell your children to drive slower, drive defensively, and enjoy the scenery. An interstate isn't necessarily any safer and its a hell of a lot uglier to drive on.

JMNSHO writes:

Oh, silly me! I thought BigMoe was making a joke at 9:24 a.m. "NO to I-69, we are good christian community, we are in the bible belt, and you want a road going right through our heart called I-69, damn liberal, we don't want your west coast values here in the MidWest, you can your I-69 in your own community, not in Gods Country..." In fact, I thought it was pretty darned funny.

As for The_joke_is_Evansville's post at 11:08 a.m. "I say shut down all roads going into and out of Evansville, KY to keep all of the inbreads in Eville!! I would hate to see the geen pool disrupted.": I don't know what "inbreads" or "geen pools" are. I HAVE heard of "inbreds" and "gene pools". Maybe Joke has inbreads in his/her geen pool.

lovemykids writes:

I really am excited to get more minimum wage jobs here in Evansville, JUST WHAT WE NEED, more wal-marts, and McDonalds, Im so excited I just wet myself.
The Interstate will cut counties IN HALF, this will be a limited access Highway, meaning emergancy vehicles will have to travel some distance to get around the Interstate, so yes it WILL effect the smaller communities.

PikerPacifier writes:

I Love BigMoe. Here we have a strong Republican-backed project that is wanting a economic boost to the region. Democrats pretty much want the same, but do not want to step on the toes of southwestern Indiana farmers. BigMoe is against the I-69, AND do not want the Earth First to Succeed. Hey Moe? They want what you and I want, no I-69. So hey, go with'em man. Jump the West Coast Values Lovetrain, baby.

doRight writes:

Taceas, what you don't understand is that 41 and I-70 work, but they don't work well. More than Evansville will want I-69.

What you need to realize is that Evansville is growing, we are not the same size we were 50 years ago. Our infrastructure needs to expand with our population and economic growth or things will die. Yea I know that people will loose part of their farms, the thing is, people need to learn to adapt and move on and quit trying to live paused in time.

kakarott writes:

whoever says that 41 and I-70 is fine most likely doesn't travel from eville to indy at all. It's either that or go out of the way to louisville then up. I can't wait for I-69 to be built!

chuck1830#166640 writes:

I don’t know if anyone cares or if this will even be read but I will through my 2 cents in. In the beginning I was for the I-69 project. But recently I have decided to be against it. The fact is we really don’t need it. Building a direct road to Indianapolis is not going to affect Evansville economy on a significant level. It will just shave 20 min. off a Bloomington trip and 45 min. off an Indianapolis trip along with adding money to pay damn tolls. We don’t have the money to build it so we will haf to borrow the money leaving us further in debt. It will not save any resources by creating a shorter trip, do any of you even know how much energy and oil it would require to build a massive highway such as I-69. I don’t know exactly but trust me the environment and our oil dependency would be a lot better off with out this highway. The only good thing it would do is create road construction jobs. The thing is it’s a luxury we don’t need it and will be fine without it.

For everyone that is for the highway telling me how a road will create more jobs or stimulate our economy any more than having 64 and 41. It won’t. The highway is just not really needed.

gibcohick writes:

I think they have made provisions for a few overpasses/underpasses so country folks can get from one side of the interstate to the other.

I live in Owensville and I can drive south via a few different county roads and get across I-64 and end up on St. Joe ave. and get to God's Country - I mean the Westside without having to drive to 41 or to I-164.

Everthing will be OK.

doRight writes:

Chuck, when was the last time you drove to Indianapolis? As for the jobs issue, when was the last time you drove around I-164? Have you noticed that there is a lot of businesses, apartments, etc that are popping up like crazy around there?

Can you provide some evidence that an interstate does not promote economic growth? Every interstate I have seen seems to do that.

chuck1830#166640 writes:

Last month and your missing the point, we already have 2 major highways In Evansville running north to south and east to west. I do not believe that another highway will help anymore than the two we already have. Truthfully I really don’t know where exactly 69 is going too or from but all I hear about from supporters is Bloomington, Indianapolis, and Economic Growth. I went to IU for four years and drove 57 nearly every weekend, it sucked bad, but is an added convenience really worth the resources, time, money, and laying waste to any land along the way.

dp writes:

Like or not, Interstate highways are the life-blood of America. Without these highways this country would come to a screeching halt. That's why it's so important to maintain the Interstate highways we have and expand the Interstate system when necessary. Extending I-69 to Evansville and beyond accomplishes both of these goals.

I am eagerly awaiting to see the Lord's hand at work creating this highway when construction begins in about 8 months from now.

max1#191204 writes:

The article states that the environmentalist are the ones protesting. Its not the farmers. What is it about you people always dogging the farmers? Farming is the heart of the United States. You can not say that about too many industries. You should take pride in our farmers instead of dogging them all the time. From the minute you get up, dressed and whatever else you do or use came from farming.

honeybrowndogg#12246 writes:

Since when does a larger volume of traffic traveling at a higher rate of speed result in less CO2. Try looking at all our coal burning power plants that send most of the electricity out of state.

topsyturvy writes:

I-69 is a federal project and it WILL be built. As for the CO2 and oil and gas - it burns less gas when you don't start and stop all the time. It will take a lot of semi-truck traffic out of the city limits, unless they are delivering inside city limits.
Hwy 41 does NOT work! Too much starting and stopping and they are always doing repairs so it is never a smooth flowing highway.
As I said before, southwestern Indiana has been left out of good transportation routes since the railroads were built.
If we want companies to keep locating their businesses in our area, then we need good transportation north and south (I-69), as well as east and west (I-64). Eventually, there will be a loop around Evansville metro area also.
So, should I pass the cheese to go with your whines?! :)
Because it's a done deal.
But isn't it wonderful to still be able to express our opinions and put in our two-cents worth?!!! :)

pooka writes:

I-69 is a useless boondoggle and it will only leave fast food restaurants and big box stores in its wake, destroying small towns and family farms.

tomz writes:

"Posted by doRight on September 18, 2007 at 3:35 p.m.



My reply:

An interstate will only move business to that particular area. Yes, there will be new businesses, but they are less likely to be locally-owned and operated by people who have some share in the community. An interstate helps to make everyone and everything more alike, and therefore boring, and, more dangerously, less diverse. We are already, with television and the internet, becoming one big festering cauldron of homogenous "culture". An interstate highway through our town will not help. It will add congestion as it will block off existing access roads, and the bulk of the traffic will be simply driving right past us on their way to ports of call in Canada and Mexico to pick up and deliver cheaper goods to demanding people with no sense about what they are buying or why.

No I-69 through my town.

lefty writes:

The joke-
You might want to use spellcheck when calling people inbred. Those typos tend to make you look stupid. How is your sisterwife doing anyway?!?
