Jump to content

Wabash Township, Tippecanoe County, Indiana

Coordinates: 40°28′20″N 86°57′15″W / 40.47222°N 86.95417°W / 40.47222; -86.95417
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Sakiv (talk | contribs) at 00:30, 30 June 2021 (Reverted 1 edit by 2600:387:C:2E12:0:0:0:146 (talk) to last revision by 69.174.156.250). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Wabash Township
Township
Dawn skies over a West Lafayette neighborhood
Dawn skies over a West Lafayette neighborhood
Location in Tippecanoe County
Location in Tippecanoe County
Coordinates: 40°28′20″N 86°57′15″W / 40.47222°N 86.95417°W / 40.47222; -86.95417
CountryUnited States
StateIndiana
CountyTippecanoe
Government
 • TypeIndiana township
 • TrusteeJennifer Teising
 • Board SecretaryBrendan Betz
 • Board MemberDavid Tate
 • Board ChairAngel Valentin
Area
 • Total
49.1 sq mi (127 km2)
 • Land48.65 sq mi (126.0 km2)
 • Water0.46 sq mi (1.2 km2)  0.94%
Elevation
[1]
659 ft (201 m)
Population
 (2010)
 • Total
59,279
 • Density1,218.5/sq mi (470.5/km2)
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes
47906
Area code765
GNIS feature ID453967

Wabash Township is one of thirteen townships in Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States. As of the 2010 census, its population was 59,279 and it contained 21,448 housing units making it the most populous township in Tippecanoe County.[2]

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the township has a total area of 49.1 square miles (127 km2), of which 48.65 square miles (126.0 km2) (or 99.08%) is land and 0.46 square miles (1.2 km2) (or 0.94%) is water.[2] Wabash Township encompasses all but a small section of the City of West Lafayette and encompasses all of Purdue University making it one of the most culturally diverse townships in the United States.

Climate data for Wabash Township, Tippecanoe County, Indiana
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 69
(21) 		73
(23) 		86
(30) 		89
(32) 		94
(34) 		105
(41) 		105
(41) 		100
(38) 		98
(37) 		92
(33) 		78
(26) 		73
(23) 		105
(41)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) 34
(1) 		39
(4) 		50
(10) 		63
(17) 		73
(23) 		83
(28) 		85
(29) 		84
(29) 		78
(26) 		65
(18) 		51
(11) 		38
(3) 		62
(17)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) 19
(−7) 		23
(−5) 		31
(−1) 		41
(5) 		51
(11) 		61
(16) 		64
(18) 		63
(17) 		55
(13) 		44
(7) 		34
(1) 		23
(−5) 		42
(6)
Record low °F (°C) −23
(−31) 		−20
(−29) 		−3
(−19) 		7
(−14) 		25
(−4) 		35
(2) 		43
(6) 		37
(3) 		29
(−2) 		19
(−7) 		6
(−14) 		−16
(−27) 		−23
(−31)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 1.86
(47) 		1.84
(47) 		2.67
(68) 		3.54
(90) 		4.19
(106) 		4.10
(104) 		3.97
(101) 		3.46
(88) 		2.66
(68) 		2.89
(73) 		2.97
(75) 		2.51
(64) 		36.66
(931)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 6.5
(17) 		4.8
(12) 		2.9
(7.4) 		0.7
(1.8) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0.3
(0.76) 		0.8
(2.0) 		5.2
(13) 		21.2
(54)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) 9.6 7.7 10.2 10.9 10.6 10.4 8.9 8.4 7.6 8.3 9.8 10.1 112.5
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) 5.3 3.3 1.7 0.3 0 0 0 0 0 0.1 0.9 3.5 15.1
Source 1: The Weather Channel (January record high)[3]
Source 2: NOAA: Lafayette[4]

Cities, towns, villages

Neighborhoods and former and unincorporated communities

(This list is based on USGS data and may include former settlements.)

Adjacent townships

Indiana State Soldiers' Home Cemetery

Cemeteries

The township contains five cemeteries: Grandview, Hebron, Indiana State Soldiers' Home, Sand Ridge and Tippecanoe Memory Gardens.

Major highways

Airports

Purdue University Airport

Lakes

Landmarks

News and Media

School districts

Political districts

Township Officials

Township Trustee

  • Jennifer Teising

Township Board

  • Brendan Betz
  • Angel Valentin
  • David Tate

Controversy Surrounding Trustee Teising

Jennifer Teising, running as a Democrat, was elected to a four-year term as township Trustee in the 2018 general election. Her more notable actions as Trustee pertained to attempted reform of the township fire department.[7] Almost immediately upon taking office, she replaced the existing fire chief.[8] She then spearheaded an effort to take emergency loans, funded by increased property taxes, in order to fund fire department improvements including the hiring of additional firefighters and the provision of benefits to paid fire department staff.[9] Plans for stable long-term increased funding fell apart as Teising became embroiled in controversies that were accompanied by the alienation of the firefighters, the township board, neighboring governing agencies, and many of the township residents. [10]

Public records showed that in early 2020, Teising sold her home and updated her voter registration to reflect a primary residency at an address elsewhere within the township.[11] In late 2020, the township board jointly requested Teising's resignation, citing a lack of participation in township meetings, a failure to disperse the budgeted township assistance funds in the midst of a pandemic, and an alleged failure to maintain residency within the township as required under state law. In a statement to local media, Teising denied the allegations and dismissed the calls for her resignation as a “coup.”[12] Archived copies of the Township Trustee website show that around this time, the website was edited to remove the board members' names, photographs, contact information, and all other mention of the board and individual board members. [13][14]

A subsequent investigative report by the local newspaper dug into the allegations regarding Teising’s residency.[15] The homeowner at the address to which Teising had registered to vote stated that Teising was renting a room, but declined to provide additional details. Neighbors of the address were unable to corroborate those claims, but when shown pictures of the trustee noted that she appeared to be the same person who had briefly stayed at the location and parked her camper trailer there. Township records showed that Teising had request that documents requiring her signature be sent to an address outside the township in Anderson, IN. Cell phone data showed that she had spent some time at a different address outside the township; the homeowner at that address confirmed that Teising had stayed there, but did not provide any information on why Teising stayed there instead of her rented room within the township. Cell phone data also demonstrated that during the newspaper’s investigation, Teising was at an RV park in Florida, which was confirmed by local media.

Teising consistently denied allegations that she no longer resided in the township, noting that such a residency requirement does not preclude the Trustee from spending time outside the township and asserting the working remotely is permitted. Soon after the investigative report, Teising departed the RV park and returned to Wabash Township for a short time.

In a TV news interview several months later, Teising admitted to not living in the township during much of the time in question, stating that she chose to travel around the country in her RV during the pandemic. She nonetheless asserted that she remained a resident of the township as she maintained a lease and was registered to vote there.[16]

At their January 2021 meeting, the township board unanimously voted no confidence in the Trustee.[17]

In the midst of the of residency controversy, Teising terminated the employment of the township fire chief.[18] Opponents, including the deputy fire chief (who had assumed the role of acting chief) and the volunteer firefighters, charged that unilateral firing of the fire chief was not within her legal powers, and the entire volunteer corp briefly walked off the job in protest.[19] Teising stated that her legal counsel had advised her that she was within her power to fire the chief,[20] and that she had further been advised not to comment further as it was a personnel matter.[21] She declined to identify the legal counsel, or to provide information on whether such counsel was paid from personal funds or taxpayer funds.[22] Leaked e-mails showed that Teising later forbade the acting chief from communicating with his other elected officials without involving her, and dismissed his requests for justification from authoritative legal sources for this order. In response, the Wabash Township Firefighter's Association announced that they had unanimously voted no confidence in Trustee Teising and called for her resignation in an open letter. [23]

In April 2021, after the township board passed a resolution supporting the enrollment of paid township firefighters in a pension plan, Teising informed the board chair that she was terminating all the paid firefighting positions, citing a lack of sufficient funding, [24] and soon afterwards, it was reported that she had threatened to suspend all volunteer firefighters over a disagreement over annual evaluations, which would effectively close the fire department. [25] Although e-mails showed that she informed the mayor and fire chief that the township would soon not have any volunteer firefighters, she ultimately did not follow through on the threat to eliminate the volunteers. [26] The township board insisted that the paid staff should be retained as well, as there was sufficient funds to continue supporting them, and they moved an additional $500,000 into the general firefighting fund specifically to continue the paid firefighting positions, but Teising refused to reverse course on laying off all paid firefighters. [27]

Finally, after meeting with state officials to discuss their options, the township board passed a resolution declaring an emergency and establishing an Emergency Response District, which allowed them to effectively seize control of fire department oversight from the trustee. [28]

On January 29, 2021, Indiana State Police served a search warrant on the Trustee’s office.[29] Witness report being told only that the warrant was part of a criminal investigation, and that four detectives took part in the search and removed items from the scene. The township board secretary stated that investigators had requested minutes of the board meetings, which he had provided them as they are publicly available. No information was provided at the time whether the investigation could have related to either the residency controversy or her handling fire department personnel, and Teising later denied being the subject of any investigation.[30] However, in April 2021, the State Police requested recent interview footage of Teising from local TV station WLFI. When WLFI reached back out to Teising over this request, she admitted having been told by police she was being investigated for violating the residency requirement of her elected office. [31] On May 12, 2021, a grand jury indicted Teising on 20 felony counts of theft for continuing to draw paychecks without meeting the residency requirement of the position from June 17, 2020, through March 26, 2021. [32] Her initial hearing was on May 28, and her lawyer said she would be requesting that the trial be moved outside the county and a special prosecutor [33] be assigned. She had previously told local media, WLFI, that she plans to sue Prosecutor Harrington for malicious prosecution. [34]

References

  1. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved 2017-05-09.
  2. ^ a b "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County -- County Subdivision and Place -- 2010 Census Summary File 1". United States Census. Archived from the original on 2020-02-12. Retrieved 2013-05-10.
  3. ^ "Monthly Averages for Lafayette, IN (47905)". The Weather Channel. Retrieved June 13, 2014.
  4. ^ "Climatology of the United States No. 20: LAFAYETTE 8 S, IN 1971–2000" (PDF). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved November 19, 2011.
  5. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  6. ^ "National Register of Historic Places Listings". Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 12/17/12 through 12/21/12. National Park Service. 2012-12-28.
  7. ^ https://www.wlfi.com/content/news/2018-Election-Results-499903452.html
  8. ^ https://www.wlfi.com/content/news/Wabash-Township-Fire-loses-chief-507517221.html
  9. ^ https://www.wlfi.com/content/news/Wabash-Township--567432141.html
  10. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2021/04/21/west-lafayette-area-firefighters-terminated-before-pension/7318173002/
  11. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2020/12/22/wabash-township-trustee-jennifer-teising-west-lafayette-residency-questioned-neighbors/3938611001/
  12. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2020/12/21/west-lafayette-township-indiana-calls-resignation-trustee/3991805001/
  13. ^ https://web.archive.org/web/20201202223012/https://wabashtrustee.com/
  14. ^ https://web.archive.org/web/20210210181002/https://wabashtrustee.com/
  15. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2020/12/22/wabash-township-trustee-jennifer-teising-west-lafayette-residency-questioned-neighbors/3938611001/
  16. ^ https://www.wlfi.com/content/news/EXCLUSIVE-Wabash-Township-Trustee-Jennifer-Teising-shares-her-side-of-residency-story-574094081.html
  17. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2020/12/28/west-lafayette-township-board-votes-no-confidence-trustee-teising/4067940001/
  18. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2020/12/21/west-lafayette-township-trustee-terminates-fire-chief/3999946001/
  19. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2020/12/22/west-lafayette-volunteer-firefighters-protest-stop-working-after-chief-ed-ward-fired/4001770001/
  20. ^ https://www.wlfi.com/content/news/Wabash-Township-trustee-denies-allegations-she-lives-in-Florida-573459681.html
  21. ^ https://wabashtrustee.com/december-28-2020/
  22. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2020/12/21/west-lafayette-township-trustee-terminates-fire-chief/3999946001/
  23. ^ https://www.wlfi.com/content/news/Wabash-Township-Firefighters-Assoc-votes-no-confidence-in-Trustee-calls-for-resignation-573849201.html
  24. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2021/04/21/west-lafayette-area-firefighters-terminated-before-pension/7318173002/
  25. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2021/04/28/jennifer-teising-threatens-make-wabash-twp-firefighters-inactive/7334876002/
  26. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2021/05/04/wabash-township-trustee-jennifer-teising-doesnt-follow-through-threat-fire-dept/4936245001/
  27. ^ "Journal and Courier". www.jconline.com. Retrieved 2021-06-28.
  28. ^ Frazier, Nikos. "Emergency Response Department created with hope trustee reaches contract with firefighters". Journal and Courier. Retrieved 2021-06-28.
  29. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2020/12/28/west-lafayette-township-board-votes-no-confidence-trustee-teising/4067940001/
  30. ^ https://www.jconline.com/story/news/local/lafayette/2021/03/11/west-lafayette-trustee-jennifer-teising-firefighters-update/6954471002/
  31. ^ https://www.wlfi.com/content/news/EXCLUSIVE-Wabash-Township-Trustee-talks-the-state-investigation-into-her-residency-574191481.html
  32. ^ https://www.purdueexponent.org/city_state/article_b5becf74-b342-11eb-8aa3-b3d067a9352a.html
  33. ^ https://www.wlfi.com/content/news/Indicted-Wabash-Township-trustee-appears-for-initial-hearing-574514911.html
  34. ^ https://www.wlfi.com/content/news/City-Councilor-calls-for-Jennifer-Teisings-resignation-Teising-planning-to-sue-prosecutor-574437951.html
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Wabash_Township,_Tippecanoe_County,_Indiana&oldid=1031133531"