Wabash Township, Tippecanoe County, Indiana

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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; -86.95417Coordinates: 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
 • TrusteeVacant
 • Board SecretaryBrendan Betz
 • Board MemberDavid Tate
 • Board ChairAngel Valentin
Area
 • Total49.1 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)
 • Total59,279
 • Density1,218.5/sq mi (470.5/km2)
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes
47906
Area code(s)765
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)
Average high °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)
Average low °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[]

  • Angel Valentin

Township Board[]

  • Brendan Betz
  • David Tate
  • Vacant (pending Democratic caucus to fill position vacated by Angel Valentin)

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 corroborated the board's allegations regarding Teising's residency, finding that after the sale of her house, she had spent substantial time outside the township, and at the time of the investigation was living at an RV park in Florida.[11]

At their January 2021 meeting, the township board unanimously voted no confidence in the Trustee.[15]

In the midst of the of residency controversy, Teising terminated the employment of the township fire chief.[16] 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.[17] Teising stated that her legal counsel had advised her that she was within her power to fire the chief,[18] and that she had further been advised not to comment further as it was a personnel matter.[19] She declined to identify the legal counsel, or to provide information on whether such counsel was paid from personal funds or taxpayer funds.[16] 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.[20]

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,[10] 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.[21] 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.[22] 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.[23]

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 (ERD), which allowed them to effectively seize control of fire department oversight from the trustee.[24] Teising would not recognize the ERD as legitimate and therefore did not cede fire department oversight, instead following through with dismissal of all paid fire department staff. Without any paid staff, and with volunteer numbers dwindling due to low morale, the fire department association announced that they had voted to cease responding to emergency calls due to the toxic work environment and concerns over their personal safety during undermanned responses.

On January 29, 2021, Indiana State Police served a search warrant on the Trustee's office,[15] and Teising later revealed she was being investigated for violating the residency requirement of her elected office.[25] 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.[26] A grand jury later indicted Teising on an additional felony charge of theft for allegedly improperly continuing to draw a paycheck during the period of April through June 2021.[27] She denied the allegations and revealed plans to sue Prosecutor Harrington for malicious prosecution.[28] After motions by the defense that a special prosecutor be assigned and that the trial be moved outside the county were denied, Teising waived her right to jury trial, citing a lack of confidence in being able to seat an impartial jury in Tippecanoe County.

Trustee Teising's bench trial was held from Dec 13, 2021 to Dec 15, 2021 with Judge Kristen McVey presiding. The prosecution presented evidence that during the 10 months in question, Teising stayed overnight in the township just 27 nights, and that she had packages delivered, paid utilities, and signed a 6-month rental agreement at addresses outside the township. Multiple witnesses testified that in early 2020, Teising had revealed plans to leave office prior to the end of her elected term and move to Florida. The defense argued that although Teising traveled extensively outside the township, including extended stays in Florida, she maintained a legal residence in the township at the address of a former boyfriend. At the conclusion of the trial, the arguments were taken under advisement. On January 5, 2022, Judge McVey convicted Teising on all 21 felony counts of theft, citing a failure by Teising to "make her true, permanent, and fixed home in Wabash Township" and her actions that "evince[d] a desire to conceal her actual whereabouts." State law dictates that a felony conviction results in the trustee's immediate removal from office, and that the township board chair serves as interim trustee until a permanent replacement is selected to complete the normal term via caucus of the removed trustee's political party.[29] On Jan 6, 2022, Angel Valentin was sworn in as the interim trustee.[30]

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. ^ "2018 Election Results".
  8. ^ "Wabash Township Fire Department loses chief".
  9. ^ "Wabash Township looking into emergency loan that may raise taxes".
  10. ^ a b "Journal and Courier".
  11. ^ a b "Journal and Courier".
  12. ^ "Board calls for Wabash Township trustee's resignation, citing residency issues and no confidence".
  13. ^ "Archived copy". wabashtrustee.com. Archived from the original on 2 December 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  14. ^ "Archived copy". wabashtrustee.com. Archived from the original on 10 February 2021. Retrieved 12 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  15. ^ a b "Wabash Township Board votes no confidence in Trustee Jennifer Teising".
  16. ^ a b "Wabash Township trustee fires chief on the same day the board calls for her resignation".
  17. ^ "Wabash Township volunteer firefighters stop working over chief's firing".
  18. ^ "Wabash Township trustee denies allegations she lives in Florida".
  19. ^ "December 28 2020 | Wabash Township Trustee".
  20. ^ "Wabash Township Firefighters Assoc. Votes no confidence in Trustee, calls for resignation".
  21. ^ "Journal and Courier".
  22. ^ "Journal and Courier".
  23. ^ "Journal and Courier". www.jconline.com. Retrieved 2021-06-28.
  24. ^ Frazier, Nikos. "Emergency Response Department created with hope trustee reaches contract with firefighters". Journal and Courier. Retrieved 2021-06-28.
  25. ^ "EXCLUSIVE: Wabash Township Trustee talks the state investigation into her residency".
  26. ^ "Wabash Township trustee indicted on 20 counts of theft".
  27. ^ "Grand Jury Indicts Teising, Again, on Theft Charge".
  28. ^ "City Councilor calls for Jennifer Teising's resignation, Teising planning to sue prosecutor".
  29. ^ "Trustee Tiesing Guilty of 21 Counts of Theft".
  30. ^ Wilkins, Ron. "Valentin sworn in as interim Wabash Township trustee, replacing Teising". Journal and Courier. Retrieved 2022-01-06.

External links[]

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