Tulip Festival Begins In Orange City
(Orange City) — Its Tulip Time at Orange City. Today begins the three-day festival when the folks at the Sioux County community celebrate their Dutch Heritage. KLEM radio will be broadcasting live the afternoon parade which can be heard beginning at 2:15 p.m. Dave Ruden will feature all the floats,
marching bands, and the pageantry. You can visit the KLEM radio website at www.klem1410.com to see a complete schedule of events.
photos from 2017 Tulip Festival
Democrats To Hold Congressional Candidate Debate At Dordt College
(Le Mars) — June 5th marks the date for the Iowa primaries. This evening at Dordt College in Sioux Center there will be a debate between the three Democratic congressional candidates for Iowa District 4. Candidates J.D. Scholten of Sioux City, John Paschen of Ames, and Leann Jacobsen of Spencer will face off. Doors open at 6:30 for the 7 p.m. debate in the lower level of
the Campus Center, Dordt College, 498 4th Av NE, Sioux Center, IA. . This event is sponsored by the Dordt College Democrat Club, the Dordt College Political Science Department, and the Democratic Parties of O’Brien, Plymouth, Sioux, and Woodbury Counties.
LeAnn Jacobsen – Spencer
John Paschen – Ames
J.D. Scholten – Sioux City
Six Candidates Seeking Position Of Iowa Secretary Of Agriculture
(Le Mars) — The Iowa Primary is just a few weeks away, and one category which has prompted several candidates is the position of Iowa Secretary of Agriculture.
When former Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey was picked as an Under Secretary with the U-S Department of Agriculture, it left a big void in Des Moines with the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. No
less than six candidates are now seeking the post. Five Republicans and one Democrat. The republican candidates include current Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig, Southwest Iowa farmer and past president of the Iowa
and American Soybean Association Ray Gaesser, former president of the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation Craig Lang,
State Senator Dan Zumbach,
and Northeast Iowa farmer Chad Ingels.
Tim Gannon, who was a former aide to Governor and
later USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack, is the lone Democrat candidate seeking the position of Iowa Secretary of Agriculture.
Two of the republican candidates, Mike Naig and Ray Gaesser, recently made appearances in northwest Iowa.
Gaesser explains why he is running as a candidate for the Iowa Secretary of Agriculture.
Mike Naig, who is originally from Palo Alto County, says he is relying upon his experience as the current Agriculture Secretary and as Northey’s Deputy Secretary of Agriculture to help him win the election and continue to serve Iowa’s agriculture.
Both candidates believe trading of Iowa agricultural products is important for the state’s economy.
June 5th is the date for the Iowa Primary election, and it is then people will have the first opportunity to vote for the person they believe will serve Iowa’s agriculture in the best manner.
U-S Department Of Education Informs Iowa Schools Must Improve
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa’s lowest-performing schools must do more than show improvement to get off a list of targeted schools under a plan approved by the U.S. Department of Education.
U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos informed Iowa Wednesday that its school accountability plan was accepted after revisions made by the Iowa Department of Education.
The plan replaces Iowa’s old system that required 100 percent student proficiency. Iowa now seeks to have 80 percent of high school students proficient in reading and 84 percent in math.
Iowa wanted to allow schools in the bottom 5 percent of proficiency that show consistent improvement to stop being subjected to special policies intended to improve performance. Federal officials said those schools must no longer be in the bottom 5 percent to remove the designation.
City Of Des Moines Loses Lawsuit With Construction Company
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Des Moines has lost a lawsuit and been ordered to pay nearly $1 million in damages to a construction company it blacklisted.
A jury made the award last week to Jenco Construction Inc., which is based in Des Moines.
The city said Jenco didn’t finish a $3.3 million bridge
reconstruction project on time and deliver quality work. Consequently, the city barred Jenco in December 2015 from bidding on city projects for three years.
The Des Moines Register reports that Jenco sued the city in May 2015, challenging the city’s complaints. Jenco attorney Thomas Olson says the company encountered boulders, concrete, debris and tree stumps that nobody knew about.
Des Moines City Attorney Jeff Lester says city officials will be
discussing their next course of action.
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Bus Hits Train Trestle Injures Driver And Passengers
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) – A driver and passengers were hurt when their bus slammed into a train trestle in Council Bluffs, ripping off the back of the vehicle.
Police say the crash happened just before noon Wednesday when the driver of a small transit bus tried to pass beneath the trestle, which is only 8 feet 8 inches above the roadway. The impact tore off the back of the bus.
The bus is owned by Notre Dame Housing, an assisted living center in Omaha, Nebraska. The driver and five passengers received non-life threatening injuries. Three of the passengers were treated at hospitals.
The driver, whose name wasn’t released, was cited.
The Canadian National railroad stopped train traffic for about an
hour after the crash but later resumed normal activity.
