Le Mars Rotary Dedicates Flag and Flagpole At O’Toole Park Honoring Ina Gatts
(Le Mars) — Members of the Le Mars Rotary, along with city officials and people from the community, gathered at O’Toole Park this morning for the dedication ceremonies acknowledging the civic organization’s 100 years of existence, and its relationship with the park. A new flag and flag pole
honoring the club’s first woman president, Ina Gatts, were dedicated, along with trees and park benches that had been donated by the local Rotary organization. Bob Lee is the current president of the Rotary organization and says there is a long time connection between the local civic organization and O’Toole Park.
Ina Gatts, along with her family attended the dedication program held at O’Toole Park. Gatts, says she is honored by today’s recognition, and she reflected back to the days when she was the first woman to join the Le Mars Rotary Club.
Gatts says the local Rotary club wanted to initially name the park as “Rotary Park”, but city officials said no to that idea. So, members of the Rotary at that time, then thought it would be appropriate to name the park in honor of a local doctor.
775 New COVID-19 Cases in Iowa, 1 Additional Death
(Des Moines, IA) — The Iowa Department of Public Health is reporting 775 more positive COVID-19 tests, increasing the state’s total to 76-thousand-50 cases. One Iowan died of coronavirus complications since Tuesday which brings the death toll to one-thousand-234. Two-hundred-91 people are hospitalized with COVID, 79 patients are in intensive care and 32 are on ventilators. A total of 712-thousand-919 tests have been done in Iowa since the pandemic began. Five Iowa counties have a two-week average positivity rate over 15 percent. Four of the five are located in northwest Iowa. Sioux, Lyon, Plymouth, and O’Brien. Henry county located in southeastern Iowa is the fifth county.
Reynolds Recites Latest COVID-19 Statistics During News Conference
(Des Moines) — During her news conference held Wednesday, Governor Kim Reynolds recited the recent statistics involving the COVID-19 cases in Iowa.
Reynolds then broke down the statistics to the number of counties reporting high positive percentage numbers.
Governor Reynolds says we need to continue the course, and she says until there is a vaccine, we need to learn to manage COVID-19 within our course ofour everyday lives, which includes work, school, and social activities.
Reynolds says Iowans need to continue to practice social distancing, wear a mask, especially when inside and unable to social distance, and wash your hands frequently, and if feeling ill to stay home. Reynolds has now allowed bars, nightclubs, and breweries to again open in Dallas, Blackhawk, Polk and
Linn counties to re-open. However, bars and nightclubs in Story and Johnson counties must remain closed through at least September 20th. Reynolds says young adults are still the primary driver of new reported positive cases of COVID-19. Johnson County is home to the University of Iowa, while Story
County is home to Iowa State University.
Governor Reynolds And Des Moines School Board Continue To Battle Over “Return To Learn” Program
(Des Moines) — The battle rages on between Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and the Des Moines school district’s board of education. Governor Reynolds during her news conference held Wednesday called the actions of the Des Moines school board as “disappointing and unacceptable.” Des Moines school district
is the only school district in Iowa not to have submitted a plan for the “Return to Learn”.
Reynolds says the Des Moines school board voted Tuesday evening to ignore the state law, requiring at least 50 percent of the student’s time be spent inside a classroom, and to instead implement an on-line only education system. Reynolds says the Des Moines students are the ones to suffer some setbacks.
The governor says other school districts across the state have shown when there is a will, there is a way to implement in-person classroom setting, and she focus on the West Des Moines school district as an example.
Reynolds says several parents of students from the Des Moines school district were trying to persuade school officials to change their minds, by holding a news conference, and incorporate a plan involving in-person learning.
Body Found In Rural Kellogg
(Kellogg, IA) — The Jasper County Sheriff’s Department is asking for help with information after a body that was found in rural Kellogg. Dispatchers got a call around 5:30 Wednesday about a fire in a roadside ditch. A body was found after the fire was put out. The Sheriff’s Office and Iowa Division of
Criminal Investigation say they are treating the death as a homicide. No other details are available — but the investigators say additional information will be released when available. Anyone with information related to the case is asked to contact the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office at 641- 792-5912.
Iowa DOT Offers “Fly Our Colors” License Plates
(Des Moines, IA) — The Iowa Department of Transportation is now offering a “Fly Our Colors” license plate that features the colors of the Iowa and U-S flags. D-O-T license plate administrator, Paul Cornelius says the top of the
plate is blue and then the middle of the plate is white and the bottom of the plate is red. A gray eagle is in the middle of the plate. Part of the money from the plate will go into the state’s flood mitigation fund. He says you can get the plate at your county treasurer’s office in a standard number version — or you can personalize the plate.
Marshalltown Gets $2.9M Federal Grant For Infrastructure
(Washington, DC) — Marshalltown is getting a two-point-nine million dollar federal grant for infrastructure improvements from the U-S Department of Commerce. The money from the Economic Development Administration is aimed at
supporting industrial development. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross says the work near an opportunity zone will help existing businesses, attract new businesses, and support disaster recovery. A safe roadway is to be built for truck traffic, while flood protection is improved and 60 acres of land is opened up for business. U-S Senator Chuck Grassley says Marshalltown has
been hit hard by natural disasters in recent years and just as it was moving forward, the derecho storm hit. Grassley calls this a “tough year” for the Iowa city.
Iowa Brewers Guild President: One-Third of Breweries Could Close Due to COVID
(Des Moines, IA) — The president of the Iowa Brewers Guild says the impact of the pandemic closings could put as many as one-third of the state’s independent breweries out of business for good. Scott Selix says it’s hard to get an exact handle on the impact. He said, “from the best that I can glean, brewery sales are down 40 to 50 percent across the board.” The governor shut down all breweries for a time during the pandemic and then shut
them down in six counties after COVID-19 cases spiked. Selix says smaller breweries have been hit harder than large ones that have cans in stores and distribution models. He says some won’t be able to survive the drop in sales and fears the state may lose 30 breweries over the course of this winter.
One Dead, Five Hurt in Crash Involving Benton County School Bus
(Keystone, IA) — One person is dead and five kids are hurt after an accident involving a school bus this morning (Wednesday) in northeast Iowa.
The State Patrol says a van dropped off the shoulder on a Benton County road and then crossed into the path of the bus. Troopers say the driver of the van died at the scene. Five students on the bus suffered minor injuries in the crash. The bus driver wasn’t hurt. No names have been released.
