(LE MARS) A Le Mars business has a date for arbitration with General Motors. Total Sales and Service is trying to secure a Chevrolet dealership that G-M ended with Nuebel Chevrolet prior to the sale of the business last year.
Scott Taylor of Total Sales and Service says the process now involves getting all the paperwork ready for arbitration at the end of May. Customers and those who’d like to see the business have the Chevrolet dealership may send letters of support to Total Sales and Service or stop in any of the business’ departments to sign a petition.
Taylor explains the petitions will be part of the arbitration to show G-M that the community does care and wants the dealership.
(LE MARS)– Spring maintenance work for the city of Le Mars Water Department continues tomorrow.
According to water superintendent Gayle Sitzmann, the water department will be flushing mains in the southeast part of Le Mars Tuesday through Thursday .
Customers are asked to refrain from washing clothes IF they experienced discolored water.
Main flushing begins about 8 am and is completed daily between 3-3:30 p.m.
(ROCK RAPIDS) A motorcyclist was injured Sunday just north of Rock Rapids.
According to a Lyon County Sheriff’s office report, 46-year-old Shari Kastein was driving south on her motorcycle about noon Sunday.
Authorities say she lost control going through a curve on Harding Avenue and the bike overturned. Kastein landed in the ditch.
She was taken to Sanford Merrill Medical Center in Rock Rapids to be treated for head injuries.
(STORM LAKE) A child on a skateboard was struck by a vehicle near Storm Lake early Sunday evening.
The Iowa State Patrol reports 43-year-old Jeffrey Sleezer of Storm Lake was driving west when a four-year-old on a skateboard rolled down a residential driveway out into the street in front of Sleezer’s vehicle.
Buena Vista Regional Ambulance took four-year-old Owen Keenan to Buena Vista Regional Medical Center for treatment of possible injuries.
At the time of the accident, the patrol reports Sleezer was blinded by the sun.
(LE MARS) Plymouth County jurors do not need to report for jury duty on Tuesday. Jurors are asked to call the Clerk of Court’s office on Monday, April 12th after 3pm to find out whether to report on Tuesday, April 13th.
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Iowa is a politically active state, but it doesn’t seem especially interested in the tea party protest movement that is drawing so much attention nationally.
Some Iowans have signed onto the anti-government effort, but activists have staged only one big rally. And tea party supporters don’t seem to be getting involved in any political races.
Former Iowa Republican Chairman Richard Schwarm says one reason could be that activists are invested in the caucuses, which bring attention to the state as it begins the presidential nominating process.
Democratic strategist Mark Daley thinks the tea party’s confrontational approach doesn’t jibe with Iowa’s nice-guy attitude.
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Police have released the name of a Des Moines man whose body was found in a park by teens during an Easter egg hunt.
Two teens found Goddi Ishima’s body Saturday morning in Beaverdale Park. Police say Ishima’s family had reported him missing before his body was found.
Police say they don’t suspect foul play.
The teens had wandered away from their younger siblings at the egg hunt. The body was found in a wooded area at least 300 yards from where the Easter egg hunt took place.
About 100 children participated in the annual event.
LEWIS, Iowa (AP) Officials say a firefighter who suffered injuries while battling a house fire in Lewis in southwest Iowa is out of the hospital.
The firefighter was hurt Sunday when he fell about 6 feet into a below-ground entrance to a basement. The firefighter, whose name was not released, was released from the hospital later on Sunday.
Authorities believe the fire may have been started by teenagers making s’mores in an outdoor firepit early Sunday.
Lewis First-Assistant Fire Chief Tim Pope the teens thought the fire was out but were awakened by the family’s dog to find flames outside. The teens and dog escaped without injury.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) The University of Iowa is considering converting a campus hotel into a residence hall to ease overcrowding.
Campus housing is over capacity, and officials are looking for alternatives. One idea is to convert the 112-room Iowa House Hotel at the Iowa Memorial Union into a dormitory.
University spokesman Von Stange says up to 97 percent of first-year students live on campus. Residents halls are over capacity by 100 to 160 students a year. Stange says with plans to expand the student body, the university could be short more than 400 beds before long.
Iowa Board of Regents member Bob Downer has suggested razing an older residence hall and building a new one. University officials say such a project could cost about $60 million.
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) City leaders says Des Moines’ skywalk system needs a facelift to help transform downtown into a more vibrant center.
The skywalk is more than three miles long and is connected by about 60 bridges that cross downtown streets. The network was built in the 1980s as a way to attract and retain business, but has undergone few changes since.
Skywalk improvements were among the recommendations of a 2008 plan about the future of downtown.
Changes envisioned in a skywalk study could include expanding the system as well as fixing long-standing problems such as out-of-date signs and directories.
City manager Rick Clark says once the skywalk study is complete, upgrades will require public and private money. IOWA-CASINO RALLY
Fort Dodge to pay city workers at casino rally
FORT DODGE, Iowa (AP) City employees in Fort Dodge who want to attend a rally for a proposed casino will be paid to be there.
Fort Dodge is one of four applicants for a casino license. The others are Ottumwa and rural Lyon and Tama counties.
The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission will look at the casino site in Fort Dodge on Wednesday. City Manager David Fierke says workers who want to show support for the proposed Diamond Jo Fort Dodge will be allowed to do so on “the city’s clock.”
Mayor Matt Bemrich says it’s economic development, and it will cost the city very little compared to what it usually spends.
State regulators are expected to award new casino licenses on May 13.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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