(LE MARS)–Results of a special election for Kingsley mayor are expected to be final today.
The Plymouth County Board of Supervisors will review the December 18th election results as part of a canvass. According to unofficial election results, Rick Bohle, the only candidate on the ballot was elected by the majority of those voting. The election was held to fill a vacancy following the resignation of Wayne Plendl.
Supervisors will consider approval of two minor subdivisions, Dirksen Farms and Dirksen Ag, at 10:15 this morning.
Fence payments and a motorgrader purchase will be discussed at 10:30 this morning when Engineer Tom Rohe meets with the board.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
9:30 AMJim Henrich – Plymouth County Board Chairman
1.Call meeting to order
2.Approve this agenda (Action)
3.Approval of prior Board meeting minutes (Action)
4.Approval of claims and payroll (Signatures)
5. Committee Reports (Discussion)
6. Old Business
7. New Business
A. Canvass Kinglsey City Special Election (Action)
B. Review and approve change order quotation for courthouse annex (Action)
C. Open and review mail/correspondence (Discussion)
D. Open public forum (Informational)
10:15 AMBrad Dirksen, County Resident – Seeking approve on 2 minor subdivisions: Dirksen Farms and
Dirksen Ag (Action)
10:30 AM Tom Rohe, County Engineer
(Action Items)
1.Fence payment schedule
2.Motor grader purchase
(Discussion Items)
Questions/Discussion of the Secondary Road Department
(Informational Items)
Update on construction projects
Jurors do not need to report today
(LE MARS)–Plymouth County jurors do not need to report for jury duty today, Tuesday, December 28, 2010. The December jurors have completed their service.
Windows were opening for escape from Storm Lake
(Storm Lake)–Authorities in northwest Iowa say two fishermen could’ve easily died or at least been seriously injured when their truck plunged through the ice and sank to the bottom of Storm Lake. Another man with an ATV pulled them out of the frigid water. Buena Vista County Sheriff Gary Launderville says it happened around two o’clock Sunday afternoon.
“It’s a good thing it was an older pickup because it still had the manual, crank-down windows,” Launderville said. “They were not able to get the doors open and were totally under water. They finally rolled the windows down and were able to get out and stand on top of the cab of the pickup to just barely reach the edge of the ice until they were pulled out.” The men, identified as 55-year-old Paul Lussman and 44-year-old Larry Dietrich – both of Storm Lake, were rescued by another man who was ice-fishing on the lake. The temperature at the time was nine degrees above zero. Sheriff Launderville says the men were using the truck to pull an ice-fishing shack onto the lake.
“And it’s like any lake or pond, you can have 10 inches of ice and then go 15 feet and you might have three inches of ice. It all depends on how it freezes,” Launderville said. “I think that’s the situation they ran into.” Both men were treated for minor injuries and hypothermia. Launderville says there are no signs around the lake warning people about possible thin ice.
“We’ve been lucky, this is just one of those rare occurrences,” Launderville said. “There are no signs…because we’ve put out warnings before ‘don’t walk out on the lake’ when its just getting to the point where it’s starting to freeze. But, no matter how many signs you put out, people don’t pay attention.” Launderville says he believes Lussman and Dietrich will be forced to pay the cost of removing the vehicle from the lake. (News report by Radio Iowa)
Artslive: Fish in Ice
(OKOBOJI)–An unusual “catch and release” fish will be created on the ice in northwest Iowa next month.
Artist and filmmaker Chad Branham is designing the project to bring together 200 people to create a 150-foot fish.
listen here
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The fish will be formed when people line up in Miller’s Bay at Iowa Lakeside Laboratory during the Okoboji Winter Games.
Green, black and blue-colored winter clothing is useful but Branham says warmth is essential. Fish “people parts” will be on the ice for up to an hour and a half to have the aerial photo taken.
Listen here
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Branham has created a cardinal and dragonfly for previous Artslive People projects. He and two young assistants create the design which he describes as a math problem.
Listen here
{audio}images/stories/mp3/December2010/fish3.mp3{/audio}
The temporary nature of the fish art on ice appeals to Branham’s creative style.
Listen here
{audio}images/stories/mp3/December2010/fish4.mp3{/audio}
To be part of the fish on Ice, people should meet at Vic’s Corner at 11 a-m January 29th.
Lichter dies after collision
(EMMETSBURG)–A near head-on collision has claimed a life in Palo Alto County.
According to the Iowa State Patrol report, a car driven by 61-year-old Thomas Lichter of Burt and a pickup truck driven by 45-year-old Mark Besch of West Bend met at a hill crest.
Lichter died. Besch was taken to the Palo Alto County Hospital by West Bend Ambulance.
The accident occurred early Monday afternoon.
Minnesota teen pleads not guilty to second slaying
HUMBOLDT, Iowa (AP) A Minnesota teen charged with killing two Iowa convenience store clerks has pleaded not guilty to charges in the slaying of the second clerk in Humboldt.
Online court records show 17-year-old Michael Swanson, of St. Louis Park, Minn., entered the plea on Dec. 23 in Humboldt County District Court. He had pleaded not guilty earlier this month to the slaying of a clerk in Algona.
Swanson is charged with first-degree murder and first-degree robbery in Kossuth and Humboldt counties in the Nov. 15 deaths of the store clerks. He will be tried as an adult.
Swanson is being held in the Kossuth County jail in Algona on $1 million bond.
Iowa gets $6.8M Medicaid bonus
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Iowa will get a $6.8 million bonus from the federal government for simplifying Medicaid eligibility and enrollment processes for children who apply for Medicaid.
Iowa learned of the bonus on Monday and Charles Krogmeier, the director of the Iowa Department of Human Services, says Iowa has long been a leader in covering the health needs of children and the timing of the bonus couldn’t be better.
The Des Moines Register reports the bonus will be enough to cover a projected $5 million shortfall in the state’s Medicaid budget for the current fiscal year, which ends June 30.
But state lawmakers still face an estimated $581 million increase in Medicaid expenses for the next fiscal year, which begins July 1.
Iowa was one of 15 states that received bonuses.
DSM police storm building to end standoff
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Des Moines police rushed a house, ending a standoff near Drake University.
The standoff began Monday morning after police contacted 42-year-old Donald Fessler, an inmate from a Des Moines work-release facility.
KCCI-TV says Fessler refused to come out of the apartment and held police at bay for several hours Monday until a police tactical team of more than 20 officers stormed the building just after 4 p.m.
Police say dozens of cans of gas were thrown into the building. They say Fessler was in an upstairs apartment but had cut a hole in the floor to drop into a lower unit.
He was taken into custody. Police say he suffered a head injury but it’s unclear how he was injured.
Fessler was serving a 10-year sentence for robbery.
Dubuque woman pleads not guilty in child’s death
DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) A Dubuque woman charged in the death of her 20-month-old daughter has pleaded not guilty.
The Telegraph Herald is reporting that 33-year-old Tamelia Harris entered her plea Monday in Dubuque County District Court. She is charged with first-degree murder in the July death of her daughter, Cecilia.
Harris has been in jail since July when police began looking for her daughter. She was initially arrested on a charge of child neglect. Police later found the remains of a small child in Harris’ backyard.
She was charged with first-degree murder earlier this month. She remains held on $750,000 bond.
1 injured in blast at Coralville wastewater plant
CORALVILLE, Iowa (AP) One person is injured after an explosion at the wastewater treatment plant in Coralville.
Police say the explosion occurred late Monday morning. The injured worker was working on the roof of the sludge-holding facility.
The Gazette in Cedar Rapids says fire officials don’t know if the man was a city employee or a private contractor.
Assistant Fire Chief Orey Schwitzer says the cause of the explosion isn’t immediately known. He says the man may have been using a torch and that methane gas may have played a role in the blast.
Schwitzer says the explosion blew a hole in the building’s roof and scattered debris onto a nearby street.
Food service company sues over Iowa school lunches
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) An Iowa food service company is suing an Iowa school district consortium and another food service company claiming they violated federal anti-trust and racketeering laws, and blocked fair competition in purchasing food supplies for schools.
The Iowa Educators Consortium was created to help schools pool their purchasing needs and obtain discounts on food, supplies and other services.
The consortium buys its food through just one vendor, Martin Brothers Distributing Company Inc.
The Des Moines Register says a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court by Hawkeye Food Service Distribution Inc., claims the consortium and Martin Brothers schemed to force food manufacturers and suppliers to give them discounts not available to Hawkeye and other companies.
Brooks Martin, president of Martin Brothers, also says the claims are baseless.
Telephone messages left for officials with the consortium were not immediately returned.
Branstad stops use of state seal during transition
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Gov.-elect Terry Branstad and his transition team have stopped using the state seal after learning they were using it improperly on his website.
The Des Moines Register says the website sells inaugural ball tickets and solicits donations and job applications.
State law only allows the use of the seal by a governor and only for official documents and functions. Branstad doesn’t take office until Jan. 14.
His spokesman, Tim Albrecht, says the seal was used inadvertently and once Branstad and his transition team learned of it, the seal was replaced with a new inaugural seal.
The premature use of a state seal has been an issue in other states this year, including Nebraska, where the secretary of state warned politicians the seal could not be used for political purposes.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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