County Supervisors To Hold Meeting At Courthouse Annex
(Le Mars) — The Plymouth County Board of Supervisor meeting will be held at the Courthouse Annex Building beginning at 9:30 a.m. Chairman Don Kass has decided to move the weekly meeting in anticipation of a large turnout of visitors. The supervisors have a short agenda, but one item is expected to
draw considerable attention. The county supervisors will hear from Del Kellen about bike use for county highways. County Engineer Tom Rohe will appear before the county governing board to offer a permit request from Premier Communications for Hungerford and Perry townships. Rohe will also offer the supervisors an update on construction projects.
City Council To Discuss Several Agenda Items
(Le Mars) — The Le Mars City Council will convene today at noon at the City Council Chambers. The council will consider appointing Dennis Folkema to the Civil Service Commission. Folkema will replace James Strickland for an unexpired four year term that expires on April 1, 2022. The city council
will hear a request for $37,500 to approve an Iowa Main Street Challenge Grant application for One Office Solution. Other such grant applications have previously been approved for the American Legion, Le Mars Beauty College, Claussens, and the Brown Central Event Center. The city council will again address the request for an additional full-time position at the Le
Mars Public Library. The city council will review a Development Agreement which would add three years of a tax rebate on property owned by Adam Brown.
City staff is recommending the council approve a three-year tax rebate of city taxes due to begin after the city’s Urban Revitalization Plan for seven years of 100 percent tax exemption is complete. The city council is expected to award a contract for the Industrial Road paving project. Bids will be opened today. The timeline includes a starting date of May 6th of 2019 with
the completion of the paving project scheduled for May 31st of 2019. The project would be financed through Tax Increment Financing or TIF. In other action for today’s city council meeting, the council will consider two separate proposals for water tower maintenance for a duration of five years with the first and last year costing $27,100 and the second, third, and fourth year costing the city $105,867 for each year. The council will also
review a suggestion by the Public Safety Committee to install yield signs to be placed on 1st Avenue Southeast to control north and south traffic at 3rd Street Southeast. The Public Safety Committee says the signs are needed to address a site visibility concern. The city council is expected to go into closed session in order to discuss a pending real estate transaction.
Grassley Says He Has Confidence In New EPA Director
(Washington) — U-S Senator Chuck Grassley told reporters during his weekly news conference held Monday that he feels confident with the newly appointed Acting Environmental Protection Agency Director, Andrew Wheeler. The
Republican Senator from Iowa recently met with Wheeler at a meeting held in Des Moines, along with Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds. Grassley says he is hopeful the new E-P-A director will approve E-15 blended ethanol to be used all year round.
Grassley says oil refineries concerns about the price of RENS credits is no longer justified, and therefore, the Iowa Republican believes Wheeler should grant E-15 blended fuels.
Grassley says Wheeler has not given any indication as whether or not he will approve the higher blended renewable fuel.
Grassley says he is hopeful that E-15 ethanol will be given approval within the next month.
Grassley Says A Breakthrough May Happen Soon With Trade Agreements
(Washington) — During that same news conference with Senator Grassley, the senior Iowa Republican senator says there may be a hint of some light at the end of the tunnel in reference to the trade war, and tariffs that are negatively affecting agriculture. Grassley says an agreement with Mexico may
be close at hand.
Grassley told reporters there is even some hints of good news with the negotiations with China.
The Iowa Senator remains hopeful that trade agreements can be reached before farmers begin with this year’s harvest, so they will have markets for their products.
Iowa DNR Investigating Fish Kill In Floyd River
SHELDON—The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is investigating a fish kill that began on the North Fork of the Floyd River about seven miles northeast of Sheldon in O’Brien County.
A resident reported the fish kill late Saturday. On Sunday, DNR staff found dead fish starting close to the intersection of the North Fork and the Floyd River, and continuing for about four miles downstream in the Floyd River.
DNR specialists resumed the investigation today, but have not yet identified the pollutant source.
Field tests show water in the North Fork of the Floyd has high dissolved oxygen and low ammonia levels today. Rainfall overnight and on Saturday have likely diluted the pollutant.
Areas further downstream were low in oxygen and high in ammonia. Laboratory results will be available next week.
The DNR will continue to investigate to locate the source of the pollutant.
Iowa State Fair Sets New Attendance Record
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa State Fair has set a record for attendance at the annual 11-day event in Des Moines.
Fair officials say an estimated 1,130,260 people attended the fair that ended Sunday. That topped the previous record set in 2017 by 189 people.
Attendance was a bit behind the 2017 mark but moved ahead thanks to pleasant weather over the weekend.
The fair also set a record for Grandstand concert attendance, with the biggest draw being the 15,775 people who attend a Thomas Rhett concert on Aug. 15.
Trump Approves Federal Disaster Assistance For Iowa Counties
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – President Donald Trump has declared a major disaster exists in Iowa following severe storms that hit the state in June and July.
Trump issued the declaration Monday, making federal funding available to state, tribal and local governments as well as certain nonprofit groups.
The declaration applies to damage from storms from June 6 to July 2 that hit the following counties: Adair, Buchanan, Buena Vista, Cerro Gordo, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Clay, Dallas, Delaware, Dickinson, Emmet, Floyd, Hamilton, Hancock, Howard, Humboldt, Kossuth, Lyon, O’Brien, Osceola, Palo Alto, Pocahontas, Polk, Sioux, Story, Warren, Webster, Winnebago, Winneshiek and Wright.
Storms during that period included tornadoes, straight-line winds and flooding.
Besides aiding in recovery, federal money also is available to hazard mitigation efforts on a cost-sharing basis.
