Semi Truck And Tanker Accident Causes Detour On Highway 75
(Hinton) — An accident involving a semi-truck and tanker that had rolled on its side Monday afternoon, caused a backup of northbound traffic on Highway 75 during rush hour. The tanker trailer blocked both lanes of northbound traffic. The accident happened at about 4:30 p.m. on Highway 75 between
Hinton and Merrill near 260th Street. Officials said the tanker was hauling what was referred to as “a liquid waste product.” The accident also involved a sedan car that ended in the median. Fortunately, there were no injuries associated with the collision. Northbound Highway 75 traffic was detoured at Hinton and directed to head east on county road C-60 until K-42 then back
north again until county road C-44 and headed west to Merrill where the northbound traffic was then directed back on Highway 75. The Hinton and Merrill fire departments, along with the Merrill Police Department, and the Plymouth County Sheriff’s Office all responded to the scene. After nearly two hours, officials were able to clean up the accident scene, and traffic was again allowed to travel northbound on Highway 75. Plymouth County
Sheriff’s Office is investigating the accident.
County Supervisors To Open Sealed Bids On Residential Care Facility
(Le Mars) — The Plymouth County Board of Supervisors hope to be able to sell the Residential Care Facility located on the eastern edge of Le Mars today, during their weekly meeting, when they open the sealed bids that have been submitted. The supervisors placed a minimum bid of $300,000. Last month, the county governing board held an auction, but garnered only one bid of
$110,000 from The Pride Group. Pride Group has been leasing the facility, and the agreement is for the new buyer to allow Pride Group to continue to operate the facility at least for a year.
Other items on the county supervisors’ agenda is they will hear from Kyle Christensen as he seeks approval of Spieler Subdivision, a minor subdivision in Remsen Township. Bly
Rougier, the Project Manager with Invenergy will be in contact with the county board via conference call to discuss the progress with the Plymouth County Wind Farm project to be located on the eastern edge of the county. County Engineer Tom Rohe will offer an update on construction projects.
Floyd Valley Officials To Discuss Proposed New Expansion With City Council
(Le Mars) — The Le Mars City Council will begin today’s meeting scheduled to start at 12:00 noon with a public hearing regarding the city’s proposed fiscal year budget. During the last meeting, council members accepted the proposed budget with a mill levy of $11.90 Representatives from Floyd Valley Healthcare will appear before the Le Mars City Council today to offer a plan
calling for another expansion project. Floyd Valley C-E-O Dustin Wright, and Daryl Freidenbach are scheduled to appear to discuss the proposed specialty clinic and therapy expansion. The project, which is proposed to sit on the north side of the hospital is estimated to cost $14,700,000. The new expansion consist of 9,500 square feet. In other action by the city council, they will review the RAGBRAI agreement, and act on the Cleveland Park Parking Lot Improvement Project. Annual reports will be submitted by the Police Department and Economic Development.
Le Mars Man Arrested For Possession Of Methamphetamine After A Traffic Stop
(Orange City) — A Le Mars man faces one felony and multiple misdemeanor charges after allegedly driving the wrong way on Highway 60 early Saturday.
Court records indicate that 48-year old Sathiene Saychareun of Le Mars was stopped for driving southbound in the northbound lanes of Highway 60 at Alton shortly before 2:00 a.m. Saturday. During the traffic stop, Orange City Police says Saychareun appeared to be under the influence. Authorities allegedly discovered a glass pipe with methamphetamine residue on Saychareun, along with a bag of meth that officers reportedly found in his car.
According to on-line jail records, Saychareun faces one count of possession of methamphetamine, a class D felony, along with misdemeanor charges of OWI-1st offense, possession of drug paraphernalia and driving on the wrong side of a two-way highway. Saychareun was released on bond later that day.
(Courtesy of KIWA radio.)
Orange City Officials Planning To Hold 80th Annual Tulip Festival
(Orange City) — Plans are progressing to hold the 80th Annual Orange City Tulip Festival the third week of May. The Tulip Festival Executive Steering Committee is excited to announce that the 80th Tulip Festival will take place in Orange City, Iowa, May 13, 14 and 15, 2021. The announcement follows the
2020 cancellation of the festival due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Mike Hofman, the executive director of the Orange City Chamber of Commerce says organizers are taking steps to help mitigate the spread of COVID for this year’s event.
Hofman says the Tulip Festival Executive Committee has selected the theme: “80 Years of Tulips and Tradition.” He says the theme plays well with the many scheduled activities and events. Hofman says one event will be the near 20 miles round-trip bicycle ride to the Sioux County Regional Airport for the
annual fly-in breakfast.
Hofman says at about the same time will be the annual Tulip Festival Road Race. He says spectators and visitors to the Orange City Tulip Festival can look forward to seeing a new float to be on display.
The Orange City Tulip Festival will again feature a musical Broadway show.
Again, this year they will showcase the play “Cinderella” of Disney fame.
Hofman says if you purchased tickets last year, you will still be given those seats. In addition, this year people may have the opportunity to watch the musical Broadway show on-line.
Any specific guidelines and procedures will be communicated as the festival approaches and may be event-specific. We encourage everyone to follow @octulipfestival on social media for the most up-to-date festival news.
Tulip Festival news, event information, volunteer opportunities and more can be found on the festival’s website at www.octulipfestival.com.
Senate Passes Voucher Provision For Landlords
(Des Moines, IA) — The Republican-led Senate has voted to immediately ban city ordinances that prevent landlords from rejecting potential tenants who use government housing vouchers to pay rent. These kinds of ordinances are in
effect now in Des Moines, Iowa City, and Marion, but the House-approved ban would start in 2023. Representative Dave Deyoe (DEE-yoh), a Republican from Nevada, says landlords should have the freedom to decide if they want to accept so-called Section 8 vouchers. Democrats like Representative Phyllis
Thede (THEE-dee) of Davenport say the ban will hurt low-income Iowans, including veterans, elderly and disabled Iowans who get government housing assistance. The Senate must approve House adjustments in the bill before it goes to the governor.
Former Conservation Assistant Headed To Prison After Fraud Conviction
(Des Moines, IA) — A former Waterloo woman, who was employed as a conservation assistant for the Soil and Water Conservation District, will spend more than two years in federal prison. Forty-four-year-old Leslie Carey pleaded guilty to wire fraud. Carey admitted in her plea agreement that from 2010 until 2017, she defrauded the Black Hawk and Bremer County
Soil and Water Divisions and took their money through unauthorized withdrawals, debit card, and credit card purchases, store purchases, and disbursements. She admitted she concealed her scheme by transferring funds among accounts, altering financial statements, and submitting false Treasurer
reports and minutes. Carey was sentenced to 33 months imprisonment and was ordered to make 430-thousand dollars in restitution.
Lawmakers Offer Help To Schools Struggling To Find Substitute Teachers
(Des Moines, IA) — A bill that’s making its way through the legislature would let the Iowa Board of Education Examiners authorize people to be substitute teachers if the person has earned an associate’s degree or completed at least 60 credit hours as an undergraduate. These authorized substitutes would be limited to 10 days or less in a classroom per month. The
bill would make permanent a provision in the governor’s public health emergency proclamation that was designed to help schools find substitute teachers during the pandemic. The bill has no registered opposition. It has just cleared a Senate subcommittee and the full House approved it unanimously
earlier this month.
Study Finds Social Media Posts Impact Your Job Prospects
(Iowa City, IA) — A University of Iowa study finds things posted on social media had an impact on people’s employment. U-I professor of management and entrepreneurship, Chad Van Iddekinge (IDA-king), says recruiters tended to
give higher ratings to people who were in a relationship or married than to single job seekers. And he says they also gave lower ratings to people who included some information about their religious beliefs than to people who didn’t include any religious information on Facebook. The study found
potentially job-relevant information, like education, work-related training, and written communication skills that were displayed on social media were associated with better evaluations.
Ernst Says Stimulus Package Will Be A Campaign Issue
(Washington, DC) — Iowa Senator Joni Ernst says the economic stimulus package will be a campaign issue for Republicans in 2022. Ernst says there are many people who think the relief should have been more targeted and they
didn’t lose their jobs and don’t need a 14-hundred dollars payment. Ernst says the euphoria of getting the checks will eventually wear off when people realize the long-term cost and that they expect Democrats to pay for this by raising taxes. Ernst says she’s also heard from government leaders who don’t
like the bailouts in the bill for poorly run states and cities, while others have tightened their belts to get through.
