City Street Crews To Close Streets For Repairs
(Le Mars) — The Le Mars Street Dept. will be closing the south bound lanes of Business Highway 75, just on the north side of 12th St. S.W. starting Tuesday morning June 22nd 2021. We have some buckling of the road because of the heat the last few days. We will detour all south bound traffic on to Blue Diamond Dr. , down to Holton Dr. and then on to 12th St. S.W. where they will be able to get back on to Bus. 75. We will let traffic through for the people that need to get to Sun Tan City , McDonald’s and Bomgaars. The Verizon Store will need to be accessed from the 12th St. S.W. side. The contractor will tear out the concrete starting Tuesday morning and get that portion ready to pour a M4 mix (24hour mix) on Wednesday and then we will reopen it back up Thursday morning. This is all weather permitting , if something changes we will keep you updated on changes if needed. Please see attached file for a picture of the detoured route.
Plymouth County Supervisors To Hold Public Hearing On Budget Amendment
(Le Mars) — Plymouth County Board of Supervisors have a busy agenda for today’s meeting to be held at the Plymouth County Courthouse Board Room. The county governing board will hold a public hearing on a proposed budget amendment. Surveyor, Dave Wilberding will seek approval of Schilmoeller’s Ag
Addition. Shawn Olson, Plymouth County I-T Director, will visit with the county board of supervisors about approving the OCIO technology agreement, and approval to move forward with address ordinance. The supervisors will discuss the county handbook with revisions regarding cell phone policy. The county
board of supervisors will discuss the disposition of ARA funds and are expected to take action on the matter. County engineer Tom Rohe will offer an update relating to road construction projects.
Rose Nicoson To Leave Life Skills Training Center
(Le Mars) — Life Skills Training Center held its annual meeting and awards banquet Monday evening. Executive Director, Rose Nicoson surprised the clients and the gathering by announcing her immediate retirement from Life Skills. For the past 37 years, Nicoson has been a part of Life Skills, first as its financial officer, and later as its Executive Director, following Don Nore. Nicoson says Life Skills, and other similar mentally handicapped sheltered workshop facilities will face an unique challenge in the year ahead.
The Life Skills Training Center executive says the state human services department devised the new proposed program as a way to integrate clients into their community.
Nicoson says she supports the idea, but she also has some concerns about the new plan for mentally challenged individuals.
Unfortunately, Nicoson, like many others, contracted the COVID-19 virus. She says although she is recovering from the virus, it took its toll on her health, and she says full recovery is still a ways into the future.
Jaquan Nelson was presented the Client Achievement Award, while Tim Hop was given the honor of Staff Team Player award.
Firefighters Battle Grass Fires Due To Excessive Dry Conditions
(Oyens) — The persistent dry conditions are making grass fires that more likely to happen. Within a few minutes of each other, the Oyens Fire Department and the Le Mars Fire Department responded to two separate grass fires this afternoon. The first fire was reported at about 1:25 p.m. along county road C-30 near Otter Avenue. The second grass fire was reported
approximately 15 minutes later on county road K-64 about two miles north of Oyens at the Oyens gun range. Firefighters were at the first grass fire for a few minutes, but they were at the gun range grass fire for nearly a half an hour. At the Oyens
gun range, a berm measuring about 100 feet long had been burnt. Fire officials request people use extreme caution during this dry spell, and to have a water source handy for fire pits and controlled brush fires.
Body Found In Missouri River
(Onawa) — The Monona County Sheriff’s Office is trying to identify a body found in the Missouri River Sunday.
A fisherman has found the body in the Missouri River near the Ivy Island Wildlife Area on the Iowa side of the river. Decatur Fire and Rescue dispatched their rescue boat to recover the adult male body. Authorities say the body had been in the water for some time. The body has been sent to the coroner’s office in Sioux City for an autopsy and possible cause of death.
Regents Propose Tuition Hike At Three State Universities
(Iowa City) — The Board of Regents will consider a proposal for tuition increases at the three state universities in a meeting Thursday.
The board staff is proposing a three-point five percent increase in undergrad resident tuition at the University of Iowa and Iowa State University — with a one-point-five percent increase at the University of Northern Iowa. The proposal also raises mandatory fees by 53 dollars at the U-I, 36 dollars at I-S-U, and holds fees the same at U-N-I. The Board of Regents requested an increase of 18 million dollars and a restoration of eight million dollars from the Iowa Legislature this year — but lawmakers held the line with no increase in funding.
The proposal would increase out-of-state tuition by the same
as in-state at the U-I, raise it 906 dollars at I-S-U and 273 dollars at U-N-I.
Persistent Dry Conditions Negatively Affecting Crop Conditions
(Des Moines)–Weekend rains were welcome where they happened — but the latest U-S-D-A report shows the drought impact is showing in Iowa’s crops.
Farmers reported the corn leaves curling and ground cracking in some areas of the state from the heat. The U-S-D-A report shows the corn condition is rated 56 percent good to excellent — a drop of seven percentage points from last week. Soybean emergence was 96 percent complete, one week ahead of the five-year average. The soybeans were rated at 57 percent good to excellent — which is a four percent drop from the prior week.
Man Accused Of Shooting Deputy Arrested
(Coggin, IA) — The Linn County Sheriff’s Department says the man wanted for shooting a deputy several times during a robbery at a convenience store Sunday in Coggin is now in custody. The man has been identified as 36-year-old
Stanley Donahue, from Chicago. The deputy is reported in stable condition.
Supreme Court Rules On Paying College Athletes
(Undated) — The U-S Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision Monday on the pay-for-play lawsuit against the N-C-A-A. The Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling that found the federal antitrust law prevents the N-C-A-A from restricting payment to athletes for such things as internships. The N-C-
A-A argued that the amateur status of athletes would be impossible to maintain if they could receive payment, even for education-related expenses. Iowa lawmakers have introduced bills that would allow college athletes to profit from the use of their name, image, and likeness. The bill introduced this year
failed to advance out of the legislative session.
Woman Fined For Accessing Ex’s Medical Records
(Cedar Rapids, IA) — A former Cedar Rapids hospital employee has been fined a thousand dollars and sentenced to five years of probation for accessing the medical records of her former boyfriend. Forty-one-year-old Jennifer Lynne Bacor, who now lives in Las Vegas, was a patient care technician at a Cedar
Rapids hospital and admits she used her login credentials to look at her ex’s health data several times. She shared the image of one of his injuries with someone else. That person then used Facebook messenger to send the image to the ex-boyfriend and others — along with taunting emojis and text, according
to prosecutors.
Tornadoes Reported In Some Areas Of Iowa
(Johnsont, IA) — Thunderstorms spawned as many as four tornadoes in Iowa Sunday night. National Weather Service Meteorologist Allan Curtis says there weren’t any injuries or any true, significant damage. There were scattered reports of hail across much of Iowa’s eastern half, including a report of ping
pong ball-sized hail near Wellman and egg-sized hail near Afton.
