POLICE CHIEF ARRESTED
The police chief of Kingsley, Iowa, is under arrest.
The Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation was requested Monday by Hinton Police to look into possible criminal activity James Dunn of Kingsley. Dunn was arrested at his home yesterday without incident by the DCI. He is charged with three counts of Falsely Obtaining Criminal Intelligence Data, a felony; one count of Non-felonious misconducted in office, a Serious Misdemeanor; and one count of stalking, an Aggravated Misdemeanor. Dunn was transported to the Plymouth County Jail. The DCI investigation is ongoing. They say they will release no further details in the case.
PLYMOUTH COUNTY TOWN HALL
This Saturday, the four Iowa lawmakers representing Plymouth County will hold an open forum in Merrill. Shelly Stabe is organizing the event, which is open to everyone in the area, regardless of political party.
The lawmakers – State Senators Jeff Taylor of Sioux Center, and Kevin Alons of Salix, and State Representatives Tom Jeneary of Le Mars and Ken Carlson of Onawa – will discuss current legislative topics and take questions from the audience.
Topics of discussion include bills that are coming up in the legislature.
Earlier that day, Representative Jeneary will also hold a town hall meeting at 9 am in Hawarden.
REGIONAL PORK CONFERENCE
The Annual Iowa Pork Regional Conference will take place Monday, Feb. 20, at the Sioux County Extension Office in Orange City
Dave Stender is the Area Swine Specialist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach
Topics of discussion includes the European Experience with African Swine Fever.
Stender says Iowa Pork producers are preparing for a possible outbreak
Heat Stress Research and mitigation strategies is another topic. Stender says this is an important topic, because profitability in swine is mostly realized during the hot summer months.
There will also be a discussion on the state of the pork industry and economy
To register for the conference, call 800-372-7675.
BEAVER DAM STUDY
Researchers at Iowa State University are studying beavers and the dams they build to determine what impact they may be having on the state’s fragile system of watersheds. The study’s name is the question they hope to answer — “Beavers: Superheroes for Water Quality?” Billy Beck, an I-S-U professor of natural resource ecology and management, says it’s still early in the three-year study, but they’re already starting to see some fascinating results on what beaver dams do for water quality and quantity. Early findings indicate nitrate levels are being reduced by beaver dam chains at the rate of one-to-two parts per million. Beck says that may not sound like a lot, but considering the flow rates, “that’s a big reduction in that short of a time.” The study, supported by the Iowa Nutrient Research Center, is looking at beaver dams in north-central Iowa, including along Prairie Creek near Fort Dodge and along Caton Branch, near Woodward.
STREET CLOSING
Installation of new equipment at the Well’s South Ice Cream Plant in LeMars will cause streets in that area to be shut down Saturday. There’s a new crane rail that will be installed in the freezer. It requires the installation crew to pull it across 18th St SW in order to line it up for installation. Le Mars Street Department has okayed the closure of part of 18th St SW between 6th Ave SW and 12th Ave SW this Saturday, February 18th, from 7-30 am to 1 pm. Detour signs will be posted.
SOUTH DAKOTA FATAL
One person has died and another injured in a three-vehicle crash Tuesday afternoon east of Beresford, South Dakota.
The South Dakota Highway Patrol says a semi-truck and trailer was eastbound on Highway 46 when the driver swerved to avoid rear-ending an eastbound pickup turning into a driveway.
The semi crossed into the westbound lane and collided head-on with an oncoming semi and trailer.
The 76-year-old male driver of the eastbound semi was not wearing a seatbelt and was thrown from the truck. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The 38-year-old male driver of the westbound semi was wearing his seatbelt and sustained serious but not life-threatening injuries.
The 45-year-old male driver of the pickup was not injured.
The westbound semi was hauling ethanol, and a hazardous materials team responded to the scene.
South Dakota Highway 46 east of Beresford was closed to traffic for six hours.
The names of the three people involved have not been released pending notification of family members.
PROPERTY TAX CUTS
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has made a very specific proposal on property taxes, to reduce taxes for child care centers by taxing them as residential rather than commercial property. The governor says she’s anxious to sign a wider property tax reduction plan from the Republican led legislature.
Governor Reynolds has been saying getting rid of the state income tax is a priority, but she says reducing how much local governments collect in property taxes is also a goal.
The Iowa House has approved a bill to prevent the statewide 133 million dollar increase in residential property taxes that legislators say was the unintended consequence of a 2021 law. The fix cleared the Senate February 1st and it passed the House Wednesday. The bill gives cities and counties an extra 30 days — until April 30th — to complete their spending plans for the budgeting year that begins July 1st. Republican Representative Bobby Kaufmann of Wilton says that’s plenty of time to redo budgets based on the new information about how much property taxes will be paid. The glitch that’s being fixed was caused when lawmakers decided apartment buildings, nursing homes and mobile home parks would no longer be taxed like commercial property — but as residential property, starting this fall.
