TEACHER CONTRACTS
The Le Mars Community School Board gave approval to the tentative contract agreement between the school board and the Le Mars Community Education Association.
The new contract includes a 3% base salary increase, 1,224 dollars, or 42-thousand dollars per year. This is a cost increase of 536-thousand dollars in fiscal year 2023-24.
The board then approved issuing contracts for teaching and coaching positions for next year.
The Board also approved an extension of Superintendent Dr Steven Webner’s contract for an additional year.
BUDGET AMENDMENT
The Plymouth County Board of Supervisors approved a budget amendment for the current fiscal year. The amendment reflects increased revenues of 487-thousand dollars, a quarter million of it from investment income. The amendment also includes expenses of 1.1 million dollars, 700-thousand dollars of that from Road and Transportation spending, and 224-thousand dollars in administration expenses. The county’s total ending balance after the amendments is 11 million, 400-thousand dollars, compared to just over 12 million last year.
RURAL SUBDIVISIONS
Two minor subdivisions have been approved by the Sioux County Board of Supervisors today (Tuesday). One is Dykstra’s First Addition, along C12 in Elgin Township. The property will be split, with one parcel containing the acreage’s home, and the second parcel is the farmland surrounding it.
The Supervisors also approved Vander Windt Second Addition, located at Key Ave and 120th. a mile southwest of Struble. The addition creates 4 parcels on the property, of roughly 35 acres each.
The Supervisors today also approved a canvass of the special election last Tuesday in the Hinton School District. The vote was 85% in favor of a new purpose statement for the use of SAVE funds.
NAIA BASKETBALL TOURNEY
The 42nd Annual NAIA Women’s Basketball National Championship Tournament is underway at Sioux City’s Tyson Events Center. It’s the 24th year Sioux City has hosted the event, and volunteers are a big part of making sure everything runs smoothly. Steve Salem is one of the volunteer coordinators, who has been involved in the tournament for the last 15 years.
Fewer volunteers are needed because Sioux City now has only the final 16 teams come to town in the single elimination tournament. In previous years, the entire field of 64 came to Sioux City to play. Salem says there is a lot of tournament experience in his group of four dozen or so volunteers.
Salem says his interaction with the attendees who come and root for their team is part of the fun for him. Some fans have been coming to Sioux City for years to watch.
A full house is expected for Tuesday’s games with the Briar Cliff Chargers of Sioux City playing at 1 pm. The Dordt Defenders of Sioux Center at 8 pm. The tournament runs through Saturday when the national championship is decided.
STORM SPOTTER TRAINING
A severe weather awareness storm spotter training session will take place tonight in Sioux City. The National Weather Service of Sioux Falls is putting on the session, tonight at the Rocklin Center at Western Iowa Tech. Check in is at 6:30,a nd the meeting begins at 7. Use parking lot two and entrance six. Admission is free and seating is limited to 120 attendees. The sessions will also be offered in Sheldon, at NCC, on March 20, and in Le Mars, at the Willow Creek Golf Course banquet hall on April 4.
DNR DROUGHT PLAN
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has finalized its state drought plan. D-N-R hydrology coordinator, Tim Hall, says the plan is a resource for state, county and local use.
The Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management and the Iowa Agriculture Department helped develop the plan. Hall says the plan also draws from the longtime U-S Drought Monitor and provides a more localized version of that national program.
State climatologist Justin Glisten (gliss-en) is one of the primary contributors of Iowa information to the U-S Drought Monitor — and Hall says he’s helped develop the components of this state plan.
The plan divides the state into five regions, and will provide information on the drought status in each area.
Hall says they will tweak the state drought plan as needed.
You can see the full Iowa Drought Plan at the D-N-R’s website: iowadnr.gov.
JANUARY UNEMPLOYMENT
January unemployment fell slightly to three percent but Iowa Workforce Development spokesman, Jesse Dougherty (Door-uh-tee), says the key number is the state surpassing the 68 percent labor force participation rate. He says the participation rate is just as significant as the overall unemployment rate, because it tells them what that labor pool is looking like and where it’s moving. Dougherty says the job picture in Iowa has continued to get better as the state recovered from the pandemic.
IOWA ADDRESS UPDATE
If you’ve changed your address in the past year, the Iowa Secretary of State’s Office is asking for your help. The annual National Change of Address process is underway, which helps maintain the accuracy of Iowa’s voter registration records. Secretary of State Paul Pate says notices are being mailed to around 90-thousand registered voters in Iowa who have filed a change of address with the U-S Postal Service in the past year. Pate says he wants Iowa’s voter roles to be as up-to-date and accurate as possible. Voters who receive the cards should follow the instructions on the return postcard to verify or correct their voting address, then return it to their county auditor’s office as soon as possible. Some 38-thousand registered voters moved within their county during the past year, while more than 52-thousand moved outside their county but stayed in the state.
