ICE CREAM DAYS – SATURDAY
Ice Cream Days culminates today with an all-out celebration downtown. Executive Committee member Margaret Catton says it all starts with a parade at 10 a.m. 75 entries are expected. Catton says most events today are downtown at the Olson Center
Ice Cream Days comes to a close with an Ice Cream Bash concert
Yesterday’s bash included activities for all ages downtown, concluding with an evening fun run.
MIDAMERICAN FEDERAL GRANT
Plymouth County and 30 other Iowa counties will benefit from a 38 million dollar award from the federal government to MidAmerican Energy Company. The funds will expand MidAmerica’s fiber optic network in Iowa. The utility’s total project cost is 76 million dollars. The counties that will benefit from this project include Plymouth, Sioux, Woodbury, Cherokee, Ida, and Buena Vista. The funds come from the Biden Administration’s Internet for all Initiative. 35 projects across the country will receive a total of 930 million dollars as part of the Middle Mile grant program through the Department of Commerce.
PLYMOUTH COUNTY VIRUS
The first case of West Nile Virus was reported this year, in an adult over 61, in Plymouth County. This case was confirmed by the State Hygienic Lab. As the weather warms, Iowans are spending more time out of doors, which increases the risk of mosquito bites. Mosquito bites are the primary method by which the virus infects people. For the best protection against the virus, Iowans should use an insect repellant with DEET, Picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus, Para-menthane-diol, 2-undecanone or IR3535. Insect repellent lowers the risk of mosquito bites.
Additional steps Iowans can take to protect themselves include: avoiding outdoor activities between dusk and dawn, the time when mosquitoes are most active. Wear long-sleeved shirts, pants, shoes and socks outdoors. Clear standing water from around your home where mosquitos reproduce .Look for standing water in buckets, cans, pool covers, used tires, pet water dishes, and other areas water may collect. Iowans infected with WNV may not experience any signs or symptoms of the virus. Some people experience minor symptoms like fever and mild headache. Others, however, can develop serious symptoms such as a high fever, headache, disorientation and muscle weakness.
2 GOODWILL 100TH
This week Goodwill of the Great Plains celebrated its 100th anniversary. CEO Bridget Solomon says their mix of retail and job training remains a healthy fit for the four states they serve.
Solomon found that they were one business that was not unduly harmed by the covid shutdown.
Goodwill not only provides an outlet for used clothing and housewares, it’s also branched out into a secure document shredding service, and a recycling operation. Thursday was proclaimed Goodwill Day in Le Mars by Mayor Rob Bixenman. There are 11 employees at the Le Mars location, and 500 at the other 20 Goodwill sites in Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and Minnesota.
DRUG SENTENCE
A Sioux City man was sent to prison for 11 years, following sentencing in court on a drug conspiracy charge. The US District Attorney for Northern Iowa Aurelio Solorio, 37, of Sioux City, was sentenced to 134 months on June 13. In May of 2021, Solorio was pulled over for suspicion of drunk driving. A search of his vehicle revealed 90 grams of pure meth. A later search of his home uncovered two pounds of meth and multiple handguns. At the time, he was on supervised release from a 2011 conviction for conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance in South Dakota. He also faces a 46-month term in prison for violating federal supervised release. The sentences will be served consecutively. When his sentence has been served he will have to spend seven years on supervised release.
REACTION TO IOWA SUPREME COURT DECISION
The Iowa Supreme Court let an injunction stand against the 2018 law that would limit abortion once a fetal heartbeat is heard. Governor Kim Reynolds issued a statement calling the lack of action by the court disappointing. saying it lets “a single judge in a single county strike down Iowa’s legislation based on principles that now have been flat-out rejected by the U-S Supreme Court.” A-C-L-U of Iowa attorney, Rita Bettis Austen said at news conference this afternoon that “We are overjoyed and relieved by today’s order. This abortion ban was dangerous cruel and unconstitutional when it was blocked four years ago it remains dangerous cruel and unconstitutional.” Governor Reynolds says they will review their options. A Planned Parenthood spokesperson says they believe the governor and lawmaker will try to pass the law again.
