FLOYD VALLEY HEALTH PURCHASE APPROVED
The Le Mars city council today approved a commercial building purchase to benefit Floyd Valley Healthcare. The building, some 65-hundred square feet, will house Floyd Valley’s Urgent Care and Home Health services. they are now located at the Floyd Valley campus. The purchase price is 1.3 million dollars, and will be paid for through Floyd Valley revenues. The purchase price covers construction of the shell of the building. The internal build will be done through a competitive bid process. Construction is to beghin immediately, with the shell completed around October 15 of this year. The purchase was passed on a unanimous voice vote.
The council today also approved a motion for an amended minimum assessment agreement with Schelling Construction Holdings. Schelling is building the strip center which will house Floyd Valley Healthcare’s two services. The city of Le Mars, back in February, approved a financial assistance package to Schelling for development of the property. Schelling purchased a parcell adjacent to the strip center. Since Floyd Valley Healthcare does not pay property taxes, schelling requested an amendment to include the adjacent lot, at the same minimum assessment of 1.35 million dollars. Schelling will construct a 4-thousand square foot building on the additional lot. The council passed the amended minimum assessment agreement on a unanimous voice vote.
LARGEST EVER GROUP OF BARNS TO BE FEATURED IN STATEWIDE TOUR
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Ninety-two restored barns will be featured on this month’s statewide tour organized by the Iowa Barn Foundation.
Of the 92 barns, eleven are round barns. Six of these are part of the tour for the first time, including the round barn at the Plymouth County Fairgrounds in Le Mars. Pat Lehner is the caretaker of the fairgrounds, including the Round Barn. She says they occasionally bring in people to see the barn.
Some of these visits are spontaneous ones.
Twenty of the barns have never been featured before on one of the group’s tours. What makes the tour is unique is that people can go inside the barns rather than just drive by. Frost says some are working barns. This is the Iowa Barn Foundation’s 24th fall tour, scheduled for the weekend of September 14th and 15th.
INJURY ACCIDENT NEAR SIOUX CENTER
One person was injured in an accident Sunday afternoon on K42, northwest of Sioux Center. The Sioux County Sheriff’s Office said a pickup driven by 55 year old Mary Ver Burg of Rock Valley and a semi driven by 55 year old Kelly Bork of Sioux Center, were both driving north on K42. As Bork’s semi attempted to pass Ver Burg’s pickup, Ver Berg pulled out to pass the vehicle in front of her. In order to avoid a collision, the semi swerved, went out of control, and entered the west ditch. Bork was injured and transported to Sioux Center Health for treatment of injury. The truck and tanker trailer sustained 225-thousand dollars damage.
EXPECTATIONS ARE HIGH AS FALL HARVEST NEARS
Labor Day marks the end of summer when kids are back in school and farmers are making plans to harvest. State Ag Secretary Mike Naig says the end of the drought has expectations high.
Naig says there’s never 100 percent perfect conditions across the state, and that’s evident again this year.
He says those areas seeing weather impact don’t bring down the lofty harvest projections.
Naig says there’s some hope that the growing season will extend later into the fall.
Naig says there’s moisture in the ground and the conditions are good right now for the corn and soybeans to mature.
SIOUX CITY MUSEUM HONORING SOLDIERS KILLED IN ACTION
The Mid American Museum of Aviation and Transportation in Sioux City will host a special presentation this month. Museum director Kevin Blosch says it will honor those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country.
The memorial will feature pictures of each of those fallen soldiers.
They will make some changes for the exhibit as admission will be free and they will only ask for a free will offering.
The memorial display opens on September 4th and will run through the 24th.
NEWTON HOSPITAL TO STOP DELIVERING BABIES THIS FALL
The MercyOne hospital in Newton will stop delivering babies in mid-October. Officials say it’s an indefinite pause in O-B/G-Y-M services at Newton’s hospital as well as the Newton Clinic due to a decade of significant challenges in recruiting staff. Pregnant mothers who are patients at the Newton Clinic are encouraged to keep going to prenatal appointments and talk with their doctor about where they can transfer to deliver their baby. Jasper County is now among 32 Iowa counties that have lost obstetric services since 2000.
