Community News

The Shopko Foundation has made a donation of $1,000 to the Waukon Park, Recreation and Wellness Department Tennis Court Project. Pictured above at the check presentation that took place at the Waukon Shopko location are, left to right, Shopko of Waukon staff member Andrew, Waukon Park & Recreation Wellness Director Jeremy Strub, and Shopko of Waukon staff members Valerie, Sandy and Laurie. The project will include two tennis courts that will be located near the soccer fields on the west edge of Waukon, close to the new concession stand/restroom building. The tennis courts will be open to the public so anyone can use these courts with no membership or other fees. The courts will be lighted and could also be used in the winter for ice skating. For additional information on the project, or to make a donation, contact Jeremy Strub at 563-568-0074, extension 1.
 

by Joe Moses

The Waukon City Council met in special session Monday, January 14 to address several matters including loan financing for the new wastewater treatment plant, budget review and a strategy meeting in closed session to discuss collective bargaining regarding Waukon Police Department wages.

Council members agreed to adjust the order of agenda items with Managing Director Travis Squires of Piper Jaffray and Co. not yet in attendance due to weather-related travel conditions. The council immediately moved into closed session for approximately a half hour to discuss strategy involving the reopening of collective bargaining with Chauffeurs, Teamsters and Helpers Union Local No. 238 regarding Waukon Police Department wages.

January is National Mentoring Month, and Youth Mentoring at Helping Services is celebrating the annual campaign aimed at expanding quality mentoring opportunities to connect more of the local community’s young people with a friend.

Local communities have a list of 23 kids who are waiting to spend time with an adult friend. Groundbreaking research from the National Mentoring Center shares that people across the United States believe that mentoring unites people, that there is a critical opportunity to increasingly engage the public in mentoring, and that a significant percentage of adults are mentoring kids outside their family. In turn, the results further share:

• 44% of Americans aren’t mentoring yet, but are willing to consider it
• 73% of employees report strong career satisfaction when their employers support youth mentoring
• 73% of mentors are mentoring youth of a different ethnicity.

Saturday, December 29 at approximately 1 p.m., the Waukon Police Department and Allamakee County Sheriff’s Office attempted to serve an arrest warrant on a subject at The Stoney Creek Inn in Waukon. While attempting to make contact, the subject fled from a second-story window of the building. He was apprehended a short time later at a residence on Second Street SW in Waukon and the public was not at risk.

As a result, 37-year-old Jonathan A. Steele of Farmersburg was arrested for a Wisconsin-issued arrest warrant on a probation violation. He was also charged with interference with official acts and violation of a no-contact order in Allamakee County. A criminal charge is merely an accusation and defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

by Joe Moses

The Waukon City Council met in regular session Monday, January 7 for the first meeting of 2019 to address a variety of organizational matters and agenda items. The Public Hearing on the proposed plans and specifications for the 2019 Street and Sidewalk Improvement Project was opened and closed without written or verbal comment. There was no Public Comment.

Under Departmental Reports, Street Superintendent Keith Burrett advised that the Street Department will be taking down Christmas decorations. Park and Rec Wellness Director Jeremy Strub indicated that Youth Basketball and Adult Volleyball have begun and that the Waukon Wellness Center is off to a good start for the year. Strub provided an update on the tennis court project, indicating that final approval from the United States Tennis Association regarding the tennis court grant has yet to be given with engineering for the project being completed and fundraising having gone well.

Iowa hunters looking to continue their time in the field can purchase a license specific to the Harpers Ferry or Elkader deer management zone being offered by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Those deer management zones are included in the special January antlerless season that runs January 11-27.

This opportunity is for antlerless deer only and hunters who purchase one of these licenses are required to hunt within the zone boundary and provide a tissue sample if a deer is taken. The bulk of the land within the zones is privately owned. Hunters must secure permission from the landowner before entering private property. More information, including zone maps, is available at www.iowadnr.gov/cwd.

The Allamakee County Community Foundation (ACCF) is now accepting 2019 grant applications. The application is now available online at www.dbqfoundation.org/accf. Applications are due February 1, 2019 by midnight.

Nonprofit organizations can apply for grants from the ACCF for projects or programs that address significant community issues and benefit a broad spectrum of the community. Projects must be taking place within Allamakee County.

The ACCF awards grants in the areas of Health and Human Services, Education, Neighborhoods and Community Development, Environment; Children, Youth and Families; and Arts and Culture, including historic preservation.

Preference is given to projects that:

by Brianne Eilers

The month of November ended on a fairly positive note for Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) in Waukon. VMH Administrator Mike Myers noted that the hospital will show a $52 loss for the month of November. He also noted that the revenue areas for the hospital have been changing.

“Seventy percent of our revenue is not outpatient,” Myers said. “I think when I came here twenty years ago, outpatient was forty percent at the most, maybe mid-thirties.”

Inpatient revenue was down 15% percent, while outpatient was up seven percent. Gross patient revenue was up 1.1% and total expenses were down 2.6%. Myers also noted that all outpatient areas, other than Emergency Room (ER) visits, were up, and MRIs were down slightly. Deliveries are down. Myers noted that budgeting for the upcoming year will be a challenge due to the fact that there are changes in the physicians and providers.

Robey Memorial Library in Waukon is temporarily suspending its Resumé Rescue and Chess Club programs for the near future. Contact Robey Memorial Library at 563-568-4424 or www.waukon.lib.ia.us for further information about those programs that had been held regularly at the library.

Resumé Rescue is not meeting during the month of December. This program is scheduled to resume Tuesdays, from 1-2 p.m., beginning January 8.

Chess Club is not meeting December through March. This program is scheduled to resume Mondays, from 4-6 p.m., beginning April 1.
 

Snow and ice buildup on natural gas meters can create a safety hazard and even cut off the flow of natural gas to heating equipment and other appliances. To avoid trouble, one can gently remove snow and ice from on and around the meter with their hands or a broom. Gas meters and regulators are durable and designed with the weather in mind, but a coating of ice or snow could cause a loss of service and become a critical safety issue. If at all possible, remove the snow before it has a chance to freeze.