River Valley

A New Albin man was arrested Wednesday morning, June 28 in Winneshiek County on two counts of Class D Felony Possession of a Controlled Substance. A report from the Winneshiek County Sheriff’s Office states that Sheriff Deputies responded to a call from a male subject who stated he was walking on Sand Road outside of Ossian and was asking to be transported.

Upon arrival at the caller’s location, he was identified as Nathan Reinke, age 25 of New Albin, and it was determined that he already had an active arrest warrant out of Winneshiek County. Reinke was arrested and booked into the Winneshiek County Jail on a warrant for Violation Of Probation. He was also discovered to be in possession of a baggie of marijuana and a baggie of methamphetamine and was charged with two counts of Class D Felony Possession of Controlled Substance 3rd or Subsequent (Methamphetamine & Marijuana).
 

The 2023 Paint Iowa Beautiful program made possible through the partnership between Diamond Vogel Paints and Keep Iowa Beautiful has recently provided some upgrades to three Main Street commercial buildings in Lansing. Main Street Lansing was awarded a paint grant through the Paint Iowa Beautiful program that provides free paint/stain products to a wide variety of public service projects throughout Iowa through a grant application process.

“Diamond Vogel is thrilled to work with many local volunteers that help build communities and enhance their communities’ economic vitality. Passionate volunteers like those engaged in Paint Iowa Beautiful make Iowa a great place to live,” said Doug Vogel, Vice-President, Marketing, of the Iowa-based company.

by Julie Berg-Raymond

During its regular meeting Monday, June 19, the Lansing City Council approved the placement of “No Trespassing” signs at the City Marina, after having reconsidered its decision of last year not to ban fishing from the docks.

Two letters were submitted for the council’s (re)consideration of this question - one from slip-renters, and one from Marina Manager Jason Drape. Both letters described a situation that has grown worse since the request made by the marina board last year to ban fishing in the marina - a request the council voted down at that time because of a concern that local kids continue having a safe place to fish.

A group of state, federal and local law enforcement agencies will partner to focus enforcement of Iowa’s Boating While Intoxicated (BWI) law as part of the national Operation Dry Water campaign to draw public attention to the hazards of boating under the influence. Operation Dry Water is scheduled for July 1-3 this year.

“We will conduct Boating While Intoxicated-focused enforcement statewide with increased patrols, check points, and be administering breath tests and working to inform the public on the hazards involved on the waters across Iowa,” said Susan Stocker, boating law administrator and education coordinator for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR). “One-third of all boating fatalities nationally involved alcohol and many of those victims were innocent bystanders.”

Event will mark band’s first local performance since 2019

Brian FitzGerald and Martin McCormack, collectively known as Switchback, will perform Friday, July 21 at TJ Hunters, Lansing. Joining the event is percussionist Nick Hirka of Decorah.

Advance online tickets are at www.waygoodmusic.com; advance printed tickets are at Carquest Auto Parts and Riverland Expressions, Lansing; Village Farm & Home, Waukon; and Oneota Community Co-op, Decorah. The first 200 sales include a free collector’s t-shirt and entry into an event drawing for what the duo has termed “Serious Switchback Swag.” T-shirts will be available for pick-up at the event.

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach recently hosted “Dino’s Rock!” day camp. Kindergarteners through third graders traveled back in time when the dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Together they learned about fossils, including making their own, held dinosaur eggs, participated in a cookie dig (as seen in photo below) and enjoyed caveman ice cream. The youth learned how tall dinosaurs can be and how “ginormous” their foot prints were. For more information about 4-H and upcoming activities contact Becky Rea, 4-H K-12 Program Coordinator, at the Allamakee County Extension and Outreach Office at 563-568-6345 or http://www.extension.iastate.edu/allamakee/. Submitted photos.
 

An excessively dry start to the recreation season is delaying the opening of the newly renovated campground at Pikes Peak State Park near McGregor.

According to Detra Dettmann, supervisor for state parks in northeast Iowa for the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), the campground at Pikes Peak has been closed since January for updates including electrical systems, campsite pads, road paving and re-seeding of grass.

“While much of Iowa has been seeing some rain this past week, Pikes Peak State Park continues to miss out,” says Dettmann. “Everything is seeded but we need rain to get the grass growing and established.”

The DNR will announce dates for the campground opening once they are determined. For those interested in receiving an email when the campground opens, a link can be found on the Pikes Peak State Park webpage to register.
 

The Great Blue Heron Mural is a public art project wrapping around the public restrooms next to the fire station on Front Street in Lansing. The Lansing City Council approved a plan by local minister Laura Gentry to create a mural featuring wildlife of the Mississippi River valley. Set up in simplified blocks, volunteers will be able to fill in the design like a color-by-number painting.

The team of organizers invites businesses, nonprofit organizations, churches, clubs, sports teams, families and individuals to take part in the creation of this art work between Thursday, June 15 and Sunday, June 18. A variety of volunteer duties will be available for people of all ages.

“We encourage everyone to get involved!” explains Laura Gentry. “It will be a fast-moving and fun process. Stop by for an hour, do some work on the mural and you’ll always be able to say: ‘I helped paint that!’”

by Julie Berg-Raymond

After a public hearing during its regular meeting Monday, June 5, the Lansing City Council approved Resolution No. 988 regarding the budget for Fiscal Year 2024. No written or verbal comments were made to City Hall regarding the budget.

Other actions taken by the council included: approving the Iowa Department of Transportation Bridge Pre-Construction Agreement; approving Scouts/Aperans to run the concession stand for the 2023 Summer Recreation Season; and approving the hiring of Fehr Graham Engineering for the Platt Street Project.

The council also approved the following Department of Parks and Recreation hires for the 2023 summer recreation season, pending prerequisites: Mallory Mohn at $11.50 per hour; Cadan Evanson at $11.50 per hour; Maya Draka at $11.25 per hour; Mia Kurth at $11 per hour; and Nathan Boardman at $11 per hour.

Ferryville Tourism Council is announcing the first of its Chautauqua Summer Series for 2023. “Country School Days” will be presented Wednesday, June 14 at 6:30 p.m. at the Ferryville Village Hall.

The presenter will be Larry Scheckel, a retired secondary science teacher from Tomah, WI. He grew up one of nine children in southwest Wisconsin, and he attended Oak Grove School for eight years. This one-room school led to his 2021 book on daily life in this long-gone school community.

Attendees will learn about the importance of this school to the rural community and what memories he holds of the educational foundation he received there. The number of one-room school houses is definitely fading, so this will be a special program of important recollections from Larry Scheckel. He has presented once before on his book about the Clara Olson murder of 1926. He and his wife, Ann, will bring some of his books to sell as well.