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Residents and visitors of Allamakee County will have two opportunities to see the Canadian Pacific Holiday Train this year, as the holiday spectacle on rails will make its way to northern Iowa Wednesday, December 5 to make a pair of stops within the Allamakee County borders. The Holiday Train will be stopping in Lansing that December 5 afternoon, at approximately 4:50 p.m., and again in New Albin a little over an hour later, at approximately 6:15 p.m.

The Canadian Pacific Holiday Train is adorned with hundreds of thousands of lights and serves as a stage for live musical performances. Both stops are scheduled to include performances by The Trews, the innovative, prolific and electrifying rock music recording artists based out of Hamilton, Ontario, and contemporary rock singer and musician Willy Porter, who has shared world stages with music icons Jeff Beck, Tori Amos and Paul Simon.

There has been little to update from official sources regarding the November 13 single-vehicle accident involving Christopher Mirich, age 38, of Waukon, husband of Allamakee County Attorney Jill Kistler, and an ensuing investigation the following day involving search warrants being executed by Iowa State Patrol officers at the couple’s home and Mirich’s place of employment first reported in last week’s issue of The Standard.

Sergeant Jewel O’Rear, Assistant District Commander of Iowa State Patrol’s District 10 headquarters located in Oelwein, did confirm in a Monday, November 26 telephone interview that the investigation is still in progress and initially said there is no further information about the case or the continuing investigation that can be shared at this point.

Becky Rea, Allamakee County K-12 Program Coordinator, was recently recognized at the annual Iowa State University Extension Office staff in-service: Youth Fest by the Iowa 4-H Program. Rea was a recipient of an Achievement in Service Award, being selected for this award by being in her position for three years or less and making a difference in the Iowa 4-H program in that short time.

The Waukon High School Choir, under the direction of Sarah Palmer, will be sharing its music with the area church community during its 24th Annual Tour of Churches this Sunday morning, December 2, according to the following schedule:

St. John's Lutheran 8:30-8:45 a.m.
Old West Lutheran 9:05-9:20 a.m.
First Presbyterian 9:35-9:50 a.m.
St. Patrick Catholic 10:00-10:15 a.m.
First Baptist 10:25-10:40 a.m.
Zion United Church of Christ 10:50-11:05 a.m.
Zalmona Presbyterian 11:20-11:35 a.m.

The annual tour allows choir members to serve the community by singing several pieces of music at various church services. At each stop, the choir takes a freewill offering to be donated to the Allamakee County Relief Office, the Allamakee County Food Shelf, the Backpack Program in the Allamakee Community School District, the Allamakee Giving Tree and the Waukon Community Meal program.

by Joe Moses

The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met in regular session Monday, November 26 to discuss items on a short agenda including the Fiscal-Year 2018 audit for the North Iowa Juvenile Detention Services Commission, the Quarterly Report for the Allamakee County Relief Office and setting meeting dates for the end of 2018 and beginning of 2019. Chairperson Larry Schellhammer called the meeting to order with approval of the current agenda and meeting minutes of November 19.

No arrests made, no charges filed following motor vehicle accident and ensuing search

A recent presence of several Iowa State Patrol vehicles and officers at the residence of Allamakee County Attorney Jill Kistler in Waukon has had the rumor mill operating in high gear. Speculative stories “heard through the grapevine” or posted on social media have run the spectrum - from a drug raid to suicide, and a conspiring cover-up of all of it due to Kistler’s elected position as County Attorney, making the actual turn of events pale in comparison. In an effort to clarify the matter, Kistler has offered a detailed explanation of what she knows in regard to the matter and her thoughts on the local reaction.

The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors toured several projects following its Tuesday, November 13 meeting, including the Green Valley Bridge, pictured above, which has been completed and is now open to traffic as of last Thursday, November 15. Replacement of the bridge was a cost-share project following recent flooding events, with the State of Iowa providing 80% of the project funding and the City of Waukon and Allamakee County splitting the remaining 20% of the cost. The temporary access, consisting of gravel fill and a culvert located just to the south of the bridge project and used to access neighboring businesses, homes and other buildings during the Green Valley Bridge construction project, will not be maintained and will be removed next spring with the availability of an excavator, according to Allamakee County Engineer Brian Ridenour. Standard photo by Joe Moses.
 

English Bench Watershed #9 was viewed Tuesday, November 13 by the Allamakee County Board of Supervisors, with Allamakee County Engineer Brian Ridenour, Allamakee County Emergency Management Coordinator Corey Snitker and representatives of the Allamakee County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD), including LuAnn Rolling, Brianne Wild and Don Elsbernd, also in attendance. Ridenour was notified October 30 about concerns with the watershed including dirt slides (evident in the broken ground near the middle of the above photo) and a leak at the base from an 18-inch overflow pipe (pictured near the pooled water to the right in the above photo) fed by a large pond area not pictured but located to the left of this photo view. State of Iowa experts, including geologists and engineers, will be inspecting the watershed and providing a recommendation prior to further discussion of the matter at the December 3 Board of Supervisors meeting. Standard photo by Joe Moses.
 

Preliminary work is well underway on the Makee Drive paving project just north of Waukon, with grading, widening of the roadway shoulders and other preparation work continuing yet this year and the paving of the roadway scheduled for completion during Summer 2019. Allamakee County Engineer Brian Ridenour indicated that the preliminary work being done now will allow for multiple freeze/thaw cycles throughout the winter and spring months to accommodate better settling of the roadway foundation prior to paving. The project involves the paving of a one-mile section of the roadway from its intersection with State Highway 9 east to its intersection with Four Corners Road. Standard photo by Joe Moses.
 

by Lissa Blake

It’s a group effort to overhaul the County’s comprehensive plan and a number of area stakeholders have been working toward that end. Allamakee County is currently partnering with Upper Explorerland Regional Planning Commission (UERPC) to develop a new comprehensive plan for the County.

According to Allamakee County Zoning Administrator Tom Blake, the County’s current plan has been in place since 2002. He said although counties are supposed to review and update their plans about every 10 years, it usually takes 15-20 years for that to happen.

“The Planning and Zoning Commission refers to this plan any time there is a request for a change in zoning,” said Blake.