Top Stories

Allamakee County Economic Development (ACED) is conducting a Housing Needs Assessment with assistance from Upper Explorerland Regional Planning Commission. The housing needs assessment includes data, projections and recommendations for action. The public is invited and encouraged to attend public open houses to view the findings from the assessment, and to share their comments and ideas.

Those Public Meetings are scheduled to be held according to the following schedule:

The Driftless Area Scenic Byway Advisory Board and Northeast Iowa Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D) are working closely with the Waukon Art Advisory Committee to complete a public art installation in downtown Waukon.

The Advisory Committee selected artist Cara Briggs Farmer of Marion to develop a public art project to be placed in the downtown plaza area at the stoplight intersection of Main Street and Spring Avenue/Rossville Road in Waukon. The installment was designed to reflect the vibrancy and uniqueness of Waukon and will complement the downtown area surrounding it. It is part of a larger statewide project supported by the National Endowment for the Arts “Our Town Grant Program” to install a total of 16 public art pieces in scenic byway communities throughout Iowa.

Veterans Memorial Hospital in Waukon and the Veterans Memorial Hospital (VMH) Nursing Council are welcoming Joan C. Becker for a public presentation at the Waukon High School auditorium this Friday, April 6. Becker is the author of the book “Sentenced to Life: Mental Illness, Tragedy, and Transformation.”

It was Becker’s son, Mark, who was responsible for the June 2009 tragedy in Parkersburg, when legendary Aplington-Parkersburg football coach Ed Thomas was shot and killed. Her presentation will begin at 7:30 p.m., with doors opening at 6:45 p.m. The presentation is open to the entire community, free of charge.

by Lissa Blake

If someone is going to come up with a proposal to purchase the soon-to-be-vacated Waterville Elementary School, they’ll have to do it quickly.

“The deadline doesn’t give anyone much time to put something together,” said Waterville Mayor Dave Monserud of the Monday, April 9 deadline set by the Allamakee Community School District (ACSD) Board of Directors for submitting sealed bids to purchase the property.

The ACSD Board has scheduled a public hearing for Tuesday, April 10 at 7 a.m. to open the bids. The action came following a unanimous ACSD Board of Directors vote this past December to close the school at the end of the current 2017-2018 school year.

CONCERNS
Monserud said although the school district has laid out a short timeframe for proposals, there are a number of conversations happening in the community about how to put a viable program together to purchase the school property.

This year, Allamakee County is celebrating 100 years of organized county extension work. This long-established partnership with Iowa State University (ISU) provides local citizens with access to education and university research, building partnerships for a strong Iowa and a strong Allamakee County. ISU Extension and Outreach Allamakee County will be receiving its 100-year certificate during the Allamakee County Fair.

A hundred years ago, the people of Allamakee County joined the extension movement and hired their first local extension agent. Today, ISU Extension and Outreach serves as a 99-county campus, connecting the needs of Iowans with Iowa State University research and resources.

The Allamakee County Emergency Management Agency, along with local emergency response authorities, want residents of Waukon to be aware that emergency warning sirens in Waukon will be tested the first Thursday of each month at 10 a.m. This Thursday, April 5 will be the next of those scheduled test days, and Waukon residents can expect to hear the local emergency warning sirens activated at approximately 10 a.m.

Dan Byrnes of rural Waukon is announcing his candidacy for Allamakee County Supervisor and will seek another four-year term during this year’s election. He was first elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2014 and is nearing completion of that initial term in office.

“As a supervisor, I’ve gained valuable knowledge, experience and an understanding of county government which will help me serve the people of Allamakee well during the next four years,” said Byrnes. He underscored his commitment to listening to all viewpoints by saying, “the people of Allamakee County deserve to have their voices heard and respected.”

One of country music’s female mainstays with her music will be the headlining the grandstand musical acts at the 165th Allamakee County Fair scheduled for July 18-22 in Waukon. Terri Clark, known for her chart-topping hits such as “Better Things To Do” and “Girls Lie Too,” will grace the grandstand stage Friday, July 20 following an opening set from country music newcomer Nick Hickman, all beginning at 7 p.m.

TERRI CLARK
Hailing from Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada, Terri Clark will be returning to Allamakee County this summer after making stops in both Lansing and New Albin this past winter as a featured performer aboard the Canadian Pacific Holiday Train. Her performance at the Allamakee County Fair will be part of a tour with her own band, and she has also recently been making a touring circuit with fellow female country music artists Pam Tillis and Suzy Bogguss on their “Chicks With Hits” Tour.

by Lissa Blake

A group of local residents is taking steps to make Waukon a more inviting place to walk. Walk-On Waukon is a non-profit organization which recently was formed to address the fact that many areas within the city do not have sidewalks.

Group co-organizer Brooke Troendle said, “Jayne McCormick and I were walking and discussing how there are a lot of areas in Waukon that do not have sidewalks. We also talked about how generations before us worked really hard to make sure we had a nice city park, swimming pool and Wellness Center.”

Troendle said when she and McCormick approached the Waukon City Council to discuss the matter, they realized the City already had a lot of infrastructure projects and improvements that were needed in Waukon.

“They were not against the idea of improving the sidewalks, but they suggested we look into funding options like grants,” she said.

Grace Howe (left in above photo), daughter of Shelly and the late Matt Howe of Waukon, was crowned the 2018 Allamakee County Dairy Princess at the annual Allamakee County Dairy Banquet held Saturday, March 24 at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds Pavilion in Waukon. Also selected at Saturday’s annual banquet as the 2018 Alternate Dairy Princess was Cayla Nolting (right in above photo), daughter of Chad and Cheryl Nolting of Waukon. The two are pictured above with 2017 Allamakee County Alternate Dairy Princess Carmen Wille (center in above photo). Additional photos of award winners and other events from the 2018 Allamakee County Dairy Banquet will appear in a future issue of The Standard. Photo courtesy of Paula Enyart.