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by Maury Gallagher

The Hamre Giesen Chapter #8 of Disabled American Veterans in Waukon will host a picnic event for veterans and their families and friends at the Waukon City Park Wednesday, August 20. The event will begin with a social time at 11 a.m. and a noon meal.
There is no cost to attend this event. Food, drinks, door prizes and raffles will be provided.
Anyone who knows of any veterans who have returned from service in the past two to three years are asked to invite them to this event to be honored and welcomed home.
For more information or to volunteer to help at this event, call 563-535-5430 or 563-568-5275. To arrange for a ride to and from this event, call 563-568-5275.
 

The Allamakee County Recorder's Office is advising area residents that a company named Record Transfer Services is sending letters out to people in Allamakee County who may have recently purchased property. The letter states "Recorded Deed Notice", lists the property owner's parcel number and county, and shows an amount due of $83.00. The notice looks very official; it has the date of when a deed was recorded and information about the property listed, along with a recommendation that all homeowners should obtain a copy of their deed and a property assessment profile, a service they will provide for that fee of $83.00.

by Bob Beach

Renewal of the Local Option Sales and Service Tax (LOSST) was approved by Allamakee County voters in a special election held Tuesday, August 5 in the cities of Waukon, Waterville, Postville, Harpers Ferry and New Albin and in the unincorporated areas, all by wide margins.
Voters in all of the jurisdictions approved a ten-year renewal of the tax, with the exception of Harpers Ferry, where voters approved renewal of the tax with no "sunset date."
Unofficial results provided by the Allamakee County Auditor's Office show the following vote totals:
Waukon 220-28; Waterville 17-0; Postville 48-3; Harpers Ferry 27-0; New Albin 20-2; unincorporated 221-23.
The City of Lansing has no "sunset date" on the one-percent sales and service tax, so no election was held there.

Lowell Engle of Harpers Ferry has announced he will be seeking election to the Iowa House of Representatives in District 56, which encompasses Allamakee County and most of Clayton County.
Engle was born in Hampton and graduated from Tripoli High School. After graduation he spent one year at the Iowa State Teacher's College, joined the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and enrolled at George Washington University. After his time in the FBI, he moved back to Iowa and completed more schooling at the University of Iowa.
Engle served for three years in the Army and worked in Army Intelligence. After his service in the Army ended, he worked for the Foreign Service and Department of Defense. He spent most of that time overseas studying Spanish and French. He has the equivalent of a Master's degree in both languages.

The Standard Newspaper recently made some changes to its website, www.waukonstandard.com. In making the site more attractive, some new features have been added, including an all-new electronic edition of the newspaper that provides access to all the same news and advertising printed each week in a convenient online format.
"We're excited to be able to offer a new option for delivery of our newspaper," said Assistant Editor and website administrator Bob Beach. "With the new e-edition, readers have the option to view the pages of our newspaper exactly as they appear in print on their computers, tablets and smartphones. We hope this option will ease some of the frustration caused by slowed delivery of the print edition due to recent changes in the U.S. Postal Service."

by Bob Beach

Voters in Allamakee County will head to the polls Tuesday, August 5 to determine the future of the Local Option Sales and Service Tax (LOSST), a one-percent tax on sales and services. The tax is nothing new - most jurisdictions in the County have a ten-year "sunset date" on the one-cent sales tax, the only exception being the City of Lansing. Voters in all other towns and townships will be asked whether or not the tax should be renewed for another ten years and to approve how the resulting revenues will be spent.

Several Allamakee County citizens were on hand to receive 2014 Governor’s Volunteer Awards from Iowa Governor Terry E. Branstad and Lt. Governor Kim Reynolds during a special recognition ceremony held in late June in Cedar Falls. Lansing residents Bruce Palmborg and Ric and Betty Zarwell, Waukon resident Pam Delphey, and local businesses Kerndt Brothers Savings Bank of Lansing and Harpers Ferry, and Upper Iowa Resort and Rental of Dorchester were each honored for the volunteer efforts they have put forth this past year, most of those local recipients being represented in the photographs below accompanying this article.

by Bob Beach