Water Utilities

MidAmerican customers may help finance nuclear study (03/16/10)
The 7,184 MidAmerican Electric Company customers in Plymouth County may see a monthly increase in their payment due to a proposed law. The increase would come if Iowa Gov. Chet Culver signs a bill to allow MidAmerican to boost electric consumer payments throughout the state by $15 million to study the possibility of bringing a second nuclear plant to Iowa...

Merrill industry is model for Iowa's future, Judge says (03/09/10)
If Iowa is going to recover from the recession that has plagued the nation, recovery is going to come from the ground up. That's what Lt. Gov. Patty Judge said Monday during a visit to the Plymouth Oil, a food-grade corn oil plant just north of Merrill...

TIF: a powerful tool being overused? (02/05/10)
Out of all 99 Iowa counties, Plymouth County is ranked second for using Tax Increment Financing (TIF). About 15.2 percent of the county's taxable valuation is in TIF, according to the Iowa State Association of Counties. TIF is a taxing tool different than regular taxes, according to Plymouth County Auditor Stacey Feldman...

City squeezing its way to a balanced budget (01/27/10)
"Bare bones" and "lean" were the words used to describe the 2011 city budget during a Le Mars City Council workshop Tuesday. "We asked all the departments to make a 10 percent cut after we've had cuts the last two years," Assistant City Administrator Bill Cole said. "There is not a lot of cushion."...

MidAmerican Energy calls for safety, continues storm restoration (01/26/10)
MidAmerican Energy reminds customers to take additional safety precautions as work continues to restore service to thousands of customers impacted by this week's ice storm. Today (Tuesday) MidAmerican Energy reported only one outage in Plymouth County...

City budget meetings set (01/07/10)
Le Mars City Council members are gearing up for the start of meetings to discuss the the 2010-2011 budget next week. Members of the finance committee, Councilmen Rex Knapp and John Rexwinkel, will be the first to meet with Assistant City Administrator Bill Cole at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday. Rexwinkel and Councilman Ken Nelson will meet at 2: 30 p.m. Wednesday to look at the budgeting picture for the public works, water and wastewater departments...

U.S. wildlife leaders worry about future during Akron summit (11/16/09)
Leaders from national wildlife groups shared concerns about the future of clean water and conservation in the United States during a summit near Akron this past weekend. "This is a place where agricultural producers, conservationists and water quality advocates come together for a common program," Jim Martin said of the gathering...

Local electric providers: We're for cap, but not trade (10/23/09)
Under proposed energy legislation often called "cap and trade," the Midwest would get burned, according to representatives from local electricity providers. MidAmerican Energy representative Mark Reinders explained his company's take on the American Clean Energy and Security Act, a comprehensive energy bill proposed by U.S. Representatives...

Road construction in seasonal race against time (09/30/09)
The Highway 3 project in eastern Le Mars is behind schedule, City Administrator Scott Langel said. Officially, the completion date was supposed to be Aug. 31, Langel said. His prediction is the Highway 3 work will be finished in the next week. "It's definitely functional at this point," Langel said. "Everything that needed to be paved is paved."...

Wind turbine company eyes Plymouth County (09/22/09)
A wind farm company may be considering Plymouth County for a new location to build wind turbines. Zoning Administrator Alan Lucken told the Plymouth County Board of Adjustment Monday that he'd recently received a call from an individual from a company that uses massive wind turbines to generate electricity...

Pheasants Forever Remsen water project makes waves (09/09/09)
A project that began with the idea of helping clean up Remsen's water has picked up national interest. This year Plymouth County Pheasants Forever chapter worked together with the City of Remsen to transform about 90 acres of cropland and well field into native prairie habitat...

Face of the Phonothon: Brannan shares her Life Skills story (09/01/09)
The Annual KC Phonothon for persons with disabilities has benefited a number of Plymouth County residents who receive services at Life Skills Training Center in Le Mars through the years. The 30th annual phonothon this Wednesday will be no different...

Westergard and Schilmoeller reign as fair queen and king (07/30/09)
It may have been raining outside, but the smiles were shining bright in Century Hall as the 2009 Plymouth County Fair royalty court was announced Wednesday. Ben Schilmoeller was crowned king and Caine Westergard was crowned queen of the 2009 fair. Their royalty court includes Princes Ryan Schroeder and Brian Kehm; Mr. Personality Chris Erickson; Miss Congeniality and Princess Stephany TenNapel and Princess Angie Breuer...

Big Sioux River Cleanup scheduled for this weekend (07/14/09)
The Plymouth County conservation department will be holding the Third Annual Big Sioux River Cleanup July 18. The cleanup will start at the Big Sioux River Park north of Akron. Volunteers will then float, in canoes, down the river and end at a spot near Akron...

Swimming rules for the safety of all (07/02/09)
Of all of the things that represent summer, swimming is near the top of the list. There are few activities more fun than taking a refreshing dip in the pool with friends on a scorching day. But for everyone to enjoy this summer pastime, there are rules that need to be adhered to...

Hillview offers relaxation in nature, living history (07/02/09)
This is the fourth story in a series of places to have summer fun in Plymouth County. For more than 30 years, Hillview Recreation Area has been a nice getaway for those who want to escape into nature and relax. Whether it is camping, fishing, hiking, swimming or just spending a day with the family, Hillview, about 1 mile west of Hinton, has something for everyone to enjoy -- including observing the county's resident elk herd...

Council approves end of year fund transfers (06/30/09)
The Le Mars City Council last Tuesday cleaned up its finances in preparation for the end of the fiscal year. That meant transferring $2 million in Tax Increment Financing (TIF) money for the current year and $2 million for last year to make two years of bond payments...

Fabrication: Artist bends the rules of quilting (05/01/09)
You've never seen quilting like this before. Bright oranges, deep blues, burnt reds. Dreamlike images and stitching that defies straight lines. Jo Alberda's artwork, on display at the Le Mars Arts Center, combines simple designs with intricate and irregular stitched lines that run through and around the image like hundreds of rivers...

Langel remains "hopeful" for stimulus dollars on rail project (04/22/09)
Stimulus and shovel-ready were once again the words of the day for Le Mars City Council and staff as the city continued its path to completion of a rail spur in the industrial park. The spur will serve IML Container Iowa's new facility and Le Mars Public Storage...

New DNR water requirement may raise water bills (04/20/09)
A new requirement on treated wastewater pumped into the Floyd River may have a multi-million dollar impact on the City of Le Mars. And that cost may trickle down to residents. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) regulates allowable chloride levels flowing into rivers. Currently, the amount of chlorides coming from Le Mars wastewater is high, due to the number of home water softeners used by residents...

Drive to repair county roads, bridges continues (04/20/09)
Resurfacing four county roads and replacing nine bridges is expected to cost about $3.4 million this construction season. Plymouth County Supervisors Tuesday approved a road repair and maintenance budget for fiscal year 2009-10 and a five-year construction plan presented by Tom Rohe, Plymouth County engineer...

Power to the people: NIPCO turns 60 (04/07/09)

City plans hydrant flushing (03/23/09)
The City of LeMars Water Department will be flushing hydrants on Tuesday. They will start at 8 a.m. and end at 3:15 p.m. if applicable. The flushing will begin in the southwest part of town starting Tuesday. The city will also be flushing on Wednesday and Thursday in that southwest region...

City plans hydrant flushing (03/16/09)
The City of LeMars Water Department will be flushing hydrants on Tuesday. They will start at 8 a.m. and end at 3:15 p.m. if applicable. The first section will be the Northeast part of town and should finish mid-day on Wednesday. Mid-day on Wednesday they will start flushing the Northwest part of town and finish the Northwest on Thursday...

Developers look at piping methane from wastewater plant (03/11/09)
Waste not. That could be the motto of Le Mars' wastewater plant. The plant already makes 100 percent of what comes in into usable products. Now officials are talking with a local renewable energy developer about using the wastewater plant's methane to help fuel the Plymouth Energy ethanol and corn oil plants north of Merrill...

Wells' Dairy builds new station to monitor pH (02/16/09)
A $550,000 pH monitoring station is going up at 910 Prospect Street south of Wells' Dairy's south ice cream plant. The station will help prevent highly acidic or highly alkaline water from flowing into the City of Le Mars' wastewater plant. "If the pH swings too far, it could wreak havoc on the plant," said Le Mars Wastewater Superintendent Ron Kayser. "It could eat pipes, eat away cement and actually be a safety concern"...

First city budget proposal aims to hold steady on tax levy (01/21/09)
The first rough draft of the $15.9 city budget makes no increase in the city tax levy. Le Mars City Council members have begun study of the preliminary balanced budget for the coming fiscal year. A series of budget workshops start next Tuesday, Jan. 27...

City makes big cuts, makes department reorganization (01/06/09)
The City of Le Mars is eliminating its engineering department and cutting one person's job to help trim expenses. This decision, plus other cuts like not filling three other positions, will slash between $200,000 and $250,000 from the city budget. Mayor Dick Kirchoff announced the changes Monday afternoon in a press conference...

Don't get stuck in the cold: Plan for winter power outage (12/29/08)
By Charles Schwab Safety Specialist, Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Iowa State University Extension Winter power outages are always challenging but occasionally they can be dangerous if not handled correctly. The key to managing any emergency such as a power outage is to have a specific disaster plan to handle decisions that must be made in the moment of the crisis...

Economic development group on the prowl (12/24/08)
The Northwest Iowa Developers Coalition is putting both feet forward in its efforts to bring economic development to the area. Gary Tucker, Plymouth County's economic development director, shared with the Plymouth County Supervisors Tuesday some of the group's plans for 2009...

Impaired waters in county not on monitoring schedule (12/22/08)
Eight bodies of water in Plymouth County are among 445 listed as impaired throughout Iowa. That means those streams, lakes, creeks and rivers have some type of pollutant -- like too high levels of bacteria -- based on standards set by the Federal Clean Water Act...

Operation costs behind proposed sewer rate increase (12/05/08)
After 12 years, Le Mars could see an increase in wastewater rates across the board. Le Mars City Council members presented information Tuesday from a rate study recently completed by Bolton & Menk, Inc., of Ames. The study found that city residents and business owners' rates would need to increase for the wastewater department to continue operations...

Hike in city sewage rates forthcoming (11/20/08)
Le Mars city sewer rates are expected to increase for residential and industrial users. The Le Mars City Council will hold a first reading of a new ordinance initiating the rate changes Dec. 2. The rate hike, effective Feb. 1, 2009, is projected at 20 percent for residential users and a corresponding 5 percent increase for industrial users...

Think you can swim the Floyd River? These people do (11/14/08)
Yes, it snowed this week. That didn't stop locals from swimming their way down the Floyd River. The swimmers aren't actually doing the front crawl in the river water -- they're doing laps in Le Mars' indoor pool as part of a program designed by the Le Mars Family YMCA...

Homeowner gets approval for wind turbine (09/09/08)
A man in southern Plymouth County received approval Monday to install a 30-foot wind turbine on his property to help power his house. Craig Carrell, of Sioux City, sought a conditional use permit from the Plymouth County Board of Adjustment to build the wind generator on his property just north of Sioux City in Perry Township near county road C-80...

Wind blows Texas oilman in to Le Mars to talk energy (08/15/08)
He may be 80 but an audience member still called T. Boone Pickens a "rockstar." The Texas oilman and billionaire landed his jet at the Le Mars airport Thursday afternoon to spin to Iowans his plan for reducing U.S. dependency on foreign oil. His idea: shift to using more wind energy and natural gas -- two things in which the nation is rich...

Supervisors appoint new conservation board members (07/16/08)
Chris Beeck and Troy V. Hemmelrick are the two newest members on the Plymouth County Conservation Board. The Plymouth County Supervisors on Tuesday appointed Beeck and Hemmelrick to replace members Ron Wilmot, who died in June, and Eric Julstrol, who recently resigned...

Local National Guard unit helps fend off floodwater (06/16/08)
Fifty-five members of the local National Guard unit were working through the night this weekend to help hold back flood water in downtown Des Moines and Burlington. The group from Le Mars' C-Troop 113th Cavalry left Thursday to help sandbag near the rising Des Moines River. This weekend they were called to Burlington to help with sandbagging efforts along the swelling Mississippi River, and they are continuing with that effort this week...

Future ownership of O'Toole property continues to be a question (05/21/08)
The couple who purchased a "surplus lot" in O'Toole Park is considering getting their money back after finding out there is no water connection there. A former California couple, Al and Rosalie Ladie, who purchased the lot last December for $25,000, reduced from the original city asking price of $30,000 taking into consideration the city's "as is" description. The couple discovered later there were no available water and sewer lines to the site intended to be their new home...

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