News

Le Mars readies for return of ICD festivities

DES MOINES — The Iowa Tourism Office and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources has announced updates to the popular Iowa State Park Passport to give consumers a fun and engaging way to track their visits to state parks. The launch follows 2020’s successful centennial anniversary, with nearly 30,000 check-ins at parks across the state...

LE MARS — One of the traditional pillars of Ice Cream Days, formerly known as Art in the Park, is being reinvented this year. The popular event will be moved from its former locale in Foster Park, where it had been held for decades, to a more central location downtown as part of an overall reimagination by the Ice Cream Days Committee...

Visitors were able to get a first-hand look at the operation which began milking cows in 2019. Perry Creek Dairy hosts an 80-stall rotary parlor to milk the cows. As the system rotates, a cow gets on every 4 1/2 seconds and in eight minutes, is milked and ready to leave the parlor. The 3,300 Holstein cows re milked three times a day...

LE MARS — At the June 1 city council meeting, the council dealt with a number of consent items. Two of those were Fire-Rescue personnel salary adjustments for FY ‘22 and a change order on Well #14 project. In a letter to the council, Le Mars Fire-Rescue Chief David Schipper informed council members that a review of current wages had been discussed with the officers of the Le Mars Fire-Rescue Department and himself...

LE MARS — Citing an increase in the number of students in the secondary special education classes, Le Mars Community School District Superintendent Dr. Steve Webner recommended an additional special education teacher position be approved. School board members considered that recommendation at their June 7 meeting...

LE MARS — Le Mars Police are investigating an incident of vandalism in Foster Park over the weekend. Le Mars Assistant Police Chief Justin Daale said the vandals, using magic markers, wrote on pillars of the carousel, the bricks on the carousel floor, and drew numerous images and wrote derogatory remarks inside the restrooms on the walls and doors...

LE MARS — The timing just felt right. That is what led Neal Adler to his decision to retire after nearly 27 years with the Le Mars Area Chamber of Commerce and LBIC (Le Mars Business Initiative Corporation). June 19 will mark Adler’s final day as executive director, a position he first began in September 1994...

PLYMOUTH CO. — Two college students from Nebraska are on a mission this summer to visit all 939 incorporated towns in Iowa. Seth Varner and Austin Schneider, are sophomores currently enrolled at the University of Nebraska - Omaha and hail from Wahoo, Nebraska...

LE MARS — Total Motors will be hosting an outdoor movie presentation at their dealership on 801 Hawkeye Avenue Southwest in Le Mars as part of Ice Cream Days festivities on Thursday, June 17. The annual family tradition at Le Mars’ original drive-in theater location will begin at 8:30 p.m. and last until 10:30 p.m. Visitors can watch the movie from their lawn chairs, blankets, or drive-in and watch from their cars “like the good old days.”...

LE MARS — The second reading of proposed changes to two parts of the city’s parking ordinance came with a proposed line added to each of the sections. At its June 1 meeting, Le Mars city council members discussed the proposed changes pertaining to the placing and parking of dumpsters, campers and trailers on city streets and parking lots...

LE MARS — Milk and bread are two staples on the menu for students in the Le Mars Community School District. At their Monday meeting, school board members considered bids for milk and bread products for the 2021-22 school year. According to Superintendent Dr. Steve Webner, Food Service Director Eva Velasco sent out bid requests for the products...

LE MARS — Le Mars will be welcoming “America’s best cover band,” Flashback Heart Attack, as well as seven additional musical acts and performances, to kick off RAGBRAI XLVIII on Saturday, July 24. Initially announced as the starting point for RAGBRAI in 2020, the event was, like many others, postponed for one year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic...

LE MARS — The 2021 Avenue of Flags Memorial Day program featured the addition of 47 flags to the avenue. Family members and friends carried the flags of deceased veterans as the veteran’s name was called during the program. With no program held in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the list of veterans flags was longer this year...

LE MARS — The Le Mars City Council went into closed session at the end of its Tuesday June 1 meeting to discuss and evaluate City Administrator Jason Vacura’s performance. Vacura had requested the closed session. Following the evaluation, the council returned to open session, and approved a motion that a $4,725 salary increase for the city administrator be approved effective July 1. On roll call, all council members voted aye...

LE MARS — The 2021 edition of Ice Cream Days in Le Mars June 16-19, has several new activities on the schedule. One of them is a Cornhole Tournament sponsored by the Le Mars YMCA. “We really wanted to do something additional and different during Ice Cream Days and the cornhole (or bags) game has become a very popular, fun game for all ages,” said Le Mars YMCA Executive Director Todd Lancaster...

SIOUX CITY — Local artist Jane Schultz will bring her watercolors to life starting June 8, at the Betty Strong Encounter Center. “Watercolors with Jane” is an exhibit brought to the Center by this Le Mars native and will run through Aug. 8. Schultz has been an artist most of her life, and at 94, she continues to paint. Schultz is best known for her watercolor paintings of local scenes and well-known landmarks...

LE MARS — Le Mars will be welcoming “America’s best cover band," Flashback Heart Attack, as well as seven additional musical acts and performances on Saturday, July 24, to kick off RAGBRAI XLVIII. The full entertainment schedule, released to the public during an outdoor music event on Friday, June 4, includes live music throughout the city, as well as activities appropriate for all ages...

REMSEN — Remsen St. Mary’s celebrated their 100th anniversary of baseball last weekend, bringing together generations of Hawks alumni, family and friends to honor former players and reminisce on the program’s century of storied success. The celebration culminated in an alumni exhibition game at Marv Thelen field on Sunday...

LE MARS — The PlyWood Trail Phase 1A Project took a step forward following action taken by the Le Mars City Council Tuesday. On the agenda was action to set a public hearing for June 15 in the council chambers to hear public comment on the trail portion that will connect Le Mars to the north edge of Merrill...

PLYMOUTH CO. — June is observed as Dairy Month and the Feuerhelm family welcomes the public to an open house at Perry Creek Dairy on Wednesday, June 9. Open house is from 4-8 p.m., at the dairy located at 20243 County Road K-22, Merrill, or west on Highway 3 to K-22, and 2 1/2 miles south on K-22...

LE MARS — The Le Mars City Council held two public hearings Tuesday related to the Fire-Rescue Department and the Ambulance Service ordinances. The Fire-Rescue Department and the Ambulance Service are each covered by separate chapters in the Le Mars Code of Ordinances. As of July 1, only one chapter is needed as the departments will be combined...

LE MARS — Informative community minded networking opportunities will once again return to Le Mars thanks to the chamber of commerce. After more than a year hiatus, the chamber’s Lunch ‘n Learn Series will make a come back beginning Tuesday, June 29...

LE MARS — The Le Mars Police Department is investigating vandalism damage at the Plymouth County Historical Museum. The vandalism was reported Saturday, May 29, to windows on the second floor of the museum. The room, which faces the west, houses the Plymouth County Fair display...

AKRON — Two Akron-Westfield High School FFA members, Aubie Hartman and Samuel Philips, have been awarded the FFA Iowa Degree. The two were honored and received their award at the Iowa FFA Convention held in Des Moines in April. The Iowa FFA Degree is the highest degree the state can bestow upon a member. FFA members who qualify have met minimum involvement requirements in all components of the three-circle model: SAE, FFA and classroom/laboratory...