Residents of OABCIG school district will be asked to vote on a levy this September. The OABCIG board of directors met Friday to decide on ordering an election to vote on continuing the Physical Plant and Equipment (PPEL) property tax. Board president Stephanie Konradi, vice president Jeff Rasmussen, and directors Saffire Peterson and Dathan Loger were in attendance. The resolution to order the election passed 4-0.
The Ida Grove City Council met on Monday, July 18 at 6 p.m. in the temporary City Hall at the Rec Center. In attendance were Mayor Devlun Whiteing, councilmen Gregor Ernst, Jason Schable, Ange Johnson, Jeff Miesner, Jared Bogue, and attorney Peter Goldsmith. The council approved pay app #8 to Godbersen-Smith Construction for the Moorehead Avenue Bridge in the amount of $200,366.77. Danny Sturm noted this is not the final payment as there are a few items left to finish, and the City is holding approximately $30,000 in retainage.
Crowds at the King Theatre in Ida Grove have been exceptional for Top Gun: Maverick. The highly anticipated sequel about Pete "Maverick" Mitchell, a fictional character. The movie’s showing at the King was generously supported by the Lundell family of Kiron and, you may have noticed via Facebook and on the marquee, sponsored in memory of real-life airman Colonel Gail S. Halvorsen.
With RAGBRAI coming in a matter of days, the Ida County Conservation Board turned its attention to plans for the arrival of the event and thousands of visitors. With Ida Grove planned as an overnight stop for RAGBRAI this year, Moorehead Park will see its north playground closed for the public over the course of the event. The park will host reserved primitive campers. Additionally, some parts of the park will be off limits to the general public. This is being done in the interests of safety and crowd management. The public will be able to visit the Conservation Center from 2 to 6 p.m.
As RAGBRAI approaches, Battle Creek is getting ready for the big day. During the regular July meeting, Battle Creek City Council turned attention to matters needed for RAGBRAI. Liquor licenses were discussed with council voting to permit alcohol consumption on Main Street in front of Fred’s Place. The permission is a special one-time approval just for the day for RAGBRAI. The event is likely to bring thousands of visitors to the community. With orange cone season underway, street work in the city is ongoing.
The University of Iowa College of Nursing brought its recently released mobile unit to Ida Grove on Wednesday to host education sessions for first responders, EMTs, Paramedics, nurses and physicians. The clinical scenarios focused on traumas and medical conditions that may occur during RAGBRAI. The simulator is able to recreate scenarios and minic various conditions, such as heart rate and pulse.
The Ida County Board of Supervisors met on Tuesday, July 12 at 9 a.m. in the courthouse. Board members in attendance were Chair Raymond Drey, Creston Schubert, and Rhett Leonard. County Engineer Jeff Williams discussed ATV laws, and the board decided to follow state regulations. The supervisors asked Williams to apply a cold mix patch to areas of the Moorehead Park road prior to RAGBRAI. Williams then presented the Fiscal Year 2023 County Assistant Engineer Employment Agreement with Colin Ryan, annual salary of $110,000, to begin August 22.
Much of the work at OABCIG is well underway, but one area is seeing some complications. “The gym has hit a little bit of a snag,” said Superintendent Matt Alexander. When a contractor tried to begin grinding off the tar that had been under the bleachers, something unexpected turned up. With the level of the floor, grinding off that tar would leave an unacceptable drop in the floor. The contractor’s recommendation is to redo the entire floor and level it all out. “He was out today and had his laser out and was shooting the floor,” said Alexander.
A Physical Plant and Equipment Levy (PPEL) will go before Galva-Holstein voters. During the regular July meeting, the Galva-Holstein board voted to go ahead with a PPEL vote. If passed, the levy issue will generate up $1.34 per each $1,000 of assessed value and is a continuing levy. The levy issue would be in place for 10 years. Board members unanimously approved the resolution. After the meeting, Superintendent Adam Bisenius said the district currently has a levy for 67 cents per $1,000 of valuation. This would generate double that levy and is necessitated by a number of areas.
