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The temperature reading of -26º pictured above on the clock thermometer at Waukon State Bank on Main Street in Waukon gives some indication of just how cold it was Wednesday morning, January 30 during the Polar Vortex cold snap that gripped the Midwest and beyond with historically cold temperatures in some areas. The -26º reading, however, was only about half as cold as it actually felt at times during the frigid stretch, as sustained winds hovering around 10 mph with gusts approaching 30 miles an hour plummeted wind chill factors to nearly double that temperature reading, those -40º to -50º wind chills creating dangerous situations that kept many area businesses from operating Wednesday, January 30 and even into Thursday, January 31, as depicted by the nearly empty Main Street scene above. Among those halted business operations was the U.S. Postal Service, which did not deliver mail in parts of as many as 10 states during Wednesday’s worst day of the cold snap.

by David M. Johnson

In society there are rules, statutes and regulations that ensure an orderly and well governed direction for day-to-day experiences. To enforce and interpret the law, society has police officials, judges and inspectors who are just some of those employed to make sure those guiding principles are being enforced.

In sports, whether it is little league, middle school, high school, college or the professional ranks, there are those men and women in “stripes” or “blue” - as they are often referred to - who stand behind the plate calling balls and strikes, who whistle fouls on a player defending under the basket, or who watch that football offensive lineman to ensure he is using a legal blocking technique. Umpires and referees are indispensable, otherwise there would be mayhem on the courts and fields they preside over.

OFFICIAL NOTICE is given that the date of the upcoming February 5 Special election for Postville School District will be changed to Tuesday, April 2, with polling hours being from Noon-8pm on election day. Absentee voting will begin in the Auditor’s office on Monday, March 4.
The reason for the change of dates is due to an omission in the required publication. The County Auditor sends the Notice of Election and Sample Ballot to the newspaper for publication. The Notice of Election was sent and published, but a Sample Ballot inadvertently did not get sent for publication. Due to this omission, the Special Postville School election scheduled for Tuesday, February 5, 2019 must be rescheduled.
Absentee voting for the rescheduled April 2 Special Election for Postville Community School District will begin in the Allamakee County Auditor’s office Monday, March 4. Absentee voting will be open until 11 a.m. election day, Tuesday, April 2, 2019.

Award nominations due by February 8; Princess applications due by March 1

The 2019 Allamakee County Dairy Banquet will be held Saturday, March 16 at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds Pavilion in Waukon. The meal will be served from 7-8:30 p.m., with the program starting at 8 p.m. The annual celebration recognizes the importance of the dairy industry in Allamakee County and the contributions dairy families make to the industry.

Every year, top producers from the county are recognized at the banquet. In addition, several other awards are presented that evening. The Allamakee Dairy Promotion Board and the Allamakee County Extension Office are accepting nominations through February 8 for the following awards:

Wednesday, January 23 at approximately 1:39 p.m. the Waukon Police Department received a report of an active burglary at 303 Fourth Avenue SW in Waukon. According to court documents, the female reporting the incident indicated that someone was in her garage, and upon arrival, officers did find 47-year-old Ricky Lynn Arentz of De Soto, WI inside the garage at the residence.

Arentz explained to the officers that he had knocked on the house door, with footprints in the snow indicating that someone had indeed approached the house door. After no one answered the door, Arentz said he entered the garage to look at an air compressor he was considering in lieu of money he claimed the male resident of the home owed him.

A south central Iowa man allegedly responsible for a string of burglaries in the Lansing and New Albin area in September of last year was arrested in Polk County in Iowa Wednesday, January 16. Eric Todd Hall, age 43, of Saylor Township north of Des Moines in Polk County was taken into custody when an off-duty deputy identified him in the parking lot at Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino in Altoona and was aware he had several warrants outstanding for his arrest.

by Joe Moses

The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met in a delayed regular session Tuesday, January 22 following the observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day Monday, January 21, and met again in regular session Monday, January 28. Coverage of both meetings appears below.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 22
During Public Comment to open the January 22 regular meeting of the Allamakee County Board of Supervisors, Mark Reiser of Lansing questioned the Supervisors about the $2,563.69 expense that was approved at the January 14 Supervisors meeting. The Supervisors clarified that the expense was related to signage and landscaping expenses at the Allamakee County Public Safety Center.

Shopko (“the Company”), a leading operator of general merchandise stores throughout the Central, Western and Pacific Northwest regions of the United States, has announced that it, along with its subsidiaries, has filed voluntary petitions for a court-supervised financial restructuring under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code and that its first-day motions to help facilitate continued operations while the Company operates under Chapter 11 protection were approved January 16 by Honorable Thomas L. Saladino of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Nebraska.

The annual Harvest Celebration/Appreciation Dinner was held in November of last year for the Corner of Hope local growing project, a program focused on combating world hunger through local growing efforts. This year’s celebration included presentations by leaders of the local growing project’s partnering organization Growing Hope Globally (formerly Foods Resource Bank), a Christian-based non-profit organization focused on improving agricultural food security programs in some of the world’s poorest nations.

It was reported at this year’s harvest celebration that $27,000 was contributed to the Growing Hope Globally efforts through the crops planted, harvested and sold from right here in Allamakee County through efforts and contributions of many.

Representative Anne Osmundson (R-Volga) of Iowa House District 56 is seen here taking the oath of office in the Iowa House of Representatives chamber as the 88th General Assembly kicked off Monday, January 14 at the Capitol in Des Moines. During the session, Rep. Osmundson can be reached at anne.osmundson@legis.iowa.gov or through the House switchboard at 515-281-3221. The swearing in ceremony of all 100 State of Iowa Representatives began a week full of ceremonies, including the Condition of the State address by the Governor, the Condition of the Judiciary address by the Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice, and the Condition of the Guard address by the Adjutant General of the Iowa National Guard. Submitted photo.