River Valley

submitted by Friends of Pool 9

It was a warmer than usual late April day when the Friends of Pool 9 (FOP9) members and volunteers boarded their boats in groups of two, three and more for their annual Mississippi River Clean-Up Day. The pool water level was just below 12 feet, which is about four feet above normal.

This makes it easier in some cases to retrieve trash scattered among the backwater islands, but also makes it more difficult with increased stream velocity and river flow at nearly 100,000 cubic feet per second. However, regardless of the obstacles, these seasoned “river-veterans” prevailed.

by Julie Berg-Raymond

At its regular meeting Monday, May 16, the Lansing City Council reviewed Auditor of State Rob Sand’s agreed-upon procedures report on the City of Lansing, Iowa, for the period July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2020. The agreed-upon procedures engagement was performed pursuant to Chapter 11.6 of the Code of Iowa.

A press release issued May 2 by the Office of Auditor of State, State of Iowa, indicated that “Sand reported fifteen findings related to the receipt and disbursement of taxpayer funds …The findings address issues such as a lack of segregation of duties, errors in the utility reconciliation, disbursements exceeding budgeted amounts, excess TIF collections, and the need to seek legal counsel regarding the relationship between the City and the Lansing Fire Department, Inc. (Non-profit Fire Department). Sand provided the City with recommendations to address each of the findings.”

Thornton Manor would like to invite anyone who has (or who knows of someone who has) an old-fashioned car or fun motorcycle to participate in Thornton Manor’s First Annual Father’s Day Fun Parade scheduled for Friday, June 17. Participants can call Karen at Thornton Manor to confirm they are going to participate, or for more information, at 563-538-4236.

Parade will start at 10 a.m. Friday, June 17. Staff will be outside Thornton Manor to direct the traffic and set up the parade line.

All residents and staff who want to watch the parade will be seated safely outside the front of Thornton Manor. In the case of a rainy day, the parade will be canceled and rescheduled for a later date, which will be announced.
 

by Julie Berg-Raymond

Main Street Lansing Executive Director Andy Kelleher shared some interesting numbers with the Lansing City Council during its regular meeting on Monday, May 2.

Having recently been asked by a Main Street business owner to help calculate the hourly value of downtown parking spaces, Kelleher said, he concluded the following: “Essentially, if you take downtown Lansing’s total annual revenue and divide it by the number of hours businesses are open as well as the number of parking spots downtown, you discover that the hourly value of a parking space was $54.47 in 2021. That’s a good number to provide perspective on our parking; and hopefully it will encourage the business community to have their employees park off Main Street during the day,” he said.

American Legion Ladies Auxiliary, Scenic Unit #722 of Harpers Ferry, has selected Katerina Kovarik, a junior at Waukon High School, to be its representative from Allamakee County for American Legion Auxiliary (ALA) Iowa Girls State being held June 19-24 in person at Drake University in Des Moines. She is the daughter of Kris and Jen Kovarik of Waukon.

ALA Iowa Girls State is one of the premier programs sponsored by the American Legion Auxiliary and was started by a dream of four women over 75 years ago in hopes of teaching young women about the political process. Girls State is a “learning by doing” program, which takes the girls through the entire political process.

Kee High School’s Post Prom was held Sunday, April 24 from midnight until 4 a.m. Guests played board games, Cash Cube, challenging and fun activities, Bingo and Euchre. Special entertainment was provided by hypnotist Mike Winters from Wand Entertainment, who also did several card tricks before his performance. Guests were given tickets to enter for prize package drawings and everyone won a prize according to their number assigned at registration. Before leaving, each guest drew a numbered chip to win the corresponding prize. A special drawing was also held and the Kee senior grand prize ($100 gift cards value) was won by Kylie Troendle (left in above photo).

Worshipers at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Lansing Sunday, April 24 were filled with laughter and joy as they celebrated the resurrection of Christ with their 16th annual Holy Hilarity Sunday. The children and youth of the congregation dramatically reenacted the Easter story, complete with angels dancing in giant wings. Pictured above are those angels (left to right): Izzy Hammell, Zoey Timmerman and Ashlyn Henkes. The celebratory banners hanging above were made by Kathy Hay and Paula Rathbun. Submitted photo.
 

The annual Spring Migration Day Hike to celebrate the migrating birds returning to the Upper Mississippi Flyway region will begin at 7 a.m. Saturday, May 7 at the trailhead for Sugar Creek Bluff Natural Area just off North Buck Creek Road in Ferryville, WI. The earlier starting time this year should enable the group to hear and spot more of the migrating warblers.

This is a relatively gradual hike of 1.5 miles round-trip. The halfway point provides an overlook of the Mississippi River. Expert birders will guide hikers in spotting the returning birds.  Ferryville Tourism Council is hosting this hike, with Mississippi Valley Conservancy presenting this event as part of its Linked to the Land series.

by Julie Berg-Raymond

The project to replace the Black Hawk Bridge is going to cost the City of Lansing a lot more than was originally thought. During its regular meeting Monday, April 18, the Lansing City Council heard from Street Superintendent Ken Ripp regarding a utilities meeting he attended April 5 with the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT). “We’re going to be liable for quite a bit of costs on that project, in addition to the lights,” Ripp said.

The Iowa DOT’s current estimate is around $192,000; but that estimate is expected to increase. The costs are for “re-doing all the water and sewer underneath the new section of road,” Ripp said. “The State will not cover City utilities. Normally, the State never covers that.” But, he added, “I didn’t think the City was going to get the full impact of it.”

Friday, April 15, Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Lansing led a Good Friday Justice and Peace Stations of the Cross event. Community members of all ages, faith backgrounds and walks of life participated in the one-mile walk to contemplate the suffering of Jesus on his way to the cross. Carrying a large wooden cross, the group (pictured above) meandered through town making 12 stops at places symbolic of suffering today. At each, they pondered the deeper roots of pain, lamented, sang, and prayed for the healing of the world. Some carried signs calling for justice or declaring God’s wide embrace.