River Valley

by Joe Moses

The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met in regular session Monday, May 22 to address a full agenda of items, including a Public Hearing for the Des Moines Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI®) Ordinance, consideration of bids for paving a portion of Breezy Corners Road and the consideration of language for the updated ATV ordinance. Chairperson Larry Schellhammer called the meeting to order with the current agenda and the meeting minutes of May 15 being approved.

During Public Comments, Executive Director Val Reinke with Allamakee County Economic Development advised that CBS 2/Fox 48 will be doing a "Road Trippin'" television segment on Allamakee County that will include Yellow River Forest, Effigy Mounds, Lansing, WW Homestead Dairy and other locations.

by B.J. Tomlinson

The Iowa Court of Appeals has overturned a March 26, 2015 ruling regarding a suit filed against the City of Lansing by former Lansing City Councilman Bill Burke. The suit centered around a 2012 incident regarding an open meetings law violation and a suit filed against the City of Lansing and its Council members by Allamakee County Attorney Jill Kistler.

Burke was removed from the Council in 2013 for "willful misconduct and maladministration in office" and a trial contesting that dismissal was held in December of 2014. District Court Judge Richard Stochl ruled against Burke and ordered him to pay court costs of $240.80. At the time, Lansing's mayor was Mike Verdon and the Council members, in addition to Burke,  included Deb Volker, Jeff Bechtel, Rebecca Conway and Ross Kolsrud.

District Director Jayne Armstrong of the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Iowa District Office is reminding Iowa small businesses of the June 6 deadline to apply for an SBA federal disaster loan for economic injury caused by severe weather and flash flooding in Winneshiek County that occurred August 23-24, 2016.

According to Armstrong, small non-farm businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private nonprofit organizations of any size may apply for Economic Injury Disaster Loans of up to $2 million to help meet working capital needs caused by the disaster. “Economic Injury Disaster Loans may be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable and other bills that cannot be paid because of the disaster’s impact. Economic injury assistance is available regardless of whether the applicant suffered any property damage,” Armstrong said.

Katelyn Leiran, daughter of Nancy and Steve Leiran of Waterville, has been selected as the 2017 Girls State Citizen by American Legion Auxiliary Unit #722 of Harpers Ferry. She is the granddaughter of the late Willard Leiran and Marlys Leiran of Waterville and of Walter and Francis Gronert of Grimes.

Leiran is currently a junior at Waukon High School. She will attend Girls State 2017 at Drake University in Des Moines June 18-23.

Iowa Girls State is one of the premier programs sponsored by the American Legion Auxiliary and was all started by a dream of four women over 70 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.

by Macie Hill

Monday, May 15 the regular Lansing City Council meeting was held. During the discussion many things were talked about, including: hazard mitigation plans, consideration of fixing a rain gutter problem for Our Savior Lutheran Church, discussing owners at 459 Wall Street purchasing chickens, a Parks Board position being available, information about the local swimming pool, and using the swimming pool shower facilities during RAGBRAI®.

The Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge (UMRNWFR) is conducting a Compatibility Determination for the renewal of an existing utility right-of-way for Dairyland Power Cooperative, Q-7 and Q-9 transmission lines from Houston County, MN. Public comment is being sought in regard to impact on the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge.

The Ferryville Tourism Council and the Mississippi Valley Conservancy are hosting the annual International Spring Migration Day Hike at Sugar Creek Bluff Natural Area Saturday, May 13. Hikers are invited to gather at the Ferryville Village Hall, along the Great River Road, Hwy. 35, at the south end of the Village of Ferryville between 7:30 and 8 a.m. Treats, handouts and a sign-in will be available at the village hall, and then the group will carpool to the trailhead for the 8 a.m. hike.

This hike is a celebration of the Bird City Wisconsin program. The International Spring Migration Day aspect of the hike recognizes that the warblers, orioles, tanagers and other neo tropical migrants have traveled for weeks from their winter homes in Central America. Some will stay in the local area along the Mississippi River Flyway during the summer months and nest here, and others will continue to travel further north to nest and rear their young.

“Rummage Along the River” is a 70-mile garage sale extravaganza that winds along Highway 35, Wisconsin’s Great River Road. The event is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, May 19 and 20, from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. each day. Stoddard, Genoa, the Bad Axe, De Soto, Ferryville and Lynxville are the river towns, and shoppers can also swing up County E to Highway 27 and Seneca and Mt. Sterling.

New for 2017 is the website for information on sales, which can be found at www.rummagealongtheriver.com. A map of the sales can also be found there to be printed off.

submitted by Friends of Pool 9

More than 100 volunteers gathered to clean the Mississippi River during the annual Friends of Pool 9 River Clean-Up Day Saturday, April 29. It proved to be a somewhat cooler and more uncomfortable day (especially compared to the previous weekend) with temperatures on the river around 40 degrees and a brisk east wind blowing.

Volunteers had begun work on the river the week before with the Heytman crew gathering their debris and vacated docks at the landing. Jerry Boardman and Don Lathrop pulled a record 18 red and green buoys from the backwater, and others had also dropped off river debris at the Lansing location on the Brennan riverfront property in preparation.

Two Kee High School junior students, Jack Mooney and Caleb Conway, have been selected to attend the annual Boys State event being held at Fort Dodge in Johnston June 11-16 this year. Local selection of attendees is being sponsored by the Lansing Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 5981 and Lansing American Legion Post 50.

Jack Mooney is the son of Dan and Renee Mooney of rural New Albin. Caleb Conway is the son of Greg and Jenny Conway of rural Lansing.

Begun in 1938, Boys State is a six-day course in self government, consistently taught with a hands-on approach. The young men of 2017 Boys State, all of whom will have finished their junior year of high school, will be divided into 32 cities. Four cities constitute a county and eight counties make up Boys State. The cities are composed of members of the Nationalist and Federalist parties. The citizens within these cities hold party caucus meetings, conventions, campaigns and general elections.