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Local events planned at Effigy Mounds, Waukon High School and Kerndt Brothers Bank to celebrate

Area residents will have a high degree of familiarity with a new quarter being released into circulation by the United State Mint to start the new year. The first quarter to be released in 2017 under the U.S. Mint’s America the Beautiful Quarters® Program will feature Iowa’s Effigy Mounds National Monument.

The coin design (pictured at far right) showcases an aerial view of two bears and one bird effigy mound from the Marching Bear Group in the South Unit of the monument. Several free events will take place to commemorate the quarter launch.

by Lissa Blake

The Upper Iowa River Watershed Management Authority (UIRWMA) is moving forward with plans to hire a new coordinator. At its quarterly meeting Wednesday, January 11, the UIRWMA Board approved a job description for the coordinator, which it hopes to hire within the next two months.

The UIRWMA recently was formed after the region was awarded $5.5 million as part of a National Disaster Resiliency Competition grant, which allocated a total of $96.9 million to nine watershed authorities across the state over the next five years.

The UIRWMA encompasses approximately 641,000 acres along the Upper Iowa River in Howard, Winneshiek and Allamakee counties and stretches from Leroy, MN to the Mississippi River in New Albin.

In March, Decorah’s John Beard was elected chairman of the organization, Rick Weymiller of New Albin was elected vice chairman and Mark Jensen of Winneshiek County Conservation was elected secretary.

by Joe Moses

The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met in regular session Monday, January 16 to address a variety of topics including the review of the County's ATV ordinance, consideration of purchasing a motor vehicle for patrol use by the Sheriff's office and the consideration of Public Safety Center items. There were no public comments.

Due to icy road conditions and a winter travel advisory, three agenda items were not addressed due to several individuals not being in attendance. The Helping Services Fiscal Year 2018 funding request, Library updates and discussion of County library funding, and the Northeast Iowa Community Action update and Fiscal Year 2018 funding request were acknowledged but not addressed at the meeting.

Over the past several months, the Byways of Iowa Foundation (BIF), Northeast Iowa RC&D and Scenic Byway Boards from across the state have been working to raise money to install original works of art in byway communities, including Postville and Waukon along the Driftless Area Scenic Byway. This "Art on Iowa’s Byways Initiative” is a state-wide collaboration to install a total of 15 unique pieces of art imagined by local leaders, residents and youth, and designed by local artists. The 15 participating communities include Amana, Anamosa, Belle Plaine, Bellevue, Delhi, Dubuque, Elkader, Guthrie Center, Guttenberg, Keosauqua, Manchester, Maquoketa, Postville, Waukon and Winterset.

Manchester and Delhi’s art projects just received a generous donation from an avid byway supporter, Delaware County native Edwin Geers. His donation will go towards the fabrication of a unique public art piece in each community in Delaware County along the Delaware Crossing Scenic Byway.

Three Allamakee County officials were sworn into office by District Judge John Bauercamper Tuesday morning, January 3, all three of them being re-elected to their respective offices in the general election this past November for their second four-year term. Pictured above, left to right in the photo foreground, centered around Judge Bauercamper are Allamakee County Board of Supervisors member Dennis Koenig, Allamakee County Auditor Denise Beyer and Allamakee County Sheriff Clark Mellick. Standard photo by Joe Moses.
 

At its holiday-delayed regular session Tuesday, January 3, the Allamakee County Board of Supervisors signed a proclamation recognizing January as National Mentoring Month in Allamakee County. Pictured above, left to right, at the proclamation signing are: Front row - Luther College intern Hannah O'Polka, Allamakee County Board of Supervisors member Dan Byrnes and Mentoring Coordinator for Helping Services for Youth and Families Kathy Schwartzhoff. Back row - Allamakee County Board of Supervisors member Dennis Koenig, Iowa Department of Public Health Youth Mentoring AmeriCorps member Colinne McCann and Allamakee County Board of Supervisors Chairman Larry Schellhammer. Submitted photo.
 

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has scheduled two public meetings to discuss the status of the deer herd in Allamakee County after additional hunter harvested deer tested positive for chronic wasting disease (CWD) during the 2016 deer season.

Meetings are scheduled at 2 p.m. Wednesday, January 18 in the Harpers Ferry Community Center, located at 238 North Fourth Street in Harpers Ferry, and then again at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, January 18 at the Waukon Banquet Center, located at 612 Rossville Road in Waukon.

by Lissa Blake

The Minnesota State Veterans Cemetery isn’t just for Minnesotans. Rob Gross, director of the Minnesota State Veterans Cemetery in Preston, MN, wants veterans and their families to know about the services the cemetery offers. “The name is deceptive … It’s for veterans from anywhere in the nation,” said Gross.

Gross explained the Preston cemetery is one of two in the state. The other is located in Little Falls, MN. Plans are in the works to create two additional cemeteries for veterans in Duluth and Redwood Falls, MN.

by Joe Moses

The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met in a pair of regular sessions this past week due to the observance of the New Year holiday taking place on the Board's usual Monday meeting day. Coverage of the Board's Tuesday, January 3 and Monday, January 9 regular sessions appears below.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 3
The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors held its first regular session of the new year Tuesday, January 3 to address a variety of topics, including appointing Chairperson and Chair Pro-Tem, the Proclamation of National Mentoring Month and the appointing of various County Boards and Commissions.

Allamakee County Auditor Denise Beyer called the meeting to order. Supervisor Larry Schellhammer was appointed Chairperson and Supervisor Dennis Koenig was appointed Chair Pro-Tem for 2017. Schellhammer then assumed the floor leading into regular business.

by Lissa Blake

There are a variety of home security systems currently on the market. But a local company is ready to launch one that is completely portable.

“All of this technology already exists on the market, but not in the way we’ve compiled it and put it into a portable unit,” said system creator Brad Winters of Waukon, owner of Indi-Com Electric and Surveillance in Waukon. “What we’ve done is create a fully portable security system that will provide protection against freezing, smoke and intrusion, all in a portable box.”

Winters said he created his new, patent-pending invention to fill a need that was expressed by customers. “Anybody with a river cabin, a second property, or any property that is vacant at some point in time will truly benefit from this,” explained Winters.