The seventh grade art class completed a mural entitled Warriors. Students brainstormed a lot of great ideas, but in the end they decided to propose this mural to Mr. Walters and to Mrs. Henningsen. After receiving approval, they painted their mural in the back hallway by the gym. ...

The old quilt shop building on Main St. in Alta was demolished this week to make room for United Bank of Iowa’s planned construction of a drive-through. /Photo by Stephanie Lynam

The Alta Elementary School playground is out of service due to a recent incident where a child was harmed, and plans continue for the playground’s removal and replacement. The topic was discussed at the Oct. 19th Alta-Aurelia School Board meeting. The playground project involves removing the existing one and replacing it with a new one that is safer and more modern which is a joint project between the Alta-Aurelia School District and City of Alta. ...

At a special meeting this week, the Alta City Council discussed procedures for filling the vacant seat on the council, left by the recent mid-term resignation of Wes Bunjes. The council will give official notice of intent to appoint a replacement to complete the current term, this week, in hopes that a new member can be appointed during its next regular meeting, November 2. The council will need to do some leg work between now and then to approach citizens about filling the vacancy.  ...

The Alta City Council is considering a project to have dead ash tree trunks near the park and football field carved by an artist. The trees have been planned for removal after the emerald ash borer infestation. Mayor Kevin Walsh suggested that eight remaining trees could be carved with letters to spell out the school nickname, “Warriors,” with one tree carved with a shield and sword...

The Warrior Parent Teacher Organization is gearing up to help fund a dual playground development in Alta, starting with a t-shirt campaign. A contest was held among students 4th grade and younger to create art for a fundraiser t-shirt, with high school art students helping to select the winner...

The city of Alta’s code enforcement officer, John Stange, gave a report at the Oct. 5th city council meeting which included proposed demolition and sidewalks. Stange has prepared a demolition permit for United Bank of Iowa for their plan to construct a drive-through at the bank located at 202 Main St. The bank entered into a purchase agreement for the old quilt shop building which they want to tear down. It is located next to the bank...

With winter approaching, Alta City Council members, at the Oct. 5th meeting, discussed better ways to communicate to residents the city’s snow ordinance. Residents sometimes park on the street during a snow emergency, saying they did not know of the ordinance, resulting in a ticket and snowplows unable to plow all parts of the street...

Whereas, traditionally, children of all ages have observed Halloween in the City of Alta by participating in “Trick or Treat Night,” and Whereas, many parents have requested that the City officially set aside a specific date and time for all the little witches, goblins, and space creatures to trick or treat in our community; and...

Royalty was crowned on Friday night as Brandon Meier and Sierra Hill were named the 2020 Homecoming King and Queen for Alta-Aurelia. /Photo by Craig Shultz

Several projects are in the works in the City of Alta Streets and Sanitation department, some needing to wait until spring. The department’s supervisor Brad Pedersen updated the council at the Oct. 5th Alta City Council meeting. Council Member Pam Henderson asked Pedersen about the progress of water drainage on 8th and Main St. ...

T. P. Anderson & Co., P.C. reported that the Alta Municipal Utilities operating revenue totaled $3,560,345 for the year ended December 31. Operating expenses for Alta Municipal Utilities amounted to $2,977,191 for the year. Included in this total were expenses for purchased power of$985,678, generating expenses of$619,509, distribution expenses of$457,391, and administrative and general expenses of$914,613...

Shelly Rock will speak on Motherhood and Child Personality Traits at the next meeting hosted by the Moms2Moms of Alta, Wednesday, October 7, 9:15-11:15 a.m. at Summit Evangelical Free Church. Rock is the director of The Bridge neighborhood ministry programs in Storm Lake. This who attend are encouraged to bring any questions they may have...

Armed with garden tools and paint brushes in hand, a group of volunteers in Alta joined together on Sept. 26th for Altagether’s 2nd cleanup project where they worked on three houses. The first cleanup was held in June. “We do this to help out our neighbors. To give a helping hand,” organizer and Altagether’s founder, Rob Hach, said. On the 26th, volunteers fixed a fence, painted a shed and cut and removed tree branches, shrubs and bushes...

Eddy’s Liquors in Alta opened in July at 103 S. Main St. To officially open the business, an Alta Community Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting took place on Sept. 19th. Pictured are Eddy and Raquel Gutierrez and their 3-year-old daughter (pictured center). Complimentary wine sampling is offered on most days 4:30-10:30 p.m. Participating in the ribbon cutting are Chamber members and Alta City Council members. Mayor Kevin Walsh is pictured on the right...

Alta’s concrete grain elevator along Hwy. 7 is buzzing with activity as trucks unload grain during harvest. Back in 1950, the Tillotson Construction Company was hired to build the structure for the Alta Cooperative. Ronald Ahrens wrote an article at the time about what the construction job entailed. ...

The Alta-Aurelia Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) participated in the nationwide event, See You at the Pole, on Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2020. This was the 3dh year for See You at the Pole, a student-initiated and student-led event that started in Burleson, Texas, in 1990. ...

Front: Jessica Larson, Elizabeth Kaskey, Alaina Westphal, Sierra Hill, Abbie Watts. Back: Teagan Meyer, Trey Engelmann, Cade Rohwer, Brandon Mier, Alex DeRoos.

Dogs in the classroom are more than welcome in Alta-Aurelia schools, especially now in the age of COVID. Just a short time into the school year, students and staff already consider the four therapy dogs in school as family members and know them by name - Milo and Liberty in Aurelia, and Skye and Goldie in Alta. Their breeds are Goldendoodles and a Golden Retriever...

To: Mayor Walsh, City Council Members, and Citizens of Alta I would like to thank the City for letting me be a party of the City Council, and I would especially like to thank all of the citizens that voted me into office. This experience has allowed me to learn the many ways the City operates, both good and bad, which has led me to making the decision to step down from this position. ...

The Alta Elementary School playground needs to be replaced, but more funds are required in addition to the $75,000 grant that was awarded by ABCreative. The proposed playground project is a joint effort funded and organized by the City of Alta and Alta-Aurelia school district...

Alta City Council member Wes Bunjes announced at the most recent regular meeting that he planned to step down from the council immediately. “Family is my number one and my business has my other interest and I need to stay focused on that. Basketball season is coming up and I coach - that’s my calling,” Bunjes told the Pilot-Tribune later. ...

The high school grading scale was discussed at the Sept. 14th Alta-Aurelia School Board meeting. It was previously decided the scale should be standardized because some teachers have been using different grading scales. “That creates a lot of confusion and one teacher pitting themselves against another,” Superintendent William Walters said. Board members agreed the grading scale should be standardized...

A familiar face in Alta has joined WEL-Life Assisted Living as its new Executive Director. Cindy Pedersen, who’s called Alta Home for 40 years, recently joined the WEL-Life team. “I have wanted to work back in my community for a while and after having my dad at WEL-Life I knew I wanted to give back to a generation that has given us so much,” she said...

Four Buena Vista County Fair 4-H representatives recently competed at the Battle on the Blue Chips held in Spencer: Jaelyn Hartnett, Abby Bean, Brock White and Elizabeth Schable. The Northwest Iowa Livestock Showdown is designed to showcase the hard work and dedication of beef, swine, sheep, and goat exhibitors in Northwest Iowa. / BV Fair photo...

Alta-Aurelia schools are getting back to normal, having begun on August 24th. “Back to school is going as well as can be expected,” Superintendent William Walters said. “We learn new things everyday. It’s important that we stay flexible and be prepared to adjust with changes in protocols or directives from the Department of Education or Public Health.”...

Alta-Aurelia Communtiy School will be having Little Warrior preschool a creative learning program for children who are 3 years old. It will take place four days per week. If interested contact: Contact: Bill Walters, Superintendent Alta-Aurelia Communtiy School...

Alta City Council members and residents discussed the possible removal of stop signs on Lake St. and 4th St. during the Sept. 9th city council meeting. In July 2018, the council voted to install stop signs at that intersection to slow traffic due to safety concerns. Some residents supported installation of the signs, but some opposed the decision, saying they are not necessary...

The Alta - Aurelia student section held a Hawaiian night for the opening volleyball game. /Photo by Crain Shultz

With this year’s pandemic and recession, coupled with illnesses that crop up in a family and other of life’s challenging surprises, it’s good to know that the Alta community bands together to help out. One group involved with community fix-up projects during the summer is Altagether which will next host the “Fall good neighbors cleanup day” Sept. ...

Alta-Aurelia faculty recipient’s of grants from the Alta-Aurelia Community Educational Foundation for this 2020-2021 school year. These faculty members requested , what the foundation calls “ mini grants”, to help supplement items they felt would be positive additions for their class rooms and programs. ...

The Alta Firemen’s Association Annual Fundraiser 2020, an August event, was different this year in that the community was unable to meet and talk with fire department personnel to get to know them better. However, the goal remains the same - to raise money for essential equipment, this year new two-way radios...

An insect which attacks and kills ash trees has brought changes to Alta over the past 3 years. Infestation of the emerald ash borer brought on by beetles has damaged hundreds of ash trees in Alta, and the city has been working to trim and remove the affected trees to stop the spread of infection...

A new business cropped up on 103 S. Main St. in Alta which provides a wide variety of liquor, beer and wine, special orders and complimentary wine sampling from 4:30 to 10:30 p.m. Alta residents Eddy and Raquel Gutierrez opened Eddy’s Liquors in July. “I want to see something that’s new in town,” Eddy gave as one reason for opening the business. A diesel technician by trade, he is from Los Angeles and spent much of his life in Mexico...

Alta-Aurelia schools opened the school year running double in-town routes and using eight shuttle buses instead of the usual four to accommodate single seating. The school district thanked transportation director Bob Lehl and its bus drivers for making the system workable. / AA Schools photo...

Alta City Council Member Tom Lane once again came through with his home-grown vegetables for the community, and then some, including fresh eggs and chicken. He organized a free food distribution for selected Alta residents on Aug. 15th, with the help of the mayor, some council members and others from the community...

The Return to Learn (RTL) plan was the focus of the Aug. 13th Alta-Aurelia School Board meeting. “It’s going to be okay. We have a good plan. I have faith in our kids and our system,” Superintendent William Walters said. “Our kids will do great. They want to be here which is awesome,” he said, adding that other superintendents say the same thing...

Altagether will be hosting a Fall Good Neighbors Clean Up Day in Alta, set for September 26. Everyone who would like to help should meet at Scooters at 6 p.m. September 25 to go over the work schedule and assignments for work to be done on Saturday helping neighbors in need. Watch the Altogether Facebook page for more details...

The 16th Annual Hanover Tractor Ride will be held on Saturday, August 22. Hosted by Hanover Historical Society, the tractors and riders will assemble at Hanover Village southwest of Alta, Iowa at the Junction of C-65 and M-27. Registration is from 8 to 8:30 with tractors departing promptly at 8:30 am...

The Alta city attorney recommends having stop signs removed at the intersection of 4th & Lake Streets due to improper voting by council members in a city council meeting two years ago. In addition, the mayor has received complaints about stop signs at that intersection...

Since school closures began in the spring, the U.S. government has provided CARES Act funding to K-12 school districts, and last week it was announced that additionally, connectivity funds will be allocated to school districts to provide reliable access to the internet. These measures are designed to help schools nation-wide to get back on their feet for fall...

Buffalo Ridge Cafe has announced plans to reopen on September 15, which is also the local business’ fifth year anniversary. A week-long celebration is being planned, with more details to come on the Buffalo Ridge Facebook page.

In the past week, Laura Turnquist of Alta has been strong enough to exchange waves to her family through a window at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. She had a successful heart transplant on July 30th. “She’s doing really good,” Katie Morris, one of her daughters, said. “She’s standing up, and she got to wave to us from outside.” However, she is very weak, Katie added...

The Alta-Aurelia schools are thanking Buena Vista Regional Medical Center in Storm Lake for recently providing 500+ adult masks and 350+ youth masks for the district’s return to school in August. “We appreciate your support and assistance during this very challenging time. You are an exemplary healthcare provider!” the district said in an online post...

A Return to Learn survey for Alta-Aurelia students grades 5-12 was posted on the district web page this week. School district officials would appreciate students’ participation in this survey. The information will help will be used in continued planning continue for reopening school later this month...

John Stange has been hired as the City of Alta code enforcement officer and will begin the job in mid-August. The hiring was discussed at the August 3rd Alta City Council meeting, and his position is expected to become permanent following a 90-day probation period...

Kathy Peterson of Alta, has been elected chair of the Iowa State University Alumni Association Board of Directors. Peterson is a 1995 Iowa State University graduate in speech communication and a life member of the Alumni Association. Professionally, Peterson brings a strong background in human resources and talent development to the ISUAA Board. ...

Local 4-H members did not sit idle during the worst of the pandemic. Their creativity did not wane, nor did their dedication and discipline for their animals and projects. They worked hard toward the BV County Fair, not even knowing if it would happen. But the fair did go on in July, and they were thankful to show their hard work and be with their 4-H friends again...

About 50 motorcycles with more than 60 riders took to the road for the fundraiser event, “Power Solutions 4th Annual Ride for a Cause,” on July 25th. The caravan made seven stops between Alta and Spencer and waved to an 8-year-old Makenzie Connor in Spencer who is battling leukemia. Her parents are TJ Connor and Heather Marchand...

Reghan Harms was among 225 graduates to receive bachelor’s degrees at Northwestern College during commencement ceremonies Saturday, July 18. Twenty-four students received Bachelor of Science in Nursing degrees, while the rest of the graduating seniors were granted Bachelor of Arts degrees...