Everyone is invited Friday, November 22nd at 6 p.m. for a trip to the North Pole on their very own library train. Visitors to the Alta Community Library will be reading the Polar Express, sipping on hot chocolate, enjoying sweets and getting ready to kick off the holiday season. Wear your comfy pajamas and come ready for a magical adventure! All ages are welcome...

The Alta-Aurelia school board hosted a Veterans’ Day ceremony celebrating all Veterans’, but especially the ones from Buena Vista and Cherokee Counties, Monday morning. Soldiers who had fought in wars as far back as World War II came out to be honored by the children...

Alta seems to have a growing stray cat issue, according to Mayor Al Clark, who raised the issue with the city council at a recent meeting. He said Lake Animal Hospital is not accepting the strays, as all of the communities in the area are being overrun with the animals. “Basically, they told me that if we come up with a solution, let them know,” Clark said...

After much discussion in recent months, the Alta City Council has approved an agreement that will allow the local VFW to have its own location in the annex of the community building. Members of the VFW who were at last week’s council meeting immediately approved the deal...

Alta Kiwanians and Alta-Aurelia 5th Graders at the football field in Alta. Students from Mr. Payne’s 5th Grade Class assisted in picking up the area around the football field after two home games. Their assistance in cleaning up the area is greatly appreciated. / Photo submitted...

Pictured are Alta Kiwanians in front of the new and improved Can Receptacle. Alta Kiwanians can collection project supports kids in Alta. Some of the projects supported through can collection include: Scholarships, HOBY Leadership Camp, Alta Playground, and Alta-Aurelia Athletic, Music and Scholastic Programs. ...

After firing its code officer recently, Alta city leaders decided to not advertise immediately for a replacement. With the mayor and two council members leaving at the end of the year, the decision was made to delay a decision until new people assume offices. One concern, however, is that winter is normally the time of season when rental housing inspections are done, which will need to be delayed...

“They called us baby killers. When I came home around the beginning of May, I went to a memorial day celebration. The shooting made me jump three feet in the air,” said Vietnam Veteran and Alta VFW Post Commander, Don Fisher. “Walking back, there were a couple of guys in a car taunting me. I told them if they were any kind of a man they would get out of that car, but they never did.”...

Since November of 2009, The Olive Branch community store at 111 South Main Street in downtown Alta has provided a way for area residents to find inexpensive clothing, toys, and household items. Most items are priced around $1. Operated by volunteers from Summit Church, the goal of the store is to meet the practical needs of people, enabling neighbors to help one another as the hands and feet of Jesus Christ...

Smiles abounded from residents at WEL-Life Residential Home in Alta October 31 by the tenants there, in anticipation of the ghosts, ghouls and goblins who were scheduled to show up there around 5:30 p.m. Chairs were lined up in a row directly inside the front entrance of the facility where residents can sit and greet the children and hand out candy...

Alta-Aurelia High School presents Roald Dahl’s Willy Wonka on November 8 and 9 at 7 p.m. and the10th at 2 p.m. All seats are $5 and can be reserved by calling 200-1331. Roald Dahl’s Willy Wonka follows enigmatic candy manufacturer, Willy Wonka, as he stages a contest by hiding golden tickets in five of his scrumptious candy bars. ...

First row: Allan Chindlund, Lynn Peterson, Ron Mortensen, Myron Murphy, John Demers, Dennis Langner, Rick Meyer, Dave Kraemer, Norm O’cannon, Bruce Nelson, John Hallengren. Second row:, Keith Bjorkgren, Dave Hansen, Doug Mattson, Bruce Hallengren, Doyle Gustafson, Mike Petersen, Ted Mahn, Mark Sorbe...

In the last Alta City Council meeting, the City of Alta fired the Code Enforcement Officer, Matt Hess. It was decided by the board to run an advertisement in the local paper declaring the position as open. However, sources say the board is waiting to run the ad until they can decide whether or not the position will be full-time or part-time...

On September 24 Sheila Craig presented a program “Remembering the Apron” at the Alta Community Library. Her collection included aprons made of all kinds of material ranging from flour sacks, handkerchiefs to fine material. Many of the aprons were decorated with everything from chicken scratch, cross stitch smocking and more. It was amazing to see the kinds of aprons and how they were used...

TODDLE TIME: Will meet on Friday mornings at 10:30 a.m., for children ages 5 and under. AFTER SCHOOL MOVIE: The Alta Community Library will be presenting “The Angry Birds 2 Movie” on Monday, November 18th at 4 p.m. All Ages Welcome! POLAR EXPRESS PROGRAM: Please join us on Friday, November 22 at 6 p.m. ...

The Alta City Council will not be meeting on November 4. Instead, the council will meet November 7 at 6 p.m. The decision on whether to switch the job of Code Enforcement Officer back to a part-time position, or to leave it at full-time is expected to be addressed that night...

The Alta-Aurelia Community School District Board of Director called a special meeting October 30 at 7 a.m. to discuss the lease program on the school system’s copiers. The board decided a special meeting was necessary should they decide to break the lease of the current copier machine provider and go with a new company. ...

Aurelia First United Methodist Church will host its Fall Harvest Dinner, Sunday, November 10, 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. The menu includes turkey and dressing, ham balls, mashed potatoes and gravy, vegetables, salad bar, dinner rolls, desserts, pies and coffee...

Soup & Pie Supper sponsored by the Alta VFW Post 6172. Will be serving in the Alta Community Center, November 14, 5-7 pm  $5/person.  Funds will be used for servicemen and women that are deployed.  If anyone know of someone, especially from this area, who is deployed, please submit names and addresses...

Alta-Aurelia cheerleaders took part in the AWARE 5K run recently at Buena Vista Regional Medical Center. The event is a fundraiser to help with personal needs of cancer patients at the facility. The cheerleaders provided plenty of encouragement, and even ran some of the participants down the home stretch. / Photos courtesy AA high school. / Photos submitted...

In a special session meeting of the Council of the City of Alta, Jennifer Movall and Justin Yarosevich, of Simmering and Cory & Iowa Codification, presented to the board their findings for a comprehensive plan that the City of Alta had asked of them. The comprehensive plan includes suggestions concerning signage, landscaping and anything else that might be considered in cleaning up the city and making it more attractive to visitors...

Each year the Northwest district and Iowa FFA officers plan and facilitate Greenhand Fire Up Conferences for FFA members in the NW district. Northwestern College welcomed FFA chapters from all over the NW district on October 15. While at Northwestern on October 15th, district and state officers led four interactive workshops for first year high school FFA members, also known as Greenhands, for the annual Greenhand Fire Up Conference. ...

Come & Go Costume Party: Join us in costume (if you choose) on Friday, October 25 from 5 - 6 p.m. for treats, crafts, a short story, and a fun activity. We’ll have safety tips and prizes. All Ages Are Welcome.

City Council Candidates Denny Weber Denny Weber is seeking a second term after four years on the Alta City Council. “Alta is a great community that I am proud to call home,” he said. “I’ve always been involved in the community - I feel that everyone should try to be involved in some way,” he added. ...

Sometime during the week of Sept 15, I had the 2019 fall newsletter from the town of Alta deposited on my front porch. The letter informed me on how to stay informed.: AltaTec channel 3, nope, don’t have cable tv, Facebook, nope, don’t Facebook, rolling sign near Alta community building, (now I had seen a rolling sign in the middle of main street on occasion and know about the scrolling sign along the highway, so this has me a bit confused) Storm Lake Pilot Tribune, ok, I subscribe (and also to the Storm Lake Times). ...

Kevin Walsh will be the sole candidate on the ballot for Alta mayor in the upcoming municipal election. The current city council member had been weighing his options for some time. “Two years ago I was appointed by the former mayor to fill a vacancy on the council, and that has allowed me to kind of get my feet wet in city government. ...

The Board of Directors for the Alta-Aurelia Community School District met Monday night to address a full agenda. The night began with Spotlight reports from directors of schools in the district presenting progress reports from their facilities concerning lesson plans from their staff. Buena Vista School Superintendent, Bill Walters, then addressed the agenda for the night...

Bunjes Landscaping and Lawncare in Alta is hosting a “Make and Take” Spruce Tip Pot event Saturday. Nov. 16, 9-11 a.m. The greenhouse will be warm with lots of fresh greenery, and there will be wine and munchies. Wes Bunjes will provide a demonstration of how to make a spruce tip arrangement and guidance and assistance will be available to make your own...

The Alta City Council acted this week to raise the deposit rate for rental of the community building after problems with the condition some renters have left behind, and moved forward with an agreement to turn the building’s annex over to the VFW. There have been lots of problems with the rental hall, especially after birthday parties. ...

Doomed ash trees continue to be a daunting issue for the community of Alta, where the region’s first emerald ash borer infestation was confirmed in June, 2017. City officials estimate that 370-380 trees will need to be removed from public property and parkings...

Rehearsals began recently for the Alta-Aurelia Schools’ fall musical production of “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.” Performances are scheduled for November 8, 9 and 10 at the Roxy Theater in Alta. The cast members are as follows: WILLY WONKA – Nathan Weflen...

Eight area high school choirs are joining forces to create music together at the Heartland Honor Choir which is hosted by Iowa Lakes Community College. Singers from Algona, Alta-Aurelia, Estherville Lincoln Central, Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire, Spirit Lake, Okoboji, Pocahontas and South O’Brien will all be part of the mass choir of over 160 singers...

Two plans for playgrounds could become one in Alta, as the Park Board will soon meet with a school boosters committee. The two groups have each proposed playground projects during the past year, one for the city park to replace outdated equipment, and one for the adjacent school property where the expansive wooden playground is showing its age. The two groups will talk about the possibility of working together to see what can be done, according to Randy Erickson of the parks board...

The Moms2Moms group of Alta is planning its 10th annual Shopping Extravaganza, Saturday, November 2 at the Summit Evangelical Free Church. Hours are 9 a.m.-2 p.m. This year’s event will include door prizes and plenty of special things happening, organizers say...

Alta Municipal Utilities will be flushing water mains beginning the week of October 13 through the 18, AMU personnel will be flushing overnight between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m., weather permitting. During flushing you may notice discolored water in your home, If you notice this, please turn on a cold-water faucet and flush out your service lines, Thank you for your patience...

Trick or treating in Alta will take place on Halloween night, Thursday, October 31, from 5-7:30 p.m. After some discussion, city officials decided to end the period an hour earlier than in the past.

TODDLE TIME: Toddle Time will meet on Friday mornings at 10:30 a.m., for children ages 5 and under. All daycare providers and care givers are welcome. AFTER SCHOOL MOVIE: The Library will be presenting the movie “Toy Story 4” on Monday, October 14th at 4 p.m. All ages welcome...

Royalty was crowned last Friday night. Nathan Weflen was homecoming King, and Tabytha Buettner was queen for Alta-Aurelia homecoming 2019. / Photo by Craig Shultz

Dave Turnquist just hates to lose, when it comes to sports, plain and simple. “I really hate to lose. That’s what drove me to learn as much as I could about softball,” says Dave. The Sioux City Journal’s Softball Coach Of The Year, and a 13-year veteran of being skipper to the Alta-Aurelia girl’s softball team, Dave just really wanted to get better, at making his teams better, even to the point of guiding a squad that a lot of people didn’t expect to get to the 2A girl’s high school softball championship game, earlier this year. ...

On Wednesday, October 9 the Storm Lake Pizza Ranch will feature a Community Impact night to help four Alta Aurelia students raise funds to go on the Iowa Ambassadors of Music Trip to Europe in 2020. From 5 - 8 p.m., 10% of the sales will be donated to Grace Arnts, Simon Carlson, Matthew Cummins, and Sierra Hill, who will also be working at Pizza Ranch during that time...

Buena Vista Community Theatre’s touring vocal group, A Touch of Broadway, will perform at the Roxy in Alta on Sunday, September 29th at 3:30pm. Their performance is entitled “Aspects of Love: What’s in a Name?” A Touch of Broadway is in it’s 18th season and is directed by Carol Huntzicker and Glee Crippin, with performers from area communities. ...

Applications are now being accepted for the 2019 Fall Grant Cycle by the Buena Vista County Foundation.  The application form can be downloaded from the foundation’s web page at www.bvcountyfoundation.com or requested by email at bvcfoundation@gmail.com...

On Tuesday September 17th, four Alta-Aurelia FFA members helped with the Ag Citing Ambassadors event at the Allee Research farm outside of Newell. The members helped lead students from station to station where they learned about various agricultural topics. They also helped teach a station about safety in Agriculture. Members who attended on this day were:...

Front: Tabytha Buettner, Kienna Carr, Alexa Fredericksen, Chloe Kruger, Hannah Loring. Back: Matthew Edwards, Robbie Hach, Jair Lopez, Logan McCoy, Nathan Weflen. / Photos contributed

Alta-Aurelia schools are preparing for next week’s Homecoming celebration. The Grand Marshal will be the Stevicks family, in loving memory of B.J. Stevicks. B.J. was a teacher and coach at Alta-Aurelia Community School for many years where he mentored many students and encouraged them to be the best they could be. He passed away in May, with his funeral held at the high school...

A group of 53 sixth graders from Alta-Aurelia Middle School in Aurelia will take their annual trek to the Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo on October 4th. “It goes with our science studies,” said science teacher Amy Meyer, who leads the event. She teaches sixth grade science and STEM classes at the middle school. “It helps students understand the interaction of the different organisms,” she said...

The youngest Alta-Aurelia students, through fourth grade, were recently invited to take part in an art contest. One of the resulting designs was chosen for a special fundraising t-shirt, with the announcement made at the school Wednesday. The t-shirts will be sold by the Alta Warrior PTO to help raise money toward a new playground for the school...

Who do YOU think is worthy of the 2019 Citizen of the Year nomination for Alta? Nominations are due Nov. 15, and the honoree will be recognized at the Christmas Tree Lighting on Dec. 8. Forms are available now, and can be turned in to City Hall of Heritage Bank...

The Alta Park Board has turned to a new strategy to develop a playground in the City Park. Lacking the funds to do an entire playground in a single development, the group now hopes to add new features one at a time to the area north of the shelter house, starting with a “Generation Swing.” The swings allow a parent or older sibling to swing with a young child. The board hopes to raise the money to order and if possible install such a swing yet this fall, expecting that it would be heavily used...

After a summer plagued with a shortage of lifeguards that sometimes forced the city swimming pool to close, the Alta City Council is diving into the issues head-first. After discussing the problems in recent months, the council hosted a community meeting Tuesday night, which resulted in a spirited discussion, support for the pool, and some ideas on how to fill the staff...