Stories from Wednesday, June 20, 2018

A brief ceremony kicked off the planting of several trees Monday morning, the first step in development of a new Storm Lake neighborhood park on the former site of a burned-out greenhouse. Jeff Jensen, field coordinator with Trees Forever, planted the first tree, a six-foot Norway maple, on the park site. ...

Multiple agencies responded after two boats capsized on the Little Sioux River Friday evening. Two men wen located shortly after arrival and three others were located a short time later after. All were uninjured. "I'd say they're pretty lucky," Clay County Deputy Sheriff Zach Larsen said. "We thought the worse because most of them didn't have life jackets on. We had a lot of people en route but we found them relatively quick."...

Two Storm Lake men caught up in an argument over a parking space wound up in the Storm Lake Police Station parking lot Friday night after one was sprayed with mace. Both were booked into jail. Around 7:15, a 911 call was placed from the police parking lot. The caller said a man was following him, and said he had sprayed the man in the face with mace. The caller also admitted to being armed with a knife...

After another lengthy debate over garbage concerns, the Storm Lake City Council is still struggling to reach a consensus even as it advances toward a public hearing on a potential ordinance amendment. The amendment as currently proposed would newly require garbage cans for all trash put out for curbside pickup, require recyclables to be loose within a can (as requested by the recycling center) and restrict trash at the curb to a period from 7 a.m.the day before pickup to 7 a.m. ...

Storm Lake city officials are considering easing up on regulations for use of the sidewalk areas downtown. In a brief work session Monday, the city council was told that current rules prevent business owners from installing benches, having outdoor dining, or selling goods outdoors with the exception of special events like Ridiculous Days...

A memorial gift of $1,000 from the family of Ron and Janette Willer was presented to the Kiwanis Beavers on the morning of Tuesday, June 19th. This donation will go toward reaching their goal of raising $20,250 towards The Eliminate Project, a Kiwanis International project that focuses on providing vaccinations around the world for maternal and neonatal tetanus...

The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union announced the 1A and 2A regional softball pairings on early Monday night as postseason play begins in less than two weeks on July 2. Two area schools are in 1A-Region 1 play this season. St. Mary’s will host Clay Central-Everly on Monday, July 2 with first pitch set for 7 p.m. CC-E currently sports a 1-12 record on the year with their lone win at this point coming against Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn back on May 23...

It was another banner year for Schaller native and Ridge View alum Jason Kenny as he was named to the Academic All-America first team and was their headlining athlete. Kenny had a 4.0 GPA this year and graduated with a degree in applied agricultural and food studies. On the track, Kenny was an All-American from the 2018 NAIA Outdoor National Championships, earning fifth place in the 4x800 meter relay...

PETERSON - Despite the forecast with rain all around Siouxland, Sioux Central and East Sac County went ahead and got a full seven innings in on Monday night, one of the few games in the area that was able to hit completion. The Rebels were able to best the Raiders, 5-1 to pick up their 11th win on the 2018 season...

DES MOINES - Storm Lake’s Kevin Duque took part in the Iowa High School All-Star game on Saturday afternoon, helping the west team come away with a 6-2 victory. Duque scored a goal and he recalls that he may have had an assist. Duque found out that he originally made the team when Tornado head coach Ben Schekirke sent him an email, letting him know that he was selected for the all-star squad...