Stories from Friday, November 15, 2019

Owner of the new Tequila restaurant located at 613 Flindt Drive, Eduardo Sanchez Idalgo, stated he already has an establishment in Spencer but has had a desire to open a restaurant in Storm Lake for quite some time. Idalgo has worked for 12 years at El Mexicano Restaurant in Storm Lake and in Spencer and felt it was time for him to venture out on his own doing what he knows best and that is managing a restaurant...

Get it Today had a Storm Lake United Ribbon Cutting. Thank you to the many people who attended and made this event a great one. For anyone who was unable to attend don’t worry Get It Today will be offering giveaways until November 15 via Facebook. They are offering a 10% Discount to all Tyson employee’s on their first purchase at Get It Today as well as giving away two gas grills, 55” BEA 4k TV, and a full bedroom set by Ashley Furniture. ...

The Iowa Lakes Corridor Development Corporation (Corridor) once again recognized great achievements by local businesses Wednesday at the organization’s 10th Annual Meeting and Business Recognition Luncheon at the Clay County Regional Events Center in Spencer...

Cops might do well to position their speed traps near movie theaters wherever the new film “Ford v Ferrari” is playing. They might fund their whole year’s budget busting speeders peeling out of the parking lots. This infectious and engrossing story of the 1966 showdown on a French racetrack between car giants Ford and Ferrari is a high-octane ride that will make you instinctively stomp on a ghostly gas pedal from your movie seat...

Join in a real life Hallmark Christmas event, carriage rides in downtown Cherokee December 6. The event is sponsored by Central Bank and benefits the Pride Group. Complimentary cookies and cocoa will be served and the Pride Group will be hosting a holiday bake sale. Get there early because the rides are going to fill up fast. Sweet Serenity Carriage Rides will be offered 2-4 p.m. Note: this event is pending approval of the route...

It’s not too late to get your tickets to A Jazzy Little Christmas with Ernie Haase and The Signature Sound, the next event in the Storm Lake Community Education Performing Arts Series. The concert is Thursday, November 21, 7:30 p.m. in the high school auditorium...

Tony-winning musical “Bandstand” is coming to northwest Iowa for one show, December 11 at 7:30 p.m. at the Orpheum Theatre in Sioux City. From three-time Tony winner and Hamilton choreographer, Andy Blankenbuehler, comes a poignant and inspiring new American musical that explodes with infectious music and high-octane, heart-stopping dancing...

Iowa gas prices have risen 2 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.46 - 1.1 cents per gallon higher than a month ago, yet 11.4 cents per gallon lower than a year ago. After a recent spike to above state average, Storm Lake pump prices were stable, settled in at $2.41 at most stations at midweek. Historically, the prices remain well below the levels seen in 2012-14, when local gas topped $3 for super unleaded on this date for three consecutive years...

The newly elected 2019-2020 Buena Vista County Fair Board officers were announced this week. They are: President - Dana Christen Vice-President - Mike Musselman Secretary - Jake Schable Treasurer - Jen Launderville

Storm Lake Public Library trustees learned at a recent meeting that magazines are continuing to go out of print - the list now including titles such as Auto Week, National Geographic Traveler and ESPN Sports. The library is trying to retain its collection at 72 magazine titles, but with more going out of business or going all online, it is becoming more difficult to do...

On Monday, November 11, at the Columbus Club Hall, funds were distributed to four different charities in Storm Lake as a part of the 2019 Drive for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities conducted by the Storm Lake Knights of Columbus. Hope Haven (Faith, Hope and Charity), Genesis Development, Storm Lake Special Education and Storm Lake Special Olympics each received checks for $1,357. ...

Downtown Storm Lake was aglow for the first holiday lights kickoff and food drive, hosted by Storm Lake United and Storm Lake Public Safety. Despite a frigid evening, a small crowd gathered to fill two carts with groceries to help the Upper Des Moines Food Pantry, and have fun with colorful glow sticks that helped to light up the night Friday. ...

Iowa politics takes a leading role in a delicious story, “The Great Iowa Caucus Casserole Mystery.” And among the 30 recipes for main dishes, vegetables, and deserts is one for the Great Iowa Caucus Casserole developed by the award-winning cook and author. Rae Katherine Eighmey says that the fun read is the “perfect holiday gift for Iowans to send to out-of-state friends and relatives who will hear about the Iowa Caucus in the weeks to come and want to discover how it really works.”...

September 15, 1926 - November 11, 2019

This November, the Witter Gallery will once again offer our two recurring art classes, Nerdy Night and Coffee and Canvas. November 21, 5 - 6 - Nerdy Night This class is the perfect place for crafters, nerds, and lovers of fandoms to get together and creatively express their love for their favorite shows, movies, and books! This month, class members will recreate the alphabet wall from Stranger Things. ...

The Witter Gallery is currently holding a silent auction of 12 wreathes created by Witter Gallery board members. Stop in during their regular hours to look at the different styles of wreaths and bid on a favorite. Proceeds will support the Witter Gallery. The auction will end on December third at the end of the annual Wassail Party...

On three of the four Saturdays in December before Christmas a local militia of 52 volunteers manned the entries of Walmart, Fareway and HyVee. These outstanding recruits collected a three day total of $7539.61. The wonderful generosity of our area citizens continues to amaze and warm the hearts of the volunteers. ...

Residents along southern portions of Hill Avenue in Spirit Lake saw smoke and emergency lights come their way Friday evening. Spirit Lake fire fighters responded to a residential fire around 7:11 p.m. Friday at 710 22nd St. in Spirit Lake — the corner of 22nd Street and Hill Avenue. The residents — two adults, a child and their pets — were able to escape unharmed, but the house sustained smoke and water damage. Crews were on scene for about four hours...

A judge rejected a request by former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad’s lawyers to set aside a jury verdict that concluded Branstad had discriminated against a former state official because the official is gay. In a ruling filed Tuesday, district court Judge Brad McCall summarily rejected dozens of Branstad’s lawyers’ arguments, including challenges to legal rulings during trial and jury instructions...

A preliminary hearing has been set at 4 p.m. Friday, Nov. 22, for a Spirit Lake man charged with second-degree sexual assault. The Spirit Lake Police Department filed a criminal complaint on suspicion that 21-year-old Riley Ray Jackson used or threatened to use force to sexually assault an adult female victim...

Crews began to install holiday signage at Santa’s Castle and the courthouse green on Tuesday, in preparation for the opening of the holiday showplace on Thanksgiving Day, and the Miracle on Lake Avenue December 5. /Pilot photo by Dana Larsen

Storm Lake Library Director Elizabeth Huff will be headed to Guadalajara, Mexico this month to attend a major book fair in hopes of boosting the Spanish language collection at the library, but will also be working to renew the sister library agreement with a school library in Mexico...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has agreed to pay $1 million to Tyson Foods after the food processor accused the federal agency of failing to properly inspect thousands of hogs at the Storm Lake plant in a 2018 incident. Tyson negotiated the settlement with the USDA in the midst of a federal lawsuit over the incident, claiming $2.4 million in losses due to improper inspector actions...

Storm Lake remains on the Iowa Impaired Waters listing. A new draft of the list was released this week by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The 3,147-ace local water body has been on the list since 2002 for turbidity, and since 2010 also for moderate bacteria and E. ...

Whoa, mercy mercy me Oh things ain’t what they used to be, no no Where did all the blue skies go? Poison is the wind that blows from the north and south and east… The lyrics to Marvin Gaye’s song of ecological woes seep from tinny speakers as Buena Vista University students and faculty arrive for a discussion on environmental racism as part of Diversity & Inclusion Week on campus...

Participants in the spirited Ugly Sweater Contest packed Brewsters during the after party for the ‘A Little Before Christmas Crawl’ event Tuesday night. The annual tradition helps to raise funds for Santa’s Castle, which opens on Thanksgiving Day. For video of the Ugly Sweater Contest, see the Pilot-Tribune Facebook page. / Pilot photo by Dana Larsen...

Cindy Bosley of BozWellz and her team of volunteers has been whipping up a community meal on Thanksgiving for those in need of food or company for the past eight years. “We had 900-plus last year, it was our biggest year yet,” she says. The free dinner, available for anyone in need of companionship or who may not be able to afford a holiday meal, is held Thanksgiving day, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Lake Avenue Lounge, 617 Lake Avenue in Storm Lake...

The season is underway for the Buena Vista University men’s basketball team as they have gotten off to a 2-0 start with wins over Gustavus Adolphus and Bethany Lutheran, both of the wins coming on the road. It’s part of an ideal start for new Beaver Head Coach, Trevor Johnson, who is in his first season as a head coach at any level...