Stories from Friday, May 22, 2020

Community Education is partnering with BVU Men’s Head Golf Coach Joe Powell and Storm Lake High School boy’s head golf coach Andrew Zinn to offer Jr Golf. Jr Golf will consist of 4 skills sessions July 2, 9, 16 and 23 with instruction provided by Joe Powell and Andrew Zinn. There will also be four play dates July 6, 13, 20 and 27. Participants will need to provide their own clubs. Parent volunteers are also welcome and encouraged to assist...

The Storm Lake boys head swimming coach position is open again. Middle School Assistant Principal Jaymie Bral had stepped in to fill the position for one season after the retirement of the previous coach, and as planned, has resigned. The school board will now attempt to locate a permanent coach to begin next season...

Storm Lake senior Elijah Santellan had dreams this year to get the Tornado soccer team back to the state tournament and possibly even bring home the championship. However, those dreams were halted due to the COVID-19 virus pandemic, but his soccer career will live on. Santellan signed on to play for the Beavers of Buena Vista University starting this fall...

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds announced Wednesday that summer athletic seasons may be conducted for high school baseball and softball following a two-month activities suspension due to COVID-19. The announcement approved the reopening of school facilities and the start of practices for Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union and Iowa High School Athletic Association sanctioned summer sports starting on Monday, June 1. ...

In light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald wants to remind Iowans to monitor their assets to prevent them from becoming unclaimed property. The Treasurer’s Office receives millions of dollars in unclaimed property every year, simply due to a misspelled name or an out-of-date address. ...

Dairy producers across Iowa have a new way of receiving information, thanks to a new podcast launched by dairy specialists with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. “Dairy News & Views from Iowa State University” began recording in April, featuring timely topics related to the COVID-19 pandemic and dairy production in general...

You’ve heard the saying that America runs on coffee? If it applies to you, or not, it is a fact that a certain percentage of U.S. citizens can’t get started in the morning without a cup or two, of java. Storm Lake, and the towns that surround it, has more than a few places to get a cup of good joe, and Coffee Tree has been in that mix for awhile. ...

Even before darker anxieties took hold, the bad guys of “Scooby-Doo” were charmingly quaint. An evil circus owner, a grumpy civil servant, a plotting first mate — these were the villains of “Scooby-Doo,” all of them revealed with an unmasking flourish and the cursing of “you meddling kids.”...

Anytime a person reads a novel steeped in magic realism, a suspension of belief is required. When a magic realism novel is an urban fantasy filled with werebirds, werewolves and vampires, it requires a very open mind. However, Iowa City writer Erin Casey brings such myriad characters to life in her YA urban fantasy The Purple Door District, a novel that is gripping yet heartwarming and that should be of interest to all young adult and fantasy readers and just about anyone who enjoys a good yarn...

HickTown Mafia will return to the Barefoot Bar in Okoboji tonight, May 22. Showtime is 7 p.m. HickTown Mafia is a five-piece, Southern Minnesota-based, country and rock party band that averages over 70 shows a year, bringing the party to bars, casinos, street dances/city celebrations, weddings/private events, and festivals...

The city of Storm Lake is continuing to work towards improvements in the Highway 7 and 110 intersection. City officials cite an increase in traffic collisions at that site as well as school district plans to construct a new Early Elementary School nearby that will increase the flow of traffic...

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said a number of businesses from movie theaters to museums and bars will see eased COVID-19 restrictions in the coming weeks. Theaters, zoos, aquariums, museums and wedding reception venues may resume operations Friday, so long as appropriate viral mitigation measures are in place. ...

A builder has been hired to construct the new Early Elementary School in Storm Lake. W.A. Klinger Construction from Sioux City was the low bidder of eight firms, at $14.8 million. The bid came in so far under the $15.9 million estimate that the district was able to add on an array of options - including operable windows, upgrade kitchen equipment, classroom cubbies, lightning protection for electronics, acoustical wall panels for the gym and full site land work - and still come in below target at $15.3 million.. ...

Santiago Moral’s last semester at Storm Lake High School didn’t go as planned. COVID-19 disrupted classes, closed campus, canceled prom, and placed a question mark over commencement exercises. The one that hurt Moral the most? The Iowa Jazz Championships, which were scheduled for early April in Des Moines. Storm Lake was one of the Class 4A competitors to earn a berth...

The Memorial Day holiday weekend is fast approaching and is expected to be a busy one, despite Covid-19. Iowa has a wide variety of outdoor activities to spend your weekend, whether it be camping, visiting state parks, swimming at the beaches, or paddling and boating. The Iowa DNR reminds everyone to obey all laws and rules—that includes physical distancing guidelines—while enjoying Iowa’s outdoor recreational activities...

The City of Storm Lake Parks Department will be spraying the city parks through the end of the month when the weather permits. As parks are sprayed they will be posted with chemical treatment flags. Citizens are encouraged to stay off the grass areas of the parks that have been treated for 24 hours. Flags will be removed once the 24 hour time frame has expired...

Despite another difficult year in agriculture, cash rents still posted an increase of about 1.4 percent, according to this year’s Cash Rental Rates for Iowa 2020 Survey, released earlier this month. Rates across the state averaged $222 per acre, compared to $219 per acre in 2019, the fourth year of relatively stable rates, but at levels about 18 percent lower than the historical peak reached in 2013, of $270 per acre...

Storm Lake Middle School would like to congratulate the students who participated in National History Day this year. More than half a million middle and high school students participate in this contest each year. Students benefit by using reading and research skills, problem solving skills, and critical thinking. For the first time in history, both the regional and state contests were virtual...

Gerry and Carolyn Stille will be celebrating 60 years of marriage on June 5th. Since they can’t have a party, their family would like to have a card shower for them. Please send cards to: Gerry and Carolyn Stille, 401 South Berwick, PO Box 87, Schaller Iowa. 51053. /Photo submitted...

While many summer events are being cancelled, plans are currently moving ahead for Wood, Wine & Blues to celebrate its 8th year in Storm Lake’s Sunset Park, August 14- 16. Mark your calendars and save the date for this unique event filled with art, music, and the wares of some of the state’s best indie wineries...

Due to COVID-19 concerns, the Twin Lakes Conference Art Show has moved online this year, Entries from the area schools, including “Hopeful Youth,” above, by Newell-Fonda sophomore Savannah McGee, can be viewed by the public at google.com/presentation, recent postings tab. “As well as my other piece, this was a way to tell a story from a part of my life. I wanted to be able to tell a story, but also make it aesthetically pleasing,” Savannah said of her work. /Pilot photo by Dana Larsen...

When COVID-19 struck the U.S., educators across the country moved quickly. Leaders at Buena Vista University mobilized as well, enacting plans to extend spring break while making preparations to conclude the semester online, as campus was nearly vacated in an effort to protect health of students, faculty, staff, and the community...

The Storm Lake United executive committee voted Wednesday to not replace retiring CEO Gary Lalone at this time. Lee Dutfield, marketing and activities director, is being appointed interim CEO and marketing/tourism director, and will serve as a Storm Lake representative to the Iowa Lakes Corridor board in a non-voting role...

=Storm Lake schools officials admitted to being caught off guard by announcements from the governor Wednesday, opening up some school programs after a lengthy quarantine. “We were all a little surprised. We spent a lot of time today talking about where we go from here, what’s next. All afternoon we continued to get updates from the different agencies involved,” Superintendent Stacey Cole told the board of education that night...

Storm Lake is preparing to reopen facilities - cautiously. City Hall is scheduled to reopen for regular hours as of June 1, initially with the public limited to no more than three people in the lobby at a time, with face coverings required. The library is also planned for reopening June 1...

“It’ll be different, but it’ll be real,” Storm Lake Superintendent of Schools Stacey Cole assured a graduating senior donning cap and gown in a hallway of the mostly-darkened Storm Lake High School Monday. Faced with the reality of a COVID-19 quarantine, the school staged an alternative graduation throughout the day. Students entered the school alone, one at a time, via the loading dock - even as Army tents outside the building were hosting pandemic testing...