Stories from Friday, March 5, 2021

Governor Kim Reynolds recently announced the availability of an eligibility precheck for the new Iowa Rent and Utility Assistance Program, which will begin accepting full applications this March. The program will provide eligible COVID-19 impacted Iowans with rent and utility assistance for a total of up to 12 months. The State of Iowa was awarded $195 million for the program through the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, which was passed by Congress in late 2020...

In response to high levels of both personal and financial farm stress, the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Dairy Team is offering three “Farm Couple Getaways” across Iowa, with one location in Northwest Iowa. The program is for farm couples wanting to take advantage of activities to improve farm family communication, work on farm or family goalsetting or farm transitioning, or who would just like a weekend away to discuss farm and family issues as a couple...

Tyson Foods is offering free, onsite COVID-19 vaccinations to thousands of frontline team members at its Iowa plants this week, including Storm Lake sites. The vaccines are being provided in conjunction with local health departments across the state of Iowa, where food processing workers are among the priority group newly eligible for vaccination...

Free Fallin’ - a tribute band to Hall of Famers Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - will open this year’s Live at the Lakes concert series, after health concerns sidelined the popular series in 2020. The free live concerts are held outdoors on the Preservation Plaza green next to Arnolds Park Amusement Park on Saturday evenings all summer long...

Drishti School of Dance and Fitness will present its annual show May 8, 6 p.m. at the Sunset Park Bandshell in Storm Lake. The public is invited and admission is free. The Alta-based school offers a variety of dance, yoga and fitness programs, serving all ages. / Photo submitted...

The annual Bald Eagle Watch event will be held on Saturday, March 20 from 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. This come-and-go event at the Prairie Heritage Center will provide opportunities to see eagles and other raptors. The O’Brien County naturalist as well as other volunteers will be available to help visitors spot and identify eagles. There will also be hands-on activities to participate in...

After a study of surrounding golf course rates, the Sunrise Pointe Golf Course Board recommended several rate increases and other adjustments, which were adopted by the Storm Lake City Council this week. Among the changes: • A college season pass was eliminated, because Buena Vista University is now affiliated with the country club at Lake Creek...

Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) have reintroduced the Safe and Affordable Drugs from Canada Act, which would allow individuals to safely import prescription drugs from Canada, creating savings for consumers and bringing greater competition into the pharmaceutical market...

Monday is the deadline for artists to apply to decorate one of the lighthouse icons in the Celebrate Storm Lake project created by two Storm Lake High School teachers, with funding help from the City of Storm Lake. While a number of artists have applied, the organizers are hoping for more...

I want to express my appreciation to East Sac County Elementary School personnel for taking time out of their busy schedules to update me on some of the great things they are doing to ensure a positive educational experience for their students. I hear great things about their principal and we are all rooting for their continued success...

This week the Iowa House approved a major COVID relief package. Iowans who received the special, federal, COVID, unemployment benefits will be refunded the state tax withheld on those benefits. Businesses who have received COVID related grants will be exempt from Iowa income tax on those grants. ...

Storm Lake United would like to thank everyone who participated in our ‘We Love Our Customers’ Valentine’s Day event between February 1st and February 14th. Storm Lake retailers and restaurants took extra steps to make sure their customers had a safe and enjoyable Valentine’s Day shopping and dining experience. ...

May 23, 1926 - February 26, 2021

November 3, 1933 - February 27, 2021

June 26, 1932 - March 1, 2021

September 11, 1923 - February 25, 2021

CommUNITY Education will be offering Start Smart Baseball this spring. Start Smart Baseball is a parent and child program designed to teach your child the fundamentals of baseball or softball. Skills will be taught using fun activities and exciting equipment. Activities will be scheduled to be outside, but will be moved indoors if there is poor weather...

Mel Fisher has resigned as head coach of the Storm Lake High School softball program, effective immediately, citing personal and professional reasons. “It has been a pleasure coaching the girls for the past 10 seasons,” she said. “It is time to step away and let someone else continue to build the program. ...

The post season is only days away for the Buena Vista University’s women’s basketball team. Finishing the regular season at 2-6 overall and 2-6 in the American Rivers Conference the women Beavers are hoping to do some damage at the upcoming ARC tournament...

The end of the college basketball season is already drawing near for the Buena Vista University’s mens basketball team. With one regular season game left in this shortened season the men are looking to finish second in the American Rivers Conference after a loss to the University of Dubuque last Monday night...

STORM LAKE - The Buena Vista men’s basketball held a two-point lead at the half against No. 8 Dubuque on Monday night, but the Beavers couldn’t overcome a tough second-half shooting performance as they would fall to the Spartans inside Siebens Fieldhouse, 76-67...

DES MOINES - If Class 1A Iowa basketball were an ocean, Newell-Fonda would be the great white shark. And as the Girls State Tournament gets underway, it’s NOT safe to go back in the water. The latest victim for the apex predators was Kingsley-Pierson, dispatched 88-47 in a quarterfinal matchup of 23-1 teams Wednesday night...

Storm Lake man Reath Yak, 20, is among five persons arrested this week after a shooting incident in a Des Moines neighborhood that left a 2-year-old boy critically injured. Yak faces two counts of attempted murder, two counts of intimidation with a dangerous weapon, and one count of possessing firearms as a felon...

Buena Vista County’s new treasurer found out about her appointment less than two hours before she was sworn into the job this week. Dannelle Haberman received a call from County Supervisors Chairperson Kelly Snyder at 6:30 a.m. Monday, requesting that she be at a special meeting of the board that morning at 8, and that she should bring her husband. Until that call, she had no knowledge that she had been chosen...

The Storm Lake City Council took steps this week to pave the way for a sprawling housing development tentatively known as Sunrise Pointe on the city’s east side. The council set a public hearing on a proposed development agreement, and approved supporting the developer’s bid to seek Workforce Housing Tax Incentive Credits. Rezoning for the site was approved earlier...

As the country crawls out of year-long pandemic, what kind of events will Storm Lakers be able to anticipate? And will they come out? “I think everybody is just dying to have something to do,” Storm Lake United CEO Lee Dutfield said. “Still, a lot of people are going to remain cautious.”...

Storm Lake firefighters were called to the Gingerbread House/preschool Wednesday afternoon, where smoke was billowing from the engine compartment of a pickup truck in the parking lot. When they arrived, the vehicle was fully involved in flames. The 2006 Silverado owned by Brandy Hadley of Newell was a total loss, and two other vehicles parked nearby were damaged, one of them believed to be a total loss. The cause of the fire is undetermined. No injuries were reported. / Photo by Sally Robbins...

Buena Vista University’s Forum Phase II, a $4.3-million renovation of the BVU Library, the Center for Academic Excellence, the University’s Information Technology Department (2Fix), Common Grounds coffee shop, and office areas within University Development and Alumni Engagement was completed during the Fall Semester, much to the delight of students, faculty, and staff...