While basic necessities such as bread, meat and gasoline skyrocket under some of the worst inflation since the 1970s, Ida County is among the top counties in Iowa for purchasing power, according to the results of a new study. Aggregator Smart Asset has Ida County sitting at eighth place for all of Iowa’s 99 counties for the highest purchasing power.
The study looked at cost of living in relation to income locally for each county.
Iowa’s unemployment fell to 3.3 percent in March, a drop from 3.5 the month before and down 1.1 percent from 4.4 percent last year while Ida County beat the state by .5 percent at 2.8 percent.
Area counties were among the best in the state in the numbers released by Iowa Workforce Development as Iowa itself is among the nation’s leaders.
Nationwide, unemployment was at 3.6 percent.
By comparison, only Crawford County was above the state average for the region, clocking in a 5.4 percent while Sac County stood at 3.1 percent.
The Farmer’s Market in Holstein will be back, albeit in a different location for the summer. Members of the Holstein Chamber of Commerce heard recently that Christina Kjar Hanson has taken over duties for the farmer’s market.
Up this year is a venue change, now heading to 2nd and Highway 59 in the area of CornerHaus 101. Branding for the farmer’s market will see it now called “Market on Main” with hours every Tuesday. Kickoff will be June 7 for patrons hoping for a tasty treat or something homegrown.
Efforts to renegotiate the details of how Galva-Holstein and Schaller-Crestland sharing is handled should not end in a break-up, board members heard from community members.
A joint meeting of the two boards in the Schaller gymnasium drew community members curious about a decision by the G-H board to give notice of intent to end the previous sharing agreement.
In a statement to the newspaper Superintendent Jon Wiebers made clear the G-H board was not calling for an end to all sharing, just a revisitation of how the arrangement is structured.
While the chill in the air might still feel like winter some days, this summer’s RAGBRAI passage through the area is already hot on the minds of many with Galva City Council looking at how best to get ready for the ride.
RAGBRAI kicks off Sunday, July 24 and will end the day in Ida Grove after venturing through Battle Creek as well in Ida County with the Monday, July 24 portion heading into Galva.
From there, riders will head to Schaller and Nemaha and Fonda.
For its parts, Galva expects to welcome thousands during the day with vendors out to greet visitors.
A five-year strategic plan for Stubbs Memorial Library in Holstein has been approved by the library board, helping to things moving as the library’s accreditation process continues.
Director Emily Todd briefed the Holstein City Council during its April 4 meeting on the status of the process. A mission statement for the library as well as policy for the library’s meeting room were also approved by the library board.
Recent community support is helping to keep the library a friendly place, including a special project by Ridge View High School students.
With pandemic restrictions easing, a Holstein man is back in action again as he undertakes a commitment to serve in the Dominican Republic through the Peace Corps.
Kent Rice’s life has been heavily tied with the Peace Corps for decades, serving decades ago in the 1980s. His wife, Kathy, also served.
The Ida Grove RAGBRAI Executive Committee met Wednesday, April 6. Those attending were Stephanie Konradi, Jake Sholty, Tonya Rehse, Jared Bogue, Rhett Leonard, Jeff Miesner, Amy Forbes, Kathy Leonard and Kurtis Krager. Also attending were Sheila Redenius and Ashley Collins. Ida Grove will serve as an overnight host town Sunday, July 24.
The Galva-Holstein board of education is not looking to end its sharing arrangement with Schaller-Crestland, but G-H board members do want to talk with their counterparts at S-C about the finer points of their agreement.
During a special meeting Thursday, G-H board members approved a letter of intent to terminate the current agreements for sharing in place with S-C.
That termination would be effective June 30, 2023.
The goal is improve efficiencies in sharing without ending sharing itself.
