Greene County Schools superintendent released the following statement late Tuesday afternoon: “Thank you for your patience as we try to gather as much information as we can about how schools should be dealing with the COVID-19 issue and then determine how plans should be implemented by the Greene County Schools. First and foremost, we encourage everyone to continue to follow…
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Iowa in a public health disaster
Restaurants, theaters, casinos, gatherings of 10 people or more shut down Gov Kim Reynolds earlier this morning proclaimed a state of public health disaster in Iowa, effective March 17 at 12 pm. Her proclamation takes significant steps to require social distancing and limit community spread of the virus by implementing temporary measures including moving restaurants to drive-through, carry-out and delivery only, and closures…
Read MoreGrCo school board okays Coke contract, HS renovation bids, budget, and more
Ram fans will be drinking Coca-Cola products, not Pepsi products, at school events soon. The Greene County school board at its regular meeting March 11 okayed a 5-year contract with Atlantic Bottling Company that includes $2,000 a year from the company to the Greene County Schools, as well as rebates on products, delivery to concession stands and vending machine service.…
Read MoreJeff council hears insurance rates, okays new rules for city facilities
~by Janice Harbaugh for GreeneCountyNewsOnline A hidden cost in trash collection – one the city of Jefferson hopes to minimize going forward – was brought forward at the Jefferson city council’s March 10 meeting by Jim Unger, the city’s property, liability and workers compensation insurance agent.
Read MoreSupes okay salary increases for elected officials
The Greene County supervisors awarded county elected officials salary increases ranging from 3 to 6 percent March 9 just prior to adopting the budget for Fiscal Year 2021 (beginning July 1, 2020). The increases follow the recommendation of the compensation board last December. Receiving the comp board’s recommendation was an agenda item for the supervisors, but discussing it was not…
Read MoreDeadlines approaching for nominations for June primary, November general
~courtesy of The Scranton Journal Changes made by the Iowa State Legislature have potential candidates for political and non-political offices rushing to get signatures before the deadlines this month. The filing period for public offices for the June 2 primary and the Nov. 3 general elections are fast approaching. Any Republicans or Democrats running for federal or state offices have…
Read MoreUngs to take helm at Peoples Bank in Jefferson
Jayme Ungs has been selected as the new market president of the Peoples Bank Jefferson location. John Rigler III, president & COO of Peoples Bank, made the announcement last week. Ungs brings a significant amount of expertise to the Peoples Bank team with direct emphasis in agriculture and commercial banking. His most recent experience includes serving as a commercial team…
Read MoreSpecial traffic enforcement over St Patrick’s Day holiday
sSt Patrick’s Day, March 17, is one of the biggest drinking nights of the year, according to the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau and the Iowa Department of Public Safety. Unfortunately, drunk driving accounts for nearly one-third of vehicle-related fatalities in the United States. Nationally, in 2018 alone, 73 persons (39 percent of all crash fatalities) were killed in drunk-driving crashes…
Read MoreSupes okay budget, hear update on Jeff downtown
~by Janice Harbaugh for GreeneCountyNewsOnline Mike Palmer, Jefferson city administrator, updated the board of supervisors about downtown building projects at the regular meeting on March 9. Palmer said an architect looked at the Air Temp building and walked through the former Pizza Ranch. Palmer said there is some interest in the former Pizza Ranch eventually being rented as individual bays.
Read MoreReynolds activates emergency response to COVID-19
Now eight presumptive cases Gov. Reynolds on Monday signed a Proclamation of Disaster Emergency, activating the disaster response and recovery aspects of the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management’s Iowa Emergency Response Plan. The proclamation authorizes state agencies to utilize resources including personnel, equipment and facilities to perform activities necessary to prevent, contain and mitigate the effects of…
Read MoreCOVID-19 arrives in Iowa
Three cases in Johnson County, all three patients took Egyptian cruise DES MOINES – Testing at Iowa’s State Hygienic Laboratory has indicated three presumptive positive cases of 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in Iowa residents. According to the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH), the individuals are from Johnson County: one middle-age (41-60 years) adult and two older adults (61-80). Two…
Read MoreRestoration continues after Feb. 24 fire at Scranton Manufacturing
All employees will be back to work next week; no pay or benefits lost due to fire Following a fire that occurred on the evening of Feb. 24, Scranton Manufacturing is working hard to restore production operations, according to a corporate press release Friday. The fire, which originated in a paint booth where parts were being painted, was contained to…
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