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The
Official Newspaper of Manchester and Delaware County, Iowa
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
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Senator Grassley holds public forum
by Alison Nesteby |
Senator Chuck Grassley held a public forum at the Manchester City Council Chambers on Friday, Feb. 23. It was the last stop of his day after meeting with citizens in Linn, Jones, Jackson and Dubuque counties earlier in the day.
About 40 people attended the forum and loaded Grassley with questions. He addressed the national debt, COOL (Country of Origin Labeling), food vs. fuel, the Captive Shippers Bill, Social Security, immigration, Farm Bill 1031, status of U.N., Afghanistan and Iraq, Medicare/Medicaid, wastewater treatment and outsourcing.
Some of the main points that Grassley made were (pertaining to):
- National Debt: While there is still a debt, it is growing to be more and more manageable; hopefully planning on having a balanced budget by 2012. They can then start paying on the debt.
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- Immigration: They are in the process of building a fence; more border patrols are needed. “We will have an immigration bill in the next two months.” He believes there needs to be harsher penalties for hiring illegal aliens. They also need to go beyond just identifying the Social Security Number.
- Afghanistan and Iraq: The approach right now is that they can’t give an exact date for pulling troops out because no one ever knows what could happen.
- Wastewater treatment: Council member Broghammer explained Manchester’s problem with their wastewater treatment facility, and states it was going to be more than $7 million to fix it. While there is federal money to aid projects like this, that money is given to the state, and the state dishes it out. Grassly offered to help in any way he could, and will stay in contact with the city to do so.
When asked what Grassley felt were the most important issues American’s and the government were facing today, he stated:
•Iraq
• Medicare
• No Child Left Behind policy
• Budget deficit
• The No Child Left Behind policy has proved to have many problems. They will continue in the general direction, but plan to address and change the things that have gone wrong in the past.
While Grassley spends most of his time in Washington, he said he likes to spend his vacation time (what he gets of it) meeting with officials and Iowa residents to find out their concerns and answer questions they may have. “There are two parts of the government, all of you are one part, and I’m the other,” states Grassley. |
Budget approved by board
by Alison Nesteby |
The Delaware County Board of Supervisors met on Thursday, Feb. 22 at 9 a.m. The meeting was moved to Thursday due to the courthouse being closed on Monday, Feb. 18 in observance of the President’s Day holiday.
The 2007-08 amended and proposed budget was approved for filing and publication. The budget is published on the Public Notices page on 8B.
While glancing at the budget, it may appear that there were drastic increases, but when calculating the numbers, the “tax asking” only increased 1.3 percent. The amount was a little over $74,000. The total amount for the county to levy taxes on is $789,655,420.
“A number of these increases are due to grants that came in,” stated Board member Bill Skinner.
Delaware County is applying for Dubuque County Racing Association grant money. They are only allowed to receive money from one entity.
Peggy Pettlon submitted two letters for approval to the Board concerning Target Case Management. One is a letter of intent for Delaware County to resume the operation of Target Case Management on July 1. They are also required to write the state for approval for accreditation for the county.
Other considerations addressed by the Board were:
Employees to attend meetings;
Payment of County Claims;
Service Contract for Internet access with Netconnect, two years for $260 per month.
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Council approves RAGBRAI
by Alison Nesteby |
During a special meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 21, the Manchester City Council approved RAGBRAI (Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa) to come through Manchester this summer.
The bike ride will spend Thursday, July 26 in Independence, and then make the short trek to Dyersville, traveling through Manchester, on July 27. The RAGBRAI Committee asks that the riders be in their destination town by 6 p.m., so they will be expected to leave Manchester by 4:30. Any beer gardens or entertainment set up around town must be closed by that time, to help ensure the safety of the riders. Team vehicle’s also have their own route and must follow that route as mapped out by the RAGBRAI director and committee.
The RAGBRAI Director asks that each destination town provide two Co-Chairpersons for the event. Jack Klaus, Chamber of Commerce Executive Director, and Ben Page, Director of Parks and Recreation, have volunteered for the positions. Donna Boss, Delaware County Economic Development, and Bob Sack will also aid them.
The last time RAGBRAI came through Manchester was 1999. The pass-through was successful, and this one is expected to be as well. |
Eddie Money performing for VIP night at the fair
by Latisha Sand |
Eddie Money will be performing during V.I.P. night at the Delaware County Fair on Friday, July 13. Tickets will go on sale on Wednesday, March 21.
Jeanne Domeyer, the Delaware County Fair Manager, said that the show should be similar to the Rick Springfield concert that took place a couple of years ago.
“I’m really excited to bring back that high energy to Delaware County,” said Domeyer.
Since the show is for V.I.P. night, track tickets are $50 but that includes all you can eat and drink, including alcohol beverages. As always, grandstand seats will be free.
Money has performed such songs as “Two Tickets to Paradise,” “Take Me Home Tonight,” “Baby Hold On,” and “Think I’m in Love.”
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Money came onto the music scene in 1977 with his first album, “Eddie Money.” He has released over 20 albums, including his most recent one “Wanna Go Back.”
More information will be released once the concert gets closer. |
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