PAGES 6-9 Johnson County Fair 2026
SOLONECONOMIST.COM
THURSDAY, AUGUST 6, 2026 • $1.50
Citywide Clean Up Day is this Saturday Solon’s annual Citywide Clean Up Day will be held Saturday, August 8, 7-9 a.m. at the Solon Recreation and Nature Area (SRNA). This is a resident’s only (within Solon city limits) opportunity and an ID with address will be required. Acceptable items for disposal include furniture, grills (NO propane tanks), bikes, and all other hard to get rid of items. Empty paint cans (dried out, no lid) will be accepted. Tires will be accepted for $10 each. Appliances accepted: microwaves, TVs, air conditioners, dishwashers, freezers, humidifiers, stoves, washers, and driers. Also accepted: any electronics, lawn mowers, weed whackers, and other gas engines (must be emptied of gas) will be accepted at $20 each. Items NOT accepted: yard waste, household trash, major home remodeling debris, construction debris, propane tanks, and batteries. Call City Hall, 319-624-3755 with any questions.
Iowa’s annual Sales Tax Holiday is this weekend Iowa Department of Revenue DES MOINES — Don’t forget Iowa’s Annual Sales Tax Holiday on Friday, August 7 and Saturday, August 8. This annual break from sales tax is the perfect time to save on clothes or shoes before the kids head back to school or even something special for the upcoming holiday season. Not interested in leaving your house? Online sales are included if they are ordered and paid for during the exemption period. In general, select clothing and footwear are tax exempt, meaning no state sales tax will be collected, but there are restrictions. Visit the Sales Tax Holiday page, https:// revenue.iowa.gov/taxes/tax-guidance/sa les-use - excise -ta x/ iowas-annual-sales-tax-holiday, for full details.
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A tribute to the King: Bruce Wright’s renditions of Elvis King Bruce performs for the Solon mainstage, handing out scarves and teddy bears while singing Elvis’s classics for all to hear
to Solon’s mainstage for the third to last Music on Main performance; a concert series dedicated to longtime Solon servant, Scott Kleppe. “I’ve loved Elvis my whole life, so I just sang his songs in the car or just anywhere,” said Bruce Wright, an Elvis Presley impersonator from Swisher, and Wednesday night’s enterJohn Charlson tainment. His stage name is King Bruce, and Solon Economist he and his wife, Tammy Wright, have been news@soloneconomist.com performing their Elvis tribute show for about While the summer heat died down last five years now, playing shows all across EastWednesday afternoon, music lovers flocked ern Iowa, “we’ve gone as far as Wisconsin,”
added Tammy. The two work in sync on stage. Tammy sits at the computer, feeding the backing instrumentals through the speakers while Bruce stands front and center, dressed in a dark blue button-down, bedazzled belt, gold rimmed glasses, and a head of wavy black hair. Although it might not be the King’s signature outfit, Bruce has a good reason. “I don’t do the jumpsuits because it’s too hot.” King Bruce started the night out with some KING BRUCE | 12
‘You just never know when it’s going to happen and we just want to be ready’ Solon Fire Department hosts grain bin rescue training
included firefighters from Ely, Mount Vernon, Iowa City, North Liberty, and Mechanicsville, as well as Solon. The session began inside the Solon Fire Station, and was led by Jerry John Charlson Eslick, former firefighter and the owner of Solon Economist Professional Rescue Innovations (PRI), a news@soloneconomist.com training organization designed to teach fireThe Solon Fire Department hosted a free, fighters rescue methods that adhere to the multi-departmental training day on grain latest OSHA and National Fire Protection bin rescues Saturday. The training session Association (NFPA) standards. Solon Public Library News - 3 | Opinions - 4 & 5
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Grain bin entrapments have been on the rise in Iowa, with 37 total related deaths recorded within the state just last year. This rise in cases means professional training is a necessity for rural stations like Solon. “It increased 25% last year alone, the number of grain bin rescues in Iowa,” says Solon EMS Captain Doyle Spence. Spence says it GRAIN BIN | 2
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