Newton
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Wednesday, October 2, 2013
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Newton, Iowa
Land returned to county as supervisors approve deal with I-Green
OBITUARIES
By Ty Rushing Daily News Staff Writer
Dorothy Mae Pigg Edward G. Plate Nondas Sports INSIDE TODAY
Newton FFA
Members compete in soil contest
While the I-Green Learning Center officially closed its doors in June, the former corporationâs business with Jasper County wasnât concluded until Tuesday. The Jasper County Board of Supervisors approved two resolutions to have the land I-Green sat on returned to the county and to pay the outstanding taxes.
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County Attorney Mike Jacobsen presented both matters to the board. âAs the board is aware, I-Green as a corporation has dissolved,â Jacobsen said. âThey were unable to make the payments based upon the contract we had with them for the county care facility. I-Green has offered to turn over the property by quick deed to the county, which is essentially how we transferred the property to them as a part of
our contract.â âWe take the quick claim deed in lieu of forfeiture of the contract, which would require court actionâ he continued. âThere has been some delay because we had to get the abstract and make sure that there were no liens on the property against I-Green attached.â Although I-Green has dissolved, Jacobsen said the president of the company still has the au-
thority to transfer properties. The board at this time has not announced any plans for the land. During the July 2 board meeting, board chair Dennis Stevenson said he would like to see if anyone was interested in purchasing the property. The amount of outstanding taxes the county agreed to pay totaled $11,640 and covers last year up until this past Septemberâs taxes. Jasper County Main-
Bowl Renovation
Religion
By Daily News Staff
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Sports
Cards drop tough five-match set Page 1B
Weather Submitted Photo Adam Vandall, owner of Computer Pro and chair of the park board, cuts the ribbon at the dedication of the Maytag Bowl. Maytag Bowl recently underwent a two-year renovation. Since that time, several events have been held there.
By Dave Hon Daily News Staff Writer
Friday
High 82 Low 44 Weather Almanac
Tues., Oct. 1 High 82 Low 58 No Precipitation Also: Astrograph Page 5B Classifieds Page 4B Comics & Puzzles Page 6A Dear Abby Page 6A Opinion Page 4A Obituaries Page 3A Police Page 3A Our 112th Year No. 95
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The Jasper County Office of Veteranâs Affairs is still open. Director Chris Chartier explained he is a county employee and the shutdown doesnât stop his job functions. His office may be contacted at (641) 792-7993. The office is located at 115 N. Second Ave. E. on the first floor of the County Annex Building.
Chamber still in process of applying for Main Street Iowa program
High 79 Low 61
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SUPERVISORS See Page 5A
Jasper County VA office still open during shutdown
Local priest serves on cruise liner
Thursday
tenance Director Adam Sparks received approval to have the carpet in the county assessorâs office replaced. Sparks told the board the carpet hadnât been replaced in that office for about 15 years. He also said it was the last place in the courthouse with older carpeting. Newton-based The Floor Store had the low bid at $4,681.62.
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In 2005, a survey conducted by the Iowa Department of Economic Development characterized Newtonâs downtown with words like âaging,â âlackingâ and âdated.â Even though the survey did yield some positive words, collectively those in 2005 felt Newtonâs downtown was mediocre at best. Darrell Sarmento, executive director of the Greater Newton Area Chamber of Commerce, has plans to change that. Sarmento, who said Newton is in a much better position than it was in 2005, is currently in the process of applying for the Main Street Iowa program. If approved in February 2014, the program wouldnât just be the first step in a facelift for Newtonâs downtown, but also an economic driver. âBecoming a Main Street Iowa Community is not a new idea,â Sarmento said. âNewton has considered it before.â In late June, Michael Wagler, director of the Main Street Iowa program, told Newtonians that creating a Main Street program requires a massive amount of volunteers and volunteer hours. Sarmento doesnât believe securing these volunteers will be a problem for Newtonâs program, if approved. âI think there is an enthusiastic pool of Newton citizens who would like to see downtown get a facelift and make it something to be proud of,â Sarmento said. Sarmento did say one of the
âI think there is an enthusiastic pool of Newton citizens who would like to see downtown get a facelift and make it something to be proud of.â â Darrell Sarmento, Greater Newton Area Chamber of Commerce executive director
challenges is connecting with downtown landlords who own property in Newton but donât live in Newton. Sarmento said there are several spaces downtown that are currently empty. If approved, Sarmento said he sees a future where downtown has a full occupancy rate. âUsually (the communities) with charm, decor and pride got that way through the efforts of a Main Street program,â Sarmento said. The Main Street program has six to eight applicants per year, but Sarmento said they usually only accept half those applications. The program will require funding to staff a fulltime director for Newton, a position that wonât be filled until late spring or early summer of 2014. If Newton isnât selected for the program, Sarmento believes steps can still be taken to
Dave Hon/Daily News If approved for the Iowa Main Street Program, Newton will be part of a program that has helped communities across Iowa see economic growth in their downtowns. Statewide, the program has a total of $1.1 billion invested into downtown buildings.
work on downtown, one of the three regional choices he said Newtonians visit. âWe can still begin to address issues with our downtown, but we wonât have that designation and resource,â Sarmento said. There will be a committee
meeting about Newtonâs application at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Chamber. Those interested in the program are invited to attend. âIf we really want to say, âCome see our downtown,â weâve got to step it up,â Sarmento said.