Thursday, December 19, 2024
Vol. 159, Issue 51 www.decorahleader.com
Decorah, Iowa 52101 email: editor@decorahleader.com
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Nearly 30 members of the public filled the gallery space during Monday’s meeting of the Winneshiek County Board of Supervisors. Many members of the crowd held signs protesting last week’s decision to appoint Supervisor Dan Langreck to the Winneshiek County Conservation Board, instead of renewing the appointment of Bill Ohde, the board’s current chair, who is a retired Iowa DNR employee. (Photo by Zach Jensen)
Public voices opposition to county supervisor’s appointment to conservation board Luren Singers honor Judisch for 50 years as group’s director Luther College Professor Emeritus of Music David Judisch was honored Sunday for having directed the Luren Singers since 1974. The honor was presented during the choral group’s Dec. 15 Christmas performance, which was held at St. Luke’s Catholic Church in St. Lucas. Despite slippery roads and fog, the concert attracted an audience of more than 100 people. (Photo by Zach Jensen)
City looks to have state ethics board review proposed MEU materials
BY ZACH JENSEN STAFF WRITER Members of the public expressed their discontent Monday, taking issue with the Winneshiek County Board of Supervisors’ decision last week to appoint Supervisor Dan Langreck to the county’s conservation board, rather than reappoint current conservation chair Bill Ohde — a retired member of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The rehashing of last week’s decision eclipsed other items on Monday morning’s agenda. Nearly 30 members of the public filled the gallery during Monday’s meeting — many of whom held signs bearing images of eyes or phrases such as “we are watching” to signify the public is paying attention to the decisions being made by the board of supervisors. Ohde’s four-year term will expire at the end of December. Ohde applied to be reappointed, but county supervisors Langreck, Mark Vick and Steve Kelsay voted to fill the conservation board’s opening with one of their own. Supervisors Shirley Vermace and Mark Faldet voted against Langreck’s appointment. Kelsay reiterated the decision is aimed at enhancing communication between the conservation board and the board of supervisors. “We want to know what’s going on, because we hold the responsibility of budgets and how the taxpayer money is spent,”
Former Winneshiek County Conservation Board member and retired Luther College Development Officer Tom Murray addressed the board of supervisors Monday morning and expressed his concerns over last week’s decision to appoint Supervisor Chair Dan Langreck to the conservation board rather than reappointing the board’s current chair, retired Iowa DNR staffer Bill Ohde. (Photo by Zach Jensen)
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and Campaign Disclosure Alliant finds city’s ics Board review the materials bedrafted materials fore they’re distributed to city residents. wanting, requests The question of establishing an MEU in Decorah will be delay posed to local voters on March BY DENISE LANA STAFF WRITER The Decorah City Council on Monday night discussed the possibility of creating a master list of educational material which could be used to inform the public on a potential municipal electric utility, and the city intends to have the Iowa Eth-
4, 2025, and the city hopes to provide voters with specifics on the proposal ahead of the election. The council approved a resolution earlier this month, allowing the city’s sustainability commission to spend up to $15,000 on flyers, mailers and similar materials regarding a proposed municipal electric utility. Alliant Energy — which currently provides electrical
service to the Decorah area — emailed a three-page document to the city council staff less than two hours before Monday’s council meeting, claiming initial drafts of the materials indicate a potential bias, contain inaccurate information and omits important information. The letter, authored by Alliant’s legal counsel, highlights six concerns the company has regarding the proposed educational materials and claims — among other things — that the drafted materials misrepresent the reason
MEU continued on page 10
Kelsay said. “We don’t take that lightly.” He said the few times the board of supervisors has heard from Winneshiek County Conservation Executive Director Barbara Schroeder were to discuss the department’s budget, although Kelsay added that Schroeder recently made a “very nice presentation” about county watershed projects. Supervisor Co-Chair Mark Vick said he recalled an instance during the last year in which he claimed the county conservation board was eligible for a $1 million grant, which would have required $1.5 million in match-
ing funds, but Vick claimed the supervisors weren’t notified of the grant application until four days before its deadline. “Things like that irk me a lot,” Vick said. Current Winneshiek County Conservation Board member Tim Wagner indicated Vick may have been referring to an instance in 2023, when Schroeder pursued a $1 million Statewide Alternative Transportation grant which would have been used to connect the county’s
Supervisors continued on page 10
Turner pleads guilty to sexually abusing teen Former Decorah woman now subject to life-long state supervision BY SETH BOYES NEWS EDITOR
Courtney Rae Turner
A former Decorah woman accused earlier this year of having a sexual relationship with a now 15-year-old boy has pleaded guilty to third-degree sexual abuse, according to court documents. Courtney Rae Turner, whom
recent court records said currently resides in Holmen, Wisconsin, was given a suspended 10-year sentence and was placed on probation for a period of five years. Last week’s sentencing also indicated Turner is to be “committed to the custody of the Iowa Department of Corrections for the rest of the defendant’s life” and be treated
“as if on parole.” Turner must also immediately register as a sex offender and pay various fines, penalties, fees and court costs. She is to have no contact with the teen for a period of at least five years, according to court documents. Turner had initially been charged in mid-January with two counts of third-degree sex-
ual abuse, but the second count was dismissed according to a Dec. 10 court filing. Court records said the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services was first informed of the abuse by a relative of the teenage boy. The family member reported seeing exchanges between the teen and Turner via the mobile app Snapchat,
including explicit images and a message in which Turner allegedly claimed “(the teen) was hers and she didn’t care what people thought of their relationship.” Criminal complaints filed
Turner continued on page 10