The
Graphic - Advocate Wednesday
| March 5, 2014|Volume 125| Issue 10
Rockwell City Office 712-297-7544 • advocate@iowatelecom.net - Lake City Office 712-464-3188 • lcgraphic@iowatelecom.net SCC Sports on Page 11
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Supervisors approve Rolling Hills formation By Ken Ross Graphic-Advocate Editor After more than a year of negotiation, six counties have approved a 28E agreement forming the Rolling Hills Community Service Region. The term 28E refers to the section of the Iowa Code that enables government entities to enter into cooperative agreements. The Calhoun County Board of Supervisors approved the agreement at the March 25 meeting, making Calhoun County the last of the six to approve the agreement, since the county supervisors did not meet on March 18. The multi-county mental health services organization to be called Rolling Hills becomes fully operational as of July 1 of this year and was mandated by the Iowa Department of Human Services. The DHS gave a mandate requiring that multi-county regions be formed but left the details to be worked out between the counties subject to DHS approval. The other counties in the Rolling Hills. Region are Buena Vista, Carroll, Crawford, Ida and Sac.
Leisa Mayer, CPC for Calhoun County, told the supervisors that she was uncertain what her duties will be for the new region. Mayer presented a recommendation that Calhoun County contribute an amount to hire a Physician’s Assistant who would operate under the authority of a psychiatrist. The member counties of Rolling Hills would each pay a portion of the cost in order to hire her prior to the July 1 start date of the organization.
She has completed a PA program at the mental health institute in Cherokee and has expressed an interest in staying in the area. The supervisors approved committing funds for this purpose. Steve Goins gave his last report to the board as engineer’s assistance – road crew supervisor. He is retiring and his duties will be taken over by B.J. Musselman
Judge Thomas Bice ruled last week that Corey Trott, 32, charged with the September 2013 murder of Rockwell City Police Officer Jamie Buenting, will need to undergo psychiatric evaluation at the Iowa Medical and Classification Center at Oakdale to determine whether Trott “… is suffering from a mental disorder which may prevent the defendant from appreciating the charge, understanding the proceedings or assisting effectively
in his defense.” Calhoun County Attorney Tina Meth-Farrington said that the April 21 trial date is still scheduled as of now and will not be cancelled unless an evaluation is not completed by then or the evaluation is that Trott is not competent for trial. In the event that Trott is ruled incompetent, regular evaluations shall be made while treatment is given.
Judge orders evaluation of Trott
Cooling off at the pool
The Rockwell City Pool was a good place to cool off during a recent hot spell in the area, ‘recent’ meaning about eight months ago. This is just a reminder that winter does not last forever.
Local wildlife has a tough winter
FFA Boys Perform
The five boys of the SCC FFA Sweetheart Court should not consider singing as an alternative career choice, based on their performance during FFA Olympics in the high school gym on Wednesday of National FFA week. (Graphic-Advocate photo by Ken Ross)
FFA Girls Perform
The five girls of the SCC FFA Sweetheart Court showed enthusiasm during FFA Olympics in the high school gym on Wednesday of National FFA week. (Graphic-Advocate photo by Ken Ross)
By Ken Ross Graphic-Advocate Editor Calhoun County Conservation Officer Keith Roos has no statistical data regarding the impact the particularly cold winter is having on local wildlife, but is confident in saying that there will be casualties this year. The small mammals of the area stay semi-dormant through the winter but are not true hibernators. They need to get out and forage, exposing them to the cold and often yielding poor results as far as finding food. Although the intense cold makes energy demands on pheasants, up until late February, the ground has not had much snow cover, providing conditions that allow pheasants to find food. A series of heavy snows in late February created deep, crusty snow that presented challenges for pheasants. Deer should be able to find their primary food source
– needles, buds and twig ends. Roos said that because of the cold many of the deer might not be able to carry twins to spring as is common. The exceptional cold can also be tough on fish, with some streams freezing clear to the bottom. One environmental threat is being held off by the cold. The Emerald Ash Borer continues its relentless march across the country, heading west from Illinois. It has reached Blackhawk County and in the south, has reached northwest Missouri and could work its way north. Roos noted that the Emerald Ash Borer is not the first environmental threat of its kind. He gave his final speech in 9th grade speech class on Dutch Elm Disease. ”That was a long time ago,” Roos said. Other than Ash trees, the wildlife in Calhoun County will benefit from an end to the long winter.
Cold causes spike in school fuel costs By Ken Ross Graphic Advocate Editor The colder than normal winter this year is having an impact on the natural gas expense for the Southern Cal and Rockwell City/Lytton School Districts, according to figures provided by Carol Collins and Wendi Geno. For the high school building, the heating cost for the one month ending Jan. 20, 2014 was $7,139, only slightly up from $7,078 during the same period one year earlier – less than 1 percent. (All dollar amounts are rounded to nearest whole dollar.) The variance for the high school ag building was greater, going to $1,065, up from $957 a year earlier – more than 11 percent. The bus barn in Lake City showed a more dramatic spike to $249, up from $177, about 69 percent. During the previous month, the high school gas bill was $5,610, up from $4,810 from the same period a year earlier, an increase of about 17 percent. The ag building increased to $788 up from $535 for the period a year earlier – an increase of 47 percent. The bus barn in Lake City was up to $199, up from $88, an increase of 126 percent. The Rockwell City buildings are listed differently and figures are for the billing cycles payable in January and February.
FFA Pie Contest
The February gas bill for the elementary school this year was $2,389, up from $2,141 over the 2013 February bill, up 12 percent. The February gas bill for the middle school was $1.451 up from $1,061 the previous year, an increase of 37 percent. The January gas bill for the elementary school this year was $2,365, up from $1,896, an increase of 25 percent. At the middle school the January bill was $1,030 up from $757 the previous year, an increase of 36 percent. Another major utility user is the county, which heats three buildings, including the Courthouse. The courthouse rarely has any evening activities so the heat is cut down dramatically after 4:30 p.m., according to Auditor Judy Howrey. Another way the county has reduced heating costs is through building improvements, particularly replacement of windows over a three-year period with much more energy efficient new ones. This makes it impossible to make any meaningful comparisons between winters to measure the impact of colder than average temperatures on heating cost. The most recent monthly charge for gas for the Courthouse was $1,646 (rounded); for Department of Health was $546; and for County Welfare was $219.
Table manners were not required during a pie eating contest at the FFA Olympics in the high school gym during National FFA week. (GraphicAdvocate photo by Ken Ross)