The Wright County
Monitor
Saturday, October 31 Happy Halloween 9 am - 11 am Trick or Treating at the square. 5 pm – 7 pm Regular Trick or Treating hours.
Lake Cornelia Night Hike Kacey Ginn, editor wrightcomonitor@gmail.com
Saturday, October 24, saw Wright County Conservation’s annual Night Hike on the Lake Cornelia trail. Attendees got to experience the beauty of the forest trail in the fall— and got to learn about nature, too. Jake Schaben of Wright County Conservation said October works well for the Night Hike. “It’s a great
“Basically what they do is they’ll do a skit about nature, from talking about pollution, to talking about animals’ life cycles,” Schaben said. A big part of Wright County Conservation’s mission is to help people experience and appreciate nature. Shaben said he thought they had good success with their message
time of year, not too hot out, not too cold,” he said, adding that they can tie in with a fall and harvest theme. The trail this year was decorated with almost 100 lit pumpkins, which were carved by the high school FFA. “It was kind of like a beacon to lead the way for everybody,” Schaben said. More than 150 people came to experience the night hike. Every ten minutes or so, groups left the shelter house to walk along the trail. At four different times in the 40-minute walk, they stopped and viewed skits performed by volunteers.
this year. As they waited, attendees also got to enjoy crafts and treats, and after walking the trail, enjoyed tasty s’mores and hot cider and chocolate. Pulling off the event is quite the group effort. “Without having volunteers the event wouldn’t happen,” Schaben said. In addition to the FFA, the local Boy Scouts troop helped with concessions, farmers donated pumpkins, and a volunteer committee helped organize the event. “It’s a lot of people involved.”
146th year Number 44
Thursday, October 29, 2015
Official newspaper of Wright County
$1.00 per copy
www.clarionnewsonline.com
Humane Society dog walk Kacey Ginn, editor wrightcomonitor@gmail.com
On Saturday, October 24, dog owners showed their support of the Humane Society of Wright County at the annual “Lap the Lake” dog walk around Lake Cornelia. Dozens of owners and their dogs—some
of them adopted from the Humane Society—walked the 2.5 miles and then enjoyed both people treats and doggie treats as awards were given out for the oldest dog, youngest dog, and more. Marcia Burt, the Humane Society member who chiefly organized the event, said the sponsored walk was one of their fundraisers that helps pay for medical attention and food for the animals under their care. It’s also an opportunity for people to meet and walk some of the dogs they have available for adoption. “We’ve had lots of them get talked up by people who’ve walked them,” Burt said,
commenting that the walk would sometimes contribute to a pet finding a home. Less than 20 volunteers regularly help operate the Humane Society of Wright County, including the members who house the dogs in Eagle Grove and Belmond. “Sometimes, when you don’t have a building, some people don’t think you exist,” Burt said. The Society is still active in adopting and helping animals, however. Somewhere between two and 12 animals are adopted each month, varying greatly by time of year. In 2014, the Society paid $6,864 in vet bills and $7,848 in food costs. Though the Dog Walk and other fundraisers help, they are also helped by sponsors and local businesses. “We have businesses in the area – if a dog food bag splits open, or they’ve got some expired cans of food, we’re got businesses that are willing to donate products to us when they can’t sell them,” Burt said. The Human Society of Wright County is a no-kill organization, but they still try to keep the pet population under control by promoting spaying and neutering for animals. Burt said that they were grateful to have such good cooperation and communication with the county veterinarians to make that, and other activities like providing microchips for pets, possible. Biggest, smallest, youngest, oldest, dogs who could do tricks, and dogs who looked like their owners were given awards. For some, it was an opportunity to socialize their animals. For others, it was just good exercise. For all, it was an opportunity to appreciate and support the Humane Society in their work. The Humane Society of Wright County can be found on their Facebook page.
Peer Helpers helped perform a nature skit along the Cornelia trail.
C-G-D presents Cinderella
Members of the cast of Clarion-Goldfield-Dows High School’s cast of Cinderella rehearse some of the group numbers in these pictures. Performances are fast approaching; be sure to attend at the high school gym on Friday, November 6 or Saturday, November 7 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for students. Unfortunately, activity passes cannot be honored for the musical. All tickets are available at the door. Come see C-G-D students tackle this classic show! (Photos by Lifetouch.)
Buchanan Ave vacation hearing to be continued Kacey Ginn, editor wrightcomonitor@gmail.com The county supervisors’ meeting Monday saw the beginning of the hearing on the requested road vacation for Buchanan Avenue. In the wake of the bird flu disaster earlier this year, egg producer Daybreak Foods has tightened their biosecurity. In an attempt to further control contamination of their site south of Eagle Grove, Daybreak requested a road vacation for most of the block of Buchanan Avenue their business occupies. During last week’s supervisors’ meeting, local landowner Mike Ryerson asked the board about the possibility of granting farmers access to the road at least one month out of the year because of the inconvenience and difficulty of going another way. At the start of the hearing, Board Chairman Karl Helgevold said this first meeting was primarily to gather information from those who would be affected by the potential vacation. “We want to hear from everybody who’s involved in this,” Helgevold said. County Engineer Adam Clemons interjected that they had not yet received certified letters from all the involved landowners, so the board couldn’t come to an official decision at that time. Rick Roedl of Daybreak Foods spoke for about 15 minutes about their bird flu timeline, their new biosecurity measures, and where exactly they were requesting the road be vacated. “We want to be respectful of your needs,” Roedl told the assembled farmers and landowners. “We will work through all of the farmers through a cooperative agreement.” Roedl then read the proposed agreement, which stated that farmers who signed the agreement could call Daybreak ahead of time, and they would be granted access for their equipment during planting and harvest. Daybreak would then disinfect the road after them. “This can be modified in any way we need it to be,” Roedl said, adding, “As a member of the local farming community, Daybreak Foods wants to remain in good standing.” Many of those attending chose to listen rather than talk, but a few concerned farmers spoke against the vacation and the agreement. Neven Mulholland, representing Richard Stark, who owns a portion of land on the west side of the affected area of Buchanan, first addressed the board. “If in fact we are unable to use that [road], that will dramatically affect our ability to farm in and around that land,”
he said. He also said that access to Buchanan was important because it kept farmers off Highway 17, which has a curve dangerous for heavy equipment south of Eagle Grove. He added, however, that he and Stark had not yet seen the road sharing agreement, so couldn’t comment on whether they supported it. Todd Derscheid was concerned that Daybreak would not be as willing to grant farmers access as Roedl had said, based on their denying access during the bird flu outbreak. He also thought they would be better to disinfect incoming vehicles in their driveways rather than control Buchanan itself. “They’ve got plenty of land, they can do it all internally and not affect all the businesses who need to use that road,” Derscheid said. He also doubted that the disinfectant spray Roedl had mentioned would be good for the land, though Roedl had said it would be “bio-friendly.” Jaci Anderson, a nearby farmer, said that the poultry her family had kept was unaffected by bird flu, despite the birds’ location near a busy road. “I have a hard time believing that closing the road off to us will keep disease down…. I believe it’s more on-site problems than it is a road problem,” she said, adding that she didn’t think the road vacation necessary with all the additional biosecurity measures Daybreak will be adding to their buildings. Roedl explained that vehicular traffic is one of the vectors through which the USDA and Iowa Department of Agriculture believe the disease can spread. There is not, however, certain proof for that theory. He also re-affirmed that Daybreak was willing to cooperate with farmers. “You have it from me directly, that we would provide good and easy access,” he said. There was also some discussion about snowplow access for a landowner north of the vacated portion of road and the possible repair of a bridge in Webster County west of Buchanan. Helgevold closed the hearing by assuring those assembled that the supervisors would consider the factors carefully. “This is not a decision that is going to come easy,” he said. “You don’t look at it as a corporate citizen you’re favoring or favoring the local farmers. We represent the county and what’s best for the county.” The road vacation hearing will continue on November 30 at 10 a.m. continued on page 2