Ben L. Bennett, 74, of Yarmouth passed away on Sunday, February 25, 2024, at the Henry County Health Center in Mt. Pleasant.
According to his wishes no services will be held at this time and his cremation has been entrusted to the care of Murphy Funeral Home of Mt. Pleasant.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.murphyfuneralandmonuments.com
The Murphy Funeral Home of Mt. Pleasant, is caring for his arrangements.
Wind energy was once again a main talking point for the Henry County Supervisors meeting on Tuesday morning. With multiple citizens in attendance, some in support and some opposed, the conversation was lively.
An RWE representative spoke about the funding towards school districts that a wind farm would contribute to. According to this representative, WACO would see 9.9 million dollars, Winfield-Mt.Union would receive 6.6 million, and Mt. Pleasant would gain 3.5 million dollars, over the lifetime of the contract. This is based on the current levy rate and the total project value of 450 million dollars. For Mount Pleasant, that would be just over $94,000 a year.
When asked what will happen to that additional revenue for school districts if a turbine has to shut down for an extended period of time, an RWE representative responded. School revenue from a wind farm is based on the assessed value of the property, not based on production. The tax revenue remains the same regardless of when the turbines are spinning.
With Joe Buffington, the Planning and Zoning Director, in attendance, the Supervisors discussed Section 6-2-11-2 through 11-6 Alternative Energy Overlay District ordinance. Supervisor White said that he believes the changes to the ordinance are being rushed. He would like to see the county slow down as he believes the ordinance is important for Henry County. It was noted at the meeting that it was the county that requested the ordinance change, not RWE.
Many additional questions were brought up, and it seems the supervisors will need to discuss those with the Henry County Engineer.
The Wapello County Sheriff’s Office was made aware of a submerged vehicle in the Des Moines River after an individual called on the 26th of February. The caller mentioned that they were fishing near Rock Bluff Park when they saw the vehicle in the middle of the river.
The next day, the Wapello County Sheriff’s Office, Ottumwa Fire Department, and Deran’s Towing and Recovery formulated a plan to retrieve the vehicle from the water. After several attempts the vehicle was eventually removed and the body of a deceased male was located inside. The identity of the body is not being released at this time and has been transported to Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner.
The death is under investigation by the Wapello County Sheriff’s Office.
The Lee County Narcotics Task Force reports the arrest of a Keokuk woman on felony and misdemeanor drug charges.
Mieki Denise Cooper, age 49, of Keokuk is charged with: Conspiracy to deliver less than 5 grams of methamphetamine; a class C felony, Possession with intent to deliver less than 5 grams of methamphetamine; a class C felony, Possession with the intent to deliver marijuana; a class D felony, Maintaining a drug house; an aggravated misdemeanor, and Possession of drug paraphernalia; a simple misdemeanor.
The charges came after a search warrant that was executed at a residence in Keokuk, where the defendant, Mieki Cooper, was found to be in possession of illegal narcotics.
The Lee County Narcotics Task Force were assisted by the Keokuk Police Department, the Fort Madison Police Department, and the Lee County Attorney’s Office.
The defendant in this case is presumed innocent until proven guilty. The Lee County Narcotics Task Force is funded in part by the U.S. Department of Justice and the funds administered by the Iowa Governor’s Office of Drug Control Policy.
Girls’ State Basketball
Day two of the 2024 state tournament began with #3 Solon fending off a #6 Dubuque Wahlert comeback attempt to win 58-47. Callie Levin led the way with 20 points for the Spartans as they will take on #2 Des Moines Christian at 3:15 pm tomorrow, February 29th.
Class 4A then got their Quarterfinal games rolling with #1 Clear Creek-Amana stomping #8 Gilbert 68-30. Ava Locklear was one of the four starters to finish in double figures for the Clippers as she also captured 17 rebounds for a double-double.
In a close contest it was #5 North Polk’s dominant play in the paint that gave the Comets the win over #4 Dallas Center-Grimes 48-42. North Polk outscored the Mustangs 28 to 8 in the lane. #1 Clear Creek-Amana will face off against North Polk at 5 pm tomorrow.
#7 Sioux Center appear poised to knock out #2 Waverly-Shell Rock after leading 34 to 29 at half, but Waverly-Shell Rock is undefeated for a reason as Katelyn Eggena’s 21 points willed them to a 55-51 victory.
#3 Bishop Heelan clobbered #6 Lewis Central 70-40. Abby Lee led the scoring with 21 points in the win. Brooke Larsen was a one woman machine for Lewis Central with 24 points and 14 rebounds. #2 Waverly-Shell Rock and #3 Bishop Heelan will compete at 6:45 pm tomorrow.
The day ended with two Class 2A games as #1 Dike-New Hartford demolished #8 Cascade 58-28 and #4 Sioux Central narrowly defeated #5 Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont 52-48. Dike-New Hartford and Sioux Central will tango at 10 am on Friday, March 1st.
Today’s matchups will finish out the Class 2A Quarterfinal with #2 Panorama taking on #7 Grundy Center and #3 Westwood facing off against #6 Central Lyon.
Class 1A will get all of their Quarterfinal games in with #1 North Linn competing against #8 Montezuma. #4 St. Albert taking on #5 Bishop Garrigan. #2 Newell-Fonda competing against #7 Calamus-Wheatland. Lastly, #3 Remsen St. Mary’s facing of against #6 Martensdale-St. Marys.
Boys’ State Basketball
#4 Winfield-Mt. Union will take on #5 Lynnville-Sully on Monday, March 4th, at 12:15 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at noon.
#4 West Burlington will face off against #5 Treynor on March 4th at 7:15 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 7 pm.
All-SEC Boys’ Basketball
The Southeast Conference (SEC) released their All-Conference teams for Boys’ basketball yesterday and Mt. Pleasant and Keokuk highlighted the First Team.
Mt. Pleasant ended the season with a 13-8 overall record and an 8-2 conference record to capture their second conference title in a row, going undefeated at home in conference play.
Payton Hagans was the star of the SEC, taking home a unanimous First Team All-Conference honor along with SEC Player of the Year. Hagans ranked 1st in the conference in points per game at 22.8, 2nd in steals with 2.3 per game, 5th in assists per game, 1st in three pointers made per game, and second in free throws made per game. His 22.8 points per game ranks 5th in Class 3A, and 24th in the state of Iowa. Hagans also finished his career with 1,205 points.
Also clinching a spot on the First Team for the Panthers was sophomore guard Christian Stacy. He took a big step forward in his development as he went from averaging 2.5 points per game as a freshman to the 4th most in conference at 14.6 points per game. Stacy also boasted the best free throw percentage in the conference with 78.4% clip from the charity stripe.
Senior Nate Stroud earned Second Team All-Conference as the anchor of the Panthers post game. He ranked 13th in points per game at 10.1, 3rd in rebounds per game at 7 per game, and 4th in blocks per game at 0.9.
Receiving All-Conference Honorable Mention was Noah Lange and Avin Truong.
Fort Madison and Keokuk finished with the same conference record of 7-3, but the Bloodhounds won the tiebreaker to finish second in the conference standings.
Hunter Cresswell was a unanimous choice for First Team All-Conference for Fort Madison. He scored the 5th most points in the conference with 13.9 per game, ranked 2nd in rebounding, and 4th in free throws made per game.
Keokuk had senior Diego Garcia and sophomore Jaxon Clark, unanimous, selected to the SEC First Team.
Garcia was the de facto leader of the Chiefs as he led the conference in assists with 4.2 per game, while taking the ball away 2.1 times per game, which ranked 5th in the SEC.
Clark played to his 6’9 stature, ranking 2nd in the SEC in points per game at 20, led the conference in rebounds per game (11.5), field goal percentage (65.5%), and ranked 2nd in blocks with 2.3 rejections per game.
Burlington and Washington finished tied with 4-6 conference records. Shaye Stringer was the lone First Team selection for the Grayhounds as he averaged 11.5 points per game and ranked 3rd in steals per game.
Logan McDole was a unanimous choice for the SEC Second Team for the Demons. McDole averaged 12.3 points per game, while shooting 38% from deep.
Lastly, Fairfield finished with a 0-10 record in conference play and a 1-21 record overall. Riley Perkins ranked 8th in points per game at 12.1 and 4th in assists per game, which earned him a unanimous Second Team selection.
College Basketball
The #4 Iowa women’s team will travel to Minnesota tonight at 8 pm.
The Iowa State women’s team will face off against #10 Kansas State tonight at 6:30 pm.
The #8 Iowa State men’s team will compete against Oklahoma tonight at home at 7 pm.
The Iowa men’s team defeated Penn State last night 90-81. Payton Sandfort made history as the first Iowa men’s basketball player to finish with a triple-double as he cashed in for 28 points, collected 10 rebounds, and dished out 10 assists. The Hawkeyes will face off against Northwestern on Saturday, March 2nd, at 4:30 pm.
This Day in Sports History
1940 – The first televised basketball game (University of Pittsburgh beats Fordham University, 50-37).
1967 – Wilt Chamberlain sinks an NBA record 35th consecutive field goal.
1998 – Vancouver Canucks Mark Messier is the 4th NHL player to collect 1,600 points.
Governor Kim Reynolds, Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig and Department of Natural Resources Director Kayla Lyon invite Iowans to nominate individuals or families for the 2024 Iowa Farm Environmental Leader Award.
Iowa farmers and landowners who implement proven practices to improve water quality and incorporate farming practices that conserve and protect our natural resources are eligible for the award. Awardees should also actively serve as leaders within the Iowa agriculture community. Since the creation of the award in 2012, 777 farm families have been recognized.
“Farming and environmental stewardship have always gone hand-in-hand,” said Governor Reynolds. “The farm families who are recognized with an Environmental Leader Award balance their role to feed and fuel the world with their responsibility to preserve our state’s natural resources, leaving a remarkable legacy for generations to come.”
“Iowa continues to set records for conservation adoption and that would not be possible without the devoted farm families and landowners implementing proven water quality and soil conservation practices on their land,” said Secretary Naig. “We would encourage Iowans to nominate deserving individuals or families from their community and we look forward to recognizing these conservation leaders at the 2024 Iowa State Fair.”
The recipients of the award will be honored during a ceremony on Wednesday, August 14, 2024, at the Iowa State Fair. Governor Reynolds, Lieutenant Governor Adam Gregg, Secretary Naig and Director Lyon will present each awardee with an Iowa Farm Environmental Leader Award sign and certificate.
The nomination form can be found on the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship’s website. An appointed committee representing conservation and agricultural groups will review the nominations and select the winners. Nominations will be accepted through May 6th, 2024.
Henry County Supervisors
100 E Washington St Ste 202
Mt Pleasant IA 52641
Fax: 319-385-3601
Chad White, Member Marc Lindeen, Vice-Chairman Greg Moeller, Chairman
319-385-0759 319-385-0760 319-385-0761________
AGENDA
February 29, 2024
Approve Agenda
Approve Minutes
Approve Claims
9:00 Sarah Berndt, CDS Monthly Update
9:20 Denise Ballard, IGHCP, New Insurance Premiums
For County Employees FY2025
Other County Business as time allows
Supervisors Sub-Committee Updates
The Mount Pleasant City Council will meet in Regular Session on Wednesday, February 28, 2024, at City Hall, 307 E. Monroe Street, second-floor meeting room at 5:30 p.m.
AGENDA
Joy Lapp — Historic Preservation Commission
Ryan and Wei Yeager — Potentially Dangerous Animal Designation Appeal letter 4. Approve agenda.
*5. Approve minutes of previous meetings.
*6. Approve payment of bills.
*7. Receive report of Officers.
Section 25-3 (b) Equipment Charges Per Hour of the City Code of Ordinances.
