In the interest of keeping Henry County residents informed, the Henry County Sheriff’s office has requested KILJ post the daily jail count. During the jail referendum campaign it was publicized that the jail would be able to house additional inmates from surrounding counties and this would generate revenue for Henry County.
Date: ____8-26-2021_____
JAIL COUNT
28_ Henry County Inmates
_49 Out of County Contract Inmates
77 TOTAL
Janey May Rice, 80 of Danville, died Tuesday, August 24, 2021 at Parkview Care Center, Fairfield. She was born September 9, 1940 in Palmyra, Missouri to Robert and Mina Grace Anderson Gosney. She married Ronald Leo Rice in Missouri.
Janey enjoyed cooking and gardening, was quite a collector, and loved the color blue.
Survivors include her husband; two sons, David (Juanita) Rice of Montgomery, Michigan and DeWayne Rice of Danville; eight grandchildren; eleven great-grandchildren; and two brothers, Tommy and Jimmy Gosney. She was preceded in death by her daughter Donna Rice Barr; her parents; and her brother Johnny.
According to her wishes, her body has been cremated and there will be no formal services. Elliott Chapel is assisting the family with arrangements. Online condolences may be left at www.elliottfuneralchapel.com.
Marty Thomas, 58, of Mount Pleasant and formerly of the Chicago, IL area, was found at his residence on Wednesday, August 18, 2021 to have passed away the previous day.
There will be no funeral service. There are no local survivors. The Kimzey Funeral Home, Mt. Pleasant, is in charge of the arrangements. Online condolences may be directed to www.kimzeyfuneralhome.com.
Chuck Grassley says he is in a thoughtful mood about whether or not he will see re-election. Following his visit with the Mount Pleasant Noon Rotary Club the long-time U.S. Senator from Iowa said it will be known to him and to everyone else by November 1. He has been a senator since 1981. Grassley was first elected to the Iowa state legislature in 1958 and served there until he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1974. He said he is considering his family and what Iowans are telling him. He said he still feels good and takes care of himself so health is not a consideration in his decision. He also made it clear his decision is not based on the job itself because he still loves serving the people of Iowa.
MOUNT PLEASANT, IA – Henry County, and more specifically Mount Pleasant, was one of the big winners in the recently announced 2020 Census Data. The census numbers show Henry County experienced a 1.7 percent growth, with the city of Mount Pleasant seeing a 7 percent increase.
“It’s so exciting to be one of the 30 counties in Iowa that are growing. Especially considering we are one of the very few rural counties to grow”, said Kristi Perry, Executive Vice President of the Mount Pleasant Area Chamber Alliance.
Mount Pleasant was one of the highest ranked cities above 5,000 which is outside of a Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). Mount Pleasant grew from 8,668 people in 2010 to 9,274 in the 2020 census. Much of that growth is directly attributed to the growth at Iowa Wesleyan University.
“Iowa Wesleyan University has experienced steady and strategic enrollment growth for the past five years. Between 2015 and 2020, we experienced an enrollment headcount increase of more than 56%. We are delighted to see how this growth has impacted the census numbers for our community,” said Chris Plunkett, Iowa Wesleyan University President. “Once again, we are expecting record-breaking enrollment for our new fall 2021 students and total University headcount. We will continue to do our part to help support the growth of the rural communities in Southeast Iowa.”
Another important factor in the growth of Mount Pleasant is the private/public partnerships designed to improve housing stock. Back in 2014, a Housing Needs Assessment gave Mount Pleasant the direction needed to address their shortfall. Projects such as Ashford Park, Threshers Meadows, Bell Subdivision, and Robin Run are just a few examples of new single-family housing. In addition to that, projects like Heather Branch Estates and a strong interest in downtown upper story housing make Mount Pleasant a very appealing community.
Salem and New London were other communities in Henry County showing a positive population growth in this census. As for the state, nearly 3.2 million people now live in Iowa, a 4.7 percent increase from 2010.
The Mount Pleasant Area Development Commission is part of the Mount Pleasant Area Chamber Alliance which also includes the Mount Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce, Main Street Mount Pleasant and Henry County Tourism.
City of Salem to Appoint New Library Board of Trustees; Old Settlers Reunion this Saturday to Include a Tour of the Crew Public Library and Information Session for Potential New Board Members
At the City Council Meeting of August 2, the Council adopted Resolution 2021-4 recognizing that the existing Library Ordinance was invalid in that it had never been approved by a ballot measure. A new ordinance will be submitted to the voters on November 2, ballot, the same ballot for City Elections.
The Council subsequently adopted Resolution 2021-5, recognizing that all sitting members of the Library Board of Trustees had not been appointed according to a valid ordinance nor in accordance with State Code, which requires the Mayor to make such board appointments. As a result, the resolution dissolved the existing Library Board of Trustees, and, having no supervisory body, closed the Library until a new Board of Trustees could be appointed.
Any member of the Salem community who is interested in applying for a position on the Board of Trustees is encouraged to do so; applications are available from the City Clerk. As part of the Old Settler’s Reunion, at 2:00 this Saturday, August 28, Cathy Helman and Mary Hoyer will be available to give a tour of the Crew Public Library and to answer questions prospective Trustees might have about serving on the Board. Helman was part of the original committee responsible for building the new Crew Public Library; Hoyer currently serves on the City Council of Salem.
“Salem is one of the oldest towns in Iowa, and certainly one of the most historically significant due to its role in the Underground Railroad”, Helman remarked. “We have a beautiful library, one that everyone in the community should be proud of and familiar with.” Hoyer agreed, saying that the Council is hoping to attract a diverse board that can work together to fulfill the mission of the Library, reflecting the needs and wants of the City itself, and the larger community that the Library serves.
Applications are due at City Hall by September 1, 2021. Any questions, please contact Haylee Stecker, Salem City Clerk at 319.258.4531.
