Top stories of 2022

WASHINGTON — In October, the Washington County Board of Supervisors suspended Ambulance Director Jeremy Peck following their third closed session in two weeks.

Only Supervisor Jack Seward Jr. spoke about the matters discussed in the closed-door meetings, which took a total of over seven hours.

“The Board of Supervisors has been made aware of personnel and management issues with the ambulance department leadership, and the Board of Supervisors have spent significant time and effort to take this seriously and investigate those issues,” he said. “Personnel matters are involved, and we are not at liberty to release any further details.”

Assistant Director Pat Curl was appointed interim director, but Curl resigned in November, having only served about two weeks.

On Dec. 6, the board voted unanimously to offer Katrina Altenhofen an appointment as the ambulance department’s interim director. Altenhofen is Hospice of Washington County’s executive director, but has a lengthy background in emergency medical services.

Smouse House demolished, replaced by Scooter’s Coffee

WASHINGTON — Crews set to work tearing down the Winfield Smouse House on the morning of Sept. 26.

The historic property was named after the real estate developer who called it home, and was a major player in the community’s early planning and development after his arrival in 1896, according to documents from National Records of Historic Places.

After failed attempts by the community to raise funds property restoration, the city approved a demolition permit for it in early July.

Developers received approval to build a Scooter’s Coffee on the lot.

Mayor Jaron Rosien said the proposal for a new business in town was bittersweet for the community

“The property being demolished is on the historic register for the state of Iowa and went through multiple attempts at fundraising,” he said. “It’s been accepted that that is not economically viable, and it has only continued to dilapidate. So this is both exciting to see but sad to see at the same time.”

The new Scooter’s Coffee location opened for business in early January 2023.

Multiple departments respond to downtown Washington fire

WASHINGTON — Crews from multiple fire departments responded to a major fire at Greiner Plaza (formerly the Washington Public Library) at 120 East Main St. on Nov. 19. The building is located at the corner of Main and Second streets.

“Upon arrival, crews found heavy fire and flames showing through the top of the structure,” a news release from the Washington Fire Department said. “The cause is under investigation at this time, and no injuries were reported. No further information is available at this time.”

The process took some time, with the call coming in around 4 p.m., and emergency responders staying on the scene until after dark, with a news release sent shortly after 9 p.m.

This building is owned by Greiner Buildings, and also houses the WEDG and Goldfinch Solar Project offices, among others. While the structure is adjacent to another office building, crews said there was no damage to the neighboring structure once flames were extinguished.

Mid-Prairie’s Schneider announces retirement

WELLMAN — After 41 years as an educator and 34 years in the Mid-Prairie school district — the last 21 years as superintendent — Superintendent Mark Schneider announced his retirement in early March.

Schneider announced his plans to retire effective June 30 in an open letter to the Mid-Prairie school board and community.

“I always tried to base my decisions on what was best for the Mid-Prairie School District and its students,” Schneider wrote, “With the defeat of the recent bond referendum, coupled with the Mid-Prairie graduation of my two granddaughters in May and my 65th birthday in June, it is clear to me that after 21 years, the time is right for new blood and a fresh perspective in the superintendent’s office.

“I know that any success we experienced was due to the collaborative efforts of many people.”

Schneider thanked students for being an inspiration to him.

“It didn’t matter whether I was reading or interacting with you in the classroom; talking with you in the hallways, at lunch, or at recess; shadowing you for the day; or watching you in all your activities; you inspired me to be my best,” he wrote. “The kindergarten chair I always kept in my offices, was constant motivation and a visible reminder for why I did what I did.”

Brighton fire budget sparks disputes

BRIGHTON — Brighton city officials and the city’s fire department feuded for much of 2022.

In March, some fire department members have accused the city of quietly ceasing allocations to the service.

“This decision by the Brighton City Council to defund the Fire Department and its plan for the future has most if not all of us ready to quit,” read an open letter from the Fire Department’s Facebook page.

Mayor Melvin Rich denied the accusation.

“I don’t know if we’re really cutting it, the city’s facing some challenges within the general fund, and we’re looking at examining expenses for all of our departments,” Rich said. “This is just budget time and we’re trying to make it work.”

While the proposed budget does show a $20,000 drop in public safety spending, City Clerk Michelle Talley said that was a return to normal after the department’s budget spiked to pay for a firetruck replacement in fiscal years 2021 and 2022.

Some residents, however, said Talley was obscuring the truth.

“This is a misstatement,” the open letter said. “The new firetruck and its equipment (were) replaced/paid for by an insurance claim, all but the $1,000 deductible.”

Tensions grew throughout the year, culminating in October when the fire department threatened to discontinue service in the city if changes were not made to the 28E agreement between the city and the department.

In December, a negotiator hired by the city of Brighton began meetings with municipal officials, fire department volunteers and township trustees as the local governments attempt to de-escalate negotiations on the area’s fire protection.

Major solar project in works north of Ainsworth

AINSWORTH — A 2,000-acre, 200 MW solar energy project is in the works on Washington County farmland northwest of Ainsworth. The venture — called the Goldfinch Solar Project — is owned by Bechtel Corporation, and being developed by Conifer Power Company.

Information on Bechtel’s website says the facility would provide enough energy to power 33,000 homes at its expected start of commercial operations in 2025.

Conifer Power Vice President of Development Tom Swierczewski said the panels would go on a contiguous area of leased land current used for row crops, with most of the needed agreements already signed.

“We really think that this represents the best possible circumstance for both the project company and for our land owners,” he said. “It remains in family ownership … when the need for the solar facility is over, they’ll still own the property, or the next generations of their family will, and it certainly is possible they could put that back into a row-crop, agricultural use.”

While utility-scale solar operations are a new technology with little life span data, Swierczewski said the project was expected to continue operations for around 40 years after construction ends.

“We really encourage our land owners to be thinking about this from a generational perspective,” he said. “Once construction starts it’s called an operating term, and that term lasts for several decades, 30-50 years.”

Washington accepts railroad counteroffer

WASHINGTON — The Washington City Council voted unanimously to accept a counter offer from Canadian Pacific Railroad Tuesday night, signing off on an agreement that secures city funds from the company and municipal cooperation for a proposed merger between CP and Kansas City Southern, which would increase train traffic by over 300% in the area.

“I wanted to absolutely make sure that we get the best deal possible, and I believe this is that,” Mayor Jaron Rosien said. “This is the last, best, and final offer … it’s not going to get any better. Money has come in to other communities, we’re kind of one of the last ones on the table.”

The proposal was the same one tabled by council members at their previous meeting. It includes:

• A $200,000 cash contribution from the railroad, for use as the city sees fit.

• Payments of $225,000 from the railroad for each crossing the city agrees to close.

• A $55,000 contribution from the railroad for a quiet zone study.

• Waived costs by the railroad for the removal of crossing surfaces, signals and signs at any crossing the city agrees to close.

Golden Hawks crowned state track and field champions for 4th time in a row

DES MOINES — On May 21, the Golden Hawks of Mid-Prairie won their fourth consecutive 2A Iowa High School State Track and Field state championship.

They’re the first 2A girls’ team to win four in a row since Tipton from 2004-07.

It’s becoming routine for the four time champions.

The black and gold Golden Hawks racked up 65 total points, 10 more than second-place Van Meter to win the title.

The championship run was in large part due to the star quality of senior Mitzi Evans and sophomore Danielle Hostetler.

Over the course of the three day championships, the Golden Hawks accumulated a total of five state titles.

Hostetler continues a tradition of winning in her family.

The young standout got the Golden Hawks going with her second straight 3000-meter title on Thursday.

She now shares an outstanding 16 total state titles with her two older sisters Marie and Anna.

“First of all I just want to say all the glory to God,” Hostetler said. “I was injured at the beginning part of the season. God just gave me the strength to come back and do the best that I can.”

“It’s the best feeling in the entire world” she said. “To go through all that pain and then to just be able to win.”

Washington ends track and field season fourth at state

DES MOINES — Washington totaled 44 points for the fourth spot. Dallas Center-Grimes (73) was crowed state champions, followed by Pella (71.5) and Newton (50) in the state track and field championships in May.

It was an eventful weekend for the Demons.

Junior Elijah Morris ran a personal record time of 22.84 in the 200-meter dash, but missed the final with a ninth-place finish.

Boy did he top that.

Morris bounced back in the 400-meter. With a chip on his shoulder, he ran a new personal best of 48.96 to win the even title. That makes him a back-to-back Class 3A 400-meter champion.

“It’s awesome, Morris said. “I couldn’t ask for anything better. I’m blessed to be a part of the Demons. I’m blessed to have the teammates I have. It’s amazing to do this for more than myself but the team.”

Brayden Hartman got himself a personal record in the discus.

The senior Demon tossed the disc an outstanding 156 feet for the runner-up spot in the event.

“I could feel a really good turn in my legs, and I knew I had a lot of power going in to it,” Hartman said. “It started going out of the sector a little bit and it curved back in, so we got a little lucky there.”

Washington girls skyrocket to state cross country

WASHINGTON — On state qualifier day, you need to be at your best, and that’s exactly where the Washington cross-country team was on Oct. 19.

With all the pressure on, the Demon girls performed admirably. With three team bids up for grabs, the Demons finished second place.

Not only did Washington get one of the only three bids, they did it by a whopping 70 points. Washington scored 60 on the day, 19 better than third-place Center Point-Urbana. Fourth-place Davenport Assumption’s final tally was 130.

“This race has been our goal all season,” said sophomore Lauren Horak. “We've been looking forward to this race, and we were so strong. We knew what we needed to do.”

Horak was one of three Demons to finish in the Top-11. Iris Dahl finished sixth, in 19 minutes, 58.934 seconds. Quincy Griffis finished 10th, in 20:11.820, and Horak was right behind Griffis with an 11th-place 20:18.453.

“It was really, really exciting,” said Dahl. “I think we all knew we were going to come out and do it if we all pushed our hardest.”

Even more impressive may have been how the youngest team in the field was able to rise to the occasion. Washington’s entire lineup was made up of underclassmen, including Dahl, a freshman.

“It's really cool,” Dahl said. “I didn't even know what cross-country was a couple of years ago, so it's really cool to be a part of it.”

Alyvia Anderson finished 16th for the Demons. Kendall Hinrichsen was 17th. Angeline Anderson crossed in 19th, and Isabella Lujan took 27th.