Newton Independent

Grace Church members vote to buy former Aces Teen Club

Newton Independent

Members of the Grace Church in Newton voted on Sunday to purchase the former Aces Teen Club building in Newton rather than the former Maytag product development building they are currently leasing from Windstream Corp.

Dan Hayton said the decision was made to buy the Y2 building, as it is now known, from the Newton YMCA because it is bigger and allows the church room to grow.

Windstream Corp. had asked for a decision from the church by the end of last week.

Earlier this month, Windstream said that though they have yet to reach a "definitive agreement," they have entered discussions and signed confidentiality agreements with an unknown entity for the purchase of the Maytag campus it acquired through its acquisition of Iowa Telecom in June 2010.

Officials with a veterans group hoping to turn the campus into a national treatment and training center for homeless vets were also notified their proposal would not be considered.

Hayton said the church will now enter negotiations with the YMCA on the sale. The church has a lease with Windstream for the building through mid-September, he said.

Newton-based food and drink part of tonight's state dinner

Newton Independent

Tonight's state dinner in honor of China Vice President Xi Jinping will feature several food and drink items made by local businesses.

As guests mingle before the start of the 8 p.m. dinner, which can be viewed live here through an Iowa Public Television livestream, Madhouse Brewery's Pale Ale beer and Jasper Winery's Behind the Shed Red and La Crescent wines will be the alcohol choices.

Maytag Dairy Farm cheeses play a part in both the main entre and dessert courses of the meal. One main course option is certified Angus beef tenderloin with demi glaze and onion ring Maytag White Cheddar stuffed twice baked new potatoes. For dessert, one of the three options is Maytag Blue Cheese with Iowa Honey drizzle.

Bon appetit!

Church to hold benefit concert

First Christian Church in Newton is hosting a benefit concert for Carlos Perez and Todd Friedman beginning at 6 p.m. on Sunday, March 4. Perez is a Newton fifth grade student undergoing chemotherapy treatments at Blank Children's Hospital in Des Moines. Friedman is the son of Bob and Peggy Friedman of Newton and graduate of Newton High School who was involved in a head-on accident where he suffered serious injuries. He is now recovering at home following extensive surgeries. The concert will feature Revelation FCC with other groups and individuals also providing music. An ice cream social will follow. Free will offerings will be accepted for Perez and Friedman at the concert. Donations may also be sent to First Christian Church, 314 E. 2nd St. N., Newton, Iowa 50208. For more information, call 641-792-5850.

Grinnell DAR Chapter celebrates 100 years

Members of the Grinnell Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, which this year is celebrating its 100th anniversary of its official organization on Jan. 1, 1912, were recently recognized for years of service with the organization. Leta Hollmann, seated in front, is celebrating 70 years as a member of DAR. She was a regent for the Montezuma Chapter before it merged with the Grinnell Chapter of DAR. In the back row, left to right, are Maxine Brubaker, 10 years, Newton; Jeanette Shannon, 20 years, Newton; and Delores Meyer, 10 years, Newton. Other DAR members celebrating anniversaries, though unavailable at the time the photo was taken, are Kris Macy, 25 years, Newton; Terry and Rochelle Brannian, 25 years, Iowa City; and Cynthia Crider, Wilmette, Ill., 40 years. DAR members are active in their communities preserving history, promoting education and fostering patriotism. Any woman 18 years or older, regardless of race, religion or ethnic background, who can prove lineal descent from a patriot of the American Revolution is eligible for membership. The Grinnell Chapter has 51 members from the Grinnell and Newton areas and from areas out of state.

- Newton Independent

Soup supper to raise funds for Newton Firefighter Tribute

TPI's Lockard says uncertainty over tax credit extension impacting wind industry

Newton Independent

Congress' failure to extend the production tax credit for wind energy is already producing negative impacts for wind energy manufacturers even though it doesn't expire until the end of the year, the head of TPI Composites, which has a wind blade plant in Newton, said today.

Steve Lockard, CEO of TPI, was interviewed on E&E TV today where he discussed efforts to get the tax credit extended and the impacts that the uncertainty is having on the wind energy industry.

Lockard said that due to the long lead time involved in developing operable wind farms, component builders like TPI, and wind tower builder Trinity Industries, which also has a plant in Newton, are facing a challenging environment.

"The credit expires at the end of the year," Lockard said. "But for all intents and purposes, it's expired now in that there's lead time associated with building these products and the developers that buy turbines, that buy components from companies like ours, are already starting to suffer layoffs. And so it's an urgent issue."

Lockard, who told the story of how TPI built a factory in Newton that employs 800 workers after the community lost 3,000 jobs upon Whirlpool's departure following its purchase of Maytag, said a positive impact of the production tax credit is the manufacturing jobs it produces in the U.S. The 75,000 U.S. wind energy manufacturing jobs across the country are estimated to be cut in half should the tax credit not be extended.

Lockard said the uncertainty surrounding the extention makes projections for the coming year "challenging."

"We're concerned about the fourth quarter of this year impacting our company and we're very concerned, deeply concerned about 2013 affecting our company and our industry," he said. "So again, there's this lead time associated with the components. We'll be shipping lots of product this year, but there's a cliff that's coming unless there's a clear extension and clarity on the extenstion and urgently so."

You can read the full transcript of the interview here.

Once-frozen-feline ready for adoption

Newton Independent

Randy Van at KCOB had an unusual piece last week that is now getting statewide play.

Apparently, officials with the Jasper County Animal Rescue League rescued a cat that had become frozen to the ground.

The League tended to the kitty, who they named Murphy, and is now putting the once-frozen-feline up for adoption.

Here's a Radio Iowa story on it based on Van's original report.

Early registration deadline approaching for 8K race, high-heel dash

Newton Independent

The early registration date for the April 21 8K race and 150 yard dash is at the Iowa Speedway is entering the final turn.

Those wishing to sign up for the event need to register by Wednesday, Feb. 15, to take advantage of the early bird price of $20 for one event and $25 for both. Those registering after that date will pay $35 for one event and $45 for both.

Melissa Butler, race organizer and Progress Industries' communications director, said early sign-up for both events has been strong.

"We are ahead of last year's early sign up, and we are expecting that number to jump before the Feb. 15 deadline, too," she said. "We are encouraging people to sign up today, even if you have not run in years - if you start training today you will do just fine in the distance portion of the event."

The 8K or five-mile race will start at the exit of pit road at Iowa Speedway and continue out and around the racetrack property before re-entering the speedway through the infield tunnel and finishing with a lap around the 7/8 mile tri-oval.

The 150 yard dash is designed more for the entertainment value than for the competition. Both men and women will be required to run in heels that are at least three inches in height.

Registration for the event, which benefits Progress Industries and the Iowa Speedway Foundation, can be done online by following this link. Forms can also be found at the Iowa Speedway web site.

President Garfield topic of museum's Lunch & Learn series

Newton Independent

The Jasper County Historical Museum is hosting a Brown Bag Lunch & Learn at noon Wednesday in the museum's library.

This month's event will feature Dr. Tom Hoover, who will speak on the presidency of James A. Garfield. Garfield's presidency lasted only 200 days before he was shot by assassin Charles J. Guiteau.

Hoover's presentation on Garfield will be based on information contained in Candice Millard's book, "Destiny of the Republic, the Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President."

The public is invited to bring their lunch and eat while listening to Dr. Hoover's presentation.

Blues Under the Blue Roof series continues with Bryce Janey

The South Skunk Blues Society will host Bryce Janey as its Blues Under the Blue Roof series continues at 6:30 p.m. Monday at the Newton Public Library. Janey, as the Iowa Blues Society's solo/duo representative, recently advanced to the semifinals of the 2012 International Blues Challenge held in 20 venues in the Beale Street Historic District in Memphis, Tenn., that saw more than 575 performances by 226 acts over a five-day period. This year's challenge brought 748 musicians from 40 states and 16 countries to Memphis for the largest gathering of Blues artists in the history of the world. Janey began playing at the age of 13 in his hometown of Marion in a blues trio alongside his mother and father. He later launched a solo career where he's played at venues across the U.S. and his albums have received international acclaim.

- Newton Independent

Trade panel says U.S. wind tower makers hurt by imports

Newton Independent

American manufacturers of wind towers, like Trinity Structural Towers in Newton, are being hurt by cheaper imports from China and Vietnam, a U.S. trade panel ruled today, the first step in the possible imposition of tariffs.

The  U.S. International Trade Commission issued a preliminary ruling on the petition from the Wind Tower Trade Coalition that is asking that regulators impose anti-dumping and counter-vailing duties on wind tower imports from the two countries.

The group says companies in China and Vietnam are using unfair pricing, as much as 64 percent below the domestic cost of a wind tower, to win U.S. sales.

A full investigation will now proceed.

Reporter's Notebook: Hmmm

By PETER HUSSMANN

Hmmm.

On Thursday, Debi Durham, Iowa's economic development head honcho, said Iowa is in the running for a huge data center and competing with Nebraska for the unknown firm.

Further, she notes, the mystery company has been looking at two Iowa sites.

And on Monday, Windstream said it was in discussions and has signed confidentiality agreements with an unknown entity on the possible sale of the former Maytag corporate campus near downtown Newton.

Hmmm.

Newton not selected for Blue Zones Project

Newton Independent

The City of Newton was not among the communities selected today as one of 11 finalists for designation as a Blue Zones Project demonstration site, part of Governor Branstad's healthiest state initiative.

Newton was one of 54 Iowa communities that had submitted an application to be considered for the program.

Communities selected today were Ames, Cedar Falls, Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Davenport, Mason City, Muscatine, Ottumwa, Sioux City, Spencer and Waterloo.

Later this month, the Blue Zones Project team will visit each community in series of site visits similar to a job interview. Each community will learn more about what it means become a Blue Zones community while the project team will get a better understanding of each community's readiness. Site visits will conclude in March with the announcement of the first demonstration site set for May.

You can read the full announcement here.

Local church sponsoring religious studies sessions

Newton Independent

The Congregational United Church of Christ in Newton is sponsoring a series of presentations that will delve into the general topics of faiths and religions.

Henry Rietz, chair of the Grinnell College Religious Studies Department will lead the first session to be held at the church, 308 E. 2nd St. N. (east of Fareway), at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 15, where participants will discuss the topic "Is the Bible True?"

Rietz will draw on examples from the Hebrew Bible, Christian Scripture and Dead Sea Scrolls to help those attending reflect on how people use texts and contexts to create meaning. The goal of the session is to equip people to respond to those who invoke the Bible in making truth claims.

Rietz will also lead the second session, set for Wednesday, March 7, where the topic will be, "The Truth is Out There." This session will introduce different ways of thinking about religion.

A subsequent session will address Islam in a session lead by Caleb Elfenbein, an assistant professor at Grinnell College. Dr. Harold Kasimow, the George A. Drake Professor of Religious Studies, who is on senior faculty status at Drake University, will discuss Judaism in a later session. He is a Holocaust survivor.

The gatherings are designed to be informal with ample opportunity for questions. Light refreshments will be served. The public is invited. For more information, contact the church at 792-3773.

HIRTA begins Newton to DM shuttle service

Newton Independent

HIRTA Public Transit is now offering a shuttle service between Newton and Des Moines.

The door-to-door shuttle will run twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The shuttle will leave Newton at 9 a.m. and return at 1 p.m.

Because of the door-to-door service, those using the service need to call in advance at 877-686-0029 to schedule the ride.

The cost of the round trip ride is $10. The service is open to the public.

Two named to Drake Dean's List

Newton Independent

Taylor Soule and Brandon Tish, both of Newton, were named to the Dean's List for the fall semester at Drake University.

The academic honor is achieved by earning a grade-point average of 3.5 or higher.

New hours for Newton landfill operations

Newton Independent

Beginning Monday, Feb. 13, the Newton Sanitary Landfill will close one hour earlier on weekdays.

The new hours will be 7:30 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. Monday through Friday.

As in past years, the Newton landfill will be open on Saturday mornings April 1 through Oct. 31. However, the landfill will open one hour later on Saturdays. The new Saturday hours will be 8 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.

The new hours will provide cost savings and better efficiency of staff, said Newton Public Works/Parks Director Keith Laube.

For more information, call the landfill at 792-3866.

Windstream in discussions on possible sale of former Maytag campus

By PETER HUSSMANN

Plans to develop the former Maytag campus near downtown Newton into a national veterans recovery center were shelved today when backers of the effort learned that Windstream Corp. was looking elsewhere in its attempt to sell the property.

Bob Krause, representing Veterans National Careers Corporation, told several state lawmakers and others working on the project in an email this afternoon that Windstream was working with a potential different buyer for the Maytag campus.

"Needless to say, I am disappointed, but I am not sure what more can be done now," Krause wrote in the email. "I would like to thank you for all your efforts for troubled veterans."

Windstream officials this afternoon said that no sale of the Newton property it acquired as part of its Iowa Telecom acquisition in June 2010 has been finalized.

"We have not reached a definitive agreement to sell the campus," Windstream spokesperson David Avery said this afternoon. "However, we are in discussions and have signed confidentiality agreements that prohibit us from commenting further."

Newton WaterWorks manager offers advice on local 'water service line' insurance solicitation

Newton Independent

Newton WaterWorks officials weighed in today after becoming aware of a Des Moines company's solication to local residents of an offer for a "water service line warranty."

WaterWorks Manager LD Palmer said there are companies that offer this type of insurance and offered the following advice to local residents considering purchasing the coverage:

• Residents need to know and understand that homeowners are responsible for the cost of water line breaks between the city's main and the home. In Newton, property owners own the water service between the city main and the meter.
• Residents should review their homeowner's insurance policy to determine the extent of their coverage and to identify any coverage gaps.
• Residents should review and understand all the inclusions and exclusions which are listed in the fine print at the bottom of the home service solicitation letter. As an example, Palmer asked what might define an "act of god," whether warranty includes landscape and concrete restoration, whether the warranty covers frozen pipes, whether the company covers broken outside shutoff valves and what might constitute a "preexisting condition."

Palmer said the company was not solicited by the Newton WaterWorks and the WaterWorks does not endorse the company, HomeServe.

For more information, contact the WaterWorks at 641-792-2003.

Death of Newton toddler under investigation

Newton Independent

Newton police are investigating the death of a six-month old boy who died last month after being taken to Skiff Medical Center due to injuries.

Newton Police Department Lt. Wes Breckenridge said today that law enforcement officials are awaiting the results of an autopsy being conducted on Kaiden Michael Olea.

Breckenridge said that the boy was taken to the Newton hospital on Jan 10 "due to injuries." He was then transported by air ambulance to Blank Children's Hospital in Des Moines where he died on Jan. 15.

The toddler is the son of Joseph Olea and Chelsea Miller of 210 E. 28th St. N., Apt. 208.

Breckenridge said the investigation continues.