By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette

On Jan. 31, employees of the City of Panora worked on shutting off the water supply to the former bank building at 101 E. Main St., which is owned by Ravina Homes, LLC of Des Moines. According to the workers, the water line inside the building had frozen, so the decision was made to shut the water off completely. The building had also once been home to the House of Bee business.

A “Delinquent Water Bill Notice” was posted on the front door of the building, dated Jan. 29. Panora City Administrator Lisa Grossman was contacted for additional information, but she said the city is not at liberty to publicly provide further detail.

By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette

The Guthrie County Board of Supervisors met in regular session on Jan. 30. Jotham Arber provided a summary of the budgetary numbers for Public Health, Environmental Health, and the Transfer Station.

Brenda Dudley addressed the supervisors, giving an annual update on services provided by Midwest Partnership. She asked the supervisors to consider providing annual funding of $35,127, which she said is the same amount the county contributed the previous year.

“In the two county area (Guthrie and Adair), surprisingly, we’ve had 20 new businesses start this last year. That just amazes me. I can’t take credit for any of them, but a couple of them I have helped with financing, revolving loan funds. I led them to Region 12,” said Dudley.

The supervisors also heard budgetary summaries from the County Attorney and Secondary Roads departments. The supervisors approved a liquor license renewal request from The Links. The 2024 County Substance Abuse Prevention semi-annual report was also approved.

The supervisors met again on Thursday, Feb. 1 for a Fiscal Year 2025 budget work session. The main topic of discussion was the ongoing efforts to reach an agreement regarding EMS services in the county. Supervisor Mike Dickson summarized the efforts so far, as the cities and county have not been able to compromise on an overall plan.

“Another subcommittee formed. I happened to be on that, and a few of us on the (advisory) council  met with the city council representatives,” he said. “Out of that, I don’t know if there is the opportunity to still come together or not. So then I put together three different options. Well, just two, really. The third option is just for the county to have their own. And at the meeting the other night, those options were taken off the table.”

Asked to summarize the first two options, Dickson said the first would involve a countywide tax, if approved, and the county would then contract with the two entities in the county that currently provide EMS services (Stuart and Panora). A coordinator would be hired to oversee the countywide services.

The second option, as described by Dickson, would be “combined forces.”

“Everybody can keep their own identities, but working together, sharing employees if we need to,” Dickson said.

Supervisor Steve Smith shared his opinion that compromises need to be sought so that each entity can get their concerns addressed.

“I’m trying to figure out why this has so many lines drawn in the sand, and we can’t cross over and get it so that we can move forward. It just stays in the same place,” Smith said. “It just feels clunky. It feels that it’s taking forever to do something that I don’t think should take this long.”

Smith said he feels that rather than just a yes or no response, there needs to be work on tweaking proposed options as needed to find something workable.

“You don’t have five years to get this right, or six months to get this right. Get it right,” Smith said.

Dickson asked for clear direction of which general option the supervisors prefer. Brian Johnson asked for more time to consider that. No board decision was made at this time.

The next meeting of the Board of Supervisors will be a regular meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 6 at 9 a.m. Attendees may participate in person or by calling 323-792-6123 and inputting conference ID 547029216#.

By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette

A public hearing was held Feb. 1 in Jamaica for citizens to learn about the proposed plans, specifications and estimated costs of a rural water connection. Jamaica city official and six others were in attendance. Seth Lamb, water/wastewater engineer with ISG Inc., provided a summary of the need and the general scope of the project.

“Part of this is 30 years of neglect of your system,” said Lamb. “It’s not very often that you come across a system where your storage, distribution, source and treatment are all in such a bad place that the DNR says ‘enough.’ ”

Lamb said if the project is undertaken, it would aim for “substantial completion” by September or October of 2024. The city council agreed that the city has no other reasonable choice other than to go ahead with the project.

The current boil advisory for city water is expected to be lifted by Tuesday, Feb. 6.

The council’s next meeting will be Thursday, Feb. 8 at 7 p.m. The public is welcome.

Special to the Times Vedette

Matt Harmann of rural Panora announced he will seek the 2024 Republican nomination for the office of Guthrie County Sheriff in the June 4, 2024, primary election.

Harmann has served as a Guthrie County deputy since 2018 and as the Panora Volunteer Fire Chief since 2006. He is a 2018 graduate of the police academy and currently serves as one of the Guthrie County Sheriff Department’s two K9 officers.

Harmann has been active in a variety of community endeavors, including volunteer service with Guthrie County Fair Board and as an Advanced EMT with Panora EMS. He is a small business owner with more than 20 years of experience in managing budgets, projects and personnel. He enjoys farming and raising cattle in his spare time.

“I’m proud to call Guthrie County my home,” he said. “I have made public service an important part of my life because I believe we must all do our part to ensure Guthrie County enjoys reliable public safety, fire protection and EMS services.”

Harmann says his business background is also a highlight of his campaign.

“As the owner of Harmann Excavating, I understand the importance of managing a budget closely,” he said. “As a business owner, I must balance the needs of my business, my employees and my customers. These same skills are essential to being an effective sheriff.”

Harmann encourages voters to reach out to him with any questions or concerns.

“My time in public service has allowed me to meet a large number of people in Guthrie County,” he said. “For those who I haven’t yet met, I look forward to connecting with you as part of my campaign and appreciate your consideration for this important office.”

Harmann is currently the only declared candidate for the Republican nomination for Guthrie County Sheriff.