By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette

At the July 22 regular meeting of the Panora City Council, several citizens had signed up to address the council regarding the proposed Ordinance 354 (Chapter 149). The council had proposed prohibiting the large shipping containers that several citizens have brought onto their properties in the city.

Jerry Armstrong explained that he and his wife, Nancy, recently moved into town from a rural Panora address. He added that they’ve had a storage container for eight years and recently moved it to their new home in Panora.

“We’ve spent over $7,000 in cleaning the lot and landscaping. We removed two ugly buildings,” Armstrong said. “We’ve beautified that piece of ground, so now we’ve got an ugly storage container apparently sitting on it.”

Armstrong said that storage facilities in the Panora area are mostly unavailable for rent, because there has been so much demand. Regarding the container on his yard, he said he’s willing to do what is needed in order to keep it.

“We’re willing to landscape it. We’re willing to do the things, if we have to, to make it more appealing,” Armstrong said. “We don’t want an eyesore either.”

Ron Sheeder addressed the council, explaining that he doesn’t have such an item, but feels the council shouldn’t prohibit them.

“I really don’t feel it’s your place to tell people what they can and can’t have on their property, even if it is an eyesore,” Sheeder said. “It’s just not fair to people.”

Roger Snyder spoke regarding his two storage containers.

“I feel like if the council wants to control it, let them permit,” Snyder said. “They’ve got to bring in just like they did for a garden shed. They’ve got to give you a drawing and paint it the same color as the house.”

Snyder advocated for “grandfathering in” those who already have such containers in the city. He also said if the containers are not allowed, the contents may be more of an eyesore if items are not contained.

Chris Arganbright spoke in support of the council’s efforts to control storage containers in the city.

“A lot of work has been done to beautify Panora, and bring business in, and I just feel like something has to be done,” Arganbright said.

The council voted to table the planned second reading of the proposed ordinance.

The council voted to approve the first reading of a proposed ordinance (Ordinance 355, amending Chapter 41) by adding a section related to fishing from and/or jumping off bridges. This is to address concerns at the bridge near Lenon Mill Park. The council voted to waive the second and third readings. Signs will be posted at the bridge from both directions.

Jeremy Muell asked the council to consider granting his business (NAPA) permission to operate golf carts when the business is working on them.

“Sometimes, we have a lot of issue trying to shake out what the problem is. Sometimes, you’ve got to drive them for a half an hour or 45 minutes. We don’t have any hills around the business,” Muell said.

He explained that it’s helpful to drive the carts to some of the hilly areas near the lake to fully test them. He added that this would only be done for these repair/testing situations and only during daylight hours. No council action was taken at this time.

The council’s next regular meeting will be Monday, Aug. 12 at 5:30 p.m. The public is welcome. Interested persons may attend in person or electronically by visiting the website https://meet.goto.com/cityofpanora or by phone 1-312-757-3121 (Access Code 295-099-701, Audio PIN 220#).

Carolyn England poses next to the cottonwood stump.

By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette

Carolyn England shared her July 17 experience on the walking/bike trail in Panora.

“Mary Williamson and I are regular trail walkers, and the weather this week has been so much more pleasant than the heat before. We were happy to walk again. We had turned around to start back home on Wednesday when we heard a loud crackle ahead on the trail,” England said.

The crackles then gave way to a loud crashing sound as the cottonwood tree fell onto the trail.

 “We weren’t sure if we would be able to climb through and over the foliage and downed branches to proceed home. It was quite dense. We found a less hazardous place and ducked under and through the brush and walked out,” England said. “As we walked, we discussed how lucky we were and how thankful we were that there had been warning sounds that caused us to stop and question what was happening. We thought if we had been bikers wearing headphones, our timing would have been disastrous.”

England shared that the DNR was called in to remove the tree, and the trail was promptly reopened.

Dean Wetzel with his 1955 Chevy on a beautiful afternoon.

The story of how Dean Wetzel came to own this car is meaningful and bittersweet.

By Rich Wicks | Guthrie Center Times

Dean Wetzel knows cars, which stands to reason, since he’s been working on them during his “day job” for the past 42 years at Wetzel Repair in Guthrie Center. But he also enjoys working on cars as a hobby. 

One of Wetzel’s favorite cars is a 1955 Chevrolet 210. 

“Originally, it was a 210 Belair station wagon, and somebody cut the back end off and made it into like an El Camino,” Wetzel said. “Because they never made an El Camino in ’55.”

The story of how Wetzel came to own this car is meaningful and bittersweet.

“A friend of mine, Greg Kenyon, bought that car in Arizona. He bought it because he liked ’55s,” Wetzel said. “He shipped it up here, and it didn’t run well. Somebody did a nice job on the body, but then they stuck a motor and transmission in it and cobbled everything up. So, it kind of drove.”

Wetzel and Kenyon set to work together to make a variety of improvements to the car. Some of the upgrades included fuel injection, power disc brakes, rack and pinion steering, full dual exhaust, a digital dashboard, sway bars and vintage air conditioning. 

“We spent three years, off and on, just changing stuff on it. About the only thing that’s original besides the body is the rear end and the radiator,” Wetzel said. “It drives and handles like a modern car now.”

After Kenyon passed away, Wetzel voiced an interest in buying the ’55 as a memorial to his friend.

“We spent a lot of time on it. A lot of knuckle busting and a lot of thinking,” Wetzel said. “I bought it about a year ago.” 

Wetzel doesn’t plan to put the car in many car shows but displayed it at the FFA car show in the fall of 2023 and at the Lakeside Village car show in June of this year. Mainly, he likes to keep the car in good running order and enjoy the memories it represents. He has no plans to part with it.

“I drive it about once a week. If I wanted to go to Kansans City or Omaha, it’ll go,” Wetzel said.

The ’55 isn’t the only classic car Wetzel owns and works on, though.

“Oh, I’ve got the ’55, I’ve got a ’66 Impala Super Sport, I’ve got the ’70 Chevelle, I’ve got two early ’40s Chevy pickups, I’ve got a ’69 one-ton GMC that was my dad’s,” Wetzel said. “I like driving them all.” 

For Wetzel, the satisfaction of working on cars is a personal thing.

“I do my own painting, and I’m not a painter…I’m going to do it my way, for me,” Wetzel said.

When asked about his favorite moment involved in fixing up a car, Wetzel had a definite answer.

“For me, it’s when I start it,” Wetzel said. “When I build an engine and put that in there, and when I fire it up and listen to it run. I’ve always been an engine builder.”