By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette

During the July 24 meeting of the Guthrie County Hospital Board of Trustees, CEO Chris Stipe explained the hospital’s interest in purchasing the building that houses the Panora clinic.

“I do have a meeting scheduled with the landlord of the Panora clinic next week to sit down and work on getting on the same page about the purchase price,” Stipe said.

Danielle Lauzon, clinical safety and quality coordinator, reviewed the most recent quality improvement measures. She also reported on the status of training employees in a program called MOAB (Management of Aggressive Behavior).

“We did send one employee to MOAB training. We sent her to the train-the-trainer class, and we’re going to send two more employees to that, and then those three individuals will train all of us on MOAB,” Lauzon said.

Lauzon also reported that the hospital is obtaining personal safety alarm devices that staff can wear and activate if they need immediate assistant to maintain safety.

Foundation Director Dennis Flanery shared information about an ongoing fundraiser event.

“We have a raffle that we’re doing now through Labor Day weekend. People have been generous in putting some packages together for us,” Flanery said, adding that seven packages will be raffled off, with each package valued at more than $1,000.

The next regular meeting of the trustees is set for Aug. 28 at 3 p.m. The public is welcome.

Special to the Times Vedette

Farmland values in Iowa held steady in the first half of 2025, according to the semiannual benchmark farmland report from Farm Credit Services of America (FCSAmerica). This stability underscores the financial strength in agriculture, even as producers face ongoing market uncertainty.  

Iowa saw a slight average decline of just -0.10% in farmland values during the first six months of the year, marking the second consecutive dip for the state. Despite these modest decreases, Iowa farmland values remain near record highs, supported by strong farm financials and continued demand for high-quality ground.  

“Unlike short-term commodity price swings or isolated financial stress, land values reflect long-term confidence,” Tim Koch, FCSAmerica executive vice president of business development, said. “When producers are still willing to invest in farmland, it tells us they believe in the future of the industry. That kind of stability is a grounded, tangible signal of where agriculture really stands.” 

Sale prices are tracked separately from the benchmark values included in the report. Averaged across all sales, prices for Iowa farmland have stabilized. The average second quarter price of $12,445 per acre was slightly above the first quarter of 2025.  

State-by-state comparisons  

FCSAmerica tracks values on the same 63 benchmark farms every January and July across Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming. As a whole, values ticked up an average of 1.70% with changes for individual states ranging from -0.90% to 5.30%. The 12-month value changes ranged from -3.00% to 11.50% with an average of 2.80%.   

The major factors impacting the agricultural real estate market are lower commodity prices, profitability in the cattle market, and limited supply of real estate for sale, which continues to be consistent over the past reporting periods. Farmers and ranchers also continue to be the predominant buyers.

*The parentheses indicate the number of benchmark operations in each state. 

Below is a state-by-state summary of benchmark values for cropland and pastureland over the past six and 12 months.  

Iowa: Cropland benchmark values decreased -0.10% over the past 6 months and -3.60% over the past 12 months.  

Iowa does not have pasture benchmark farms. 

Nebraska: Cropland benchmark values over the last 6 months decreased -0.50% and -1.20% over the last 12 months. 

Pasture benchmark values decreased slightly over the past 6- and 12-month marks averaging a -1.00% decrease. Nebraska has two benchmarks that are predominantly pasture, an upland pasture farm in central Nebraska and a Sandhills ranch. 

South Dakota: Cropland benchmark values increased 3.50% over the past 6 months and 6.20% over the past year. 

The five pasture benchmarks showed an increase of 14.20% over the past 6 months and 26.2% over the past 12 months. The state of South Dakota showed the greatest strength in pasture values across the Associations this reporting period. The increase is largely due to limited sales data in the western part of the state over the past 12 months; the spring of 2025 has been active with new data to analyze. The availability of land (pasture specifically) along with the strong cattle market has contributed to the sales activity.  

Wyoming: The cropland benchmark was relatively stable over the past 6 months and increased 0.50% over the past year.

The pasture benchmark value increased 9.90% over the past 6 months and 12 month periods, respectively.  

For more information on this report and land values, visit https://www.fcsamerica.com/resources/learning-center/latest-land-values. 

Special to the Times Vedette

The 42d annual Readinger Reunion was held Sunday, July 13 at Mitchell Park in Guthrie Center with 46 in attendance.

Coming from out-of-state were Roslyn Readinger of Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Matthew “Fuzzy” Readinger of Bloomer, Wisconsin; Luc, Mary, Liam, Ansel and Vera Readinger of Viroqua, Wisconsin.

Attendees from Iowa were Cathy Gomez of Bettendorf; Rick and Ella Crawford of Knoxville; Elizabeth Kelly and Timolin, Timaya, Timmeshia and Timon of Davenport; Mike Kelly, Braeden and Abigail Rysius of Collins; Caleb Wulf of Adair; Steve Readinger of Mt. Pleasant; Erin Readinger of North Liberty; Rhonda and David Mixon of Danville; Ethan, Jenna, Arya, and Aurora Miller of Danville; Maggie Miller Walsh, Arrow, Knox, Rosalie and Sawyer of Danville; and Chip, Dana, Ryan Readinger of Burlington.

Guthrie Center residents attending were Dan and Bonny Readinger; Dusty and Jen Readinger; Jacqueline Readinger and Kevin Nelson; Gabe Readinger; and Matt, Heather, Ryan and Emma Martens.

Fun, fellowship and family updates were shared before, during and after the noon potluck.

Special to the Times Vedette

On July 21, a total of 14 players participated. Sandy Rumelhart got two 16s; Rhonda Titus and Dennis Betts each got a 16; and Robert Klever got a 17.

On July 23, a total of 14 players participated. Jim Carico got a 16 and a 20; Robert Klever got two 16s; Chet Vaughan got a 16; and Sandy Rumelhart got a 22. 

The Guthrie Center cribbage players generally meet at Guthrie Center Library, 400 Grand St., on Mondays at 8 a.m. and at the New Homestead independent living dining hall, 2306 State St., at 8 a.m. on Wednesdays and at 1 p.m. on Fridays. Organizers say there is always room for more, and they will be glad to teach you how to play. They play for quarters on Wednesday and Friday.

In other cribbage news, a cribbage tournament will be held Friday, Aug. 1 during Panorama Days at the community center. Registration starts at 1:30 p.m.

Special to the Times Vedette

The Lake Panorama Association sent an email notice to its memebers calling a special meeting of the LPA Board of Directors to consider the construction of multiple unit housing (condominiums) on lot 7000 of the Lake Panorama Subdivision, which is the current location of The Port and Lakeside Inn.

The meeting will be held at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 5 at the Captain’s Pick at the Lake Panorama National Resort, 5071 Cover Ridge Road, Panora. An official notice is also being mailed July 25 to the entire Lake Panorama Membership.

Section 3a of the Declaration of Amended and Substituted Covenants and Restrictions for Lake Panorama Subdivision establishes that the building of multiple unit housing shall be permitted but only under the following circumstances:

• All multiple unit housing and their proposed location must be approved by majority vote of the LPA Board of Directors.
• Before the final approval by the Board of Director of LPA of any such housing, a public hearing must be held by the Board of Directors.
• Prior to such public hearing, all LPA property owners shall be notified of the public hearing in writing. Such notice to be mailed not less than ten (10) days prior to the date of the public hearing.
• The developer of any such proposed multiple unit housing shall submit all information reasonably required by the LPA Board of Directors needed to evaluate the development.

The approval or disapproval of any such multiple unit housing by the LPA Board of Directors shall be at their sole discretion.

LPA members who wish to provide comments on this matter are asked to do so in person at the special meeting or submit written comments to the LPA by 5 p.m. on Aug. 4.