Breaking News

Opinion

Jimmerson was truly the leader of the band

Editorial

It seemed like he was always there. When the Karl King Municipal Band began its summer season by playing at the Memorial Day observance, Jerrold Jimmerson picked up his baton and led his musicians in playing patriotic favorites. Throughout the summer concerts, he conducted the band and did all kinds of behind the scenes work to make for successful, enjoyable shows. The same was true for the indoor winter concerts. Jimmerson was a fixture in the community. Indeed, many Fort Dodge music lovers can’t remember any other conductor of the band. After 21 years as conductor and 65 ...

Preserve FD seeks to address community problems

Letters to the Editor

To the editor: In response to the July 6, 2024, editorial: “Effort is needed to address abandoned buildings, homeless”. Preserve Fort Dodge, Inc. echoes this concern regarding abandoned buildings and homelessness. The issue is exactly what Preserve Fort Dodge, an Iowa non-profit corporation, is working to address. The purpose of Preserve Fort Dodge is “to oversee and/or assist in steps for preservation, adaptive reuse and/or rehabilitation of vacant buildings within Fort Dodge to ensure their future use and viability for the betterment of our community.” We are starting with ...

Patience will pay off at Corridor Plaza

Editorial

The steel framework of what will be a sports pavilion at Corridor Plaza seems to get bigger every day. On the opposite side of the property that used to be Crossroads Mall, a fence has gone up around the area where a Chick-fil-A restaurant will be built. Earthmovers are rumbling around another section of the complex, while workers go in and out of the old Younkers wing of the mall that is being converted into a row of stores that will include Dunham’s Sporting Goods, Maurice’s and Shoe Sensation. It seems like suddenly there is a whole lot of activity at Corridor Plaza. It is ...

Stand with Israel, bring American hostages home

Local Columns

Today, eight of our fellow citizens are still being held in Gaza by the ruthless terror regime that wants nothing more than the death and destruction of Israel and the United States. I’ve met with the families of our American hostages numerous times — on the ground in Israel and in our nation’s capital. They long for the day when they can embrace their loved ones again, and say two simple, yet remarkably comforting words: welcome home. In the days following Oct. 7, President Biden vowed that Israel would have the full support of the United States. He pledged that we would ...

Hruskas vow to overcome tragic loss, reopen Dam Store one day

Local Columns

Mother Nature may have won the battle when the Hruska family lost its house and widely beloved business to the raging currents of the Blue Earth River that swept away the land beneath the two century-old structures just 12 miles outside Mankato, Minnesota. But the Hruskas — 84-year-old ...

Innovative plan seeks to increase heat on drug dealers

Editorial

Illegal drugs can be found at the root of nearly every crime, ranging from a broken window to a homicide. Here’s how Webster County Sheriff Luke Fleener describes it: “Our crime rate is driven by the influx and availability of illegal narcotics in our community.” What if something could be done to make life miserable for the drug dealers at the heart of all these problems without costing the local taxpayers any more money? An innovative plan put together by county leaders and the Fort Dodge Community Foundation aims to do just that. The plan would pool funding from the ...