An ordinance to change the zoning of a lot in Hampton failed last Thursday.
At its regular meeting last week, the Hampton City Council voted down a measure to change a portion of the lot by First Christian Church, 605 Fourth St. NE, from R1 (residential) to Arterial Transitional (AT), which allows residential and commercial considerations. The lot had been tabbed by a funeral home developer for a new location.

The public and parents received an up-close look at improvements made at the CAL school building.
CAL last Tuesday hosted an Open House and Literacy Night, where members of the public and family members were invited to have a meal at the newly remodeled cafeteria.

Home improvement means more than just new sidings and shingles. The home's interior needs attention too and that's what King's Hometown in Ackley specializes in.
For decades now the Main Street business has served the community under one name or another but, since being purchased by Deb and Mike King in 1997, King's Hometown has been the go-to place for furniture and flooring.

A North Iowa Youth For Christ program kicked off its new year in a colorful way last week.

The Iowa House Republicans have appointed Pat Grassley (R – New Hartford) as the new House Speaker.
Earlier this month, Speaker Linda Upmeyer (R-Clear Lake) announced she would not seek reelection to the Iowa House of Representatives in 2020 and would step down as Speaker of the House.

The Hampton City Council on Monday passed the first reading of an ordinance that would change the zoning to an empty lot that has drawn considerable conversation in recent months.

It was a blustery, cool morning on Saturday, Oct. 12 as Butler County Conservation Director Mike Miner welcomed commu-nity members and guests to the grand opening and ribbon cut-ting ceremony of the Rolling Prairie Bike Trail at the trail-head in Bristow. The morn-ing’s festivities were in celebra-tion of the completion of the six-mile section of trail from Allison to Bristow, which took 10 years to finish.

Just because summer is over doesn’t mean it’s time to put away bikes and hiking shoes.
In fact, Ned Parker, Franklin County Conservation Director, said mid-October is the perfect time to utilize the Rolling Prairie Trail throughout the county.
“It’s about the best time of year to be on the trail in my opinion,” he said. “The bugs are gone, it’s not all humid and the leaves are starting to turn.”

Speaker of the Iowa House Linda Upmeyer last week announced that her 18th year serving in the Iowa House of Representatives will be her last.
Upmeyer last Monday issued a release announcing she will not seek reelection in 2020 and will step down as Speaker of the House in late 2019.

A little restaurant in a tiny Franklin County town has earned some big honors.
The Iowa Pork Producers Association named Bradford’s Stumble Inn one of five finalists for the annual contest to find the best breaded pork tenderloin sandwich in the state.

With suicide rates in farmers increasing in recent years, local entities are working together to help make sure area producers have resources in place in times of need.

Clouds and rain cleared out of the area just in time for picture perfect day for the Harriman-Nielsen Historic Farm Fall Festival Sunday.

Increased accessibility and a little splash of fun create a kid-friendly environment in the recently refreshed CAL lunchroom.
The lunchroom over the summer underwent a facelift to improve the traffic flow of students as they enter the cafeteria and increase its aesthetic appeal. The room received new tile floors, new paint and the drop ceiling was removed to expose original ceiling windows.

The past came to life this weekend at the Windsor Theatre as the Franklin County Arts Council and Windsor Theatre Development Corporation presented the ninth annual "An Evening Like It Used To Be" on Saturday, Oct. 5.
Putting on a night of entertainment as it would have been 90 years ago, the variety show featured live music, a vaudeville show, a sing-along, and a silent movie accompanied by the Windsor Orchestra.

A fourth grade class at South Side Elementary got to see the world without leaving school.
The students last Thursday had the opportunity to use new ClassVR Goggles, which feature a mix of virtual reality (VR), a computer-generated simulation or recreation of an environment, and augmented reality (AR), a live environment with layers of generated features placed on top.