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We must save what's left of our historic buildings

Local Columns

We must save what’s left of our historic buildings. Why? Because they are a crucial part of this community’s identity. How we treat them, how we leave them — or don’t leave them — will be our legacy. I say this because now another of Webster City’s downtown historic buildings is in trouble. The City of Webster City identified visible exterior problems at 547 Second Street, an iconic commercial edifice that was built in 1890 and was, for many years, the Coulter Paint Store. An unsafe building sign has been posted and barricades set up along the southwest corner of ...

Ed Snow was resilient, and then some

Local Columns

Have you ever had a time in your life when you ran into the perfect person to lift you out of a slight funk? A time when you may be having, dare I say, a bit of a “pity party?” It seems that an accident I had some years ago — as in 1977 — has, after all this time, reared up and I’ll ...

Playing with Julie's grandkids

Local Columns

We had some special guests in our home recently. All five grandkids (and their parents, of course) spent a weekend with us. They all live at least four hours away so we don’t see them frequently. These are Julie’s grandchildren but she lets me play with them. The grandkids range in age from five to 13. In fact, the oldest, Eliza, celebrated her 13th birthday the second day they were here. I first met Eliza when she was nearly 3 years old. I remember this curly-haired toddler with whom I helped build “towers” with wooden blocks. We interrupted block-playing for supper. As ...

Commends press for the constant upstream paddle

Letters to Editor

To the Editor: I'm particularly concerned about the recent assault on a local newspaper in Kansas (and) the aftermath and the denial of facts in general. Not the same, but the same genre: the stripping of the state auditor of his ability to audit. Without local accountability or accountability to facts account for yourself, make up your own rules, put on a hat, and be righteous for no reason at all. Society needs local newspapers and they should be commended for the constant upstream paddle. Mark Timm Webster City

There are better ways to spend city’s money than a splash pad

Letters to Editor

To the Editor: The splash pad is a nice idea, however the $450,050 cost plus the annual cost of $65,000 to $70,000 for each year seems totally out of line for a city of our size. These funds could be better spent on our aging infrastructure. Wouldn’t it be simpler to give our families in need a free pass to our excellent baby pool which is barely a half block from the proposed splash pad? Virginia Meade Webster City