BELLE PLAINE NEWSLETTER

Belle Plaine City Hall, 1207 8th Avenue, Belle Plaine, IA 52208 319-444-2200

www.belleplaineiowa.us December 2017

FROM THE DESK OF PARKS &

RECREATION DIRECTOR Stew Timm

The City of Belle Plaine and I want to thank Les Jacobi for his commitment to the Parks and Recreation Department. Les has served on the Park Board since January 2000. Les has been

instrumental in many different projects in the department. I would also like to welcome Lena White and Shawn Welsh (filling a vacancy) to the Park Board. Lena will begin her term January 1st, 2018. She will serve a six year term. Shawn has already began his term and he will serve for two more years. We look forward to both additions and we will continue to serve the community to the best of our abilities. Should you have questions or comments feel free to reach out to a Park Board member or myself. We will finish up with our recreation basketball league December 10th. Then there will not be any youth programs until after the 1st of the year due to busy schedules around the holidays.

DECEMBER LIBRARY EVENTS:

Preschool Story Time—Dec 8th @ 9:30am Tippie Activity Room Friday Fun: Adult Coloring— Dec 15th @ 1:00pm; Tippie Activity Room Board of Trustees Meeting—Dec 19th @ 5pm Tippie Activity Room Book Club: Come watch a movie— Dec 19th @ 6:30pm Special Story Time—Dec 22nd, 9:30am, With a visit from Mr. & Mrs. Claus! CLOSED FOR CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY— Dec 23rd thru Dec 26th CLOSED FOR NEW YEAR’S HOLIDAY— Jan 1st and Jan 2nd

REGISTER YOUR PETS FOR 2018!

The new pet licenses are in for 2018. Please register your cats and dogs at City Hall before

the end of January. Reminder: make sure we have a copy of the current rabies certificate.

BELLE PLAINE

AMBULANCE SOUP SUPPER

Help support our Belle Plaine Ambulance

Sunday, December 3rd 4:30pm to 6:30pm

BP Ambulance Garage 1308 1/2 13th St

FREE WILL DONATION

Chicken Noodle, Chili, Vegetable & Broccoli Cheese

FROM THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR Jeff Horne

The City Council initiated a new Owner Occupied Home Rehabilitation Grant Program that began on July 1. $10,000 of sales tax funds for fiscal year 2018 (July 1, 2017 - June 30, 2018) were set aside for the program. To be eligible a house must be owner occupied in the city limits of Belle Plaine. Items covered include water heaters, HVAC, Roofs, Unsafe flooring, Unsafe porches or steps, Handicapped barriers, windows, indoor plumbing, stoves & ovens & electrical. The applicant pays 2/3 of the cost of the project. The City will pay 1/3 of the cost up to $2,000. The only requirement after is that the home owner stay in the house for three (3) years otherwise the funds are due back to the City. This fits with the City’s goal of maintaining our current housing stock. The $10,000 set aside leverages $20,000 in private investment and is an investment in the ongoing health of our city. For information on the program, please contact me at cityadminbp@netins.net or call City Hall at

444-2200.

www.belleplaineiowa.us December 2017

FROM THE DESK OF POLICE CHIEF Kris Hudson

With the Christmas holiday rapidly approaching we would like to remind residents to lock your vehicles and remove valuables. We have had two incidents fairly recently where cars were taken that were left unlocked and with the keys in them. While we are happy to help you in any way we can, we would ask that residents help us out – locking your cars, remove valuables, and just generally being vigilant and reporting suspicious activity. Our non-emergency phone number is (319) 444-2323. Call 911 in an emergency.

Have a great holiday season!

NURSING HOME EVENTS: December 5th Plastic Bag Project—10am Program by Karen Bradley—2pm December 7th—2pm Making Snowman Cans December 11h—6pm Boy Scouts visiting December 12th—2pm Slide Show by Bev Winkie December 13th—1:30pm Preschoolers visit December 14th—2pm Staff Inservice and Christmas Party December 16th—2-4pm Resident Gift Opening Day, Light Refreshments will be served. Family & friends are welcome to join us. December 19th Preschoolers visit—1:30pm & 5:30pm, We will have our annual candlelight supper, with music by Rita Michalek. Family and friends are welcome to join us, please call ahead to make reservations. December 21st—2pm Christmas Memories, followed by Cocoa & Cookies December 26th—2pm Resident Council Meeting December 28th—2pm Play Bingo December 29th—2pm New Year’s Party

Belle Plaine City Hall, 1207 8th Avenue, Belle Plaine, IA 52208 319-444-2200

www.belleplaineiowa.us December 2017

Belle Plaine City Hall, 1207 8th Avenue, Belle Plaine, IA 52208 319-444-2200

Seasons Greetings from Belle Plaine Community Development Corporation!

We hope you all made it to our annual Holiday Homecoming celebration Nov. 24-25. The event

grows each year as many volunteers work long hours to make this Christmas kick-off a weekend to

remember. Here are a few highlights:

The lighted parade with 30 creative entries. The parade just seemed to top off the new downtown holiday lights. Judging by the crowd’s reaction, the parade was a big hit.

The lighting of the city’s beautiful Christmas tree and live holiday music. The biggest crowd ever gathered for this annual tradition.

The chili supper. Food, fun, fellowship and live music. Volunteers donated the chili, cookies and musical talent for this BPCDC fundraiser.

The $1,000 Christmas Giveaway, new this year thanks to our local merchants and vendors.

A magical Santa’s Workshop where kiddos made crafts, decorated cookies, had lunch and told Santa and Mrs. Claus their holiday wish lists.

A free family movie at the King Theatre, sponsored by our organization.

One thing you will notice about most of the Holiday Homecoming happenings is --- they are free to

the public. But that doesn’t mean they are free to put on. The Christmas weekend, like the July 3

Taste of Belle Plaine and Car Show, Easter Egg Hunt and golf outing, all come with expenses. If you

like these events and want to see them continue, please consider becoming a BPCDC investor. Your

“membership” will lend the financial support needed to ensure the fun events keep on rolling and our

organization can continue to support and promote our city.

Our 2018 Investment Drive will soon be underway with opportunities for businesses, individuals and families. If you are not contacted personally and wish to join us as we work to make Belle Plaine even better, please let us know! You can reach our office at 319-434-6481, email Executive Director Sheila Hlas at: director@bpcdc.net or pick up an investment form at City Hall. Your investment is tax-deductible as allowed by law.

Remember, ‘community’ is at the center of Belle Plaine Community Development Corp. Please help

us grow our community as you are able.

A peaceful, joyous holiday season to you and yours!

Belle Plaine Community Development Corp.

A Main Street Iowa Community Since 2008