April 2015

The two items generating the most debate at Monday night’s Humboldt City Council meeting were two items that required no action on the part of the council. The items drawing the most attention were the condition of 6th Avenue North in the area around the Three Rivers Trail Bridge, and the popcorn stand on Sumner Avenue. The meeting also marked the return of Humboldt Mayor Walter Jensen, exactly two months after Jensen took a leave of absence from the elected position. Jensen said Monday was his first day back as mayor, and said he is ready to get back to work. Humboldt City Administrator Aaron Burnett said Schlotfeldt Engineering in Webster City examined the condition of 6th Avenue North near the trail bridge overpass (commonly referred to locally as the “rathole”) and reported it would cost an estimated $230,000 to address all of the issues regarding the road and drainage.

The Humboldt man accused of two daylight robberies at local businesses last December appeared in Humboldt County District Court on Monday and pleaded guilty to two amended reduced charges. Kaleb A. Lenning, 20, of Humboldt, pleaded guilty to one count of theft in the first degree, a class C felony, and one count of extortion, a class D felony. The guilty pleas surround incidents that occurred in the city of Humboldt on Dec. 18, 2014. According to police and court documents, Lenning robbed the Hy-Vee Wine and Spirits store at 1011 13th Street North of an undisclosed amount of cash shortly after 10 a.m. Eyewitnesses at the scene report that Lenning displayed a hunting knife at the time of the robbery. A tentative sentencing date has been set for Monday, May 18, but it could be set earlier by the court. To read more, subscribe to The Humboldt Independent by clicking on the link above.

Humboldt's boys won their third consecutive team track title by winning the Webster City Lynx Relays Tuesday night (April 21). Humboldt's girls, meanwhile, took third in the Pocahontas Area Relays. Humboldt's boys will run at Pocahontas on Friday, April 24, while the girls will host their annual Humboldt Relays on April 27.See full story and photos in the Humboldt Independent. Click the link above to begin your subscription today for digital and/or print access to the Independent.

VERNIE D. BOOMGARDEN, 84, Humboldt, died Monday, April 20, 2015, at the Long Term Care Unit of the Humboldt County Memorial Hospital. Those wishing to send online condolences can send them to masonlindhart@gmail.com and we will see that it gets to the family. Be sure to put the deceased’s name in the subject line.