$100M plant coming by 2030 The Storm Lake City Council accepted a committee’s recommendation to build a new water plant, an endeavor that’s estimated to cost ratepayers in Storm Lake, …

District admits no wrongdoing for child who chewed battery, claimed ADA discrimination Storm Lake School District and an Alta family reached a $350,000 settlement in connection with a federal …

The City of Storm Lake and Buena Vista County have spent over $480,000 litigating the city’s lawsuit over the county auditor’s alleged misappropriations of the city’s tax-increment financing …

The Storm Lake area’s economy weakened in 2025.  The top headlines in the Storm Lake Times Pilot in 2025 focused on economic blows to the area in every month of this year.  …

Dan Winchell was released from jail on Christmas Eve.  Winchell scored bond reduction from Judge Andy Smith in an order Dec. 23. Judge Smith lowered the bond securing Winchell’s release …

Storm Lake ‘an awesome community,’ Porsch says Mike Porsch’s final city council meeting came and went last week.  After eight years as mayor and eight more as a city council …

Change orders ‘really bother’ new sl Councilman Piercy The Storm Lake City Council approved an $8,700 change order to reroute sewer service as part of the $1.45 million lift station …

Defendant Cristobal Del Angel says he’s the victim of twisted stories, biased investigations   Jurors entered deliberations on Monday afternoon after a four-day trial over whether a …

Storm Lake police credited the arrest of a Storm Lake man who allegedly ran over a wheelchair-bound pedestrian at the intersection of 12th Street and North Lake Avenue on Sunday.  Myron …

AP investigation: Border Patrol cracks into cities’ software

Farmland values in Northwest Iowa inched up in 2025 amid a host of downward pressures stemming from an ailing ag economy, according to Iowa State University’s Land Value Survey.  …

Nine months after an arbitration panel reversed the Federal Emergency Management Agency yanking $7.5 million from the Linn Grove Dam project, Buena Vista County Conservation Director Greg Johnson …

Fundraising to pay for the rest  On the heels of a stinging defeat of a bond measure Alta voters struck down last month, Alta Library Director Gigi Nelson said the city’s library …

Buena Vista University has rebranded the American Heritage Lecture Series.  A statement the university issued on Thursday afternoon said the William W. Siebens American Heritage Lecture …

Buena Vista County is expected to depose of City Manager Keri Navratil, Finance Manager Tyler Gibbins and a Minnesota-based forensic accountant in connection with the City of Storm Lake’s …

City should consider ‘more logical path,’ BV County engineer says The Storm Lake City Council tabled its engineer’s recommended drainage improvement projects near the …

City Manager Keri Navratil received a 3.5% raise after an annual evaluation by the Storm Lake City Council on Monday.  Navratil will be paid $168,542 by next month. Mayor-elect Meg McKeon …

Jose Tovar’s murder trial was rescheduled to 2026.  Accused of murdering his brother 17 years ago, Tovar was scheduled to stand trial in Buena Vista County Nov. 18. But Tovar’s …

A judge is considering arguments over whether to convict an Alta man on a slew of sex abuse charges for the alleged abuse of a girl last summer.  A two-day bench trial in front of Judge …

Lake Creek: keep intersection the way it is With years of road construction upcoming around Platinum Crush, those who live near Lake Creek Country Club have been clamoring for Highway 7’s …