Published: Thursday, March 28, 2013 1:08 AM CDT

Yankton business officials are getting prepared for the first month of the $2-per-night tax to be charged for stays at certain hotels within the city.

The Business Improvement District (BID) group, which met on Wednesday, includes hotels within the Yankton city limits that have 25 or more rooms. Smaller hotels can also volunteer to be included in the group.

The hotel tax, which will begin this April, will be due on the 20th of each month, with an electronic spreadsheet for hotel operators expected to be online soon.

“With the online spreadsheet, you can fill out everything you need on the computer,” said Dave Mingo, community development director, who attended the BID meeting. “All hotel operators would have to do after filling it out would be to mail it in.”

After receipts are collected, the BID will establish a budget within the next several months and update it in time for each meeting.

Also on hand for Wednesday’s meeting was Lisa Scheve of the Yankton Convention and Visitors Bureau. She spoke about a program that was started by the bureau which established an incentive and event fund.

“The goal of the fund is to be able to get large tournaments and other conventions here,” Scheve said. “The money we have in the fund helps us get incentives on the table for the officials to want to have their events here.”

Convention and Visitors Bureau officials were able to get approximately $5,000 from the city for the fund in previous years, but they are not asking for money this year.

“Ultimately we want more large groups to come here, and more people to stay for a longer time while they’re here,” she said. “If they stay longer, they’ll likely be spending more money during their stay, which is good for everyone.”

One of the events the fund has been able to assist has been the geo-caching festival. It started out as a one-day event, but has expanded to multiple days in recent years. It is encouraged, though not required, that funds given to events be spent on marketing.

“We developed an application that we go through to allocate funding,” Scheve said. “There is a 90-day window for groups to apply for funds    because we want to make sure that it is a well-established event.”

Officials running events that are given funding are asked to fill out an income and expense report following their event to make sure the funds are being spent properly.

“After the event, we’ll score their form, and if they score under 50 percent, they will not be awarded the funds,” she said. “The post-event report includes nights stayed, attendance and local spending.”

Other events that the fund has granted money to include the Lewis and Clark Adventure Race and the 2015 National Cribbage Tournament.

She added that the fund seeks to bring larger events to Yankton,        particularly from November to March, which are slower months for tourism to the city.

Rob Stephenson, chairman of the BID, said he thinks some money should be set aside for big                 opportunities.

“There are some other communities in the area with a similar fund in place,” Scheve said. “We started small with the $5,000 and we want to see where we can go with it and how we can grow.”

The next BID meeting is currently set for June.

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

Published: Saturday, March 23, 2013 1:06 AM CDT

The Northern Lights addition at the Avera Sacred Heart Hospital is ahead of schedule, due in part to weather conditions this winter and last summer.

The project was originally set to be completed by January 2014, but now could be done by this November.

“A lot can happen between now and this fall, but that’s the timeline we’re looking at as of now,” said Doug Ekeren, vice president of planning and development at Avera Sacred Heart Hospital. “We haven’t lost many days for construction due to rain or snow over the past several months.”

The hospital expansion will feature a new lab and some new amenities for physicians.

“Right now, we only have one conference room in the hospital,” Ekeren said. “With this addition, there will be more conference space available, and there should be better communication among staff members.”

He added that the new lab will make getting blood samples more efficient.

“Some of the other features of the expansion will be some more blood drawing rooms,” Ekeren said. “There will also be a brand new cafeteria and kitchen.”

The hospital currently has had the same cafeteria since around the 1980’s, and staff members and patients have often said it’s hard to find, Ekeren said.

“The new cafeteria will have meals available where people can find it,” he said. “Staff members have often had to trek to another building for lunch and dinner, and that won’t be the case anymore.”

In addition to just being easier to find, meal service for patients and families will also be improved. There will also be conference rooms along side of the cafeteria where staff members can grab food, then go right to their meetings.

The construction project will also have a new pharmacy, allowing biomedical services to expand into the old pharmacy. In addition, the new space allows the radiology department to expand, as well. The sleep lab will also move from the Benedictine Center into the new space.

Ekeren thinks the sleep lab will be in a better location with the new space.

Recent expansions to the hospital include the emergency department, the office pavilion and surgery center addition. However, Ekeren said the last project of this magnitude came in the 1990’s when a new entrance was built to the hospital, along with a new Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

“This is the first major project for the hospital in the last 20-plus years,” he said. “We’ve had other projects where we spent money to upgrade, but, in terms of the square footage addition, this project can’t compare to a lot of others.”

Ekeren said there are a number of advantages to finishing the project ahead of schedule.

“By finishing ahead of where we expected, there is less of an inconvenience caused for patients, visitors and staff with the construction,” he said. “We’re also able to get into new space earlier. Finishing early should have a cost savings associated with it, as well.”

The next phase for construction will be finishing the third floor completed and is expected to be turned over to the hospital by about August 1. Officials hope to have the new outpatient therapy center completed by May, as well.

Ekeren said the project solidifies Yankton’s medical reputation.

“We have strong physicians here, and a lot of specialties offered that are skills unique to the region,” he said. “With physicians being able to better collaborate and communicate with the new space, it only strengthens the regional position of Yankton in terms of health offerings.”

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

Published: Wednesday, March 20, 2013 10:57 PM CDT

From P&D Staff Reports

Dakota Education Consulting (DEC), which is assisting the Yankton School District (YSD) in its search for a superintendent is seeking members of the community to be a part of the interview process. The interviews for this position have been scheduled for the full day on Thursday, April 11.

If you would have an interest in serving on the interview team representing the parents and community members in Yankton, visit https://docs.google.com/a/usd.edu/forms/d/1p2R5i_zaQQpZjmTdQ80dMwKRefq4pjZe3Pv4faQZlGA/viewform and sign up for this volunteer opportunity.

The deadline for sign ups is Friday, March 29. You will be notified by DEC if you have been selected as an interview member. More instructions on your role as a team member will be shared prior to the April 11 interview date.

Published: Thursday, March 21, 2013 1:08 AM CDT

Officials from the Missouri National Recreational River are introducing something new this year that they hope will attract more visitors to the park.

A new mobile ranger station has been developed, which officials will take to area parks and events in hopes of getting additional traffic to the river.

“We will take the trailer, which has a lot of displays and features, outside the immediate area,” said Steve Mietz, superintendent of the river for the National Park Service (NPS). “One of the places we’ve been asked to take the station already is Mount Rushmore. Millions of visitors that go there will see the trailer and check out what we have, and hopefully they’ll go to Yankton to see the river on their way back east.”

One of the goals of the ranger station is to attract people to the river who aren’t from the immediate area. Mietz is hoping the trailer draws a more regional — and even national — audience to the river.

“It’s really a mobile visitors center,” he said. “There are displays on the inside of the trailer, with a television and photos and other features of the river for people to look at on the outside.”

Officials plan on taking the trailer to state and county fairs to promote the area.

“The trailer will really explain a lot of the features that make the Missouri River so great,” Mietz said. “Having the station at local events will give people a lot of information about the river, so hopefully they’ll come to visit or seek additional information about all it has to offer.”

Dugan Smith, who is an interpreter for the NPS, said he plans on taking the trailer to sport shows and outdoor festivals in the region.

“We really want to get outside the immediate corridor here and get people to know that the Missouri River is a national park,” he said. “One of the first things we’ll take the station to is the Watershed Festival in Sioux Falls, which has about 3,000 kids visit.”

Smith said that, up until now, officials did not have the tools to be able to go to area events and attract people to the river, now, however, they can do that.

Another feature of the trailer is an interactive map, which highlights various areas of the river and things people can enjoy while visiting.

“We’ll have a cultural exhibit with the trailer where kids can make a map of the river, sort of like a puzzle,” Smith said. “There will also be a touchscreen where people can get more details about some of the cultural and historical aspects of the river.”

Officials are hoping the trailer is completed this month.

“We’ll likely have it at local events by May,” Smith said. “We’re excited to get it done and get it out on the road.”

Smith and Mietz both said they’re happy with the way the trailer looks so far, and many of their co-workers at the NPS have said the same thing.

“It’s a new tool we’ll be utilizing to get out there, and I’m not even sure anyone else with the NPS has done something similar yet,” Smith said. “There is a lot of self-contained programming we can do with the trailer wherever we take it, especially for when school groups visit.”

Mietz said the unique qualities of the Missouri River make the mobile station a great asset for officials.

“The park is so unique because it’s spread out over around 100 miles,” he said. “It’s different than a traditional visitors center. With the trailer, we can bring the visitors center to the people.”

Smith said planning for a new outreach program began a few years ago, but they weren’t sure what they were going to do. The trailer idea came up last spring.

“Other area parks have things they do like this, but usually they store equipment inside the trailer,” he said. “With this station, we can do activities inside for kids to enjoy. We hope it will draw kids in and get them interested in the national park.”

The cost of the project will end up being under $20,000. Mietz said the benefits should outweigh the costs.

“It’s pretty cost-effective for what we’ll get out of it,” he said. “It really should also help stimulate the local economy by bringing in people from outside the immediate area.”

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

Published: Wednesday, March 20, 2013 1:07 AM CDT

From P&D Staff Reports

The Yankton School District (YSD) School Board will hold a special meeting today (Wednesday) at 5:30 p.m. to enter into executive session to conduct teacher contract negotiations. The meeting will be held at the Avera Sacred Heart Pavilion.

Published: Wednesday, March 20, 2013 1:07 AM CDT

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the last in a series of stories in conjunction with the 10th anniversary of the start of the Iraq War.

———

Brooks Schild still remembers the mail calls.

For the Yankton native, getting a letter or package from home while he served two tours of duty overseas with Yankton’s Charlie Battery meant the world to him while he was stationed in Iraq and Kuwait.

“It’s huge to get something from home,” he said. “Getting letters in the mail meant a lot, and I would smell the envelopes and letters to have something nice to smell, since there isn’t much that smells good over there.”

This week marks the 10th anniversary of the beginning of the Iraq War, which sent thousands of soldiers, like Schild, to the Middle East.

After growing up in Yankton, Schild taught school in Council Bluffs, Iowa, before returning to teach in Yankton. While teaching in Iowa, Schild joined the Iowa Guard in the 1990s and served there for around a decade. After moving back to Yankton and transferring to the South Dakota National Guard, he was deployed to Baghdad in 2005 for a year tour of duty, and later deployed to Kuwait in 2009 for a nine-month tour.

Life in the far-flung lands was much different, ranging from the culture to the weather.

Schild said the first time he was deployed, he did not have a lot of free time. However, occasionally soldiers would have to go around Baghdad Airport and, while there, they would get steaks for their fellow comrades.

“They sold steaks around the Baghdad airport, and we would give soldiers who went there with around $50 to pick some up for us,” he said. “We would grill up some steaks and it would be one of the best things to happen that month.”

While in Iraq, he said a majority of a soldiers’ time was spent on missions and security.

“We would do a lot of work training the Iraqi police and working with them,” Schild said. “We would also do route security missions, which included making sure there were no IED’s (improvised explosive devices) in the area.”

He said advances in technology made keeping in touch with loved ones back home a lot easier than it was for soldiers who served in previous decades.

“When I was serving in Iraq, we would each have to pay $75 if we wanted Internet access,” Schild said. “The Internet was slow for United States’ standards, and was basically a dial-up      connection.”

Even with the slow Internet, he could still send and receive emails, and could video chat with work every once in a while.

However, Schild’s tour of duty in Kuwait featured faster, wireless Internet, which gave him a more reliable way to video chat with his family members.

Nevertheless, he said getting letters in the mail meant the most.

“Getting United States mail was really the cat’s meow for us,” Schild said. “Letters are things that we all really appreciated.”

He said the strong community support that came from Yankton for service members overseas was priceless.

“Schools and organizations in the area sent us care packages, which we’re really thankful for,” Schild said. “Having the huge amount of support from the community back home was really nice. Soldiers that came before us, like in Vietnam, did not get the amount of support, or welcome home, that we got when we came back to the area.”

He added that veterans who served in previous wars helped pave the way for soldiers today to be sure they are welcomed back home.

Schild’s many experiences in Iraq also included a terrible 2005 IED attack in Baghdad, which killed his brother, Rich, and ultimately led to four Charlie Battery soldiers losing their lives.

Brooks, who teaches life sciences at Yankton Middle School, said he has a photo of Rich on his desk at school.

“It was really bittersweet being over there,” he said. “I lost my brother there, and three other soldiers were killed, as well, who I was close with. Two other people who I served with also sustained permanent injuries, so I can’t say being there was a great experience.”

As an educator, he noted that schools in Iraq were far different than schools in the United States.

Students in Iraq had beaten-up wooden desks in classrooms that had nothing on the walls. They also had few, if any, supplies, so U.S. soldiers brought them the supplies they needed for school.

“The students there really didn’t have anything. We went in and there were schools with insurgents surrounding the area,” Schild said. “Cars would get blown up in parking lots, so we went in to try to protect the kids.”

He recalls one experience where he spoke to kids about being able to speak openly about their government.

“I remember when I was there, some kids were talking about freedom of speech. They said they didn’t like Americans being in their country,” Schild said. “They wanted their freedom. When we asked them that, if we weren’t here, would they still talk about the government and Saddam Hussein, they got scared and said they wouldn’t have been able to.”

Looking back on his military tours, Schild said those who served abroad did the duty they set out to do.

“We did our duty there, served our country and made people proud of the mission we accomplished,” he said.

He added that soldiers aren’t the ones who start wars, or send others overseas.

“We just do what people tell us to do. It was our mission to go there, train the Iraqi police and make the country more stable,” he said. “We just follow orders. We went there, did our jobs and came back. We put everything we have into the missions we are given.”

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal

Published: Tuesday, March 19, 2013 1:06 AM CDT

Yankton School District (YSD) school board candidates debated several hot-button issues, including the budget, facing the district during an Interchange forum on Monday.

There are two openings on the board, with four members running for the positions. Candidates include incumbent Jim Fitzgerald and newcomers Butch Becker, Sarah Carda and Wayne Wurth.

One of the first topics of discussion was why each candidate decided to run for the a position on the board.

Fitzgerald said he decided to run for school board three years ago to be involved with something in which his family entire was involved.

“We need to continue to offer a quality education,” he said. “There also needs to be opportunities for kids in different areas, including the arts.

Carda said she decided to run after previously serving on the board at Sacred Heart School.

“It’s important for me because I have kids in the district,” she said. “I’m pro-education and want people to have choices. It’s only fair that people who are able to give back do so.”

Wurth’s motivation to run for school board is based on informing the public that the school belongs to the people.

“People get silenced if they don’t agree with school district officials,” he said.

Becker said that, if elected, he would keep a careful eye on the financial situation for the district, if elected to the board.

The candidates were asked what the district has done well and what they’ve done poorly over the past several years.

Carda cited the strong academic reputation of the district as one of the things they’ve excelled in for years.

“YSD has had an exemplary graduation rate, which is good to have,” she said. “However, I think they’ve done poorly for explaining budget implications and what it means for students.”

Becker agreed with Carda, saying he thought the district has done a fantastic job educating students. However, he said the budget needs more work.

“We need to determine what we can take on and what we can’t take on,” he said. “How many things can we take from the community while still providing a good education for students?”

Wurth said the district has done a poor job by forcing issues on the public and trying to have opt-outs passed.

Fitzgerald said he feels as if the district has done a good job educating its students, but added board members should communicate with the public better on issues, including the budget.

One Interchange member asked board candidates what the role of education is with regards to fostering student achievement.

Wurth said one of the first things he would do, if elected, would be to demand individualism from students.

“Students should be judged on their own merit,” he said. “They’re not just a number, they’re individuals.”

Becker said he would concentrate on the academic portion, and said that No Child Left Behind (NCLB) attempted to foster student achievement, but failed to do so.

Fitzgerald talked about the importance of education not just being a role for schools.

“A lot of education happens at home for kids,” he said. “This brings up the values of community members.”

He also cited NCLB making educators teach to the test, and not to students.

Carda said she would be open-minded about the issues of education at YSD.

“I would try to get the best information I can, and I’d be honest about the things that must be done,” she said. “I’ll also be thoughtful about what we’re trying to do to best educate students.”

The candidates were also asked about the top three things they would focus on if elected.

Becker said he would focus heavily on the budget, analyzing and reviewing programs and looking at the Common Core standards.

Likewise, Fitzgerald cited finances as a main concern. He also said he would like to focus on maintaining high academic standards at YSD and keeping up with the changes in education.

Carda talked about addressing the academics offered for students, providing leadership for budget issues and said the purpose of the district, first and foremost, is to educate students.

On the other hand, Wurth said he would be focused on who works for whom.

“School Board members have an allegiance to the public, because they’re the ones who put you there,” he said. “I’ll also focus on who we hire, and getting education back into the teachers’ hands.”

Another question dealt with the candidates’ experiences managing a budget.

“I’ve dealt with doing a budget for my business, as well as while serving on the Hillcrest Golf Course board,” Fitzgerald said. “The school budget is a very tight rope we have to walk on.”

Carda said she offers unique experience, having served on non-profit boards and serving on Mount Marty’s executive team.

“I’ve worked on the budgets there, and it’s the same concept, even though Mount Marty’s budget is tuition-based,” she said. “There are complicating funding issues with the YSD budget as well.”

One of the things Wurth said he’s most concerned about is the government throwing money at education. He said money does not make kids smart.

Becker said if he is elected, he would continue to watch the healthcare program, as that is a significant cost for the district.

Along with the budget issue, a question was raised on ideas candidates have to balance the budget, while maintaining a low average class size.

Carda said she’s concerned with the class size now, and said it puts the district at risk.

“We have been increasing the class sizes in order to meet the budget,” she said. “We need to focus priorities with the budget on what’s most important.”

Wurth said he would discuss the budget properly, openly and honestly if he is elected.

“Officials need to make hard decisions on the budget,” he said. “You need to have confidence in who you have making those decisions.”

Becker and Fitzgerald both cited increasing healthcare costs as something they would monitor in upcoming years.

The school board election will be held April 9, with absentee voting available beginning on Monday in the YSD Administration Building and city finance office.

Another school board forum will be held tonight (Tuesday) at 7 p.m. at the Technical Education Center.

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at twitter.com/andrewatwal