Jefferson Hy-Vee Announces Grand Opening
After almost two years since the announcement that Hy-Vee Incorporated would be building a new supermarket in Jefferson, the store will be open later this month.
The new 34,800 square-foot store on West Washington Street will have a grand opening at 6am on Tuesday, February 24th.
Chief Executive Officer, President and Chairman Randy Edeker says the Jefferson store is one of a few prototypes that features everything a larger-scale store (90,000 square-foot) would have in a more condensed manner. He points out that 2 ½ years ago, he looked at cities with populations of around 5,000 people for possible store locations. The Hy-Vee Drugstore has been in Jefferson since 1986, but he felt that there needed to be a full grocery store.
It is located in the middle of a residential area, which Edeker says isn’t where they usually have their stores.
“We wanted to be close to the (downtown) square and the highway and so this was open. We felt like it was a good location. It seems like the City helped as well. We think this is going to be a great spot. It’s not typical of what we do, but we think it’ll be fine.”
The new store features a Market Cafe which serves restaurant-quality food with a bar and outdoor dining; a hot food bar with barbecue, hot Asian and Italian food departments; a salad and cold foods bar; a bakery; a delicatessen station; a fresh and frozen seafood and meat departments and a wine and spirit department. In total, there are over 20,000-items and an in-store pharmacy with a drive-up window. McFarland Clinic’s attached 7,500 square-foot area will be complete by late May.
Another new feature will be online grocery shopping. A customer can order their groceries online and it will be available for either pickup or delivery. Small fees will be charged for those orders under $100 and if the order is over $100, it will be free.
Store Director Lori Subbert says Hy-Vee will continue to be a supporter of the community.
“We’re going to be a big part of it. It’s just something that I, as a store director, are passionate about; being involved in the community, being able to give back to the community just as they do to us.”
Construction began this past September and it was finished by January 25th. It will have 237 total employees, including the 17 employees from the Hy-Vee Drugstore which will be closing on February 21st.
Store hours will be 5am-midnight, seven days per week.
Governor Branstad To Visit Greene County
As part of his 99-county tour, Governor Terry Branstad will be visiting Greene County next week.
Branstad is scheduled to tour Power Lift, Conner Athletic Products, Incorporated on Wednesday, February 18th.
Power Lift started in 1999 as a manufacturer of Olympic lifting platforms for facilities. The company is now one of the leaders in high-quality weightlifting equipment.
General Manager Chris Conner says this is a great chance to show the governor what their company is all about.
“It’s a neat opportunity to have him (Branstad) here and for us to be able to show him our story and tell him our story of what Power Lift does and who we deliver to on a daily basis. It’s a neat moment to have him be apart of that and see that process.”
A list of some of the major clients of Power Lift’s includes: United States Military Special Forces, most of the teams in the National Football League, Major League Baseball teams, National Basketball Association teams, National Hockey League teams, NASCAR drivers, most major Division I college football teams including this year’s final four teams and several other colleges and high schools. They also ship to international countries in Asia and the United Kingdom.
Power Lift has 45 employees at its Jefferson location at 900 East Highway 30.
Senator Joni Ernst To Visit Greene County
United States Senator Joni Ernst will be visiting Jefferson next week.
Greene County Economic Development Director Ken Paxton says he talked to Senator Ernst at Governor Terry Branstad’s inauguration last month and told her about Greene County’s lead on the Home Base Iowa initiative. A former military service woman, Ernst will be at the Jefferson VFW Hall on February 17th for a meet and greet with all the area veterans and learn more about the program that connects them with jobs.
Paxton notes that since being designated as the first Home Base Iowa community last spring, he’s helped 40 other counties model their program after Greene County. Some of the opportunities that veterans can take advantage are a generic job application where a veteran can apply to several available jobs in the county at once; a veteran’s voucher program where veterans can use vouchers for food, gas and lodging if they are coming to the County for a job interview; available housing with incentives and incentives to work for Jefferson Hy-Vee.
Paxton also visited with Major General Tim Orr of the Iowa National Guard provided information about Home Base Iowa to all military bases in the country.
Paxton points out that Ernst’s visit is another opportunity for Greene County to get extra exposure.
“It’s always good to get some publicity and visibility for Greene County. She (Ernst) will provide that. It’s nice to know that the things we’ve done with Home Base Iowa and our economic development are being noticed.”
Click on the link below to find out more information about Home Base Iowa in Greene County.
http://www.greenecountyiowadevelopment.org/gcdc-homebase-iowa-landing.php
Jefferson Police Warn Of Counterfeit Money
The Jefferson Police Department is warning businesses about counterfeit $20 bills that have been used in town.
Police Chief Dave Morlan tells Raccoon Valley Radio that three fake $20 bills were reported at both Casey’s General Store locations on Lincoln Way and Elm Street and at the Metro Club this past weekend.
Morlan says the counterfeit bills have a different texture to the paper than a real bill and it doesn’t have the security stripe or the water mark in the lower corner when you hold it up to the light. He urges businesses to use a counterfeit detector pen. If no mark appears on the bill, it is real. If it is fake, a black mark will appear.
Police have obtained video surveillance from the businesses where the counterfeit bills were used to identify the alleged individual who is passing off the fake money.
Morlan notes that if any business believe they might have a counterfeit bill, to call the Law Enforcement Center at 386-2136. He adds that you should try to get a license plate from the vehicle and a physical description of the individual.
Greene County Conservation Receives Grant
The Greene County Conservation Board has been working on purchasing public hunting and wildlife preservation land for over two years and on Thursday, they reached their fundraising goal for it to become a reality.
Conservation Director Dan Towers says they received a $230,000 Habitat Stamp Grant through the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to aid them in purchasing 160 acres south of Rippey.
The land is owned by Tom Hanson. It has been in the Hanson family since it was first purchased in the 1930’s. The majority of the land is a timber area along the Raccoon River. Towers notes that Hanson came to him about donating the land to the conservation board for public use.
“We’re very gracious that he did that. He could’ve put it on the market and it would’ve been snapped up in a minute. But he wanted to see it in public ownership, so he came to us.”
For the last two years, Towers has been raising other money for the project. $41,600 came from Mid-American Energy through the Iowa National Heritage Foundation and another $30,000 from the Acklin Fund which was also through the Iowa National Heritage Foundation; $30,000 was from allocated money through the Resource, Enhancement And Protection funds to the Greene County Conservation Board; $10,000 from the National Wild Turkey Federation; and $12,000 from other local groups and individuals. The $230,000 grant is what put them over the top. The total land acquisition cost is $344,000. There will also be additional costs such as land surveys and appraisal fees.
Towers says getting the land was very personal for him.
“In 1981 when I first started with the DNR, its where the original wild turkey stocking took place in Greene County. It’s kind of a sentimental spot to me. I turned loose the ten hens and three gobblers that started the turkey flock that we see descendants of now. People in this field have known it as a quality area for a long time.”
He adds that this is a part of a bigger picture in that there is another 160 acres of Hanson land that could be purchased in the future.
Towers comments that every acre of land that they can make available for public hunting and wildlife preservation will help to rejuvenate the sport in the County.