The Iowa Lakes Corridor Development Corporation will be hosting an Open House and Business After Hours on Tuesday, April 24. The open house will be held from 1-4 p.m., and Business After Hours will be from 5-7 p.m. The Spencer Ambassadors will also be visiting at 9:30 that morning. Make plans to stop by and see our new office at 520 2nd Avenue East, Suite 2, in Spencer! We will have a showcase of regional products made by companies in the Corridor Region. Come see artwork by regional artists, eat food made in the Corridor, sip on locally brewed beer and wine, and see products made in the region!

ESTHERVILLE - HEAT (High Risk Entry and Arrest Team) was developed in 1997 by a group of police chiefs and sheriffs who saw a need for tactical units, but did not have enough personnel or funds to put their own team together. The initial departments invited were from two counties in Minnesota and two counties in Iowa. The administrators went to the Attorney General offices in both states and received permission to have officers work across state lines. The team was formed with an annual buy-in process for each member agency. In 1998, the first team members were chosen and sent to basic SWAT school. In August of 1998, the team began responding to calls for service.

The High Risk Entry and Arrest Team, HEAT, was created in 1997 out of a need for tactical response units, and is now comprised of 22 member agencies from Iowa and Minnesota.

HEAT recently held a training session in Estherville. Spirit Lake police chief Jeff Hanson invited Shaun Arneson, vice president of the Iowa Lakes Corridor Development Corporation, to attend the training. "This is a prime example of regional collaboration," said Arneson. "You have a number of local law enforcement agencies from two states working together to be trained and prepared for high-risk law enforcement situations."

Arneson got to be involved in the training as well. He was in an abandoned house with another civilian, while two people posed as criminals were hiding in the house. The team flash bombed the house and had to keep the civilians safe, while searching for the "criminals."

The team currently has 22 operators and one tactical dispatcher. There is a three member hostage negotiation team and a tactical medic, as well as two team commanders, two team leaders, a two man sniper team and a six man rappel team. HEAT has three vehicles and a trailer, as well as a large supply of tactical equipment and gear. The equipment is either purchased through the annual buy-in costs paid by each department or is grant funded.

HEAT is prepared and well-trained in all aspects of high-risk law enforcement encounters. The team is ready to respond to high-risk search and arrest warrant service, barricaded suspects, hostage situations, dignitary protection, riot control, search and rescue operations, mass disasters, and any other situation in which a municipality or county would need extra law enforcement.

Iowa departments participating in HEAT are Armstrong Police, Estherville Police, Dickinson County Sheriff, Spirit Lake Police, Okoboji Police, Arnolds Park Police, Milford Police, Spencer Police, and the Clay County Sheriff. Minnesota agencies include Martin County Sheriff, Fairmont Police, Truman Police, Watonwan County Sheriff's, St. James Police, Mountain Lake Police, Westbrook Police, Cottonwood County Sheriff, Windom Police, Lakefield Police, Jackson County Sheriff, Rock County Sheriff, and the Pipestone County Sheriff.

 

ESTHERVILLE - Since 2003, Kevin Wegner has run his business, The Woodworkers Shop, out of his four car garage at home. Last fall, he purchased a building to move his business into, and for the first time, his wife can park in their garage.

 

Wegner saw the building while driving around town one day. He had been looking for a location for a long time. When he was working out of his home, he had to keep the lumber in a storage garage, and did lots of running around to get things he needed. With this new location, he can store his own lumber and spend more time working on projects. He even gets lumber deliveries twice a week. His new location is 623 S 9th Street in Estherville.

 

When asked what he makes, Wegner says, "Custom anything out of wood." Cabinets, doors, signs, and more have been made by his hands. "I can make anything someone can't get somewhere else," said Wegner.

  

Kevin Wegner opened The Woodworker's Shop in Estherville in 2003, and relocated to 623 S 9th Street last fall.

The majority of his work is residential, but he has done some commercial work. He noted the interior of NorthStar Bank in Estherville and the glass cases at Iowa Lakes Community College Estherville campus as examples.

Originally from Armstrong, Wegner started working in a cabinet shop when he was 20 years old. He has now been in the business for nearly 30 years. "When you do something for 30 years, you learn a lot from trial and error," said Wegner.

"It's like an old millwork," said Wegner of his business. He has the equipment to match any baseboard and crown molding. His equipment measures the grooves and is able to replicate it. He can also match cabinets to the existing ones.

When it comes to custom work, it can sometimes be hard for the customer to imagine the finished product. In those cases, Wegner creates mock-ups to the customer can see what it will look like.

Wegner also has a large CNC machine that is currently still in his four-car garage, but will be moved to the new building. The CNC machine enables him to carve 3D images; he has used these images on doors and cabinets. Stock images can be found online, or Wegner can submit a photo to be turned into a graphic.

Wegner rarely mass produces anything. The closest he has come to mass production was creating 21 Adirondack chairs for the Iowa Lakes Corridor in 2008. The chairs were made for the Corridor Art Trail. They were distributed to area artists who were given complete control over the manipulation of the chairs. They were then placed at various locations throughout the Corridor region for public view. In September 2008, the chairs were auctioned off.  

"I've had a lot of jobs I've really enjoyed," said Wegner. "I really enjoy what I do. Otherwise I wouldn't do it."