(Spirit Lake)– History was made Sunday as Dickinson county’s new courthouse was officially dedicated in a ceremony held on the Veteran’s Memorial Plaza on the northeast side of the courthouse.
Hundreds of people were on hand to hear various dignitaries speak.
Among the speakers was David Gottsche, Chairman of the board of supervisors. He spoke on behalf of the late Pete Nary, who was instrumental in helping get a 14.9 million dollar bond issue passed for the project. Gottsche read from a speech Narey was preparing for the event while he was hospitalized. Narey’s wife, Darlene, was present at Sunday’s ceremony and participated in the ribbon cutting.
District Associate Judge David Larson was the keynote speaker Sunday. He thanked the supervisors and the public for a facility that he says goes above and beyond what’s required under state code that requires counties to provide adequate facilities to the courts.
Sunday’s events also included a dedication of the Veteran’s Memorial Plaza itself. Retired Colonel Jeff Christie, a board member of the Veteran’s Foundation of Dickinson county, talked about the significance of three granite monuments, pavers and flags on the plaza.
Lieutenant Colonel John Cunningham, Assistant Chief of Staff of the Iowa National Guard, was the keynote speaker for that part of the event, which happened to coincide with the observance of Flag Day.
