Last week, during the work sessions that followed both the Durant and Wilton school board meetings, it was announced that Superintendent Joe Burnett would be retiring from his position at both districts at the end of the 2026-27 school year. more

After several weeks of delay due to weather and other circumstances, the historic Sharon School has finally arrived at its new home on Cedar Street in Wilton. more

There is a fine line between historic preservation and modernization. But as many downtown West Liberty business owners may know, the balance between revitalizing the decades-old building they work out of and keeping the spirit of its original features alive is a balance worth striving for. more

With the fall semester’s FAST testing in the books, Wilton Elementary Principal Jamie Meyer shared that, when comparing each class to last year’s, nearly each grade has seen improvements in their reading scores. more

Food, fun and fellowship will be found at next Wednesday’s Fall Harvest Fest, hosted by St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, 109 West 6th Street in West Liberty. The event is open to the public, and will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 28. more

Kids from across West Liberty, Wilton, and Durant should have plenty of opportunities for candy this Halloween through various events being held alongside the annual trick or treating on Halloween night. more

Since first receiving its therapeutic classroom grant in July 2025, the principals and multidisciplinary teams at Durant Elementary and Durant Jr/Sr High School have been working hard towards providing therapeutic spaces and regulatory tools and strategies for its students. more

On Monday, October 12, the Wilton City Council approved a $46,888.50 change order decrease and a $68,934.02 fifteenth payment to Triple B Construction for the Cedar Street water main replacement. The punch list work is ongoing, and the project is expected to be ready for closeout in November. City Administrator Jeff Horne announced, “This will be one of the last payments” and that the project “should finish below the engineer’s estimate.” more

The Muscatine County Fair invites the public to attend its Annual Meeting on Monday, Oct. 27, at the Kent Center Event Space on the fairgrounds in West Liberty. more

The Durant City Council has been made aware of how complaints will be addressed about the dumping of trash at and around the bandshell. more

The Muscatine County Board of Supervisors have requested that Muscatine County department managers present to the board at its next regular meeting ideas on possible updates to the “Muscatine County Employee Handbook” regarding unused vacation time. more

Last month, on Sept. 19, the Vendor Village Market group held a vendor show event in honor of the Durant Police Dept. and its Shop with a Cop program. Through this event, the Vendor Village group was able to raise a massive donation of $4,200 for the program, with this being officially donated to the Durant officers on Friday, Oct. 16. more

The regular meeting of the Board of Trustees was held Thursday, September 10, 2026, at 9  a.m. in the Wilton Council Chambers with the following present: Trustees Tom Maurer, Terri Becker, Mike Norton, and Becky Hansen. more

Wilton Police Department 10/8/26 – 10/15/26 more

Durant Police Department 10/9/26 – 10/15/26 more

President Donald Trump will make two trips to Iowa ahead of the Nov. 3, 2026 general election. more

Cooler temperatures and harvested crop fields are welcome conditions for deer hunters in the state who have already started for the season or are gearing up to begin hunting, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. more

On Thursday, Oct. 8, an official groundbreaking ceremony was held for the new Deepu Chowk Housing Development, located on 8th Street in West Liberty. This new development is expected to feature 26 new affordable housing units, allowing for continued growth within the West Liberty community. more

In the past, whenever there were heavy rains in Durant, most residents expected some flooding to follow, often needing to deal with water flowing out into some of the town’s lower roads. Now whenever it rains, Dawn Smith says she finds herself driving out to Feldhahn Park, the roads near it now completely clear. more

This past summer, Wilton Hustlers 4-H member Sara Marine had the opportunity to take the trip of a lifetime through the 4-H Exchange Trip program. For Marine, this trip had been something she wanted to take for a while now, she shared. more