It’s barely an exaggeration to note the Iola Municipal Band is almost as old as Iola, the town.
The band’s weekly summertime concert series has been a fixture here since 1871, the longest continually performing city band in the state, and one of the oldest in the country.
The upcoming season will have a special performance on the slate.
Band director Phil Becker notified city leaders earlier this month of an invitation to play in Topeka.
Lt. Gov. David Toland, Iola, has invited the band members to play at the State Capitol at some point this summer.
There’s one slight hiccup.
The three potential dates for the Topeka performances — June 11, June 25 or July 16 — are all on Thursdays, the same night the band normally would perform in Iola.
The plan, contingent upon the city’s approval at Monday’s City Council meeting, would be to play on another night in Iola the same week the musicians are in Topeka.
CITY COUNCIL members will have other decisions to make at Monday’s meeting, including bids on a dump truck for the water distribution department and for ongoing sanitary sewer lining projects.
Members of the Allen County Grow Council will discuss city support of a May 2 food festival and the Iola Theatre Association will discuss plans to unveil a new marquee on the refurbished theater building on South Washington Avenue.
The Council also is slated to hear pleas from Jeff Heinrich to have a home at 415 N. Elm St. removed from the city’s condemnation list, and from Matt Kerr to consider him a local applicant for his food truck business. Kerr does not live within Iola’s city limits, but does own property in town, and does have a mailing address with a 66749 ZIP code.
The 6 p.m. meeting is at the New Community Building in Riverside Park.
The public is invited.
