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Second Shotgun Deer Season Begins Saturday in IA

Ag/Outdoor, News, Sports

December 12th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

Iowa’s first shotgun deer season closed Wednesday and officials with the Department of Natural Resources say the preliminary numbers indicate that license sales and harvest are both down from previous years. Sales of licenses declined 7 percent from 2012 and the reported harvest is 18 percent lower. The decrease reflects decreased deer numbers across the state as well as fewer licenses being issued, continuing the downward trend in harvest since its peak in 2006. The bitterly cold weather was likely a factor as well.

Iowa’s second shotgun season begins Saturday. Historically a lower kill during the first season often results in more deer being taken during the second. Hunters get an additional weekend of hunting during the second season and the weather forecast looks more favorable. Party hunting is a common practice during the shotgun season and hunters are reminded to be careful when hunting in a group.

Always make sure that you are shooting in a safe direction before pulling the trigger. Hunters during the second season typically take a higher percentage of does than first season hunters do. However, if hunters are seeing fewer deer where they hunt they may want to refrain from harvesting extra does. Hunters should check with landowners to see if deer numbers are at an acceptable level and tailor their harvest accordingly.

To avoid waiting in line hunters should consider buying a license today. Current sales for the second season are nearly 30,000 below last year but a large proportion of hunters wait until the last minute to buy a license. About 25,000 licenses will be purchased between Thursday and Saturday morning. Hunters are reminded to report their harvest within 24 hours of recovering their deer. The DNR says that information is an important part of the data needed to manage Iowa’s deer herd.

Posted in Ag/Outdoor, News, Sports |

MAXINE HODGES, 95, of Greenfield (Mem. Svcs. at a later date)

Obituaries

December 12th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

MAXINE HODGES, 95, of Greenfield, died Wed., Dec. 11th, at the Greenfield Manor, in Greenfield. She has donated her body to the Des Moines University and a Memorial Service for MAXINE HODGES will be held at a later date. Steen Funeral Home in Greenfield is in charge of the arrangements.

Online condolences may be left to the family at www.steenfunerals.com.

Posted in Obituaries |

2013 Iowa Girls High School THIRD Basketball Rankings

Sports

December 12th, 2013 by Jim Field

 Class 1-A

School
Record
LW
1
Newell-Fonda
3-0
1
2
Burlington-Notre Dame
5-0
2
3
Colo-Nesco
5-0
3
4
Lynnville-Sully
5-0
4
5
Murray
4-0
9
6
Stanton
5-0
10
7
Dunkerton
5-0
11
8
Janesville
2-1
5
9
Paton-Churdan
3-0
NR
10
Exira/Elk Horn-Kimballton
3-1
7
11
Ar-We-Va
2-1
6
12
Northwood-Kensett
4-1
12
13
English Valleys
3-2
13
14
LeMars Gehlen Catholic
3-0
NR
15
Midland
4-0
NR
Dropped out: Central Lyon (8), Harris-Lake Park (14), Belle Plaine (15)
 
Class 2-A
School
Record
LW
1
Western Christian
4-0
1
2
Iowa City Regina
4-0
2
3
Manson-NW Webster
4-0
3
4
Cascade
3-0
4
5
Hudson
5-0
5
6
Fort Dodge St. Edmond
3-0
6
7
Hinton
5-0
7
8
North-Linn
4-0
8
9
Dike-New Hartford
4-0
9
10
North Butler
3-0
10
11
South Central Calhoun
4-0
11
12
Iowa Valley
4-0
14
13
West Fork
4-0
NR
14
Maple Valley-Anthon-Oto
4-0
NR
15
Des Moines Christian
4-2
15
Dropped out: IKM-Manning (12), Lawton-Bronson (13)
 
Class 3-A
School
Record
LW
1
MOC-Floyd Valley
4-0
1
2
Bondurant-Farrar
5-0
2
3
Red Oak
2-0
4
4
Williamsburg
6-0
5
5
Mediapolis
4-0
7
6
Nevada
4-1
8
7
Clear Lake
3-1
9
8
Unity Christian
3-0
12
9
Mount Vernon
3-2
3
10
Center Point-Urbana
2-2
6
11
Kuemper Catholic
4-0
13
12
North Polk
4-1
10
13
Crestwood
4-1
14
14
Oelwein
4-0
NR
15
Spirit Lake
2-1
15
Dropped Out: Camanche (11)
 
Class 4-A
School
Record
LW
1
Harlan
2-0
1
2
Cedar Rapids Xavier
4-1
3
3
Sioux City Bishop Heelan
2-0
5
4
Perry
4-0
6
5
Lewis Central
4-1
2
6
Ballard
5-1
11
7
Western Dubuque
4-0
13
8
Dallas Center-Grimes
3-1
4
9
Davenport Assumption
1-3
8
10
North Scott
2-2
7
11
Mount Pleasant
2-2
12
12
Waverly-Shell Rock
2-1
15
13
Boone
4-1
NR
14
Winterset
3-1
9
15
Pella
3-0
NR
Dropped Out: Grinnell (10), Spencer (14)
 
Class 5-A
Name
Record
LW
1
Dowling Catholic
3-0
1
2
Iowa City High
6-0
2
3
Waterloo West
5-0
3
4
West Des Moines Valley
4-0
5
5
Des Moines East
4-1
6
6
Ankeny Centennial
3-0
7
7
Cedar Rapids Kennedy
5-0
9
8
Ames
5-0
10
9
Waukee
3-0
NR
10
Southeast Polk
3-2
NR
Dropped Out: Mason City (4), Sioux City West (8)

Posted in Sports |

MIKE HOLLIDAY, 55, of rural Greenfield (& formerly of Stuart) – Svcs. 12/14/13

Obituaries

December 12th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

MIKE HOLLIDAY, 55, of rural Greenfield (& formerly of Stuart), died Dec. 2nd, at home. A Celebration of Life service for MIKE HOLLIDAY will be held on Saturday, December 14, 2013, from 2-to 5-pm, at the Menlo Community Center in Menlo. Steen Funeral Home in Greenfield has the arrangements.

Online condolences may be left to the family at www.steenfunerals.com.

MIKE HOLLIDAY is survived by:

His sister – Patricia Jacobson and husband David of Menlo.

His brother – David Holliday and wife Patricia of Tampa, Florida.

Other relatives and friends.

Posted in Obituaries |

Cass Co. Sheriff’s Office News

News

December 12th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office, Thursday, announced the election of Deputy William Ayers as an at-large member of the board of the Iowa Sheriff’s and Deputies’ Association for a two-year term. And, as KJAN News mentioned Wednesday, a new deputy is being welcomed to the Sheriff’s Office. Deputy Tyler Shiels. Deputy Shiels is a currently certified officer and is a graduate of DMAAC with a degree in Criminal Justice.

Posted in News |

Iowans asks for EPA hearing on ethanol in Iowa

Ag/Outdoor

December 12th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa’s governor and the state’s entire congressional delegation are asking the Obama administration to hold a hearing in Iowa to discuss the Environmental Protection Agency’s proposal to reduce ethanol production in 2014. Iowa is the nation’s leading producer of ethanol, a fuel additive primarily made from corn that produces lower carbon emissions than gasoline. The EPA in November proposed cutting production to 2012 levels, prompting outcry by political leaders from both parties who claimed such a move would devastate Iowa’s economy.

The EPA stated in its November report that the additive had become less necessary in light of fuel-efficient engines and lower fuel demand. An Iowa State University economist says the economic impact elected officials claim is overstated. The EPA is taking public comment for 60 days on its recommendation.

Posted in Ag/Outdoor |

NASCAR taps Small to run Iowa Speedway

Sports

December 12th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – NASCAR has selected Jimmy Small the new president of the Iowa Speedway. The appointment of the 28-year-old Small, a senior marketing manager for NASCAR, was announced Thursday at a press conference in Des Moines detailing NASCAR’s purchase of the track last month.   NASCAR bought the seven-year old track from Featherlite Inc., founder Conrad Clement and his family, who owned it for two years. NASCAR will be the $70-million Speedway’s third owner since it opened in 2006.

The Iowa Speedway is scheduled to host an IndyCar race and two Nationwide events, though it’ll have just one NASCAR trucks race after hosting a pair in recent years.  NASCAR has been adamant that it has no plans to award a Sprint Cup Series races to Iowa in the near future.

Posted in Sports |

New report says Iowa pension fund in good shape

News

December 12th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – A new report says Iowa’s public pension system remains in strong fiscal health. The analysis from the Iowa Policy Project was released Thursday. The report says the funds serving over 340,000 current, former and retired public sector workers in Iowa are in good financial shape. Plan participants include state and local government workers.

According to the liberal think tank’s report, the system took a financial hit over the past decade due to stock market losses. But the state has made some benefit rule changes in recent years, including giving the pension system more power to adjust contribution rates.

The latest actuarial review of the pension system shows that the state has 81 percent of the assets needed to pay projected benefits. That means they are currently short about $5.8 billion.

Posted in News |

USDA Designates 44 Counties in Iowa as Primary Natural Disaster Areas with Assistance to Farmers and Ranchers in Adjacent States

Ag/Outdoor, News

December 12th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

The U-S Department of Agriculture has designated 44 counties in Iowa as primary natural disaster areas due to damages and losses caused by a recent drought. Among the counties included in the designation in the KJAN listening area is: Adair, Audubon, Crawford, Guthrie, Madison, Shelby, Sac, Carroll, Union and Dallas.  Farmers in contiguous counties also qualify for natural disaster assistance, including those in Adams, Cass, Harrison, Pottawattamie, Monona, Ringgold, and Taylor Counties.

Qualified farmers and ranchers in all counties designated as natural disaster areas are eligible for low interest Emergency Loans from the USDA’s Farm Service Agency, provided eligibility requirements are met. Those individuals have eight-months from Dec. 11th, 2013 to apply for loans to help cover part of their actual losses.

Additional information is available online at http://disaster.fsa.usda.gov., or at your local USDA Service Center.

Posted in Ag/Outdoor, News |

Injury accident east of Adair Thursday morning

News

December 12th, 2013 by Ric Hanson

The Iowa State Patrol reports two people suffered minor injuries during a collision this (Thursday) morning, about two-miles east of Adair. Officials say an unidentified male minor was driving a 2003 Pontiac Grand Am eastbound on Whitepole Road and attempting to turn north onto Indigo Avenue. A westbound 2001 GMC SUV driven by 28-year old Kelli Sue Prescott, of Yale, was traveling west on White Pole Road when the car turned in front of the SUV.

The driver of the Grand Am was not wearing his seat belt. Officials say the boy and Prescott, who was wearing her seat belt, were transported by Stuart and Adair Rescue to the Guthrie County Hospital following the crash, which occurred at around 8:40-a.m.

The driver of the Pontiac was cited for Failure to Yield upon making a left turn.

Posted in News |