Two southwest Iowa teens were injured during a single-vehicle accident late Wednesday night, about 5-miles east of Shenandoah. Page County Sheriff Lyle Palmer reports 16-year old Brydget Bird, of Essex, and a passenger in her car, 16-year old Sayj Martin, of Shenandoah, were transported by Mercy 1 helicopter to Creighton Medical Center in Omaha, following the crash that happened at around 11-p.m. on E Avenue, a half-mile north of Highway 2. The teens, who were both wearing their seat belts, suffered possible, unknown injuries.

Palmer says the girls were traveling north on E Avenue in 1996 Mercury Mystique, when they met another car. Bird panicked and moved too far over to the right side of the road. Two tires on the vehicle left the pavement causing it to go out of control before entering a ditch and colliding with a large road culvert. The vehicle was totaled in the crash. Damage to the road tube was estimated at $500.

Emergency personnel used the jaws of life to extricate the females, who were trapped in the car. Crews were on the scene for about two-hours. No citations have been issued.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Due to a surge in enrollment at Iowa State University, a record number of students are attending Iowa’s public universities this fall. An Iowa Board of Regents report released this week shows that 76,465 students are enrolled at ISU, the University of Iowa and the University of Northern Iowa. The number is the seventh straight annual increase at the three schools and amounts to 9,000 more than were enrolled just 15 years ago.

This year’s increase was driven by an enrollment count of 33,241 at ISU, more than 2,000 additional students and a 7 percent increase compared to last year. The University of Iowa’s enrollment of 31,065 was a decline of 433 students, while UNI’s 12,159 enrollment was a decrease of 114.

The City Council in Atlantic Wednesday unanimously approved the establishment of rules and regulations for the use of the City’s Truck Parking lot off of Commerce Street. The motion to approve was made by Councilman Steve Livengood, who had earlier met with the Public Safety Committee, which recommended the City establish rules and a fee structures that would help the City address the various needs and problems associated with the site.

Under the rules, only tractors, trailers or similar combinations with a GCWR of more than 26,000 pounds when the towed vehicle’s GVWR is more than 10,000 pounds, will be allowed on the lot. The resolution also allows for no more than three parking stalls to be rented by an individual truck driver, same company or entity. Individuals or companies that legally reside in Atlantic can lease stalls for $1,200 per year minimum. Rental fees are due prior to January 1^st of each year, with the lease period for one-year at a time. The City may set aside up to three stalls for short term leases at $40/week, for up to three weeks.

Livengood said the lot needs to be graded at very little cost to the city, a gravel surface added, and some way to designate stalls for the trucks and trailers, such as the addition of posts/signs with a numbering system. There are already concrete “dolly pads” in-place for truckers to drop their trailers and lower the supporting gear. The Council agreed, that the first thing the must be accomplished, is for the lot to be cleaned up.

The Council, on a four-to two vote, approved a request by the Iowa Department of Transportation, to pay for the Design Engineering costs associated with the Highway 6/7th Street Reconstruction Project. Councilpersons Shouse, Halder, Hayes and Hartkopf voting in favor, Livengood and Jimerson voting against. Livengood and Jimerson were opposed to the request because the ultimate responsibility for the road and its condition, falls on the State.

The split vote resulted from the fact there is no guarantee that if the City agreed to pay for some of the engineering costs, the DOT will, as they’ve hinted, bump the project up on their list for 2014 and doesn’t get dropped if funding isn’t available or the schedule gets pushed back. City Administrator Doug Harris said the DOT has agreed to limit Atlantic’s costs to $68,000, and funding approval from the Regional Planning Affiliate 13 for an advance draw down of future federal State Transportation Program (STP) funds, to pay the $68,000 for the design engineering phase. The total cost of the project is estimated at nearly $1.2-million.

Harris said he has received permission from the Regional Transit Authority to borrow ahead four-years and use the STP grant funds, which would mean those funds would not be available for City projects, which will also impact the taxpayers. In other business, the Atlantic City Council tabled until their next meeting on Nov. 6th, action on a resolution accepting and approving the acquisition of properties at 611 Linn and 1200 Birch Street, because the court has not yet released the abandoned properties. And, Mayor Dave Jones issued a proclamation recognizing Phillip Chinitz for his dedication and “tireless efforts to preserve Atlantic’s rich history.”

Chinitz is a lifelong resident of Atlantic, graduated from AHS and served in the military before coming back to town and becoming a sports writer for the local paper. Because of the efforts of Phil and his wife Trena to preserve the knowledge of Atlantic’s rich history, and is recognized as an authority on the City’s past, the Mayor appointed Chinitz as the “Official Historian for the City of Atlantic.”