A riverboat casino in Council Bluffs is about to be retired, and replaced with a new, indoor casino. The Daily NonPareil reports all of the gaming operations on-board the “Kanesville Queen” riverboat owned by Harrah’s Council Bluffs Casino and Hotel will be removed from the 18-year old boat and taken into a new, 25-thousand square foot, one-level area, where Harrah’s convention rooms were located. The  move has been five-years in the making, according to Senior Vice President and General Manager, Bo Guidry. A change in Iowa law means casinos are no longer required to be on boats, which are expensive to maintain. Guidry said the company expects to save $2-million per year once the vessel is retired and closed at 4-a.m., June 3rd.

The new casino, which is set to hold its grand opening June 8th,  will offer 600 slot machines, including 200 new games and 100 video poker machines. There will be 18 table games featuring customer favorites like blackjack, craps and roulette. Forty-seven high-definition televisions will be installed on the walls around the room, as well.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Governor Terry Branstad and MidAmerican Energy have announced plans to spend $1.9 billion to install 656 wind turbines in Iowa by 2016. The Des Moines-based utility’s plan represents the largest economic development project in Iowa history. The new turbines will have the capacity to generate more than 1,000 megawatts of wind power.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — U.S. Senator Tom Harkin is announcing nearly $1.2 million in funding for projects at six Iowa airports. The largest amount will go to the Spencer Municipal Airport. More than $300,000 will be spent on renovating the runway lighting system.

CLARION, Iowa (AP) — Jurors deliberating in the trial of an Osage teenager accused of shooting his mother to death say they’re “close” to being a hung jury. Noah Crooks is charged with first-degree murder and assault with intent to commit sexual abuse in the 2012 killing of his mother. Jurors sent a note to the judge yesterday that read, “Close to hung jury. What do we do?”

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Senate has approved a bill that includes $8 million to upgrade facilities at the Iowa Speedway in Newton. The Senate approved the money as part of an appropriations bill that includes spending on a variety of projects. The state tax dollars would be spread out over four years.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Gov. Terry Branstad and MidAmerican Energy have announced plans to spend $1.9 billion to install 656 wind turbines in Iowa by the end of 2015. The Des Moines-based utility’s plan announced Wednesday at a Statehouse news conference represents the largest economic development project in Iowa history. When completed, the new turbines will have the capacity to generate up to 1,050 megawatts of wind power.

MidAmerican estimates that by January 2016, it will be capable of generating nearly 40 percent of its power by wind. MidAmerican is Iowa’s largest energy company, bringing electricity to 734,000 customers and natural gas to 714,000 customers in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska and South Dakota.

A Cass County woman was sentenced today (Wednesday) to 15-years in prison an methamphetamine-related charges. The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa says 46-year old Katrina Sue Bates, of Griswold,  was sentenced to 180 months imprisonment for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine in and around Cass County. United States District Judge John Jarvey also ordered Bates to serve a ten-year term of supervised release following incarceration.

Bates pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance (methamphetamine) on September 30, 2012. The conviction was the result of a three year investigation into methamphetamine trafficking in and around Atlantic, Iowa. At the time of her guilty plea, Bates admitted that from July of 2009, until May of 2010, she agreed to distribute methamphetamine obtained from a South Omaha, Nebraska source to customers in the Atlantic area.

The investigation into her activities was conducted by the Cass County, Iowa, Sheriff’s Office, Audubon County, Iowa, Sheriff’s Office, Cass County, Iowa, County Attorney’s Office, and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

U-S Attorney Nicholas Klinefeldt reports a Harrison County man was sentenced today (Wednesday), to more than seven and a-half years in prison. 31-year old Rodney Lee Crosby, of rural Pisgah, was sentenced in United States District Court in Council Bluffs on charges of felon in possession of a firearm and felon in possession of explosive devices. United States District Court Judge John A. Jarvey sentenced Crosby to 46 months in prison on each charge, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release on each charge, with the imprisonment and supervised release on both charges to be served concurrently. Crosby was also ordered to pay a $10,000.

The Court also ordered Crosby to forfeit: eight weapons (Including: a Remington Arms, Model 870, 12 gauge shotgun; a Mossberg, Model 835 Ulti-Mag, 12 gauge shotgun; a savage, Model 116, 338 caliber rifle; a Remington Arms, Model 710, 30-06 caliber rifle; a Marlin Firearms, Model 39A, .22 caliber rifle; a Savage, Model 11, 243 caliber rifle; a Hipoint, Model 995, 9mm rifle; a Taurus .357 caliber revolver), and five different types of ammunition (.9-mm, .357 caliber, 30-06 caliber, .25 caliber, .22 caliber), 12- and 16-gauge  shotgun shells, all “improvised explosive bombs”, such as containers include “snuff cans” with metal lids, containing a per chlorate explosive mixture, and with functional pyrotechnic fuses, including among any others those seized from Crosby’s premises on July 2, 2011; and explosives in the form of commercial aerial display fireworks, including among others, cardboard tubing with plastic end plugs seized from Crosby’s premises on July 2, 2011.

Crosby was also ordered to pay a $200.00 special assessment for the Crime Victim Fund. He was taken into custody by the United States Marshal’s Service to be detained pending designation of the Federal Bureau of Prisons facility at which he will serve his sentence. Crosby was sentenced upon his pleas of guilty to the two charges entered on September 6, 2012. The firearm and explosives charges against Crosby arose from a July 2, 2011, domestic disturbance call to Crosby’s residence. During the call, Harrison County Sheriff’s Deputies and Iowa State Patrolmen observed several firearms and ammunition in the residence. In a subsequent search of the premises, officers found additional firearms, ammunition, explosive devices and commercial aerial display fireworks. Crosby was prohibited from possessing those items, having previously been convicted of felony fraud and theft charges.

During the search, the State of Iowa Fire Marshal and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco and Explosives were called, and joined the investigation. During the investigation, Crosby gave a statement regarding the fireworks manufacturing operation in which he stated that he made and sold fireworks, and that he made substantial money from the sale of the fireworks. Some of the explosives were deemed potentially dangerous, and were promptly destroyed by law enforcement personnel on the premises in which they were found.

The investigation was conducted by the Harrison County Sheriff’s Department, the Iowa State Patrol, the State of Iowa Fire Marshal, and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.