(Atlantic, Iowa – The Atlantic Chamber Ambassadors were hosted by First Whitney Bank on Friday, August 23rd, 2024, to celebrate the completion of the 300 Chestnut Street Apartments.

Paul Gude, CEO and President of First Whitney Bank, shared about the 4-year process of acquiring and renovating the building began with working with the Southwest Iowa Planning Council to secure a Downtown Housing Grant. Paul thanked the City of Atlantic and SWIPCO for the diligent work, and said it was very important to use all local business to get the project done. From the appliances to the Wi-Fi it all was all done locally.

Pictured Left to Right: Anthony Drogo, Trey Cappel, Lucas Mosier, Eric Steinhoff, Kyle Lenderman, Garrett Eblen, Chris Parks, John Bricker, Rob Clausen, Janet Cappel, Dr. Keith Leonard, Sonya Clausen, Kennedy Freund, Lana Westphalen, Dolly Bergmann, Krysta Hanson, Megan Sramek, Bill Saluk, Elaine Otte, Alisha Wagner, Jason Nicholas, Paul Gude, Jeremy Butler, Jennifer McEntaffer, Anne Quist, Scott Bennett, Jake Olsen, Jeff Christensen, Bailey Smith, Jeff Gude, Kelsey Beschorner

The upstairs apartments include two, two-bedroom apartments, and two, one-bedroom apartments. The building includes a commercial space on the lower level, that will be “completed to order” for the tenant that moves into the space. Paul shared there are a few prospects in the works to occupy the commercial space.

For availability and information about the 300 Chestnut Street Apartments, call First Whitney Bank at 712-243-3195.

(Radio Iowa) – A death investigation is underway in Charles City after the discovery of two bodies in a house. A Charles City Police Department Facebook post about 1:30 pm Thursday afternoon alerted the public of the investigation and that “there is no reason to believe there is any danger or risk to the public.”

CCPD was dispatched to a residence in the 1000 block of Court Street in Charles City shortly before noon. There, Chief Hugh Anderson says upon entry to the home, two people were found dead. The Iowa DCI was notified and assisted with the incident and the Floyd County Sheriff’s Office also responded to the scene.

At this time, no names are being released as authorities work to contact family members.

(Radio Iowa) – At least two more Iowa schools have recently moved to ban smart phones from high school classrooms. Casey Berlau, the superintendent of Carroll Community Schools, says cell phones were already prohibited in elementary and middle school classrooms in the district, but the ban now extends to the high school. High schoolers will be allowed to put their cell phones, smart watches and ear buds in their lockers.

Each class lasts for 41 minutes and Berlau says without the distraction of a cellphone, students are likely to be more engaged in what’s happening inside the classroom.

Dallas Center-Grimes recently adopted a policy that bans cell phones from high school classrooms. In May, Des Moines Hoover High School administrators announced students would not be allowed to use smart phones, AirPods or other personal electronics during the school day. High schoolers in Ottumwa may take their phones to school, but have to store the devices in their locker all day.

(Radio Iowa) – A cabinet-level federal administrator is in western Iowa today (Friday) to encourage people who’ve seen their homes and livelihoods damaged or demolished by this year’s severe weather to lean on Uncle Sam. Isabel Casillas Guzman heads the U-S Small Business Administration and tells Radio Iowa that the S-B-A isn’t just devoted to helping small businesses recover.

Guzman is in the Adair County town of Greenfield, which was hit by an E-F-4 tornado in May that killed four people and destroyed 153 homes. It’s been an especially bad year for severe weather in Iowa, with significant damage in multiple counties from storms, flooding, straight-line winds, and a record 122 tornadoes.

Guzman plans to visit Greenfield businesses as well as the S-B-A’s Greenfield Disaster Recovery Center which opened earlier this month.

Photo of tornado damage in Greenfield by Melissa Ehrman Johnson

She also plans to host a meet-and-greet with homeowners to hear about their recovery needs. Why haven’t more people in Iowa’s disaster areas signed up for S-B-A assistance? Guzman says there can be many reasons, ranging from pride to a lack of trust to a lack of knowledge about what’s available.

This afternoon, the administrator will hold a roundtable meeting in West Des Moines with federal, state, and local stakeholders, along with business owners and non-profits, to discuss tornado damage recovery efforts. She says the agency’s loans are very affordable.

Before flying back to Washington D.C. later today, Guzman plans to meet with the owners of BLK (black) & Bold in Des Moines, the first black-owned nationally-distributed coffee company, as part of celebrating National Black Business Month.

(Massena, Iowa) – A semi tractor-trailer load of bottled water was delivered to Massena this (Friday) morning, while the city remains under a Boil Order. The water was donated by the Atlantic Hy-Vee Store. City officials in Massena are asking residents to please come to area near City Hall and take no more than two cases to start, so that everyone may have the water who needs it.

The Boil Order, which was issued Thursday, remains in effect until further notice. The Order was issued after a chemical pump malfunctioned, causing chlorine residual levels to become low. The city has replaced the chlorine injection pump, and the affected area is being disinfected and flushed.

Photo courtesy Cass County EMA/ Mike Kennon,

Bottled water may be used as an alternative to boiling the tap water, when used for drinking, cooking and/or food preparation, as well as brushing teeth.

(Red Oak, Iowa) The Red Oak Fire Department Fire Prevention Program is pleased to
announce the launch of its new Youth Firesetting Intervention Program. The purpose of the
program is to foster a cohesive partnership among the community, local fire departments
as well as local law enforcement to reduce the number of fire related injuries and deaths by
providing evaluation, education and redirection assistance to youth who exhibit fire setting
behaviors.

The Youth Firesetting Intervention Program is a national program overseen locally by the
State of Iowa. The Youth Firesetting Intervention Program and Juvenile Intervention
Taskforce is a division of the State Fire Marshall’s office.

Using nationally accepted practices the intervention program will interview and evaluate
any youth who are recommended to the program. Referrals can come from a variety of
sources to include the juvenile justice system, mental health counselors, parents and/or
legal guardians, local law enforcement, state certified fire investigators or local fire
department personnel.

The nationally accepted practices would include utilizing the state recommended Juvenile
with Fire screening tool. This tool includes parent and/or guardian interviews and
interviews with the youth. Answers are scored on a scale of 1 to 3 and determine the
recommended course of action. The course of actions typically include intervention
through education. The intervention staff may recommend counseling as well. After the
interview and educational session is complete, the intervention program will follow up with
the family, typically at 30, 60, and 90 days.

The goal is to educate youth who exhibit fire setting behaviors on the dangers of fire to
include loss of life, severe injury and property damage. This program is available at no cost
to the families affected.

(Creston, Iowa) – Officials with the Creston Police Department report 26-year-old Ashley Dawn Eblen, of Creston, was arrested late Thursday night, for Public Intoxication, and Interference with Official Acts. Eblen was arrested at around 10:40-p.m. and transported to the Adams County Jail, where she was being held in a $600 bond.

And,  at around 8:30-p.m. Thursday, Creston Police arrested 40-year-old Michael John Schiel, of Prescott, for Driving While Suspended. Schiel was cited and released on a Promise to Appear in court.

(Pierre, South Dakota) – The company trying to build a carbon-capture pipeline through multiple states, including Iowa, has not yet proven it should be allowed to take private land for public use, according to a South Dakota Supreme Court ruling issued Thursday. The South Dakota Searchlight, in conjunction with the Iowa Capital Dispatch, says landowners who oppose the project hailed the decision as a victory, but the company expressed confidence it could go back to lower courts and prove its case.

Summit Carbon Solutions, of Iowa, is developing an $8 billion pipeline project. It would capture carbon dioxide produced by 57 ethanol plants in multiple states and transport it to an underground storage site in North Dakota. The company hopes to capitalize on federal tax credits incentivizing the removal of heat-trapping carbon from the atmosphere.

The pipeline would pass through 18 counties in eastern South Dakota. Some landowners along the route sued to stop the company from conducting land surveys. Summit says the surveys are justified because the company qualifies as a common carrier, and common carriers are allowed to use eminent domain.

The state Supreme Court ruled Summit had not yet proven to lower courts that it’s “holding itself out to the general public as transporting a commodity for hire.” The Supreme Court sent the matter back to South Dakota’s lower courts for further proceedings, adding that the Supreme Court justices “make no judgment as to SCS’s ultimate common carrier status.”

Members of the South Dakota Supreme Court hear oral arguments on March 19, 2024, in Aberdeen on a carbon pipeline case. From left are Justices Scott Myren, Janine Kern, Steven Jensen and Mark Salter. Judge Jane Wipf Pfeifle, at right, sat in for Justice Patricia DeVaney, who disqualified herself from the case. (Photo by Dave Bordewyk/South Dakota NewsMedia Association)

Summit spokesperson Sabrina Zenor said in a statement that the company is confident it can provide additional information to lower courts proving its project qualifies as a common carrier. Meanwhile, attorney Brian Jorde, representing more than 1,000 landowners affected by the project, told South Dakota Searchlight the ruling validated what he and his clients have argued for three years.

The project has approval from the Iowa Utilities Board, but that approval is conditioned on Summit gaining permits in North Dakota and South Dakota, which have not been granted. Jorde said the South Dakota Supreme Court decision means Summit is now “in a real bind.”

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Kim Reynolds says she has not opted out of a federal program to provide food to needy Iowa child next summer, she’s just waiting to see if the U-S-D-A will let her use the money to set up a new system in Iowa for distributing it.

Iowa was one of 13 states that did not participate in THIS summer’s U-S-D-A program which provided families with an extra 140 dollars in grocery money for each child who qualifies for free or reduced price school lunches. Reynolds has drawn up a plan to distribute the 29 million dollars in benefits by having the state buy the food and box it up.

The governor says the boxed up food would be distributed by the state’s 12-hundred food banks and food pantries as well as the 500 sites around the state — mostly schools — that provided summer meals this summer. Critics say giving Iowa parents electronic benefits cards lets them address the nutrition needs of their family and avoid foods their kids are allergic to. Reynolds says the emphasis in her alternative is on healthy food.

Reynolds made her comments during a news conference yesterday (Thursday), but has not said whether she will opt out of the Summer feeding program next year if the U-S-D-A does not fund her food box alternative. The governor’s Health and Human Services director says she’s had a couple of productive conversations with a top U-S-D-A official about the governor’s waiver request.