Plans are underway for the third annual Southwest Iowa Arts Tour, scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, September 17th-18th, 2016. The annual event takes place in communities throughout southwest Iowa, showcasing local artists and galleries. This year, the event has doubled from the inaugural year to 12 communities with over 100 local artists representing diverse media, such as metal work, painting, pottery and jewelry.

Communities hosting stops on the tour include: Council Bluffs, Woodbine, Glenwood, Malvern, Macedonia, Oakland, Avoca, Marne, Shenandoah, Red Oak, Corning and Winterset. The communities of Council Bluffs, Malvern and Red Oak will include multiple gallery and gathering place stops for participants. The self-guided event is free and open to the public and will take place from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm on Saturday, September 17^th and noon to 4:00 pm on Sunday, September 18^th.

The Southwest Iowa Arts Tour was conceived in 2014 by a group of artists and volunteers, during a meeting at Project Art Church in Malvern. They determined the purpose of the tour would be to showcase and promote area artists.

The Southwest Iowa Art Tour is coordinated by the Southwest Iowa Arts Council’s volunteer Board of Directors with support from Golden Hills RC&D. Funding support for the event has been provided by the Red Oak City Council Hotel/Motel grant, the USDA Rural Community Development Initiative, the Iowa West Foundation and the University of Iowa. The Southwest Iowa Art Tour, hosted by the Southwest Iowa Arts Council, represents a group of artists from throughout the region who collaborate to provide opportunities for the public to view and purchase their work.

For more information, please visit www.swiarttour.com.

Sheriff’s officials in Pottawattamie County say a Red Oak man was arrested Tuesday night in Council Bluffs, on a drug charge. A Deputy conducting a traffic stop at around 8:30-p.m. on a vehicle with an improper brake light, saw a sandwich bag with a green, leafy substance in plain view, between the passenger seat and center console. The driver of the vehicle, 25-year old Kristopher James Koon, of Red Oak, denied the bag was there. When it was opened, the deputy noticed the distinct smell of marijuana. Koon was arrested for Possession of a Controlled Substance (3.2 grams) and given a written warning for the brake light infraction.

An Avoca man was arrested Tuesday evening on an OWI charge, after the vehicle he was driving was pulled over for no license plates. 22-year old Jacob Dwayne Jens was taken into custody for OWI/2nd offense. He was also cited for Driving While Suspended, No vehicle registration, and No proof of Insurance.

And, a Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Deputy on routine patrol Tuesday evening, stopped a vehicle after a license plate check revealed the registered owner was wanted on a warrant. The driver and owner of the car, 29-year old Amanda Jeane Guill, of Neola, was taken into custody on a Council Bluffs Police Department warrant for Probation Violation.

The chair of the Iowa State Department of Sociology died Tuesday after suffering a reaction to a wasp sting. The Sociology Department’s website says 54-year-old Chester Britt was stung by a wasp while jogging on August 16th and experienced a severe allergic reaction. He was taken to the Ames hospital for treatment, and was later moved to a hospice where he died.

Britt had been named the chair of the department around one year ago after moving to Ames from his position as dean of the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Northeastern University in Boston.

There will be a memorial service for Britt Saturday at 1 p-m at the United Church of Christ-Congregational in Ames.

(Radio Iowa)

A new report shows tourist attractions and tourism-related businesses were busier than ever last year. Jessica O’Riley, spokesperson for the Iowa Tourism Office, says “This is the second consecutive year we’ve topped $8 billion in tourism-related expenditures.” Low gas prices are getting much of the credit. The annual study is conducted by the U.S. Travel Association. It shows tourism-related expenditures in Iowa in 2015 totaled $8.06 billion.

“State tax receipts topped a record $466.7 million. That’s a 25 percent increase over 2014,” O’Riley said. The large increase in state tax receipts was fueled by a 10 cent per gallon hike in the gas tax that took effect last year. O’Riley noted there are indications more people are making plans to travel to Iowa.

“We saw an increase on traveliowa.com, user sessions set a record at almost 1.3 million, and requests for our travel guide were up almost 20 percent,” O’Riley said. The report indicates tourism in Iowa supported 67,400 jobs, comprising 4.2 percent of total non-farm employment in 2015.

(Radio Iowa)

Precinct workers in Cass County are being trained today (Wednesday), on a new, election management system developed by officials in Cerro Gordo County, and used in more than 50 counties across the State. Ken Kline, Cerro Gordo County Auditor, said the “Precinct Atlas” program was developed after the 2008 Presidential election. That was also when Iowa implemented Election Day Voter Registration. Kline says he saw first hand in his own County how many problems with the myriad of election laws and exceptions can bog down the voter registration process.

The old method of hand-registering and validating each voter takes much longer, and is frustrating when there are long lines of individuals waiting to cast their ballots.

Cerro Gordo County Auditor Ken Kline explains the Precinct Atlas program.

Kline says the software precinct workers will use in Cass County to verify registered voters, provides simple, clear on-screen instructions to check-in and validate each voter. He said the precinct officials love it, and he feels much more confident, as an auditor, that the workers are handling each voter’s situation correctly, as opposed to training them on the all the rules and hoping they implement them correctly. He says also, it doesn’t take a “Computer whiz” to run the program.

Precinct Atlas was re-written last year, to make it even more dynamic and hassle-free for the precinct worker, as they guide the voter step-by step through the registration and verification process. If you have a driver’s license or State issued non-driver photo ID, the process is even faster because your information is obtained by scanning your ID. You simply flip your driver’s license upside down so the bar code on the back can be read by the scanner. The information automatically pop’s-up on the precinct workers’ screen and a form printed out for you to sign.

You can also present your voter registration card you received from your County Auditor. The system will get its first use in Cass County on September 13^th, during the Atlantic Community School District Special Election for the Physical Plant and Equipment Levy (PPEL) and PPEL Income Surcharge, vote.

Residents of Panama and Portsmouth are still without landline 9-1-1 service, after a fiber optic cable was cut late Tuesday night. The message went out to residents in the area at around 11-p.m.  Shelby County Emergency Management Coordinator Bob Seivert said as of 9:40-a.m. today, 9-1-1 service had not been fully restored.

If you have an emergency in Shelby County and dial 9-1-1 and you do not reach a 9-1-1 center, use your cellphone to dial 911 or call 712-755-2121. As conditions change, officials will update the status of the service.

Libertarian presidential nominee Gary Johnson will campaign in Iowa this weekend.
Johnson was a Republican when he ran for governor of New Mexico in 1994. He won two terms there and left office in January of 2003. Johnson ran for president as a Republican in 2011 and made a campaign stop here before the Caucuses, but Johnson wound up switching parties and securing the Libertarian Party’s presidential nomination in 2012. He’s the Libertarian Party’s nominee again this year.

According to Johnson’s campaign website, the candidate’s “Iowa Rally” will be held in Des Moines, at the Grand View University Wellness Center on Saturday afternoon. The latest Quinnipiac University Poll in Iowa was released in mid-August. It found Johnson had the support of 12 percent of the likely Iowa voters who were surveyed.

(Radio Iowa)

(Malvern, Iowa) – Local women landowners and farmers wanting to learn more about ways to improve the health of their soil can attend a workshop on September 13^th at 6:00 p.m. in Malvern. The event, co-hosted by Soil Health Partnership and Women, Land & Legacy of Southwest Iowa will focus on the basics of soil science, soil health resources and land management discussion.  This is one of at least nine field days planned by The Partnership throughout the state through September.

Elyssa McFarland, Soil Health Partnership field manager for Iowa, says “Iowa has some of the richest, most productive farmland in the world. By understanding the basics of soil properties and soil health we can gain a better understanding of implementing new practices to prevent nutrient loss and erosion and improve soil structure.”

The soil health workshop will take place at Classic Cafe, located at 317 Main Street in Malvern.  Dinner will be provided by Soil Health Partnership and is limited to the first 25 registrants.  This event is open to anyone, with pre-registration required by Friday, September 9^th at 4:30 p.m.  To register, call Iowa State University Extension & Outreach-Mills County at (712) 527-3316, Fremont County at (712) 374-2351, or Montgomery County at (712) 623-2592.  Special accommodations may be requested by contacting these offices.

WLL events are sponsored through a partnership of Fremont, Mills and Montgomery counties Farm Service Agency, Soil and Water Conservation District, Iowa State University Extension & Outreach, and Women, Land & Legacy of Southwest Iowa.  Women, Land & Legacy is committed to offering learning opportunities for rural women in areas such as business, management, agriculture and family.

About the Soil Health Partnership:
An initiative of the National Corn Growers Association, the SHP works closely with diverse organizations including commodity groups, federal agencies and well-known environmental groups toward common goals. The Partnership is in its third year with 65 partner farms across eight Midwestern states.

The Soil Health Partnership brings together diverse partner organizations including commodity groups, federal agencies, universities and environmental groups to work toward the common goal of improving soil health. Over a period of at least 10 years, the SHP will identify, test and measure farm management practices that improve soil health and benefit farmers. We believe the results of this farmer-led project will provide a platform for sharing peer-to-peer information, and lend resources to benefit agricultural sustainability and profitability. An initiative of the National Corn Growers Association, we provide the spark for greater understanding and implementation of agricultural best practices to protect resources for future generations. For more, visit soilhealthpartnership.org.

Do you have a love for gardening, a desire to learn more about the world of gardening, and a commitment to being a positive part of your community? If so, the Master Gardener program may be right for you! Master Gardeners are members of the local community who take an active interest in any type of gardening and have a desire to share their knowledge through education and community involvement. Cass County Extension will be hosting a Master Gardener training course for the fall session in 2016, but the deadline for registration is September 1!

Master Gardener trainees attend 40 hours of classes taught by Iowa State University Extension & Outreach staff and specialists on topics including lawn care, flower and vegetable gardening, ornamental trees and shrubs, fruit crops, and houseplants, insect, disease, and weed control, soil and plant nutrition, and pesticide safety. No previous gardening experience or expertise is necessary to become a Master Gardener, just a willingness to learn and give back. In 2015, 30 Master Gardeners reported over 1250 hours of volunteer service in and around Cass County!

In exchange for training, participants are asked to volunteer 40 hours of service to their local communities. The service opportunities are wide-ranging. Master Gardeners speak to local groups, teach youth about gardening, plant/maintain community gardens, staff plant clinics or displays, and provide horticulture therapy activities for the elderly, to name a few. Cass County has an active Master Gardener group that meets regularly to coordinate volunteer and educational opportunities for members. Membership in this group is optional, but open to anyone who has completed the training.

Classes will be held at the Cass County Extension office, located at 805 West 10th Street in Atlantic, Tuesday evenings, from September 20 through November 15.  There will also be three Thursday evening sessions held locally, and one Saturday in October spent on the ISU campus for hands-on training in the horticulture department.  The cost for the entire program, including reference materials and all training, is $195 per person. Registration deadline to ensure consideration for the class is this Thursday, September 1^st.

Persons interested in becoming a trained Master Gardener in Cass County are encouraged to contact the Cass County Extension office at 712-243-1132, or stop in the office for information on signing up for the fall certification classes, or to learn more about Iowa Master Gardeners. A printable application form can also be found on the Cass County Extension website at www.extension.iastate.edu/cass.  Applications can also be completed online by visiting http://mastergardenerhours.hort.iastate.edu/application-form.php to fill out an online application that will be immediately submitted for consideration. For more information about the application process and classes you can also visit www.extension.iastate.edu/mastergardener/become-master-gardener.

Police in Creston report a Central Iowa man was arrested Tuesday evening for allegedly Failing to Comply with the State’s Sex Offender Registry. 30-year old James Clark, of Pleasant Hill, was also charged with Theft in the 5th Degree. Clark was being held in the Union County Jail on a $5,000 bond.

Three other men were arrested Tuesday, in Creston: 23-year old Michael Cox, of Creston, was arrested at his home on a Union County Warrant for Failure to Appear on an original charge of Public Intoxication, and a new charge of Theft in the 5th Degree. Cox was later released on a Promise to Appear in court; 18-year old Kendrick Davis, of Creston, was arrested at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, on a Union County warrant for Probation Violation. Davis was later released on $2,000 bond. And, 23-year old Tyler McKay, of Creston, was arrested late Tuesday night for Public Intoxication/1st offense. McKay was being held in the Union County Jail on $300 bond.

Creston Police said also, a person with the United Methodist Church in Creston, reported Tuesday that sometime Tuesday afternoon, someone fired a BB gun at the north windows of the Early Childhood Building. Damage was estimated at $300.

(7-a.m. News)