DAVENPORT, Iowa – The Iowa Department of Corrections reports 43-year-old Roderick Alan Crawford Jr., who was convicted of Habitual Offender (Person) in Scott County, failed to report back to the Davenport Residential Corrections Facility as required Wednesday.
Crawford is 5-feet 9-inches tall and weighs 301-pounds. He was admitted to the work release facility on April 1, 2024.
Persons with information on Crawford’s whereabouts should contact local police.
Roderick Alan Crawford Jr.
(Atlantic, Iowa) – Officials with Atlantic Trees Forever have announced that spring tree vouchers are available beginning April 29th. The local Trees Forever organization says that with the past year’s weather we’ve experienced, many people are needing trees this spring. They ask that you please limit your request to one voucher per homeowner, so more people can get a start replacing trees that are being removed.
Tree vouchers are a great way to help with the cost of a tree to plant. The vouchers are for $30 off the cost of a tree, and can be obtained at the Atlantic Hy-Vee, 1630 E 7th Street when you purchase a tree.
Dolly Bergmann, with Atlantic Trees Forever said there are a limited number of vouchers available. Those at the Hy-Vee garden center can help you determine what kind of tree would work best in the location you would like to plant a tree.
It is important to water the trees this spring and during the summer.
AMES, Iowa – The Iowa State men’s basketball team will host Marquette in the 2024 Big 12/BIG EAST Battle on Wednesday, Dec. 4 at Hilton Coliseum.
Iowa State is 4-0 in the BIG EAST/Big 12 Battle, beating DePaul (99-80) last season, St. John’s (71-60) in 2022, Creighton (64-58) in 2021 and No. 16 Seton Hall (76-66) in 2019 at Hilton Coliseum. The 2020 meeting with DePaul was canceled due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols just hours before tipoff.
The Cyclones and Golden Eagles will be meeting for the ninth time. Iowa State won the last meeting, 77-69, in Hilton Coliseum March 25, 2004. The victory sent the Cyclones to the NIT Final Four. Marquette leads the all-time series 5-3, while Iowa State holds a 3-2 advantage in Ames. The Golden Eagles went 27-10 last season, advancing to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16. Both the Cyclones and Golden Eagles finished the year in the AP Top 25, with ISU at No. 8 and Marquette at No. 11.
With each conference adding member schools since the start of the original agreement, the Battle increased from 10 to 11 matchups last season and will continue with 11 for this year.
The Battle matchups are jointly determined by the two conferences, with the home team choosing the venue of its game. Broadcast arrangements for the contests will be determined by the national television rights holder of the home team, which is ESPN for the Big 12 and FOX Sports for the BIG EAST.
Game times and television networks will be announced when available.
2024 BIG EAST-Big 12 Battle Schedule
December 3 Cincinnati at Villanova
December 3 BYU at Providence
December 4 Marquette at Iowa State
December 4 Baylor at Connecticut
December 4 DePaul at Texas Tech
December 4 Kansas at Creighton
December 6 Georgetown at West Virginia
December 6 Xavier at TCU
December 7 Kansas State at St. John’s
December 7 Butler at Houston
December 8 Oklahoma State at Seton Hall
The Iowa Hawkeye baseball team takes a five-game winning streak to Nebraska this weekend for a three game Big Ten Series. The Hawkeyes are currently fifth in the league race with a record of 9-6 while Nebraska is tied for third at 8-4. Iowa coach Rick Heller says the Huskers have the top pitching staff in the Big Ten.
The Hawkeyes got just over 18 innings from the starting staff in last week’s sweep of Rutgers and will need similar success against Nebraska.
Heller says Hawkeye pitchers must limit walks to have a chance.
(Radio Iowa) – Western Iowa Tech Community College in Sioux City has reached a settlement with international students who accused the school of human trafficking. The school’s board of directors has approved a three-million-dollar payment to 13 students from Chile who filed a lawsuit in November of 2020. The students who took part in what’s called the Federal J-1 student program and said they were promised a free two-year program with internships. But the students say they ended up doing jobs involving manual labor to pay off their tuition.
The college issued a statement that acknowledges the program did not meet its high standards, but denied the allegations in the lawsuit. A lawsuit is still pending against the Sioux City area companies involved with the program.
(Atlantic, Iowa) – Firefighters in Atlantic responded to a reported garage fire this (Thursday) morning. The call about a fire at 511 Front Street went out at around 10:30-a.m. Crews obtained a quick knock-down of the flames in the metal structure, and by 10:50-a.m. only light gray smoke was observed coming from the garage. Atlantic Fire Chief Tom Cappel reports an investigation determined the cause of the fire was electrical-related.
Cappel thanked the Atlantic Police, Cass County Sheriff’s Deputies and a crew from Atlantic Municipal Utilities (AMU) who were on the scene to assist.
511 Front St. fire (Ric Hanson/photo)
The Cass County Community Foundation awarded $145,696.77 to Cass County nonprofit organizations and community projects during its Spring 2024 Grant Cycle.
The following organizations are Spring 2024 Grant Recipients:
| Organization | Project | Grant amount |
| American Legion Post 508 | Bathroom remodel | $5,000.00 |
| Anita Health and Wellness Center | Cardio equipment | $5,349.99 |
| Anita Volunteer Fire Association | Stryker cot | $15,000.00 |
| Ann W. Wickman Child Development Center | Improvements/updates for quality care | $10,000.00 |
| Atlantic Parks & Recreation | Atlantic swimming pool equipment | $5,000.00 |
| Atlantic Rock Island Society Enterprise | Replace upper-level windows | $15,000.00 |
| Cass County 4-H Rabbit Department | New tables for rabbit cages | $5,000.00 |
| Cass County Drone Team | Equipment expansion | $3,000.00 |
| Cass County Historical | Bathroom revision and renovation (two) | $5,000.00 |
| Griswold Fire Dept. | Portable ground monitor | $4,855.39 |
| Griswold Rescue | Cardiac monitor mounts | $3,800.00 |
| Griswold Youth Sports Complex, Inc. | Upgrades | $4,855.39 |
| Healthy Cass County – Grow Another Row | Mollett Park community garden hydrants | $3,000.00 |
| Lewis Public Library | Mobile adult section book shelving | $4,500.00 |
| Marne Fire and Rescue Association | New firefighter PPE | $8,700.00 |
| Massena Childcare | Massena childcare | $11,318.00 |
| Massena Public Library | Outdoor improvements/mural & hardscape | $3,000.00 |
| Nishna Valley Family YMCA | Quality pool air | $15,000.00 |
| SHIFT ATL | Atlantic community splash pad | $5,000.00 |
| Trivium Life Services | Fresh Start fund | $2,000.00 |
| Vision Atlantic | Vision Atlantic Child Development Center | $11,318.00 |
All grantees met the criteria as Cass County nonprofit agencies or organizations with charitable missions supporting community needs in the areas of civic engagement, culture, health, education, and social services.
Only organizations providing services in Cass County were eligible to apply. To inquire about donating to the Cass County Community Foundation, please contact the Community Foundations of Southwest Iowa staff or any board member listed below. Gifts to permanently endowed funds through the Cass County Community Foundation may be eligible to receive a 25% Endow Iowa Tax Credit.
Advisory board members of the Cass County Community Foundation are Kristi Burg, Gaylord Schelling, Sue Hunt, Sandy Bierbaum, Justin D. Hockenberry, and Mike Tibken.
For information about donating or establishing an individual foundation/fund, please contact Sarah Beth Ray, Iowa Foundations Advisor, at 800-794-3458 or sarahbeth@omahafoundation.org.
The Audubon County Community Foundation awarded $143,342 to Audubon County nonprofit organizations and community projects during its Spring 2024 Grant Cycle.
The following organizations are Spring 2024 Grant Recipients:
| Organization | Project | Grant amount |
| Audubon County Conservation Board | New Playground Handicap Accessible Sidewalk | $10,000.00 |
| Audubon Recreation Foundation | ARC Fitness Area Addition | $40,000.00 |
| Brayton Community Club | Phase Two: Exterior Renovation | $15,000.00 |
| City of Exira | Fire Department Roof Replacement | $20,000.00 |
| Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton Community School District | Exira Community Fitness Room Renovation | $40,000.00 |
| Friendship Home | Spa Room Renovations | $9,171.00 |
| The Children’s Nest | Operational Funds | $9,171.00 |
All grantees met the criteria as Audubon County nonprofit agencies or organizations with charitable missions that support community needs in the areas of civic engagement, culture, health, education, and social services. Only organizations providing services in Audubon County were eligible to apply.
The Audubon County Community Foundation is an affiliate of the Omaha Community Foundation, which meets National Standards for Community Foundations, and is one of nine county members of the Community Foundations of Southwest Iowa. It receives funds annually from the State of Iowa County Endowment Fund Program for endowment building and grantmaking throughout the county. This cycle of grants was made possible through the County Endowment Fund Program and is funded by a percentage of the state’s commercial gaming tax revenue, which is distributed annually to participating community foundations associated with counties without a state-issued gaming license.
The Audubon County Community Foundation works with individuals, families, businesses, and organizations to create permanent and expendable funds that address changing, vital community needs and interests. To inquire about donating to the Audubon County Community Foundation, please contact the Community Foundations of Southwest Iowa staff or any board member listed below. Gifts to permanently endowed funds through the Audubon County Community Foundation may be eligible to receive a 25% Endow Iowa Tax Credit.
Advisory board members of the Audubon County Community Foundation are Pat Kaiser, Gina Benton, Megan Wagner, Dr. Bob Blomme, Travis Nelson, Donna Olson, and Doug Carter.
For information about donating or establishing an individual foundation/fund, please contact Sarah Beth Ray, Iowa Foundations Advisor, at 800-794-3458 or sarahbeth@omahafoundation.org.
(Radio Iowa) – Whatever your weekend plans, Iowans are being warned they’ll need to keep an eye on the weather, as severe storms may be moving in soon. Meteorologist Andrew Ansorge, at the National Weather Service, says we’ll have scattered rain showers and a few thunderstorms tonight, which shouldn’t pose much trouble, but the rest of the weekend may be a different story. “Friday afternoon, Saturday and Sunday will each feature rounds of strong-to-severe storms,” Ansorge says. “Friday is looking more like mid-to-late afternoon across Iowa, probably southwestern Iowa has the highest risk for seeing tornadoes, large hail and damaging wind gusts. That will move east-northeast across the state into the evening hours.”
If you bought tickets for the Drake Relays, which will conclude in Des Moines this weekend, you’d better bring along a poncho and galoshes. “Saturday, we might get a break in the morning but then looking into Saturday afternoon, storms will redevelop in the afternoon into the overnight hours,” Ansorge says, “and then Sunday, we’ll have to watch to see how things evolve on Saturday into Saturday night, but Sunday also has a risk of severe storms over roughly the southeastern half Iowa.”
We’re in the heart of severe weather season in Iowa, and Ansorge says it’s wise to have a weather radio handy, or a reliable severe weather app on your phone. “Anytime there’s a risk of strong to severe storms, you need to make sure you have multiple ways to receive warnings,” he says, “especially if you’re going to be outside, whether that be for a ballgame, track meet, playing in your garden, make sure you know where your available shelter’s at.”
On April 16th, multiple rounds of severe weather swept across the state, spinning off as many as 13 tornadoes statewide. Some of the twisters were on the ground less than a mile, while a destructive EF2 cut across more than 40 miles of southeast Iowa.
(Radio Iowa) – A nearly 19 MILLION dollar housing project in Spirit Lake will be built a few blocks from a manufacturing facility that employs 750. The Polaris plant in Spirit Lake produces Victory motorcycles and Polaris RANGER utility vehicles. Robert Smith of Talon Development says when the project is finished, there will be 126 rental units. “Phase one will have the apartments, with 62 units. We’re going to have within phase two we’re going to have town homes of three bedrooms, two-and-a-half bath and parking,” he says. “We’re also going to have within phase two…a community center and a fitness center.”
Smith says Talon Development built similar housing complexes in 27 other communities. He calls it market rate workforce housing. “Rather than having people drive in for half an hour, they can live and work in right in the community they’re in,” Smith says. “That’s the niche we work in. The smaller communities need to have people close by.” Spirit Lake officials say local businesses have said expansion plans are dependent on the construction of affordable housing for prospective employees.
Spirit Lake City Hall (photo by Spencer Radio Group/Saga Communications)
Spirit Lake City Administrator Gregg Owen says the developers are applying to the Iowa Economic Development Authority for a Workforce Housing Tax Credit. “They need to see a local match. The city’s local match will be a combination of a $500,000 economic development grant and a tax abatement.”
The estimated value of that local tax abatement is about 394-thousand dollars. The developers say local investors and financing have already been secured. If the project is approved for state tax incentives, Talon Development could close on the property in September and begin construction before winter hits.
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