340 AM CST Thu Jan 25 2018
…DENSE FOG ADVISORY IS CANCELLED…
The National Weather Service in Des Moines has cancelled the Dense Fog Advisory issued Wednesday evening for Cass and area Counties. Patchy fog will continue through mid morning, however widespread dense fog is not expected at this point. Therefore, the advisory has been cancelled.
One of the clerks hired to work as a secretary for a member of the Iowa House was arrested yesterday (Wednesday) morning for being drunk and disorderly. Twenty-one-year-old Jessica Leeper, of Altoona, had been working as a clerk for State Representative Tom Moore.
Observers on the House floor say she appeared to be intoxicated yesterday morning. The head of state capitol police says Leeper was “definitely not cooperative” as four state troopers arrested her and escorted her out of the statehouse in handcuffs. Leeper was booked into the Polk County jail shortly before 11:30.
Leeper’s been charged with public intoxication, disorderly conduct and failure to maintain safety belts. That last charge is related to her conduct during the ride to the jail. Leeper has also lost her job as a clerk in the state capitol.
Each legislator hires a clerk to work for them during the legislative session in their “office space.” Office space for rank-and-file legislators like Moore is a desk, a filing cabinet and two chairs on the House floor. The only legislators who have separate office space in the statehouse are the chairmen and chairwoman of committees and legislative leaders.
(Radio Iowa)
Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CST
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — The University of Iowa has reached an agreement with federal regulators to resolve concerns about potential disparities in opportunities provided to female athletes. The Office for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education found that Iowa was spending more on male athletes in areas such as equipment, recruiting and locker rooms but didn’t rule on whether that violated federal law. Instead, it negotiated a resolution in which Iowa will voluntarily take steps to demonstrate compliance.
SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Sioux City plans to partner with the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino for a project that would bring parking and commercial space to an area of downtown. The Sioux City Journal reports the proposed $11 million development would fill an empty 1.2-acre lot that sits just south of the casino. The city purchased the land in 2015 for additional parking for Tyson Events Center functions.
DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — A Texas woman has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for causing a fatal Davenport crash last year. The Quad-City Times reports that 58-year-old Lauria Lee Kelly, of Alvarado, Texas, was sentenced Wednesday in Scott County District Court after being found guilty in December of vehicular homicide. Police say Kelly was speeding and had run at least two stop lights in January 2017 when her pickup truck hit a car, killing 53-year-old Cynthia Elaine Jones, of Davenport.
WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) — Firefighters in northeastern Iowa have been battling a large fire at a scrap yard northwest of Waterloo. The Courier reports that firefighters were called to Alter Metal Recycling on Wednesday morning for a fire near the facility’s shredder. Smoke from the scene could be seen billowing from miles away.
Dense fog has developed across portions of west central Iowa this evening and is expected to spread into northwest to north central Iowa during the late evening hours and persist through much of Thursday morning.
Audubon-Cass Counties…
…DENSE FOG ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 AM CST THURSDAY…
* VISIBILITY…Visibility restrictions of one quarter mile or less at times are likely.
* IMPACTS…Travel could be challenging at times due to the significantly reduced visibility. In addition to the dense fog, there is the possibility of slick spots on roadways, bridges and sidewalks from freezing moisture deposits from the
dense fog.
Shelby & Pottawattamie Counties…Areas of fog will be possible this evening, and it could be dense in some areas with visibility down to 1/2 mile or less. With temperatures at freezing and falling, slippery road conditions could develop through the evening. Travelers along Interstate 80 will encounter the fog east of the Minden area.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
A Dense Fog Advisory means visibilities will frequently be reduced to less than one quarter mile. If driving, slow down, use low beam headlights, and leave plenty of distance ahead of you.
The Atlantic School Board spent more than an hour discussing the direction they would take with regard to the District’s Athletic Facilities. It included possibly buying land to relocate the baseball and softball fields, and, leaving things where they are, but making them ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliant. They also talked about a possible bond referendum. There were a lot of stops and starts during the meeting, but the general consensus appeared to be, that the Trojan Bowl will remain where it is.
Board President Ali Bruckner said “As a Board, we feel very comfortable leaving the athletic facilities where they are currently, today, and working toward a plan to make them safe, playable and ADA compliant.” She said, however, “That will take time, and we will do our Due Diligence. And at our next Board meeting we will have a vote on if that’s the way we’re going to go, or not. And then after that, there’ll several steps.”
One of those steps includes meeting with bonding agent Travis Squires with Piper-Jaffray, because, according to Bruckner, “Our capital dollars will not stand for this type of improvement project. You have to keep capital dollars at hand for things that come up, [such as] roof leaking, or things that need to be fixed.”
Superintendent Steve Barber said “We are in the process of developing a timeline and doing it an expedient manner.” Board member Kristy Pellett, added the District currently has no debt service, which is a positive aspect when going after a bond. The high school was the last debt service, she said.
A security upgrade is in the works for the Iowa State Fairgrounds. Fair spokesperson Mindy Williamson says a 20-percent boost to the fair’s security budget has been approved and the extra money will be directed toward personnel, training and equipment. Williamson calls it a precautionary move.
“I think this is just a different world we live in today and something that’s been needed at the fairgrounds, but there weren’t any specific events or anything that happened,” Williamson said. The increase in funding will allow the fair to hire sworn police officers, both full-time and part-time. According to Williamson, the Iowa State Patrol, Des Moines Police and the Polk County Sheriff’s Department will continue to help with security during the Iowa State Fair.
“So, this is just another way to enhance that and be a little more proactive than reactive, given some of the world events that we have seen,” Williamson said. The new public safety force will oversee security for more than 350 events that happen on the fairgrounds each year, including the Iowa State Fair in August. Considering how many people attend the 11-day run of the fair, police have not had to deal with many serious issues.
“We’re thankful to have, you know, a million people who come visit the fairgrounds and less than two-percent of those people have something, an incident, where they’re working with our police officers on the grounds,” Williamson said. “So, great people come to the Iowa State Fair.” The 2018 Iowa State Fair is scheduled for August 9-19.
(Radio Iowa)
SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Sioux City plans to partner with the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino for a project that would bring parking and commercial space to an area of downtown.
The Sioux City Journal reports the proposed $11 million development would fill an empty 1.2-acre lot that sits just south of the casino. The city purchased the land in 2015 for additional parking for Tyson Events Center functions.
City officials say the project will help meet growing needs at the casino and the city’s Historic Pearl Street District, as well as replace some of the parking spaces lost at the Tyson as part of the Interstate 29 reconstruction project.
City economic development director Marty Dougherty says he expects to bring the issue before the City Council in the next 30 to 60 days.
Another note to come out of the January 24th Board of Control meeting for the state athletic organizations was class assignments for golf and tennis.
Spring golf will include Classes 3A, 2A, and 1A. Golf Classifications_2018_Spring
Tennis will have Classes 2A and 1A. Tennis Classificaitons 2018 Spring
Both sports will be able to begin practice on March 12.
Regional dual team wrestling sites for all classes were approved and released on Wednesday by the Iowa High School Athletic Association. Assignments were also announced for Class 3A schools.
In Class 2A the closest site potential for Atlantic/CAM are Sergeant Bluff-Luton and Ballard.
In Class 3A Glenwood will wrestle at Southeast Polk and face off against Indianola in the opening round. The winner of that match will face Southeast Polk in the final.
Take a look at the sites and 3A assignments below.
3A_Reg_Dual_Sites_Assignments_2018 1A_Reg_Dual_Sites_2018 2A_Reg_Dual_Sites_2018
The Iowa High School Athletic Association and Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union announced after their Board of Control Meeting on Wednesday that this year’s State Bowling Tournament will be held at Cadillac Lanes in Waterloo. The meet will remain a co-ed event and still be held on February 19-21. This site change was necessary after the devastating fire that destroyed Plaza Lanes in Des Moines on December 18th of last year. They hope to move the event back to Plaza Lanes once it is rebuilt as the owners have said they intend to do.
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