WASHINGTON, D.C. – Iowa Congressman David Young today (Wednesday), asked U.S. Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta to assist the employees who will be affected by the closing of a Creston candy production factory.

Ferrara Candy Company, the largest employer in Creston, announced it would be closing the factory in December which will result in the loss of more than 250 jobs. Ferrara Candy Company has been part of the Creston community for more than 30 years.

“The plant’s closing is deeply troubling. I know how important those jobs are to the Creston community and I know that the community will come together to make sure those affected are taken care of. I reached out to Secretary Acosta because the Department of Labor should immediately begin implementation of transition assistance and aid programs to lessen the impact on those affected and the Creston community as a whole,” said Congressman Young. “My office stands ready to assist anyone affected by the closing of the plant.”

Congressman Young’s letter to Secretary Acosta asked that the Department of Labor work closely with local and state officials and impacted workers to ensure they have access to available services designed to help them find new, quality employment in the future.

Three school districts in north central Iowa went into lock-down mode this afternoon (Wednesday) after school officials reviewed threatening messages. It started on Tuesday night when the Algona Community School District received a threat to students and the district. The call came in around 10 o’clock. As a result, police and school officials cancelled school for Wednesday until further investigation could be made.

This (Wednesday) afternoon, the Clarion-Goldfield-Dows Community Schools received a text message threat against their school. That message was communicated to nearby districts such as the Eagle Grove and Belmond-Klemme Community School Districts. As a result, all three districts have gone into a Level 1 lockdown until dismissal today. Police are investigating the source of these threatening texts.

Meanwhile, doors to all of the schools remained locked and local police and the county sheriff’s offices are on extra patrol nearby. There are other safety precautions that are taking place within the schools to ensure the safety of the students, faculty and staff.

Classes were cancelled in Johnston on Tuesday after parents and students received threatening text messages from the 818 area code. Today (Wednesday) Sioux City officials are investigating a threatening text message sent to a student at North High School. Superintendent Paul Gausman says the threat is similar to the messages sent to families in Johnston.

“In that district, they had multiple text messages to different parents and, I believe, students’ cell phones in their community,” Gausman says. “Last night, I was informed that we had one parent in this district who had a student who received a similar text message.”

Sioux City’s superintendent says officials determined there was no credible threat connected to that text message, but police did a complete sweep of Sioux City North High School before students and staff arrived today (Wednesday) to ensure the building was safe. School officials in Johnston delayed the start of today’s (Wednesday’s) classes for a similar security assessment of buildings in the central Iowa district.

(Radio Iowa)

An Illinois-based company that owns a candy plant in southwest Iowa plans to close the facility, putting more than 250 employees out of work. Production at the Ferrara (fer-R-uh) Candy Company facility in Creston will end in mid-December. The plant has been making gummi bears and other candy for more than 30 years. According to a statement from the company, the “difficult decision” to close the Creston plant came after a “comprehensive review” of Ferrara operations.

Executives say the Illinois company plans to focus on its “most efficient assets” and invest in “state of the art facilities.” The 256 workers at the Creston plant will be offered “severance and transition assistance,” according to a company statement. City leaders in Creston say the news came as a surprise.

In 2015, then-Governor Terry Branstad toured the plant in Creston. Company officials said during that visit two years ago that their number one obstacle was finding enough workers.

(Radio Iowa)

CASS Incorporated has been awarded a 2017 Top Workplaces honor for the seventh consecutive year by The Des Moines Register. They are one of ten business in the state that have achieved this. The Top Workplaces lists are based solely on the results of an employee feedback survey administered by WorkplaceDynamics, LLC, a leading research firm that specializes in organizational health and workplace improvement.

CASS Incorporated, a 501(c)3 Iowa non-profit corporation, has been providing rehabilitative services for people with disabilities since the mid 1970’s. In September of 2017, CASS announced their merger with Crossroads of Western Iowa, a company whose mission mirrors CASS’s in that they provide training and support for persons with disabilities. The combined organization will expand services to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, mental illness and brain injuries.

Brent Dillinger, CEO of Crossroads of Western Iowa, said in a Press Release, “Being named a 2017 Top Workplaces is an honor to our organization as a whole. It shows that our mission of empowering individuals to seek an enhanced quality of life is alive in the community. We are excited about Crossroads’ merger with CASS Incorporated. It’s a great opportunity for our employees, clients and the community.”

Crossroads of Western IA has been in existence since 1975 providing individuals with disabilities opportunities in independent living, employment and volunteer services. Several aspects of workplace culture were measured, including Alignment, Execution, and Connection, just to name a few.

Doug Claffey, CEO of WorkplaceDynamics, said  “To be a Top Workplace, organizations must meet our strict standards for organizational health. And who better to ask about work life than the people who live the culture every day—the employees. Time and time again, our research has proven that what’s most important to them is a strong belief in where the organization is headed, how it’s going to get there, and the feeling that everyone is in it together.”

The Red Oak Police Department reports the arrest of 36-year-old Gary O. Smith of Red Oak on Wednesday afternoon. Officers arrested Smith at 1:25pm in the 400 block of North 7th Street on a warrant for Failure to Appear on a charge of Disorderly Conduct. Smith was taken to the Montgomery County Jail and held on $1,000 cash bond.

The Iowa Department of Transportation says it is conducting a study of Interstate 80 and would like your input. The study will be developed and released through a series of technical reports that identify the existing conditions of I-80, the way the system is performing, short- and long-term issues, and strategies to improve the route. Each report will be accessible online as it becomes available: www.iowadot.gov/interstatestudy.

A technical report entitled “Modal Options” was recently posted to the I-80 Planning Study website.  The Iowa DOT is asking interested parties to take a few minutes to review this report and other materials on the I-80 Planning Study website.  To comment on the report (or others), go to: https://bit.ly/I80Comment.

After going missing in the aftermath of Sunday’s mass shooting in Las Vegas, a 33-year-old northwest Iowa woman who was shot in the rampage has been found dead.
According to KTIV-TV, the victim’s sister-in-law, Sarah Rowher confirms that Carly Kreibaum of Sutherland was killed in the attack at the country music festival in Las Vegas. Funeral arrangements are pending. The pastor of the Sutherland Church of Christ, John Erickson, says that they held a prayer service for Carly Kreibaum and her family on Monday night. About 60 friends and community members attended. Pastor Erickson says that they’re encouraging everyone to pray for Kreibaum’s husband, Chris, and their family. According to the pastor, Kreibaum was attending the concert on Sunday with her friends, Alison Huckaby of Sutherland and Amy Douglas of Cherokee, and got separated from them in the aftermath of the shooting. Rowher confirmed on Tuesday night that Kreibaum had died after she was shot.

(Radio Iowa)