(Radio Iowa) – Iowa’s 150 legislators have gathered at the Capitol for the final day of the 2023 legislative session. Representative Gary Mohr, of Bettendorf, is the Republican who led development of the state budget. “This is a wonderful day, absolutely,” Mohr says. “We had a great session, but it’s time to go home.”

A handful of bills remain on the list for votes in the House and Senate. Governor Reynolds will host a ceremony this (Thursday) afternoon to publicly sign the property tax relief plan the legislature

May 4, 2023 (DES MOINES) – Gov. Kim Reynolds marked the start of National Small Business Month with the announcement of a chance for Iowa communities to showcase their support for small businesses through the third annual #IowansUnite Community contest. The winning community will be awarded a custom mural.

The contest invites cities, municipalities and economic development organizations to submit creative and inspirational videos showcasing how their community members support small businesses and celebrate the businesses’ importance to the community. Communities that submit a video have the chance to win a one-of-a-kind mural designed and installed by Iowa artist Ben Schuh that welcomes visitors to their shopping district or downtown area.

“Small businesses are not only important economic drivers, but they also serve as cultural pillars in our thriving communities,” Gov. Reynolds said. “This contest is an opportunity for communities to showcase their support for their small businesses by entering for a chance to win custom art for their downtown and I look forward to seeing the creative entries.”

To enter the contest, communities must create a short video and submit it through the official entry form found on the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) Facebook page through June 23, 2023. Creativity is encouraged, but all submissions must feature local residents and small businesses and must incorporate elements reflecting each community’s unique brand of hometown spirit. Examples include storefronts, main street districts, notable landmarks and people shopping or eating. Videos may be created by an individual or group representing the community, but the video must be submitted by the city, municipality or economic development organization.

Following an online voting period (June 26 through June 29), the communities whose videos meet the designated vote threshold for their community size will become finalists. Small communities, cities with a population of 15,000 or less, must have at least 500 votes. Large communities, cities with a population of 15,001 or more, must have at least 1,000 votes.

The finalists will receive an assignment to showcase their community spirit. An independent panel of judges will review and score all assignments submitted along with the video submitted with the official entry form. The community with the highest score will win the contest and a custom mural. IEDA and IFA officials will meet with designees from the winning community to facilitate the mural project.

“Both small businesses and community art add life and vibrancy to our downtown districts and this contest provides the unique opportunity to celebrate the importance of both,” said Debi Durham, executive director of IEDA and IFA. “One community will win a custom mural that will serve as both a local tribute and a visitor attraction and I wish all entrants the best of luck in the competition.”

The 2023 #IowansUnite contest is the third annual contest in conjunction with National Small Business Month. Previous winners include the communities of Knoxville and Washington, photos of their murals are available on IEDA’s Facebook page.

For more information about the #IowansUnite Community Contest, including official rules and the submission process, visit https://woobox.com/oqhd3r

(Radio Iowa) – Areas of Iowa that have suffered through months of drought may see some relief soon with the development of an El Nino weather pattern, as the Climate Prediction Center has issued an El Nino Watch for this summer. Doug Kluck, the Central Region climate service director for the National Weather Service, says the El Nino would come after three years of a La Nina. “If this does turn into an El Nino, and it turns into a moderate and/or strong one, it is the opposite of what we expect from a La Nina,” Kluck says. “In the wintertime, El Nino brings warmer-than-normal temperatures in the northern states, cooler-than-normal temperatures in the southern states, and wetter conditions along the south and drier conditions along the north.”

An El Nino occurs when Pacific Ocean surface temperatures rise above normal, and for Iowa, it typically means moderate temperatures and better chances for precipitation. Kluck says weather patterns change under an El Nino. “It tends to have a split jetstream, meaning, that the southern part of the U.S. gets more activity. The northern part, is sort of the northern jet, if you will, splits over the top, it stays in Canada. We don’t get as many arctic air pushes, it doesn’t get as cold and we have a relatively warm winter.”

Kluck says the El Nino is expected to develop rapidly this summer. Parts of Woodbury and Monona counties are in the worst categories of drought: exceptional, extreme and severe, while moderate to severe drought extends across wide sections of western Iowa. Large areas of central and eastern Iowa are considered extremely dry by the U-S Drought Monitor.

U-S Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced more actions aimed at making local and regional food systems stronger. The USDA’s Gary Crawford reports….

Vilsack is a former Governor from Iowa. He served as the 40th governor of the State from 1999 to 2000, and is the 32nd United States Secretary of Agriculture, serving under the Biden administration. He previously served in the role from 2009 to 2017 during the Obama administration.

DES MOINES, Iowa – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig has announced that the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship will partner in 16 urban water quality projects across the state by investing nearly $2.8 million. The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, utilizing the state’s Water Quality Initiative (WQI) and funding from the Conservation Infrastructure Program (CIP), will provide cost-share grants that cover up to 50 percent of the total cost of each project. The overall cost of the 16 projects is expected to be approximately $14.6 million, which includes $2.8 million from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and $11.8 million from local sources.

The Department provides financial and technical assistance to the communities and organizations implementing the urban water quality practices. To receive state funding, the urban water quality projects must include education and outreach components and involve local partners. These community-based projects raise awareness about new stormwater management methods and encourage others to adopt similar infrastructure-based practices to improve water quality. These urban conservation projects include water quality practices like bioretention cells, bioswales, native plantings, permeable pavers, rain gardens, soil quality restoration, and wetlands among many other proven practices.

Wednesday’s grant announcement coincides with Soil and Water Conservation Week, which Governor Kim Reynolds has proclaimed will be recognized from April 30 through May 7 in Iowa.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – A Polk County man has entered a plea of guilty to a Felony count of Theft in the 2nd Degree. 27-year-old El Messiah Muhammad Moor, of Des Moines, pled guilty on April 20, 2023, following an investigation by the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau. The investigation began in September 2022 after the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau received information indicating Moor provided false information and fabricated documents in support of six insurance loss claims and received monetary benefits to which he would have not otherwise been entitled.

The investigation determined that Moor claimed that multiple incidents of power outages resulted in damage to perishable food items, a computer and television. Moor provided false information and submitted fabricated repair receipts to two different insurance companies. The receipts were from companies that did not actually exist and to which no payments were made. Moor received $2,273.85 in benefits due to the false statements and fabricated receipts. Moor was arrested on February 10, 2023.

El Messiah Muhammad Moor. (Photo courtesy of the Polk County Sheriff’s Office)

Following his guilty plea, Moor received a five year suspended prison sentence and was placed on supervised probation for a period of two years. Moor was also ordered to pay a civil penalty of $1,025 as well as restitution which has yet to be determined.

Iowans with information about insurance fraud are encouraged to contact the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau at 515-654-6556.

(Creston, Iowa) – A collision Wednesday morning in Creston, resulted in minor damage that amounted to a total of $6,000, but no one was hurt. According to the Creston Police Department, the accident happened at around 8:20-a.m., the intersection of N. Cherry and Howard Streets. A small, 2013 shuttle bus driven by 62-year-old Lorie Cooper Lee, of Bridgewater, was traveling south on N. Cherry Street and nearing the intersection with Howard Street. She did not have a stop sign or lights.

A 2003 Chevy Express van driven by 38-year-old Boone Daniel Hayes, of Creston, was traveling east on Howard Street and approaching a stop sign at the intersection. Hayes told Police his brakes failed, and he was unable to stop before entering the intersection and colliding broadside with the shuttle bus. Hayes said he pressed on the brake pedal, but it did not engage without being pressed repeatedly.

Both vehicles were able to be driven away from the scene. No citations were issued.

POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY, Iowa — A second first-degree murder trial that began this week in Council Bluffs, continues for a day care provider in Massena, charged with the death of a child. Alison Dorsey, of Anita, is accused of causing the death of 11-week-old Luka Hodges, in October 2019. Cass County Attorney Vanessa Strazdas had previously said the child suffered from internal bleeding resulting in brain death while in Dorsey’s care. According to court documents, Dorsey said the child was hurt outside her care. Strazdas said medical evidence shows the child’s injuries were consistent with shaken baby syndrome. Dorsey’s first trial in 2021 ended with a hung jury and mistrial, in Atlantic.

The prosecution has presented its evidence in the case and is expected to wrap-up today. The defense is expected to present its opening arguments today (Thursday). The trial began Monday, with the selection of a jury, followed by opening statements and testimony, on Tuesday.

(Radio Iowa) – Work on the campanile on the University of Northern Iowa campus in Cedar Falls is moving right along. U-N-I Assistant Vice President, Hillery Oberle, says 15 bells were installed when the campanile was built in 1926, and 32 more were added in 1968. The brass bells are still in good shape, but the operating systems were showing some deterioration. “The connection pieces and things that suspend them in the campanile, the transmission system that controls the clappers, down to the plain keyboard, and then also the playing keyboard were really showing signs of age and weather,” she says.

All but a few of the bells were removed and lowered to the ground to be worked on. They decided to add a couple of bells while everything was being refurbished. “While we were doing that we knew we had the opportunity to fill in a couple of the musical gaps in the carillon,” Oberle says. ” When they cast the first bells they did not do two of the largest bells. So the C sharp and the D sharp. Those were not a part of our time or our carillon.” Seven new small bells at the other end of the music spectrum are also being added. “So for those musically inclined it means that we have a five-octave instrument that has four octaves that are fully chromatic,” Oberle says. They reworked the infrastructure and put in steel beams to carry the weight of the bells — which range from 20 pounds for the smallest bell to four-thousand pounds for the largest.

The UNI photo from 1926 on top of the 2023 version.

A bell almost to the top. (UNI photo)

Crane lifting bell up into tower. (UNI photo)

Oberle says the campanile is a key campus point for students, faculty and alumni. “You know it holds different types of memories for everybody. It might be where you took your graduation photo, we have so many stories of people who proposed at the campanile,” Oberle says. “You know a tradition is to go campaniling and kiss your sweetheart at midnight at the campanile. So a lot of great stories it’s really the center of the campus.” She says it’s where the university comes together to celebrate and sometimes come together and in sadness. They took advantage of having the bells out on the ground to recreate a picture of the U-N-I president and others lined up with the bells before they were first installed in 1926.

The two-point-two million dollar campanile renovation project is one the iconic spaces projects along with the Gallagher Blue Dorn and UNI-Dome renovation. Cranes started hoisting the bells back up to their hanging spot Wednesday. Getting the campanile operating again is part one of the project. “The second part of the project will revitalize the plaza surrounding the campanile. So new paving, new seating areas, new landscaping,” she says. “That all has taken a bit of a beating as we’ve had construction on the carillon going on etcetera.” They’ve raised one-point-five million dollars so far to fund the project.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowans may have seen on the news how Michigan’s Upper Peninsula was hit on Monday with a foot-and-a-half of snow. Ten years ago this week, Iowans were the ones who were stunned with heavy snow in the first days of May, well over a month into spring. Meteorologist Rod Donavon, at the National Weather Service, says May of 2013 was a month of surprise weather extremes for Iowa. “Ten years ago, we had a lot of accumulating snowfall, a lot of those really wet and heavy snowfalls as well,” Donavon says. “We actually had several areas that reported power outages with that, and usually this time of year, you don’t expect travel concerns either, but it just came down so wet and heavy that we actually had some slick travel conditions as well.”

Much of the state had at least six inches of snow, while Mason City had more than nine inches, Chariton reported a foot of snow, and Osage had the deepest report at 13 inches. While there was significant snowfall, Donavon says it didn’t stick around.  “It doesn’t take too long for snow this time of year to really melt and disappear,” Donavon says. “It’s really warming up. We were actually pretty cold here in the last week as well, and then now, we’re going to be warming up as well. This time of year, usually if we get some snowfall, it doesn’t last.”

May 2013 snowstorm (Pella)

May 2013 snowstorm (Indianola)

May 2013 snowstorm (Belmond, IA)

Within a week of the big snowstorm in May of 2013, many Iowans were switching on their air conditioners, as temperatures by May 14th were already soaring to 98 degrees. (Photos courtesy the NWS in Des Moines. Click to enlarge)