A Villisca teen escaped injury Tuesday night, when the pickup he was driving ran into a ditch and hit an embankment. 16-year old Damon Tyler Sunderman, of Villisca, told Montgomery County Sheriff’s Officials he was traveling east on 250^th Street, and approaching the intersection with Highway 71, when he applied the brakes, which apparently failed.

The 2001 Dodge Dakota pickup he was driving went through the intersection and into the east ditch before coming to rest against the embankment. The accident, which happened about one-half mile north of Villisca, occurred at around 8:45-p.m.

The pickup, owned by Brad Sunderman, of Villisca, was considered a total loss.

Police in Harlan say an Earling man was arrested last week, for allegedly supplying alcohol to persons under the legal age. The incident allegedly occurred on May 28^th. 21-year old Cody Betances was taken into custody September 28^th on an active Shelby County warrant. Betances was brought to the Shelby County Jail. He posted a $1,000 bond on Monday.

A pre-trial hearing will take place October 17^th in Shelby County District Court, with his trial set for November 15^th.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Officials at Eppley Airfield in Omaha say crews have begun the cleanup of what was left behind by this summer’s flooding along the Missouri River.  Contractors have started removing the flood control infrastructure around the airport. They also say specially designed wells that kept floodwaters away from the runways will continue to operate through October. The Omaha Airport Authority says it has spent $17 million on flood control but will eventually spend $26 million to protect the airport. The flooding also left behind a 300-yard swath of sand and silt between the river and the airport’s levee system. It was a grassy mix of fields and farmland leased out by the airport and it’s not clear if the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will restore the area.

 It’s that time of year, when the Cass County Conservation Board asks residents of the county, “When do you think the first Trumpeter Swan will arrive at the Schildberg Quarry in Atlantic?”

A Trumpter Swan (file photo)

 Trumpeter Swans have visited the Schildberg Quarry for, at least, thirteen out of the last fourteen winters. 

Arrival and departure dates of the swans have been as follows:

1997/1998    December 18 – January 2

1998/1999    Nothing on record

1999/2000    December 25 – February 15

2000/2001    November 23 – March 6

2001/2002    December 25 – February 24

2002/2003    November 23 – March 15

2003/2004   November 26 – March 21

2004/2005    November 25 – March 18

2005/2006    November 17 – March 5

2006/2007 October 30 – March 9

2007/2008 November 22- February 14

2008/2009 November 18- March 12

2009-2010 November 19 – January 5

2010-2011 November 5 – February 10

Cass County residents may call in their prediction by no later than November 11^th,  to the Conservation Board at 712-769-2372. You can leave a message and return phone number if their staff is not available to speak with you.  Duplicate dates will not be allowed.  For example, if a caller predicts November 25th, no one else will be allowed to predict that arrival date. 

Only one prediction per family will be allowed.  Sponsors of the contest will determine the official arrival of the swans.  The winner will receive a Trumpeter Swan 8×10 print from the Cass County Conservation Board.  Again, the contest is only open to residents of Cass County, Iowa.

Officials with Mid-American Energy have reported their semi-annual property tax payments to Iowa counties, schools and cities for the 2011-2012 fiscal year. All together, the company has paid more than $45.7-million, which they say makes them the largest property tax-paying entity in the state.

In this area: nearly $299,520 was paid to Cass County on September 30^th; Adair County received more than $419,335; Adams County $66,220; Audubon County $155,758;Guthrie County, $14,269; and Montgomery County, $343,182.

Pottawattamie County received the biggest chunk in property tax payments from Mid-American, at slightly more than $4.2-million dollars. Shelby County has received a nearly $119,000 payment. The same amounts will also be distributed to each of those counties on March 31^st, 2012.

The single largest tax bill installment of more than $12.1-million was paid to Polk County. Mid-American Energy, which is headquartered in Des Moines, and is Iowa’s largest energy company, provides electric service to 729,000 customers, and natural gas service to 709,000 customers in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska and South Dakota.

Sheriff’s officials in Audubon County say two local teenagers have been arrested following an investigation into the theft of a pickup which was burned in the 2900 block of Falcon Avenue, and an ATV that was stolen and burned in the 1500 block of 260th Street, during the evening hours on August 5th and early morning hours on August 6th.

Officials say 16-year old Dustin Joseph Hunter, of Audubon, was taken into custody at around 4-p.m. Monday. He was charged with Arson in the second-degree (aiding and abetting), Theft in the second-degree (aiding and abetting), and burglary.

17-year old James Rathmann, of Audubon, was also arrested in connection with the same incidents. Rathman faces charges which include Burglary in the third-degree, Theft in the second-degree, Arson in the second-degree (Accessory After the Fact), and Theft in the second-degree (Aiding and Abetting). Hunter was transported to the Juvenile Detention Center in Council Bluffs. Rathman was released to the custody of his parents and his case referred to Juvenile Court Services.

Last month, 20-year old Mackenzie Jacob Belnap, of Ottumwa, was also charged in connection with the crimes. He faces 1st- and 2nd-degree Arson charges, along with two counts of burglary in the 3rd degree and two-counts of theft in the 2nd degree. He’s entered a written plea of not guilty to the charges. A jury trial in his case will take place November 29^th. Belnap remains in the Audubon County Jail on $25,000 bond.

The Adair and Cass County Board of Supervisors will meet Wednesday, in Greenfield and Atlantic, respectively. In Adair County, the Board will hear from Sheriff Brad Newton, with regard to the Public Safety Center, which is currently under construction. And, they hear from County Custodian Rich Wallace, with regard to correspondence from the City of Greenfield, pertaining to sidewalk issues.

In Atlantic, the Cass County Supervisors will receive a 1934 lithograph of the U-S Constitution, which the board approved at a meeting in mid-August. The framed and matted lithograph will be presented by Gary Stephenson, of Fort Dodge, and local sponsors, for display on the second floor of the courthouse. Stephenson is traveling through each of Iowa’s 99 Counties in hopes local officials will express an interest in having the lithographs displayed in the various 100 county courthouses in the state.

The Board will also act on awarding a bid and contract to Gus Construction for full-depth Portland Cement Concrete patching work on County Road G-61, east of Highway 148, as well as approval of plans for a Hot Melt Asphalt resurfacing project on Route M-56, from Marne to the Shelby County line. And, they’ll hear from a representative with the CAM Community School District, with regard to tax changes resulting from the construction of wind turbines in the district.

Both Board of Supervisor’s meetings begin at 9-a.m.

w/ Ric Hanson

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Staying true to their promise to the Cass County Board of Supervisors, a local organization, Monday evening was hard at work maintaining a flower bed near the Veteran’s Memorial in the Atlantic City Park. Volunteers with the Trevor Frederickson Memorial Fund spruced up the area, which had been neglected over the years, for a variety of reasons.

Trevor Frederickson Memorial Fund spokesperson Melanie Petty says the group “Will be doing a lot more planting in the spring,” but for now, they simply wanted to give the flower bed “Some fall color.” Petty says a lot of people will be visiting Atlantic this weekend for HarvestFest and the Atlantic Firemen’s Parade, and the group hopes their efforts will help welcome those visitors to the city.

During their meeting on September 21^st, the Cass County Board of Supervisors were informed by Atlantic Parks and Recreation Department Director Roger Herring, that volunteers with Trevor Fredericksen Foundation would provide for the planting and care of the flower beds, if the Supervisors would agree not to remove them entirely, as part of a sidewalk rehabilitation project in the City Park, a portion of which is owned by the County.

w/ Ric Hanson

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