HAMBURG, Iowa (AP) – Missouri River floodwaters have reached the new levee that serves as the last line of defense for the town of Hamburg. Army Corps of Engineers spokesman Carlos Lazo said Thursday the water flowing out of a gaping hole in the main levee 5 miles south of Hamburg reached the new levee late Wednesday.

Lazo says the new levee built over the past two weeks is holding, and there were no signs of problems Thursday morning. The corps increased the height of the levee by 3 feet after Monday’s breaches in northwest Missouri. The new levee protecting Hamburg is about 8-feet-tall.

The corps plans to release record amounts of water into the Missouri River through most of the summer to deal with heavy spring rain upstream and above-average snowmelt.

DETROIT (AP) – Chrysler is recalling more than 11,000 cars, minivans and other models because their steering could fail. The company tells federal safety regulators that it doesn’t know of any crashes or injuries caused by the problem. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says on its website that a missing or incorrectly installed rivet could  cause a loss of steering, increasing the risk of a crash.

The recall includes the 2011 Chrysler 200 and Town and Country; the Dodge Avenger, Caliber, Caravan, Journey and Nitro; and the Jeep Compass, Liberty, Patriot and Wrangler. The 11 models were built from mid-April to early May.

Dealers will check to make sure the rivet was installed correctly and make repairs free of charge. The company plans to begin notifying dealers and owners in July.

w/ News Director Ric Hanson

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Former Minnesota Governor and Presidential hopeful Tim Pawlenty has announced former Atlantic resident and A-H-S graduate Roger Underwood, has been selected as one of two co-chairs for his Iowa campaign committee.

Underwood is co-founder and executive director at Rural American Fund, a private equity firm that focuses on investments in growing middle-market rural firms. After graduating from Iowa State University in Ames, he co-founded Becker-Underwood in Ames, in 1982. The firm has since grown into the world’s leading supplier of non-pesticide specialty chemical and biological products, with annual sales of more than $180 million.

Underwood is a current and former member of numerous corporate and organizational boards of directors, including the ISU Board of Governors. Joining him as Pawlenty’s Iowa campaign co-chair, is Cedar Rapids entrepreneur and former gubernatorial candidate, Christian Fong.

The Iowa Department of Transportation’s (DOT) flood hotline is assisting travelers impacted by the Missouri River flooding navigate closed roadways.
 
Although there is an expansive regional interstate alternative route for through travelers or persons wanting to avoid the Interstate 29 corridor completely, many travelers still prefer to use a route that provides a more direct local alternative. That’s where the Iowa DOT’s operators can be of assistance.
 
Operators are standing by from 7 a.m. – 9 p.m. daily. Call 866-452-8510.

Sheriff’s officials in Montgomery County say one person was taken into custody on a drug charge Wednesday evening, following a traffic stop. 24-year old Justin Lee Parson, of Shenandoah, was arrested just after 7-p.m., on a charge of Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.

Parson was brought to the Montgomery County Jail, booked and later released on a citation.

KEARNEY, Neb. (AP) – The Nebraska State Patrol says an Iowa man was arrested on drug charges after a trooper found over 82 pounds of gift-wrapped marijuana in his car.

The patrol says 36-year-old Shamall Fleming, of Council Bluffs, was pulled over on Interstate 80 near Kearney on a traffic stop. Authorities say Fleming was driving on a suspended license and was arrested.

During an inventory search of the car, a trooper smelled marijuana coming from three gift-wrapped packages in the trunk. The patrol says the packages contained 25 bundles of pot that weighed over 82 pounds.

Fleming was taken to the Buffalo County jail, where he remained Wednesday afternoon without bond.

HAMBURG, Iowa (AP) – Floodwaters that breached a Missouri River levee near the Missouri-Iowa border are approaching a makeshift floodwall hurriedly built to protect the town of Hamburg.

Robert Michaels, the Army Corps of Engineers official who has overseen construction of the new levee, says the water is expected to reach the temporary structure guarding Hamburg sometime today (Thursday). The new levee was finished Wednesday, and most of those living in the threatened parts of town have cleared out.

Meanwhile, any hopes the breaches might alleviate the long-term flooding threat for communities downstream have been short-lived. River levels that dipped slightly from the release of pressure began their re-ascent Wednesday.

Atlantic Mayor Dave Jones has announced he is accepting the names of people who may be interested in being on a committee that will set the groundwork on how the City determines which businesses and/or individuals would be eligible for Tax Increment Financing incentives. He says he wants to see those individuals hash out what’s worked for the City in the past, and what hasn’t worked. He doesn’t want to take a “cookie cutter” approach, using other cities’ methodology, just a program developed that is good for the City.

The citizens would provide input to the Community Development Committee. The matter of who gets a TIF has been a bone of contention for the council in the past. Most recently, the issue popped-up with the Boulders Inn and Suites project, which received a $166,000 grant and tax rebate incentives package. Some current business owners in Atlantic have complained they weren’t offered or were turned down for a TIF for their recent projects. Every time the issue comes up, the Council says its going to determine some ground rules to provide a more fair assessment of who is eligible, but to date, no such rules are in place.

The Mayor also indicated he wants to gather a group of citizens who will work on plans to develop the City owned portion of the Schildberg Quarry Recreation Area.  He says the City lost grant monies a couple of years ago because a solid plan wasn’t in place to develop and promote the area. Members of the committee would provide their input to the Atlantic Parks and Recreation Board.

Jones also urged property owners to “clean up their properties,” commercial and private, so the City looks good to the throngs of Ragbrai riders who will be coming through town at the end of July. He says John Lund, Assistant to City Administrator Doug Harris, has already send out letters to some residents and/or businesses, warning them to get rid of the junk in yards, and to mow their overgrown lawns.

After a public hearing as well as much discussion and explanation, the Atlantic City Council Wednesday evening, approved by a vote of 5-to1, a Resolution approving a development agreement between the City and Boulders Inn and Suites, for Tax Increment Payments and the pledging of certain tax increment revenues. The Council also passed a Resolution authorizing an internal advance and loan, to fund a $125,000 incentive grant for the completed $1.5-million project on the City’s west side. The hotel opened for business, last month.

City Administrator Doug Harris said the City couldn’t offer the developer the same offer as last May, because it was based on a full tax assessment, rather than a partial assessment being in place as of January 1st. In addition, the City incurred additional legal costs associated with the delay. But in the end, he said the TIF savings to the City will amount to more than $48,000, and the tax rebates will be $41,000 spread out over nine years rather than $100,000 in four years.

During a public hearing on the Resolution, Atlantic resident, Dr. Keith Swanson said the reasoning behind the City paying an incentive after the hotel was finished, has not been fully explained and doesn’t make any sense. He says he thought an incentive was given to bring a business to town, not something paid out after they have arrived and built a business. Councilman Shaun Shouse said the development agreement was reviewed and approved by the Finance Committee, who thought that it was in the best interests of both parties.

Councilman Kern Miller said the City shouldn’t have to live up to its agreement, since Boulders’ officials failed to sign the original agreement over the course of the past year. He said it also brings into question the council’s judgment on this and other, similar matters.   Councilperson Kathy Somers said the City has an obligation to live up to its commitment, and failure to do so would set a bad precedence. Miller — who voted against the resolution — said he would agree, if the contract had been signed to begin with.