Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CDT

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Authorities have determined an altercation earlier this month involving a black University of Iowa freshman doesn’t meet the criteria for a hate crime. Student Marcus Owens reported he was assaulted near several bars and restaurants by white men who used racial slurs. Police investigated surveillance video and talked to witnesses and released a statement Monday describing a series of altercations involving Owens inconsistent in some ways with his initial report.

WAUKEE, Iowa (AP) — Waukee city and school district leaders are teaming up to purchase 160 acres of land in an effort to build a second high school and a city sports complex. Officials announced Monday that both the Waukee Community School District and the Waukee City Council approved the purchase agreement May 9 and will collaborate on the project. Officials plan to have the new high school open to students in 2021.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Des Moines city workers have ruined a 200-foot long, city-approved mural created by students. The colorful mural featured on a flood wall outside Central Campus in Des Moines was painted over in a misunderstanding with the city. A group leader learned Monday the mural was mistakenly covered by the city’s graffiti removal program, which destroyed nearly 100 hours of work. The project was set to be complete this week.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A penny-per-gallon gas tax that for more than a quarter-century has funded efforts to clean up underground petroleum tanks near gas stations will end later this year under a measure Gov. Terry Branstad signed into law. During a bill signing Monday at the Capitol, Branstad said the program had served its purpose and he wanted to return the savings to drivers when the tax expires on Dec. 31.

(Corrects gender of Kassidie to a male, not female. The State Patrol report did not specify gender in their report)

A collision Monday afternoon near Shenandoah has claimed the life of a Page County man. The Iowa State Patrol says the driver one of the vehicles, 20-year old Kassidie Runyon, of Yorktown, who was not wearing a seat belt, died at the scene. The other driver, 60-year old Cathy Lesher, of Westboro, MO., who was wearing her seat belt, was injured during the collision, and transported by Shenandoah EMS to the Shenandoah Memorial Hospital.

The crash happened at around 3:20-p.m. at the intersection of 250th Street and Highway 59. Officials say a 2003 Kia Spectra driven by Runyon, was eastbound on 250th Street and had pulled away from the stop sign at Highway 59, when his car was hit on the driver’s side by Lesher’s southbound 2006 Dodge 1500 pickup.

Both vehicles came to rest in the east ditch off Highway 59, south of 250th Street.

The status of Atlantic’s application to Vision Iowa for a CAT (Community Attraction and Tourism) Grant, is in limbo. That was the word from Atlantic Parks and Recreation Department Director Roger Herring, during Monday evening’s meeting of the Parks and Rec Board. Herring said he and Assistant Director Seth Staashelm met with the Vision Iowa/CAT grant committee in Winterset on May 11th, and while the meeting was cordial, and he was the last presenter of the mid-day group, it was clear things weren’t going to be going as well as he’d hoped.

He said the Committee hadn’t seen the City’s application for the CAT grant prior to Herring’s presentation. Nor had they seen the dvd that was created, that gives a virtual/drone tour of the Schildberg Recreation Area and a summary of the plans for improvements to the park. He had a total of 10-minutes to make his pitch. The Committee did get a chance to see a shortened dvd presentation by Herring on the project during the presentation, but the second blow came when he learned from Vision Iowa’s legal counsel that a big element of consideration was the amount private funding the project has.

Atlantic’s project has raised money through private fundraising, but the Chairman said in a follow-up letter Herring read, that it fell short of level the CAT grant board wanted to see. He said “I don’t know where we stand for sure, other than we’ve got two weeks to do [more] private fundraising to their satisfaction.” He said, “That’s obviously not going to happen,” but he added that he would, despite his upcoming retirement, continue to work on helping the project move along.”

Roger Herring (Far right) talks about the CAT grant)

In addition, Herring said Vision Iowa’s legal counsel explained that because the State was re-aligning the Iowa Economic Development Department, the current Vision Iowa Board was in the process of being “dissolved,” and replaced with an “Enhanced Iowa” program, that there are few few details about. Their Board will be in place by Nov. 1st.

The bottom line is, June 8th is the last date CAT grant awards will be given. That means no further consideration will be given to any projects, certainly not until the new Board meets later this fall. Herring said he left the meeting feeling discouraged, because of what he learned. For now, he’ll call for a meeting of the Schildberg Recreation Area Committee and “Go back to the drawing board” with the new “Enhanced Iowa Board.”

He said “We’ll work with it, and make the best of it.”  The City, he said, can move forward with some aspects of the project using funds from the Hotel/Motel tax, but things won’t be coming together as quickly as they’d hoped.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reports five arrests occurred last week. On May 9th, 20-year old Amanda Lynn Cooper, of Lewis, turned herself in at the Cass County Jail on a District Court warrant for Probation Violation. Cooper was booked at the Cass County Jail and remains held on $1,000 bond. That same day, 45-year old Stanley Oral Rossell, of Lewis, was arrested on a charge of serious Domestic Abuse. Rossell was taken to the Cass County Jail and was released the following day on $1,000 bond.

On May 10th, 37-year old Daniel Richie Vais, of Anita, was arrested on a District Court warrant for Failure to Appear. Vais was taken to the Cass County Jail where he remains held on $2,500 bond. Also arrested May 10th, was 29-year old Samuel Lavern Huffman, of Anita, on a District Court warrant for Probation Violation. Huffman was taken to the Cass County Jail where he remains held on $4,000 bond.

On May 14th, 54-year old John Kenneth Green, of Omaha, was arrested on a charge of OWI 1st Offense. Green was taken to the Cass County Jail and released the following day on his own recognizance.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office says no injuries were reported following a single-vehicle, rollover accident Sunday. Sheriff Lyle Palmer says the accident happened on Ironwood Road, about four-miles northeast of Essex, when 18-year old Laren Maris Stephens, of Stanton, swerved to miss a deer on the road. When the 2005 Chevy pickup she was driving went into a ditch, Stephens attempted to drive back onto the road. In the process, the pickup rolled over and came to rest on its top, in the ditch. Stephens was cited for driving while license revoked.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office is also currently investigating the theft of a log splitter from a garage in Shambaugh. The log splitter is a Great White brand and was valued at $1500. It was taken sometime between May 5th and the 14th.  Anyone with information about this theft is asked to contact the Page County Sheriff’s Office at 712-542-5193.

The Audubon County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest on Monday of an Audubon man stemming from an incident that occurred in Hamlin on Thursday, May 12th.  At 1:00pm today (Monday) Deputies arrested 32-year-old Eddie Ray Mack Jr. of Audubon and charged him with Assault.  Mack Jr. posted a cash bond and was released.  He is set to appear before the Magistrate on Thursday, May 19th.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Gov. Terry Branstad has signed a bill into law that will remove a penny-per-gallon tax on gasoline that has been used to pay for the cleanup of leaking underground petroleum storage tanks in Iowa. Branstad said at a bill signing Monday that the tax’s purpose is done and there’s enough remaining money available to address future issues. The tax will expire Dec. 31st.

The Iowa Legislature created the cleanup program in 1989 to pay for costs tied to environmental contamination from underground petroleum storage tanks located near gas stations. The environmental protection charge collected 1 cent per gallon of motor fuel. Iowa Department of Natural Resources Director Chuck Gipp says drivers could see relief at the pump since gas retailers will be expected to pay less in taxes.