COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — Aug. 9, 2023 – Get ready to change the way you get around the Council Bluffs area. Construction on Interstate 29 near I-480 and West Broadway in Council Bluffs is nearly complete. The re-opening is anticipated to occur early next week, weather permitting. Before that happens, a series of overnight closures will be needed to change pavement paint and install new wayfinding signs. Once work is complete, both north- and southbound I-29 will be fully open.

Sunday Night, Aug. 13:

Northbound I-29 is expected to be closed at Nebraska Avenue on Sunday, Aug. 13, from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. The ramp from Nebraska Avenue to northbound I-29 will also be closed. Northbound I-29 will be fully open and available to traffic at the end of the closure on Monday morning.

Monday Night, Aug. 14:

Southbound I-29 is expected to be closed at 16th Street on Monday, Aug.14, from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. The ramp from 25th Street to southbound I-29 will also be closed. Southbound I-29 will be fully open and available to traffic at the end of the closure on Tuesday morning.

—————————————————————————————

Iowa DOT is in the process of reconstructing I-80, I-29, and I-480 in the Council Bluffs metropolitan area as part of the Council Bluffs Interstate Improvement Program. This comprehensive interstate redesign will modernize the highway system and improve mobility and safety of approximately 18 miles of interstate.

(Missouri Valley, Iowa) – A crash Tuesday morning in Harrison County claimed the life of a man from Nebraska. The Iowa State Patrol reports 61-year-old Chris Phillip Sweetman, of Omaha, died at scene, after a 2015 Kenworth tractor-trailer traveling south on Interstate 29, crossed the center median for reasons unknown. The semi collided with Sweetman’s 2020 Hyundai Sante Fe SUV. The crash happened at around 8:50-a.m. near mile marker 74.

The semi driver, 63-year-old Gino Marco Lollio, of Cape Coral, FL, was injured in the crash and transported to the Mo. Valley Hospital.

The crash remains under investigation.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa D-N-R heard public comment Tuesday on a new manure management plan for a large cattle feedlot in Clayton County near the headwaters of Bloody Run Creek trout stream. Supreme Beef’s first plan was reversed by a Polk County judge, and Michael Schmidt with the Iowa Environmental Council questioned the details of the new plan. He says Supreme Beef has given no basis for a manure nutrient concentration figure that he says “are inconsistent and untrustworthy numbers.”

Iowa chapters of the Sierra Club and Trout Unlimited successfully challenged the initial manure management plan in court arguing the state agency used “illogical interpretations and applications” in its approval.

(Story City, Iowa) – One person died and two others were injured in a three-vehicle chain-reaction accident late Tuesday night in central Iowa. The Iowa State Patrol reports the three vehicles, a 2017 Nissan Rogue, a 2001 Triumph Daytona motorcycle, and a 2008 Suzuki GSX-R600 motorcycle, were traveling northbound on Interstate 35 near mile marker 125, at around 11:03-p.m., when the driver of the Nissan changed lanes, and was struck by the Triumph motorcycle.

The operator of the Suzuki motorcycle took evasive action by laying the bike down. The cycle came to rest on the roadway. The operator of the Triumph motorcycle, 31-year-old Jeffrey Lawrence, of Grimes, died in the crash. The operator of the SUV, 50-year-old Scott Peel, of Ankeny, was injured and transported to Methodist Hospital, in Des Moines. And, the operator of the Suzuki motorcycle, 26-year-old Daron Kent, of Des Moines, was injured, but not transported to a hospital.

The crash remains under investigation.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Barn Foundation has hosted a barn raising on the Iowa State Fairgrounds, in hopes of raising fairgoers’ awareness of what it takes to preserve barns. A 16 foot tall barn now stands in the center of the Ag Building on the fairgrounds. Iowa Barn Foundation board member Dwight Hughes says the project has several goals. “We’re looking for memberships to spread the word and create sparks of interest,” Hughes says.

The Iowa Barn Foundation has raised over two million dollars in the past 25 years, providing grants that have helped preserve nearly 300 Iowa barns — but Hughes says the number of grant applications far exceeds their current capacity to help. “So this is in effect a way to try to bring awareness and locate that needle in the haystack which turns out to be people who are willing to part with their hardearned money,” Hughes says, “to help foster the preservation and the saving of the heritage barns in Iowa.”

In 1920, there were about 300-thousand barns in Iowa, but fewer than a third are still standing. “The major element that was on every farmstead and that was a farm that housed the feed and the animals to support the family,” Hughes says. Half of the siding on the model barn at the State Fair is 140 year old red barn boards. “And half covered with new painted barn boards, with new windows and old windows,” Hughes says, “to show people the difference between restored and preserved and how important it might be on their farmstead or their grandpa’s or their great grandpas or whatever.”

Hughes, who lives in Cedar Rapids, says barns were a critical element in all parts of his family’s history. “As a matter of fact, my grandpa grew up in Wales in what was called a long barn,” Hughes says. “Half of it was for animals. Half of it was for family.”

In addition to its first-ever barn raising at the Iowa State Fair, the Iowa Barn Foundation will host its annual barn tour next month. On the weekend of September 16th and 17th, 72 barns will be part of the All-State Barn Tour and open to visitors.

(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Adair County Board of Supervisors met this (Wednesday) morning, and acknowledged the receipt of a Manure Management Plan (MMP) Update from Westlake Swine out of Creston. They approved Homestead and Military Disalllowances as presented, and agreed to change their regular weekly meeting on August 23rd to Aug. 22nd, because of a scheduling conflict.

The Adair County Supervisors also approved Auditor Mandy Berg’s request for an employee classification change.

They also approved her request to begin the hiring process for the positions of Auditor Payroll Clerk and Courthouse Custodian. The Board received Berg’s annual report with regard to the Opiod Settlement Funds and authorized the Chair to sign-off on the report.

They also approved a Longevity raise for 5-year Secondary Roads Department employee Troy Cormeny and a Wage Progression amountingto $1.12/hour for Dave Spieker (Speaker), who has been with the department for 18 months. County Engineer Nick Kauffman presented for the Board to approve and Chair Jerry Walker to sign, the final voucher for the N33 Orient Bridge, and N24 Prussia (township) RCB (Reinforced Concrete Box) Culvert project. The RCB will replace a wooden box culvert currently in-place along 190th Street. The $185,000 cost of the project will come out of the FY 2024 LOST (Local Option Sales Tax) Budget. Kauffman said he doubts he’ll have to amend his budget, since the cost will come out of LOST.

Kauffman updated the Board on the various bridge and road projects underway in Adair County.

He said they will be replacing all the culverts along the Henry Wallace Road – to the Henry A. Wallace Center – since the road is set to be repaved. Nick Kauffman updated the Board also, on equipment and vehicle purchases, and surveillance cameras for the exterior of one of the county fuel depot/shop.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Florida Republican Governor/2024 Presidential candidate Ron DeSantis and Iowa Republican Governor Kim Reynolds will be in Atlantic, Friday morning as part of a “Never back down”meet-and-greet. The pair will speak at the Downtowner Cafe and Catering (222 Chestnut Street). Doors for the event open at 10:15-a.m., with the program beginning at 10:45-a.m.

If you can attend, please see the RSVP link here.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) says recently discovered Eurasian watermilfoil is growing throughout the canals near Miller’s Bay and The Harbor canals on West Okoboji Lake in Dickinson County. Brittle naiad was also found in the Triboji lagoon. No Eurasian watermilfoil or brittle naiad was found in the main lake of West Okoboji or the other lakes in the Iowa Great Lakes chain. “We are developing a management plan and working with local stakeholders and communities to develop a plan of action for the coming weeks,” said Mike Hawkins, fisheries biologist for the Iowa DNR. “We’re getting permits in place in case the community and DNR decide that a herbicide treatment of the canals and lagoon is the best option.”

The DNR is asking boaters and other users in these areas to be extra vigilant to help prevent the spread of these invasive aquatic plants elsewhere in West Okoboji or the other lakes in this chain. “It is critical to clean all vegetation from boats and equipment before moving out of the canals and lagoon into the main lake to prevent the spread of Eurasian watermilfoil and brittle naiad into West Okoboji Lake,” said Kim Bogenschutz, the DNR’s aquatic invasive species program coordinator.

The Iowa DNR Aquatic Plant Management team monitors the vegetation in the Iowa Great Lakes each year. The monitoring has been especially important this summer. East Okoboji, Upper Gar, Minnewashta, and Lower Gar Lakes were aggressively treated with herbicide to eradicate Eurasian watermilfoil discovered in those lakes late last summer. The DNR worked closely with lake associations, cities, Dickinson County, and other organizations to develop and fund that treatment plan. Surveys conducted this week found no Eurasian watermilfoil growing in East Okoboji or the three lower chain lakes.

EurasianWatermilfoil

Eurasian watermilfoil, an invasive rooted aquatic plant native to parts of Europe and Asia, can spread quickly and outcompete beneficial native plants. It reproduces by fragmentation, which means small pieces of it grow into new plants and form thick beds. Iowa’s Aquatic Invasive Species Program has been a national leader in control efforts to stop Eurasian watermilfoil for the past 30 years. “Iowa DNR has successfully eradicated the plant in many lakes throughout the state. The size and complexity of the Iowa Great Lakes present real challenges for management,” explains Hawkins. “Lakes with healthy, diverse native aquatic plant communities may be less susceptible to an infestation that takes over the native plant community.”

“Boaters and anglers can unintentionally spread Eurasian watermilfoil, brittle naiad, and other aquatic invasive species if they do not take the proper precautions before going between lakes and after each time out on the water,” said Bogenschutz.

Clean, Drain, Dry is a simple three step process that boaters need to follow every time they move from one body of water to another.

• CLEAN any plants, animals or mud from the boat and equipment before you leave a water body. With the current infestations in the canals and lagoon, you must also check boat props and other parts of the boat where vegetation fragments could get caught before entering the main lake.
• DRAIN water from all equipment (motor, live well, bilge, transom well, bait bucket) before you leave a water body.
• DRY anything that comes into contact with water (boats, trailers, equipment, boots, clothing, dogs). Before you move to another waterbody either: Spray your boat and trailer with hot, high-pressure water; or Dry your boat and equipment for at least five Days.
• Never release plants, fish or animals into a water body unless they came out of that water body and empty unwanted bait in the trash.

It is illegal to possess or transport prohibited aquatic invasive species, such as Eurasian watermilfoil, in Iowa. Boaters must also drain all water from boats and equipment before leaving a water access and must keep drain plugs removed or opened during transport.

Find more information about aquatic invasive species and a list of infested waters in the 2023 Iowa Fishing Regulations booklet or on the DNR’s website at www.iowadnr.gov/ais.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – Officials with the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau said Tuesday, 32-year-old Patrick Dilworth was sentenced to suspended term five-years in prison, Monday (August 7, 2023), after pleading guilty to two Felony counts of Fraudulent Insurance Submissions, and one count of Theft in the 3rd degree (an Aggravated Misdemeanor). The charges were the result of an investigation by the  Bureau in September 2022, when the Bureau received information implicating Dilworth, in a series of fraudulent insurance claims across multiple companies. The investigation determined Dilworth falsified injury reports and accompanying documentation to gain monetary benefits to which he was not entitled.

Patrick Dilworth was taken into custody by the Johnson County Sheriff’s office on July 15, 2023. Dilworth’s 5-year suspended sentence will be served concurrently with 3-years of supervised probation and a suspended fine of $1,025, for two of the counts. Additionally, Dilworth received a 2-year suspended sentence, to run concurrently with a suspended fine of $855, for the remaining count. Dilworth was also ordered to pay restitution.

Photo courtesy of the Johnson County Sheriff’s office.

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