(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa legislature has approved a tax break for the aircraft industry. The bill creates a sales tax exemption for aircraft parts and labor to repair planes. Representative Lee Hein of Monticello says many states, including all those that surround Iowa, do not assess a sales tax on airplane parts and labor.  “We have seen a lot of business go out of the state and this will help our local aircraft maintenance shops,” Hein says, “but more importantly we have three community colleges that have aircraft maintenance programs and this will help keep those graduates here in the state of Iowa.”

Representative Charlie McConkey is a pilot from Council Bluffs. “It’s very expensive to certify aircraft for air worthiness,” McConkey says. “In order to do that, there’s a lot of downtime and a lot of maintenance that has to be done.” Community colleges in Council Bluffs, Ottumwa and Waterloo offer programs for students seeking F-A-A-approved certification as an aircraft maintenance mechanic.

Representative Chris Hall of Sioux City says Western Iowa Tech in Sioux City hopes to start one soon, as a way to boost use of the Sioux City airport. “The more take-offs and touch-downs that you have from your runway, the better support long-term in federal support you will have for your airport,” Hall says, “and for so many of those community airports, it’s also a lifeline for families to see one another and for commerce.”

Senator Liz Mathis of Hiawatha says Kirkwood Community College plans to launch a similar program in the fall of 2023. “Combined with the right sales tax environment, I think it’s really going to help our region grow,” Mathis says. Senator Dan Dawson of Council Bluffs says the state spends a lot of money supporting community colleges — and airplane maintenance training — and it makes no sense for Iowa to have a tax environment that ultimately sends graduates out of state.

The bill passed with the support of 140 of the legislature’s 150 members and is headed to the governor for her signature. According to an estimate from the Legislative Services Agency, the owners of the 33-hundred aircraft registered in Iowa may save up to 10 million dollars from this sales tax exemption. Some Iowans fly their planes to other states for maintenance to avoid the Iowa sales tax on parts and labor.

(Council Bluffs, Iowa) – The Iowa West Foundation Board of Directors recently approved $5.1 million in grants and initiatives to nearly 30 nonprofits in the region. Approximately $2.4 million went to nonprofits with missions centered on healthy families, education, and arts enrichment for youth in southwest Iowa, in the form of multi-year funding for operating costs.

IWF President & CEO Brenda Mainwaring says “The multi-year funding program has provided more than $10 million to nonprofits who serve Iowa residents. “It’s difficult for nonprofits to secure funds for operating expenses. We decided to address that gap in the funding stream. Our multi-year funding program is designed for long-standing nonprofit partners and allows them to focus less on fundraising and more on their missions for the community.”

For this cycle, the rural communities of Audubon, Griswold, Harlan, Treynor, and Woodbine received funding for placemaking projects in their communities, including recreation amenities, infrastructure upgrades, and fire safety. Treynor resident Wendy Andersen is “extremely grateful” for the $50,000 grant for a project that will include an inclusive playground, splash pad, and memorial trailhead in her community.

Listed below, are just some, of the 2022 Cycle 1 Grants and Initiatives:

• Audubon Recreation Foundation: Recreation center expansion, $75,000.
• City of Griswold: Main Street revitalization, $40,000.
• Iowa Western Community College Foundation (Multi-year funding) – Arts Center, $30,000.
• Iowa Western Community College: Pottawattamie Promise, $542,443.
• Pottawattamie Arts, Culture & Entertainment (PACE) – Multi-year funding: $200,000.
• Pottawattamie County CITIES Program – Carson, $24,000.
• Pottawattamie County CITIES Program – Neola, $100,000.
• Shelby County Fair Corporation – Fairground Improvements, $25,000
• Southwest Iowa Housing Trust Fund – Housing repair, $100,000.
• Treynor State Bank Community Foundation: The T – recreation center, $50,000.
• Woodbine Fire & Rescue: Extrication Gear for EMS, $1,638.

The Iowa West Foundation now accepts Letters of Inquiry (the first step in the grant application process) year-round with deadlines of Jan. 1, May. 1 and Sept. 1 prior to each of the three grants cycles. For more information on recent changes to the application process, a virtual grants workshop will be held on Thursday, April 21. Details and registration can be found at: www.iowawestfoundation.org.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Officials with the Atlantic Police Department today (Wednesday), released a report on several arrests that date back to March 16th.

• On April 3rd, 19-year-old Bailey Riesgaard, of Atlantic, was arrested for Operating Under While Influence/2nd offense.
• On March 27th, the A-PD arrested 22-year-old Timothy Asmus, of Audubon, for Driving While License is Barred.
• On the 22nd, 42-year-old Nicholas Paulsen, of Atlantic, was arrested for Assault Causing Serious Injury.

There were three arrests in Atlantic on March 20th:

• 29-year-old Jason Mark, of Atlantic, was arrested on a Cass County Warrant for Failure to Appear.
• 28-year-old Justine Jones, of Walnut, was arrested on a Shelby County Warrant. She was taken into custody and transported to the Cass County Jail where she was later transported to Shelby County.
• and, 36-year-old Eric Mark, of Atlantic, was arrested for Interference with Official Acts.

March 16th, Atlantic Police arrested the following individuals:

• 28-year-old Kichpwipwi Epenrosa, of Portland, OR, for Criminal Mischief 5th Degree.
• 34-year-old Soterios Maras, of Atlantic, for Disorderly Conduct, Public Intoxication and Harassment 3rd Degree.

With the exception of Justine Jones, who, as mentioned was transported to Shelby County, and Bailey Riesgaard, who remained being held in the Cass County Jail as of the latest roster report, all other subjects were later released from custody.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – According to local conservation officials, Cass County has one of the best views in Southwest Iowa, to observe spring woodland wildflowers right here outside Atlantic. The Cass County Conservation Board is holding a Wildflower Walk as a way to encourage you to get back to nature. The FREE program will be held at the Pellett Memorial Woods a little north of Atlantic, beginning at 9-a.m. on April 30th.

Oak Strollers Nature Club for Families are welcome to join at this event! The CCCB invites you to walk through the early spring wildflowers with our naturalist. Learn the names, uses and history of these Wildflowers. Those in attendance will meet at Pellett Memorial Woods- located one-half mile north and three-quarters of a mile east of the KJAN radio station.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Cass County Conservation Board is now taking Pre-orders for their Native Plant Sale (see the PDF form link below). The order form and payment will be DUE April 29th 2022 at 4PM. Forms can be found online https://www.casscountyia.gov/county-departments/conservation-office/.

Native Local Eco-type live Plants will be sold. Live plants from nursery will come as small plugs; cells are 5” deep x 2” wide at top or 4.5”deep x 2” Cone. 1 Specie of Native grass, and 9 Native Forbs including many that benefit Pollinators! All orders must be picked up during designated times at our offices in Lewis unless prior arrangements made. Designated pick up times will be: Thursday May 26th 8 AM-6 PM OR Friday May 27th 8AM-7PM. Plants not picked up will be donated with NO REFUND.

plantorderformCCCB2022[116187]

(Shenandoah, Iowa) –  A collision Tuesday morning about one-half mile south of Shenandoah, resulted in injuries to drivers of two vehicles. The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports at accident happened at around 9:05-a.m. at the intersection of Highway 2 and A Avenue. An investigation determined 93-year-old Darrel Dean Allely, of rural Shenandoah, was behind the wheel of a 2015 Acura on Highway 2 and A Avenue. A 2020 Ford Explorer driven by 60-year-old Cynthia Ann Wainwright, of rural Bedford,  was on Highway 2 just east of the intersection with A Avenue.

Authorities say Allely was traveling north on A Avenue, when he drove into the path of Wainwright. Wainwright’s SUV struck Allely’s car on the passenger side front fender / front door area with the front end of her vehicle. Both vehicles came to rest in the northwest portion of the intersection. Both Wainwright and Allely were transported to the Shenandoah Memorial Hospital with unknown injuries. Charges are pending at this time.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office was assisted at the scene by Shenandoah Ambulance service, Shenandoah Fire Department, Shenandoah Police Department, and Page County EMA.

Sheriff’s officials in Page County report two arrests. On Tuesday (April 5th), deputies arrested 56-year-old James Randall Gomel, of rural Northboro. He was taken into custody on a Christian County, Missouri warrant for a Sex Offender Registry violation. Gomel was being held in the Page County Jail, pending extradition proceedings to Missouri.

James R. Gomel

And, on Monday, deputies in Page County arrested 19-year-old Braden Alan Gray, of Council Bluffs. He was wanted on a Page County warrant for Failure to Appear. Gray was being held in the Page County Jail on $1,000 bond, pending further court proceedings.

Braden A. Gray

A charge is merely an accusation and that the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

(Radio Iowa) – Six fire crews from three different southern Iowa counties fought an overnight fire on the town square in Osceola. The fire in an abandoned building in Osceola late last night and was extinguished just before sunrise. Osceola’s fire chief told a reporter for WHO-TV that a fire wall had protected apartments in the building next door. Apartment residents were safely evacuated. Police have blocked off a corner on the town square as fire crews monitor the burned out structure. The site of the fire is just north of the Clarke County Courthouse, which is open for business today.

Osceola’s commercial district, including the town square, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places four years ago, as some of the buildings date back to the 1890s.

(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Adair County Board of Supervisors will continue to use their Conference Call service during their Board meetings. That decision was reached during their meeting this (Wednesday) morning, in Greenfield. The Board began using the Conference Call when the pandemic limited attendance at in-person meetings. The call-in, access code system is especially helpful to the media and others who wish to listen to the proceedings, but are not able to attend. The system comes at no cost to the county.

The Board approved Courtyard use permits for the April 16th Easter Egg Hunt, “Summer Kick-off,” and 4th of July.

In other business, Adair County Attorney Melissa Larson presented the Board with a proposal for the use of American Rescue Plan funds for “i-Crimefighter.” The program is a mobile and tablet evidence collection system for Law Enforcement.The applications allows officers to capture pictures, videos, audio recordings and notes in the field and upload evidence to secure cloud hosting. It would benefit all Law Enforcement Agencies in the County, at a cost of $4,500 per year, for three-years ($13,500 in total).

She said the app has other benefits as well.

Sheriff Jeff Vandewater explained the system is very versatile and can be helpful during investigations. That’s especially true where there is video evidence available from the public.

The Board passed a motion to move forward with acquiring the program. Adair County Engineer Nick Kauffman requested the Board approve setting April 20th at 9:30-a.m., as the date and time for a Public Hearing on the vacating of 140th Street for one-half mile on the north side of Section 30, Lincoln. The request was approved. Kauffman also discussed the County 5-year Construction Program, during which there were some changes in the cost and scope of some projects. The Adair County Supervisors approved the revised plan as presented. Nick Kauffman also discussed some current and future road maintenance and related activities.