March 19, 2021 (DES MOINES, IA) –  The Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) Board, Friday, approved awards for seven established companies, which will assist in the creation of 179 jobs and result in almost $105 million in new capital investment for the state. These projects are located in Burlington, Cascade, Iowa City, Johnston, Nevada, Rock Valley and West Des Moines. The board also approved innovation funding in support of three startups located in Carroll, Cedar Rapids and Iowa City.

Of the three start-ups, Classroom Clinic in Carroll offers school-based telehealth services to rural school districts. It offers an innovative solution for rural mental health services, which in turn could improve academic achievement, higher graduation rates and advancement to postsecondary education. The platform allows telehealth providers to effectively connect with schools, students and families to deliver the care they need. The company was awarded a $25,000 Proof of Commercial Relevance (POCR) loan for market analysis and IP development and evaluation.

(read more about the other awards, here)

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — A former Four Oaks youth counselor has pleaded guilty to sexually abusing and exploiting a 14-year-old boy in 2018. The Gazette reports that 29-year-old Danielle Hook entered a written plea Thursday to amended charges of third-degree sexual abuse and sexual exploitation by a counselor or therapist. As part of a deal with prosecutors, a charge of harboring a runaway will be dismissed.

Prosecutors also agreed to recommend lifetime probation for Hook when she’s sentenced May 18. Her convictions on the two counts together carry a possible sentence of up to 15 years in prison. The judge who accepted her plea Thursday ordered her to register as a sex offender for 10 years.

Iowans submitted nominations between February 15 – March 15 to kick off the quest to find the best burger in Iowa. Nominations were accepted online by the Iowa Beef Industry Council and the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association. The number of votes each restaurant received determined the 2021 Top Ten restaurants. The restaurants making the Top Ten list (in alphabetical order) include, in our area, Troy’s Bar and Grill, in Earling.

Other restaurants (in alphabetical order) include:

• Arty’s Ice Cream & Grill, Wilton
• Bambino’s, Ossian
• #DutchFix, Pella
• Fishback & Stephenson Cider House, Fairfield
• Foodie Garage Eatery, Dubuque
• Moo’s BBQ, Newton
• Murph’s Creamery & Grill, Toledo
• Saucy Focaccia, Cedar Rapids
• and The Map Room, Cedar Rapids.

To qualify, the burger must be a 100% real beef patty served on a bun or bread product. Burgers may include any combination of condiments, sauces, cheese or toppings. Kylie Peterson, Director of Marketing for the Iowa Beef Industry Council, said “After a challenging year for Iowa’s restaurant industry, it was refreshing to see Iowans rally behind their favorite local burger joint. In total, we had more than 200 towns across Iowa nominated which proves that there are a lot of great tasting burgers all across the state.”

Seven of the Top Ten restaurants are new qualifiers. Returning contestants include Moo’s BBQ, Saucy Focaccia, and Troy’s Bar and Grill. The quest for the winner of the Iowa’s Best Burger will now begin. All Top Ten restaurants will be visited by a panel of anonymous judges who will evaluate the burgers based on taste, appearance, and proper doneness (160 degrees Fahrenheit). The judges’ scores and comments will be accumulated and the winner will be announced on May 3 to kick off May Beef Month.

Peterson says “This year’s Top Ten restaurants are award-winning worthy. But they are only a few of the many restaurants in Iowa that do an outstanding job of promoting and serving our beef products to their customers on behalf of Iowa’s beef farmers. With spring upon us, I challenge Iowans to rally their support behind restaurant owners and Iowa’s beef farmers by choosing to order a beef burger one additional time per week.”

To learn more about the contest and the Top Ten restaurants, including addresses and hours, visit www.iabeef.org.

Last year, The Twisted Tail Steakhouse & Saloon of BeeBeeTown took home the title of 2020 Iowa’s Best Burger. Winners in previous years are: 2019 – Wood Iron Grille of Oskaloosa; 2018 – Café Beaudelaire of Ames; 2017 – The Smokin’ Hereford BBQ of Storm Lake; 2016 – The Chuckwagon Restaurant Adair; 2015 – The Cider House of Fairfield; 2014 – Brick City Grill in Ames; 2013 – 61 Chop House Grille in Mediapolis; 2012 – Coon Bowl III in Coon Rapids; 2011 – Rusty Duck in Dexter; and 2010 – Sac County Cattle Company of Sac City.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office, Friday, said there were three arrests over the past couple of days. Friday morning, 30-year old Aleasha Lynn Gutierrez, a homeless person, was arrested at the Pottawattamie County Jail, on a Mills County warrant for Eluding. Her bond was set at $5,000. Thursday afternoon, 55-year old Sandra Lea Davis, of Glenwood, was arrested on a Mills County warrant for Contempt. And, Wednesday afternoon, 22-year old Devin Donte Sattizahn, of Shenandoah, was arrested on a Page County warrant for Violation of Probation. His bond was set at $2,000.

The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office reports a man from Hamburg was arrested on Harassment, Extortion and Stalking, charges. Officials say 22-year old Jeremy Rhoades was being held in the Fremont County Jail, pending an initial court appearance. Authorities allege that from March 11th through the 17th, Rhoades began harassing a female at numerous locations around Hamburg. He is also accused of accessing her email and social media accounts, and sending harassing messages to her contacts. It was further alleged that on two occasions Rhoades was armed with a blunt instrument, with the intent to intimidate the victim. He also allegedly threatened to damage the victim’s property for his own financial gain.

Jeremy Rhoades

On March 17th, Rhoades was placed under arrest for Harassment 2nd Degree (third or subsequent offense) and Harassment 3rd Degree. Rhoades was being held on a $1,000 10% bond. The next day, Rhoades was further charged with Harassment 1st Degree (an Aggravated Misdemeanor), Harassment 2nd Degree (a Serious Misdemeanor), Extortion (a Class D Felony), and Stalking while in Possession of a Dangerous Weapon (a Class D Felony).

(Radio Iowa) – Hydrologists predict an “average” flood risk in much of the Missouri River Basin this spring, in large part due to dry conditions, as much of the region is experiencing moderate to severe drought. Brian Fuchs, a climatologist with the National Drought Mitigation Center, says soils in the basin are dry and have a lot of room to take in water from rain and melting snow, which lowers the flood risk. Fuchs says, “Think of them as a big sponge, that when they are dry and there’s room in that profile for moisture to get in, any type of rain that hits them is going to get soaked in.”

Parts of northwest Iowa are shown to be in severe and extreme drought in this week’s map from the U-S Drought Monitor. Fuchs says the ground will be able to take in moisture from runoff, but if those soils aren’t replenished, plants aren’t going to have the moisture deep enough in the soil to tap into and grow. “It’s kind of a balancing game of getting that moisture into the soil so plants can utilize it if it does get dry and drought starts developing,” Fuchs says. “And if you don’t have that, what you end up seeing is the impact of that drought really taking off more so in a hurry than if that moisture was there.”

Fuchs says he expects the drought to persist in the High Plains through June. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is predicting -no- major flooding across the country for the first time in three years.

(By Katie Peikes, Iowa Public Radio)

CROWN POINT, Ind. (AP) — An Iowa man has been sentenced to 45 years in prison after pleading guilty in the 2015 death of an Illinois man fatally shot outside a Gary gas station. A Lake County judge sentenced 25-year-old Dontrall Jer’i Phillips of Davenport, Iowa, on Thursday after accepting his guilty plea to a murder charge under a plea agreement that calls for prosecutors to drop a robbery charge. Phillips was one of four people charged in the April 2015 shooting death of 21-year-old Donald Fuzzell of Calumet Park, Illinois, during a botched robbery in the parking lot of a Gary gas station.

The Atlantic Chamber Ambassadors were hosted by First Whitney Bank & Trust Thursday, March 18th. Paul Gude, Bank President, shared that there was much to celebrate at First Whitney, the first being the retirement of Deb Pellet. Deb has been with First Whitney Bank for 42 years, starting in 1979. Deb is looking forward to spending more time with her family, especially her grandchildren.

Ambassador’s Pictured Left to Right: (Back Row) Steve Andersen, Graydon Schmidt, Linda Robinson, Jason Nicholas, Carole Schlake, Brain Ruge, Bill Saluk, Dr.Keith Leonard, Kevin Fergeuson, Carole Schuler, Dawn Marnin, Scott Bennett, Dolly Bergmann, Mike Cook, Arlene Drennan.
(Front Row) Paul Gude, Jeff Gude, Misty Nelson, Emily Hart, Beth O’Brien, Jayme Farver, Ted Robinson, Lori Krichhoff, Anne Quist, Heidi Roland-Hinman, Connie Wails, Deb Pellett, Rich Perry, Nedra Perry, Rachel Czaja, Ruth Sears, Kennedy Freund.

Paul introduced Anne Quist as the new Assistant Vice President, who works primarily with real estate loans. Anne is busy with real estate loan applications due to interest rates being at an all-time low. Paul also introduced Jeff Gude as the new Loan Officer in Training. Jeff is working primarily with the Paycheck Protection Program which is helping business owners of all types get through a hard time brought on by COVID-19.

First Whitney specializes in all aspects of banking such as personal, agricultural, and commercial. Paul shared his pride in his team stems from their hard work and dedication to their community and to one another. Each team member is cross trained and efficient in many aspects of banking which allows them all to be able to help their customers in any way possible.

First Whitney Bank & Trust is located at 223 Chestnut Street & 700 Chestnut Street. Contact 712-243-3195 or 712-243-4183 or visit http://www.firstwhitneybank.com/ for more information.

You are invited to join the Cass County Conservation Board for the “Common Feeder Bird Identification” and Owl Prowl Programs, this Sunday, March 21st 2021 at the Outdoor Educational Classroom near Massena. You can enhance your birding skills, by learning how to identify common Iowa birds that like to visit your feeders. Join Kelly McKay from ‘Building Better Birders’ as he shares about Common Feeder Bird Identification. Funding for the program is made possible by the Resource Enhancement and Protection – Conservation Education Program (REAP – CEP). The workshop will be conducted by Kelly McKay (BioEco Research and Monitoring Center), with assistance from Mark Roberts (Clinton County Conservation) and Brian Ritter (Nahant Marsh Education Center).

The Common Feeder Birds session will start indoors at 2-p.m.. The Owl Prowl Hike will be outside, starting at 4-p.m.. Pre-Registration is appreciated. Call  769-2372 or email to sign up lkanning@casscoia.us . To find the Outdoor Classroom: take Highway 148 south of Massena; Turn Left on Tucson Road; Follow it East for about two miles, and then make a right hand turn into the parking lot. The programs qualify for the 120hrs Outdoor Challenge, don’t forget to use #120hrsCassCoIA as a hashtag for your adventures.

Milan Bottoms Bald Eagle Night Roost Program

Join Cass County Conservation Board for Milan Bottoms Bald Eagle Night Roost Program on March 28th beginning at 3-p.m., also at the Outdoor Educational Classroom. Join Kelly McKay from ‘Building Better Birders’ as he will define and describe what a Bald Eagle communal night roost is, as well as discussing Bald Eagle winter ecology. Additionally, he will summarize the background and preliminary results of this 6 year project. Funding for this program is also provided by the Resource Enhancement and Protection Program. Mark Roberts will also be there.

Pre-Registration is appreciated. Call  769-2372, or email Lora Kanning.