The time is running out for persons wanting to file nomination papers to run for various city offices in Cass County. The deadline to file papers with the proper number of signatures for the Nov. 7th Elections, is 5-p.m Thursday (Sept. 21st). The Cass County Auditor’s Office said late Wednesday afternoon, that five more candidates had filed their nomination papers. They include:

Nancy Virginia Coughlin-(Incumbent) Cumberland City Mayor

Mike Hill-Cumberland City Council

Michael Martin-Cumberland City Council

Gary Cooper-Cumberland City Council

John Krogman-Atlantic Parks & Recreation Department Board.

In an update to our earlier online and broadcast reports, Wednesday, the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, Wednesday evening, provided additional information with regard to a death that took place Tuesday afternoon. Sheriff Kevin Aistrope reports Deputies responded at around 1:20-p.m., to a call about a man who had fallen out of a bucket truck lift while trimming trees. The accident happened at 2474 Bluff Road, north of Highway 2.

Sidney Rescue arrived and performed life saving measures, but 32-year old Keith Sorensen, of Clarinda, died at the accident scene. No foul play was suspected.The Fremont County Coroner and LifeNet Rescue assisted the Sheriff’s Office and Sidney Rescue.

Earlier in the day, Wednesday, officials with Essex-based Sorensen Brothers Southwest Iowa Tree Service,  Inc. said on their Facebook page, that an employee of their company died Tuesday in a job related accident. They identified the victim as Keith Sorensen.

A statement from the company said also, “Those who had spoken to Keith and gotten bids or scheduled work, please call the Sorensen Law Office at 712-246-1924 for arrangements to have the work completed.”

Members of the Atlantic City Council, Wednesday evening, received a report from Alexis Fleener, Lead Planner at SWIPCO (Southwest Iowa Planning Council), with regard to a community-wide survey that was conducted recently, via social media and the mail. The response rate of 13% fit within the norm of similar surveys.

182 responses were from those under the age of 50, while 303 came back from those who were age 50 and over. The vast majority (153) were retired, 80 respondents were employed in a managerial, business, science and arts occupations, while 69 came from the service sector. Alexis said “We received disproportionately more surveys from people who generally made more of an income,” ($50-60k/year) than those who made less.

Alexis Fleener

The survey’s for Atlantic were designed to try and help determine what priorities residents have as far as improving and growing the City of Atlantic. Fleener said one of the elements of the survey was with regard to Housing survey. The conditions were determined by SWIPCO staff rating every home in the City limits, based on the conditions of the home.

The teams took two business days and rated the homes on a scale of 1-to 5, with 1 being excellent (brand new condition) and 5 being Dilapidated (appears to be uninhabitable and beyond repair). In between ratings were good, average and poor.
Fleener said they drove 81 miles of City streets to examine homes from the Street perspective. The results showed about 175 homes were rated Excellent, but the vast majority of homes (just under 1,200) were in Good condition.

Close behind were the number of homes rated Fair (1,100). Homes listed as Poor amounted to 162, while 11 homes were deemed to be Dilapidated. There were also 97 vacant lots. The survey showed 82% of those who responded lived in single-family housing, while 14% reported living in multi-family housing (apartments, condos and townhomes). When it comes to the current condition of the City as far as services are concerned, the top three categories were Fire Department, Police Department and Public Library. The lowest rated were road conditions, drainage/flood control, childcare and healthcare.

Many respondents to the survey skews more negatively when it comes to the number of rental properties available, as opposed to homes for sale, with 178 saying the rental market is “Poor,” while buyers rated homes for sale as in between “Adequate,” and “Does not meet the needs.” A vast majority of the respondents were happy with the quality of life here, that they feel connected to the City, feel safe and that City leaders are responsive to citizens’ needs.

About 75 people indicated they would likely be moving away from Atlantic in the next 1-to 3-years, while a slightly lesser number of respondents weren’t sure. As far as activities, most of the respondents wanted a bigger/better pool and/or splash pad, followed by more youth activities and additional bike/walking paths. The next steps include additional public engagement/input, goal settings, bringing together certain groups to act as “Topic groups,” such as Utilities & Transportation, Public Safety and Emergency Management, Housing and Economic Development, and Community Interest (Health/Education/Art and Culture).

Meetings for those groups, which are open to the public, will be set for the coming months, with additional information still to come.

Spirit Lake police have released the name of a person who died following a short pursuit early Tuesday. The man is identified as 26-year-old Colton Baschke, of Spirit Lake. Police say the incident started around 12:30 a.m. when an officer attempted to pull over a pickup in Spirit Lake. The driver refused to stop and instead lead officers on a pursuit that lasted about three minutes. That’s when officers lost sight of the vehicle. It was later located after it had been involved in a crash.

Police believe the pickup traveled across a residential lawn and collided with a utility shed. Then, the pickup entered East Lake Okoboji, about 15 feet off shore. Authorities say it appears Baschke was ejected from the truck. He was then transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

(Radio Iowa)

The Atlantic Police Department reports 13 people have been arrested since Sept. 1st. In their cumulative report issued today (Wednesday), officials said among the most recent arrests, was 18-year old Travis Osborn, and 22-year old Tyler Osborn, both of Atlantic. The Osborns were taken into custody Tuesday for Theft in the 2nd Degree. Travis Osborn was additionally charged with Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, while Tyler Osborn was also charged with OWI and Driving While License Suspended.

Last Saturday, Atlantic Police arrested 27-year old Garrett Cooper, of Atlantic, for Assault While Displaying a Dangerous Weapon. On Sept. 13th, 60-year old Timothy Squires, of Atlantic, was arrested for Assault Causing Bodily Injury. One day earlier, 50-year old Paul Prall, of Atlantic, was arrested on Cass County warrants for two counts of Failure to Appear in court. On Sept. 10th, Atlantic Police arrested 26-year old Myles Mason, of Butler, MO., for Public Intoxication.

On Sept. 9th: 22-year old Tyler Osborn, of Atlantic, was arrested for Public Intox./ 2nd offense; 53-year old Brian Cable, of Atlantic, was arrested on a Cass County warrant for 2nd Degree Theft; and, 44-year old Steve Morris, of Atlantic, was arrested on a Cass County warrant for Failure to Appear in court.

Looking back to Sept. 3rd, Atlantic Police arrested 33-year old Joseph Meyers, and 29-year old Melanie Meyers, both of Cedar Rapids. They both were charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance/3rd or subsequent offense, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Melanie Meyers faces additional charges of Driving while license under suspension. Joseph Meyers was also charged with Interference with Official Acts and Violation of Probation.

On Sept. 2nd, 41-year old Jeremy Peterson, of Atlantic, for Public Intox.  And, on Sept. 1st, 22-year old Edward Burton, of Atlantic, was arrested on a Cass County warrant for Burglary in the 3rd Degree.  Each of the suspects were transported to the Cass County Jail and booked-in.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – State officials say a projected shortfall in Iowa’s roughly $7.2 billion budget has shrunk and will not require a special legislative session to fix. The Iowa Department of Management and the Iowa Department of Revenue say the state budget that ended in June has about a $13 million shortfall. That figure is much smaller than projections earlier this summer.

The announcement Wednesday means Gov. Kim Reynolds will not have to call lawmakers back to the Capitol. She has authority without legislative action to transfer up to $50 million in emergency funds to plug a budget shortfall. The nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency estimated earlier this summer a possible shortfall of about $100 million. State officials say final adjustments on a range of incoming revenue shrunk the expected shortfall.

LSA tax analyst Jeff Robinson later said data does show major revenue improvements in the final months of accounting. Democrats in the Republican-majority Legislature expressed skepticism at the figures. State officials offered to meet with anyone to go over the numbers.

The deadline is quickly approaching for persons in Cass County to submit nomination papers for the Nov. 7th City Elections in Cass County, and the Auditor’s Office is putting out a plea for anyone thinking about running for office, to do so now. If you’ve ever thought about being involved in civic government, get a nomination form and the required 10 signatures, and turn it in by 5-p.m. Thursday!

The following cities are still in need of people to file to run for city office:

Anita– 2 Council positions
Cumberland– Mayor position & 2 Council Positions
Massena-Mayor Position
Wiota– 2 Council Positions

Contact Shari Karns at the Cass County Auditor’s Office, or your city clerk. They can get you the paperwork you need immediately. You can also go to the Secretary of State’s website. You only need 10 signatures to get your name on the ballot!!

The Iowa Supreme Court has taken the unusual move of hearing a small claims case stemming from a speeding ticket. The court today (Wednesday) heard a case brought by 67-year-old Marla Leaf, who argued her constitutional rights were violated after an automated camera ticketed her for speeding on a freeway in her hometown of Cedar Rapids. It was her first speeding ticket, and Leaf says she wasn’t speeding.

Her attorney, James Larew, argued Cedar Rapids violates equal protection and due process clauses of the Iowa Constitution in part because it delegates police power to a private, for-profit company. Attorneys for Cedar Rapids say the city’s system abides by state law. After the hearing, Leaf said she pursued the case simply because, “Why should I pay for a ticket I didn’t do?” The fine for the ticket, which was issued in Feb., 2015, amounted to $75.

Leaf’s case is unusual because the Iowa Supreme Court rarely takes small claims cases. Such cases are closely watched by other communities with automated traffic equipment.

Officials with Essex-based Sorensen Brothers Southwest Iowa Tree Service,  Inc. said on their social media page today (Wednesday), that an employee of the company, died Tuesday in a job related accident. Keith Sorensen died during the accident that is believed to have taken place near Sidney, in Fremont County, but local authorities have not released any further information.

A statement from the company said also, “Those who had spoken to Keith and gotten bids or scheduled work, please call the Sorensen Law Office at 712-246-1924 for arrangements to have the work completed.”

Officials at Cass County Health System today (Wednesday) announced the resignation of Dr. Vanessa Cook, family medicine physician.  CCHS CEO Brett Altman says Dr. Cook and her husband, Steve Brunin, will be moving her practice back to her home state of Kansas.  She has been caring for patients at CCHS since February 2010. Her last day at CCHS will be December 17th, 2017.  Altman said “It is with very mixed emotions we share this news. We are very pleased for Dr. Cook and her family for this opportunity to move closer to home. We will, however, truly miss her and appreciate her contributions to our organization. ”

Vanessa Cook, M.D.

Dr. Cook said in a statement that her “Decision to leave has been a difficult one,” and that she has enjoyed her time at CCHS, working with a great team and wonderful patients. ” I wish I could take CCHS with me!” Dr. Cook said.  “However, after my mother’s death last summer I have felt a pull to get back closer to family, which this change will allow me to do.”

Altman says CCHS has been and continues to be, actively recruiting physicians and advanced practice clinicians to ensure patients’ needs are met.  Recent additions of Dr. Ben Howard, Jessica Jackson, ARNP; Max Starlin, PA-C;  and Elisha Hardy, ARNP;  along with the 2018 addition of Dr. Autumn Keiser, will help to absorb the loss of Dr. Cook.