Cass County Engineer Charles Marker today (Monday), updated the County Board of Supervisors on the status of various bridge projects. Marker had good news to report with regard to the bridge leading to the Griswold Golf Course: He said bridge # 83 is now open to traffic. Temporary seeding around the bridge is taking place, with more permanent seeding set to take place next Spring.

Marker said also, that work on bridge number 247, south of Anita, is progressing. He said the all-steel bridge has vertical pilings instead of wood. The beams, which were purchased from IDA County, were sand blasted locally in preparation for installation. Diaphragms are placed between the beams to prevent the beams from twisting under the weight of vehicles and provide more strength to the structure. A six-inch thick, corrugated metal decking was being tack-welded to the beams. Gravel and dirt will be placed over the decking when weather allows.

In other business, the Cass County Board of Supervisors tabled action on signing a 28-E Unified Law Enforcement Agreement that adds the City of Marne to other member cities that include Cumberland, Lewis, Massena and Wiota, while the Cass County Attorney reviews a requested addition to the agreement pertaining to “Investment.” Cass County Auditor Dale Sunderman said the City of Lewis’ auditor requested the addition.

And, the Board discussed, but took no action on an Ordinance authorizing the operation of all-terrain vehicles and off-road utility vehicles on county roads and trails. The ordinance is modeled after one in-place in Carroll County. Several questions still remain though, before an ordinance is even drafted in Cass County.

The Union County Sheriff’s Office reports 24-year old Jordan Rae Maynes, of Lorimor, was arrested Nov. 25th at the Madison County Jail, on a Union County warrant for forgery. Maynes was being held for Union County in the Ringgold County Jail, on $5,000 bond.

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A man from Creston was arrested Sunday morning on an assault charge. 35-year old Mangus Welch was taken into custody at his residence at around 4-a.m., and charged with Domestic Abuse/Simple Assault. Welch was being held in the Union County Jail while serving his sentence.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) – Nearly 31,000 cookies packed in nearly 2,100 boxes have already been packed, sent and, in some cases, eaten. The Daily Nonpareil reports that the volunteer group since 2007 has been sending home-baked cookies to U.S. troops overseas.

On Nov. 10 at Emanuel Lutheran Church, more than 60 volunteers helped pack the boxes. Since its founding in 2007, Iowa Cookie Crumbs more than 928,000 cookies have been sent to the troops. Along with cookies, the organization also sends comfort items such as games, blank holiday cards, 2016 calendars, personal hygiene products and an assortment of snacks, drink mixes and candy.

The Iowa Cookie Crumbs is part of the national Treat the Troops organization and is funded by donations.

Three siblings who grew up on a farm in southwest Iowa will be honored early next year for their actions in selling the property. Dale Nimrod says his father died of cancer not long after purchasing the farm, near Stanton in Montgomery County, in 1944. Nimrod’s mother stayed on the 240-acre farm and raised her children — with help from neighbors and the community. In 2005, the Nimrod children decided it was time to sell the property.

Sunny and Dale Nimrod on their farm near Decorah.

“We were looking to give back to that community that helped raise us in the absence of my dad,” Dale said. The Nimrod family hoped to find a young family that would appreciate “the land, the community, and the church.” They settled on Mark and Melanie Peterson, a couple raising five children. “When we sold it to them, two of (the children) thought they may want to go into farming,” Dale said. “Mark was determined, if they wanted to farm, he’d have something they could work on.” The farm was sold to the Peterson family at a below-market-value price.

“(We) were willing to sell it on its economic value, its productivity value, not whatever its market value is – which is not very relevant, I don’t think, to anything,” Dale said. “So, we had (Mark) fill out some forms from Iowa State, like the kind of forms you’d fill out if you’re going to take out a farm loan, so he could see what he’d need to do in order to make the payments and we set the payments accordingly.” The 75-year-old Nimrod taught chemistry for many years at Luther College and lives on a farm near Decorah with his wife Sunny. He and his siblings, Faith and Vance, were recently selected as the 2015 winners of the Practical Farmers’ Farmland Owner Award.

The award will be presented to the Nimrod Family at the Practical Farmers of Iowa’s annual conference on January 22 in Ames. According to the organization, the Farmland Owner Award is given to non-operator landlords “who use their land to advance stewardship and help get the next generation started on the land.”

(Radio Iowa)

Police in Red Oak report the arrest Sunday night of a man from Clarinda. 26-year old Jason Lee Myers was taken into custody following a traffic stop at around 9:15-p.m. near the intersection of W. Reed and N. Broadway Streets. Myers was charged with OWI/Drugged and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. His bond at the Montgomery County Jail was set at $1,000.

FARRAGUT, Iowa (AP) – A southwest Iowa school district that was dissolved now has to close its books, settle its liabilities and dispose of property such as desks and buildings. The Daily Nonpareil in Council Bluffs reports that Lane Plugge, a former Iowa City schools superintendent, is overseeing the process.

Plugge is charged with oversight as part of his role as the chief administrator of the Green Hills Area Education Agency. State law gives him the authority to approve financial and personnel decisions, taking the power away from the local school board.

The Iowa Board of Education voted to close the Farragut School District earlier this month after officials said it was operating with a negative financial balance and sub-minimal education standards.