(Harlan, Iowa) – The Shelby County Supervisors will meet in a special session 9-a.m. Tuesday, March 29th. The Board has one action item on their agenda: a Hearing for, and Approval of a Resolution on, the  fiscal year 2023 Shelby County budget. There will also be general county business discussion, with no action to follow.

(Creston, Iowa) – Officials with the Creston Police Department today (Friday), reports the arrest at around 3:45-a.m. today, of 30-year-old Christopher Cerda-Roma, from Lenox. Cerda-Roma was arrested at Oak and Montgomery Streets, for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. His bond at the Union County Jail, was set at $300.

Authorities say two incidents of vandalism and/or theft were reported over the past few weeks. On Wednesday (March 23rd), a man told Police his vehicle had been vandalized while parked near a fitness business in the 500 block of W. Taylor Street, in Creston. He said his driver’s side window was broken out, and a fitness card worth an estimated $200, was missing. On Feb. 13th, a person with the Smoke Shop in Creston reported the business was broken into. The loss from damage and missing inventory, amounted to slightly more than $2,387.

And, on March 21st, a woman reported to Creston Police that her purse went missing while she was at the Creston Walmart Store. The loss was estimated at $100.

(Radio Iowa) – The latest figures show only 67 people were hospitalized in Iowa (as of Wednesday), for treatment of COVID-19, which is down significantly from the peak in January near one-thousand patients. The C-D-C says death rates, too, are slowing dramatically. Lisa Ridge, C-E-O of Van Diest Medical Center in Webster City, says even after two years, coronavirus is still making a critical impact on the facility. “While we’re grateful for these low numbers and low mortality, as a small, rural hospital with limited resources and limited ability to increase our covered lives or services rapidly,” Ridge says, “we are grappling with the ongoing effects of the pandemic.”

Lisa Ridge. (photo from Van Diest)

Since early 2020, many people have chosen to retire or quit the health care profession and the hospital has a long list of open positions, making a tough situation even more difficult for those who remain. “From our staffing and supply challenges to decreased utilization of our services, we’ve really had to embrace and show our agility,” Ridge says. “We’ve cross-trained staff. We’re showing the ability to flex-staff between departments. We’re being creative with supplies and really with our supply chain as a whole.”

The hospital is investing in new technologies, she says, in order to support its many virtual platforms.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig reports the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship has awarded nearly $250,000 in grants to help 13 Iowa farmers, businesses and non-profits increase or diversify their agricultural product offerings. Among the grant recipients, was Brun Ko Farm, owned and managed by Emily and Nathan Paulsen. The farm, located near Exira, is being awarded $15,000 toward a total project cost of $30,000, to increase vegetable production by increasing washing and storage capacity.

Naig said “Iowa agriculture is the envy of the world as our farmers continue to lead the way in producing healthy, high-quality, affordable food. It is essential that consumers have access to the Iowa-grown products they know and love. The Choose Iowa grant program makes this possible through value-added projects that help Iowans grow their businesses and access new markets. I am proud to invest in these projects that continue to position Iowa as a top place to grow, today and in the future.”

To view the entire list of Choose Iowa Marketing and Promotion grant recipients, click HERE.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa House has endorsed a temporary measure in response to landowner complaints about proposed carbon pipelines. Under the proposal, developers wouldn’t be able to apply for eminent domain authority to seize property for the carbon pipelines before February 1st of next year. Representative Bobby Kaufmann, a Republican from Wilton, says it’s about ensuring the negotiation process between the pipeline companies and landowners is fair.

“This is a moratorium on the ability to schedule a hearing where condemnation authority can be granted,” Kaufman says. “…It sends a message that we’re watching. It sends a message that we have expectations of how you treat landowners.” Representative Steven Hansen, a Democrat from Sioux City, says this doesn’t respond to landowners who have no desire to have the pipelines on their properties.

“We could have addressed this head on and I don’t think we are,” Hansen says. “I think people were under the impression that we were going to deal with this, this year.” House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst of Windsor Heights says this should be the start of the legislature’s hard conversation about these kind of projects. “Land owner rights, public good definition, what kind of pipelines we want, what are the environment implications — all of the issues around this are critically important,” Konfrst says, “and we need to talk about them.”

Representative Kaufmann says current regulations are too vague. “Comprehensive eminent domain reform, which entails decisions and parameters set around the Iowa Utilities Board has been a priority of mine since I started here,” Kaufmann says. “…The IUB’s job is to follow what we prescribe and I’m open to changing that prescription and making it better.” Representative Chris Hall, a Democrat from Sioux City, says legislators should examine proposals now that would protect landowners.

“This is pushing the issue to next year specifically to, from my vantage point, avoid the politics and the passions that will come out on this issue prior to an election,” Hall says. On a voice vote, the House attached the temporary moratorium to a far larger budget bill that now goes to the Senate for consideration.

(Radio Iowa) – Republicans on a committee in the Iowa House are advancing parts of the governor’s education agenda, but her proposal to provide state scholarships for 10-thousand students attending private schools is not included. The bill would require high school seniors TAKE a civics test, but PASSING it isn’t required for graduation. Parents would be able to go online to see what classroom materials teachers plan to use. Republican Representative Garrett Gobble of Ankeny, who is a teacher, says there’s already software available for that.

“Our intent here is not to give arbitrary work to teachers,” Gobble says. “We want this to make it meaningful and show parents how to engage, but we can’t engage for the parents.” Other proposals floating around the legislature would have required teachers to post lesson plans for the entire year before school starts. Melissa Peterson of the Iowa State Education Association says teachers welcome transparency, but they also have a job to do.

Encouraging parental engagement and involvement is absolutely a good thing but we do want to ensure we are not being unnecessarily burdensome to our practitioners,” Peterson says, “distracting them from the important work of working with their students on a daily basis.” The bill, which has been approved by the House Appropriations Committee, does not call for establishing felony charges for teachers if parents allege classroom materials or books in the library are obscene.

(Radio Iowa) – A jury has approved a more than 97 million dollar verdict for an Iowa City couple after their child was born severely brain damaged. Geoffery Fieger, the attorney for Andrew and Kathleen Kromphardt, told K-C-R-G T-V the baby received brain damage after he says the doctor neglected to take care of the mom during birth.

The lawsuit says there were ample signs a cesarean section was necessary at the time of the birth in 2018, but Doctor Jill Goodman continued with the vaginal birth and used forceps and tried to pull the baby out of the womb and fractured his skull. Fieger says when she couldn’t get the baby out with forceps, she used a vacuum extractor — which he says you’re never supposed to do after failed forceps. The is believed to be the largest award in state history for medical malpractice cases.

The largest portion of the award will go for future medical costs for the child. The verdict will be split evenly between the doctor’s office and Mercy Iowa City, and includes 42 million dollars for future medical or care expenses.

The jury award also included 11-point-six million dollars for loss of future earnings, and 20 million dollars each for pain and suffering and loss of function of the mind and or body. Mercy Iowa City released a statement saying: “Mercy Iowa City is disappointed in the verdict. While we respect the legal process, we disagree with the jury’s conclusion and will consider all available options. Our primary focus remains on providing high-quality care to our patients and families.”

Obstetric and Gynecologic Associates of Iowa City and Coralville legal team also released a statement saying:
“While we have great respect for the legal process, we are disappointed in the jury’s finding. We are reviewing our legal options moving forward.”

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Cass County Auditor’s Office reports one additional filing for the General Election. Officials say Kevin A Stender has filed nomination papers to run as the  Edna Township Trustee. The deadline to file is 5-p.m., Friday (March 25th).

ATLANTIC, IOWA – Southwest Iowa Housing Trust Fund (SWIHTF), a nonprofit fund administered by Southwest Iowa Planning Council (SWIPCO), has received a $100,000 grant from the Iowa West Foundation, to be used for housing rehabilitation in the southwest Iowa region, which covers Cass, Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Page, and Shelby counties.

Brenda Mainwaring, President and CEO of the Iowa West Foundation, said “A safe and stable housing situation is a basic necessity for everyone regardless of income. This grant will allow SWIHTF to extend that opportunity to more southwest Iowans, and act as an additional resource Iowa West is supporting as we continue to address the housing issues in our region.”

Past projects have included replacement windows and doors, roof repairs, upgraded insulation, foundation repair, and health hazard abatement. The funds from the Iowa West Foundation will help SWIHTF complete at least ten more of these projects in the coming year.

Alexsis Fleener, SWIPCO Community Development Director, says “Rehabilitation is a great way for low- to moderate-income homeowners to not only improve the health, safety, and energy efficiency of their dwellings, but to build value in their existing homes. Improving the safety and energy efficiency of homes in a neighborhood can help lift the value of all homes in the community over time, and the Iowa West Foundation’s grant will help us do more of that.”

The Iowa West Foundation is committed to helping communities achieve their dreams. Letters of Inquiry (the first step in the grant application process) are accepted year-round with deadlines of Jan. 1, May. 1 and Sept. 1 prior to each of the three grants cycles. For more information on the application process, a virtual grants workshop will be held on April 22nd. Details and registration can be found at: www.iowawestfoundation.org.