(Radio Iowa) – Waverly is dissolving its Economic Development Commission after 15 years, and officials in the northeast Iowa city of ten-thousand are looking to residents for solutions. City Administrator James Bronner says most of the commission’s duties are already being done by existing city staff, but citizen input remains important. Bronner says the key to Waverly’s future growth will come from meeting directly with residents to hear voices that haven’t had representation on the eight-member panel.

Bronner says they need to talk with new segments of the population, because if everyone is of like mind, there will be poor representation. The city council is expected to dissolve the commission early next month.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Atlantic Police Chief Devin Hogue, Wednesday afternoon (today), updated an earlier statement issued by Atlantic School District Superintendent Dr. Beth Johnsen, with regard to a threat to the High School in Atlantic. In his report, Chief Hogue said “On the 24th day of January, 2024, the Atlantic Police Department received a report of a threat being made at the Atlantic High School.

“After investigating the incident, it was found that the threat was not credible and students and staff were not in immediate danger to attend school the following day. However, due to the seriousness of the threat and the disruption to the school and learning environment, a 14 -year-old juvenile was taken into custody and has been charged with Threats of Terrorism and transported to a juvenile detention center.

“The Atlantic Police Department worked alongside the Atlantic Community School District during the investigation and has made contact with the Iowa Governors School Safety Bureau in regards to the incident.

“No other details are being released at this time. If you have information regarding the incident, please call the Atlantic Police Department at 712-243-3512.”

Note: A criminal charge is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The City of Atlantic’s Parks Advisory Commission held its first meeting this (Wednesday) afternoon, in the City Council’s Chambers at City Hall. The Commission was established by the Atlantic City Council, in October, 2023. It replaces the former Parks and Recreation Board, and consists of three people living within Atlantic City limits, two Cass County residents, and one non-voting high school student. Those appointed include Kevin Ferguson (2-year term), Dolly Bergmann (2-year term), Shirley Jensen (1-year term), Ali Pieken (1-year term), and Mary Strong (1-year term). A youth representative has not yet been chosen.

Parks & Rec Advisory Commission (1-24-2024)

During the Commission’s meeting, they introduced themselves and discussed the “Purpose of a Park Advisory Commission,” which the City Council has stated is “to ensure that a formal public feedback and input system was in place regarding the operations and capital planning for the city’s park and recreation system.”

The members present decided their next meeting, during which they will elect officers and hold related parks business, is the fourth Wednesday of each month at 3:30-p.m. Therefore the next meeting is on Feb. 28th. The Commission heard an update on efforts to bring a Splashpad to Atlantic.

Ali Pieken

Splashpad Committee spokesperson Ali Pieken said “To date, we’ve raised $415,000 for it, which is super exciting. We are in the process of starting the public bid preparation, with Snyder and Associates.” Pieken and another Committee member sat down with Snyder’s Mike Jorgensen  a few weeks ago to start the process of getting him all the information he needs to prepare the bid packet. She said “It’s very lengthy.” Jorgensen gave group a tentative timeline for the project, which includes hopes for the Splashpad to be open “At least a few days in August,” 2024.

The project was estimated to cost between $600,000 and $650,000, but the costs of materials and other factors are likely to push the price-tag higher. Pieken said “We hope to stay around that, but obviously [with] inflation and….that was last fall, so….”  The City of Atlantic has chipped-in a total of $95,000 towards the project. The engineering fee of $4,000 was deducted from the Splashpark fund by the City, leaving $91,000 still in the pot for the fund.

SWIPCO is working to acquire grants to get the project fund closer to the original goal.

(Radio Iowa) – Mahaska County Attorney Andrew Ritland is urging the state legislature to update Iowa’s criminal laws on pornography to address the use of new technology. “With the increase of artificially generated images online, either videos of still images, there’s been an increasing problem with individuals taking images of real children and adapting a pornographic image to make it appear that child is involved in a pornographic act,” Ritland said during a House subcommittee hearing.

Ritland told lawmakers there are already such cases in Iowa, but under current law they’re difficult to prosecute. Ritland supports a bill that expands the definition of sexual exploitation of a minor by making it a crime to produce or possess these kind of manipulated images. “In this way we hope to further protect the children of Iowa against these new technological threats and hold perpetrators accountable,” Ritland said.

Mahaska County Attorney Andrew Ritland and Kelly Meyers, lobbyist for Iowa County Attorneys Association, at an Iowa House subcommittee hearing. (RI photo)

Ritland is urging lawmakers to pass another bill dealing with so-called revenge porn that uses artificially manipulated images to harass, intimidate or annoy adults or minors. “Technology is not going to stop, right? The convincing nature of these photos and videos is going to get better and better until it’s indistinguishable to the human eye,” Ritland said. “…We need to get out in front of this issue as soon as we can before we get into a situation where we have to play catch up.”

Both bills have cleared initial review and are eliglble for votes in the Iowa House Judiciary Committee.

DES MOINES, Iowa – A Des Moines man was arrested on Sunday, January 21, 2024, and made his initial appearance before a United States Magistrate Judge in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa on Wednesday, January 24, 2024.

Sharmarke Omar Mohamed, 35, is charged in a criminal complaint filed in the Southern District of Iowa with one felony drug offense: possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.

According to the allegations in the unsealed complaint, as part of a Des Moines Police Department investigation, Mohamed was located traveling toward Des Moines from Arizona when the Iowa State Patrol conducted a traffic stop of his vehicle in Decatur County, Iowa. Pursuant to a federal search warrant for Mohamed’s vehicle, approximately 30,000 counterfeit pills suspected of containing fentanyl, weighing approximately 3,182 grams, were located in the luggage area of the vehicle.

This case is being prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa. United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The Des Moines Police Department is investigating the case, with the assistance of the Iowa Department of Public Safety, the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, the Iowa State Patrol, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Ankeny Police Department, and the Mid-Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force.

A complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

(Glenwood, Iowa) – The Glenwood Police Department reports 24-year-old Tyler Bascue, of Glenwood, was arrested today (Wednesday, Jan. 24), on a Mills County warrant. Bascue was being held in the Mills County jail on a $5,000 cash-only bond.

(Radio Iowa) – A bill under consideration in the Iowa Senate would let drivers operate all-terrain vehicles at higher speeds on some Iowa roads. A law passed in 2022 lets A-T-Vs travel on county roads and two-lane state highways at no more than 35 miles an hour. Senator Mike Klimesh, of Spillville, says A-T-Vs can be a hazard when they’re moving at 35 miles an hour. “If they’re about to travel at speed and desire to travel at speed and matches the speed on the highway it eliminates some possible concerns about folks having to go around them that maybe, on the spur of the moment, that was not in their best interest,” Klimesh says.

State law also allows A-T-Vs to travel on gravel roads if they’re being used for farming. Klimesh says A-T-Vs driving at 35 miles an hour or less on a gravel road are at risk of being rear ended. “If I’ve traveled that gravel road every day of my life going to and from my farm unit or going to and from work, I come upon a dust cloud, I’m assuming that that dust cloud is traveling at 45 or 50, which is an average speed for gravel roads I would say for gravel roads throughout the state, except in springtime,” Klimesh says, “then I encounter something that’s limited to 35 miles an hour I don’t know it because it’s inside of a dust cloud.”

Alyson DeMoss, a lobbyist for the Iowa Motorcycle Dealers Association, says the group supports letting A-T-Vs drive up to 35 miles an hour on some roads, but not at higher speeds. “It is our opinion that this raises an increased safety concern in this state. The machines are not made to go at those speeds,” DeMoss said. “…If a machine is able to go those speed limits, oftentimes they have equipment that is not rated to do that. The tires can be rated much less than that.” Senator Tony Bisignano, a Democrat from Des Moines, says he’d like to let Iowa’s largest counties with the most traffic say no to letting A-T-Vs move at higher speeds.”How really important is it we move this speed limit if it risks one child, one young person being killed?” Bisignano asked. “We drive these roads, too, and us being in a car and seeing these vehicles flying at 50 miles an hour.”

The bill cleared a Senate subcommittee this (Wednesday) morning and is eligible for a vote in the Senate Transportation Committee.

(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Adair County Board of Supervisors, today (Wednesday) approved the hiring of Kelly Mitchell, as an employee for the Recorder’s Office, and Payton Armstrong, of Greenfield, as Sheriff’s Department Dispatcher/Jailer. They also approved hiring Nathan Reed for a temporary/Part-time Snow Removal/Custodian position. Reed – who works in the Adair County Auditor’s Office as Elections and Real Estate Deputy – told KJAN the Board hopes to hire someone full-time, in the near future.

In other business, the Board heard a FY25 $5,000 funding request from Michelle Wilson with Southern Iowa RC&D, based in Creston. The same amount is being requested from all seven counties they serve.

Southern Iowa Resource Conservation and Development provides project leadership and technical services to individuals, groups and communities to conserve, develop and sustain human and natural resources in southern Iowa through proper land conservation, water resource development, land management and community development. The Board took the request under advisement.

Adair County Engineer Nick Kaufmann presented for the Board to approve and Chair Jerry Walker to sign, a Right-Of-Way contract for the N-26 Lincoln (Township) Culvert Project. Kauffman also made his weekly report on Secondary Roads Department maintenance projects and activities. His report, like that of most area County Engineers, delved into the recent snowstorms and the impact on county roads. Supervisor Jodie Hoadley said most of the comments she’s heard with regard to snow removal in Adair County, were positive.

She said some people were upset that some roads seemed to take priority over others.

Kaufmann said crews worked to take care of those persons who needed emergency assistance, first.

In other business, County Auditor Mandy Berg presented her FY 25 Budget requests, which were taken under advisement.