The Cass County Community Center, in Atlantic, will be transformed into a bustling holiday market on Monday, November 23rd from 3:30- to 7:30-pm, for the second annual Holiday Harvest Market. Fresh, locally grown produce will be available for your Thanksgiving gatherings. And, get some help with your holiday baking from southwest Iowa bakers.

You’ll also find unique holiday gifts made by local crafters for special people on your gift list. Samples will be available from vendors, guest chefs and recipe contest entrants for shoppers to enjoy as they browse. Fun activities for youth, voting on local recipe contest winners and seasonal music will make this an event the whole family can enjoy.

Vendor spaces are still available, and any local farmers, bakers, artisans or crafters are invited to sign up. The event was very well attended last year, and received excellent reviews from attendees and vendors alike. Vendors interested in participating can find details and a registration form online at http://www.extension.iastate.edu/cass or http://www.atlanticiowa.com>. Vendor booth spaces are available at $20 each.

Local residents with a favorite seasonal recipe are invited to share it, and possibly win a prize, by entering the Best of Market Recipe Contest. Entries will be judged by their use of local, seasonal ingredients- whether they be produce, meat, eggs, grains, or preserved foods. Recipes will be judged by a panel of local celebrities, as well as by popular vote from market attendees for the People’s Choice award. If you have a favorite recipe, but aren’t sure where to find a local vendor, you can check a list of local producers registered for the market online to find what you are looking for. A full list of vendors, information on the recipe contest, as well as other activities and special events will be posted online at the Cass County Extension website.

The Holiday Harvest Market is sponsored by Farmers Markets of Cass County, Cass County Local Food Policy Council, and City of Atlantic Community Promotions Commission. The event is endorsed by the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce.

Adair County Emergency Management Coordinator Robert Kempf reports the Adair & Guthrie County Emergency Management Agencies have added a Polaris Ranger UTV to the resources available to local responders and jurisdictions in Adair & Guthrie Counties. The Ranger is equipped with a Kimtek MedBed for the transport of injured or sick medical patients and a radio for communications with other responders and both dispatch centers in the counties. The equipment is transported on a 14-foot equipment trailer. The equipment has been used by local responders at least 10 days each month since it arrived in middle July.

Each year, local responders and government officials have times that they are in need of an off road vehicle, smaller vehicle. They need it for searches for missing individuals, inspection of crime scene, monitoring crowds and responding to medical issues at local events to name just a few.

Kempf said “Several of the Law Enforcement, Fire and EMS Departments have considered purchasing this type of equipment over the years. The cost for the equipment was too much for most departments. Having one set of equipment available to all department was a much more fiscal solution.”

The cost of the equipment totaled approximately $28,000.00. Many local entities helped in the financing of the equipment. Contributions to the cost were received from the Schildberg Foundation ($15,000.00), Guthrie County Community Foundation ($5,000.00) and West Central Coop (1,500.00). Guthrie County Emergency Management provided the radio valued at $2,000.00. The remaining $4,500.00 was paid for out of the Adair & Guthrie County Emergency Management budgets that are supported by the 14 towns and 2 counties.

Jeremy Cooper, Chairman of the Guthrie County Emergency Management Commission, said “This project would not have been possible without the cooperation of both the private and public sector’s working together in our counties” said, “That is what emergency management is about, everyone working together to plan for, respond to and recover from disasters and emergencies.”

Kempf added “The jurisdictions and local responder departments can contact my office to reserve to equipment for use at community events. The equipment is always available 24/7/365 for use in emergency situation through the county dispatch centers.”

A truck driver from Nebraska was injured this (Friday) morning when the semi he was driving crashed into a ditch and rolled onto its side, in Crawford County. The Iowa State Patrol says 43-year old Christopher Evans, of Omaha, who was wearing a seat belt, was transported to the Manning Regional Hospital by Crawford County Ambulance following the accident that happened at around 8:35-a.m. A report on his condition is not available.

The Patrol reports the crash occurred after Evans, who was driving a 1999 Peterbilt westbound on Highway 141, attempted to pass a non-contact, 2001 Case tractor pulling a wagon, and driven by 63-year old Ronald Halbur, of Manning. The tractor was attempting to turn south onto 370th Street and crossed the centerline of the road to merge into the left lane, when the semi went to pass on the left. When the semi entered the south ditch, the trailer hit the embankment off 370th and the semi ended-up on its left side on 370th.

Halbur wasn’t injured during the accident.

The “ReOpen 2nd Floor” Committee will host a Halloween trick or treat and open house on the second and third floors of Atlantic’s City Hall Saturday, October 31st, from 2:30 – until 4:00 p.m., and from 7:30 until – 9:00 p.m.  Children and adults are invited to wear costumes if they choose, pick a treat and tour portions of City Hall that have been closed to the public for nearly 40 years.

City Hall does not yet have an elevator so visitors should be aware that the only access to the second floor is by stairs. Visitors are not required to go to the second floor to receive a treat though. Saturday’s open house will be the last opportunity for voters to visit City Hall prior to the referendum next week that will determine if the classic auditorium on the second floor will be remodeled and used by the public again.

On Tuesday, November third, citizens of Atlantic will vote on the question of using Local Option Sales Tax to remodel the second and third floors of City Hall, making them available for the public to use again. The remodel project will update the electrical system, add heat and air conditioning to the second and third floors, install an elevator, remodel the former fire department apartments into a conference room, refurbish the classic auditorium that seats up to 300, add restrooms, a serving kitchen and a custodial closet.

The question on the ballot will be, “Shall the City of Atlantic, in Cass County, Iowa, issue its bonds, paid with local option sales tax (LOST) revenue in an amount not exceeding the amount of $875,000 for the purpose of paying for the cost of restoring the historic ballroom/theater and creating a multi-purpose facility on the second and third floors of City Hall?”

Local Option Sales Tax (L.O.S.T.) is the 1% tax on sales that take place locally. L.O.S.T. is to be used for capital improvements, community development or parks and recreation. The City’s average income from L.O.S.T. for the past 10 years has been over $750,000 annually. If the issue is approved, $60,000 would be used each year to repay the $875,000 bond over 30 years. Only 8% of the fund would be needed to repay the bond, leaving 92% of the fund to continue being used for the same purposes it has been in the past. Local option sales tax cannot be increased higher than 1% according to state law so taxes will not be raised to pay for the project.

Potential events the facility might be used for include: meeting space for clubs and community groups, concerts, conferences, corporate meetings, City Council meetings when a large crowd will attend, dances, parties, theatrical productions, political gatherings, weddings and receptions, etc.

Answers to frequently asked questions, other information about the project and a photo gallery of the interior of the building can be found at www.reopen2ndfloor.com.

NEVADA, Iowa (AP) – DuPont is announcing the opening of an ethanol plant that will make the fuel additive from corn stalks, leaves and cobs instead of the grain itself. The $225 million refinery in central Iowa is touted as the world’s largest cellulosic ethanol plant, which is designed to make 30 million gallons annually once it’s in full production next year.

Friday’s (Today’s) opening of the plant comes at a challenging time for the ethanol industry, which has been battling the petroleum industry over how much ethanol the government will require to be used in the nation’s automotive gas supply.  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is scheduled to come up with its final recommendations next month after proposing to cut the renewable fuel standard from levels Congress set earlier.

Two people were hurt Thursday afternoon when a truck and combine collided, in Pottawattamie County. The Sheriff’s Office says the accident happened at around 6:10-p.m. on Railroad Highway, near Yellow Pole Road. According to the report, 35-year old Jayson Hickle, of Missouri Valley, was traveling southbound in a truck, when the vehicle collided head-on with a combine driven by 50-year old Larry Larsen, of Crescent. The crash caused Larson to be ejected from the combine.

Both men were transported by ambulance to local area hospitals.  Authorities say Hickle was charged with driving while license under suspension, failure to maintain control, and open container. The accident investigation is on-going and additional charges may be filed.

Three people were injured during a collision Thursday afternoon, in Pottawattamie County. The Sheriff’s Office said Friday (today), the accident happened at around 2:40-p.m. on Highway 6 near the intersection with 300th Street. Officials say a 2011 Toyota Corolla driven by 30-year old John Son, of Omaha, was traveling east on Highway 6 at the same time a 2012 Nissan Altima driven by 53-year old Julie Achenbaugh, of Treynor, was heading west. The vehicles collided head-on on the westbound shoulder of the road.

Authorities say Son was not injured in the crash, but two passengers in his car, 20-year old Htoo Day, and 52-year old Eh Gay, both of Omaha, were hurt and transported by ambulance to area hospitals.  Achenbaugh was also transported to a local area hospital by ambulance.

Deputies charged Son with unsafe passing.

The flu season appears to be off to an early start in Iowa. The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) today (Friday) announced testing by the State Hygienic Laboratory (SHL) has identified cases influenza circulating the state. While influenza activity remains at a low level, the identification of the virus in Iowa should serve as motivation for those who have not yet received their yearly influenza vaccination to do so now.

IDPH Medical Director, Dr. Patricia Quinlisk, says “The most effective way to prevent influenza illness and death is the yearly flu vaccine. Based on CDC estimates, an average of 300,000 Iowans gets the flu every year and together, flu and its complication of pneumonia cause an average of 1,000 deaths yearly in Iowa.”

IDPH and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend annual influenza vaccinations for everyone 6 months of age and older. It’s especially important to be vaccinated if you have regular contact with people more vulnerable to the complications of flu, including babies, children with asthma, and the elderly. IDPH also recommends pregnant women be vaccinated to protect themselves, and to pass on some immunity to their baby.

The flu is a serious respiratory illness caused by viruses. The flu comes on suddenly and symptoms may include fever, headache, tiredness, cough, sore throat, nasal congestion, and body aches. Illness typically lasts two to seven days, and often puts healthy people in bed for days. Influenza may cause severe illness or even death in people such as the very young or very old, or those who have underlying health conditions.

Influenza is not a ‘reportable disease’ in Iowa, which means doctors are not required to notify IDPH each time a patient tests positive for influenza; however, IDPH conducts year-round influenza surveillance through the Iowa Influenza Surveillance Network. This surveillance indicates what types of influenza viruses are circulating and how widespread influenza illness is. For more information about where and what kind of influenza is in Iowa, go to https://idph.iowa.gov/influenza/reports.

Contact your health care provider or local health department to find out where the vaccine is available in your community or use the Flu Vaccine Finder at www.flu.gov/.

Authorities in Cass County today (Friday) released additional information about an accident that took place Oct. 20th. The Sheriff’s Office says at around 11-a.m. that day, deputies responded to a report of a car/tractor accident on Highway 71 south of Atlantic. A 2015 Cadillac owned and driven by 81-year old Dale Dean Pauley, of Atlantic, was southbound on Highway 71 when the driver attempted to pass a 2015 Case tractor driven by 24-year old William Garrett Wilson, of Exira.

Pauley’s car hit the driver’s side of the tractor and rolled in the west ditch, landing on its top. Pauley and a passenger, Ila Lucille Pauley, suffered minor injuries, and were transported to the Cass County Memorial Hospital by Medivac ambulance.

Damage to Pauley’s Cadillac was estimated at $43,000. The tractor sustained an estimated $5,000 damage. Deputies cited Dale Pauley for Failure to Maintain Control.