Atlantic Police Chief Steve Green, today (Tuesday), wants citizens of the community to be aware that last week’s test of the Outdoor Warning System (Tornado sirens) resulted in the discovery that one of the sirens, located in the area of 5th and Spruce Streets, was not working. Green says repairing the siren is not possible due to the age of the siren and parts no longer being available.

A new siren has been ordered, but it’s not expected to arrive for at least eight-weeks, due to the volume of sirens typically ordered at this time of year from communities across the country.

Between now and the time the replacement siren arrives, Green says authorities want the public to be aware of the options they have with regard to staying safe in an emergency:

1. If you have computer access, navigate to the Cass County home page on the web (www.atlanticiowa.com/county). Near the bottom of the page is a link entitled ALERT IOWA. Click on the link and follow the instructions to sign-up for emergency alerts on your phone (land-line) or cell phone. You can also elect to receive text messages, depending on the option you choose.
2. For smartphone users, there is an app distributed by the Red Cross that alerts you to warnings issued by the National Weather Service for the Atlantic Zip Code. The app also has other important uses in case of a Tornado Emergency. This app is free, and you can find it by going to your App Store and searching for American Red Cross Tornado.

Finally, in the event of a true emergency, Atlantic Police will have an officer in the area with instructions to run his or her cruiser siren in conjunction with the other emergency sirens in town. The Police Department will NOT, however, be running the Police Siren for weekly drills or for the Statewide Tornado Drill, on Thursday.

When nature calls, it’s nice to have a restroom available, especially when you’re at a local sporting event. Exira-Elk Horn Kimballton Superintendent Dean Schnoes said the District School Board Monday night made the decision to remodel one of the facilities at the Exira Football Field to better accommodate spectators.

He said for the last few years, they’ve brought in porta-potties. On the south end of one of the buildings, though there is a men’s/women’s restroom, but only one stall. The Board realized that because there is room in the building, they’ll undertake a two-phase project to incorporate more bathrooms. A remodeling of the building will include additional stalls in both the men’s and women’s restrooms.

The Exira-EHK Board also set April 11^th at 5-p.m. as the date and time for a public hearing on the 2016-17 School Budget and Calendar. At that same meeting, they’re expected to wrap-up negotiations with the education association and get the contracts sent out.

The Audubon Community School District’s Board of Education, Monday, approved a sharing agreement with the Coon Rapids-Bayard School District, for the services of Audubon Superintendent Brett Gibbs. Gibbs told KJAN News they’ve been sharing with CR-B for years, including elementary counselors and industrial technology instructors. Beginning with the next school year, July 1^st, Gibbs will be splitting his time, 40-percent of his time at Coon Rapid-Bayard, 60-percent in Audubon. He said the agreement will allow both districts to split the cost of a superintendent, and each district gets to count eight additional students, which will show-up in the F.Y. 2018 budget.

Gibbs said also with the Audubon School District is seeing a decline in enrollment and low State Supplemental Aid, the School Board instructed him to find ways to cut costs, even though he predicts enrollment numbers will balance out and start growing in a couple of years. Meanwhile, the district was left with little option but to find ways to save some money.

Sharing Gibbs’ position with CR-B is one way to do that, he says. Gibbs said also, the Board approved a quote from Feld Security for additional cameras and door entrance systems. Feld will be upgrading the district’s current 11 security cameras and installing new door locks on both buildings that will require people to identify themselves in order to be allowed access to the building. They will also install additional cameras to cover areas not currently monitored. The board gave the administration authority to add more cameras, for an amount not to exceed $60,000.

And, the Audubon School Board approved a contract with Deluxe Driving Academy in Carroll to provide one driving instructor. The decision means students will pay $350 instead of the projected $275 for Driver’s Ed. Gibbs said for the last couple of years they’ve struggled to find two instructors. The district currently has one instructor but needed a second one.

Police in Harlan say the Casey’s General Store at 1006 Chatburn Avenue sustained  minor damage when it was hit by a vehicle, Monday. Authorities say Damien Bissen, of Harlan, was pulling into a parking stall in the Casey’s parking lot and when he accidentally hit the accelerator instead of the brake.  His 2008 GMC jumped the curb and struck the left corner of the Casey’s building. The vehicle sustained $3,000 damage during the mishap. Police cited Bissen for failure to maintain control.

Police in Harlan, Monday, arrested two men on drug charges at the Harlan High School. Officers responding to a report of a student possibly under the influence of drugs arrested 18-year old’s Yance Jones and Toan Huynh, both from Harlan. They were brought to the Shelby County Jail and charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Also arrested Monday, in connection with a domestic disturbance in Harlan, was 30-year old Eugene Cardine, and 28-year old Kimberlee Green, both of Harlan. Cardine and Green were transported to the Shelby County Jail, where they were both charged with the violation of a no contact order.

The CAM Community School District’s Board of Education, Monday, evening, set April 12^th at 6:30-p.m., as the date and time for a public hearing on the 2016-17 district budget and school calendar. Superintendent Casey Berlau told KJAN News the budget, if approved, will result in a tax rate of $10.84 per thousand dollars taxable property valuation.  He says the budget presented to the Board Monday night is based on the district receiving 4% State Supplemental Aid [SSA], which, Berlau says he doubts will happen.

The budget reflects an increase of 67-cents to the maximum of $1.34 per thousand dollars allowed by a physical plant and equipment levy (PPEL) that was approved by voters in the CAM District, last month. Berlau said the other part of the increase is due to the fact the District hasn’t been levying much in terms of cash reserve. Their cash balances are not in trouble, according to Berlau, but the trend has been down, so they did levy some in cash reserves that they hadn’t done in the past.

The budget will be published in the local paper within the next week. In other business, the CAM School Board approved the hiring of Snyder and Associates Engineers in Atlantic, for the District’s summer capitol projects, which have been prioritized to includes a roof project in Massena, a parking lot project at the Anita High School, fixing the bus driveway at Massena, as well as exterior wall work. Snyder’s will assist the District in obtaining sealed bids for the projects, because they exceed the $25,000 thresh-hold policy for purchasing and bidding the district has in-place.