Officials with the Cass County Community Foundation (CCCF) today (Friday), distributed $26,775 to non-profit agencies within the County. The grants were presented at the Cass County Courthouse. With the grants, the CCCF has distributed more than $1.6-million in grants and scholarships over the last 14-years.

Representatives of the 14 non-profit organizations show-off their CCCF checks Friday on the steps of the Cass County Courthouse. (Ric Hanson/photo)

Among the 14 organizations which submitted applications for grants by the Sept. 1st, 2014 deadline and which received funding, was:

• The Anita Foundation: $1,500 to upgrade a toddler playground.
• The Anita Health & Wellness Center: $350 for weight benches and rubber weightlifting mats.
• The Ann W. Wickman Child Development Center: $3,000 for an expansion project.
• The Atlantic Fire Dept.: $2,000 for a MARSARS Ice Rescue Response Kit & rescue sled.
• The Atlantic Parks & Recreation Dept.: $3,000 for the final phase of camping pads at the Schildberg Recreation Area.
• The Cass County Historical Museum: $2,150 for renovations to the Receiving Area.
• The Center for the Advancement of Self Seficiency, Inc.: $2,000 for an Automatic door opener.
• The Cumberland Public Library: $2,000 for Expansion of technology facility/
• Friends of the Griswold Public Library: $3,125 for Library software & technology.
• Friends of the Cass County Outdoor Classroom: $3,000 for an addition to the education bldg.
• The Griswold FFA: $2,000 for replacement of the Cass County FFA Food Stand.
• The Hitchcock House Advisory Board: $1,000 for gift shop/registration bldg. expansion.
• The Lewis Town & Country Booster, Inc.: $1,000 for tables for the Lewis Community Center..
• The Massena Lions Club: $650 for the Lions Hall renovations.

All grantees met the criteria as Cass County nonprofit agencies or organizations with charitable missions in the areas of civic, cultural, health, education and social services. Only organizations providing services in Cass County were eligible.

Nicholas Hunt, Chair of the Cass County Community Foundations reminds area groups and non-profit organizations, that by Feb. 1st, 2015, the CCCF will have close to $100,000 in grants to giveaway, so interested groups and organizations should be preparing their grant ideas now for the Feb. 1st application deadline. He says the Spring grant cycle in February is usually larger than the fall cycle.

Residents in the Kimballton and Elk Horn areas should be aware of a road closure that begins on Monday, Nov. 10th. The Shelby County Emergency Management Agency said today (Friday), Woodland Road, between 1000th and 1100th Streets will be closed for about one week, effective Monday. The road is being closed for repairs.

The affected area lies between Jackson Township sections 14 and 15, one-quarter of a mile north of 1000th Street, in a small tributary of Wolf Creek. Emergency responders should plan to take alternate routes to nearby residences. If you have any questions, call the Shelby County Engineer’s Office at 712-755-5954.

A reward of up to $1,000 is being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of a person or persons who shot at a combine and tractor in Page County. Sheriff Lyle Palmer says on Wednesday (11/5), the Page County Sheriff’s Office received a complaint of criminal mischief at two separate locations approximately four-miles apart in the middle part of the county. At both locations, the owner of the property damaged was 35-year old Jay Crom, of Malvern,

At the location in the 2000 block of 255th Street, Crom had parked his combine next to the road. Unknown person(s) shot the 2001 John Deere 9670 STS combine several times, causing about $18-thousand damage. At the location in the 2300 block of M Avenue, an unknown person(s) shot a 1976 John Deere 4430 tractor, and a semi trailer tire on 1997 Timpte trailer next to the grain auger. Damage to the tractor and semi trailer was estimated at $1,675. The estimated total amount of damage Crom suffered at this time was just under $20,000.

During the investigation this far, the Sheriff’s Office has spoken with several persons in the area for information. Page County Crime Stopper are offering the $1,00 reward for information about the incidents. Callers can remain anonymous and can be given a number instead of their name. If you have information regarding this criminal act please call the Page County Sheriff’s Office at 712-542-5193.

The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa reports 43-year old Corey Allen Brooks,  of Omaha, was sentenced Wednesday in Pottawattamie County to 30 years in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, and a consecutive 10 years for possession of a firearm during the conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Brooks’ term of imprisonment is to be followed by 10 years of supervised release.

The charges resulted from a lengthy investigation into drug trafficking by Brooks in Nebraska and Iowa. It was determined through the investigation that Brooks arranged for large quantities of methamphetamine (approximately 30 kilograms) to be delivered in Omaha and Council Bluffs,  between March and September 2011. During the course of the conspiracy, Brooks carried a firearm to protect the operation from interference from outside parties. On January 6, 2014, Brooks pled guilty to both charges.

Additional members of the drug trafficking organization run by Brooks that have also been sentenced include:
Cliff Ellis, who was sentenced on February 15, 2013, to 175 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, and a consecutive 60 months in prison for possession of a firearm during the conspiracy, to be followed by five years of supervised release.

Khodie Maves, who was sentenced on March 25, 2014, to 80 months in prison, to be followed by 5 years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

Jason Hanan, sentenced on March 25, 2014, to 120 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and a consecutive 120 months in prison for possession of a firearm during the conspiracy, to be followed by five years of supervised release.

Roy Gage, sentenced on March 25, 2014, to 100 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and a consecutive 60 months in prison for possession of a firearm during the conspiracy, to be followed by five years of supervised release.

James Surber, who was sentenced on March 25, 2014, to 60 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, to be followed by five years of supervised release.

Anthony Good, who was sentenced on May 29, 2014, to 140 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and a consecutive 120 months in prison for possession of a firearm during the conspiracy, to be followed by five years of supervised release.

And Chris Tietz, who was sentenced on July 1, 2014, to 188 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, to be followed by five years of supervised release.

The investigation was conducted by the Southwest Iowa Narcotics Task Force, Mills County Sheriff’s Office, Council Bluffs, Iowa, Police Department, Omaha, Nebraska, Police Department, the Iowa Division of Narcotic Enforcement, and the United States Secret Service. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

An accident late this (Friday) morning northwest of Atlantic resulted in one person being transported to the hospital. According to dispatch reports, a collision between a car and a semi happened at around 11:15-a.m. on Highway 173 near the intersection with Dallas Road. A female in the car reportedly suffered from back, neck and head injuries, and was transported to the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha.

Highway 173 was blocked for a time following the crash.

Medivac Ambulance and Marne Fire and Rescue responded to the scene. No other details were immediately available.

Three of Iowa’s top Republicans met by phone this morning (Friday) to talk about the future of the Iowa Straw Poll, an event in Ames that has been both party fundraiser and provided a snap shot of a presidential candidate’s organization in Iowa in the summer before the Iowa Caucuses. Iowa G-O-P chairman Jeff Kaufmann: “We are keeping our options open on where the Straw Poll might occur and what the Straw Poll may look like,” Kaufmann says. “There will be some kind of event in the summer of 2015.”

In December or January, a meeting will be set up so Kaufmann and other top party officials can meet with Governor Terry Branstad, Congressman King, Senator-elect Joni Ernst and Congressmen-elect Rod Blum and David Young to come up with a list of options for the event. The final decision will be made by the party’s state central committee. “You know, I can’t even say for sure it will be called a Straw Poll,” Kaufmann says. “…We’re going to figure out together so we have agreement across the board on what this should look like and how we should conduct it.”

Kaufmann says making sure the event gets the blessing of the Republican National Committee is also key, since national party leaders have carved out an exception so Iowa’s precinct Caucuses can remain the first event on the presidential campaign calendar. “We want to make sure that whatever event we have is nothing like our Caucus and doesn’t take the place of the Caucus, nor should we get two bites at the apple,” Kaufmann says.

Critics of the Straw Poll have complained it gives Iowa two “first” events in the presidential selection process, as candidates like Tim Pawlenty and Elizabeth Dole who have failed to place well in Straw Polls of the past have ended their campaigns right after the Straw Poll. Straw Poll defenders have argued it’s a way for candidates to do a test-run for the Caucuses, plus it’s a way for the Iowa G-O-P to raise money. Kaufmann says the fundraiser aspect is a “misnomer.”

“A long time ago, a decade ago, it was a fundraiser,” Kaufmann says. “Expenses have increased dramatically and, to be honest with you, we have to look at our dollars and cents in terms of our expenditures here because we certainly cannot lose money on event like that and it’s not as lucrative as anyone thinks.” Kaufmann says, for him, the value of the event is the energy and enthusiasm it generates among Republicans for the campaign season ahead. Kaufmann talked about the future of the Straw Poll this morning with Governor Branstad and Congressman King.

(Radio Iowa)

The Iowa Supreme Court has ruled is a case involving a Harlan company that cooks bacon and a utility consultant. Utility Consultants International contacted Shelby County Cookers in July of 2011 offering to review the company’s utility bills for any errors or overpayments. S-C-C agreed to a free review of three months of bills and the consultant later called back to say they had found significant savings. U-C-I then offered a contract that would split the savings 50-50 between the two. S-C-C signed the contract and the consultant then requested three years worth of utility bills for review while telling S-C-C they had found overpayment of sales taxes.

The law limits requests for refunds of the overpayment of sales taxes to three years. S-C-C then terminated the contract, saying it only covered the three months of utility bills already reviewed. The consultant sued, but the district court and Iowa Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the bacon company.

The Iowa Supreme Court overturned those rulings, saying the goal of both sides was to maximize the savings. The Supreme Court says U-C-I provided valuable information that S-C-C did not know before signing the contract and the consultant should be compensated for the information. The Supreme Court also sent the case back to the district court to rule on U-C-I’s counter claim that S-C-C breached its contract.

(Radio Iowa)