Officials with Windstream Communications report the company has deployed fixed wireless technology to deliver broadband speeds up to 100 megabits per second (Mbps) to homes in Audubon and Greenfield.
Windstream says it is using fixed wireless technology as part of its participation in the FCC’s Connect America Fund initiative, which is designed to support network upgrades in rural areas that would otherwise not be economically feasible. Fixed wireless is not a mobile service. Pole-mounted antennas transmit a broadband signal to receivers at each eligible customer’s home or business. The performance of a fixed wireless connection is comparable to wired solutions.

Brad Hedrick, president of Windstream operations in Iowa, says “Fixed wireless technology is an alternative to traditional cable networks that enables Windstream to deploy broadband service more quickly and cost-effectively in rural areas.” Hedrick said also, “We know customers want faster speeds, and we are committed to delivering them.”  Across Iowa, Windstream has invested $28 million in infrastructure improvements so that households in a dozen cities and communities can now enjoy faster internet speeds.

To inquire about availability of fixed wireless, visit Windstream.com on the web.

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office today (Friday), said man from Nebraska was arrested following a pursuit Thursday night. At around 11:40-p.m., Pott. County dispatch advised deputies Omaha Police were in pursuit of a 2001 Honda Accord just crossing into Iowa on Interstate 80. Omaha Police advised the driver of the car had active felony warrants in Nebraska. The vehicle entered Iowa and proceeded to travel east on 6th Avenue in Council Bluffs. The car went out of control and crashed at 2749 6th Avenue. The driver, 35-year old Shannon Michael Greenwood, of Omaha, fled on foot and was taken into custody by Pottawattamie County Deputies and Troopers with the Iowa State Patrol. Greenwood showed signs of being under the influence of methamphetamine and was charged with OWI 1st. Authorities say Greenwood also introduced 2.8-grams of cocaine into the jail, and was further charged with introducing contraband in a correctional facility. Greenwood has an active warrant in Pottawattamie County for Criminal Mischief 4th, and was being held also, for being a fugitive from justice for his active warrants in Nebraska.

The Sheriff’s Office says also, a man being held in the jail on drug charges, was served Thursday with a warrant charging him with a felony Controlled Substance Violation. 37-year old Jason Nicholas Feller, of Council Bluffs, was read the warrant and returned to his cell, where he was being held without bond. And, a traffic stop Thursday night in Council Bluffs, resulted in an arrest. A deputy initiated the traffic stop on a vehicle driven by 23-year old Deo Manirakiza, of Council Bluffs, for having a dealer paper plate. Manirakiza was subsequently found to have a barred driver’s license status. He was taken into custody at around 11:05-p.m. and transported to the Pott. County Jail.

(Radio Iowa) — During the late stages of the 2018 campaign, Republican Governor Kim Reynolds proposed letting Iowa women buy “the pill” without a prescription. She plans to press the 2019 legislature to pass a bill that would make birth control pills available in Iowa without a doctor’s prescription. “This is another opportunity for us to have bipartisan support in something that makes sense,” Reynolds says.  In 2016, Democrats in the Iowa Senate passed a bill to make this the policy in Iowa, but Republicans in the House tabled the proposal. Republican House Speaker Linda Upmeyer of Clear Lake says not all birth control pills are alike and legislators will have to seek input from the medical community. “There are reasons that a physician would prescribe one over another,” Upmeyer says. “If someone has a predisposition to breast cancer, you want to make sure you’re paying attention to your estrogen levels.

Upmeyer said also, “Maybe there is one that is incredibly safe that people could agree to put on the shelf. I don’t think we’re opposed to that, but I do think we want to make sure it’s safe for Iowans to have that access.” Democrats strongly criticized Reynolds for signing a bill last May to ban nearly all abortions and Senate Democratic Leader Janet Petersen of Des Moines says they are skeptical of this proposal, too. “Iowa is in a really sad state as far as women’s health care goes,” Petersen says. “It’s getting harder and harder for women to find places and providers to get family planning services.”

Petersen says many women want more effective long-term contraceptives rather than birth control pills and the Republican effort to “defund” Planned Parenthood clinics has reduced access to those long-term options, especially in rural areas. The outline Governor Reynolds sketched during the campaign called for keeping birth control pills behind the pharmacy counter, but letting women buy them without a prescription. Her proposal did NOT cover other birth control options.

A traffic stop this (Friday) morning in Creston, resulted in the arrest of a woman on drug and other charges. Creston Police say 38-year old Shea Lynn Woollums, of Creston, was arrested for Possession of a a Controlled Substance/Methamphetamine, and for Driving under Suspension. Her bond was set at $1,300.

More State and area news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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