The Exira-EHK School Board will hold a Special Session Wednesday. The meeting in the Conference Room at the Elk Horn Building, begins at 6-p.m.  During their session, the Board will discuss and act on: Approving a Bus Bid; Approving updated Hybrid/Calendar options, along with Personnel matters(hires, transfers, resignations, etc.).

The next Regular Board meeting, is 6-p.m. Sept. 21st.

(Radio Iowa) – After two judges ruled tens of thousands of absentee ballot request forms from Woodbury and Linn Counties are void, the Iowa Democratic Party is filing a lawsuit seeking to overturn those rulings. Last week, the REPUBLICAN Party and the Trump campaign successfully argued in court that the forms violated a state order because voter I-D numbers were included — and the secretary of state had ordered all forms to be BLANK. Iowa Democratic Party chairman Mark Smith spoke at an online news conference this (Monday) morning. “The Iowa Democratic Party and our partners are fighting back against these voter suppression tactics,” Smith says.

Kay Pence is vice president of the Iowa Alliance for Retired Americans which represents many retired trade union members. She says the Republicans’ lawsuit seeks to reduce the number of Iowans who vote by mail. “I just don’t think we need to create more anxiety for voters,” she said, “especially for those of us who have voted mail for years.”

The Democratic committees that support candidates for the U.S. House and Senate are part of the lawsuit as well. The lawsuit challenges the Iowa Secretary of State’s authority to order county auditors to send blank absentee ballot request forms to voters. Auditors in Johnson, Linn and Woodbury County sent forms that included voter I-D numbers.

Grant, Ia. –The Grant United Methodist Church has cancelled its annual Fall Bazaar due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Church leadership encourages community members to stay home and stay safe this year. Those interested in supporting the church should consider making a donation to replace the cost of any in-kind donations or purchases they might have made. Further information can be found on the church’s Facebook page.  All money raised supports the Grant United Methodist Women and their work for mission projects and the Grant church.

The Grant United Methodist Church, founded in 1855, is a multi-generational church focusing on concern for its neighbors and providing a center of worship for all ages.  Currently, worship services are celebrated at 9 a.m. each Sunday via Facebook Live.

Officials with the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce said Monday (today), AtlanticFest, which had been rescheduled for September 26th, has been cancelled. Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Bailey Smith says “With COVID-19 cases rising in our county, the extension of the State Public Health Emergency and other liability concerns, AtlanticFest isn’t feasible this year. We understand how eager everyone is to get out and about. AtlanticFest draws thousands of people every year and the health of the community is our highest priority.”

AtlanticFest, presented by First Whitney Bank & Trust, is the Chamber’s largest fundraiser of the year and has been a community staple for almost 30 years. To still offer a community event, the Chamber will be hosting a Drive-In Movie September 26th. Smith said “We wanted to be able to give everyone an opportunity to get out of the house while maintaining social distancing. We’ve had a few Drive-In movie events over the last couple years that have been a hit and we’re excited to be able to offer it again,”

More details about the Drive-In Movie will be made available in the coming weeks including location, time and feature movie.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission approved a revision in security plans for some casinos to allow them to cut back on the number of officers on duty as attendance has been down. Racing and Gaming Administrator, Brian Ohorilko, says the plans were set for the new fiscal year that began in July before knowing the impact of the coronavirus. “Those plans typically outline the number of security officers that each facility has (and) when those security officers are present. And those numbers fluctuate depending on how busy a facility is,” Ohorilko.

He says some casinos simply don’t need as many security officers on hand as they have not had concerts or restaurants and other facilities at the casino site aren’t open. “There are variations depending on where these facilities are located — but overall we’ve seen a decline of approximately 25 to 30 percent year over year,” Ohorilko says. “It is still early and I think we are just not seeing a lot of the more casual gamblers or folks visiting the casinos to take advantage of the amenities and restaurants.”

Ohorilko says the casinos are still holding their own despite a drop in customers. “A decrease in admissions should not be confused with the revenue. At this point, the revenue is still holding in there and nowhere near the decline that we’ve seen in regard to the admissions,” according to Ohorilko.

Gambling revenue at the 19 state-licensed casinos in July was down three-point-seven percent — or around four-point-seven-million dollars compared to July of last year. Attendance was down by 569-thousand-507 in July compared to last year. Casinos reopened on May 31st after being shut down on March 17th.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest on a warrant, Thursday, of 21-year old Harley Thomas Martin, of Essex.  Martin was taken into custody at the Pottawattamie County Jail, on a Page County Warrant for Probation Violation.

Harley Martin

Martin was transported to the Page County Jail, where he was being held on a $2,000 cash-only bond, pending further court proceedings.

PALO, Iowa (AP) — Sheriff’s officials in eastern Iowa say a homeowner has shot and killed another man suspected of breaking into his home. The Linn County Sheriff’s Office says the incident happened shortly after 3 a.m. Monday, when several people called 911 to report that a man was trying to break into homes in Palo, The sheriff’s office says deputies had responded to the area when another caller reported that a man had broken into a home and threatened the people living there before the homeowner shot him.

Deputies and medics performed CPR on the suspect, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. Neither his name nor the name of the homeowner has been released.