Officials with Atlantic Municipal Utilities are proposing an electric and water rate increase. Councilman Dana Halder reported to the City Council Wednesday night he sat in on the AMU Board meeting on November 18^th. Halder says the board reviewed the budget and set Dec. 2^nd at 5:30-p.m. as the date and time for a public hearing on the proposed 5-percent increase each for the water and electric. The meeting will be held in the basement meeting room in the AMU building. If approved, it would be the second consecutive year for rate increases from AMU.

Last year, electric rates went up 12-percent, and the water rate was increased 4-percent. AMU General Manager Steve Tjepkes has said the proposed electric rate increase is due to EPA regulations for the coal-fired power plant in Council Bluffs, from which AMU receives additional energy. AMU’s cost related to the Council Bluffs plant improvements and EPA compliance will amount to $500-thousand next year, and about $1.2-million in 2015.

Tjepkes reports also that the proposed increase in Atlantic’s water rates is driven by changes that require parts of the system to be lead-free, which entails the removal of some parts and replacement of those items with non-lead parts. Those costs are estimated at 30-to 35-thousand dollars.

If approved, the average household in Atlantic would see a One-dollar increase in their water bill each month, while the electric bill would increase two-to three-dollars per month. Councilman Halder reports also, the AMU Board discussed and approved a resolution pertaining to a metering charge.Halder says AMU has the ability to receive by radio waves the meter reading. If residents don’t allow the utility to install the new meters, after a certain amount of time there will be a $25 charge.

Police in Red Oak say 30-year old Matthew Lee Gusman, of Red Oak, was arrested Wed. afternoon. Gusman was taken into custody at around 3:20-p.m. in the vicinity of Broadway and 1st Avenue, and charged with Theft in the 5th Degree. He was being held in the Montgomery County Law Enforcement Center on $300 bond.

Police in Lenox arrested one person on a drug charge Wednesday evening. The Adams County Sheriff’s Office reports officers with the Lenox P-D arrested Nathan D. Simington, of Lenox, at around 7:10-p.m.  He was taken into custody on an Adams County warrant for Possession of Marijuana, resulting from a traffic stop on July 27th in Adams County.

The Adams County K-9 unit located items in the vehicle during a search, which led to Simington’s arrest. His bond was set at $1,000.

A Cass County man was arrested Wednesday afternoon by officers with the Atlantic Police Department. 30-year old Jacob Michael Leary, of Atlantic, was arrested on an Adams County warrant for Possession of a Controlled Substance/Methamphetamine. The charge was result of a traffic stop on Sept. 18th, where Adams County deputies made contact with Leary, for Driving While Suspended.

The Adams County K-9 Unit was called-in and located drug paraphernalia and Meth in the vehicle. Leary was also charged with Possession of Narcotics with the intent to deliver, and driving while suspended. His bond was set at $1,000.

The leaders of the Cass County Democratic Party have presented the Atlantic Food Pantry with a collection of food and paper goods. The items were donated during a food drive among members of the group. Chair Sherry Toelle, and Vice-Chair Kathleen Kerns dropped-off the donations.

Toelle said in a press release that “Due to the recent shredding of the safety net by the current US Congress, more people are having a difficult time making financial ends meet.” She went on to say “We, as Democrats, believe that it is important for us to help empower people and to give back to the community. I was very pleased by the response to our food drive. No one in America should go hungry, especially during the holidays. We want to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving.”