(Radio Iowa) – Fifty-five Republicans in the Iowa House have passed a bill that forbids trans athletes from participating in girls’ and women’s sports at all public and private schools and colleges in Iowa. Republican Representative Skyler Wheeler of Orange City says transgender athletes who identify as female have an unfair competitive advantage in girls sports.

“Even if it’s one case, even if it’s a middle school bench slot, even if it’s a C team position in volleyball — I don’t care what it is,” Wheeler says. “You’re displacing a biological girl in her own division and in her own sport.” One Republican and all the Democrats present in the House last (Monday) night voted against the bill. Representative Ras Smith, a Democrat from Waterloo, was one of four members of the House Black Caucus to speak against it.

“I know how it feels to be targeted,” Smith says. “I can empathize with being sought out to being discriminated against and I’ll be damned if I’ll participate in doing that to somebody else and making them feel that way.” Representative Jeff Shipley, a Republican from Fairfield, says he objects to all school policies that encourage or condone transgender students. “I don’t believe the state of Iowa should provide liability protections to any educational institution that affirms mental illness,” Shipley says.

House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst of Windsor Heights responded. “Kids who are transgender do not have a mental illness,” Konfrst says. “Kids who are transgender are kids.” Representative Beth Wessel-Kroeschell, a Democrat from Ames, says the bill is mean spirited.  “Trans Iowans are Iowans. Transwomen are women,” Wessel-Kroeschell says. “Trans Iowans just want to be included and they wants to be treated fairly.” Representative Henry Stone, a Republican from Forest City, is one of the bill’s sponsors. He says critics are forgetting one side of the equation.

“Our daughters and granddaughters deserve to be given a chance to compete,” Stone says, “but more importantly they deserve to compete on a level playing field.” The Iowa Senate may debate the bill this week. Governor Kim Reynolds asked lawmakers to pass this kind of legislation nine months ago.

The only Republican present to vote against the bill was Rep. Michael Bergen of Dorchester. All Democrats present voted no. Here’s the list of absent lawmakers who did not vote on the bill: Fry, Jacobsen, Klein, Maxwell, Prichard and Sunde.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic Parks and Rec Board met Monday evening, but since there were not enough members present for a quorum, the Board was able to discuss, but not take any official action on, new business on their agenda. The board is planning to hold a special meeting later this week.

Parks and Rec Director Brant Rasmussen said an application was submitted for a Wellmark Grant to help pay for an inclusive playground and a restroom at Mollett Park (E. 3rd Street Place).

The grant can be for up to $60,000. The Parks and Rec Board discussed Sunnyside Pool Season Pass rates. Rasmussen said along with a City Council approved increase in the rate of pay for Lifeguards, there should be an increase in pass rates to help offset some of those costs. He said Assistant Parks & Rec Director Jeff Christensen contacted past members to let them know a rate increase is coming

The amount of increase has not yet been determined. Bryant said the current rate is $90 for a family season pass, and $75 for an individual season pass. The Daily rate is three-dollars.

Rasmussen said the Sunnyside Pool rates are $35-45 less than comparable pools for cities the size of Atlantic. The rates haven’t increased in at least three-years, he said.

They are looking to find ways to team-up with corporate sponsors and organizations for free pool party nights, to still allow people to use the pool.

Along with an increase in pay for the Lifeguards, the Board agreed there should be some extra incentives for them. That includes reimbursement for Lifeguard training/certification, a free food such as hot dogs and a drink for working a certain number of hours.

In other business, Bryant Rasmussen said the ice skating rink is closed for the season (for obvious reasons), and as we told you last week, the roads at Sunnyside Park have re-opened. And, the “Find my Match” activity that was held last week, netted 37 participants and proved they Parks Dept. has a good working relationship with the Atlantic Public Library.

(Avoca, Iowa) – Firefighters from Avoca, Harlan and Walnut were called into action Monday afternoon, for a residential structure fire. The page went out at 12:36-p.m. for a blaze at 209 West Marty Street, behind the Subway Restaurant in Avoca.

According to Harlan Fire Chief Roger Bissen, crews from Harlan could see the smoke from the structure, even as they were leaving Harlan. Reports stated that there was an entrapment, but everyone was out of the home upon fire departments arrival.

The department was in immediate defensive mode upon arrival, the house was fully engulfed in flame. Medivac was called in for a female with smoke inhalation and burns to her head and face. She was treated at the scene but not taken to the hospital.

The house is a total loss and the cause of the fire is under investigation.

(KNOD)

(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Adair County Sheriff’s Office reports four arrests from the past week. As mentioned in our report last week, 51-year-old Skeet Weston Miller, of Stuart, was arrested Feb. 14th, following an incident at a motel in Stuart. Miller was arrested on warrants for False Imprisonment and Domestic Assault by impeding air/blood flow. He was also charged with Harassment-1st Degree, Willful Injury causing bodily injury, and Burglary in the 1st Degree. Miller remains held in the Adair County Jail on a $50,000 cash or surety bond.

Also arrested Feb. 14th, in a separate Stuart incident (as previously reported), was 27-year-old Hunter Davis VanWyk, of Sioux City. He was being held in the Adair County Jail on charges that include: Domestic Abuse Assault w/Bodily injury and Domestic Abuse Assault/1st offense; Harassment in the 1st Degree; Child Endangerment w/o injury, and going armed without injury. He remains held on a $25,000 cash or surety bond.

On Feb. 18th, 35-year-old Daniel Fritz Reeves, of Adair, was arrested by Adair Police following a traffic stop. He was charge with Possession of a Controlled Substance/3rd or subsequent offense – Methamphetamine. He was being held on a $5,000 cash or surety bond. And, on Feb. 19th, 45-year-old Chad Owen Overton, of Menlo, was arrested by Stuart Police following a traffic stop on the I-80 mile marker 93 westbound on-ramp. He was charged with: Driving While Barred; Poss. of a Controlled Substance/1st offense – Marijuana; Failure to provide proof of financial liability (insurance); Operating a vehicle without registration, and Open container as a driver. He was being held in the Adair County Jail on a $2,000 cash or surety bond.

ATLANTIC, IOWA – Regional Planning Authority 13, the transportation planning region for Cass, Fremont, Montgomery, and Page counties designated by the Iowa Department of Transportation, seeks applications for projects that support trails and other off-road, non-driver infrastructure through its Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP). Eligible entities within the four RPA-13 counties are encouraged to apply.

“From establishing bike paths, to preservation of historic transportation facilities, or a safe route to school sidewalks, there are multiple possible uses for the TAP program funding,” said SWIPCO Grants Specialist Tammy DeBord, an RPA-13 administrator. “If your city or county is planning one of these projects, now is the time to apply.”

The TAP funds are available to local governments, transit agencies, school districts and local education agencies, as well as tribal governments and natural resource or public land agencies. Non-profits responsible for administering local transportation safety programs are also eligible to apply.

Past projects boosted by RPA-13 TAP grants have included the Troublesome Creek Connector from Atlantic’s baseball facilities to the Schildberg Recreation Area, trail construction in and around the city of Red Oak, and the Wabash Depot Trail Head in Shenandoah.

Officials with RPA-13 have set a deadline of March 25, 2022. Projects must meet certain requirements, including a demonstrated relationship to transportation, a 20-year maintenance commitment, and a commitment of at least 20 percent of eligible costs. Potential applicants should contact Tammy DeBord at SWIPCO with questions and to obtain the application, which is also available on the SWIPCO website, www.swipco.org. DeBord can be reached at tammy.debord@swipco.org or by calling toll-free 866-279-4720.

(Radio Iowa) – The number of new reported COVID-19 infections and hospitalizations in Iowa is falling, but experts say it’s vital more parents get their children vaccinated against COVID-19, and stay up to date on other routine vaccinations. Joel Waddell, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Blank Children’s Hospital in Des Moines, says he’s seen a decrease in routine childhood vaccinations against measles, whooping cough and H-P-V.

“What is very frightening to me is that we won’t get those numbers back up to the pre-pandemic vaccination level,” Waddell says. “And then we’re going to start seeing outbreaks of measles, whooping cough that can be even more deadly for kids than COVID.” Coronavirus is linked to an increase in multi-system inflammatory syndrome in children, a rare but serious condition that can affect a child’s organs. Waddell says some parents are hesitant to vaccinate their children due to worries about long-term impacts, but he says those concerns are groundless.

He says, “In the history of vaccines — so, a couple hundred years now — of every vaccine that’s ever been licensed out there, there’s never been a case where a side effect from a vaccine only showed up years to decades later. Never.” According to state data, less than a quarter of Iowa’s five- to 11-year-olds have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

[12-p.m. News] (Anita, Iowa) – A collision early this (Monday) morning between a semi and an SUV in Adair County, claimed the life of a man from California. The Iowa State Patrol reports a Freightliner semi driven by 27-year-old Jasvir Sood, of Fresno, CA, was traveling west on I-80 near mile marker 70, when the tractor-trailer struck the rear of a westbound 2008 Honda Pilot driven by 36-year-old Milinganyo Bwami, of Omaha. The accident happened at around 12:20-a.m.

The Patrol says following the collision, the SUV came to rest upright in the north ditch. When the semi entered the north ditch and rolled onto the driver’s side, Sood, who was not wearing a seat belt, was partially ejected from the cab and died at the scene. Bwami, and his passengers: 45-year-old Wabiwa Yungu, and two juveniles, aged 12- and 15, all from Omaha, were injured. The four occupants of the SUV were wearing their seat belts.

They were transported by Adair EMS to Mercy Hospital in Des Moines.

Republicans in the legislature have released their state spending plans for the budgeting year that begins July1st. House Republicans propose a one-point-eight percent overall increase in general state spending. House Appropriations Committee chairman Gary Mohr of Bettendorf says it includes a 31 million dollar increase in spending at the state supported universities and community colleges. “We want to cut taxes, but yet we want to provide services to the people of Iowa, but we want to do it in an ongoing, sustainable way,” Mohr says, “and this is doable.”

House Speaker Pat Grassley, a Republican from New Hartford, says the House G-O-P budget plan also includes 19 million extra for public schools to hire bus drivers, cooks and other staff. “We’re doing some other things within the budget with other investments on worker training, other things like that to make sure that we’re trying to address this workforce shortage that we’re seeing across the state,” Grassley says.

Republicans in the Senate are proposing a state spending increase of a little less than one percent. Senate Republican Leader Jack Whitver of Ankeny says overall budget negotiations are starting far earlier than usual — alongside debates on tax policy and last week’s decision that set the level of state spending on public K-through-12 schools. “It’s a budget that does what I’ve said for a long time which is allow us enough room to continue to invest in priorities, while continuing to work on the tax reforms that we’ve been doing.” Senate Democratic Leader Zach Wahls says these spending levels are inadequate.  “They’ve been really clear that they want to do this huge tax cut that’s primarily going to benefit the wealthy,” Wahls says, “and they’re willing to cut or underfund state services to pay for it.”

Wahls says increased state spending on higher education is critical and he points to the waiting lists at Kirkwood Community College for health-care related training.

(Radio Iowa) – Investigators in Cedar Rapids are trying to determine what sparked a fire at a high-rise apartment building there early Sunday morning. Fire Chief Greg Smith told K-C-R-G T-V a fire like this is unusual. “It’s probably the most impactful high rise fire — actually true high rise residential fire — since I’ve been on the department for 28 years or so,” Smith says.

Crews went door to door from the 7th floor and above to clear out the facility. Cedar Rapids Fire didn’t have an exact number of those evacuated from the Geneva Tower during a news conference on Sunday. Geneva Tower is an income-based housing property. It mainly houses seniors and adults with disabilities. The department said two people suffered serious injuries. At least another seven people were transported to the hospital for observation. Chief Smith says they do train for these circumstances and that helped them respond. He says the crews work their muscles to it is just like football players practicing and he says the crews constantly train for the many elements they have to face.

Geneva-Towers-KCRG

Resident Ethel Brown talked with K-C-R-G T-V about the evacuation. “It was scary after I got back down here. I am on the sixth floor, I am on a walker, thank God the fire department helped me down,” she says. Resident Melissa Long says they had to get out quickly. “All of a sudden here’s the cops banging on doors — you didn’t have time to do nothing — you’ve got to get it and go,” Long says.

Firefighters say the management of the high-rise building is working with contractors to look at the damages and clean the building. Cleaning and repairs will need to meet specific standards before people can move back into their apartments. The fire department says Geneva Tower is a concrete structure, which means it holds the fire in the original apartment. The Fire Department is working with the Salvation Army and Red Cross to help those displaced.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Cass County Board of Supervisors have a light agenda for their meeting Tuesday, at 9-a.m.  The Board will receive a report from Engineer Trent Wolken with regard to the Secondary Roads Dept. maintenance tasks and activities. They will then formally accept the resignation (effective April 15th), of Cass County Auditor Dale Sunderman, and decide the best method of moving forward to fill the vacancy.

Board Chair Steve Baier said last week he thinks they will have interviews wrapped-up in a couple of weeks, with Sunderman’s replacement in-place by mid-March, to work with him until his last day in office. Sunderman announced on Feb. 16th that he is resigning after more than 37-years as an elected county official.

In other business, the Cass County Supervisors will act on approving a Class-C liquor license application for the Griswold Golf and Country Club. And, of applications have been submitted, they’ll act on the appointments of a Brighton and Massena Township Trustee.