(Atlantic, Iowa) –  Beginning tomorrow (Wednesday, Nov. 17th), the City of Atlantic’s Park and Recreation Department will have nine wooden, painted “turkeys” hidden around parks in the City, for people to find and take selfies with. Take selfies with all nine turkeys when you find each one, and then leave them for others to enjoy.

Parks and Rec Director Bryant Rasmussen says “We lost our turkeys and we need help finding them all.”

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The City of Atlantic’s Park and Recreation Department Director swore-in the newest member of the Parks Board, Monday evening. Bryant Rasmussen administered the Oath of Office to Shirley Jensen, who was unopposed in her bid for the seat vacated by Stuart Dusenberry, and who won the election on Nov. 2nd.  Jolene Smith was nominated by the Board to serve as President, and Erin McFadden was nominated to continue serving as Vice-Chair.

Parks & Rec Director Bryant Rasmussen administers the Oath of Office to Shirley Jensen.

In other business, Rasmussen confirmed the park restrooms in Atlantic have been closed and prepped for the season. He said the final straw in deciding to close the restrooms was vandalism in the form of feces found smeared on the walls of the Camblin Addition restroom. Also related to the restrooms, Bryant said he would like to see the hand dryer fixed in the women’s restroom at Camblins, and add some hand dryers to the City Park. That would alleviate the problem of those towels being used to plug the toilets, and it would mean one less thing to clean-up. He said he’s working with local electricians to get a bid on how much it would cost to fix the hand dryer at Sunnyside and add the ones to the City Park.

Bryant said also, there were 13 applicants for the Assistant Parks and Rec position, including one person from Idaho, who was interviewed Monday. He told the Board he and Jolene Smith should be finished with the interviews by next Monday. Rasmussen said also, he received a bid of $5,470 from Resort Contract Furnishings, of Wyckoff, NJ, for the purchase of 10 11-foot fiberglass market umbrellas and 75-pound steel base with wheel. The Board approved moving forward with the purchase. Bryant said the City has the option to get multiple colors or combinations thereof. The umbrellas would take 12 weeks to ship, and will likely be requested for delivery later this Spring.

Bryant Rasmussen said also, the basketball hoop at Cedar Park was installed thanks to a donation from the Lion’s Club. All that’s left in the Spring is to line the court. The Atlantic Street Department put down the concrete for the court. The Parks and Rec Department is preparing for the Winter Sports season, with cross country skis, ice skates and sleds all ready to go. If the weather cooperates, Rasmussen said they can get the ice skating rink up and running. The basketball court was sealed so there shouldn’t be anywhere near the loss of water they experienced in years past.

In other news, the Parks and Rec Department is preparing for a “Turkey Hunt,” with wood cut-out turkeys hidden in the City Parks. Visitors can take a selfie with the turkeys and send them in, with the possibility of winning some “grab bag” prizes. Nine turkey’s will be hidden through the City parks, but Bryant won’t give any more clues as to where. And, the Scarecrow Contest in Downtown Atlantic raised about $200 for the Atlantic Food Pantry, he said.

On the heels of the recently completed Tour de Parks Bike Ride in Atlantic, Rasmussen said someone donated a tandem bike to the Parks and Rec Department on Monday. The bike will be inspected to make sure it’s oiled and ready to go. And, as we’ve previously mentioned, the Festival of Trees is a multi-day event, sponsored by the Cass County Unit of the American Cancer Society. It takes place December 2nd-5th of this year and will again be held at the Catholic Parish Center,105 West 5th Street in Atlantic. The Atlantic Parks and Rec Department will have a tree in the festival.

One other note: Rasmussen said the Harvest Market is coming up on Monday, Nov. 22nd. The Parks and Rec Department will have squirrel feeders for sale. “They’re little picnic tables,” Bryant said. Jolene Smith added, “They’re really cute.”

(Radio Iowa) – Mild temperatures this fall left leaves lingering on Iowa’s trees longer than normal, and after a cold, snowy weekend, the branches are now mostly bare. A predicted warm-up this week may afford the chance to rake up the last of those leaves, but if you get stuck with a pile, soil scientist Carl Rosen says it may be a great time to start composting. “I collect my leaves in the fall and I compost them through the following year,” Rosen says, “and then the following fall I’ll mix that in in the garden or the following spring before planting my vegetables.” Rosen says composting science is all about soil health, but for many that was not the original problem to be solved.

“The initial motivation however was more due to sending all those leaves to landfills,” Rosen says. Creating and maintaining a compost pile only requires a quick and easy checklist, he says, and it’s relatively simple. “Basically, water, air, oxygen and they need nutrients,” he says, “and if you have those in balance then that’s kind of the key to the composting process.” Learn more about composting at the Iowa D-N-R website:
https://www.iowadnr.gov/About-DNR/DNR-News-Releases/ArticleID/383/Tutorial-Learn-How-to-Compost-at-Home

(Radio Iowa) – As the strike at a dozen Midwest John Deere plants enters its second month, union workers are scheduled to vote Wednesday on a modified contract offer from the company. The U-A-W issued a statement late Friday, saying the company had made some modest modifications in its second contract offer and the union described the tentative agreement as Deere’s last, best and final offer. Neither side has disclosed details about the changes.

On November 2nd, the second tentative agreement between Deere and the U-A-W was rejected on a 55 to 45 percent vote by union members. More than 10-thousand John Deere employees have been on strike since October 14th.

The second tentative agreement would have provided an immediate 10 percent pay increase, with five percent pay hikes in the third and fifth years of the six-year-long contract. Deere executives had indicated that was the maximum the company would offer in terms of new costs.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The City of Atlantic’s Parks and Recreation Board of Directors will hold their regular monthly meeting 5:15-p.m. Monday, in the Council’s Chambers at City Hall. Action items and/or New Business on their agenda include:

• Park restrooms
• Assistant Park and Rec Interviews
• Sunnyside Pool Shade
• Cedar Court update
• Winter Activities

In his report to the Board, Parks and Rec Director Bryant Rasmussen will discuss:

• The “Tour de Parks” bike ride
• The “Turkey Hunt” and “Scarecrow Contest”
• and the “Festival of Trees.”

Chris Parks and Cass and Adair County Conservation Officer Grant Gelly talk about all things outdoors. This week includes discussion on waterfowl migration hitting its peak, proper deer sampling for CWD, deer stand safety, and more.

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(Radio Iowa) – When the Iowa and Minnesota football teams meet tomorrow (Saturday), the victors will take home the bronze Floyd of Rosedale Trophy. A larger-than-life iron sculpture of Floyd the Pig was dedicated in Fort Dodge this week. City council member Dave Flattery says that hog was raised on the Rosedale family farm in Fort Dodge decades ago. He says the statue aims to keep that story alive.

“If you were to go there now, there’s not a story plate yet,” Flattery says. “There is a donor wall, but we intend to — and it’s in the works — to put a plate or plaque to tell the story about Floyd of Rosedale, the pig, and all of the characters that were involved back in 1935.” The trophy stemmed from a bet between the governors of the two states who agreed to wager an actual pig over the game’s outcome. Back in Fort Dodge, Flattery says the giant metal pig was crafted by a sculptor from eastern Iowa.

“He’s out of Mount Vernon and his name is Dale Merrill and the company that he owns is called Liberty Iron Works,” Flattery says. “If you see his portfolio of work, he’s got a lot of good sculptures and artwork throughout eastern Iowa, through Cedar Rapids and that area, and we’re very pleased with the work that he did.” Flattery says they plan to install lighting and security cameras at the sculpture site.

Attendees at the unveiling ceremony on Tuesday included former Iowa Governor and Ambassador Terry Branstad, and the broadcast voice of the Iowa Hawkeyes, Gary Dolphin.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Harvest Market 2021 is now accepting pre–orders at www.produceintheparkatlanticiowa.com. Market Manager Brigham Hoegh says pre–orders will be accepted through Friday, November 19th.  Harvest Market 2021 will also offer in–person shopping, but some vendors—such as Miss NiNi’s Fine  Desserts and Claire’s Cinnamon Rolls—are only offering pre–ordered products.

Harvest Market 2021 will be held at the Cass County Community Center on Monday, November 22 from 3–7 pm. This fall farmers market is held the Monday before Thanksgiving, so shoppers can pick up premium local produce, local meats, delicious baked goods, and other local foods to enjoy at holiday celebrations. The market also offers locally–made craft products including seasonal candles, goat milk soaps, holiday decorations, and gifts.

Hoegh says pre–ordering is an excellent option for customers who want to plan on a particular food item at their Thanksgiving meal (such as a French–silk pie), customers who are short on time to shop at the market, and customers social distancing this holiday season. Produce in the Park thanks customers for masking and distancing at indoor markets.

Harvest Market Vendors Offering Pre–ordering: Brun Ko Farm, Miss NiNi’s Fine Desserts, Kringle Man, Bridgewater Farm, Smudge, Erickson Foods, A–Town SmokeShack, Harrisdale Farmstead, Ter–Bear Honey, TJ’s Kitchen, Claire’s Cinnamon Rolls, The Pet Bistro, Sweet Sisters Vegan, Kingwood Farm, Johnna Joy Designs, and Noble Provisions.

Visit www.produceintheparkatlanticiowa.com to pre–order by Friday, November 19. For the latest information on Harvest Market, follow Produce in the Park on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ProduceInThePark) or Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/produceintheparkatlanticia/) or sign up for the Produce in the Park newsletter at www.produceintheparkatlanticiowa.com.

Harvest Market is sponsored by the Atlantic Community Promotion Commission, First Whitney Bank and Trust, Camblin Mechanical, Cass County Tourism, Cass County Farm Bureau, the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce, and Lindeman Tractor.

(Radio Iowa) – The D-N-R expert who oversees the state’s deer population tells the Natural Resources Commission they’ve been getting calls following reports on the results of a study of COVID in deer. Wildlife biometrician Tyler Harms says the Wildlife Bureau conducted the study after seeing studies in other states which found no COVID in deer. “While the presence of antibodies indicates exposure to the virus — it does not necessarily indicate that animals become infected. So we participated in this study with Penn State University to investigate the question of active infection,” Harms says.

He says they tested 233 samples from deer that were collected to test for C-W-D and found 33 percent had active infections.  “We have received some questions from the public, and more specifically from our hunters about this study, given that we are in the midst of the hunting season. What we’ve been recommending to our hunters is obviously they keep hunting — and that this study should not rise to the level of concern that it keeps them from hunting this year,” according to Harms. He says they do recommend that hunters continue the standard safety procedures whenever they are processing deer. “Like wearing gloves and thoroughly washing their hands and their equipment after field dressing the animal to reduce their exposure to this virus,” he says.

Harms also notes this about venison. “To date, there have been no cases of contracting COVID-19 from eating food, and that includes wild game meat,” Harms says. Harm says a COVID-19 study of deer in Ohio released this week found similar results to Iowa’s study. The early deer archery season is currently underway in Iowa. The first shotgun deer season will begin on December 4th. Harms spoke during Wednesday’s Natural Resources Commission meeting.