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Heartbeat Today 4-25-2019

Heartbeat Today, Podcasts

April 25th, 2019 by Jim Field

Jim Field shares information from ISU Extension about flood damage to farm fields and morel mushrooms.

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Atlantic School Board considers synthetic turf at the Trojan Bowl

News

April 25th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

The Atlantic School Board, during their meeting Wednesday evening, discussed a possible change in the field surface at Trojan Bowl. The options include a natural grass surface, a synthetic field, or sod. Superintendent Steve Barber said they’ve learned since the $9.5-million bond issue passed, that two of those options are problematic, especially when it comes to the 2020-21 football season. Natural turf takes at least a year to establish, so they would need to wait for a whole season to play on the field. Sod costs more, and it doesn’t seat as well after the first season of use, likely resulting a muddy field more than anything.

Board member Keith Swanson asked if it was possible for the football team to play all of their games on the road instead of at the Trojan Bowl while the natural grass grows. The rest of the Board wasn’t receptive to that idea. There’s a $600,000 difference between using natural turf and synthetic turf. Since that would be a change from the original concept when the money was bonded for, if the Board elects to go with that type of turf, they would have to raise money privately to make up the difference, or hope for lower bids once the decision is made. Snyder and Associates Engineer Dave Sturm said they could hope for that…but the bids could be much higher. The $8.5-million dollar construction project, he said, will no doubt attract numerous bids.

There is a group looking to come up with extra funds to help pay for the synthetic turf surface. In-kind contributions from sub-contractors could also help reduce the costs. Superintendent Barber says the School Board needs to make a decision by their next meeting May 8th. Board President Josh McLaren said if they don’t go after the synthetic turf now, in two-or three-years they’ll probably regret it.

The plan you may recall, also calls for upgrades to the baseball/softball complex, a new parking area at Washington Elementary, a safer unloading and loading area for middle school and Elementary students, and a new synthetic field turf at the high school soccer field and a complete renovation of the Trojan Bowl which initially included a natural grass surface.

TWILAH TIPLING, 77, of Fontanelle (Celebration of Life 4/30/19)

Obituaries

April 25th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

TWILAH TIPLING, 77, of Fontanelle, died Thursday, April 25, 2019, at the Greenfield Rehabilitation and Health Care Center.  Celebration of Life services for TWILAH TIPLING will be held 10-a.m. Tuesday, April 30th, at the Fontanelle United Methodist Church. Steen Funeral Home in Fontanelle has the arrangements.

Visitation will be held from 1-until 7-p.m. Monday, April 29th, at the funeral home, with the family greeting friends from 5-until 7-p.m.; Online condolences may be left to the family at www.steenfunerals.com.

Burial is in the Fontanelle Cemetery, with a luncheon to follow, a the church.  

Memorials may be directed to the Twilah Tipling memorial fund to be established by the family at a later date.

TWILAH TIPLING is survived by:

Her husband – Robert Tipling, of Fontanelle.

Her sons – Shawn (Helen) Tipling, of Fontanelle, and Matthew (Angie) Tipling, of Van Meter.

5 grandchildren; 5 great-granddaughters; other relatives and friends.

(Podcast) KJAN Morning Sports report, 4/25/19

Podcasts, Sports

April 25th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

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Another trial date set for man accused of 2 fatal stabbings

News

April 25th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — Another trial starting date has been set for a 19-year-old in northwest Iowa accused of stabbing to death his ex-girlfriend and another young man. Woodbury Country District Court records say a judge cited scheduling and other problems in setting a new date to begin the trial of Tran Walker. The trial had been set to begin this coming Tuesday. The new starting date is May 2.

Walker’s pleaded not guilty to two counts of first-degree murder. He’s accused of killing 17-year-old Paiten Sullivan and 18-year-old Felipe Negron Jr., who both lived in Sioux City. Police say Walker was in a car with the other two on Jan. 28 last year when he began to stab Sullivan because he was upset that she had broken up with him. Police say that when Negron tried to intervene, Walker stabbed him, too.

Creston Police report (4/25)

News

April 25th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

The Creston Police Department says a woman residing in the 400 block of N. Oak Street, in Creston, reported Wednesday that sometime between 1-and 9-a.m. Wednesday, someone cut the driver’s side rear tire on her vehicle, while the vehicle was parked outside her residence. The loss was estimated at $120. And, a Creston man reported Wednesday evening, that sometime over the course of the past five-to seven-months, someone had attempted to gain entry to his residence in the 500 block of W. Townline Street. Damage to the front and back doors of the home was estimated at $500. It’s not clear if entry into the residence was made.

(Podcast) KJAN Morning News & Funeral report, 4/25/19

News, Podcasts

April 25th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:06-a.m. From KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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USDA Report 4-25-2019

Ag/Outdoor, Podcasts

April 25th, 2019 by Jim Field

w/Denny Heflin.

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Home sales are down, but the prices are up

News

April 25th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) — Figures from the Iowa Association of Realtors show sale prices rose in March while the number of homes sold dropped a little more than 11 percent compared to last year. Association president John Goede says those who sell homes don’t have a lot to complain about. “If you look at our figures this last six years here — we’ve had a little drop in inventory and a little drop in sales made — but actually the last three years, 2016, 2017, 2018, have been like rock stars,” Goede says.  The median sale price for Iowa homes sold in March was up six-point-seven percent compared to last year at 160-thousand dollars. Goede says you have to look at the larger view. “This year’s rate that we have right now — the ten years previous to 2016 — that would have been the high point. So, we have a very, very good year, it’s just coming off an unbelievably stellar year,” Goede says.

Goede, who sells real estate in Spencer, says Iowa’s wage rate has gone up and that has helped the Affordability Index for home buyers. He says to buy a median home you need a median income, and Iowa’s median income is 100 percent more than needed to qualify for a median house. He says our median income is so good that it could actually buy twice the cost of a median priced home. Goede says interest rates remain low too — and that also helps home buyers. He says the drop in sales is also something that has to be seen in the bigger picture. “You know the sales are down….statewide they’re down about 280 homes in total,” Goede says. “That’s less than three a county — so it’s really not a big number — it’s just how statistics can play.”

The number of days a home was on the market before selling dropped by 14 days compared to last year in March. Homes sold in March were on the market for an average of 75 days compared to 89 days last year.

GOP lawmakers propose new view of property tax rates, assessments

News

April 25th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) — Republicans in the Iowa legislature have developed a plan they say will bring “transparency” to property taxes. Iowans could check new notices online and in newspapers after the value of local homes, businesses and farms are assessed that show what property tax RATE would be charged if city and county budgets stay the same. Property tax hikes that are greater than two percent would have to be approved by two-thirds of the members of a city council or county board of supervisors. Republicans like Representative Dustin Hite say it means local officials wouldn’t be able to let sizable tax increases automatically go into effect when property VALUES go up.

“When somebody’s property taxes go up — the check to they write to the county treasurer goes up — somebody should have had to vote for that and take responsibility for that,” Hite says. Hite, the former mayor of New Sharon, says this shouldn’t “hamstring” local governments. “What I think it’s going to do is make cities and counties think about what they are doing and think about it in a hard way to make sure that they are only raising those taxes that they think are necessary,” Hite says.

Senator Randy Feenstra, a Republican from Hull, spoke early Wednesday evening just before Republican senators approved the plan. “The bill is all about truth in taxation,” he said. Democrats like Representative Timi Brown-Powers of Waterloo say the bill has changed significantly from its original version and the public has had little chance to examine the final product.  “We went from — in my opinion — a really, really bad bill to, now, a bad bill,” Brown-Powers said.

Senator Pam Jochum, a Democrat from Dubuque, says the bill will make it harder for communities to grow. “I can tell you that in the state of Wisconsin they did something similar a few years ago and listen up rural Iowa, the little towns and villages in Wisconsin are hollowing out,” Jochum said.

If Governor Kim Reynolds signs the bill into law, it would go into effect July 1st of 2020 — impacting the next round of budgeting by Iowa cities and counties.