(Red Oak, Iowa) – A man from Pottawattamie County was arrested Thursday afternoon in Red Oak. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office reports 49-year-old Alan DeSantiago, of Council Bluffs, was arrested at around 4:30-p.m. in the 100 block of Coolbaugh Street. He was wanted on an active Montgomery County warrant for Probation Violation. DeSantiago was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $2,000 bond.

(Creston, Iowa) – The Creston Police Department reports there were two recent accidents, one of which resulted in possible/unknown injuries and $5,000 property damage, the other caused over $5,000 damage to a local business.

Authorities say at around 1:08-p.m. Thursday, a 2010 BMW 328 driven by 37-year-old Heather Layne Green, of Creston, left the roadway of Sumner Street and entered the parking lot of Medicap Pharmacy, in Creston. The car jumped a curb and crashed into a City of Creston culvert, causing $5,000 damage. The vehicle’s airbags deployed upon impact.

Green suffered from minor injuries and was cleared by medics. Police say when she was asked what caused the accident, Green said she “didn’t know.” The report says it was apparent to officers the woman was driving south on Sumner, entered the pharmacy parking lot, and lost control.  The driver, Police said, seemed very confused but did not appear to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol. She was released from the scene. Damage to her car was estimated at $6,000 and it was a total loss. No citations were issued.

The second accident happened at around 11:04-a.m. Wednesday, when a 2014 Ford Fusion driven by 89-year-old John Charles Beran, of Lenox, crashed into the A&G Restaurant and Lounge. Creston Police say Beran was legally parked in front of the business on Adams Street, and meant to apply his brakes, but accidentally stepped on the accelerator. His actions resulted in the car being propelled forward into the building, causing $1,000 damage to the vehicle, and $5,160 damage to the structure.

No injuries were reported, and no citations were issued.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Officials with MAHLE Engine Components USA, in Atlantic, have announced plans to relocate much of the Atlantic plant’s bearing production lines to other company engine component facilities. While it’s anticipated the move will occur by April 2025, plating operations will remain in Atlantic.

Officials say the change is in response to continuously intensified competitive pressure.

MAHLE has 160 employees in Atlantic. The company says it aims to minimize the impact on the employees affected by the closure and find solutions that are as socially responsible as possible.

MAHLE Engine Components USA plant in Atlantic, IA

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Cass County Extension will be celebrating all things 4-H during National 4-H Week October 1-7. Now is the time of year for youth to join and participate in 4-H, a worldwide youth development program, hosted in Iowa by Iowa State University Extension and Outreach.

Cass County 4-H will be hosting a Fall Fest on Sunday, October 8th from 2:00-4:00pm at the Cass County Fairgrounds. The community is invited to come out for an afternoon of family fun! Current 4-H members will be at the event to celebrate 4-H. All are welcome to join in on the fun and see what 4-H all is about.

“We have a variety of fun activities planned which will showcase some of the project areas with hands-on activities, games and fun at our Fall Fest October 8th!” says Katie Bateman, County Youth Coordinator with Cass County Extension. “A 4-H information booth and snacks will be available from 2:00-4:00pm!”

Fall Fest will be a fun event for all ages to come out and celebrate National 4-H Week! You are invited to follow Cass County 4-H on Facebook page, www.facebook.com/CassCoIAExt or search for “Cass County Iowa 4H” on Instagram.

Keep an eye out for Cass County 4-H members, volunteers, and supporters showing their 4-H pride during National 4-H Week. Many of our local 4-H clubs will be creating window displays in local businesses. Other clubs will be doing special events and activities during the week such as wearing 4-H shirts to school or doing service projects around their community!

In addition, the Iowa 4-H Foundation and Cass County 4-H are partnering to host the Iowa 4-H Giving Day (www.iowa4Hgivingday.org), a special 24-hour event, on October 3rd at noon until October 4th at noon. Each year on Iowa 4-H Giving Day, supporters and alumni across the state come together to financially support Iowa’s largest youth organization, to ensure these opportunities continue to be available to youth across the state and at the county level. 4-H supporters can donate online or in person to support programs at the county or state level!

“4-H is a year-round program for youth in grades Kindergarten through 12. National 4-H Week is a great time to show some the wonderful things 4-H offers to youth,” stated Bateman. “In fact, research has shown that young people in 4-H are nearly four times as likely to contribute to their communities and are twice as likely to engage in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) programs during after school time.”

4-H is active in each of Iowa’s 99 counties and empowers youth to reach their full potential through many different types of experiences including photography, music, woodworking, sewing, livestock and horticulture. 4-H grows confidence, creativity, curiosity, courage, character and much more in youth. 4-H allows youth to use the skills that they learn to go out and make a positive difference in their communities.

Cass County 4-H has more than 300 4-H youth and 100 volunteers involved in the program. Interested in joining 4-H? Contact the Cass County Extension Office at 712-243-1132 or visit the Cass County Extension website at www.extension.iastate.edu/cass.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Senator Joni Ernst says the Biden Administration has reversed course and will not block hunter safety and archery programs in Iowa’s schools. Ernst says Biden made the decision after she pushed back on the idea of ending the popular programs.

(Radio Iowa) –  The Board of Regents has approved a plan for Iowa State University to tear down LeBaron Hall and replace it with a new building. I-S-U’s Shawn Norman says LeBaron Hall was built in 1952 and has had no significant renovation since its original construction. He says replacing the building would address their concerns and offer a contemporary learning environment to encourage independent learning and leadership development.

New LaBaron classroom design (ISU photo)

Students in the apparel, merchandising and design program would use the new production labs and teaching spaces. Construction is expected to start in September 2024 and will be completed by summer of 2026. The estimated project budget is 39 million dollars to be funded by private giving and university funds.

(Radio Iowa) – The labor union representing more than two-thousand graduate assistants at the University of Iowa is demanding higher wages, saying the current minimum 26-thousand dollar salary isn’t enough. Natalie McClellan is a third year P-H-D student and she represents COGS, the graduate student worker union at the U-I.  McClellan says, “Our demand was to keep up with inflation but keeping up with inflation, which can go up and down, it’s not accounting for what it would actually take to have a living wage.”

The union and the Iowa Board of Regents agreed to that 26-thousand minimum last March during negotiations, but McClellan says the reality is, the wages don’t cover costs like housing, transportation and food. The regents are asking the legislature to increase funding for the state’s three public universities, but McClellan says any increased funding needs to benefit the workforce. “Okay, you’re asking for more money for the university system,” she says. “How is that going to benefit us as the people who are making it go.”

During the regents’ Wednesday meeting in Iowa City, protesters organized by the union shut down proceedings. Regents President Pro Tem Sherry Bates had to raise her voice to adjourn the meeting.

The union is using M-I-T’s Living Wage Calculator that accounts for costs like transportation and housing. Assuming a 40-hour work week, it says a single person with no kids in Johnson County needs a pre-tax salary of 35-thousand dollars. The U-I estimates a 25-percent increase in graduate student wages would cost the system nearly 14-million dollars. Just this month, the Regents requested an additional 15-million dollars from the state for the 2025 fiscal year.