The Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office says no injuries were reported after a pickup truck struck the Guthrie Center Post Office building at 500 Main Street, Saturday afternoon. Authorities say 94-year-old Theodore Keith Hansen, of Guthrie Center, was driving a 2021 Toyota pickup and pulling into a parking spot in front of the Post Office, when he stepped on the accelerator instead of the brake. The pickup accelerated out of control, hopped a curb, and hit the building near the door.

The accident, which happened at around 3:05-p.m., Saturday, caused $12,000 damage to the pickup, and an estimated $6,000 damage to the Post Office. Hansen was cited for Failure to Maintain Control.

(Radio Iowa) – The state auditor says there’s a new tool to help Iowa counties determine how much federal assistance they can use to cover pandemic-related losses in tax revenue. State Auditor Rob Sand says the National Association of Counties online calculator takes a lot of guess work out of a complicated process. “What we’re trying to do is make sure folks across the state of Iowa are aware of that,” Sand says, “because that’s going to make their work more efficient in trying to figure out how to spend American Rescue Plan dollars.”

Sand says his office has fielded questions from local officials asking for help in calculating tax revenue losses that can be linked to the pandemic. “They can head to the calculator and essentially answer a couple of questions and it will spit a number back out to you that is your allotment for lost revenue,” Sand says. Counties, as well as cities and states, must use American Revenue Plan money by 2026. Funds may be used on infrastructure projects as well. Sand says the sooner local governments come up with budgets for the pandemic relief, the sooner they can line up contractors to get the projects done on time.

The IKM-Manning School District has posted a message on social media, with regard to an upcoming bond vote. In their message, school officials said, “At its meeting Thursday night, the IKM-Manning School Board unanimously approved petition language that would call for a bond vote. If enough signatures are gathered, the vote would take place Tuesday, September 14.

“In the petition, the dollar amount was set at $19,950,000. While that number is larger than the bond vote from a year ago, the board made clear that the cost to taxpayers would remain the same. In fact, the higher bond amount is due to lower interest rates available to the school district at this time compared to last year.

“IKM-Manning,” officials say, “would benefit from the lower interest rates, allowing the district to address more of its facility needs with no increase in the taxpayer impact. Our community is simply getting more bang for its buck. Currently, a petition is circulating to gather the signatures needed to put the bond issue on the ballot. After that, the board could place the question on the ballot for September 14.

ELLIOTT— Officials with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources report that on Sunday night, a broken axle caused a truck driver to lose control and enter the Tarkio River about 3 miles east of Elliott, in Montgomery County. Diesel fuel leaked into the river from about 7 to 10:45 p.m. when the semi was pulled from the river. Decker Trucking of Fort Dodge estimates there were 160 gallons of diesel in the fuel tanks. It’s unknown how much fuel was lost, but it could be 80 gallons plus other engine fluids.

The Elliott Fire Department responded to the accident Sunday evening. They placed absorbent booms at multiple places in the river to collect the fuel. After drywall is removed from the ditch, DNR will evaluate the soil to determine if it must be excavated. DNR will monitor the cleanup and consider appropriate enforcement action.

Page County Sheriff’s Deputies, Friday, arrested a man on a warrant for Unauthorized use of a credit card. Authorities say 54-year-old Thayne Alvin Kinnison, of Shenandoah, was taken into custody at his residence, and transported to the Page County Jail. His bond was set at $2,000, pending further court proceedings.

(Atlantic) – An annual fundraising event for SHIFT ATL was held Saturday evening, in Atlantic. Jessie Shiels, President of the non-profit organization, said 372 people were served a meal of steak or pork plus assorted side dishes. She says tickets for the event were sold-out a couple of months in advance. They were for $50 per ticket or $350 for a table of eight. Those who came had the option of sticking around for the “Dueling Pianos.”

She said the event seemed to go off without a hitch, and their were no complaints.

Jessie says an open house was also held for the house they had rehabbed at 608 Hazel Street, in Atlantic. That took place Sunday.

You can see pictures of the house and property on the SHIFT ATL Facebook page. So what’s next for SHIFT ATL?

The organization was founded in the late Spring of 2019. Their mission is to revitalize Atlantic through projects, services, and programs to enhance the community with development and growth.

(In an update to our weekend news) – An Atlantic man suffered serious injuries during a motorcycle accident Saturday evening, near Lewis. Cass County Chief Deputy Sheriff Jon Westering says the accident happened at around 5:21-p.m. on the Lewis Road, between 580^th Street and Quincy Road, south of Lewis. A preliminary investigation determined the westbound 2011 Harley Davidson motorcycle driven by 39-year old Andrew Jensen, of Atlantic,  for reasons unknown, failed to negotiate the curve, left the road, entered the ditch.

Jensen was ejected from the machine and transported by Lewis Rescue to a nearby established landing zone, before being transported by LifeFlight to Des Moines Methodist Hospital. Griswold and Lewis Rescue, Cass EMS, LifeFlight and the Cass County Sheriff’s Office assisted at the scene.

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office reports numerous recent arrests. Today (Monday), at around 12:30-a.m., a deputy was sent to a truck stop in Avoca, to check on the location of an stolen vehicle. The owner reported his GPS was showing the vehicle was sitting stationary at the Eagles Landing Truck Stop. Upon further investigation, it was determined the vehicle was not stolen, and it was turned back over to its owner. Authorities said however, 39-year-old Stefanie Ann Bolton, of Denver, CO., was arrested on two counts for Violation of a No Contact Order/Contempt of Court.

Sunday evening, a Pottawattamie County man was served with a warrant for Domestic Abuse Assault/Strangulation. 18-year-old Austin James Barlow, of Council Bluffs, was arrested on the charge and transported to the Pott. County Jail. Authorities say 22-year-old Nicole Larae Kinney, of Council Bluffs, was arrested Sunday evening following the pursuit of a reported stolen vehicle. She was charged with Eluding (exceeding the speed limit by 25 mph or more), and Theft in the 2nd Degree (Motor vehicle valued at under $10,000). Kinney was being held in the Pott. County Jail on a total of $7,000 bond.

Sunday afternoon, 27-year-old Tara Lea Nelson was arrested following a traffic stop in Council Bluffs. She was charged with Driving While Suspended or Revoked, and cited for Failure to Obey a Traffic Control Device.  Sunday morning, 39-year-old Damien Joseph Keairns was arrested following a traffic stop at 510th and Highway 92, near Griswold. He was taken into custody on a valid warrant for Theft in the 5th Degree.

Saturday evening, 36-year-old Samantha Ann Cox and 32-year-old Travis Todd Nelson were arrested at the City Park in Oakland, following an alleged assault that occurred during a float trip that evening. Cox was charged with Assault with the intention to cause pain/injury. Nelson was charged with Assault w/intent to inflict serious injury, but w/no serious injury. And. Friday afternoon, 45-year-old Shay Christian Hannan, of Omaha, was served at the Pottawattamie County Jail, with a Douglas County, Nebraska, warrant for being a Fugitive from Justice.

(Radio Iowa) – Vermeer Corporation is planning a 44 million dollar expansion in Pella. Vermeer makes ag and industrial equipment that’s sold worldwide. The company plans to build a new parts distribution facility in Pella and convert an existing building for product and field training. Once the project’s completed, Pella expects to hire 100 more employees.

The Iowa Economic Development Authority Board has approved state tax breaks for the project.

The Atlantic City Council will act on several matters during their meeting 5:30-p.m. Wednesday, at City Hall. The first order of business is a Public Hearing on the sale of City-owned property at 101 Cedar Street. That will be followed by action on passing a Resolution (#47-21) selling the property to Cook Sanitation for the sum of $2,000, with stipulations regarding the demolishing of a home on the lot, and the construction of an industrial building within a period of five-years.

The Council will act on an Order to close 8th Street, between Chestnut and Poplar Streets, on Sunday, Aug. 22nd, from Noon until 5-p.m.  The area will be closed-off for the First United Methodist Church’s “Back-to-School” block party. Action will follow on passing the third and final reading of an amended Ordinance (#1009) pertaining to how Elections are held (from Winner takes All, to Primary/Run-off.

Under the current (Plurality) system, for instance in a Mayoral Election, if there five candidates, with a percentage of votes spanning from 16% to 25%, the person with 25% is the winner. Under the proposed “Primary/Runoff” system, a True Majority of the vote (50% plus 1) is needed in order for a candidate to win. Where that fails, a run-off election would be held within 30-days.

The Council will also act on passing the third and final reading of an amended Ordinance (#1010), which changes the term for Parks and Rec Board members from every six-years, to every four-years. The Parks and Rec Board recommends the change take place to allow for staggered elected positions and senior board members who can helping the incoming Board adjust to their responsibilities.

In other business, the Atlantic City Council will act on orders to:

• Appoint MacKenzie Bandow and Anne Quist to the Housing Committee. Both have expressed an interest in becoming part of the City’s Housing Committee. Bandow is the Co-Founder of SHIFT ATL.
• Re-Appoint Jack Jensen and Ruth Glines to the Community Foundation Commission. Both have agreed to the Mayor’s request to continue their service to the Commission.