(Atlantic, Iowa) – The theme for the next “Produce in Park,” in Atlantic on June 26th, is golf-related. “Puttin’ in the Park” will feature mini-golf and disc golf activities, along with a kids’ craft station, and live music by Jenna Now. Produce in the Park is held in the downtown Atlantic City Park. Stop by and purchase fresh produce, baked goods and more, from any one of 20 or more vendors. Food trucks June 26th will include Zipp’s Pizzeria, and Lucky Wife Slushies.

Guest Chef Sarah Anderson will share free samples of Feta and Dill Salad. Be sure and look for free produce taste tests, information from visiting organizations, and much more!

Follow Produce in the Park on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/15kWPCE78J/

And, to register as a vendor for the event or learn more, visit www.produceintheparkatlanticiowa.com

Atlantic, IA — Officials with Cass Health have announced that construction will soon be underway for a new Eye Associates clinic. Jensen Builders Ltd. was officially awarded the construction bid for the new building to be located at 1501 E. 7th Street in Atlantic.

With demolition of the old Farm Bureau building and initial site work nearly finished, construction is expected to begin by the end of July. When completed this winter, Eye Associates will move to the new location, where it will continue providing eye care for patients of all ages.

Digital drawing of the new Eye Associates building

The new building is approximately 6,900 square feet and will be used by Optometrist Dr. Jeff Goergen as well as by Dr. Jesse Himebaugh and Dr. David Ingvoldstad, visiting ophthalmologists from Midwest Eye Care.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Congresswoman Ashley Hinson is co-sponsoring a bill that would extend V-A benefits to veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange and later diagnosed with glioblastoma, a rare and aggressive form of brain cancer. The bill is named in honor of Keith Smith, an Iowan who served in the Army’s 101st Airborne Division in Vietnam in the early 1970s. “This was inspired by a letter from his widow, Linda Smith,” Hinson says. “…She is now a passionate advocate for this cause and was absolutely instrumental in helping us to introduce this effort.”

Hinson says Smith, a farmer from Independence, was denied critical health care V-A benefits after being diagnosed with glioblastoma. He died in 2021 at the age of 73.

Keith A. Smith (vvmf.org)

Glioblastoma is not among the 23 conditions listed for coverage for veterans exposed to Agent Orange or burn pits. “We want to expand access to care for those who are exposed to toxic substances during their service and naming this bill in Specialist Fourth Class Smith’s honor is, I think, a deserving tribute to his life and service, Linda’s advocacy as well,” Hinson says.

Keith Alan Smith, Sr. (Photo via vvmf.org)

The bill is co-sponsored by a Florida Democrat on the House Veterans Affairs Committee member who received the same letter from Smith’s widow that Hinson did. According to an online tribute by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Smith helped develop the baseball and basketball programs in Independence and was a founding member of the Mustang Foundation that supports extracurricular activities in the school district.

June 20, 2025 (DES MOINES, IA) – Governor Kim Reynolds today welcomed the announcement that JBS USA will make a significant new investment in Perry, Iowa, a move that will bring renewed economic vitality to the community. JBS is one of the world’s leading food companies, providing protein and food solutions to customers and consumers across the globe. The company processes, prepares, and packages fresh, further-processed and value-added premium protein products under a variety of highly recognized brands.

JBS USA, headquartered in Greeley, Colorado, plans to invest $135 million in a new state-of-the-art 150,000 square foot facility to produce fresh sausage. The company plans to create 250 jobs within the first three years of operations and eventually employ 500 in subsequent years. The Iowa Economic Development Authority board approved $12 million in tax benefits for this project through the High Quality Jobs program at its meeting earlier today.

“Today’s announcement is tremendous news for Perry and the entire state of Iowa,” said Governor Reynolds. “This investment by JBS reflects confidence in Iowa’s workforce, our strong agricultural economy, and our commitment to growing vibrant communities. At a time when Perry has faced real challenges, this investment brings renewed hope and opportunity for the hardworking families who call this community home.”

JBS currently has operations in Council Bluffs, Marshalltown and Ottumwa, employing more than 5,300 Iowans. The new Perry facility, which is expected to be fully operational in late 2026, will serve as one of the company’s key prepared foods operations and play a vital role in Iowa’s globally recognized food processing industry.

“This investment aligns with our ongoing commitment to Iowa, our producer partners, team members and the U.S. market as we look to build a best-in-class sausage production facility,” said Wesley Batista Filho, JBS USA CEO. “We are grateful to the state of Iowa for their continued support, and we look forward to being part of the Perry community — creating quality jobs and economic opportunity in the region.”

(Radio Iowa) – Two Iowans are among the nearly 200 elected leaders from across the nation attending the United States Conference of Mayors, underway in Tampa, Florida. Waterloo Mayor Quentin Hart says he and his counterparts are discussing solutions to a wide range of issues facing cities large and small. “Whenever I come here, this is one of the greatest places to be able to exchange ideas — or steal ideas — from other communities and bring them to yours,” Hart says. “I am looking forward. I am an open book. I’m taking notes for all of these different sessions to see what I can bring back and what actually fits for our community.”

Workshops for the mayors cover all sorts of topics, including housing, public safety, tariffs, climate protection, the economy, and infrastructure. One of the first sessions Hart attended was on children, health and human services. “The conversation was talking about mental health services for young people, health and well-being for young people,” Hart says. “How do we bring out the best for some of the youth in our communities? And, of course, that was near and dear to my heart, hearing all the things that are taking place on a national level.”

Mayor Quentin Hart (City of Waterloo photo)

Dubuque Mayor Brad Cavanagh is also at the event. With more than 85 percent of Americans living in U.S. metropolitan areas, Hart says mayors are on the front lines of today’s challenges. “Another area is just overall safety and how elected officials are somewhat living in a time where it’s challenging and there are safety issues for us and our personal families,” Hart says. “How can we make sure that we are safe and our families are safe as well?” Hart says last weekend’s shootings of two Minnesota legislators and their spouses — which left two of them dead — are weighing on many people’s minds.

The conference opened Thursday and runs through Sunday.

(Adair, Iowa) – Members of the Adair-Casey and Guthrie Center Community School District Boards of Education held a regular, joint monthly Board meeting Wednesday evening, in Adair. Superintendent Josh Rasmussen said during their session, he updated the Boards on some construction projects.

He said also, their staffing needs are almost fully met for the upcoming school year.

Both Boards agreed to renew their property/casualty insurance for 2025-26.

The Boards approved their audit services contract with Nolte, Cornman & Johnson, PC, and they issued TLC contracts for instructional coaches and mentors, as well as approved 28-E Operational Sharing Agreements between both Districts for the Superintendent, SBO (School Business Official), Curriculum Director, HR and Transportation Directors and other 28-E agreements for Elementary teachers. The AC-GC Boards passed the first reading of a cell phone use policy.

One of the discussion items the Boards had, according to Superintendent Rasmussen, was with regard to the Spring 2025 ISASP (Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress) data, which showed an overall increase in scores.

Rasmussen said also, with the 2024-25 school year wrapped-up, their attention turns now toward planning for next year. That includes a lot of people working to get the facilities cleaned-up and ready to go.

(Creston, Iowa) – The Creston Police Department reports a Creston man was arrested Thursday night. 34-year-old Alex Richard Cunningham was arrested for Violation of Probation. Cunningham was taken to Union County Jail and held without bond until making his initial court appearance.

(Radio Iowa) – A district court judge has struck down a lawsuit that challenged the language in the Linn County gambling referendum that allowed developers to build a casino in Cedar Rapids. Cedar Rapids mayor Tiffany O’Donnell says the ruling affirmed that Linn County voters knew exactly what they were voting for.  “These voters approved this back in ‘21 and have been dodging bullets and fists ever since,” she says. The lawsuit came after the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission decided not to act on the complaint about the referendum and went on to award the gambling license to Linn County. O’Donnell says the court ruling shows that was the right action.

“Really validates the will of the people here, and also validates the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission, frankly.” O’Donnell says getting everything in place to build the new casino has been a long journey with multiple hurdles. The lawsuit by the operators of the Riverside Casino casino came after a market study showed it and other casinos would lose millions in revenue to the new casino in Cedar Rapids. Mayor O’Donnell has supported the casino since taking office and says they can now keep moving ahead. “Really now, this really does clear the path. I likened it to speed bumps-I knew there would be speed bumps along the way. We’ve had several. But this city, and you know, these people, are just fighters for what’s right and I couldn’t be more proud,” she says.

Work started on the Cedar Rapids casino soon after the gambling license was awarded in February.

(Radio Iowa) – Recent rainstorms are helping to improve Iowa’s soil conditions, though only about a third of the state is completely drought-free. The new map from the U-S Drought Monitor shows the amount of the state in abnormally dry or drought conditions has fallen in the past week from around 80 to just under 70 percent. State climatologist Justin Glisan says southwest Iowa remains a “problem child” with above average temperatures and below average rainfall.

“One of the driest parts of the state has been that southwest corner of Iowa,” Glisan says. “As we shifted into May, we did see a slightly more active weather pattern, but actually it was the first May since 2010 without a tornado reported. So, the lack of severe weather — that’s where we see drought and dryness across the state.” While spring officially ends later today (Friday), Glisan says meteorological summer started June 1st. Over the course of March, April and May, he says Iowa was two-and-a-half degrees warmer than normal, and two inches below normal for precipitation. Though Iowa broke a four-year drought in May of last year, Glisan says dry conditions are still impacting water levels.

“If you go back four to five years, most stations across the state are still missing out on about a year’s worth of precipitation,” he says. “So, this has impacts on aquifers, which we pull water out of, but also well fields and other water supply sources.” The new drought monitor map shows pockets of “moderate” drought in all four corners of the state. As corn pollination and detassling season approaches, Glisan says Iowa’s crops may become stressed.

“With those windy conditions and high temperatures, that’s where we can exacerbate dryness across the surface,” Glisan says. “So, we’re extracting soil moisture — that topsoil moisture — first. Plus, vegetative demand is increasing with corn and beans, as well. So, this is where we can get into a period of time of rapid drying at the surface.”

Glisan says that could cause stress in corn and soybean fields. On the positive side, he says most of the state remains in a lull in terms of severe weather.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Red Oak Police report a man was arrested early today (Friday), on an OWI charge. Authorities say 22-year-old Lee David Parcher was arrested at around 12:45-a.m. in the 200 block of W. Washington Street, for OWI/1st offense. Parcher was transported to the Montgomery County Jail and held on a $1,000 bond.