(Radio Iowa) – Some 500 executives and managers from a wide range of Iowa companies will be in Council Bluffs for this week’s annual conference of the Iowa Association of Business and Industry. ABI President Nicole Crain calls this the flagship event which will convene business and civic leaders from all over Iowa for three days of bold ideas, expert insights, and dynamic networking.

“There’s a lot going on in the Iowa economy and what’s great about these workshops, it covers AI, tax policy and also beyond jobs, how housing and placemaking drive workforce retention,” Crain says, “so really looking at how we can make sure that our communities are thriving along with our businesses and how we all work together.”

The lineup of keynote speakers includes Michael Happe, the president and CEO of Winnebago Industries. “He’s going to be talking about leading a global company through change and acquisitions and what that looks like,” Crain says. “As you know, there’s been a lot that’s happened since the pandemic and since he took over at Winnebago Industries. He’s going to be talking about the breadth of the companies that they have and how they’ve changed the company culture.”

What’s dubbed the “Taking Care of Business Conference” offers a chance for the state’s leaders, from manufacturing to financial services, to learn about each others’ challenges and triumphs.

“It’s not just surface level networking. People dive into the real issues and they get business done,” Crain says. “They know, like, and trust the people that are at this conference, and as they are engaging with each other at different venues, they are able to take things back to their business to help their business, to help their employees, and to help them professionally develop as well.”

The conference runs Tuesday through Thursday at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs. At the conference on Wednesday, the winner will be announced in the “2025 Coolest Thing Made in Iowa” competition, which has generated thousands of votes from across the state.

(Glenwood, Iowa) – Three people from Glenwood were arrested Sunday, by Glenwood Police:

• 21-year-old Michael Monson was arrested for Reckless use of a Firearm. (Bond $2,000).
• 45-year-old Billie Jo Manson, and 46-year-old William Jensen, were arrested on charges of Dominion/Control of a Firearm by a Felon. Their bonds were set at $5,000 each.

All three suspects posted bond, and were released from custody.

(Glenwood, Iowa) – The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports five people were arrested over the past week. At around 2:15-a.m. Sunday (June 8th), 38-year-old Brett Michael Ciaccio, of Malvern, was arrested in the vicinity of Highway 34/Levi Road. Ciaccio was charged with OWI/2nd offense, and Possession of a Controlled Substance/3rd or subsequent offense. His bond was set at $3,000.

Saturday night, 38-year-old Michael Andrew Alkire, of Glenwood, was arrested on Interstate 29 near Glenwoood, for OWI/2nd offense. Bond was set at $2,000.

Two people were arrested on separate charges Thursday, in Mills County: 34-year-old Tyler Jason Chambers, of Glenwood, was arrested on two counts of Domestic Assault/Bodily Injury-1st offense, and Child Endangerment. Bond was set at $4,000; and, 40-year-old Denny Gene Reeves, of Hastings, was arrested for Harassment in the 3rd Degree. Bond was set at $300.

And, on June 4th, 49-year-old Kimberly Ruth Katskee, of LaVista, NE, was arrested by Mills County deputies for Violation of Probation. Her bond was set at $7,500.

(Creston, Iowa) – Two people died in separate Union County accidents over the past week. 54-year-old John Leroy Pace, of Clarinda, died June 3rd after the 1983 Honda motorcycle he was riding failed to negotiate a curve on eastbound Highway 34. Sheriff’s officials says the cycle traveled into the ditch on the north side of the highway and came to rest on its side. The accident wasn’t noticed until around 4-a.m., until the driver of a semi tractor trailer noticed the cycle’s headlights coming from the ditch, and turned around to investigate. Pace died at the scene. An investigation into the accident was ongoing.

The other fatal accident happened late Sunday morning, near Thayer. Union County Sheriff’s officials say 43-year-old San Juana Vega, of Osceola, died after the 2015 Chevy Traverse she was driving eastbound, crashed on Highway 34 just north of Highway 169, at around 11:51-a.m. The sheriff’s office received multiple 911 calls about a reckless driver, whose vehicle was all over the road heading east and had just passed Highway 169 north. Citizens managed to get the vehicle stopped on the side of the road near mile marker 102, but when they went to put the vehicle in park, it somehow went into reverse, and Vega lost consciousness.

Her foot left the brake, causing the vehicle to reverse down a hill and into the Grand River, where it became fully immersed in the water. First responders were able to extricate Vega from the vehicle and onto a UTV to transported her to an ambulance waiting on the road. Vega – whom authorities say smelled of alcohol – was transported by Clarke EMS to Methodist Hospital in Des Moines, where she was pronounced deceased.

The accident remains under investigation.

(Greenfield, Iowa) – Two men were arrested on separate Adair County warrants, last week. Adair County Sheriff Jeff Vandewater reports 36-year-old Nicholas Allan Newcomb, of Des Moines, was arrested at around 12:10-a.m., Thursday (June 5th) at the Polk County Jail, on an Adair County warrant for Contempt of Court/Violation of a No Contact/Protective Order. Newcomb was held in the Adair County Jail until he served his required sentence and was released later that same day.

At around 12:40-p.m. Thursday, Adair County Sheriff’s deputies arrested 27-year-old Francisco Alberto Salazar Barragan, of West Point, NE., on an Adair County Bench Warrant for Violation of Probation. Salazar-Barragan was being held without bond pending an appearance in Adair County District Court.

(Radio Iowa) – A parade of tractors rolled through Dyersville this weekend as part of the annual Farm Toy celebration. Jerry Klostermann of Bankston was driving his Case I-H 52-50 — a working tractor that’s nearly nine feet tall. “It’s about 110 horsepower tractor…We use it on the mixer mill at home all the time,” Klostermann said. “We just take a power washer and wash it off for taking it on the tractor ride and tomorrow it’ll be back grinding feed again.”

The annual Farm Toy celebration rolls through Dyersville. (Photo by KMCH’s Janelle Tucker)

Eighty-year-old Henry Joosten of Green Bay, Wisconsin, has been coming to Dyersville for the past 22 years to participate in the event, which includes a tractor ride through the countryside. “It’s the only way to see Iowa,” Joosten said. “It’s the only real way to see what God gave us to take care of. You can go on a car, on a motorcycle, but there’s nothing like seeing it on a tractor.”

The National Farm Toy Museum in Dyersville hosts the annual event, which started in 1987. The two-story museum features over 30-thousand toys, scale models and replicas of farm equipment.

(Lewis, Iowa) – Officials with Trees Forever say, “For you prairie and gardening types, this should interest you.” Cass County Conservation and Trees Forever are hosting an “Intro to Prairie and Plant ID” prairie walk on Thursday, June 12^th starting at 6:00 pm out at Cold Springs County Park. Cass County Naturalist Lora Kanning will lead the tour and you can even get your hands dirty helping with a small planting after.

More information on the Trees Forever website or the Cass County Conservation Board website and more field days are scheduled in Cass County for July 10^th, August 14^th and September 11^th so don’t miss out!

MASON CITY, Iowa – June 9, 2025 – There is good news for summer travel in northeast Iowa and western Wisconsin as the Iowa DOT is reopening the Iowa 9 / Wisconsin 82 bridge across the Mississippi River connecting Lansing, Iowa, and Crawford County, Wisconsin. The bridge will be opened to traffic starting approximately 10:00 AM on Monday, June 9.

The Iowa DOT District 2 office closed the IA 9 / WIS 82 bridge on Saturday, May 17, when sensors detected movement.  Following a detailed inspection and engineering analysis, Iowa DOT has determined that the bridge is safe for motor vehicle traffic with the same size and weight restrictions that were in place prior to May 17.  Iowa DOT will continually monitor the bridge to ensure safety.

A new bridge is being constructed alongside the existing bridge. Iowa DOT anticipates another multi-week closure of the existing bridge this summer to allow for certain construction activities on the new bridge.  The department is planning to keep the bridge open at least through the July 4 weekend and will publicize any future planned closures at least one week in advance.  Planned closures will be announced through the project web page, the project Facebook page, local media, on variable message signs on either end of the bridge, and through 511 Iowa.

Even while the bridge is open, Iowa DOT will continue to offer a shuttle and water taxi service which offers a scenic and relaxing way to cross the river.  The service is offered Monday through Saturday, with scheduled departures starting as early as 6:45 AM and ending at 5:37 PM.  The service includes designated vehicle parking areas at the Lansing City Hall in Iowa and the DeSoto Community Center in Wisconsin.  From those locations, a shuttle will drive passengers to the river landings where the water taxi will cross the river.

The shuttle / ferry service is free for all passengers. Locations, schedules, and other details and are available online at https://iowadot.gov/modes-travel/roads-highways/major-construction-projects/mississippi-river-bridge-lansing/free-shuttle-water-taxi.

For more information on the construction of the new Mississippi River Bridge at Lansing as well as updates on the existing bridge status, go to iowadot.gov/lansingbridge and sign up to receive updates directly to your inbox or check out our Facebook page www.facebook.com/LansingBridge/.

(Radio Iowa) – There’s a $10,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest of the person or people responsible for a week long fire at a northwest Iowa ethanol that caused significant damage. The fire at the POET facility in Emmetsburg started in the evening on May 12. Stacks of the corn stover used to make ethanol burned and POET estimates $5 million worth of the material was destroyed.

The Palo Alto County Sheriff’s Office and fire investigators say the fire is being “treated as an act of arson.” The general manager of the plant says it was “a serious criminal act that put people and property at risk.”

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The City of Atlantic’s Planning and Zoning Commission will meet 5:30-p.m. Tuesday, June 10th, in the City Council’s Chambers at City Hall. The Commission is expected to review and discuss an Industrial Building Addition site plan for Olsen Properties, LLC, at 5 Commerce Street.  Owner Keith Olsen is seeking a permit to build an addition to his warehouse on the site, for the purpose of cold storage, mostly delivery truck storage. The site permit will allow the current structure to be “squared-off,” so trucks and equipment can be stored and protected from the outside elements. The proposed addition is 33-feet by 30-feet (or, 990-square feet), on the northeast side of the existing building.

The Commission will also review and discuss the City Council’s referral on vacating a “Phantom” right-of-way between 401 Laurel, 405 Laurel, and 411 Laurel. During the May 21, 2025 City Council meeting, Mr. Rob Stamp requested that a phantom alley be vacated near his property. He was informed the process begins with a letter to the Council and then is referred to the Planning & Zoning Commission for review and a recommendation to the City Council on action. Since the format of the letter was not specified, Mr. Stamp, being very successful with his business and short on time, chose to submit his letter in the form of a napkin and it has been scanned for Council. He has since provided a map of the property in question.

City Administrator John Lund says Public Works Director Kirk Knudsen, Wastewater Superintendent Tim Snyder, and representatives of AMU’s electric and water divisions have reviewed the alley, and no hidden
utilities or utility easements exist on this property. The supermajority of the phantom alley is in the flood plain. The lots abutting the alley are a mixture of “I-1” or Light Industrial, “I-2” or Heavy Industrial, or “R-3” High-Density Residential. Given the proximity of the phantom alley to industrial property, being located largely in the flood plain, and the fact that alleys have fallen out of favor in modern residential land use planning, there is little value of this alley to the City for future development.

In other business, the Planning and Zoning Commission will review, discuss, and vote on proposed Phase 1 Zoning Ordinance changes for Articles 1-though 6 of the City’s Zoning Ordinance, and forward their report to the City Council.