DECORAH, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a body has been recovered from the Upper Iowa River in northeast Iowa. The Winneshiek County Sheriff’s Office says the body was pulled from the water Sunday, northwest of Decorah. The person is believed to have drowned. More information about the drowning and the person’s name haven’t been released.

The Iowa Department of Transportation and Iowa Transportation Commission are seeking public input regarding the Iowa Bicycle and Pedestrian Long-Range Plan. This plan will build upon the Commission’s long-range strategy for multi-modal transportation over the next three decades, Iowa in Motion 2045. The Bicycle and Pedestrian Long-Range Plan has three key objectives:

• Serve as the primary guide for Iowa DOT decision-making regarding bicycle and pedestrian programs and facilities.
• Help achieve improved project-level coordination within the Iowa DOT.
• Provide consistency and mobility for bicycle and pedestrian users statewide.

In addition, the plan will serve an important role in improving safety for all road users, reducing crashes, and bringing Iowa closer to the goal of zero fatalities on Iowa’s roadways, and aligns to federal regulations that require bicycle and pedestrian accommodations be routinely and consistently considered in the design of transportation facilities.   The Iowa DOT has drafted the Iowa Bicycle and Pedestrian Long-Range Plan to consistently implement best practices when considering such accommodations.

The Iowa DOT will be accepting public comments on the plan through Sept. 4, 2018.  You can view the plan and related information online at https://iowadot.gov/iowainmotion/modal-plans/bicycle-pedestrian-plan

A reminder today that the Iowa Department of Transportation will hold a public information meeting tomorrow (Tuesday, July 24^th), to discuss the Interstate 80 Planning Study and to gather public feedback on the technical reports, including the final report, Vision for Infrastructure Investment. The reports and previous online meetings are available to view online at www.iowadot.gov/interstatestudy. All interested persons are invited to attend this meeting anytime between 5 and 7 p.m. at the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden, 909 Robert D. Ray Drive, in Des Moines. The meeting will be conducted utilizing an open forum format. Iowa DOT staff will be present to informally discuss the planning study. No formal presentation will be made.

If you are not able to attend the meeting, information and materials will be available online at the project website mentioned above.

The Creston Police Department reports 30-year old Christopher Woolums, of Creston, was arrested Friday evening. Woolums was taken into custody for Possession of a Controlled Substance/3rd offense, and Driving While Suspended. His bond at the Union County Jail was set at $5,000.

Authorities said also, two thefts were reported over the past few days. Friday afternoon, a man residing in the 1000 block of Crest Drive, reported that sometime between 10-p.m. Thursday and 8:30-a.m. Friday, someone broke into the trunk of his vehicle and stole a jewelry box containing numerous pieces of jewelry. The loss was estimated at $5,000. And, early Saturday morning, a man residing in the 400 block of W. Monroe, in Creston, reported that his vehicle had been broken into sometime between 3:55-and 4:25-a.m., Saturday. A Smith and Wesson compact handgun with a laser sight was stolen. The gun was valued at $400.

The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:05-a.m. From KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

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LOUISVILLE, Miss. (AP) — Dozens of pigs died when a truck carrying nearly one thousand of the animals overturned in central Mississippi. WCBI reports the 18-wheeler was carrying over 900 pigs Sunday afternoon from Prestage Farms to Iowa when it flipped over. The High Point Volunteer Fire Department arrived on the scene and kept the pigs cool while they were stuck in the metal truck.

Jody Garrard, Winston County Fire Coordinator, said the fire crews sprayed the pigs with water to keep them from overheating. The truck driver was taken to the hospital to be looked over but neither the driver or the co-driver were seriously injured. The cause of the wreck is under investigation.

Red Oak Police say no injuries were reported following two separate accidents over the weekend. Just before Noon, Sunday, a 1998 Buick Park Avenue sustained $4,000 damage after it collided with a tree at N. 6th and E. Hammond Streets. Authorities say 97-year old Darrell Pratt, of Red Oak, had parked the vehicle in the 600 block of E. Hammond Street while he was attending church. After the services, he got back into the car and thought he had it started before putting his seat belt on and putting the vehicle in “Drive.” The car, with its engine not started, began rolling downhill westbound. Pratt was unable to turn the wheel due to a lack of power steering. His vehicle collided with a large Maple Tree on the north side of the street. The tree was not damaged in the collision.

And, at around 12:10-p.m. Sunday, vehicles driven by 18-year old Thomas Blocker, of Red Oak, and 26-year old Travis Kester, of Clarinda, collided at the intersection of N. 8th and E. Joy Streets, in Red Oak. The accident happened after Blocker came to the intersection but did not see Kester’s approaching 2009 Chevy Impala. When Blocker’s 1996 Dodge pulled into the intersection, it was struck on the driver’s side front fender by the Impala, causing a total of $3,800 damage. Blocker told police he didn’t think his brakes were working properly. He was cited for Failing to Yield from a Yield sign.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Police have arrested a man shot at by an officer during a foot chase in Des Moines. Police say 21-year-old Michael Garrison was taken into custody Sunday and charged with assault and other crimes. The Des Moines Police Department says in a news release that Garrison had wielded a gun in threatening a person in a home and then fled. Police say Sgt. Jeremy Sprague spotted Garrison and chased him as Garrison ran. Police say Sprague fired at Garrison when Garrison pointed a handgun at Sprague.

Garrison was soon captured, and police recovered a pellet gun believed to be the weapon Garrison pointed at Sprague. Police say no one was injured.

(Radio Iowa) — A manufacturer of compostable packaging is moving its operations from California to Iowa. Jon Kallen, spokesperson for Chamness Biodegradables, says Iowa’s “business climate” is the main factor in the company’s decision to relocate from Camarillo, to Ankeny. “This company uses a lot of energy to make the products and we’re paying about 21-cents a kilowatt hour for electricity in Southern California. We’ll probably pay around six-to-seven-cents a kilowatt hour in Ankeny,” Kallen told Radio Iowa.

Gary Chamness, the owner of the company, is a native of Blairsburg in northern Iowa’s Hamilton County. Kallen expects the new facility in Ankeny will eventually employ 36 people. “The jobs are going to be in research and development, sales, production, and custom fabrication because for a lot of these materials you have to make molds,” Kallen said.  Chamness Biodegradables makes serve-ware and bakeware, and according to Kallen, the company’s customized packaging division is booming. “We make a myriad of packaging items for clients, including six-pack beer ring holders, test tube holders for laboratories, we make packaging for a national pizza home delivery company, and we provide all the packaging for a company that delivers home meals,” Kallen said.

The Iowa Economic Development Authority Board, on Friday, awarded Chamness with $140,000 in direct financial assistance and tax benefits. Chamness plans to lease a 27,500 square foot building in Ankeny.

(RADIO IOWA) — A report by the American Gaming Association finds the impact of the 19 state-licensed casinos is bigger than previously estimates. Iowa Gaming Association president, Wes Ehrecke (Air-uh-key) says the A-G-A report looked at the job and dollar impact of the casinos. “The ripple affect with the support that they have for a lot of the small businesses, the non-profits and more — they estimated that job support at about 15-thousand-660. And total economic impact of two-point-five BILLION dollars,”Ehrecke says.  He says his organization had estimated the impact on the state at one billion dollars. The A-S-A report shows the impact of casinos was found to be widespread. “Just the support not only in charitable contributions — but often times the volunteer efforts of casino employees — as well as just the presence of having so many sponsorships and other ways that they support the community,”Ehrecke says.

Ehrecke says the casino industry has come a long way in the state. “It was difficult to imagine by anyone 27 years ago when the first riverboat casinos in the country opened up on April 1st 1991. Today now we have 19 commercial casinos that are by design and encouragement by our regulators to be premiere entertainment destinations,” Ehrecke says.  He says the amenities that go along with the casinos are part of the big impact they have on communities. “Most have some form of dinning and lodging and in some cases, golf courses, bowling alleys, spas and other entertainment entities that really make these worthwhile attractions,” according to Ehrecke. “Plus the meeting space, the concert venues that make it a really the cornerstone of any community in any region.”

Ehrecke says the casinos also take the concern of those who might develop a gambling problem very seriously. He says the gaming industry has always been at the forefront of responsible gaming and he says for the gaming industry the number of problem gamblers has held around one-percent. Ehrecke says they fund and encourage those with a problem to call the gambling addiction help line.

The A-G-A survey looked across the gambling facilities in Iowa, with a special focus on the impact of the casinos in Dubuque and Council Bluffs. The study was released as a part of its “getting to know gambling” campaign.