The Atlantic City Council will meet 5:30-p.m. Wednesday at City Hall. During the meeting, Mayor Dave Jones will make an announcement regarding “The Pledge of Allegiance.” A public hearing will take place prior to the approval of Fiscal Year 2021 Maximum Property Tax Dollars, the amount of which is unchanged from the Feb. 5th Council meeting, and that calls for the total maximum levy for affected properties in the amount of $2,295, 878, or an increase in generated dollars, of 2.71%.

According to City Administrator John Lund, the Maximum Property Tax dollars requested in the total maximum levy for affected tax levies in FY 2021, represents greater than 102% of the Maximum Property Tax Dollars requested for the current FY 2021. The total tax rate includes a voted General Fund levy, Debt Service levy, and Capital Improvement levy.

The Council will then hold a Public Hearing on a proposal to enter into a General Obligation (G.O.) Solid Waste Management (SWM) Loan Agreement, followed by action on passing a Resolution for the same, along with the levy of taxes to pay for the loan. The Cass County Landfill (as we’ve previously mentioned), has instituted a per-capita fee of $12 per resident, to be assessed annually. The City’s share of the total amount is $85,344, payable in four equal payments over the course of the fiscal year.

The SWM Resolution will be followed by a Resolution “Setting the date for a Public Hearing on a Proposal to Enter into a G.O. Refunding Loan Agreement, and to Borrow Money Thereunder, in a principal amounts not to exceed $2.25-million. Essentially, this would allow the City of refinance the remaining debt with a new, short-term bond, resulting in an interest savings over the term of nearly $53,000.

In other business, the Council will discuss No Parking on the north side of East 12th Street, which is a dead-end located just east of the Heritage House. Parking is allowed on both sides of the street, which one property owner says obstructs the passage of standard vehicles through the street. There have also been concerns from the Police Chief and Street Superintendent with getting police, fire and street department vehicles through the area.

And finally, City Administrator John Lund will present an overview of the FY 2021 Budget proposal and 10-year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP)…amounting to 197 pages worth of information.

The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office, late Tuesday afternoon, said deputies spoke with the suspected driver of the Hit and Run accident that took place in Sidney, Monday. 40-year old Fabien Bell, of Sidney, came to the Sheriff’s Office and told the Sheriff that he thought the boys had just slapped his car on the way by and did not know of the injuries.

Bell was cited for Failure to Yield to Pedestrian in Crosswalk, Leaving the Scene of an Accident and Failure to Provide Proof of Security Against Liability, Injury Accident. The incident remains under investigation.

Original report:

The Fremont County Sheriff’s Department said that at around 4:10-p.m. Monday, deputies were called to the area of Filmore Street and Illinois Street in Sidney, for a report of a juvenile that had been stuck by a car. Witnesses said a vehicle was eastbound on Filmore Street and turned south on Illinois Street, while two male juveniles were attempting to cross Filmore Street. The vehicle struck one of the juveniles, briefly stopped and then fled the scene to the south.

(Radio Iowa) – After years of study and decades of debate, the fate of Iowa’s bottle deposit law is still being discussed by lawmakers. There are two vastly different bills in the Iowa House this year. One bill would KEEP the nickle deposit on bottles and cans, but send two cents of that to redemption centers rather than just a penny. The other bill would get rid of the “bottle bill” altogether in 2023. Mary Ann Renner has owned and operated redemption centers in Maquoketa and Tipton for 22 years.

“I’ve got family that live in Illinois and Wisconsin and we went over for a wedding last fall and we were just literally shocked at what the roadways looked like,” she said. “Are we really going back 40 years to that, the litter and the garbage in the roadways?” Lee Colins, the operator of the Can Dough redemption center in Ottumwa for the past eight years, says some people in her area depend on the money they get from returning the empties.

“I have homeless that come in daily, line up,” she says. “They have the cans to buy their food, whatever they need — shelter, diapers.” Bottle bill advocates say because of the bottle bill, about three-quarters of the empty cans and bottles that had pop, beer or wine get returned for the deposit. Grocery and convenience stores argue the cans and bottles are often filthy and shouldn’t be handled in a place that sells food. Brad Epperly, a lobbyist for the Iowa Grocery Industry Association, says the current system is not convenient for consumers, either.

“It’s not convenient to store them separately, stick them in a bag, drive them in your car to where you buy your food and then return them and stand in line with a ticket,” Epperly says. “It’s much more convenient to toss them in your recycling bin, so the question here is not just: ‘How great the bottle bill is?’ The question is: ‘Is that the best way that we should be recycling in the state?'” Representative Megan Jones, a Republican from Sioux Rapids, says the Bottle Bill helped teach generations of Iowans how to recycle, but she says the empties taken to grocery stores are now a public health issue.

“People are putting their kids in the same carts that someone just had their cans and bottles that were covered in crickets, frogs and chewing tobacco,” Jones says. “It is disgusting. It is gross and we owe our kids better.” It’s unclear what, if anything, legislators may decide to do on this topic — and this Friday is the deadline for committee passage of policy bills, or the legislation is dead for the year.

Members of the Audubon and Coon Rapids-Bayard School District Boards of Education have voted to continue a sharing agreement for the services of Superintendent, Human Resources, Transportation Director and Elementary School Counselor. The Audubon School Board approved a Memorandum of Understanding for the Superintendent and sharing agreement for the other positions, during their meeting Monday evening.

The contract for Superintendent Eric Trager is for three years, whereas the other posts are on a year-by-year basis. In other business, activity, the Board set March 11^th during their regular meeting to hold a public hearing for the School Calendar. And, the Audubon School Board approved will offer their non-certified staff health insurance, including to their associates and cooks, in hopes of attracting and retaining quality people.

The Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton School Board, Monday, held a Public Hearing with regard to a proposed 2020-21 School Year Calendar. Superintendent Trevor Miller said there were some questions raised during the hearing. Including about having the Monday after Easter off, instead they have Good Friday off, as well as the Thursday before, because that is a Professional Development Day. The District will have more hours than the State Minimum 1,080, with the flexibility to allow for snow days, moving forward. The Board approved the Calendar, which has school starting Aug. 24, 2020, and ending May 21, 2021.

The Exira/EHK Board also approved an 80/20 Superintendent sharing agreement with the IKM/Manning School District. The one-year agreement stipulates Mr. Miller will serve four days in the IKM-Manning District and one-day in the Exira-EHK District, while getting all the work done by serving different hours and through the use of technology. And, they approved Personnel transfers, hires and resignations. Brittany Williams is transferring from 1st grade Teacher to 3rd grade, which opens up the 1st grade position that’s been posted on various educational employment websites.

Special Education teacher Bev Ohlinger is going to retire. She came to the district from Tri-Center last year. Kathy Blazek was hired as a half-time, long-term substitute in the Elementary, covering Special Education; Dave Burkett’s contract was renewed as a para educator in the Elk Horn Building; and many contract renewals mean Athletic personnel will be returning for the upcoming school year. Miller says the District is in the processing of looking for a K-8 Guidance/P.E. position, a High School Business position, and a Middle School Special Education position.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (Sioux City Journal) — A northwest Iowa man has been given 11 years in prison for the drunken driving death of a cousin last year. The Sioux City Journal reports that Darrick Toel was sentenced Monday. He’d pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide while driving recklessly and to operating while intoxicated. Authorities estimate Darrick Toel was speeding at 90 mph July 1 on a rural highway just northeast of Sergeant Bluff when he lost control of his car and struck a tree. Toel’s passenger, 37-year-old Ryan Toel, of Struble, died two days later from his injuries.

The Harlan Police Department reports two recent arrests. Last Thursday (Feb. 13), 43-year old Alejandro Isidoro Hernandez, of Harlan, was arrested for Domestic Abuse Assault, and Child Endangerment. His initial court appearance was set for Feb. 24th. And, on Feb. 11th, 38-year old Matthew James Baucom, of Harlan, was arrested and charged with Disorderly Conduct.