Albia High School Student Arrested On Terrorism Threat

Posted on October 24, 2017October 24, 2017 by KBOE Administrator

An Albia High School Student was arrested and charged with Threat of Terrorism after a weekend incident.

On Saturday, October 21st, the Albia Police Department and Monroe County Sheriff received reports of a threatening post on an Instagram account by the student. The post had indicated a non-specific threat of an active shooting.

A deputy with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department conducted an investigation, interviewing high school student and his family at their residence in the county. The original threat was deemed “not credible” and there was no legitimate threat of a shooting incident, according to a press release from Monroe County Sheriff, Dan Johnson.

The juvenile, who attends school in the Albia District, has been charged Threat of Terrorism, in addition to any administrative action instituted by the school district.

Police Department Officers and Deputies of the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department stood by at local schools Monday morning to reassure parents that no credible threat currently exists.

Coat Drive To Help Local Iowans In Need

Posted on October 24, 2017 by KBOE Administrator

BURR! It’s getting chillier out there. Help share the warmth with those in our community that need it!

The 10th Annual Winter Coat Drive is taking place now until January 31st, 2018.

Collection boxes for the drive will be placed at 18 locations around Oskaloosa. The drive is a great opportunity for community members to clean out their closets and make an impact during the season of giving. Items collected during the Winter Coat Drive are given to people in need at no charge.

Accepted donations include winter coats, snow boots, snow pants, winter hats, gloves/mittens, scarves, and other winter outerwear. Whenever possible, please launder items prior to donation. Organizers stress that the collection boxes for the drive are strictly for donations of winter outerwear.

Donations of other items including sweatshirts, fall jackets, rain coats, ball caps, etc. must be made directly to New Hope Community Center at 308 5th Ave West.

The need for warm winter clothing is a serious one, especially in Iowa. The average winter temperature in Iowa for 2016/17 was 26.5 degrees F. Last year, 300 warm winter coats were distributed to those in need, many of whom would have otherwise gone without.

Winter Coat Drive collection boxes can be found at the following Oskaloosa businesses:

Central United Methodist Church
Fareway
Hawkeye Real Estate
Gatton Realty
Homestead of Oskaloosa
Hy-Vee
KBOE/KMZN Radio
Mahaska
Mahaska County YMCA
Mahaska Drug
MCG
MidWestOne Bank
Musco
New Hope Community Center
Oskaloosa Public Library
Remax Pride Realty
St. Mary’s Catholic Church
First Christian Church
United Way of Mahaska County

United Way and New Hope need your help to spread the word and help keep our community warm this winter. Challenge friends and family to clean out their closets and donate winter items they no longer use – every donation helps keep someone safe and warm!

All donated items from the Winter Coat Drive are distributed at New Hope Community Center, at 308 5 th Ave. West. New items arrive each week. For assistance, check with a volunteer, or call New Hope at 641-676-1602.

Volunteers are needed to help with the drive. For more information about this service opportunity, please contact Timothy Gibson at 641-673- 6043, or uwmc.coordinator@gmail.com.

Weekend Rain Helps Diminishing Drought

Posted on October 24, 2017 by KBOE Administrator

Although Oskaloosa, and much of the surrounding area received rain this weekend, over 80{99cd714f394079a7f0ed2eb1518dd31342ff3ceb5b6c267c3ad8acd5b5a7d66b} of Mahaska County is still considered to be in a moderate drought, according to the online National Integrated Drought Information System.

Oskaloosa rainfall totals marked in at about seven-tenths of an inch for this weekend. This rain helped numerous communities in Southeast Iowa by plunging the percentage of moderate drought from 24{99cd714f394079a7f0ed2eb1518dd31342ff3ceb5b6c267c3ad8acd5b5a7d66b} to only 8.7{99cd714f394079a7f0ed2eb1518dd31342ff3ceb5b6c267c3ad8acd5b5a7d66b} in only 7 days.The first reading was taken on the 10th of October, while the most recent occurred on October 7th.

Overall for the month of October, the Oskaloosa area has received approximately 2.5 inches of rain.

Reynolds Inaugurates New Daycare Facility

Posted on October 23, 2017 by KBOE Administrator

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds will visit Centerville on Tuesday, October 31^st to join Lee Container President Robert Varnedoe for a ceremony to celebrate the opening of the new Curious Kids Day Care Center.

On August 1st, the Centerville School Board announced the purchase of the former Garfield Elementary School by a Lee Container affiliated company. The school building will now house a day care center to serve the families of Lee Container employees, as well as Centerville area families. The day care center will be staffed and operated by Curious Kids, a long-time Centerville day care operator.

The inauguration will take place at 2:30 PM at the daycare center, located in the old Garfield Elementary School building at 505 E Walsh Street. This event will conclude at 3:00 PM.

Governor Reynolds and President Robert Varnedoe will be joined by Michelle Brooke, the director of Curious Kids Day Care, who will conduct a tour of the facility. Following this visit, Governor Reynolds, Robert Varnedoe and Michelle Brooke will all deliver prepared statements.

Robert Varnedoe will then lead Governor Reynolds on a tour of the Lee Container production facility, located at 2800 Industrial Park Road.

Facade Improvements May See Second Phase

Posted on October 23, 2017 by KBOE Administrator

Construction on the Downtown Facade Improvement Project began in May of this year, while the discussion on the project is dated back to September of 2015. This project has made leaps and bounds to improve the presentation of the downtown square.

At the October 16 City Council meeting, Development Services Director Andrew Jensen, presented an update to the council about the facade improvements. Noting the direction of improvements being made as Christner Contracting Inc. moves east across North Market Street.

Soon the contractors will be rounding the corner of N. Market and High Avenue East, starting at the ReMax Office.

The contractors will continue down High Avenue East and turn north on South 1st Street to finish up the 16 building facade project.

With the current project set to wrap up by June of 2018, so far the contractors have spent $434,351.33 of the over $1.13 million that was awarded to the project, according to Jensen.

The source of funds for this project are allocated from a variety of different areas including a Block Grant through the IEDA; Tax Increment through the City of Oskaloosa; a percentage from the property owners involved with the project; and the George Daily Family Trust.

In the council meeting, the idea of pursuing a second phase was also discussed. This second phase would begin on North Market street along the corridor including Brown’s Shoe Fit, Smokey Row and Bridal Dreams. From there, this anticipated project will diverge onto First Avenue East and touch Big Ed’s BBQ and Tropical Rayz Salon.

The funds for the second phase will also come from similar sources. During the second phase, Jensen noted that approximately 10 to 14 buildings will be included on the next installment. That number, however, will be dependent on how many businesses wish to be involved and the amount of funds that can be accumulated.

FOOTBALL PLAYOFFS INCLUDE NINE AREA TEAMS

Posted on October 23, 2017 by KBOE Administrator

The football season flew by and it was extremely interesting in our listening area. Nine teams qualified in five of the six classes.

In Class 3A, Oskaloosa grabbed one of the two wild card slots and will play on the road at Cedar Rapids Xavier. Xavier is ranked #1 in the Radio Iowa poll and have been one of the highest ranked teams around the state all season. Osky will be a big underdog, but Head Coach Jake Jenkins has a team that went 4-1 on the road this season.

You can hear that game live on 99.5 FM/740 AM KMZN, radiokmzn.com, and the KMZN mobile app. The pregame show will begin at 6:30 PM for the 7 PM kickoff.

Pella has won seven straight games after their long winning streak was snapped. The Dutch will start the defense of their three consecutive state championships at home against Webster City in a rematch of last year’s state title game.

PCM made the Class 2A playoffs after dominating in District 6. The Mustangs will host Williamsburg, who grabbed one of the 2A wild cards.

In Class 1A, Pella Christian ran the table in the regular season for the second straight year. The Eagles will also host Sigourney/Keota for the second straight year to start the playoffs. S/K fell in a win-and-in game against Wilton, but the Cobras landed a wild card spot. You can hear that game on 104.9 FM KBOE, kboeradio.com, and the KBOE mobile app. Pregame show will start at 6:30 PM for the 7 PM kickoff.

Also in Class 1A, Pleasantville backed into the #2 seed in District 5 with two district losses. The Trojans won the three-way tiebreaker including Woodward-Granger and Interstate 35. Pleasantville will be on the road to face West Branch in the first round.

Class A District 6 produced two playoff teams from the listening area. Lynnville-Sully is ranked #1 in the Radio Iowa poll after an unbeaten regular season. The Hawks will host district foe New London, who snagged a wild card. L-S beat New London in their meeting earlier this year in New London, 20-14.

Pekin finished in second in the district and they will be on the road at Hudson. Hudson had a great season, going undefeated and have been ranked in the top five for the last half of the year.

Finally, Moravia survived a potential circus in 8-Player District 5, finishing in second with their only loss to district champs HLV. The Mohawks will go on the road in the first round to face perennial powerhouse Don Bosco.

After the games go final, you can also check out a postseason edition of Scores and More Presented By Bubbl’r. Taylor Howard will be running through all of the playoff scores around the state and go through the matchups in the quarterfinal rounds.

Historic Preservation Awarded To Five Dutch Homes

Posted on October 20, 2017October 20, 2017 by KBOE Administrator

On October 20th, the Historic Pella Trust held an awards evening for residents, homes and landmarks in the Dutch community.

There were five winners of the 2017 Historic Preservation Award: Robert and Robin Schulty; Brent and Kathy Martin; Daniel and Amy Roorda; Paul and Carol Weihe; and Kyle and Shalene Zylstra. There was also a single winner for the 2017 Historic Landmark Award given to the Mayor of Pella, Jim Mueller, for the Sunken Garnden’s Windmill.

The Schulty’s purchased the property at 1014 East 1st Street in 2015. The home was constructed in 1910 and is one of three homes honored that stand on East 1st Street.

The second home residing on East 1st Street is owned by the Martin’s at 1010. This home was purchased in 2010 but was constructed in 1915. The Martin’s added a useful addition to the back of the home.

Daniel and Amy Roorda purchased 1011 East 1st Street in 2014. Over the last three years, the Roorda’s had a complete renovation and restoration of the home. This abode will celebrate its 100th ‘birthday’ next year. The Roorda’s occupy the home next door, which is visible in the photo.

The fourth home resides at 314 Liberty Street, purchased in 2006 by Paul and Carol Weihe. The date of erection of the residence is estimated to be prior to 1900. At the time, this home resided catty-corner to East Market Park.

Finally, the last home is one of the most viewed homes as it lies just off of Highway-163. Kyle and Shalene Zylstra purchased the home in 2007, though it has been in the family for many, many years. Though this home is a piece of Dutch history, it lies inside the Mahaska County limits. Iowa became a state in 1846, fourteen years later in 1860, this home was constructed. Shalene noted that when the home was purchased, “there was a hole in the roof and raccoons living in the crawl space.” Both Shalene and Kyle were in agreement that maybe it would have been better to just bulldoze the property. However, they stuck it out, restored the property and even added a more modern addition to the rear of the building to hold their growing family.

The last award for the evening was handed to Mayor Jim Mueller to recognize the Sunken Garden’s Windmill as a Historic Landmark within the city of Pella. The iconic Dutch windmill is celebrating it’s 80th anniversary. And Mayor Mueller spoke of restoration the city could do to enhance the longevity of the windmill. Mueller noted adding a metal roof, updating the windows and ensuring the structure of the base of the windmill will be necessary for the livelihood as well as modernizing the Dutch landmark.

First Responders in Iowa Receiving Checks From Dakota Access Pipeline

Posted on October 20, 2017October 20, 2017 by KBOE Administrator

The company that built the Dakota Access oil pipeline that runs diagonally across Iowa, from the northwest to the southeast is making donations to emergency responders in every county the pipeline crosses in Iowa and three other states.

Mike Futch, vice president of Energy Transfer Partners, explains the motive.

“In recognition of our dedication and our commitment to operate our pipelines in a very safe and regulatory-compliant and reliable manner, one of the things that’s very important to a system like that is a very close working relationship with first responders and emergency responders,” said Futch.

The pipeline crosses 18 counties in total in Iowa and also carves a path across Illinois and North and South Dakota. The news conference was held in South Dakota and Futch says they want to be good corporate partners with every county the pipeline touches.

In Iowa, the total donation is $360,000 to units in 18 counties. The total donation in the four states adds up to one-million dollars as the pipeline covers 50 counties in all.

The Dakota Access Pipeline crosses through Jasper, Mahaska, Wapello, Keokuk, Jefferson, Van Buren and Lee counties in Southeast Iowa. Each will receive a check for $20,000.

Jamey Robinson, EMA/911 Administrator in Mahaska County, said his office has identified potential areas for projects. Potential projects include active shooter equipment and simulation, rehabilitation equipment during extreme hot or cold, search and rescue equipment, and lastly, equipment to safely remove debris from infrastructure, such as saw assets.

Chuck Fry, vice president for liquid pipelines at Energy Transfer, says the pipeline passing through Iowa is now fully assembled and carrying petroleum.

“Operationally, it can run at full capacity but it’s not fully subscribed by shippers yet,” Fry says.

The company is also giving the state of North Dakota 15-million dollars for protest-related expenses.

Washington Couple Arrested For Child Endangerment Death

Posted on October 20, 2017October 20, 2017 by KBOE Administrator

Yesterday, October 19th, 29 year-old Ambrashia Marie Chrzan, along with 36-year-old Anthony Lamont McCoy, of Riverside, Iowa were taken into custody for the November 9, 2016, death of a minor.

After a joint investigation by the Iowa Department of Public Safety’s Division of Criminal Investigation, Washington County Sheriff’s Office, the Office of the Iowa Attorney General, and the Iowa Medical Examiner’s Office, officials secured and executed arrest warrants for Child Endangerment Resulting in Death, a Class B felony.

On November 9, 2016, the seventeen month old , Avery McCoy, was discovered unresponsive in her crib by her mother. Chrzan and McCoy were identified as the biological parents and the sole caretakers responsible for the care and feeding Avery.

On November 10, 2016, an autopsy was done by a pathologist at the University of Iowa Hospital’s Decedent Care Unit. The infant’s death was ruled a homicide and the cause of death was undetermined, while malnutrition and neglect significantly contributed to the death. At the time of the autopsy, Avery’s body weight was eleven pounds.

Chrzan and McCoy are currently being housed in the Washington County Jail. If convicted, both face up to no more than fifty years of confinement.

Orionid Meteor Shower Show Peaks This Weekend

Posted on October 20, 2017 by KBOE Administrator

October may be best known for pumpkins, fall weather and haunted houses, but the month is also prime time for meteor showers. Budding astronomers and stargazers will want to mark their calendars for the peak of the Orionid meteor shower, which is coming up this weekend.

The Orionid meteor shower takes place every October when the Earth passes through a trail of debris left behind by Halley’s Comet (which we sadly won’t see again until 2061). While it will be visible from October 2 through November 7, it’s expected to peak on the night of October 20 through early morning on October 21.

At its peak, 25 meteors per hour are expecting to streak across the sky. And the very best time for stargazers to see the shower is just after midnight, AccuWeather reports. “The moon will set during the evening, making for excellent viewing conditions,” Senior Meteorologist Dave Samuhel said.

Earlier this month, stargazers were treated to the Draconid meteor shower, which peaked on Sunday, October 8. The event derives its name from the constellation Draco the Dragon, which is the spot in the sky where the shower will begin, EarthSky reports. It’s a rare phenomenon because it can be seen best in the evening right after sunset, as opposed to just before dawn.

Take time this weekend to find a spot under the open sky away from cities, artificial lights, and pollution. Then, it’s as easy as looking up!

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