By Dar Danielson (Radio Iowa)

The director of the Iowa DOT gave the state Transportation Commission an update on flood recovery efforts during their meeting Tuesday.

Director Scott Marler says one of the big jobs was helping haul debris away. He says Spencer for example had 5,000 homes damaged by the flooding and needed to have the material pulled out of those homes hauled away. The DOT brought in its large dump trucks and other equipment to help move the Spencer material to a dump site. “In total we hauled over 2,800 loads of removed material to this location,” he says.

Marler says the floodwater kept people away for some courthouses, so they couldn’t renew driver’s licenses. “We actually mobilized some of our remote issuance kits, and our staff in one example, went up to Clay County and they started issuing replacement licenses in Clay County with our employees temporarily operating in the Sheriff’s Department to issue those licenses,” Marler says.

Marler says they also helped out with inspecting flooded buildings. “Some of our engineering staff had gotten a brief training with the Department of Inspections and Appeals. We actually were able to assist them in evaluating structures,” Marler says. “We sent five of our staff up to do that over the Fourth of July holiday.”

They also worked on getting flooded roadways back open. DOT Chief Engineer Tony Gustafson says at the height of the flooding there were 49 highway closures. Some highways had multiple closings. “Rapid fire rundown here, Iowa 3, Iowa 4, Iowa 9, Iowa 10, Iowa 12, Iowa 15. U.S. 18, U.S. 20, Iowa 31, U.S. 59, Iowa 60, U.S. 71, U.S. 75, and U.S. 169, as well as Interstates 29 and 680 north of Council Bluffs,” he says.

Gustafson says there were three highways still closed as of Tuesday. They include U.S. 18 west of Spencer.  “Iowa 4 south of Emmetsburg, that is still under water. That bridge there at the Des Moines River. The Des Moines River is not going down as quickly as the the Little Sioux is,” he says. “We still don’t know what the damage is there on Iowa 4 south of Emmetsburg. And then they are working on U.S. 75 south of Rock Rapids.” He says they are still working on a culvert that was blown out on U.S. 75.

DES MOINES – The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is offering a program to teach skills needed to trap furbearers to people with little to no trapping experience.

The workshop will feature knowledge and skill building sessions with instructors that will teach the basics of trapping in Iowa.

“For those interested in the tradition of trapping as a means of sourcing fur, this program provides the opportunity to gain the skills and the knowledge it takes to do it all yourself,” said Jamie Cook, program coordinator with the Iowa DNR.

Participants will learn basic strategies for trapping such as proper equipment, trap placement, trapping regulations and steps for preparing hides for trade. Participants are expected to dress appropriately for the weather as a significant portion of the class will be held outdoors.

The workshops will take place on various dates and locations across the state. The course is designed for participants of all ages.  Space is limited so be sure to register right away.

For more information and to begin the registration process, visit the link below and search by Trapper Education Class event type:

https://license.gooutdoorsiowa.com/Event/EventsHome.aspx

The program is provided through a partnership with the Iowa DNR and Iowa Trappers Association. It is part of a national effort to recruit, retain and reactivate hunters, anglers and trappers due to the overall decline in hunting and outdoor recreation.

By Dar Danielson (Radio Iowa)

The state Racing and Gaming Commission plans to hold a meeting Friday to work out a timeline for dealing with requests for a new gambling license.

They discussed the issue Monday at their first meeting since the legislature’s two-year moratorium on new licenses expired. Racing and Gaming administrator Tina Eick says a market study is one of the first steps. “Based on past history it’s usually been anywhere from a 60 to 120 day process for a study like that to be completed,” she says. Eick says the state requires a 30-day period to take proposals for the study, so it is not known when there could be a vote on a license. “It’s hard to say I would hope that we’ll get some more clarity on those issues on Friday,” Eick says. “Staff will propose a schedule and then we’ll see if the Commission agrees with that and hopefully we’ll know more Friday.”

The Linn County Gaming Association has a proposal for a casino on the Cedar River in Cedar Rapids that has been on hold since the moratorium two years ago. Eick says she doesn’t know of any other casino proposals out there, and it’s now something that can be quickly thrown together. “The written applications are pretty rigorous, they require a lot of detailed information and not just a hope to present something in the future,” she says. “It would require architectural drawings, financing specifics on the number of games, the ownership, the QSO partners.” Eick says all those involved in the proposal would also have to undergo a DCI background investigation before moving forward.

The IRGC will hold an online meeting Friday at 8:30 a.m. to discuss the timeline for considering any new licenses.