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Tax Abatement Deadline Approaching in Ottumwa

Posted on by Sam Parsons

OTTUMWA — The City of Ottumwa is accepting applications for property tax abatement until January 13, 2026. The residential and commercial property tax abatement programs are designed to encourage improvements and new development by reducing the additional taxes assessed on the improvement.

The residential tax abatement program is available citywide and reduces property taxes paid on qualifying improvements to residential property. Property owners who have completed improvements to residential property or apartment buildings in 2025 can file an application for residential tax abatement. New construction, additions, and remodeling projects that increase the assessed value by at least 10% are eligible activities. Taxes on the improvements are abated for a specific number of years for qualifying residential projects. For single-family homes, taxes on new value can be abated at 100% for three years. The school tax rate does not apply to the abatement. Applications are also being accepted for commercial property tax abatement in the City of Ottumwa. Improvements to new or existing commercial property that increase the assessed value of the property by at least 15% are eligible for tax abatement. Applicants can access a five-year abatement schedule.

The deadline for tax abatement applications is Tuesday, January 13, 2026. For additional information, or to receive tax abatement applications, contact the Planning and Development Department on the Second Floor of City Hall at 105 East Third Street, visit ottumwa.us, or call 641-683-0650.

Oskaloosa City Council to Meet for First Time in 2026 Tonight

Posted on by Sam Parsons

By Sam Parsons

The Oskaloosa City Council has their first meeting of the new calendar year scheduled for tonight. The council will be swearing in the officials who were elected, or re-elected, in November.

On the agenda is the first reading of an ordinance relating to animal control. According to city staff, the proposed ordinance would correct superficial errors in the previous code and eliminate registration requirements for domestic animals within city limits, in addition to instituting a minor fee for dangerous dog appeal requests. The ordinance would also allow for alternate enforcement action penalties for certain violations of the code, including animal leash law and animal at-large violations, nuisance animal noise, animal immunization violations, and other violations of the dangerous dog ordinance.

Another ordinance on the agenda for tonight deals with abandoned or “junk” vehicles. The ordinance would add additional alternative steps for the city to remove abandoned or junk vehicles from public roadways and impound them, granting expanded powers and authority to the Oskaloosa Police Department in addressing these vehicles.

Additionally, the council will consider an amendment to the city’s CORE Downtown Improvement Grant Program and a 28E agreement with the Iowa Department of Revenue. Towards the end of the meeting, the council will be reviewing the results of the community survey that was conducted by the city in December.

The meeting will begin at 6pm this evening in the Oskaloosa City Hall Council Chambers.

Pope opens 2026 with plea for peace in countries bloodied by war, families wounded by violence

Posted on by Sam Parsons

ROME (AP) — Pope Leo XIV opened 2026 on Thursday with a plea for peace, singling out in particular countries “bloodied by conflict” and families wounded by violence.

Leo celebrated a New Year’s Day Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica and then delivered a special noontime prayer from his studio overlooking the piazza, which was full of pilgrims and tourists on the bright, chilly day.

Leo noted that Jan. 1 marks the church’s World Day of Peace and used the occasion to issue a prayer.

“Let us all pray together for peace: first, among nations bloodied by conflict and suffering, but also within our homes, in families wounded by violence or pain,” he said.

After a busy Christmas season, Leo has a few days of rest before he celebrates the church’s Epiphany holiday on Jan. 6. On that day too, he officially closes out the 2025 Holy Year, the once-every-quarter-century celebration that brought millions of pilgrims to Rome.

Immediately thereafter, he is to preside over a two-day meeting of the entire College of Cardinals, the princes of the church who elected him pope, as well as those who are over age 80 and didn’t participate in the conclave but still remain part of the college. Leo is resurrecting a tradition largely eschewed by Pope Francis to convene cardinals every so often to seek their counsel on how to govern the 1.4 billion-strong Catholic Church.

Weekly Fuel Report

Posted on by Sam Parsons

DES MOINES — The price of regular unleaded gasoline fell 4 cents from last week’s price and is currently averaging $2.38 across Iowa according to AAA.

Crude Oil Summary

  • The price of global crude oil fell this week on the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) by 23 cents per barrel, and is currently priced at $57.86.
  • Brent crude oil fell by 88 cents and is currently priced at $61.24.
  • One year ago, WTI crude sold for $72.44 and Brent crude was $74.58.

Motor Fuels

  • As of Wednesday, the price of regular unleaded gasoline averaged $2.38 across Iowa according to AAA.
    • Prices fell 4 cents from last week’s price and are down 38 cents from a year ago.
    • The national average on Wednesday was $2.84, down 2 cents from last week’s price.
  • Retail diesel prices in Iowa fell 1 cent this week with a statewide average of $3.30.
    • One year ago, diesel prices averaged $3.28 in Iowa.
    • The current Iowa diesel price is 27 cents lower than the national average of $3.57.
  • The current Des Moines Terminal/Rack Prices are $1.51 for U87-E10, $1.72 for Unleaded 87 (clear), $2.01 for ULSD#2, $2.46 for ULSD#1, and $1.71 per gallon for E-70 prices.

Heating Fuels

  • Natural gas prices were down 41 cents at the Henry Hub reporting site and are currently priced at $3.77 MMbtu.
  • Propane prices averaged $1.58 per gallon in Iowa.
  • Home heating oil prices had a statewide average of $2.81 per gallon.

Tips for saving energy on the road or at home are available at energy.gov and fueleconomy.gov.

Coffee And Conversations to Start Next Saturday

Posted on by Sam Parsons

OSKALOOSA — The Mahaska Chamber & Development Group is getting ready for the Coffee & Conversation events. This engaging series of informative sessions provides Mahaska County residents with invaluable insights to state, county and local topics, fostering opportunities for community members to meet, learn, and discuss subjects important to community improvement.

Join them at Smokey Row (109 S Market, St., Oskaloosa) from 8:30 AM to 9:30 AM for these enlightening conversations. A special thank you to MidWestOne Bank for sponsoring coffee for all attendees.

The dates for Coffee & Conversation and panel speakers are as follows:
January 10, 2026- City of Oskaloosa and Mahaska County
January 24, 2026 – Iowa Senate #19 Ken Rozenboom and Iowa Senate #44  Adrian Dickey
                 Iowa House #88 Helena Hayes and Iowa House #37 Barb Kniff-McCulla
February 14, 2026 – Stay tuned!
February 28, 2026 – Iowa Senate #19 Ken Rozenboom and Iowa Senate #44 Adrian Dickey
                  Iowa House #88 Helena Hayes and Iowa House #37 Barb Kniff-McCulla
 March 14, 2026- Stay tuned!
March 28, 2026 – Iowa Senate #19 Ken Rozenboom and Iowa Senate #44 Adrian Dickey
               Iowa House #88 Helena Hayes and Iowa House #37 Barb Kniff-McCulla

Ottumwa Man Arrested Following Single Vehicle Accident

Posted on by Sam Parsons

BATAVIA – An Ottumwa man was arrested in rural Jefferson County after authorities discovered he was in possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia during a single-vehicle accident.

According to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, on Sunday, December 28, at around 6:47pm, law enforcement received a 911 call regarding an accident that had occurred in the 1400 block of Highway 34 east of Batavia. 

The driver, who was identified as 30-year-old Derek Lankford of Ottumwa, was traveling westbound on Highway 34 when he lost control of his vehicle and entered the north side ditch, rolling the vehicle and striking a cement culvert. Lankford and a passenger were transported to the Jefferson County Health Center for treatment of minor injuries.

A search warrant was then executed on Lankford’s vehicle. Drug paraphernalia and approximately 16.57 grams of methamphetamine were located within the vehicle.

As a result, Lankford was arrested upon being released from the hospital, and now faces several charges, including Control Substance Violation (class B felony), Drug Tax Stamp Violation (class D felony), Driving while Barred (aggravated misdemeanor), and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. He remains in custody on a $25,000 bond. 

Where are the wackiest New Year’s Eve drops in the US?

Posted on by Sam Parsons

NEW YORK (AP) — Why let New York City have all the fun with its Times Square ball drop on New Year’s Eve?

Dozens of places across the U.S. will ring in 2026 by dropping a quirky assortment of fruits, vegetables, sea creatures and balls of all shapes and sizes.

Many have a hometown flair.

There’s the giant cheese wedge in Plymouth, Wisconsin, a chile pepper in Las Cruces, New Mexico, a pinecone in Flagstaff, Arizona, and a conch shell in Key West, Florida.

Pennsylvania is home to a bonanza of bizarre New Year’s Eve events — the bologna drop in Lebanon, the pickle drop in Dillsburg and the potato chip drop in Lewistown.

It’s a New Year’s tradition that goes back to 1907 when a 700-pound (318-kilogram) ball measuring five feet (1.5 meters) in diameter debuted in Times Square. Copycat celebrations have surged coast to coast over the past few decades and around the beginning of the new millennium.

Here’s a look at some of those events around the nation:

Fruity traditions on New Year’s Eve

It’s said in some cultures that eating fruit on New Year’s Eve brings luck and wealth. Perhaps that’s why many cities mix fruit into their celebrations. Miami has its “Big Orange” drop, while Sarasota, Florida, features a pineapple. There are cherry drops in Milwaukie, Oregon, and Traverse City, Michigan. Brightly lit grapes plunge from above in Temecula, California. Atlanta this year is replacing its peach drop with a “digital drone peach in the sky.”

Beach balls and flip-flops

It’s tough to beat ringing in the year while watching a pair of sparkly flip-flops diving into Folly Beach, South Carolina. In Panama City Beach, Florida, there’s an evening-long bash where 15,000 beach balls are dropped above revelers just hours before a giant beach ball descends a tower at midnight.

MoonPies and a giant Peep

What could be better than seeing a 600-pound (272 kilograms) MoonPie make a 60-second descent in Mobile, Alabama? How about getting a slice of MoonPie cake at the city’s biggest event of the year? Not sweet enough? Check out the 400-pound (181 kilograms) yellow Peep chick that drops into Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Seafood smorgasbord

Waterfront cities celebrate the sea on New Year’s Eve. Brunswick, Georgia, has the shrimp drop, while Easton, Maryland, serves up its annual crab drop. The oyster drop is the main event in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. The biggest catch might be in Port Clinton, Ohio, along Lake Erie, home to a 600-pound (272-kilogram) walleye named Wylie. The original papier-mache version debuted 30 years ago and has given way to a menacing fiberglass fish.

Potatoes and pierogies

There’s definitely a food theme to these New Year’s drops. Just outside Chicago, watch out for a 10-foot (3 meters) pierogi in Whiting, Indiana. The Idaho Potato Drop in Boise has been going for more than a decade, and Mt. Olive, North Carolina, celebrates its hometown pickle brand by dropping a glittery green pickle that’s close to 6 feet (1.8 meters) long.

Possum drop lives on

All of these events are meant to be fun, boost civic pride and attract tourists. But one created such a stir that it ended up in court. Residents in western North Carolina no longer lower a live possum inside a glass box at midnight, calling off the event in 2019 after years of protests and legal challenges. There is still a possum drop in Tallapoosa, Georgia, which was long ago known as Possum Snout. That one, though, stars a stuffed possum named Spencer.

Iowa DOT to install rumble strips on all new roads

Posted on by Sam Parsons

By O. Kay Henderson (Radio Iowa)

The number of traffic fatalities has dropped significantly in Iowa this year and could reach a 100-year low.

Some law enforcement officials cite Iowa’s new law banning the handling of a smart phone while driving as a major factor. Larry Grant, the state safety planner for the Iowa Department of Transportation, said officers have been issuing citations for the past six months and will start issuing citations January 1, so he expects the full effect of the law on traffic safety will occur in 2026.

“The public, they work around those laws a lot of times, so we’re hoping that once that’s enforceable that’s going to drive down crashes as a whole,” Grant told Radio Iowa. “That plays into, then, fatalities and serious injury crashes.”

A high percentage of traffic fatalities involve a single vehicle that runs off the road. “It tends to be a single occupant, sometimes impairment and then they aren’t wearing their seatbelt, which is very surprising,” Grant said, “that vehicle rolls and that person is either seriously injured or killed.”

As a result, Grant said the Iowa DOT’s new policy is that every road the agency builds in the future will have edge line rumble strips and, if it’s a two-lane road, there will be rumble strips along the center line. “Those marks on the road that are ground in, that when you drive over it makes that noise that alerts the driver they’re either crossing the center line or going off the edge of the road,” Grant said.

The DOT is also widening all paint strips that mark lanes on the road from four inches to six inches. “The newer vehicles, they’re looking for those edge line and center line markings,” Grant said, “and so with us increasing the size of those markings, it enhances the ability of that vehicle to actually see where the road is and keep that vehicle within the lanes of travel.”

During an interview with Radio Iowa last week, Grant indicated there have been “amazing improvements” to vehicles that are contributing to the drop in traffic fatalities and accidents overall.

“Vehicles are really made to absorb those crashes so they have crush zones. They have air bags, and then they have anti-lock brakes and then traction control — all this technology, then we really advanced it when it started doing lane assist or adaptive cruise control,” Grant said, “so all those things that vehicle is doing for the driver without the driver even, honestly, knowing that.”

Other roadway improvements are improving safety — and reducing wrecks — like high-intensity reflective signs, particularly on the curves of roads. “It makes that driver kind of look up a little bit and a lot of times when people are driving, they’re not focused on the roads, they’re looking down. We want to draw their attention to those safety signs that are out there, whether it’s stop signs or yield signs or, again, those chevrons around a curve,” Grant said. “Whether it’s in the daylight or at night when those headlights hit, it draws attention to those signs.”

Grant was a state trooper for nearly 30 years and has been the Iowa DOT’s State Safety Planner for the past three-and-a-half years.

Ottumwa Man Arrested for Making Threats while Armed with Knife

Posted on by Sam Parsons

OTTUMWA – An Ottumwa man is behind bars for an incident at a Casey’s convenience store in which he allegedly threatened someone while wielding a knife. 

According to court records, on December 26, at around 8:11pm, officers with the Ottumwa Police Department responded to a report of an assault at the 1000 block of East Main Street. 22-year-old Tristan Charbonneau was reported to have entered the Casey’s convenience store while brandishing a knife. He allegedly approached the victim with the knife while yelling and threatening them. The victim later reported feeling as though their life was in danger during the incident.

Law enforcement arrived and arrested Charbonneau without further incident and he was charged with assault while displaying a dangerous weapon, an aggravated misdemeanor. He was taken to the Wapello County Jail, where he remains in custody on a $2,000 bond.

Two Men Arrested in Undercover Online Operation Against Child Predators

Posted on by Sam Parsons

CENTERVILLE – Two men were arrested by authorities in Centerville following online sting operations targeting child predators.

62-year-old Todd Richard Bratz of Centerville and 54-year-old Brian Alan Leager of Moulton both face felony charges as a result of their alleged conversations with authorities pretending to be underaged girls online.

According to the Centerville Police Department, investigations were conducted using an undercover officer targeting predators online on several public and dark web applications. The undercover officer was trained specifically to handle these types of cases, including information gathering, criminal prosecution, evidence collection, and managing suspects. 

The undercover officer portrayed a 15-year-old girl and had created multiple profiles on several social media applications, but could not initiate communication with any target, suggest sexual activity, or suggest meetings. Police say that the individuals who were arrested in these cases suggested sexual activity under their own accord and attempted to arrange meetings with the undercover officer.

Bratz was arrested on December 22 at around 12:59am following a two-day investigation in which Bratz initiated a conversation with the undercover officer and arranged to meet at a predetermined location to perform a sex act.

Leager was arrested on December 29 at approximately 8:04pm. The investigation into Leager occurred over a 12-day period in which he had conversations on social media with the undercover officer and arranged to meet at a predetermined location to perform a sex act.

Both men face felony charges of Enticing a Minor (class D felony) and Grooming (class D felony).

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