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American Gothic Center to Host Grant Wood Tour

Officials with the American Gothic Center in Eldon have announced they will host a one day trip via the Ottumwa Transit Authority to see Grant Wood Country. Stops will include a tour of the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art, Grant Wood’s Studio at 5 Turner Alley, the Anamosa Grant Wood Gallery, Antioch Country School, Anamosa Riverside Cemetery, St. Joseph’s Church, Stone City Quarry, and supper at the General Store and Pub in Stone City.

The day long trip will be held Saturday April 24^th departing from the American Gothic House Center in Eldon at 9:00 a.m. and returning at 9:30 p.m. The cost is 45-dollars per person. For more information contact Jessica Strom by calling the center at 652-3352.

First Responders Prepare to Deal with Muddy Roads

Emergency responders from Wapello County met Wednesday evening to discuss the condition of gravel roads in the County and plan for emergency response in muddy conditions.

Wapello County Engineer Brian Moore noted that most county roads are in fair condition for this time of year, but warned that with heavy rain, road conditions could quickly grow worse. Local fire and rescue personnel discussed contingency plans for emergency medical response into areas where gravel roads have severely deteriorated. Fire and rescue personnel from the various communities and the Wapello County Sheriff’s Department will be assisting ORMICS crews with 4 and 6 wheel drive vehicles as needed.

Residents should be aware that if the condition of gravel roads deteriorates, response times may be slower for fire and medical emergency calls in rural areas. There may be situations of responders having to wait for a 4 wheel drive vehicle to arrive before they can proceed down a road. Wapello County residents in areas likely to be isolated by poor road conditions should plan to check on their neighbors.

Flood Warning Issued for Des Moines River In Eddyville Area

The National Weather Services in Des Moines has continued a Flood Warning for the Des Moines River in the Eddyville and Chillicothe area.

The warning is specifically for an area from near Cedar Creek near Tracy to Middle Avery Creek near Chillicothe. The warning will remain in effect until early Sunday morning.

At 3:00 a.m. Thursday morning, the stage was 60.7 feet and rising. Flood stage is 61 feet.

No flooding is occurring and minor flooding is forecast. The forecast calls for the river to rise above flood stage Friday morning and continue rising to 61.1 feet Saturday morning. The river will fall below flood stage early Sunday morning.

Missouri Crash Kills Ottumwa Teen

A 17 year old Ottumwa teen was killed Sunday afternoon following a one vehicle crash on U. S. highway 63 north Columbia, Missouri.

The Missouri State Patrol says a car driven by Esxther A. Corona of Ottumwa was northbound in the left lane when Corona attempted to change lanes when unsafe to do so. The car nearly sideswiped another vehicle. Corona over corrected and slid into the median overturned several times across the southbound lanes of traffic and came to rest on the southbound shoulder.

Killed in the accident was 17 year old Elizabeth a. Carrillo. Four other passengers were injured after they were ejected from the car. They were not wearing seatbelts.

Ottumwa Music Instructor to be Guest Conductor for Des Moines Event

An Ottumwa strings instructor and director of orchestra at Evans Middle School and Ottumwa High School…..Patty Babb has been invited to be a guest orchestra conductor for the Des Moines School District’s Middle School Honor Orchestra, Band and Chorus Festival on Thursday March 25^th.

Rehearsals will be held throughout the day culminating with a concert in the evening. Each honor group will perform four selections in addition to a grand finale, featuring a composition commissioned for the combined groups.

The concert will be held in the Knapp center on the Drake University campus at 7:00 p.m.

Ottumwa School Board Hears From Pickwick Parents

Members of the Ottumwa Board of Education were asked a lot of questions Monday evening as parents from Pickwick elementary school expressed a lot of concerns over plans to close the school.

Since 2000, the school’s enrollment has declined by 71 students with the projected enrollment next year at 133 students. Superintendent of School Jon Sheldahl says replacing the building’s roof is projected to cost 80 to 90-thousand dollars and replacing doors and windows projected to cost between 550 and 650 thousand dollars. Sheldahl told the parents the building is not good, but the students and parents and staff are great. He said he would prefer to close no schools, but doesn’t have an option.

More than 15 parents and others had various questions for the board of education ranging from how the administration decided what buildings would be closed, are there ways to cut administrative positions, how open enrollments will affect the school district due to the closing, to what impact the closing of Pickwick school will have on property taxes in the area of the school.

After hearing from parents for more than an hour, the board of education approved a recommendation to hold a public hearing Monday March 29^th at 6:00 p.m. at the administrative offices at 422 McCarroll Drive.

Ottumwa School District Looking for Preschool Children

The Ottumwa Community School District is seeking all children who will be four years old on or before September 15^th to enroll in the free Statewide Voluntary Preschool Program for four year olds. The district also seeks all children who will be 3 year old on or before September 15^th who may be eligible for a free preschool program. The Programs provide free preschool for 10 hours per week for the 2010-2011 school year.

Parents wanting to participate need to attend the upcoming Child Find, to be held March 31^st and April 1^st from 8:30 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. at the Great Prairie Area Education Agency. Children will be screened in the following areas: pre-academic skills, speech/language, hearing and vision. A summary report will be provided to the parents at the end of the screening.

The Ottumwa Community School District has partnered with several community preschools to provide families with opportunities for quality choice in preschool instruction including the Imagination Station, Indian Hills Community College, Seton Montessori, the YMCA, and the district’s own preschool.

Preparations Under way for 2nd Annual BBQ Showdown

The Ottumwa Area Convention and Visitor Bureau is gearing up for the 2^nd Annual O’Town BBQ Showdown set for June 11^th and 12^th at Bridge View Center.

Events will begin Friday evening with family night with a packed schedule of events including kids jumpers & inflatibles, games and give aways, BBQ taste testing, live music featuring Richie Lee & the Fabulous 50’s, delicious festival food and other great entertainment.

The competition on Saturday June 12^th will feature up to 48 teams tying for $10,000 in prizes and will be overseen by the nationally acclaimed Kansas City Barbecue Society. The O’Town BBQ Showdown is sanctioned by the KCBS and is a State Championship BBQ. Last year’s competition brought in 37 teams from 5 states and this year’s competition is filling up fast.

If you are interested in competing in the 2010 cook-off officials encourage teams to sign up as soon as possible due to limited availability of cooking sites. Teams will be accepted on a first come, first serve basis. For more information call Bridge View Center at 641-684-7000.

Southeast Iowa Orchestra announces next Artist in Residence

The Southeast Iowa Symphony Orchestra is proud to present oboist Dane Philipsen as its 2010 Artist in residence. Philipsen will perform for more than 18 schools, community and service groups throughout southeast Iowa from March 9^th through the 21^st. SEISO has sponsored residencies by outstanding performing artists since 1982 climaxing in solo concert performances with the Orchestra in the three major sponsoring communities of Ottumwa, Burlington, and Mt. Pleasant.

The performances will be Saturday March 20^th at 7:30 p.m. at the Burlington Memorial Auditorium; Sunday March 21^st at 3:00 p.m. at IHCC St. John’s Auditorium in Ottumwa and again at 7:30 p.m. in the IWC Chapel Auditorium in Mt. Pleasant.

The Southeast Iowa Symphony Artist-in-Residence Program has been nationally recognized by the League of American Orchestras and receives support from the Iowa Arts Council, Wapello County Foundation, and the Ottumwa Area Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Dane is the son of Michael and Marva Philipsen of Ottumwa.

Two Area Legislators Announce Re-Election Bid

Two area lawmakers have announced their intention to seek re-election to the Iowa Legislature. State Representative Curt Hanson a Democrat from Fairfield has announced he will seek re-election to the Iowa House of Representatives.

Hanson says “I feel honored to serve the people of House District 90. With so many families struggling in today’s tough economy, my main priority is to help strengthen Iowa’s middle class and support small businesses. It’s essential to find new ways to improve Iowa’s economy and create good paying jobs”.

Hanson is currently serving his first term in the Iowa House and is a member of the Environmental Protection, Natural Resources, Public Safety, and Transportation Committee, as well as the Education Appropriations Subcommittee.

And State Senator Becky Schmitz of Fairfield filed petitions this week at the Iowa Secretary of States office making her campaign for re-election official. Schmitz represents Senate District 45 which includes all of Washington, Jefferson, and Van Buren counties and a portion of Johnson and Wapello counties.

Schmitz says “I am running for re-election to the Senate so that I can continue to create more opportunities for the people in our largely rural part of Iowa”. She says “I will continue to work hard to ensure that the policies of State Government help middle class families and small business owners recover as quickly as possible from this national economic recession”.

Two Area Legislators Opposed to House Bill on Texting

The Iowa House has dramatically scaled back a proposal which would have made it illegal for anyone to read or send text messages while driving on Iowa roads. The House instead voted to make it illegal for just 16 and 17 year olds to send text messages or play computer games while they’re driving.

State Representative Mary Gaskill a Democrat from Ottumwa says the ban should apply to adults as well as teenagers. She says “I think this is totally wrong to do this when the people are asking us to pass legislation to ban texting while driving and they don’t say just teenagers”.

And State Representative Curt Hanson a Democrat from Fairfield who is a retired drivers’education instructor argued the texting ban should apply to both teens and adults.

The less restrictive bill now goes back to the senate which earlier voted to ban any driver regardless of age from sending or reading text messages in a moving vehicle.

Two Ottumwa Men face Robbery Charges

Two Ottumwa men are facing numerous charges following their arrest Monday by authorities.

Lt. Tom McAndrew says on March first the Ottumwa Police Department received a report of a robbery at the Fairfield Inn located on North Court. Investigators determined two subjects wearing masks had entered the hotel and demanded money from the hotel clerk. The two subjects left the hotel with 90-dollars in cash.

Monday the Ottumwa Police Department with assistance from the Southeast Iowa Inter-Agency Drug Task Force and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement executed a search warrant at 702 and a half Wabash and seized drug paraphernalia and a shotgun from the house.

As a result 23 year old Bryce Barry Bond and 23 year old Joshua James Summers both of 702 and a half Wabash were arrested. Both were charged with Aiding and Abetting Joint Criminal Conduct and Robbery in the 2^nd degree.

Both are being held in the Wapello County Jail on ten thousand dollar bonds.

Van Buren County Board of Education Discusses Closing Birmingham Child Center

Residents in Birmingham are upset with plans by the Van Buren County School Board to close the Birmingham Early Child Care Center.

The proposal to close the center was discussed by the Van Buren County Board of Education last night. Birmingham Mayor Willis Buregge told KBIZ news this morning a number of representatives and parents attended the meeting. The Board of Education is considering the idea of closing the Birmingham Early Child Care Center due to cuts in state funding.

Buregge says the center is for the kids and residents and parents in Birmingham feel the school district is not suppose to make money. He says the issue should be what’s best for the kids and NOT money.

Buregge says the community is also upset because of the way they found out about closing the early child care center. He says they found out through word of mouth.

The Van Buren County Board of Education is expected to discuss the closing of the child care center again on March 31^st.

1240 KBIZ News & Information