Siouxlanders will be paying more to keep their furnace and air conditioners on next year. MidAmerican Energy plans to raise electric rates by 3 to 4 percent in 2012 to cover rising costs.
    

Spokeswoman Tina Pothoff says letters to customers will be sent in February, with the increase by March.

She says it's necessary to recover rising environmental requirements and energy production
costs.

Iowa law allows utilities to impose rate increases on a temporary basis until the Iowa Utilities Board can make a final decision.

MidAmerican Energy, the state's Iowa's largest utility, has 770,000 customers in Iowa. It has been operating under a rate freeze that preserves rates until 2013.

But the agreement with state regulators allows MidAmerican to impose special adjustment charges.

MidAmerican, a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway of Omaha, Neb., has not raised base electric rates in 16 years.

SIOUX CITY'S ARGOSY RIVERBOAT GAMBLING CASINO WILL BE MOVING ASHORE IN THE FUTURE.....BUT WHEN AND WHERE HAVE YET TO BE DETERMINED. 

THE MISSOURI RIVER HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT BOARD VOTED MONDAY TO EVENTUALLY REPLACE THE RIVERBOAT CASINO WITH A LAND-BASED OPERATION, WHICH MAY OR MAY NOT BE OPERATED BY PENN NATIONAL GAMING WHICH MANAGES THE ARGOSY.

MRHD CHAIRMAN MARK MONSON SAYS THEIR BOARD REJECTED AN PROPOSAL FROM PENN NATIONAL TO BUILD A LAND CASINO:

PENN VICE PRESIDENT OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS ERIC SCHIPPERS SAYS HIS COMPANY IS READY TO MAKE A MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR COMMITMENT TO A LAND CASINO IN SIOUX CITY:

MONSON SAYS MRHD WILL CONTINUE TO SPEAK WITH PENN NATIONAL ABOUT A LAND CASINO, BUT THEY WANT TO MAKE SURE THE DEAL IS THE RIGHT ONE:

MONSON SAYS MRHD IS NOT PLANNING TO TALK WITH ANY OTHER GAMING COMPANY IN THE NEAR FUTURE.

SCHIPPERS SAYS THE ARGOSY HAS OPERATED SUCCESSFULLY IN SIOUX CITY FOR OVER 20 YEARS AND HIS COMPANY HOPES TO WORK OUT A LONG TERM DEAL WITH MRHD AND CONTINUE TO BE A STRONG MEMBER OF THE SIOUXLAND COMMUNITY.

  MRHD EXTENDED THEIR CURRENT CONTRACT WITH PENN TO RUN THROUGH THE END OF MARCH OF 2013.
 

GOVERNOR TERRY BRANSTAD HAS ORDERED FLAGS IN IOWA TO BE FLOWN AT HALF STAFF IN HONOR OF THE 70TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE BOMBING OF PEARL HARBOR.

THE FLAGS SHOULD FLY AT HALF STAFF FROM 8AM UNTIL 5PM WEDNESDAY.

THERE WILL BE A LOCAL PEARL HARBOR CEREMONY AT 11AM IN SIOUX CITY AT THE PETERS PARK FLAGPOLE IN MORNINGSIDE.

THE BOMBING OF PEARL HARBOR BY JAPANESE FORCES ON DECEMBER 7TH, 1941 KILLED 2,390 AMERICANS AND BROUGHT THE UNITED STATES INTO WORLD WAR TWO.

NORTH SIOUX CITY POLICE ARE CONTINUING THEIR INVESTIGATION INTO THE DEATH OF A 26-YEAR OLD WOMAN.

POLICE CHIEF JODY FRYE SAYS OFFICERS WERE CALLED TO THE PRAIRIE WOOD APARTMENTS AT 645 STREETER DRIVE ABOUT 2:20PM MONDAY.

THE BODY OF THE UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE WAS FOUND AND HAD SUSTAINED A SEVERE HEAD WOUND.

CHIEF FRYE SAYS THE INJURY WAS NOT CAUSED BY A GUNSHOT AND THE VICTIM WAS VISITING A FRIEND AT THE APARTMENT.

THE DEATH HAS NOT BEEN RULED A HOMICIDE AND NO ONE HAS BEEN TAKEN INTO CUSTODY. 

FRYE SAYS AN AUTOPSY ON THE VICTIM IS BEING CONDUCTED TODAY AND THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF HER DEATH REMAIN UNDER INVESTIGATION.