NewBo market, county fair receive funding

CEDAR RAPIDS - The NewBo City Market will get $35,000 from Linn County this year, a boost to backers' efforts to get work under way by April.

Linn County supervisors voted unanimously Wednesday afternoon to make the grant from their economic development fund. Organizers of the effort to establish a year-round farmers' market in southeast Cedar Rapids' New Bohemia neighborhood asked supervisors Monday for $100,000 over three years.

Supervisors can't legally commit future boards to the action, but this year's July 1 allocation will be accompanied by a resolution indicating support for appropriations of $30,000 on each of the following two fiscal years.

Supervisors also appropriated $25,000 a year over the next two years to the Linn County Fair, with the requirement the fair board raise matching donations to fund improvements at the Central City fairgrounds.

The county's economic development fund is allocated $150,000 a year to be appropriated by the supervisors.