Articles Tagged: Cedar Rapids

A proposed five-year moratorium on new state-licensed casinos in Iowa will not be passed into law, a key legislator said Tuesday, clearing the way for state regulators to decide later this week on a proposal for a new casino in Cedar Rapids.

Senators in the Iowa Legislature were told to keep their schedule clear Wednesday evening in anticipation of potential floor debate on a casino moratorium bill. Meanwhile, the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission is scheduled to vote Thursday on whether to grant a license for a planned $275 million casino and entertainment center near downtown Cedar Rapids.

Also, Iowa City Council Special election primary is tomorrow, Feb. 4

A tenth revision of the 2015 Cedar Rapids Flood Control System master plan was approved last week by the city council. The plan’s intent is to mitigate flooding so an event like the catastrophic 2008 Cedar River flood doesn’t happen again.

The Catherine McAuley Center in Cedar Rapids says it will layoff 20 staff members, and hundreds of refugees who recently arrived in Iowa may lose support for basic necessities like food, rent and utilities after President Donald Trump’s administration halted federal funding for resettlement agencies.

The city’s water complies with federal requirements, but test data for the past five years show concentrations that are higher than what is recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Two residents of a southeast Cedar Rapids neighborhood implored the city council this week to do something about the noise from a nearby rail yard.

The odds of Cedar Rapids finally getting a casino took a hit Thursday when state lawmakers advanced legislation that would prohibit any new casinos in Iowa for at least five years.

Iowa cities, counties and school districts would be prohibited from using taxpayer funding to pay statehouse lobbyists under legislation considered in the Iowa Senate.

Under the agreement, QTS will invest at least $750 million, and receive an estimated tax rebate of $529 million over 20 years.

At 19 restaurants, this year’s list is one longer than last year’s. The annual event, running this year from Friday, Feb. 21 through Sunday, March 2, includes two full weekends to enjoy limited-time specialty dishes offered at each restaurant.

The development of data centers in Iowa -- including two that are planned for southwest Cedar Rapids -- will “keep costs down for all customers,” Lisa Barton, president and CEO of Alliant Energy told a Cedar Rapids audience Tuesday.

The new direction will affect several Corridor Wahlburgers locations, according to the restaurant’s location list.

House lawmakers on Monday advanced legislation to create a five-year moratorium on new state-licensed casinos in Iowa. The move comes as the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission nears a decision at its Feb. 6 meeting on whether to grant a license for a Linn County casino.

Also, Cedar Rapids schools to host Pathways update meetings this week.