Articles Tagged: Economic development

Reliable transportation is one of the building blocks for growing any local economy.

The public park at the heart of Kingston Yard, Cedar Rapids’ mixed-use development at First Street and First Avenue West, opens Wednesday with a new stage and green space. Here’s what to know about the park and inaugural performances planned on July 4.

Coralville-based Watts Group is pursuing another Cedar Rapids project in the rapidly growing southwest quadrant adding for-sale townhomes and condos to the market.

Heaviside LLC, the development entity behind the proposed $576 million Google data center in Cedar Rapids, recently closed on land slated for the project for $16.573 million and grading is now underway on the site.

Google also has proposed a $576M center for Cedar Rapids.

Cedar Rapids signed off on tax incentives last week for an $8.5 million project to build two commercial facilities in the southwest side and toward Steve Emerson’s ‘Muskwaki’ building redevelopment.

Conlon Construction is proposing building a 150-room hotel and 10 rowhomes on the city-owned parking space known as Lot 44 in NewBo, which would go a long way toward adding overnight beds in the city core that could help Cedar Rapids attract larger events.

During the Cedar Rapids City Council’s 2024 goal-setting session Wednesday, members discussed the community's work in creating a desirable place to call home and the need for affordable housing options.

Davenport is among sites a tech company is considering for an $800 million Midwest data center campus. City officials emphasized Wednesday the project is far from a done deal.

A new Cedar Rapids plan looks to create a “Wrigleyville” vibe around Rockford Road SW, where the city’s three sports facilities are located. It calls for increased connectivity, stronger branding that plays on the area’s sports identity and redevelopment to attract new dining, entertainment and other uses.

Local developer Steve Emerson is seeking state support for his $30 million mixed-use redevelopment of the Guaranty Bank and Strand Theater property that will transform the long-vacant historic property downtown.

The Cedar Rapids City Council awarded incentives this week to a developer to build a $21 million Airport Commercial Park in southwest Cedar Rapids that would bring new warehouses online in a part of town where industrial development is booming. Corridor Construction Network also received incentives fora $5.4 million expansion.

Debi Durham, director of the Iowa Economic Development Authority, told The Gazette last year that the state missed out on luring a large solar energy manufacturer to the state because of a lack of the kind of incentives in the agency’s proposal.

A new master plan for the MedQuarter Regional Medical District envisions transforming empty properties, improving placemaking and strengthening the district’s identity to lure patients, healthcare providers and businesses. That means exploring development of a hotel, creating pocket parks and more.

A preliminary plat that will guide redevelopment of the former Transamerica site in northeast Cedar Rapids got the green light from the City Planning Commission. Neighbors still want more details about what will take shape at the site that haven’t yet emerged while in its early stages.