Articles Tagged: Iowa Derecho 2020

Cedar Rapids hub will serve as a model for an expanding network across the county.

As part of Building Safety Month, Linn County Planning and Development staff met with sixth grade students at Roosevelt Creative Corridor Business Academy in Cedar Rapids to teach them about the role building codes play in infrastructure stability during natural disasters.

In her State of the City address, Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell said it’s key for the city to work with private partners to spur growth while being the economic driver of the region as the city leans into business attraction.

Federal funds will help with tree replanting, generators

But first, Smithfield had to repair extensive derecho damage

An influx of $38 million in federal funding will fuel investment in the construction of 290 new single- and multifamily housing units in Linn County — mostly Cedar Rapids — to aid in recovery from the 2020 derecho.

Trees Forever is teaming up with five local nurseries to offer $100 or $250 tree vouchers for eligible Cedar Rapids residents. Here’s how you can qualify for a voucher.

The Westdale area is growing rapidly, and residents celebrate it for its diversity and mix of amenities. But what infrastructure and services are needed to support its growth? A new plan from Cedar Rapids will guide future improvements to this part of the southwest quadrant.

More than two years after the 2020 derecho destroyed much of the Brucemore historic estate, the attraction’s gates and two statues have been restored — marking a key step in the nonprofit’s recovery from the storm.

The Cedar Rapids City Council has signed off on resolutions of support for multifamily and single-family housing projects that are seeking a slice of federal disaster recovery funds to add a combined 300 housing units in the community.

The Marion City Council will vote on five project applications Thursday. The church, which could be converted into multifamily housing, is among them.

Colleagues say that Sandi Fowler, the deputy city manager who has worked for the city of Cedar Rapids for more than 30 years, is a true public servant who always kept citizens at the center of decision-making.

Nonprofit Trees Forever this year piloted Neighborhood Tree Captains and tree voucher programs to empower residents to replant on their private properties. These programs were developed as part of the ReLeaf effort to reforest Cedar Rapids after the derecho.

The award comes with $10,000 to be awarded toward a project ,and will be used in tree replanting efforts in Marion.

Seedlings planted in in gravel beds June as a pilot project were recently planted in Bever Park, the first city park where the seedlings were planted. These seedlings offer an additional source of tree stock for parks as Cedar Rapids works to replant about 42,000 trees on public land after the derecho.