Government Notes: Cedar Rapids schools hosts first Pathways Parent Advisory meeting

The Cedar Rapids school district earlier this month hosted its first Parent Advisory Team meeting inviting families to give voice in shaping the future of the College & Career Pathways Program.

The next meeting is scheduled for Jan. 21, from 5:30-7 p.m. The agenda will include finalizing criteria for opting out of the Freshman Seminar course and further planning for the launch of the Freshman Academies, according to the district’s newsletter.

Families interested in joining the Parent Advisory Team can email to communityrelations@crschools.us.

College & Career Pathways will launch next fall at Kennedy, Jefferson and Washington high schools with Freshman Academies designed to connect students to smaller learning environments where they can explore their career interests.

The first Parent Advisory Team meeting primarily focused on Freshman Seminar, a class expected to launch this fall at Kennedy, Jefferson and Washington high schools aimed at preparing ninth-graders for high school and life.

A recommendation from the group was for students to have the option to opt-out if they meet specific criteria. This recommendation, along with student, staff, and community input, will provide key input for district and building personnel to consider as final decisions on the program are made.

The following school year — 2026-27 — College & Career Pathways will be offered at four high schools, including Metro, which is not typically attended by freshmen.

Ice rink opens for skating at Cedar Rapids’ Hughes Park

  Buy Photo

Cold weather has made possible the opening of the outdoor ice rink at Hughes Park, 2100 Wilson Ave. SW.

The rink, which measures 125 feet by 65 feet, was built on the park’s basketball court. It is open for recreational use during normal park hours, which are 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. The rink has lighting, but it is not scheduled or supervised.

The rink will be available for use as long as weather conditions allow. Parks staff is responsible for maintaining the rink and will close it for upkeep as needed. Any changes to the ice rink’s availability will be shared on Cedar Rapids Parks & Recreation social media, city webpages, and via the CR News Now text and email alerts.

The City’s Rollin’ Rec program will be at the park on Wednesdays from 5-7 p.m. as well as Saturdays and Sundays from 1-3 p.m. When present, Rollin’ Rec will have ice skates and a limited number of push trainers available for use by the public on a first-come first-served basis. The weekly program will run as the weather allows.

Other winter sports opportunities in Cedar Rapids — many of which are dependent on snow — include cross-country ski trails at Ellis, Gardner, and Twin Pines Golf Courses; Jones, Noelridge, and Seminole Valley Parks; the Czech Greenway; and the Sac and Fox Trail. The trails are open, marked, and groomed. Sledding hills at Bowman, Jones, and Shawnee Parks are also open during park hours.

Visit CityofCR.com/WinterRec for more information.

Cedar Rapids Council sets data center public hearing

The Cedar Rapids City Council has set a public hearing for its Jan. 28 meeting to consider a development agreement with developer QTS Cedar Rapids I, LLC for a $750 million data center campus along 76th Avenue SW.

The project includes construction of a new data center campus with two or more phases on approximately 560 acres within the Big Cedar Industrial Center.

The agreement stipulates that the developer should make a total minimum capital investment of $750 million. It also requires construction of the data center campus with a minimum of two phases, with the initial phase to start within three years of the development agreement starting, and be completed in six years. Construction of phase two is to start construction within three years of completion of initial phase and be complete in six years.

Any additional phases are to be completed within 25 years of the effective date of the development agreement.

The developer is required to create a minimum of 15 jobs per phase, or 30 jobs total. All are classified as "at or above the high-quality jobs threshold."

Subject to details in a development agreement, city financial Incentives would be 20 annual rebate payments per project phase at 70 percent of the tax increment created from the value added by the minimum Improvements associated with each phase.

"The City conservatively estimates that $1 billion in total property taxes could be generated over the applicable rebate periods with an estimated $529 million being rebated back to the Company," the agreement states.

The city would agree to make various improvements to accommodate area traffic flow.

North Liberty license plate recognition system portal now available

Flock Safety cameras were installed by North Liberty last year and are now active. Members of the public can use Flock Safety’s transparency portal to search through information about North Liberty officers’ use of, and access to, the system in the previous 30 days.

The cameras are designed to notify law enforcement agencies when a vehicle identified with an Amber or Silver alert is detected. Additionally, the cameras are used to identify stolen cars and suspects listed in state or national crime databases.

The purchase of the cameras, which cost about $40,000, was unanimously approved by the North Liberty City Council. The cameras will continue to cost the city $35,000 in successive years.

Flock Safety, the camera vendor, said its cameras are in use in 3,000 police departments across the country. The cameras are used by the University of Iowa and within the Des Moines metro area.

Flock Safety said its cameras are meant to capture only license plates and vehicle characteristics, not photos of the vehicles’ occupants. The company says data is deleted after 30 days.

The cameras are not traffic enforcement devices and will not be used to issue red-light or speed violations. However, the cameras may report a violation in order to dispatch an officer or provide vehicle information to a neighboring jurisdiction.

Marion seeks input on future of Willowood Park

Marion’s Willowood Park is home to the Marion Swimming Pool. But at almost 40 years old, the pool is nearing the end of its useful life. The pool is expected to close in the coming years, when another outdoor swimming facility is available in the city.

The city has been exploring the potential for a new outdoor aquatic center since 2016. A study was conducted in 2021 to evaluate the condition of the Marion Swimming Pool and collect community input on the needs for outdoor swimming.

As a result of that input, last year, the city entered into a purchase agreement to acquire a 24-acre site at the southeast corner of 31st Street and Munier Road as the future site of a new aquatic facility. The city is planning to hold a referendum vote in November of this year to ask voters for approval to build the new aquatic center and to redevelop Willowood Park.

A public open house was held last week to gather neighborhood input regarding Willowood Park. To ensure broad community input, an online survey is available at www.cityofmarion.org/aquaticstudy. It will remain open through Monday, Jan. 20.

The redevelopment of Willowood Park will move forward in tandem with the new outdoor aquatic center, ensuring both spaces serve the community for years to come.

Learn more at www.cityofmarion.org/aquaticstudy.

College Community school board approves 2025-26 school calendar

The College Community school board last week approved the calendar for the 2025-26 school year.

The calendar set the first day of school for K-12th grade for Aug. 25, and the last day of school June 1, 2026. June 2-12, 2026 are reserved for weather make-up days. Any school day for students after June 1, 2026, will be determined by the school board.

Thanksgiving break is Nov. 26-28, and winter break is Dec. 22-Jan. 2, 2026. Classes resume Jan. 5, 2026.

Graduation is May 23, 2026.

To view the full calendar, visit crprairie.org/district/district-calendar.

North Liberty buys land to expand existing fire station

  Buy Photo

The North Liberty City Council has approved an agreement to spend $270,000 to buy a piece of property to allow for expansion of its fire station.

The property, located at 240 N. Main St., in North Liberty, is directly behind the existing fire station at 25 W. Cherry St.

The city has hired Shive-Hattery, an engineering and architectural firm, to explore options for renovating and/or adding onto the existing fire station.

The move to look at options for the firehouse’s renovation comes as the city is hitting pause on plans for a second fire station.

The city bought land along St. Andrews Drive — across from Centennial Park — to build a second fire station.

North Liberty Fire Chief Brian Platz previously told The Gazette plans for the second station were paused because of concerns about the department’s ability to staff both stations and because of the current station’s inadequacies.

Government Notes is published Mondays and contains updates from area governmental bodies. The Gazette’s Grace King, Megan Woolard and Sara Konrad Baranowski, and correspondent Dick Hogan contributed.