Czech Village-NewBo district names new director

CEDAR RAPIDS — Jennifer Vavra Borcherding, a fifth-generation Czech, has been named executive director of The District: Czech Village and New Bohemia.

She succeeds Jim Miller, who resigned in July to take a job at Horizons. He had been hired in October 2023 to succeed Monica Vernon, a former Cedar Rapids City Council member.

The District is Cedar Rapids’ “Main Street” program, a state network in the Iowa Economic Development Authority that offers resources and technical assistance to more than 50 Iowa communities.

Borcherding, also a Cedar Rapids school board member, said she would be tapping Main Street Iowa resources to increase promotion and tourism in the Czech Village and NewBo districts.

“Tourism is economic development,” Borcherding, 53, said in a statement. “Every year Iowa collects more than $20 million in tourism revenue.”

The District CVNB, as it’s called, will be developing an event and business calendar to share with Travel Iowa and other tourism promoting sites, she said.

Borcherding said she is developing a survey to find out what district businesses need, “where you want to go and how you want to grow professionally.”

Main Street Iowa programs also offer access to funding for starting or expanding businesses, free design consultants and opportunities for increased promotion, Borcherding said.

“I am thankful to be serving our community from this role,” she said in an email to district businesses. “Having grown up in a small business, I understand how difficult and how vital your work is. When small business owners choose to bravely share their creations and passions, the community thrives.”

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