Blogs about: The Cedar Rapids Flood
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Flood-damaged Grant Wood window at the Veterans Memorial Building is coming out for repairs; entrusted to a Davenport firm owned by a disabled Vietnam War vet
The flood-damaged, Grant Wood-designed window is coming out of the Veterans Memorial Building this week, each of its 58 stained-glass panels to be crated and driven to a studio in Davenport for repair… more →
Eye on the Island
Flood-damaged Grant Wood window at the Veterans Memorial Building is coming out for repairs; entrusted to a Davenport firm owned by a disabled Vietnam War vet
Rick Smith wrote 4 months ago: The flood-damaged, Grant Wood-designed window is coming out of the Veterans Memorial Building this w … more →
Day 1 for Eyerly as flood-recovery director; he's looking ahead, not back; setting goals; wants to work himself out of a job in a year or two
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Rick Smith wrote 4 months ago: Greg Eyerly never seemed to fuss too much with the suit and tie the last 16 or so months when he was … more →
A detail spotted in a City Hall handout prompts library board president to launch a press release: Yes, she says, a new library will cost $45 million
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Rick Smith wrote 5 months ago: The City Council and the Linn County Board of Supervisors are working to prioritize a long list of 8 … more →
Renovation getting closer for smaller flood-damaged venues; Ellis pool, trails, police locker room, Jones golf clubhouse and Third Avenue parkade
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Rick Smith wrote 5 months ago: Having just passed the one-year mark of the June 2008 flood, the city is getting closer to beginning … more →
Fast change in City Council agenda can't conceal the thought that University of Iowa business manager ranks as front-runner for City Hall flood-recovery post
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Rick Smith wrote 5 months ago: George Hollins, the University of Iowa’s business manager who has worked on the university’s f … more →
City Council keeps its distance from May's Island; may extend lease for 2 years on temp setup in suburban-style office park; big June 13 ceremony on river's west side
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Rick Smith wrote 5 months ago: The City Council isn’t rushing to go near May’s Island, home to the flood-damaged Veterans Memorial … more →
Coe, St. Luke's first victors in local scrap to land U.S. Commerce Department diaster-related funds
Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: Coe College and St. Luke’s Hospital are the first victors in the local competition to secure disaste … more →
Watershed management does matter in flood protection: Harkin announces $24.2 million for Iowa to buy flood-prone land and return it to its natural state
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Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: Rep. Dave Loebsack and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officials were on the Cedar River last week to t … more →
City hires OPN Architects for $400,000 to help with open houses to determine future of flood-damaged city buildings; county, schools dropped out of process
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Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: The much-anticipated series of public open houses will start June 23 to help the city determine the … more →
Flood-recovery milestone reached: All 70 purple-placarded properties now demolished and off to the dump
Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: One flood-recovery landmark has been reached. All 70 of the worst-damaged properties – the ones with … more →
Council rejects push for special new committee in fight for $118.5-million in I-JOBS money; it says established flood-recovery committee is already there to help
Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: The business community apparently continues to want to create new entities to try to help the City C … more →
Organized group of local spin-doctors and flak-catchers didn't get NBC News here; hope still alive they'll land Katie or Charlie Gibson
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Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: The local cadre of public relations pros isn’t responsible. In any event, NBC News’ national o … more →
Mr. $475-an-hour -- who became Mr. $225-an-hour -- still a vital cog in the city’s drive to get all it can from FEMA
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Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: The City Council approved a contract extension last night for John Levy. The extension takes Levy’s … more →
Council members weren't kidding about killing a downtown coal plant; they now put their support for federal bucks behind a better U.S. Cellular Center and a new community/rec facility
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Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: The chase continues for federal dollars from the U.S. Department of Commerce that the Cedar Rapids c … more →
City is doing what it said it would: setting up a customer-service infrastructure to expedite buyouts; now if the money would get here
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Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: The city is taking the steps it said it would take to set up a system to expedite the buyouts of som … more →
Port 'O' Jonnys to populate flood-hit neighborhoods at least through the end of 2009
Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: Call the Port ‘O’ Jonny a testament to the fact that there is much yet to do in the city’s flood-hit … more →
Vets Commission asks: Why is Linn County back in the May's Island courthouse and jail while the Veterans Memorial Building/City Hall sits empty?
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Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: Three government buildings damaged in last June’s flood sit on May’s Island in the middle of the Ced … more →
Deadline for news on huge pot of federal buyout money has passed; City Hall upbeat that good news will arrive soon
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Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: It’s been something of the Great Waiting at City Hall. State officials who have come to Cedar Rapids … more →
Basic flood insurance for city buildings costs considerably less than first feared; but cost of extra insurance needed later apt to still be scary
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Rick Smith wrote 6 months ago: The city can buy basic flood protection for 46 of the city’s flood-damaged city buildings for $101,1 … more →
