The City Park Pool is reaching its 73rd season. The Robert A. Lee Community Recreation Center is now 58 years old, and the Mercer Park Aquatic Center is 34. Iowa City’s recreation facilities are getting old. Since last fall, the city’s Parks and Recreation Department has hosted a series of in-person listening events, community focus […]
Adria Carpenter
Posted inCommunity/News
As spring semester gets underway, the grad student union pushes UI to improve its ‘worst in the Big 10’ pandemic policies
On Jan. 11, a week before classes started for the University of Iowa’s spring semester, the Campaign to Organize Graduate Students (COGS) Local 896, the union representing UI grad students, sent a letter to the Iowa Board of Regents and UI administrators asking for classes to be conducted online for the first two weeks of […]
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‘Kitchen to me is all about family’: Maggie’s new chef talks Midwest cuisine and kitchen culture
Maggie’s Farm Wood Fired Pizza has a new chef who wants to recreate the feeling of warm family get-togethers in the kitchen. Chef Billy Jimenez said that when he was growing up in Colorado, the kitchen was always the center of their home, where his family leaned on the countertops, eating and talking. He remembered […]
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MLK Day in Johnson County will include opportunities for public service, as well as storytime and art events for kids
It’s been 54 years since Martin Luther King Jr. delivered the final speech of his life, “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop.” King had traveled to Memphis, Tennessee at the beginning of April 1968 to support striking workers from the city’s sanitation department. The strike began after two garbage collectors, Echol Cole and Robert Walker, died […]
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‘We’re not out of the woods’: Shelter House’s winter shelter is open, for now
Shelter House’s winter emergency shelter has opened after a month of delays caused by staffing issues and COVID-19 infections. The winter shelter, located at on 340 Southgate Ave, opened Jan. 4. Seventy-nine people took shelter that night, with 72 staying at the main emergency shelter at 429 Southgate Ave, and seven staying at the winter […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Humans squirm among specimens in a new short film set in the UI Museum of Natural History
When Stephanie Miracle moved to Iowa City in 2019, she visited the University of Iowa Museum of Natural History in Macbride Hall with her 1-year-old son. “I totally fell in love with this museum space. I immediately started to dream up a project for this space,” she said. Miracle came to Iowa City as a […]
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‘A loaded gun in every aisle’: Hy-Vee is introducing a new retail security team
The shoulder patches say, “A Helpful Smile in Every Aisle,” but the police-style uniforms, complete with belts with holstered taser and possibly handguns, may send a very different message as Hy-Vee deploys a new retail security team in its stores. The West Des Moines-based supermarket chain will begin introducing its own security force “as part […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Paris, Milan, New York … Iowa City? Designer Andre’ Wright works to establish Fashion Activism Institute in downtown IC
Fashion wasn’t the focus of last year’s racial justice protests, but what demonstrators wore — Black Lives Matter T-shirts, face masks reading “I can’t breathe” — became part of the message. Andre’ Wright understands the role of fashion in activism better than anyone, and now he’s teaching others how to use clothing to send a […]
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Rockin’ around the Christmas trash: A guide to recycling your holiday waste
Perhaps the worst part of Christmas is the inevitable clean-up afterwards: the mountain of empty boxes, shredded wrapping paper, string lights with burnt-out bulbs and the tree slowly going from beloved holiday symbol to fire hazard. But before you toss it all into the dumpster or stuff it into a garbage can, consider these ways […]
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Photo Gallery: Skaters on Coralville’s new ice rink donate personal care items for free skate rentals
Dozens of ice skaters glided across the Xtream Arena during its Skate & Donate event Thursday night. Skaters were encouraged to bring personal care items — toilet paper, paper towels, diapers, baby wipes, shampoo and conditioner, soap and body wash — to support the Coralville Community Food Pantry (CCFP). Skaters that brought donations had their […]
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Project Holiday is providing 1,500 families in Johnson County with holiday meals
Around 1,500 families will enjoy a home-cooked holiday meal this year thanks to CommUnity Crisis Services and Food Bank’s 34th annual Project Holiday. Families can receive their choice of entrée, sides, vegetables and other grocery items through this Saturday, Dec. 18, at Pepperwood Plaza, 1045 Hwy 6 East, during regular food bank hours. Shari Ellis […]
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Sounds like a lotta hoopla to make over a library app, right? Wrong!
Just in time for winter’s arrival, the Iowa City Public Library (ICPL) has partnered with a new streaming service to bring members audiobooks, e-books, comics, movies, television shows and music. hoopla is the digital service of Midwest Tape, an Ohio-based company that distributes entertainment media to public libraries across North America. It has over a […]
