About 100 people were chanting “Immigrants are welcome here,” as a rally by the Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice (Iowa MMJ) began in the rotunda of the Iowa State Capitol on Wednesday afternoon. The rally was the culmination of Iowa MMJ’s annual advocacy day at the Capitol. The Des Moines-based nonprofit advocates on behalf of […]
Central Iowa Community/News
Posted inCommunity/News
Ames City Council votes to protect rights of trans residents — one day after legislators advance bill to ban such ordinances
This week, after Republicans on an Iowa House subcommittee advanced a bill to eliminate the power of local governments to offer broader civil rights protections than the state does, Ames became the latest city in the state to amend its municipal code to protect the rights of transgender and nonbinary residents. HSB 664 was drafted […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Your Village: Why is there a truck driving around with a big image of Rep. Miller-Meeks as the Grinch?
Last night I saw a truck with a light-up display of Mariannette Miller-Meeks as a green-faced Grinch. Who did that? –RB, Iowa City The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) did that. The DCCC — pronounced “D triple-C” by political types — announced in an email on Wednesday that it was “launching a new billboard campaign […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Lefty’s Live Music is closing after 10 years in Des Moines
After a decade as a pillar of the music scene in Des Moines, Lefty’s Live Music is closing. “As our tenth year draws to a close and after much consideration, we’ve made the challenging decision to say goodbye before the new year,” co-owners Anne Mathey and Erik Brown said in a social media post on […]
Posted inCentral Iowa
Trial date set for Ian Roberts; Rob Sand announces audit of DMPS
On Wednesday, a federal magistrate judge set a trial date for Ian Roberts, the former Des Moines Public School Superintendent. Roberts is charged with illegally possessing firearms while being in the country without legal authorization, and for knowingly making a false statement on a federal form he submitted to the Des Moines School Board. Magistrate […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Jackie Norris ends Senate bid, will focus on Des Moines School Board issues
Des Moines School Board Chair Jackie Norris has dropped out of the race for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate. Norris, who launched her campaign for Sen. Joni Ernst’s seat on Aug. 5, announced her decision in a news release on Thursday. Norris’s withdrawal came one day after Axios Des Moines reported Norris had confirmed […]
Posted inCommunity/News
How to vote early in Polk County and Story County
Early voting in the Nov. 4 city and school election began on Wednesday morning, as county auditors across Iowa mailed out absentee ballots requested by voters and in-person voting started in the auditors’ offices. Voters who want a mail-in absentee ballot have a few more days to send a completed ballot request form to their […]
Posted inCentral Iowa
Iowa Sen. Claire Celsi dies at age 59
Iowa Sen. Claire Celsi, D-West Des Moines, died Monday, according to a social media post from her daughter and statements from lawmakers. Celsi, 59, entered hospice care Sept. 18 and was no longer seeking curative treatment, according to her family. She had been battling an undisclosed medical issue for several months. She returned to the 2025 legislative […]
Posted inCentral Iowa
DMPS sues consulting firm that vetted Ian Roberts; DOJ criminal complaint against Roberts unsealed
The Des Moines School Board is suing the consulting firm that conducted its search for a superintendent in 2023, resulting in the hiring of Ian Roberts. The board made its decision during a special session that began at 8 a.m. on Friday. The lawsuit against JG Consulting, a Texas-based firm, was filed in Polk County […]
Posted inCommunity/News
DMPS was ‘victim of deception,’ says school board; former superintendent Ian Roberts transferred from Woodbury County Jail to DOJ custody
On Wednesday evening, the Des Moines School Board issued a statement in which Chair Jackie Norris called the board “a victim of deception” by Ian Roberts, who the board hired as superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools (DMPS) in May 2023. It was a noticeable shift in how the board has talked about Roberts since Friday, […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Des Moines’ new indie bookstores want to help Latino, LGBTQ readers ‘see themselves on the shelf’
Like a book, an independent bookstore can be a spiritual oasis in a chaotic world. It probably says something about our world, then, that three indie bookstores sprouted up in central Iowa over the past 18 months. From pushing back against book bans and COVID-era malaise to capitalizing on online reading trends, Shelf Love DSM, […]
Posted inCommunity/News
‘We clearly have a problem’: Des Moines Water Works opposes EPA decision to rescind impaired water designations
Officials from Des Moines Water Works said Thursday a decision from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency pertaining to water quality did “not align” with the “operational and financial” challenges the utility has faced in providing safe drinking water to Iowans. EPA previously designated seven river segments, including two connected to Des Moines’ source waters, as […]
