Willie Fairley became nationally famous for his generosity and barbecue following the August 2020 derecho. In the aftermath, he fed his fellow Cedar Rapidians who found themselves without power, and some cases, suddenly without a home. Since then, Fairley has continued his charitable work, as his Cedar Rapids drive-thru restaurant, Willie Ray’s Q Shack, has […]
Cedar Rapids News
Posted inCommunity/News
Where to vote in Johnson and Linn County on the final weekend of early voting
Early voting continues in the Nov. 8 general election — there will be satellite voting locations open in Linn County this weekend and two in Johnson County. The auditor’s offices in both counties are also adding weekend hours to accommodate voters who want to cast a ballot before Election Day on Tuesday. In Iowa City, […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Fong’s Pizza in Cedar Rapids is closing
Fong’s Pizza in Cedar Rapids will serve its last customers next week. “It is with heavy hearts we are saying our goodbyes and closing permanently at the end of the day on 11/5/22,” the restaurant said in a post on its Facebook page on Thursday morning. “We love serving this great community. Unfortunately, our lease […]
Posted inEastern Iowa Community/News
Noreen Bush, ‘an incredible leader’ in the Cedar Rapids Community School District, dies at age 51
Noreen Bush, superintendent of the Cedar Rapids Community School District, died on Sunday. She was 51 years old. Bush was on medical leave and had submitted her resignation to the CRCSD Board of Directors last month, as her health declined due to the cancer she was first diagnosed with two and a half years ago. […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Cedar Rapids is looking for volunteers to help senior citizens keep their sidewalks shoveled this winter
As the city gets ready for the winter, Cedar Rapids is looking for volunteers for the Snow Buddies program it launched last year. The program pairs senior citizens with volunteers willing to shovel their sidewalks, and “is intended to benefit residents who are not physically able to remove snow and do not have other resources […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Election 2022: Public Measure 1 would eliminate ‘current and future common-sense gun laws’
Linn County Attorney Nick Maybanks was blunt in his assessment of Public Measure 1, which would amend the Iowa Constitution in a way that would stop most attempts to regulate guns in the state. “This amendment is a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” Maybanks said at a news conference on Tuesday at the Cedar Rapids Public […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Iowa Attorney General’s Office concludes fatal shooting by CRPD officers was justified
Linn County Attorney Nick Maybanks has closed the investigation into a fatal shooting of William Rich by two Cedar Rapids Police Department officers on Aug. 30. Maybanks’ decision follows a review of the shooting by the Iowa Attorney General’s Office that found the actions of Sgt. Bryson Garringer and Investigator Christopher Christy “were entirely legally […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Cedar Rapids schools will stop using seclusion rooms after district reached settlement with Justice Department over disciplinary practices
The Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Monday it had reached a settlement agreement with the Cedar Rapids Community School District regarding what it determined to be the school district’s “discriminatory use of seclusion and restraint against students with disabilities.” The Civil Rights Division began its review of whether […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Cedar Rapids Police release body-cam footage from fatal police shooting after protest
Shortly after noon on Thursday, the Cedar Rapids Police Department released body-camera footage of the fatal shooting of William Rich by CRPD officers on Aug. 30. The release of footage came two days after protesters marched from police headquarters to the Linn County Courthouse, demanding more information about the shooting. The CRPD video posted online […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Protesters march in Cedar Rapids to demand more information in fatal police shooting (Updated)
Update: On Wednesday night, Advocates for Social Justice announced the scheduled protest for Thursday evening was “on hold” because “The Rich family had been provided the opportunity to view the [CRPD body-camera] footage.” Protesters demanding more information about the fatal shooting of William Rich by Cedar Rapids police officers on Aug. 30, marched from the […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Cedar Rapids Public Library’s downtown location will reopen Thursday, though fire clean-up and repairs continue
The downtown location of the Cedar Rapids Public Library will reopen on Thursday, five weeks after damage from a fire in a lighting fixture caused it to close. That fire was quickly contained with no reported injuries, and in a statement at the time, the library said “library materials do not appear to have been […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Cedar Rapids brings back its ‘after dark’ farmers market this Saturday
Market After Dark is returning for its seventh year, as the Cedar Rapids Downtown Farmers Market closes out its summer season. There will be more than 100 farmers market vendor offering their wares at the four-and-an-half-hour event, which starts at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday. “We are excited to bring back entertainment, and a few other […]
