On a recent visit to Linn County’s Juvenile Detention Center, Cedar Rapids librarian Meredith Crawford said she asked one of the kids what kinds of books they liked to read when they were younger. Crawford was surprised when they said they hadn’t read at all before coming to the detention center. “This kid reads voraciously […]
Cedar Rapids News
Posted inFood & Drink
Tee’s Liberian Dish brings West African cuisine to Cedar Rapids
Teepeu Pewu had been thinking about opening a restaurant for a few years — and made that dream a reality earlier this summer. Pewu is the owner of Tee’s Liberian Dish at 1271 1st Ave SE, the space that used to house Brewed Awakenings coffee shop. It is the only Liberian restaurant in the area, […]
Posted inCOVID-19
Linn County launches financial assistance program to help residents facing eviction or utility shutoffs
Linn County residents facing eviction or falling behind on rent can apply for financial assistance through the county’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP). The county announced on Monday it is working with Waypoint and HACAP to administer rent and utility payments to those who are eligible for up to 18 months. Individuals must be able […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Masks and vaccines ‘strongly recommended’ for Cedar Rapids students and teachers
The Cedar Rapids Community School District (CRCSD) is “strongly recommending” students wear masks when returning to school this fall and is requiring masks on district buses. School districts in Iowa can no longer require mask-wearing in their schools, due to a law Gov. Kim Reynolds signed in May. Students and staff who test positive for […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Cedar Rapids commemorates the devastating August 2020 derecho and a year of recovery
“When the storm passed through Cedar Rapids and we could venture back outside, we all saw our beloved trees laying across lawns, streets, on homes. So many homes were devastated. Neighborhoods were unrecognizable,” Mayor Brad Hart told the crowd at Bever Park on Tuesday morning to commemorate the August 2020 derecho. “In the midst of […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Local farmers markets enter national competition to determine who’s got the goods
The Iowa City Famers Market and other local farmers markets are competing this year in the Farmers Market Celebration, an annual competition organized by American Farmland Trust to determine the country’s most popular farmers markets. “We have participated in the past, when the format was different,” Tammy Neumann, the city’s coordinator for the market, told […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Masks will be required in Linn County buildings starting Monday
Linn County employees and visitors will be required to wear face masks at county-owned facilities starting Monday, regardless of their vaccination status. A divided Board of Supervisors passed the mask mandate during a meeting on Friday morning. The ideological division between supervisors on masks was visible even before the resolution was introduced. Supervisor Stacey Walker […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Iowa City is requiring face masks in city buildings again, as COVID-19 rates rise in Johnson County
Face masks will be required in all city-owned buildings in Iowa City starting on Friday, regardless of visitors’ vaccination status. “The decision to require that masks be worn in City facilities was made for the health and safety of visitors to public facilities and for the staff who serve them,” the city said in a […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Cedar Rapids and Marion will celebrate recovery efforts one year after the derecho
Nearly a year ago, the word “derecho” became a regular part of the vocabulary of Linn County residents. The powerful wind storm wrecked havoc through Iowa on Aug. 10, 2020, severely damaging Cedar Rapids and other parts of Linn County. Three days after the storm, Cedar Rapids City Manager Jeff Pomeranz expressed how “every area […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Linn County publishes first greenhouse gas emissions inventory
Linn County released its first greenhouse gas emissions inventory on Tuesday. The report was prepared by the Linn County Office of Sustainability and is the “first step” in documenting emission levels and sources of emissions, the county said in a news release. The inventory compiled data from the year 2010, and includes estimates of greenhouse […]
Posted inCOVID-19
Cedar Rapids requires mask wearing in city-owned buildings
The City of Cedar Rapids is requiring all visitors to city-owned buildings to wear a mask, regardless of vaccination status. The change is in line with the most recent guidance issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week, the city said in a news release. The CDC’s pivot about fully vaccinated individuals […]
Posted inCommunity/News
‘If we’re not educated, how can we fight?’: Rally in Greene Square Park addresses human trafficking in Iowa
Driving through Cedar Rapids gave Heather Brown goosebumps. To the dozens of people gathered at Greene Square Park on Friday, Brown shared the story of the first time she was trafficked in the area during a football game at the University of Iowa in 2010. “We stopped at a Hy-Vee and were loaded on a […]
