With temperatures rising and many buildings closed to the public due to COVID-19, people experiencing homelessness or individuals who don’t have access to air conditioning have limited options for where they can go to cool off. On Wednesday, the Linn County Board of Supervisors approved using the county-owned Fillmore Center, 520 11th St NW, as […]
Linn County Board of Supervisors
Posted inCommunity/News
ATVs are now allowed on some Linn County roads
The Linn County Board of Supervisors approved an ordinance on Wednesday that allows the use of all-terrain vehicles and off-road vehicles on certain county roads. The ordinance had been under consideration since early March, when the board held two public hearings to get feedback from residents. More than 100 residents spoke during the first public […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Linn County are slowing down but public health is watching for a possible surge
The number of newly reported confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Linn County has decreased over the past few weeks, but officials are preparing for a possible second wave of the virus. As of 9 a.m. on Thursday, Linn County Public Health was reporting 972 confirmed cases. The data also shows that the total number of […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Linn County supervisors extend telework policy for county employees, discuss employee testing and Test Iowa
As the state continues to reopen, Linn County officials are thinking about ways to protect their employees, including extending telework policies and looking into testing county employees for COVID-19. Most county buildings are closed to the general public through June 15. Earlier this month, the Board of Supervisors discussed installing Plexiglas barriers and signs on […]
Posted inCOVID-19
Test Iowa site opening in Cedar Rapids on Thursday
Test Iowa is coming to Cedar Rapids earlier than expected. Originally, a soft opening was planned for May 11 and May 12, with full operations following that, but the timeline has been moved up. Test Iowa’s Cedar Rapids location will instead have a soft opening on Thursday, May 7 and Friday, May 8. The site […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Linn County reports increase in community spread of COVID-19; local officials preparing for a second wave of the virus
Linn County has seen an increase in community spread of COVID-19, Heather Meador, Linn County Public Health’s supervisor of Clinical Services, said during a press conference on Monday. More than half of the newly reported cases of the virus over the weekend were connected to community spread, according to Meador. “This is a clear indication […]
Posted inCOVID-19
Linn County begins to plan for what happens when neighboring counties reopen in May
Linn County isn’t one of the 77 counties where Gov. Reynolds is relaxing the state’s COVID-19 restrictions, but four counties it shares borders with are, so Linn officials are starting to consider what impact the changes the governor announced on Monday will have in their county. Starting on May 1, closed retail businesses and restaurants […]
Posted inCOVID-19
Linn County officials, preparing for a ‘patient surge,’ urge residents to stay home, wear a cloth mask if out
At the start of Linn County Public Health’s Monday press conference, Supervisor Stacey Walker shared how the county’s confirmed cases of COVID-19 have changed in only a week’s time. “When I last spoke to you, just under a week ago, there were 71 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Linn County,” Walker said. “Now, we have […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Linn County homeless shelter will remain open 24/7 through April; LIFTS begins delivering groceries and prescriptions
Linn County’s overflow shelter for people experiencing homelessness will stay open through April. The Linn County Board of Supervisors approved the extension during its meeting on Monday. The overflow shelter opened last November at the county-owned Fillmore Center, 520 11th St NW. The shelter’s services are provided by Willis Dady Homeless Services. The overflow shelter […]
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‘This question is on everyone’s mind’: Linn County, Cedar Rapids officials weigh issuing a local shelter-in-place order
Gov. Kim Reynolds has repeatedly said the state is not ready to issue a shelter-in-place, even though the governors of neighboring states like Illinois and Wisconsin have issued such orders. “At this point we are not in a place where we would order a shelter-in-place or a stay-at-home,” Reynolds said during her Monday press conference […]
Posted inCommunity/News, COVID-19
Linn County Supervisors approve paid leave for county employees due to COVID-19
The Linn County Board of Supervisors passed temporary employment policies for the county’s workers on Monday, including paid leave, as a result of COVID-19. The temporary policy also ensures “the continuity of Linn County government services.” Most county buildings have closed to the public, but people can contact Linn County departments by phone or email. […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Linn County declares a state of disaster emergency
The Linn County Board of Supervisors declared a State of Disaster Emergency on Thursday. The declaration activates the disaster response and recovery aspects of the county’s comprehensive emergency plan. It also recognizes that a civil emergency exists in each of the county’s municipalities. “It will increase our ability to respond and address the health and […]
