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Home / News / Government & Politics / Local Government
Also, after months of closure, the domes at Taft Middle School in Cedar Rapids have been reopened
Feb. 12, 2024 5:00 am
Marion Mayor Nick AbouAssaly will deliver the 30th annual State of the City address next month.
In the address, AbouAssaly will share the challenges and triumphs of 2023 and highlight the projects planned for 2024 and beyond in a presentation titled “Setting the Standard.” The event is slated for 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. March 5 at the Radisson Hotel Cedar Rapids, 1200 Collins Rd. NE. It is hosted by the city of Marion and supported by local businesses.
Reservations for the luncheon are $50 per person or $500 for a table of 10. Reservations are due by Feb. 26 and may be purchased online at www.cityofmarion.org/SOC. The Marion Chamber of Commerce is assisting with reservations.
Sponsored tables and seating will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis. Advance payment serves as confirmation of the reservation.
A limited number of free, reserved seats will be available so individuals may attend and observe the presentation only. A recording of the presentation will be available for viewing after the event.
The second dome at Taft Middle School — closed for repairs because of deteriorating wood beams — reopened last week, almost four months after the domes were closed as a safety precaution.
Two domes at Taft and two domes at Harding Middle School in the Cedar Rapids Community School District were closed in October after the beams supporting the domes were found to be deteriorating.
The two middle schools were constructed in 1965 using the same design that features two domes. Each dome has 16 beams supporting it. Metal plates were installed to the wooden beams, welding them to metal anchors attached to concrete footings around the domes.
The second dome at Harding Middle School is expected to be completed this week, weather permitting.
Closure of the four domes impacted more than 1,000 students in sixth through eighth grades, with students eating lunch in hallways and learning in portable classrooms until they were reopened.
The public is invited to provide input on the Corridor Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Transportation Improvement Program for the Federal Fiscal Year 2025-2029.
The Transportation Improvement Program is the annual capital budget for the Corridor MPO. It is a document that identifies planned transportation projects in the Corridor MPO’s boundary that are expected to use federal-aid funds, instead of local or private funds. This year’s Transportation Improvement Program includes approximately $20 million in new funding for roadway, trail and transit projects.
The MPO will host a series of public engagement events during the week of Feb 26. At the events, the public will have an opportunity to review and ask MPO staff questions about the projects seeking funding, and provide input on which projects they think should be prioritized. Each of the events will provide the same information and opportunities for feedback — there is no need to attend all of them.
The public input session schedule is as follows:
The Corridor MPO also released a survey for the FFY 2025-2029 Transportation Improvement Program projects. The survey opened Feb. 8 and it will close March 8. The survey can be accessed at bit.ly/3ODtp2d.
Families who live in Johnson County and meet income and employment requirements may qualify to receive funding through the county’s infant and toddler scholarship program.
The Johnson County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to increase the funding available for individual scholarships for the program, which helps families pay for a quality early education for their children while they work.
Scholarships through the Johnson County Infant and Toddler Scholarship Program can be used to enroll children aged zero to 3 years at eligible programs that meet quality rating standards. Families awarded infant and toddler scholarships may use them at the eligible program of their choice.
The vote increased available scholarship amounts to 80 percent of the program’s private pay rate, and program work requirements have been adjusted to 25 hours per week. Income guidelines remain at up to 250 percent of the federal poverty level.
For more information on the Infant and Scholarship Program, visit the Johnson County Social Services website at johnsoncountyiowa.gov/school-ready-scholarship under the Infant and Toddler Scholarships tab, or contact Laurie Nash at empower@johnsoncountyiowa.gov or 319-356-6090.
The Housing Fund for Linn County Board of Directors is making up to $250,000 available in loans to for-profit or nonprofit developers and businesses, and to governmental entities for housing initiatives serving households earning below 80 percent of the area median income in Linn County.
Eligible activities include development or rehabilitation of rental and owner-occupied housing; homeownership and rental aid; and financing for the preservation or development of transitional housing or homeless shelters.
Applications are available at ecicog.org/hfflc or by request from Executive Director Tracey Achenbach at housingfundlc@ecicog.org or (319) 289-0072. Applications are due at the East Central Iowa Council of Governments office no later than 3 p.m. Feb. 29.
The last day of school for students in the Cedar Rapids Community School District is tentatively set for June 7.
The change in date for the last day of school accounts for the 41 instructional hours lost for weather-related reasons. So far, there have been five cancellations, two early releases and one delay.
Per Iowa law, schools must have 1,080 instructional contact hours with students each year.
The MidAmerican Energy Foundation is sponsoring Junior Achievement programs that will enable more than 600 students to learn work and career readiness skills.
Junior Achievement’s Work and Career Readiness programs begin in elementary school, introducing students to what a job is, why people work and how jobs benefit the local community. Middle and high school students gain knowledge and skills that enable them to explore, choose and advance in their future career paths.
Since Junior Achievement's inception in 1965, the MidAmerican Energy Foundation has played a role in helping provide Eastern Iowa students with economic educational programming.
“The MidAmerican Energy Foundation is committed to supporting students across the MidAmerican territory, and the work Junior Achievement does is instrumental to that,” said Kathryn Kunert with the MidAmerican Energy Foundation. “Financial literacy can and does make a huge difference in young people’s lives, and Junior Achievement’s programming and reach makes it a strong partner for this work
The Work and Career Readiness programs will teach students about strong oral and written communication, how to define challenges and evaluate potential solutions, how to use strong people skills to create relationships, and the knowledge and resources to pursue or advance a job or career.
Government Notes is published Mondays and contains updates from area governmental bodies. Gazette reporters Marissa Payne and Grace King contribute.
Jeff Linder
Caleb McCullough, Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau
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