Gazette Daily News Briefing, August 26
This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Friday, August 26th.
It will be all sun Friday before a slight chance for rain will return over the weekend. According to the National Weather Service it will be sunny, with a high near 80 degrees on Friday. On Friday night it will be partly cloudy, with a low of around 59 degrees. The wind will remain around 5 mph all day.
The city of North Liberty is hoping to transform Centennial Park into a regional attraction for the Corridor.
A design concept for the $17.7 million project was presented to the North Liberty City Council this week. Proposed features include an event center, outdoor stage, open air pavilion, splash pad and garden to honor city veterans. City officials said they hope the project will draw more people to the city.
The city purchased land for the park in 2010 and developed a master plan for it in 2012. Centennial Park, the city’s largest park, opened in 2013.
The city has completed four phases of work since the master plan was created, with the most recent phase wrapping up this year. Completed projects include construction of driveways, permeable paver parking, trails and age-appropriate play features.
A preliminary project schedule shows construction beginning in December 2023 and lasting through May 2025, but that is subject to change as the design is developed and as funding is secured.
A Cedar Rapids man was arrested Wednesday on a warrant for an attempted murder charge after he led police on a foot chase, according to a Cedar Rapids Police Department news release.
Bernick Karsten Brown, 38, is accused of attempting to kill his ex-girlfriend’s new boyfriend, Branly Nkosi, by hitting him multiple times in the head with a baseball bat Feb. 12.
The attack caused multiple skull fractures, a brain bleed and other serious life-threatening injuries, according to a criminal complaint. The man also had a stab wound in his back, but the complaint does not state whether the stabbing is thought to have been done by Brown.
A Cedar Rapids patrol officer recognized Brown, who had several warrants out for his arrest, on Wednesday shortly after 5 p.m. The officer started tracking Brown and called for backup, according to the news release.
Brown tried to hide in a home in the 1400 block of Bever Avenue SE and escaped out the back as police attempted to contact him, the release states. Canines were deployed during the foot chase, and Brown eventually was arrested after punching an officer.
The company that owns the site of the Kentucky Derby is one step closer to buying the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Sioux City after receiving approval from the state’s Racing and Gaming Commission on Thursday.
The unanimous approval, which came after little discussion from commissioners, marks a major milestone in the Churchill Downs’ $2.75 billion bid to buy Peninsula Pacific Entertainment, or P2E, which owns the Hard Rock Casino and other racing and gambling properties in Virginia and New York.
Churchill Downs announced the deal in February.
Based in Los Angeles, P2E is a gaming and entertainment company that was formed in 1999 by Iowa native M. Brent Stevens.
In February, Churchill Downs, which is publicly traded, announced the purchase of P2E's gaming properties, which also included seven horse racetracks in Virginia and a casino in New York. The deal was subject to regulatory approval, including state gaming commissions in Iowa, Virginia and New York.
