Gazette Daily News Briefing, June 26 and June 27
This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Saturday, June 26, and Sunday, June 27.
It rained a bit more this week. And this weekend has a good chance of keeping that trend going.
According to the National Weather Service, showers will be likely before 3 p.m. Saturday, then a variety of scattered showers and thunderstorms will be possible after that. Overall chance for precipitation for the Cedar Rapids area will be 60 percent. When rain is not falling, it is expected to be mostly cloudy, with a high near 82 degrees.
On Sunday there will be a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms, primarily before 1:00 in the afternoon. After that it is predicted to be partly sunny, with a high near 83 degrees.
Cedar Rapids city officials said Friday they will press on with “transformational” downtown projects encompassed in a proposal they put forward for funding help from a competitive state program. They will do so despite only being awarded $9 million, $30.5 million short of its request.
Six Iowa communities had vied for a share of $100 million through the competitive Reinvestment District program after seeking a combined $151.6 million from the board. Although Cedar Rapids requested the most of the group, they were not only awarded the least of all six cities, each of those cities were awarded more than they originally asked for, with the city of Ames receiving double its original proposal at more than $20 million.
The work that the city is looking to do includes an entertainment complex at the site where the city wanted to build a casino before being told no by the state, a hotel renovation at an historic site, a downtown high rise building, and bypass and recreation opportunities added to the 5-in-1 dam on the Cedar River.
Iowa on Friday reported 46 people were hospitalized with COVID-19, the lowest number reported since March 28, 2020, at the start of the pandemic.
Of those hospitalized, 18 were in intensive care units, and 12 were on ventilators to help them breathe. Previous numbers have indicated that the vast majority of those being hospitalized for the disease were never vaccinated. On that note, Iowa’s adult vaccination continues to stagnate, sticking at around 53 percent as of Friday.
Vice President Kamala Harris’ visit to Texas was a victory “for the people of this country who’ve been dealing with an unsafe and unsecure situation at the border,” Rep. Ashley Hinson said Friday.
The Friday visit was long overdue, according to the 1st District congresswoman, who has been calling on the vice president to get a firsthand view of the situation created by the administration’s immigration policies.
Hinson has used repeated criticism of Harris to her profile nationally as she gears up for reelection next year. Given that the southern border has befuddled multiple administrations in a row, it is unlikely it will not be solved anytime soon, as Vice President Harris acknowledged during her visit to El Paso Friday.
The Iowa Ideas 2021 virtual conference will be here before you know it, and we would like you to be our guest on the house. The Gazette is providing free access to this two-day gathering with more than 50 sessions- filled with thought-provoking local, and national speakers-- all ready to engage you on a variety of important and timely Iowa-issues. Join us October 14th and 15th for this can’t miss, idea-exchange experience. Learn more and register for the event at iowaideas.com
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