Gazette Daily News Briefing, March 28
This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette Digital News Desk, and I’m here with your update for Tuesday, March 28.
It will be mostly cloudy and mostly uneventful for the weather on Tuesday. According to the National Weather Service the day will start mostly cloudy Tuesday in the Cedar Rapids area before the sky clears a bit. The high will come in near 50 degrees. The low will clock in around 28 degrees, with increasing clouds Tuesday night.
Authorities are seeking information about the illegal dumping of at least 25 coyote carcasses in Johnson County over the weekend.
Thirteen of the carcasses were found Saturday on Eagle Avenue just north of Rorhet Road SW, west of Iowa City.
Another group of at least 10 carcasses was found nearby on Ivy Avenue SW, north of 400th Street SW, according to a Johnson County Sheriff’s Office post on Facebook.
Iowa's wanton waste law requires that the usable portion of game or fur-bearing animals be removed from the field. Also, it is unlawful to dispose of carcasses in a road ditch.
Linn County will likely continue its pause on new utility-scale solar installations through June.
The Linn County Board of Supervisors discussed Monday whether to extend its moratorium on new large-scale solar projects as renewable energy review committees wrap up their work to study the county ordinance governing the solar projects. A final vote on the extension is slated for Wednesday.
The supervisors originally adopted the moratorium in October to last through Dec. 31, with the option to extend it up to three times through 2023 while the review is underway. They extended it previously through March.
The moratorium does not affect the already-approved solar projects near Palo and Coggon, which remain underway. But applications for new projects will not be taken until the pause is over.
The police and fire departments responded to Cedar Rapids City Hall Monday morning after receiving a report of a suspicious package at 7:47 a.m., according to a news release from the city.
City employees were evacuated while the Cedar Rapids Metro Hazardous Devices Unit investigated the item.
The Hazardous Devices Unit determined the contents of the package did not pose a threat, and Fire Chief Greg Smith issued an “all clear” for the building at about 9 a.m.
