Gazette Daily News Briefing, October 29
This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Friday, October 29.
The 24-hours of rain will finally come to an end early Friday morning. According to the National Weather Service the rain will mostly cease by 7 a.m. After that it will be cloudy, with a high near 53 degrees. It will also be windy, with a north wind of 15 mph gusting as high as 35 mph. Friday night it will be partly cloudy, with a low around 40 degrees. The wind will slow down just a tad, at 10 to 15 mph.
Turns out that the second time was the charm for Iowa’s Redistricting efforts.
After months of political and pandemic-related delays, and the rejection of the first plan for establishing new congressional and legislative election boundaries, the Iowa Legislature approved a redistricting plan Thursday for the next decade.
On a 48-1 vote, the Senate approved Senate File 621 to create new congressional and legislative districts. The House followed suit 93-2, with five legislators absent.
Although the consensus is that the plan is GOP-friendly, Senate Democrats said they backed it because it meets the requirements of Iowa law and the state’s constitution.
Also completed Thursday were some minor protections for workers who lose their jobs after resisting mandatory vaccinations. These Iowans would still be able to collect unemployment benefits under legislation passed by the General Assembly and headed to Gov. Kim Reynolds for her expected signature.
Iowa Republicans said Thursday that ideally they would like to do more to allow people to resist mandatory COVID-19 vaccination, but this appeared to be the most they could do without risking a legal challenge.
Hunter Companies has withdrawn its preliminary subdivision plat for the former Transamerica site, saying it wants to gather more neighborhood input.
Plans for the 51-acre site on Edgewood Road NE had been scheduled to come before the City Planning Commission on Thursday afternoon
Hunter Companies is buying the land from Transamerica and pursuing a mixed-use development there.
Neighbors concerned about the project created an active Facebook groupto make their concerns known. It had 129 members as of Thursday afternoon.
Organizer Dave Watson said he thinks Hunter is a great option to develop the property but he wants the developer to work with the neighborhood. The list of concerns include saving trees, retaining retention ponds, providing more green space as part of the development; and worries about increased traffic.
When it comes to drinking water, several Iowa communities have high-quality H2O, says a panel of celebrity judges. But none better, apparently, than the defending champions, Keokuk.
The Iowa chapter of the American Water Works Association held a blind taste test Wednesday at the Double Tree convention complex to determine which Iowa community offers the best-tasting drinking water. Cedar Rapids was this year’s host city.
Keokuk’s water emerged at the top of a sample of seven Iowa cities’ drinking water.
The entries were judged on appearance, odor, taste and aftertaste by a panel of local media personalities, special guests and a host city representative. This event was part of the association’s annual conference.
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