FRIDAY, MAY 24, 2019  |  IN THIS ISSUE  

The first pitches are thrown out at Prospect Meadows Thursday PHOTO DAVE DEWITTE/CBJ
After eight years of strategizing, fundraising and development, Prospect Meadows celebrated the opening of its first phase Thursday afternoon under perfect skies. 

The nearly $14 million first phase brings eight diamonds and the Prospect Meadows Kiwanis Miracle Field for players with special needs to the former Linn County Farm property at Highway 13 and County Home Road. The facility is clustered into two sets of four fields, each with a two-story concession/scouting structure in the middle. One cluster, the Perfect Game complex, is completed and the second, the Transamerica complex, will be ready in two to three weeks.

Prospect Meadows will bring tournaments on weekends, and league play on week nights. It fulfills a vision brought forth by baseball lovers Rick Freese and Richard Bice to bring more opportunities for ball players to advance their skills and receive more exposure. Scouting organization Perfect Game USA has pledged to bring 1,000 teams to tournaments at Prospect Meadows next year.

Prospect Meadows General Manager Jack Roeder was recruited to lead the development effort after retiring from leadership of the Cedar Rapids Kernels ball club. He was honored at the ceremonies by naming an internal drive in the complex in his honor.

"Jack Roeder - you had a vision, you were persistent and you made it happen," said Tim Strellner, fundraising committee chairman for Prospect Meadows. He described the project as a true public/private partnership, which unified the region. Jerry Ford, president of Prospect Meadows anchor tenant Perfect Game USA, also heaped praise on Mr. Roeder for his persistence.

The metro area Rotary Clubs unveiled a donor wall to recognize supporters and the Marion Metro Kiwanis announced that their next vision is to build an inclusive playground at Prospect Meadows. Efforts continue to raise another $6 million to complete the second phase, adding eight more diamonds, in 2023.

For a list of upcoming events at Prospect Meadows, click here.

The USDA announced a $16 billion set of measures Thursday to help support the agriculture industry deal with potential losses due to recent tariffs and China's retaliatory tariffs.

Trade assistance announced by the USDA include: 
  • Market Facilitation Program (MFP) for 2019, authorized under the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) Charter Act and administered by the Farm Service Agency (FSA), will provide $14.5 billion in direct payments to producers. Payments will be made in up to three tranches, with the second and third tranches evaluated as market conditions and trade opportunities dictate. The first will begin in late July or early August.
  • CCC Charter Act authority will be used to implement a $1.4 billion Food Purchase and Distribution Program (FPDP) through the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) to purchase surplus commodities affected by trade retaliation such as fruits, vegetables, some processed foods, beef, pork, lamb, poultry, and milk for distribution by the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to food banks, schools, and other outlets serving low-income individuals.
  • The CCC will use its Charter Act authority for $100 million to be issued through the Agricultural Trade Promotion Program (ATP) administered by the Foreign Agriculture Service (FAS) to assist in developing new export markets on behalf of producers.
Further details regarding eligibility and payment rates will be released at a later date.

The Iowa Corn Growers Association (ICGA) released a statement welcoming the action, and calling for higher support levels than during the first round of trade assistance last year.

"These funds will be used to calm the destruction of the perfect agriculture storm," ICGA President Curt Mether said in a news release. "US farmers are caught right in the middle of the agriculture storm with low prices due to the current trade disputes, demand destruction of ethanol by the EPA granting RFS waivers to oil refiners, plus devastating weather conditions this spring. All these factors are affecting farm incomes and farmers need fair treatment during these uncertain times." 

Citing a media media report that a draft of the Trump Administration's plan will allocate four cents per bushel of corn, Mr. Mether said the ICGA has continued daily with the Administration and Congress continuing to state that four cents does not reflect trade impact on corn. A National Corn Growers Association-commissioned economic analysis conducted last May indicated corn farmers suffered a loss of at least 44 cents per bushel in the price of corn, Mr. Mether said, adding " We continue daily to speak up for our corn farmers by saying a couple cents is not enough."


In this week's CBJ Report on CBS2/FOX28, CBJ Editor Adam Moore discusses Mount Mercy University President Laurie Hamen's plans to leave the higher education world, a state loan to VIDA Diagnostics to advance its innovative imaging software for fighting lung disease and the opening of a new Drury Inn & Suites at Iowa River Landing in Coralville. To see the full report on CBS2/FOX28, click here.

BUILDINGS Media recently received awards from two business-to-business (B2B) publishing organizations.

At the 67th annual Maggie Awards produced by B2B Media Company on May 3, BUILDINGS was named a Best Trade Publication Gold Winner for its October 2018 issue focusing on building certifications, tenant amenities and net zero energy buildings. The brand was also a finalist in Best Feature Article for "Millennials and Gen Z in Facilities Management." This article looked at the aging and retirement of current facilities managers, what organizations can do to attract and retain talent, and how millennials and Generation Z can become facilities managers.

The American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE) honored BUILDINGS at ASBPE's 41st annual Azbee Awards of Excellence banquet on May 10. There, the brand was recognized for its Trade Show/Conference coverage from the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA)'s annual event for the show dailies and related articles the BUILDINGS team produced on-site. The coverage received a National Bronze award.

In April, BUILDINGS was recognized with a Regional Gold award for the Upper Midwest region. BUILDINGS also won a Regional Bronze award in the Enterprise News Story category for "Airport Evacuation: Lessons from a Passenger." For this article, BUILDINGS editor Janelle Penny spoke with someone who was on a layover at Germany's Frankfurt Airport when a screening error forced the evacuation of part of the airport.

"We focus on creating high-quality, engaging and informative content relevant to our readers in everything we do," said Valerie Dennis Craven, director of editorial content for  BUILDINGS . "The recognized content hits that mark. It's an honor to be recognized for our work in the B2B trade publication space among quality work from our peers."

BUILDINGS, part of Cedar Rapids-based Stamats Communications,  is a B2B trade publication that serves an audience of building owners and facility management professionals. 

Time is ticking down to cast your vote in the Corridor Business Journal's annual Best of the Corridor competition.
 
Nominate your favorite local businesses, organizations and activities across 50 different categories ranging from Best Bank to Best Brewery. This year's survey also recognizes a host of Best of the Corridor Hall of Famers, an honor attained after 10 wins in one category.

To see the full list of categories and vote for your favorites, visit http://bit.ly/bestofthecorridor19. You can also see the full list of 2018's winners at the CBJ website.

Best of the Corridor voting will end at 5 p.m. next Wednesday, so don't delay. Look for the results in the July 8 and 15 editions of the Corridor Business Journal.
 
May 29
1 Million Cups, by 1MC Cedar Rapids, 8:15-9:15 a.m., Geonetric, 415 12th Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids. Join for community connections, free coffee, and presentations by entrepreneurs, established companies, experts and more. Free. For more information, visit   facebook.com/1MCICR.
 
1 Million Cups, by 1MC Iowa City, 9-10 a.m., MERGE, 136 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City. Join for community connections, free coffee, and presentations by entrepreneurs, established companies, experts and more. Free. For more information, visit  facebook.com/1MillionCupsIC/.

Investing on Tap, by Hills Bank, 4:30-6 p.m., Tin Roost, 840 W. Penn St., North Liberty. Join Hills Bank Wealth Management for drinks and hors d'oeuvres. Candice Tse from Goldman Sachs Asset Management will share a summary of trends in socially responsible investing. Free. Register at  HillsBank.com/BusinessAcademy.

June 1
The Views Grand Opening, by The Views Senior Living, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., 720 Oakbrook Drive, Marion. Enjoy cocktails, hors d'oeuvres and live music while touring the new senior living community. Free. For more information, visit viewsofmarion.com.

June 5
Fastest Growing Companies, by Corridor Business Journal, 5:30-8 p.m., DoubleTree by Hilton, 350 First Ave. NE, Cedar Rapids. A ranking of the region's 25 fastest-growing companies will be revealed, culminating in the announcement of the No. 1 Fastest Growing Company. The CEO of the Fastest Growing Company and the 2019 TLC Associates Entrepreneur of the Year will share their stories. Tickets: $55 until May 29; $70 after. For more information or to register, visit corridorbusiness.com/events or contact Ashley Levitt at ashley@corridorbusiness.com or (319) 665-6397, ext. 311.
See and Be Seen

in the CBJ Book of Lists - THE definitive resource guide for business leaders. Ranked information on Corridor companies by sector, regional market facts and profiles of the most influential people under one cover. Don't be left out - Be Seen! For advertising information, contact Andrea Rhoades at  andrea@corridorbusiness.com .
Headlines from CBS2/FOX 28
These news items are provided by CBS2/FOX 28  
 
A contentious fight between residents of a North Liberty mobile home park and its new owner rages on. People living at Golfview Mobile Home Park are facing, in some cases, a 60 percent increase in the rental fees for the land their mobile homes sit on. Despite the name, mobile homes are not very mobile, and those who own their homes could be forced to pay the higher rental fee, or face eviction and lose their home.  There is little if any state law protecting the owners of mobile, or manufactured homes in Iowa. Something critics say it is how private companies and investment firms swoop in to rake in major profits. The new owner of Golfview is Havenpark Capital. The Utah based company is purchasing mobile home parks like this across the country. We made repeated attempts to speak to Havenpark in person, or through a statement. They either declined or ignored our requests. In fact, the company did not allow anyone other than residents who registered first to attend a town hall Thursday night.  "What's happening in this community is indicative of what's happening across our state," said State Sen. Zach Wahls, who told residents efforts to better regulate mobile home parks did not make it  through the legislature this year.  That's why many residents have formed their own group to fight back. The Golfview Residents Association says they should be allowed to fight for their homes with legal representation. "They don't get to decide how we fight for our homes. They can't tell us we must remain isolated from our attorneys, our community, our supporters when we fight for our homes," said Don Lund, president of the Golfview Residents Association.   Residents say that representatives from Havenpark at the meeting offered to delay some rent increases, but they claim, the company did not put that offer in writing leaving some to fear it was all talk and no substance.

One person was shot by another person on Thursday at 314 Cayman St., according to the Iowa City Police Department.  Officers said the victim was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The victim was not identified.  Nearby residents were also evacuated until officers determined there wasn't a threat.  Police are also relaying that this incident is not believed to be related to recent shootings in Cedar Rapids. They also said the incident is not related to a recent social media post indicating violence in the Iowa City area this weekend.  A $1,000 reward on this shooting is being offered. Anyone with information is asked to call police.

T hese news items are provided by CBS2/FOX 28 
CBS2 Chief Meteorologist Terry Swails' Weather First Forecast

An active pattern including the risk for flash flooding and severe weather continues into Memorial Day weekend, but there will be plenty of dry hours and warm temperatures.  Showers and storms will end by 10 a.m. and it will be mostly cloudy, warm, and muggy. A warm front will be moving across the area and will lead to additional showers and thunderstorms after 4 p.m. Some storms could be strong with large hail, strong winds and heavy rain. There also will be a chance for an isolated tornado, but the chances are low right now.  Showers and storms will continue through the night and wind down early Saturday morning.  There will be a cold front that moves through the state Saturday. Ahead of it temperatures will be near 80 degrees with partly cloudy skies. A few scattered showers and storms will be possible in the evening. The front will begin to slight south and showers and thunderstorms will be possible once again Sunday morning. The rest of Sunday will be a mix of sun and clouds with temperatures in the mid to upper 70s.