FRIDAY, JAN. 31, 2020 | IN THIS ISSUE
• Prospect Meadows seeks to add paintball
• Iowa City Area HBA receives national recognition in Las Vegas
• Corridor hospitals earn new five-star ratings from CMS
• CBJ Report on CBS2/FOX 28: CID, UTC and Iowa home sales
• Auto, imposter scams top list of complaints to AG's office
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Prospect Meadows seeks to add paintball
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Prospect Meadows is asking Linn County, which owns the land it leases for its baseball and softball complex northeast of Marion, for permission to add a paintball tournament facility.
An application for a conditional use to add seven paintball fields east of the entrance to Prospect Meadows from County Home Road will go before the county’s Technical Review Committee on Feb. 6, followed by consideration by the Board of Adjustment and Planning and Zoning Commission on Feb. 17 and Feb. 26, according to planner Stephanie Lientz, of Linn County Planning & Development.
An application signed off on by the county as owner of the land seeks approval for seven fields on approximately two acres that would be dedicated to tournament-focused activities. It says the fields will be open to the general public for recreational use, as well as special events and fundraisers for local businesses and clubs.
A maximum of 75 will be able to use the facility at one time, and proposed hours are from 9 a.m.-6 p.m., with most of the use expected on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. The paintball season would run April through October.
The
first phase of Prospect Meadows opened May 23
, with eight of the planned 17 ball fields completed, and began hosting tournament play after years of planning and fundraising. Plans for recreational uses beyond softball and baseball have previously been discussed, but the conditional use going to the county is the first specific proposal outlined.
Ms. Lientz said the county is expected to review the application to determine what conditions should be placed on development of the paintball tournament area. They are expected to be safety precautions such as netting already proposed by Prospect Meadows along County Home Road to prevent stray paintballs from leaving the tournament area.
An original site plans for the Prospect Meadows indicated an indoor basketball and baseball facility where the paintball fields are proposed.
IMAGE: An aerial photo of Prospect Meadows in Marion, taken last September. CREDIT Prospect Meadows.
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Iowa City Area HBA receives national recognition in Las Vegas
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The Greater Iowa City Area Home Builders Association (HBA) was recently honored with two national awards as part of the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) International Builders Show in Las Vegas.
Karyl Bohnsack, executive officer of the Iowa City Area HBA (shown right), was named 2019 Local Executive Officer of the Year, while the Greater Iowa City HBA’s Remodelers Council was awarded with the 2019 CADRE Award for Membership Recruitment and Retention, which is one of the most prestigious awards NAHB grants to local Remodelers Councils.
Ms. Bohnsack, who has served in her role since May 2015, was nominated by NAHB executives, and was selected from executives serving all association sizes nationwide. She also received recognition for five years of service at the helm of the Iowa City Area HBA.
The Remodelers Council award honored the Iowa City Area HBA for substantially boosting its membership in the group, which aims to improve the business and technical skills of local remodelers. The Iowa City Area HBA Remodelers Council now counts 234 members, up from 73 at the end of 2018, thanks to a new campaign designed to create awareness and boost event participation.
“We are extremely proud that all the hard work the Greater Iowa City Area HBA puts in is being recognized nationally,” said Glenn Siders, president of the Iowa City Area HBA, in a release. “Karyl’s award is especially terrific because she spearheads so much of what our organization accomplishes.”
The National Housing Endowment Homebuilding Education Leadership Program Grant also awarded Kirkwood Community College a $100,000 grant during the show. The money will be used to further develop the college's Architecture-Construction-Engineering Academy Apprenticeship Program, including updates and putting content online.
A student team from Kirkwood was awarded first place in the Associate Program Student Competition for its management/project proposal, and team member Diana Wubbena, an interior design student at Kirkwood, was honored with the Outstanding Student Award.
The International Builders Show is the largest annual light construction show in the world. Iowa City Area HBA members are automatically members of the Home Builders Association of Iowa and NAHB
.
IMAGE: Karyl Bohnsack.
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Corridor hospitals earn new five-star ratings from CMS
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Mercy Iowa City, Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids and Jones Regional Medical Center in Anamosa all received the top five-star rating in the latest hospital rankings from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
With the new ranking, Mercy Iowa City has also become the only hospital in the state to receive the distinction four years in a row.
CMS analyzes hospitals using data on outcomes, patient experience and other factors for its Hospital Compare online rankings, which are designed to help patients review and make decisions about the quality of care available at Medicare-certified hospitals across the country. The rankings are given as one through five stars, with five being the highest and three being the national average score.
Of the 4,586 hospitals ranked, 407 received a five-star rating, or about 9%.
UnityPoint Health – St. Luke’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids and Virginia Gay Hospital in Vinton both earned four stars for 2020, while University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics earned three. No rating was available for the Iowa City VA Medical Center.
The star system has long been a point of contention between the CMS and health care groups, which have challenged its accuracy and meaningfulness, and frequently urged the CMS to drop it altogether. The CMS last August said that
it plans to update the methodology for its star rankings in 2021
, but released updated ratings this week based on its existing methodology because “the American people deserve up-to-date information on how hospitals are performing,” according to a statement from CMS Administrator Seema Verma.
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CBJ Report on CBS2/FOX 28: CID, UTC and Iowa home sales
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In this week’s CBJ Report on CBS2/FOX 28, Editor Adam Moore reports on another record year at the Eastern Iowa Airport, the projected hit to United Technology Corp.’s sales amid Boeing’s production halt on the 737 Max, and year-end results from the Iowa Association of Realtors. Watch the full report
here
.
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Autos, imposter scams top list of complaints to AG's office
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For the second year in a row, auto-related problems topped all categories of complaints reported to the Iowa Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division in 2019.
Other top categories were imposter scams and complaints over media services, home improvement projects and home goods and services.
Overall complaints totaled 3,225, a 7.7% decrease from 2018. That’s the first decrease since at least 2014.
In a release, Attorney General Tom Miller attributed the decrease, in part, to improved efforts to help consumers before they file a formal written complaint.
“We have a strong intake team, and if we cannot help consumers through the Consumer Fraud Act or other laws, we’ll guide them to other resources or educate them on how to avoid further problems,” Mr. Miller said.
Despite last year’s dip, complaints to the Consumer Protection Division are up 17.5% over the last five years. The auto category had 565 complaints, up 14.6% over 2018. Auto parts and repairs made up about 30% of those complaints. The category also includes complaints over financing, title issues, repossession, advertising, and RVs, motorcycles and other vehicles.
Imposter scams were again the second-highest complaint category, increasing 11% over a year ago to 375 complaints. That number is probably low, as many more consumers contacted the Consumer Protection Division to report the scams but did not file formal complaints.
Mr. Miller noted his office could use the Legislature’s help in strengthening Iowa laws to provide justice to consumers. He has previously advocated for strengthening Iowa’s manufactured-home laws after consumers have complained about high increases in rents and fees and other problems.
Mr. Miller has also proposed bills that would require education loan debt management companies to obtain a license from the Iowa Division of Banking and provide disclosures and other protections for borrowers; add motorcycles to Iowa’s Lemon Law; and increase penalties for elder abuse, including financial exploitation.
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Short Term Event Planner
Feb. 4
On the Menu: Direct Mail – The Comeback,
by Marion Chamber of Commerce and SCORE, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Marion City Hall, 1225 Sixth Ave., Ste. 136. Learn how direct mail works, how to work with a direct mail provider and more. Cost: Free for Marion Chamber members, $10 for non-members. To register, visit
bit.ly/39PKSOG
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Iowa City Roundtable,
by Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce, noon-1 p.m., Hyatt Place Iowa City, 255 E. Court St.
Members are invited to network and keep up to date with chamber and community events. Free. For information, call (319) 337-9637.
Physmed Home Health Care Ribbon Cutting,
by Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce, 4 p.m., Physmed Home Health Care, 1130 S. Scott Blvd., Iowa City. Free. For more information, visit
bit.ly/2tYPUYW
.
Feb. 5
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/
.
Feb. 6
Wake Up Marion,
by Marion Chamber of Commerce, 8-9 a.m., Marion City Hall, 1225 Sixth Ave., Suite 136. Learn more about Choice Floors while enjoying conversations with other Marion Chamber members. Free. To register, visit
bit.ly/35q22ze/
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Tax Deductions for Small Business,
by SCORE of East Central Iowa, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Linn Area Credit Union, 3015 Blairs Ferry Road NE, Cedar Rapids. Learn about small business tax breaks and how they can help your company. Free. To register, visit
conta.cc/2RzSqyg
.
Fair Chance Hiring: Resources and Information for Employers,
by Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, noon-1 p.m., Economic Alliance, 501 First St. SE. Hear from area employers using fair chance hiring practices and employing formerly incarcerated individuals. Also, discover resources and programs available to employers interested in exploring fair chance hiring practices. Free. To register, visit
bit.ly/2NuhWCo
.
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Headlines from CBS2/FOX 28
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These news items are provided by CBS2/FOX 28
Des Moines police are investigating a triple homicide late Thursday night. First responders arrived to a residence in the 600 block of E. Hackley Ave. around 11:20 p.m. to investigate a shooting. Upon their arrival, they found three people deceased within the home, all appearing to suffer from gunshot injuries. Des Moines Police Department detectives are investigating this incident. Their crime scene unit is also searching the scene for evidence. This is a developing story.
A bald eagle, America's national bird, is recovering after running into a semi's windshield this week. According to a post from Iowa DOT, a semi was exiting Interstate 80 near exit 255 in Iowa County when the raptor flew into the windshield. The truck driver was not hurt, but the windshield was completely shattered. The bald eagle is recovering at the RARE Group Rehabilitation Center.
These news items are provided by CBS2/FOX 28
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CBS2 Weather First Forecast
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Two weak disturbances will move through the area today and lead to the chance for light snow. There may be some freezing drizzle mixed in at times. Snowfall accumulation will be light, with up to an inch possible in spots. Mild air will move in over the weekend. Mostly cloudy skies will hold temperatures in the low to mid 30s Saturday. More sunshine Sunday will allow temperatures to get into the mid to upper 30s.
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