A hawk perched on a light pole surveys the Mississippi riverfront on a late autumn afternoon.

Federal, state inspectors paint opposite views of animal welfare at troubled eastern Iowa zoo

on Tue, 01/27/2015 - 01:31   by Editor
Animal welfare inspections by state and federal agriculture officials of Cricket Hollow Zoo paint almost opposite images of the troubled facility near Manchester, Iowa.
 
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspectors have cited the small rural zoo for repeated major and minor infractions of animal welfare regulations dating back to 2011, but Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship inspectors speak glowingly of the facility in emails and reports obtained in a Freedom-Of-Information request by bettendorf.com.
 

City debt tops $132-million as city council begins developing next capital spending plan

on Mon, 01/26/2015 - 23:56   by Editor
Bettendorf aldermen will begin discussing next year's capital spending plan later this month after closing the books on the past fiscal year with a mountain of debt – $132.2 million to be precise.

Used car dealer seeks city funds; has yet to complete landscape plan for high profile location

on Mon, 01/26/2015 - 23:33   by Editor
A used car dealer – forced to relocate because of the Interstate 74 bridge project – is seeking $15,000 from the city even though his business has yet to complete any of the promised landscaping of his highly visible new location on the east entrance to downtown Bettendorf.
 

Municipal odds and ends. . .

on Mon, 01/26/2015 - 23:17   by Editor
Bettendorf City Council members and city staff met recently to set goals for the coming year, but you won't find any information online about the sessions.
 

Riverdale initiates first TIF district to collect $16,700 from ALCOA and other firms in new urban renewal area along State Street

on Mon, 01/26/2015 - 23:16   by Editor
Riverdale's first Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district – aimed at diverting future property taxes that its largest taxpayer ALCOA would normally pay to Pleasant Valley schools and county government – will be set up before the end of the year to help fund municipal improvements of the 400-resident village.
 

Democrats paying heavily for their political failures — and ditching working stiff

on Mon, 01/26/2015 - 23:14   by Editor
Dick Tuck, the legendary political prankster and wit, once ran for local office in San Francisco and lost. His concession speech, in its entirety: “The people have spoken — the bastards.”
 
Now, you know me — I wouldn’t say anything like that about the recent elections. It’s vulgar and I’m couth.
 
However, if the shoe fits…
 

Pleasant Valley school district raises red flag over Riverdale plans to include ALCOA in urban renewal areas eligible for TIF rebates

on Mon, 01/26/2015 - 23:05   by Editor
Pleasant Valley school officials are raising a red flag over Riverdale's plan to include the ALCOA plant in its first-ever Urban Renewal Area, the initial step in making the multi-million-dollar manufacturing facility eligible for Tax Increment Financing (TIF) rebates on future expansion and renovation projects.
 
Granting TIF incentives for future plant renovations could cost the district millions in school taxes, funneling those monies instead to either city coffers, back to the plant or into contractor/developer pockets.
 

Air pollution exceedances reach 81 thru Nov. 4

on Mon, 01/26/2015 - 23:03   by Editor
The number of exceedances of National Ambient Air Quality Standards in Iowa totaled 81 through November 4, nine more than the total number recorded in 2013, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR).
 
The vast majority of the exceedances so far in 2014 involved high levels of sulfur dioxide (SO2) pollution, with 63 of the exceedances recorded at air monitors in Muscatine.
 

Vacant gas station eyesore to get new life

on Mon, 01/26/2015 - 23:01   by Editor
A new Shell gas station and 2,000-square-foot convenience store would be built on the site of a long-vacant gas station along Bettendorf's State Street if the new owner gets a setback variance from the city.
 

Federal, state inspectors paint opposite views of animal welfare at troubled eastern Iowa zoo

on Tue, 12/16/2014 - 21:38   by Editor

Animal welfare inspections by state and federal agriculture officials of Cricket Hollow Zoo paint almost opposite images of the troubled facility near Manchester, Iowa.

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspectors have cited the small rural zoo for repeated major and minor infractions of animal welfare regulations dating back to 2011, but Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship inspectors speak glowingly of the facility in emails and reports obtained in a Freedom-Of-Information request by bettendorf.com.

State inspectors of the facility also refer with contempt to citizens who have reported bad conditions at the zoo, calling them "the complaint crowd," and suggesting to superiors they would file complaints even if none existed.

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