Noted urban planner Jeff Speck - the co-author of Suburban Nation: The Rise of Sprawl & the Decline of the American Dream - will be visiting Davenport through August 14 and will present his ideas for revitalizing downtown Davenport on Thursday in the Deere Auditorium of the Figge Art Museum. The one-hour presentation will begin at 6 p.m. and will be followed by a question-and-answer session and a meet-and-greet. There is no charge to attend, and the Figge galleries will be open to lecture attendees. "In Thrall of Sprawl," an article about Speck, was published in the River Cities' Reader on July 3, 2007.

Davenport has been awarded $2.3 million under the Department of Housing & Urban Development's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Investment Partnerships programs. The $1.7 million awarded to HOME will provide formula grants to fund a wide range of activities that build, buy, and rehabilitate affordable housing for rent or ownership or provide direct assistance to low-income people. The $644,670 awarded to CDBG will be used develop viable communities by providing housing and a suitable living environment and by expanding economic opportunities, principally for persons of low and moderate income.

On Wednesday, July 23, a team of cyclists participating in the "Journey of Hope" will arrive in Davenport as part of a nine-week, 4,000-mile cycling event across the country to raise funds and awareness for people with disabilities. The team expects to arrive in the afternoon and then have dinner and a friendship visit, with details to be determined, at 4:30 p.m. The Journey of Hope is a program of Push America, the national philanthropy of Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity, which raises funds and awareness for people with disabilities. The Journey of Hope team consists of men from Pi Kappa Phi chapters across the country. The team will cycle an average of 75 miles per day, beginning in San Francisco and ending in Washington, DC, on August 16. For more information about this event or more on Push America's summer programs, contact Adam Phillips at (704) 504-2400 extension 160 or visit (http://www.pushamerica.org).

The Mississippi Valley Blues Society has announced that it's taking the IH Mississippi Valley Blues Festival to the streets of downtown Davenport July 3 through 5. The festival is being relocated from its LeClaire Park "home location" because of flooding. Acts scheduled for the tent stage will perform at the Adler Theatre, and the main stage will be located at Second Street and Pershing Avenue. For more information, see the official festival guide inside this issue or visit (http://www.mvbs.org).