Rock Island Economic Growth Corporation (GROWTH) is pleased to announce that the U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded $18,530,708 in funding from the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) to assist the communities of Rock Island, Moline, and Sterling.

GROWTH created the Northwestern Illinois Coalition for this NSP program. GROWTH will serve as the Lead Applicant to administer the overall program and will work in concert with four Consortium Partners including: City of Moline, City of Rock Island, City of Sterling, and Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA).

NSP is funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and is designed to spur economic development in hard-hit communities and create jobs. GROWTH is one of nearly 60 applicants nationwide to receive an award. Total awards amount to $2 billion.

"We are so excited to receive this allocation! This award will help stimulate our economy, create jobs, and help stabilize our neighborhoods," commented Brian Hollenback, President of Renaissance Rock Island.

The original request for funding totaled $35,295,425. At this time, GROWTH does not know what exact projects have been funded. Specific areas, or census tracts, in each community would be eligible for program funding.

The original application requested:

Purchase-rehabilitation of homes  57 units $   7,540,000

Redevelop vacant property for housing  145 units $20,675,000

Demolition of homes    49 units $     751,750

Financing mechanisms for homebuyers 78 units $  3,120,000

General administration (10%)     $  3,208,675

Total      251 units $35,295,425

The following outcomes were projected in the original application:

• Increase in median market values of real estate in targeted areas
• Increase in the local tax base
• Removal of blight to advance investment in new housing
• 969 construction jobs created / 150 peripheral jobs impacted
• 202 units made energy efficient
• 49 units demolished
• 202 low-to-middle income households gain long-term housing affordability

Augustana College, Rock Island, IL - Writer Richard Katrovas reads from his work in The River Readings at Augustana on Thursday, February 4.

The recipient of numerous grants and awards, Katrovas is the founding academic director of the Prague Summer Program, and is the author of six books of poetry, Green Dragons, Snug Harbor, The Public Mirror, The Book of Complaints, Dithyrambs and Prague Winter; a book of short stories, Prague USA; two memoirs, The Years of Smashing Bricks and The Republic of Burma Shave; and a novel, Mystic Pig. He is a professor of English at Western Michigan University.

Of The Years of Smashing Bricks, Patricia Hampl wrote, "Richard Katrovas has become an indispensable masculine voice, by turns brash and strikingly tender. These short stories form a strong, singular narrative, but they are also individual pieces of beauty and insight. Maybe only a poet can write memoir with this kind of torque."

The reading is free and open to the public and takes place Thursday, February 4, at 7:00 p.m. in Wallenberg Hall, inside the Denkmann building (3520 7^th Ave.) on the Augustana College campus. A reception follows the reading.

The River Readings at Augustana is sponsored by the Institute for Leadership and Service, the Thomas Tredway Library, and the English Department at Augustana College.

The River Readings at Augustana calendar:

February 4, Richard Katrovas, poetry, fiction, and memoir

March 18, Chris Offutt, fiction and memoir

April 15, Daniel Woodrell, fiction

Fromthe smooth feel of hand-sanded surfaces to the inviting look of finished furniture crafted from rich northern hardwoods, the new Simply Amish store is
more than a day at the store; it's a journey for your senses. Now open at 3711 Northwest Blvd, Davenport, Iowa.

Simply Amish furniture is made by authentic Amish craftsmen, working on more than 50 family farms scattered throughout the heartland of America. Most are small family shops with only four or five craftsmen, while some shops might employ as many as 30 skilled workers. Six days a week, Simply Amish craftsmen make some of the most beautiful handmade furniture known to man. And seven days a week, they struggle to refrain from unseemly pride.

Simply Amish - you'll find 100 different styles. And almost every piece of furniture can be custom-ordered with more than 75 combinations of rich woods and stains. Hardware is available in wood, porcelain and 11 different metals, ranging from Weathered Copper to Black Nickel.

Vignettes have been constructed throughout the store allowing customers to view Amish-made furniture in room settings. Bedroom furniture, dining room
furniture, and family room furniture is the core of Simply Amish Furniture.

When others may say it's not a good time to open a new business, Simply Amish is boldly opening a store in Davenport.

IMAGE: Cornelis Galle the Elder (Flemish; Antwerp, 1576-1650), Procne Showing Tereus the Head of his Child (after Peter Paul Rubens, Flemish; Antwerp, 1577-1640), c. 1637, Engraving, Museum purchase 1980.92

The University of Iowa Museum of Art's (UIMA) second exhibition presented at Davenport's Figge Art Museum, "In the Footsteps of Masters: The Evolution of the Reproductive Print," opens Jan. 21 and will remain on view through May 23. The exhibition is curated by UI student Nathan Popp, a UIMA curatorial graduate assistant who organized the exhibit to examine the role of printmaking in the development of visual culture.

The exhibition spans 500 years, featuring nearly 80 Western reproductive prints from the 15th to the 20th century. Featured in the exhibition are original prints and drawings by artists Albrecht Dürer, Annibale Carracci, Jusepe De Ribera, Edouard Manet, Jean-Baptiste Corot, Jean-Honoré Fragonard, William Blake, Francisco Goya, and Grant Wood, as well as reproductive prints made after the works of famous masters such as Raphael, Peter Paul Rubens, Rembrandt, Jan Vermeer, Jan Van Eyck, Titian, Michelangelo and others.

Admission to the Figge Art Museum, located at 225 West Second St., Davenport, is free for UI faculty, staff, and students with their UI ID cards and for UIMA donors with their Donor Courtesy Cards.

"In the Footsteps of Masters" traces an important component of the history of Western printmaking: the usage and development of reproductive prints. "In this exhibition, I wanted to tell the stories of how Western reproductive printmaking started and how it changed over time," said Popp, whose hometown is Belmont, Wis.

Before the invention of photography, prints made with techniques such as engraving, woodcut, and etching were created after notable works in other media. With the advantage of being mass-produced, reproductive prints allowed artists to widely distribute their work, which could build the reputation of a famous master artist or a legendary work of art. As the artistic status of printmakers grew, many began incorporating their own expressive elements rather than creating strict copies of the original works. This advancement caused new printmaking techniques to develop.

Popp realized the UIMA had not presented an exhibition addressing this area of printmaking history and that a number of UIMA works in this category had never before been exhibited. On UIMA Chief Curator Kathy Edwards' advice and with her continued support, Popp pursued the topic, a project that took three years to complete.

"This experience has led Nathan to expand his knowledge of print history to such a degree that he has pursued the topic in his studies separate from his employment at the museum," Edwards said. Popp received scholarly recognition for his paper related to the exhibition, "An Equation for Conflict: Micromanaging Creativity in Rubens' Printmaking Workshop." He was selected to discuss his paper through various presentations around the country in spring 2009, including the Midwest Art History Society's annual conference in April. "We are all very proud of him," Edwards said.

Although Popp originally anticipated utilizing the UIMA's former Riverside Drive building for the exhibition, the UIMA's partnership with the Figge following the 2008 flood offered a larger gallery space, which allowed him to display additional works lent by collectors Alden Lowell Doud, John and Trish Koza, and G. Ron Kastner.

"This could not have been possible without the generosity of our friends and donors," Popp said. "The 2008 flood had a drastic impact on the Museum, but it has not slowed our work. The support from the Figge and these wonderful collectors has been instrumental in keeping the project on track. I'm sincerely grateful for their participation and I am continuously inspired by the sense of community, which has made my exhibition a reality."

"In the Footsteps of Masters: The Evolution of the Reproductive Print" is sponsored by MidWestOne Bank and by an anonymous donor. To view a slideshow of the exhibit, visit http://www.flickr.com/photos/iowaart/sets/72157623064940033/show/.

Because of the 2008 flood, the UI Museum of Art offices have been relocated to the Studio Arts Building, 1840 SA, Iowa City, IA 52242, and Museum of Art events and exhibitions are being held at various locations. For up-to-date UIMA information, visit http://www.uiowa.edu/uima or call 319-335-1725.

STORY SOURCE: University of Iowa Arts Center Relations, 300 Plaza Centre One, Iowa City, IA 52242-2500