14
Jan
2003
• One of the tasks Iowa lawmakers will have to deal with involves an Iowa Supreme Court decision from June that it was unconstitutional to tax racetrack casinos at a higher rate - 32 percent - than riverboat casinos, which are taxed at 20 percent. The decision threatens to worsen the state's budget troubles, as it could mean $112 million in refunds for Prairie Meadows Racetrack & Casino in Altoona and two other tracks, as well as a $35 million annual decline in state revenue. Iowa lawmakers have come up with one solution: creating a uniform tax rate of 25 percent for track and riverboat casinos. Riverboat-casino operators are rather cool on the idea of a tax increase. Legislators probably will delay their gambling debate until they know the outcome of related court decisions. State officials have appealed the Iowa Supreme Court ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, which could decide by the end of February whether it will hear the case.
• More than 150 buses from across the country will be going to a January 18 event in Washington, D.C., protesting a possible war with Iraq. Green Party members from Des Moines, Iowa City, Waterloo, Cedar Falls, Decorah, and other Iowa towns plan to attend. Jay Robinson, a longtime activist in Iowa's peace community and Green candidate for governor of Iowa in 2002, will be among those making the trip. The D.C. march is scheduled to commence with an 11 a.m. rally on the national mall outside the White House, will proceed to the Navy Yard, and conclude with a 1 p.m. rally at the Civic Center. The event is being organized by International ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War & End Racism). So far, more than 1,000 political and social-justice groups and individuals have formally endorsed it. Nonviolence is one of the guiding principles of the Iowa Green Party, which was formed in 1999. For more information on the Green Party's activities, look at (http://www.greens.org).
• Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller recently called for a 25-cent increase in the state cigarette tax to raise about $50 million for drug treatment and other programs. Miller noted that Iowa's current cigarette tax of 36 cents per pack hasn't been raised since 1991, ranks 29th in the nation, and trails the cigarette taxes of most neighboring states. Leaders of the Republican-controlled legislature gave the proposal a cool reception, but Governor Tom Vilsack, a Democrat who has previously dismissed the need for tax increases, offered no opinion on the idea.
• Three St. Ambrose students were selected to participate in the National Collegiate Honor Band from March 26 through 29 in Minneapolis in conjunction with the prestigious College Band Directors National Association conference. Kyle Ware (a sophomore from Davenport who plays the tenor saxophone), Audra Bailey (a senior from LeClaire who plays the flute), and Megan Spayer (a sophomore from Peoria, Illinois, who plays the bassoon) were selected as alternates for the event. All three students will spend four days rehearsing with Giancarlo Guerrero, assistant conductor of the Minnesota Orchestra. They will perform on Saturday, March 29, in the Ted Mann Concert Hall on the campus of the University of Minnesota. Students selected come from across the country. Selection was based on nominations submitted by directors and from a pool of almost 200 applicants nationwide.
• Geneseo has a new foundation to benefit the community. The Geneseo Is for Tomorrow (GIFT) foundation could benefit the community by combining the efforts of the multiple foundations that already exist in town. The Community Foundation of the Great River Bend in Davenport will administer the foundation for Geneseo. The Community Foundation will get a 1-percent fee to pay for the staffing, insurance, and other fees and expenses for administering GIFT. A board of directors will be recruited from the community to determine where the money goes. Even though the administration will be located in the Quad Cities, the decisions on where to place the money will be the responsibility of the board of directors. Follow the organization's progress at Community Foundation of the Great River Bend Web site at (http://www.cfgrb.org/).
• With only $35 million remaining in its coffers, the Vision Iowa board has made awards to four communities, investing in large projects across Iowa. The board also approved smaller grants to several communities from the Community Attraction & Tourism (CAT) program. Projects eligible for Vision Iowa funds must cost at least $20 million, while CAT provides assistance to smaller projects. The state's newest awards - to projects in Cedar Rapids, the Waterloo/Cedar Falls area, Clinton, and Page County - mean Vision Iowa has invested more than $225 million in 12 projects that have leveraged more than $2 billion in ancillary local development. One of the CAT award recipients was the John O'Donnell Stadium renovation in Davenport, with a $1.25 million grant given over two years from a request of $2.2 million and a total project cost of $12 million. This project involves a total renovation of John O'Donnell Stadium, new flood protection, and transformation of the facility into a multi-purpose venue. The Vision Iowa awards are supported through bonds generated from the Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund and not from the state's general fund. The Vision Iowa board is also responsible for allocating $12.5 million in CAT funds annually until 2004. CAT is funded through the Tobacco Settlement Trust Account.
• River Action is seeking nominations for its fourth annual Eddy Awards for excellence on the riverfront. These awards will recognize individuals, organizations, corporations, schools, groups, and governments that went against the current to accomplish outstanding riverfront activity or development - well-designed and environmentally responsible. Awards will be presented in six categories: education, design, river activity, arts, stewardship, and revitalization. River Action will recognize the winners at a ceremony April 26. Nomination forms are available at (http://www.riveraction.org) or at River Action's office at 822 East River Drive in Davenport. You can also call for a faxed form at (563)322-2969. The deadline for receiving nominations is January 27.
• A group of former students of Davenport's defunct Marycrest International University are suing Shoichi Okinaga, a Japanese businessman they say defrauded them. The lawsuit was filed in Denver, site of Marycrest's chiropractic college. Twenty former students of the college are named as plaintiffs and are seeking class-action status in the case, so the lawsuit can proceed on behalf of all Marycrest students at the Davenport and Denver schools, both of which closed last year. Okinaga presides over Teikyo University Group in Japan and a network of related affiliates that controlled Marycrest and several other American colleges in which Okinaga has had a financial stake. The lawsuit accuses Okinaga of civil conspiracy, negligent misrepresentation, deceptive trade practices, and breach of contract. The students claim Okinaga treated Marycrest not as a tax-exempt, not-for-profit public trust but as a business in which he sought to maximize profits at students' expense.
• More than 150 buses from across the country will be going to a January 18 event in Washington, D.C., protesting a possible war with Iraq. Green Party members from Des Moines, Iowa City, Waterloo, Cedar Falls, Decorah, and other Iowa towns plan to attend. Jay Robinson, a longtime activist in Iowa's peace community and Green candidate for governor of Iowa in 2002, will be among those making the trip. The D.C. march is scheduled to commence with an 11 a.m. rally on the national mall outside the White House, will proceed to the Navy Yard, and conclude with a 1 p.m. rally at the Civic Center. The event is being organized by International ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War & End Racism). So far, more than 1,000 political and social-justice groups and individuals have formally endorsed it. Nonviolence is one of the guiding principles of the Iowa Green Party, which was formed in 1999. For more information on the Green Party's activities, look at (http://www.greens.org).
• Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller recently called for a 25-cent increase in the state cigarette tax to raise about $50 million for drug treatment and other programs. Miller noted that Iowa's current cigarette tax of 36 cents per pack hasn't been raised since 1991, ranks 29th in the nation, and trails the cigarette taxes of most neighboring states. Leaders of the Republican-controlled legislature gave the proposal a cool reception, but Governor Tom Vilsack, a Democrat who has previously dismissed the need for tax increases, offered no opinion on the idea.
• Three St. Ambrose students were selected to participate in the National Collegiate Honor Band from March 26 through 29 in Minneapolis in conjunction with the prestigious College Band Directors National Association conference. Kyle Ware (a sophomore from Davenport who plays the tenor saxophone), Audra Bailey (a senior from LeClaire who plays the flute), and Megan Spayer (a sophomore from Peoria, Illinois, who plays the bassoon) were selected as alternates for the event. All three students will spend four days rehearsing with Giancarlo Guerrero, assistant conductor of the Minnesota Orchestra. They will perform on Saturday, March 29, in the Ted Mann Concert Hall on the campus of the University of Minnesota. Students selected come from across the country. Selection was based on nominations submitted by directors and from a pool of almost 200 applicants nationwide.
• Geneseo has a new foundation to benefit the community. The Geneseo Is for Tomorrow (GIFT) foundation could benefit the community by combining the efforts of the multiple foundations that already exist in town. The Community Foundation of the Great River Bend in Davenport will administer the foundation for Geneseo. The Community Foundation will get a 1-percent fee to pay for the staffing, insurance, and other fees and expenses for administering GIFT. A board of directors will be recruited from the community to determine where the money goes. Even though the administration will be located in the Quad Cities, the decisions on where to place the money will be the responsibility of the board of directors. Follow the organization's progress at Community Foundation of the Great River Bend Web site at (http://www.cfgrb.org/).
• With only $35 million remaining in its coffers, the Vision Iowa board has made awards to four communities, investing in large projects across Iowa. The board also approved smaller grants to several communities from the Community Attraction & Tourism (CAT) program. Projects eligible for Vision Iowa funds must cost at least $20 million, while CAT provides assistance to smaller projects. The state's newest awards - to projects in Cedar Rapids, the Waterloo/Cedar Falls area, Clinton, and Page County - mean Vision Iowa has invested more than $225 million in 12 projects that have leveraged more than $2 billion in ancillary local development. One of the CAT award recipients was the John O'Donnell Stadium renovation in Davenport, with a $1.25 million grant given over two years from a request of $2.2 million and a total project cost of $12 million. This project involves a total renovation of John O'Donnell Stadium, new flood protection, and transformation of the facility into a multi-purpose venue. The Vision Iowa awards are supported through bonds generated from the Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund and not from the state's general fund. The Vision Iowa board is also responsible for allocating $12.5 million in CAT funds annually until 2004. CAT is funded through the Tobacco Settlement Trust Account.
• River Action is seeking nominations for its fourth annual Eddy Awards for excellence on the riverfront. These awards will recognize individuals, organizations, corporations, schools, groups, and governments that went against the current to accomplish outstanding riverfront activity or development - well-designed and environmentally responsible. Awards will be presented in six categories: education, design, river activity, arts, stewardship, and revitalization. River Action will recognize the winners at a ceremony April 26. Nomination forms are available at (http://www.riveraction.org) or at River Action's office at 822 East River Drive in Davenport. You can also call for a faxed form at (563)322-2969. The deadline for receiving nominations is January 27.
• A group of former students of Davenport's defunct Marycrest International University are suing Shoichi Okinaga, a Japanese businessman they say defrauded them. The lawsuit was filed in Denver, site of Marycrest's chiropractic college. Twenty former students of the college are named as plaintiffs and are seeking class-action status in the case, so the lawsuit can proceed on behalf of all Marycrest students at the Davenport and Denver schools, both of which closed last year. Okinaga presides over Teikyo University Group in Japan and a network of related affiliates that controlled Marycrest and several other American colleges in which Okinaga has had a financial stake. The lawsuit accuses Okinaga of civil conspiracy, negligent misrepresentation, deceptive trade practices, and breach of contract. The students claim Okinaga treated Marycrest not as a tax-exempt, not-for-profit public trust but as a business in which he sought to maximize profits at students' expense.
