Downtown Cedar Rapids news, etc.

[CRUNIFan]

Milio's Sandwiches is adding three new locations to the area (downtown, Kirkwood, and Marion). They already have two locations (Blairs Ferry Road NE and 1st Ave SE). Interesting that Jimmy Johns just opened downtown and now a nearly identical competitor opens a couple blocks away...

Link: http://business380.com/2012/05/31/milios-sandwiches-to-expand-in-cedar-rapids-market/

[CRUNIFan]

I just noticed a sign today in the former blend space that said "Coming Soon - Ristorante Bella." Downtown needs a good Italian restaurant. This will make three nice restaurants in a row on 2nd Street with White Star Ale House and Zins.

[JMsioux]

On somewhat of a White Star note, their sister restaurant, Jambayz recently closed and has been turned into a street stand although I haven't seen it yet. Doesn't mean it isn't around, I just don't get to that area much. That being said, the owners are supposedly in the process of finding a stand alone space downtown for the restaurant to re-open in with more space than what they had when paired with White Star.

[JMsioux]

I've also heard that Grafton Street Pub or some other iteration will be opening again in that same area. Definately good news as businesses inch toward each other on opposing ends of 3rd Street from downtown and NewBo.
On that same street will be Intermec's new building three blocks away. I haven't seen any renderings yet, though.

The property mentioned above is Stella's and has been open for around two months and is located across the street from the Iowa Building / Jimmy John's

[CRUNIFan]

"District to sell former headquarters to developer for apartments

CEDAR RAPIDS — The 98-year old former Educational Service Center for the Cedar Rapids school district could get a new life as an apartment building.



The district accepted a $237,100 proposal to sell the property to real estate developer Steve Emerson during its June 11 meeting, pending a public hearing at 5 p.m. today at the district’s new headquarters, 2500 Edgewood Rd. NW.

Emerson said he plans to develop the second and third stories of the building at 346 Second Ave. SW into apartments, with the first floor as parking. He hopes to get the former school added to the National Register of Historic Places as well as have the renovated structure be environmentally friendly."

Link:http://thegazette.com/2012/06/24/district-to-sell-former-headquarters-to-developer-for-apartments/

[RDCFIC]

CRUNIFAN, I think that's a pretty cool building to rehab for apartments. I like to see adaptive reuse of buildings, especially those of architectural and/or historical significance. This should be a plus to the near-downtown living scene in CR and help other nearby businesses as well. It's also the environmentally friendly way to go and rather urban in flavor. Kudos to C.R. on this one.

[CRUNIFan]

Gazette link: http://thegazette.com/2012/08/27/cedar-rapids-receives-ok-for-some-development-in-flood-plain/

"Cedar Rapids receives OK for some development in flood plain



City Hall here has convinced state officials who oversee the spending of federal and state flood-recovery dollars to tweak a rule that affects redevelopment in four historic or commercial areas even though they are in the 100-year flood plain.

Those areas are New Bohemia; Czech Village; the area directly across the Cedar River from downtown dubbed “West Village” or “Kingston Village” for now; and a proposed commercial corridor among Ellis Boulevard NW.

The rule change will make it easier to attract investment in the four areas, which have been identified by the City Council as key commercial development spots in the core of the city."

[QuadCityImages]

The QCTimes has an excellent editorial about this foolishness.

Big Gamble on the Cedar River -QCTimes

Afraid of big, open fields in the 100-year flood plain, city leaders pleaded for relief. The Iowa Economic Development Authority relented, waiving the payback provision and clearing the way for construction in areas under water just four years ago.

That’s a tough ruling to stomach in our community, where Davenport has conscientiously removed buildings from persistent floodplains. Davenport is finding ways to live with a fluctuating river, instead of fighting it.

Both Davenport and Cedar Rapids will flood again. Bank on it.

[DMRyan]

I don't know, this is such a massive area, I dont know how you can justify preventing new development. The Czech Village and NewBo areas are coming back strong and becoming vibrant districts that crucial to fabric of the city. Imagine the blow it would be say that nothing could be built here. This isn't just a semi-industrial dogpatch we're talking about here, it's pretty much an extension of downtown!

The real problem here is the inability for the feds to be more cooperative in finding a solution for flood protection on the west side of the river. I applaud Davenport's approach to flood management, but it's not for every city.

[CRUNIFan]

There will be flood protection for the east side of the river, so its fantastic news for New Bohemia to finally be able to consider larger scale redevelopment projects.

As for the west side of the city, abandoning Czech Village is simply not an option. Its far too important to the city. As far as the other two neighborhoods are concerned, I can understand people's hesitance. I personally like that there was a compromise in the fact it is just select neighborhoods that are important to the city. But I can understand people's reluctance.

[JMsioux]

Not a lot of info to be found yet, menu-wise but they do have some pictures up on their facebook page that seem to point to a nice addition to the downtown CR dining establishment. The restaurant will be located at 219 2nd St SE.

http://www.facebook.com/CobbleHillRestaurant?fref=ts

I also stumbled on this post on yopsy.com regarding the chef / owners, Andy and Carrie Schumacher. Andy Schumacher was a contestant on Next Food Network Star in the season that Guy Fieri won:

http://www.yopsy.com/cobble-hill-cedar- ... G8FeJiHJFk

[JMsioux]

Milio's Sandwiches is adding three new locations to the area (downtown, Kirkwood, and Marion). They already have two locations (Blairs Ferry Road NE and 1st Ave SE). Interesting that Jimmy Johns just opened downtown and now a nearly identical competitor opens a couple blocks away...

Link: http://business380.com/2012/05/31/milios-sandwiches-to-expand-in-cedar-rapids-market/

Drove through downtown on the way home today and noticed that the Milio's location looks to be nearing completion. It sits on the ground floor of the Roosevelt where Quizno's was located before the flood, essentially across the hall from Jersey's Pub.

[CRUNIFan]

I've said it before, but I just don't understand the point of a Milio's just a few blocks away from a Jimmy John's. Nevermind that there are also two other Jimmy John's next to two other Milio's. They are the same exact place in my opinion...

[CRUNIFan]

The Lost Cuban, an authentic Cuban restaurant, has opened downtown after buying the former space of Salsa Del Rio on 3rd St between 1st and 2nd Ave.

[CRUNIFan]

Liquid Lounge, a lounge/club, has moved in to a space below White Star Ale House in the Witwer Building at the corner of 3rd St and 2nd Ave SE.

[JMsioux]

From the Gazette. Another restaurant opening downtown.


http://hooplanow.com/2013/02/07/cobble-hill/

[JMsioux]

From back in December. The CR Gazette building, sitting in the Greene Square Park area, has been sold. The developer, Steve Emerson, who owns other numerous downtown properties, has some ideas for the property but nothing concrete.

http:/www.kcrg.com/news/local/Developer-Purchases-Gazette-Building-in-Downtown-Cedar-Rapids-184469681.html?m=y&smobile=y

[CRUNIFan]

I'm really disappointed with many of Steve's recent developments. From the sounds of it, many of the pieces of land he purchased will serve as parking lots for his new office building (that suburban looking one on 3rd Ave) and will not be new developments that add to the density or character of the area. Hopefully its just temporary (or my information is incorrect).

[JMsioux]

The music is pure cheese so turn the volume way down. The 1985 portion of the Gazette building is coming down. Steve Emerson has stated that this land could possibly be home to a residential buildingin the future.
http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=pGpWNi18 ... 3Dyoutu.be

[JMsioux]

Was nosing around the High Property Management website because I saw some activity along Edgewood Road NE on some of their property and found Coventry Lofts which would go into the old Coventry Gardens building next to TCR and across the street from the US Cellular Center complex. Construction is slated to begin June 2013 according to the website.



http://highpm.com/listing/coventry-lofts-cedar-rapids

[JMsioux]

It's not next to TCR...I thought I edited that out.

[DMRyan]

Nice! I think CR is on the cusp of seeing a lot more downtown housing over the coming years. There's got to be a little bit of pent of demand since it never really joined the downtown housing boom of the past decade.

I think this may be a picture of the buildings as the exists now. Is this right next to one of the new parking garages that is under construction?

[JMsioux]

The new ramp is being constructed one block up on 1st Ave and there is a surface lot next to Coventry that serves US Bank.
That pic looks pre-flood but, yes, the Coventry building is the beige one on the left. My understanding is that the skywalk attached to it will be reconnected from the new ramp to the DoubleTree hotel.
When I was looking to relocate to CR in '09, I stayed at the Crowne Plaza and walked through that skywalk and into the Coventry building and thought it was a pretty cool looking old building on the inside. That should be a popular place to call home with not only the arena acrss the street, but there a number of eateries, bars and coffee shops well within walking distance plus the possibility of a casino just across the 1st Ave bridge.

[CRUNIFan]

The Gazette just put up a story about this project and a few other projects vying for some federal funding. Apparently the Coventry Lofts would include two, ground level retail units. One would be a Brueggers Bagels, which downtown CR has been without since the flood.

Link: http://thegazette.com/2013/03/08/empty-coventry-gardens-slated-for-loft-apartments/

[DMRyan]

One interesting tidbit I heard, all of the other cities in Iowa impacted by the floods of 2008 were only allowed to submit the top 2 projects to the state for potential award of funding of the CDBG D-R dollars. Cedar Rapids had no cap placed on it, thus 13(!) projects were submitted for approval of funds. I'd say there is a strong chance that CR ends up getting a least one project awarded this go around.

[GoVerticalDSM]

All emotion aside. This would appear to be not too much different than the guy whose basement floods and his insurance pays to restore it, but then he leverages that and proceeds to defraud the insurance company for a new home addition, swimming pool, new cars, and a boat.

[CRUNIFan]

Its really an interesting case. Because its pretty easy to see that other cities in Iowa don't really understand the magnitude of what happened in Cedar Rapids and are starting to get "fed up" with it. I realize the further away we get from the flood, the easier it is to lose sight of how bad it was. That's happening amongst Cedar Rapidians, let alone out of towners. With that said, you are aware that it is one of the ten most expensive natural disasters in the history of this country, right? Cedar Rapids has demolished over 1,300 homes in the last 4 years. That means we have a lot to build to just get back to even in housing, let alone in civil buildings, commercial properties, etc. And just because out of towners only hear about the "lavish" projects like the convention center, federal courthouse and library, doesn't mean that the city isn't contributing to make these projects happen as well. For instance, the city (and local donors) is paying over $74.3m for the convention center/hotel and $12.3m of the new library. And the federal courthouse was already planned, just got expedited. We're not just getting handouts, we're getting a helping hand.

I will be the first to admit, when its all said and done, the flood will have made Cedar Rapids better and stronger. And its disappointing that it took a disaster of this magnitude to unite the city. But all of this has as much to do with state and federal help as it does with the city of Cedar Rapids coming together like it never has before. Its given people a renewed since of pride about Cedar Rapids that has led PRIVATE developers to invest in projects like NewBo City Market, Riverfront Amphitheater, new medical facilities (PCI Medical Pavilion and Mercy's Hall-Perine Cancer Center), and most recently, potentially a new $85m casino. Let alone the new restaurants, office buildings, etc. being built downtown and across the city. So I don't know what people expect from Cedar Rapids, but bulldozing everything that flooded and building the cheapest replacements available is not a smart recovery plan.

I'm really not trying to attack, I promise, just trying to explain our side of it. Because its not just people on this board that share your views. I have friends from Dubuque and Waterloo that have expressed similar concerns (although theirs started with the annoyance of constant media attention during the event that ruined their television viewing ). I would genuinely like to hear what an out of towner thinks a correct plan of attack would be in this situation if this would have happened to their city.

[DMRyan]

While not directly related to the flood recovery criticism, I'm happy to see Iowa's cities get revitalized. We need these rejuvenated cities to attract more people and more visitors to the state to offset what is happening in the rural areas. Luckily, all of Iowa's bigger cities seemed to have turned the corner and have much brighter futures to look forward to.

[GoVerticalDSM]

Lets be honest. The CR leadership borrowed a page out of the Rahm Emanuel book of "never let a crisis go by without using it to advance your agenda." They lost out big time on VisionIowa funds because they were unorganized & incoherent. Many other cities worked very hard to compete for these funds and the best visions won. So CR has a flood and it is tragic and no question those people need help, but CR milked it for all it was worth, conveniently "forgetting" that most of the $ should be used for two things, flood protection, and helping people get back on their feet. Then the CR leadership had the audacity to come to DM pleading for $200 Million in flood protection money after scamming all these goodies! You can sugar coat it all you want but much of what they did was a scam on Iowa and American taxpayers.

[CRUNIFan]

Lets be honest. The CR leadership borrowed a page out of the Rahm Emanuel book of "never let a crisis go by without using it to advance your agenda." They lost out big time on VisionIowa funds because they were unorganized & incoherent. Many other cities worked very hard to compete for these funds and the best visions won. So CR has a flood and it is tragic and no question those people need help, but CR milked it for all it was worth, conveniently "forgetting" that most of the $ should be used for two things, flood protection, and helping people get back on their feet. Then the CR leadership had the audacity to come to DM pleading for $200 Million in flood protection money after scamming all these goodies! You can sugar coat it all you want but much of what they did was a scam on Iowa and American taxpayers.

1) CR passed a one cent local option sales tax to help purchase the 1,300 houses that have been torn down (as well as help pay for the library, among other things). If that is not helping the citizens get back on their feet, I'm not sure what is. Quite frankly, its surprising you put no blame on the homeowners for not having flood insurance themselves.

2) Flood protection is currently still in the design stage at the Army Corps. of Engineers ("The Corps is continuing its $12.5-million pre-construction design and engineering work for east-side flood protection," per a recent Gazette article) and CR cannot do anything until their plan is approved (which will only cover the east side of the river). The privately funded riverside Amphitheater will contain a portion of flood protection for the west side of the river. The proposed, privately funded, casino would also contain a piece of flood protection for the east side. Remember that when our city leaders came "pleading" for money, that set aside portion of the growth in state sales tax for use in flood protection came with a stipulation that the local community had to match the state money.

Finally, the city leadership that had to give back VisionIowa money is not the one that leads us today, so I don't know why you think that is relevant in this discussion other than to point our your clear distaste for the city of Cedar Rapids.