The Linn County Compensation Board meets Tuesday, a mere five days from now, and they will determine the county supervisors’ likely salary.
Linda Langston assured me yesterday that the board will meet Monday to come up with its recommendation for the comp board, which will be an opportune way for the supervisors to express their consent [...]
Archive for January, 2009
Assessor salary talks foreshadow supervisor discussion
Posted in County Government, tagged Board of Supervisors, Compensation Board, Conference Board, Linda Langston, Linn County, Mary Ames on January 29, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Liveblog redux
Posted in County Government, tagged Board of Supervisors, Linn County on January 28, 2009 | 2 Comments »
I posted the link to this liveblog earlier, but thought people might enjoy scrolling through here. It’s a liveblog of the supervisors’ 10 a.m. Wednesday meeting, their weekly formal session. (It’s pretty long, but now it’s searchable.)
10:01 Meeting is beginning now. Rogers, Barron and Langston are here. Oleson joining by phone. [...]
On the road again — probably
Posted in County Government on January 28, 2009 | 2 Comments »
The Board of Supervisors on Wednesday directed county staff to look for a new place for county offices, somewhere other than Westdale Mall.
This after they asked Westdale’s owners to say by Monday whether the county’s leases could be extended past April, and did not receive a response.
I liveblogged the meeting.
Supervisor Ben Rogers asked Mike Goldberg [...]
No response from Westdale
Posted in County Government, tagged Linn County, Flood, Westdale Mall, Mike Goldberg on January 27, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Last week, the Board of Supervisors asked the owners of Westdale Mall to get back to them by Monday about extending county leases at the mall for another 24 months after April.
Mike Goldberg said Tuesday the Supervisors have received no response.
This is not terribly surprising, considering the supervisors have insisted they need up to nine [...]
My apologies
Posted in County Government, tagged Brent Oleson, Linn County, Ruth Lyon on January 24, 2009 | 2 Comments »
The person who writes online comments (including the one I blogged about Thursday) under the name “Ruth Lyon” is not really named Ruth Lyon, and won’t identify herself/himself to me.
I apologize because I quoted the person’s comments as if someone by that name truly exists. Carelessness on my part.
In the discussion over whether the county [...]
Lyon roars at Miller, torches Westdale idea
Posted in County Government, tagged Joel Miller, Linn County, Westdale Mall, Ruth Lyon on January 22, 2009 | 3 Comments »
Joel Miller is pounding away at the Westdale issue on his blog. Bean polls, he points out, tell us the public wants the county to buy Westdale.
But Miller is running into some opposition from Ruth Lyon, a local government watchdog (she harassed me for weeks during the campaign over Eric Rosenthal’s accounting credentials) with whom [...]
Houser vs. Oleson for solid waste vice chairmanship
Posted in Cedar Rapids City Council, County Government, tagged Brent Oleson, Cedar Rapids, Jim Houser, Linn County, Solid Waste Agency on January 21, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Rick Smith reports on the battle for the vice chairmanship of the Solid Waste Agency board. It was Houser vs. Oleson, and Houser emerged victorious.
“With just seven board members in attendance, the vote was first on Oleson. Kress and Podzimek raised their hands, and there was Oleson’s hand for himself.
Shields, Pat Ball, the city’s utilities [...]
Supes reject Westdale offer
Posted in County Government, tagged Linda Langston, Linn County, Westdale Mall, Brent Oleson on January 21, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
CEDAR RAPIDS — The Linn County Supervisors on Wednesday rejected a Dec. 1 proposal for them to buy Westdale Mall.
A letter to that effect was approved by a vote of 3-1, with Supervisor Brent Oleson dissenting and Supervisor Linda Langston absent.
The supervisors didn’t rule out ever buying the mall, but it doesn’t look likely.
The owners [...]
Landlord aid may be more hindrance than help
Posted in Flood, tagged Cedar Rapids, Community Development Block Grants, Landlords, Mari Davis on January 20, 2009 | 1 Comment »
I’m still working on this story.
A new program meant to help flooded landlords is too restrictive and will discourage participation, some local landlords say.
When Gov. Chet Culver announced the Rental Rehabilitation program, in which flooded landlords can apply for up to $25,000 in forgivable loans for building repairs, landlords greeted the news with enthusiasm.
But the [...]
Langston to witness history in D.C.
Posted in County Government, Other on January 20, 2009 | 2 Comments »
Supervisor Linda Langston stayed with friends last night and arrived at the U.S. Capitol (with a ticket) by 6 a.m.
She’s standing 60 rows from the podium, on the grass below the capitol steps, the reflecting pool and the mall stretching out behind her.
“If there are not a million people here, I’d be astonished,” she said. [...]
