Impressions of Cedar Rapids since moving here (Des Moines, Davenport: sales, houseboats)

[mustang84]

Hello all, I've lived here in CR about 8 months after graduating from Iowa State and living in Des Moines for the previous two summers. I'm originally from the western part of the state and spent a good chunk of my high school years down in Omaha on weekends. I've followed the development of both Des Moines and Omaha and they've really cleaned up and become spectacular little cities that offer quite a bit to do.

Now I know the flood has devastated Cedar Rapids and all, but even before the flood I had the impression that the city seemed like it had been in stagnant for a while. The main reason I moved here was that I interned for a great company in Des Moines and was offered a full-time position at their main Cedar Rapids office.

For being Iowa's second largest city, it's pretty underwhelming compared to Des Moines and even the Quad Cities or Iowa City.

It seems like whenever I read an article in the Gazette about any sort of economic development or improvement in CR, there are always a string of negative comments from residents about how they don't want their taxes raised or how it's just some frivolous amenity that the city doesn't need. It just doesn't seem like the city is very progressive or interested in making itself a more desirable place for college grads or newcomers from out-of-state.

I do think the new federal courthouse will have a major symbolic impact on downtown Cedar Rapids. Hopefully it can bring some new development and start to fill in those surface lots along 8th Ave. But most everywhere else downtown just has a 1970s/1980s time-warp feel to it. I take the skywalk every morning from the parking garage and there are always tiles missing and buckets everywhere to catch leaks.

I'm also curious what they are going to do with the flood zone and riverfront. They have a big opportunity to create a new civic space along the river that could become a social draw for the area. Has there been any push by CR leadership to revitalize the riverfront?

I'm curious to hear how others feel about Cedar Rapids and if anyone else wants to see big things happen with this city.

[DMRyan]

What you describe happens to articles on the Des Moines Register and Omaha World Herald as well. The difference in both of these cities has been the business community leadership being very strong in being progressive and shoeing in improvement. CR does seem to be a bit more conservative and stingy in how they've gone about improving their community than these two examples, but I question whether or not the corporate/philanthropic leadership community is strongly organized.

Unless it comes down to a public referendum, the leaders of Omaha and Des Moines probably pass over many of the naysayers constant criticisms' with a huge grain of salt. They pretty much have to if they want their communities to move forward.

I think CR is on the cusp of finally having the downtown boom that other cities have been enjoying for the entire decade. The difference is that other cities did it with a combination of natural market momentum and more progressive leadership during prosperous days. In CR, it takes the city's largest disaster to get things moving in seriously positive direction. That's unfortunate because the bones have long been in place for Cedar Rapids to make the jump to become a better city. It's not as if it hasn't been growing or doesn't have a strong base of employers there.

[QuadCityImages]

Don't judge a city by its newspaper's online commenters. If they actually represented the majority we'd all still be living in caves.

[SharpHawkeye]

I think everyone's pretty much nailed it.

Newspaper commenters are pretty awful, for the most part. However, Cedar Rapids does seem to have a big contingent of the curmudgeonly, anti-tax, anti-progress, anti-everything, "if you don't like our city than move" types.

Another thing to consider is that Cedar Rapids had a comission government from the 1900s to 2005. Most cities abandoned that form a long time ago, since it has a tendency to turn into a stagnant "council-for-life" situation. Cedar Rapids didn't even have a dedicated city manager until 2006.

Ryan's right; Cedar Rapids needed a big kick in the pants to finally start doing the kind of work they needed to to turn their city around. The flood gave them that and more. The courthouse will certainly help.

Here is the latest riverfront plan I know of. It's pretty ambitious, with lots of trails and greenspace.

Corridor Recovery

[mustang84]

Thanks for the link! That was very informative and it's good to see there is some leadership happening in the flood recovery.

I'm a little curious about the locations of the levee and greenways though, because I drive down Ellis to work every day and there are some houses and businesses being rebuilt in these areas that are to become greenways. How long ago were these site plans drawn up?

[Chicago60614]

Cedar Rapids is one of those ho-hum, nice places to live. Safe, nice schools, the economy isn't all manufacturing or horribly depressed, no traffic, clean. At the same time it's just really not too exciting, it never seems to boom or bust.

It doesn't have a particularly bad reputation...it doesn't particularly have a good reputation. For an area of around 200,000, it's amazingly unknown on a national level.


I'm 30, and have been away from Iowa for 10 years now. Des Moines and Iowa City have changed quite a bit in the past 20 years, and grown by leaps and bounds. I feel like Iowa City is a different place than where I grew up in the 80's. Waterloo, Davenport and Sioux City have always seemed somewhat depressed and have issues to deal with on how people view them and how to kick start their economies. On the other hand Cedar Rapids has been the constant as far as how I view Iowa's cities. As much as things change, Cedar Rapids seems to just keep chugging along with its relatively good economy and slow and steady growth. Of course the flood has changed all this, but that's still being decided.

[missncr]

I got back from a 3 day visit to C.R. about a week or so ago. My neice died unexpectedly about a week after the floods. Her birthday was in the beginning of March so I wanted to be there with her at her grave. Still terribly saddened from her death, I have to say it was also so heartbreaking to see there hasn't hardly been (if any) improvements from the devastation from the flood. What the heck is going on there? When is the city gonna get off their cans and start to rebuild? Most of the houses are just sitting there. I did notice while driving around on the N.W. side, that a childhood friend of mine's parents rebuilt their house. It looks really nice. But there is only one other person rebuilding their home on that block.

I went by two of the houses I grew up in and left a red rose on both porches. I know it's corny but I grew up on 8th St. and Ellis Blvd (close to the park) and I had a lot of good times there. It looked like the house on Ellis Blvd is being rebuilt. But my favorite one on 8th St. I have a strong feeling will be torn down. I actually am interested in buying it. I don't want them to tear it down. It did look like Pearson's Flower Shop was open for business on Ellis Blvd. I was surprised.

Ellis Park looked great as usual! I noticed they got rid of the red firetruck that us kids used to play on. I loved that truck! lol
I also noticed there are still houseboats on the river. Last I heard they were going to ban them after the flooding.

I drove around on the S.E. and S.W. sides that were flooded too. I didn't get the chance to see the flood damage in those two areas when I was there over the summer for the funeral. It's the same thing. Vacant house after vacant house. It just makes me sick!

I did one thing that was kind of cool. I went to my old elementary school and walked around. I got to check out my old classrooms and everything. It was very cool.

Overall it was a very depressing trip. I just wish someone would get the ball rolling and start to rebuild or something.

P.S. I also noticed all of the one-way residental streets. I bet I drove down the wrong way on all of them too. lol
I don't remember those when I lived there. Then again I wasn't old enough to drive so I guess that's why I never noticed.

[missy1793]

Originally Posted by DMRyan

What you describe happens to articles on the Des Moines Register and Omaha World Herald as well. The difference in both of these cities has been the business community leadership being very strong in being progressive and shoeing in improvement. CR does seem to be a bit more conservative and stingy in how they've gone about improving their community than these two examples, but I question whether or not the corporate/philanthropic leadership community is strongly organized.

Unless it comes down to a public referendum, the leaders of Omaha and Des Moines probably pass over many of the naysayers constant criticisms' with a huge grain of salt. They pretty much have to if they want their communities to move forward.

I think CR is on the cusp of finally having the downtown boom that other cities have been enjoying for the entire decade. The difference is that other cities did it with a combination of natural market momentum and more progressive leadership during prosperous days. In CR, it takes the city's largest disaster to get things moving in seriously positive direction. That's unfortunate because the bones have long been in place for Cedar Rapids to make the jump to become a better city. It's not as if it hasn't been growing or doesn't have a strong base of employers there.

Well that strong base of employers is disappearing, I am getting laid off from of the the bigger ones and they are already speculating about whether it is going to flood again this year. I personally am trying to get out of CR, I have been here 8 years and they could make it a better place, but they were trying to attract the wrong types of businessess here. And because of their slow response to the flood, I anticipate there has already been a decrease of people in this city. It is not that people don't want to contribute, but the city itself wants to spend the money from these taxes on dumb stuff instead of important stuff. When I first moved here, they voted to fix up the ball park over the schools first, what does that tell you?

[UW Badgers]

Originally Posted by missncr

Overall it was a very depressing trip. I just wish someone would get the ball rolling and start to rebuild or something.

You think your trip was depressing, try living here again. They are doing something. The wonderful people of CR voted for a 1% sales tax increase. 90% of which is going to flood relief(yeah right). AND(big shock) they are now going to raise our property taxes. It's just peaches here. Can't wait to get out!

[missncr]

They were voting when I was there. I was wondering what the out-come was. Thanks for sharing.

I know the residents are doing something. But it isn't all up to them the city has got to start rebuilding too. They need to start tearing some of the buildings and houses down and rebuild. I am afraid they will keep putting it off.

The people that I meantioned that rebuilt their house are the only ones on their block. I think I wrote street on my previous post. I meant block. Anyway, I don't know how they are handling that they are the only ones living on their block. It's got to be hard for them. A lot of the people that I know that weren't flooded say they just don't drive through those areas anymore. They go out of their way to avoid it. They say it's just too incredibly depressing.

When we got back from CR over the summer, we set up a donations table for the flood victims in front of some of the stores here. We didn't get the set goal we wanted but it was nice of the people that donated. I sent it to the Red Cross there in CR. I just wish I could do more.