Eastern Iowa

Inclusive ICR, a coalition in the Iowa City-Cedar Rapids corridor, is offering a new, free tool for area businesses to get assessments on diversity and inclusion efforts.

Last week’s runoff election in Cedar Rapids is sparking interest in rethinking how the city chooses its mayors. The runoff was triggered when no candidate won 50 percent of the vote plus one during the regular election, forcing the top two to face off again. Now the top two candidates say they're open to the city reassessing the runoff process.

Former TV journalist and nonprofit leader Tiffany O’Donnell beat out attorney and businesswoman Amara Andrews to become the next mayor of Cedar Rapids. The Democratic-leaning city is continuing its pattern of electing moderate Republican mayors.

Tuesday is the last day that the Cedar Rapids Gazette will be printed locally. Shutting down the newspaper’s local printing press marks the end of an era.

The first Black female mayor elected in the state of Iowa has died. Former Clinton Mayor LaMetta Wynn died in Lincoln, Nebraska last week at the age of 87.

A local community organization is ramping up a fundraising campaign to open a non-profit grocery store in a Cedar Rapids neighborhood that was hard-hit by the flood in 2008. The development is part of the group's larger efforts to bring more life, activity and investment in the neighborhood.

Johnson County Supervisor Janelle Rettig is resigning her position. Rettig made the announcement over the weekend, citing personal health concerns that stem from Lyme Disease. Rettig also stated she wanted to step down as the coronavirus crisis was “concluding."

Six months after the derecho carved a path of devastation across Iowa, the city of Cedar Rapids is moving forward with a reforestation plan. The city estimates that some 70 percent of the public tree canopy has been lost since the storm.

Mayor of Grinnell Dan Agnew joins Talk of Iowa host Charity Nebbe to give the latest on the derecho damage and what recovery will look like for his community.

A witness testified in Davenport Monday that DNA from the suspect in a 40-year-old murder case is “consistent” with DNA found on the dress the victim was…