From the KCRG-TV9 Newsroom:
The backers of Cedar Crossing Casino and Entertainment Center are breaking ground on a $275 milllion project this morning after the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission approved a new gambling license. Despite opposition from other eastern Iowa casino operators, the Commission voted 4 to 1 to approve a Cedar Rapids casino which could generate an additional $60 million in statewide revenue. The groundbreaking is set for 11 this morning. The new casino would be located on the west side of the Cedar River, where the old Best Western motel and Cooper’s Mill restaurant once stood before being heavily damage from the 2008 flood.
The Riverside Casino stands to lose $34 million a year because of Cedar Crossing–that’s according to one market study. Elite Casino Resorts operates that casino, and its CEO issued a statement saying it may still challenge the Gaming Commission’s vote because of how a referendum approved by Linn County voters authorizing a casino in 2021. Dan Kehl said the referendum requirement has not been met and they are “reviewing our next best steps.”
A Linn County jury has found a Hiawatha man guilty of all charges in the case of a 17-year-old girl being trafficked as a minor. Under Iowa’s amended state law, the verdict comes with the same automatic life sentence as murder. Jarod Anderson denied charges he brought the Dubuque teenager to Cedar Rapids and sold her into prostitution. A woman charged as his accomplice testified against him. Tana Torres is to go to trial later this year.
The ACLU of Iowa and several law firms are once again looking to block Iowa’s book ban that went into effect in 2023. Iowa Senate File 496 prohibits schools from using books that depict or describe sex acts in their libraries or in curriculum. It also prohibits teaching students younger than 6th grade about sexuality and gender identity. Parts of the law were previously blocked last January, and the matter has been sent to a lower federal court for reconsideration. The ACLU contends the law’s targeting of LGBTQ students is unconstitution
