CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – After a failed bond proposal in 2023, Cedar Rapids Schools are coming back to voters with a revised $210 million bond. The district emphasized its effort to listen to voters following the bond in 2023 that garnered a 61% no vote. The district conducted a survey, formed a community task force and is now launching a second survey on what voters want to see in a bond proposal. The district will again make the case to voters the urgent need to update its middle school and high school buildings both due to age and shifting enrollment. The bond initiative needs to be approved by the school board by April in order to be put on the ballot for the November 2025 election. The district is pushing parents and voters to complete the latest district-wide survey on the bond by a March 5 deadline.
WATERLOO, Iowa (KCRG) – New figures from the Waterloo Police Department show an increase in a number of crimes. Shoplifting saw a 34 percent increase over the last year. This mimics a national trend, with the National Retail Federation saying shoplifting incidents are up nationwide since the pandemic. Burglary cases are also up 23 percent, and theft from vehicles is up 12 percent. Vandalism also ticked up by 14 percent.
MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa (KCRG) – Fire officials say a 3-year-old girl is in critical condition after she was rescued from a house fire on Monday afternoon in Marshalltown. Firefighters found the girl unconscious on the second floor of the house. They say she was resuscitated and flown to UIHC in Iowa City. The fire is being investigated by the Marshalltown Fire and Police Departments and Iowa State Fire Marshals.
DUBUQUE, Iowa (KCRG) – The Dubuque Community School District has voted unanimously to close Hoover Elementary school at the end of this school year. District superintendent Amy Hawkins citing falling enrollment numbers and cost savings as the main factors for closing the school. Hawkins says the closure would save the district $1 million annually. The district says Irving Elementary, Kennedy Elementary, and Table Mound Elementary schools have room to absorb Hoover’s nearly 300 students while keeping class sizes below 30 students. The district plans to keep the building and use the school as a flex space.
