A German-style brewery in northeast Iowa is expanding into Coralville’s Iowa River Landing, the company announced Wednesday.

Backpocket Brewery, which has brewing operations at Old Man River Restaurant & Brewery in McGregor, plans to open a new production facility at the IRL next summer, Backpocket Brewery Brew-master Jacob Simmons said.

“We’re very excited about the idea of locating here,” Simmons said.

The Old Man River brewpub opened about three years ago and has been distributing kegs in Iowa for about a year and a half.

Simmons said a lack of available land at their existing site forced them to look elsewhere in Eastern Iowa for a new location.

“We’re located between three bluffs and a river. There’s literally no room for expansion,” Simmons said. “The Iowa City area was selected because of its demographics and its logistical advantages.”

Several Backpocket beers already have been served in local restaurants and bars under the Old Man River label, including the company’s most popular brew, the Slingshot Dunkel, a German dark lager.

He said Backpocket’s German-style beers make the brewery stand out among its competitors.

“There’s certainly a level of German inspiration that goes through all our beers, which is unusual in the American craft world where brews are typically England-inspired,” Simmons said.

When the brewery decided to expand, it brought on new investors and split into two companies, Backpocket Brewery and Old Man River Restaurant & Brewery, Simmons said.

Simmons said the 25,000-barrel-per-year location in Coralville will be among the largest of Iowa’s microbreweries and will employ between five and 10 people in the brewing operation and about 10 employees in the tasting room.

Simmons declined to say how much the new operation would cost but called it a “significant investment” for the company.

Coralville changed its zoning ordinance last month to allow brewpubs in the IRL district.

Mayor Jim Fausett said the brewery is a welcome and exciting addition to the area.

“I think it will be a good addition to not only the River Landing but also the area,” Fausett said.

The brewery is one of several projects under way at the IRL.

University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics is in the process of constructing a new ambulatory clinic and a Homewood Suites extended stay hotel is planned for the area.

Fausett said he’s optimistic the brewery will help entice other businesses to locate there.

“No one wants to be first, so if we get a few businesses like this, a few others will want to sign on,” Fausett said. “Everyone wants to come, but they want us to get more development first.”

Visit the brewery’s website at www.backpocketbrewing.com

via I.C. Press Citizen 6/30/11Written by
Emily Schettler

The university’s latest report detailing proposed Hancher costs identified four facilities as comparisons for a new Hancher, and U of I officials have traveled as far as California to visit sites in person.

“We won’t see a copy of any of those, but there are some parallels that can be drawn,” said Rod Lehnertz, U of I director of planning, design and construction.

Lehnertz said the projects included in the report offer a point of reference for scale and genre that are helpful in anticipating costs but do not reflect a visual or architectural vision for Hancher.

Still, the future Hancher likely will carry today’s modern touches, he said.

Nearly three years have passed since Hancher was permanently closed by the 2008 flood, and some leaders, donors and other members of the public have grown frustrated with the slow-moving recovery of the beloved home for plays and musical performances, members of the Iowa Board of Regents have said.

The report submitted in April to the Federal Emergency Management Agency offers a glimpse at U of I officials’ thinking about a new Hancher.

“Everyone can be assured we will see an original and difference-making piece of architecture,” Lehnertz said.

The report includes the planned Atlanta Symphony Center, which features sweeping curved shells of white concrete and expanses of glass and steel decorating the outside of the building. That project has been estimated at $300 million, although the U of I’s report identifies $187 million in projected construction costs.

The Denver Art Museum features dramatic angles that point toward the skyline. The report also includes the 2005 renovation of the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis and the Harley-Davidson Museum in Milwaukee.

The U of I estimates the Hancher project could cost as much as $217 million. The school still is awaiting approval of the costs, which have increased significantly from a previous estimate from FEMA.

Lehnertz has said U of I officials are hopeful about bringing an initial bid to proceed with planning to the regents in the fall. School officials have said from that point in the process, it could be another five years before the project is completed.

U of I officials have visited several facilities for guidance on the Hancher project, including the Overture Center for the Arts in Madison, Wis.; several large and small facilities in Minneapolis, including the Guthrie Theater, the Walker Art Center and the Ford Center; the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Mesa, Calif.; and the Disney Performing Arts Center in Los Angeles.

Lehnertz said the new Hancher will be a memorable building that is harmonious with its surroundings on the west bank of the Iowa River.

Press Citizen • May 8, 2011

When the Louisiana governor’s office contacted HESCO Bastion USA to provide the barriers to guard against flooding, the company didn’t have enough barriers on hand to fulfill the request. HESCO contacted UI, which has kept 15,000 feet of the barriers on hand since the 2008 floods.

HESCO then plans to replenish UI’s stock of barriers with new barriers in two or three weeks and will reimburse UI the cost for sending its barriers to Louisiana.

In a statement, UI officials said the risk of spring flooding in Iowa City is low, based on reservoir levels, rain projections and consultations with university, local and state officials.

HESCO barriers are essentially large boxes, made of a collapsible wire-mesh frame with a waterproof lining. The frames are assembled on site and left open at the top, where workers can fill them with dirt or gravel using earth-moving equipment. They can be assembled faster and with fewer people and are more structurally sound than sandbags. The barriers are also used to build defensive walls by soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

the Press Citizen • May 6, 2011

The Iowa City Press-Citizen is reporting that the gift comes from Jerre (JEHR’-ee) and Mary Joy Stead (stehd), of Scottsdale, Ariz. They are natives of Maquoketa (muh-KOHK’-ih-tuh) who attended the university and have been major benefactors. In 2003, the couple gave $25 million to the university’s business college.

Jerre Stead is chairman and CEO of IHS Inc., a global information company. Mary Jo Stead has served on the foundation board of directors since 1999.

Sheila Baldwin, of the UI Foundation, says the $10 million is the largest donation yet to UI for pediatric medicine.

Associated Press • May 5, 2011

GEICO is the third largest private passenger automobile insurer in the United States.

“Our office in Coralville employs some 350 associates and we’re growing just like the rest of
the company,” said Tammy Moore, director of sales and service for GEICO’s office in
Coralville. “We are always looking for talented employees who want career opportunities and
advancement.”
Candidates for these GEICO jobs should have excellent written and oral communications
skills in order to serve GEICO customers clearly and quickly. In addition, GEICO needs
applicants with strong multi-tasking skills, computer skills and a motivated and energetic attitude. Prior customer service  experience and demonstrated job stability are also highly valued.

“GEICO has a tremendous amount to offer new employees; we’re a fast-growing company and there are a lot of opportunities for promotion. If you’re looking for a career, not just a job, this is the place for you,” said Andrew Vaughn, human resources supervisor in Coralville.

All of GEICO’s associates have the opportunity to take advantage of the Total Rewards Program, a comprehensive benefits program that includes everything from health care to retirement to job training.

Interested in applying for a job? Potential job applicants are invited to go to the careers page on GEICO’s website to learnmore about the many positions available and apply for jobs.

GEICO (Government Employees Insurance Company) is a member of the Berkshire Hathaway family of companies. The company is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. GEICO handles auto insurance coverage for 10 million private passenger  auto policies and insures more than 16 million vehicles.

In addition to auto insurance, GEICO offers customers insurance products for their motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), and  mobile homes. Coverage for life, boats, homes and apartments is available through the GEICO Insurance Agency. Commercial  auto insurance and personal umbrella protection are also available.
As a member of the Berkshire Hathaway group of companies, GEICO is rated A++ for financial strength by A.M. Best
Company and ranks at the top of several national customer satisfaction surveys.

For more information, go to

http://www.geico.com.

Sean O’Harrow, director of the university museum, said details are still being finalized but he expects the painting will be in an international show that debuts in the summer of 2013 and concludes in late 2014, possibly in Iowa City. Proposed stops on the tour include museums in New York, Russia and Japan.

“I’m just over the moon about being able to promote Iowa as a world-class player in world culture,” he told the Cedar Rapids Gazette. “We’re not proposing an idea that’s second rate. It’s a blockbuster, world-class, first-rate idea.”

Peggy Guggenheim gave the masterpiece to the university in 1951. The 8-by-20-foot “Mural” now serves as the centerpiece of the university’s art collection, but some legislators want the university to sell it and use the proceeds for art scholarships.

The plan was subject to heated debate in February but has since fallen to the wayside. The lawmaker who introduced the bill, Rep. Scott Raecker, R- Urbandale, has said the Legislature likely won’t reach a consensus this year.

The painting is worth more than $140 million. University regents examined a possible sale in 2008 and rejected the idea.

O’Harrow said the university could get $500,000 by loaning the painting for the exhibition, which would be titled “Jackson Pollock’s ‘Mural’ and American Art.” He said he’d like to see the money go toward a new museum building. Flooding forced the evacuation of the museum’s 12,000 piece collection in 2008, and most of the pieces are still at the Figge Art Museum in Davenport.

Because of its size and value, “Mural” is rarely loaned; it’s been shared once since 1999. O’Harrow said that, for similar reasons, the exhibition would be limited to four or five major venues. Organizers are still trying to decide how to transport the Pollock painting.

The city, the university and MidAmerican Energy are partnering on a project to pipe methane gas from the landfill to the university’s Oakdale Campus, the Iowa City Press-Citizen reported. Methane is created when the garbage breaks down, and instead of burning it off into the atmosphere, officials want to use it.

“We’re just heating air,” said Ferman Milster, the university’s associate director of Utilities and Energy Management. “There’s are a lot more and better ways to use that energy, and one of them is produce heat and power.”

The city and university each stand to gain from the project. Iowa City would divert the gas to the university for a yet-to-be-determined price, while the university potentially could save hundreds of thousands of dollars a year by using methane instead of natural gas and electricity, Milster said.

He said MidAmerican will pay for and build a $3 million 6-mile underground pipeline from the landfill to the Oakdale Campus beginning this summer. The university hopes to have the line operating by the end of the year.

Iowa City Public Works Director Rick Fosse said the city has been interested in the project for several years.

“Right now, it’s primarily a liability for us because we have to collect it and flare it,” he said.

Fosse said the city solicited interest from public and private entities before zeroing in on the university, which was the best option because of its potential to extract the maximum amount of energy from the landfill gas.

In recent years, the university has invested about $30 million to update its energy system at the Oakdale Campus. That includes engines to maintain its central backup power capable of burning either landfill gas or natural gas. The engines will be used once the gas project goes online.

The university also plans to replace a natural gas boiler at the Oakdale Campus with a new biomass boiler that will run on solid fuels such as wood chips and oat hulls.

Milster said that between the two projects, the campus could be close to running entirely on renewable energy by next year.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, there are more than 500 operational landfill gas projects nationwide. Iowa City would be the sixth in Iowa, joining others in Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, Lake Mills and two projects in Davenport.

Associated Press • March 27,2011

They went out for a steak dinner one of their first nights in town expecting to pay $250; instead they paid just more than $100.

“Restaurant pricing is dramatically different,” he said. “Food is incredibly less expensive here.”

Fairbanks is studying drug and alcohol counseling at Kirkwood Community College, and his wife is a physician at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

He said grocery prices were about the same in both places, although fruits, vegetables and beef are of higher quality here.

By contrast, David Orentlicher noticed an increase in grocery prices from what he paid at stores in Indianapolis.

“I can find lower prices in Indianapolis. The main grocery stores here are definitely more expensive,” said Orentlicher, a professor of law at Indiana University. He currently serves as a visiting professor of law at the University of Iowa College of Law.

According to the cost of living index 2010 annual review that recently was released by the Council for Community and Economic Research, the cost of living in Iowa City is slightly below the national average and ranks about the same as that of Ames, Burlington, the Quad Cities and Dubuque.

On a scale using 100 as the national average, Iowa City had an overall composite index of 96.2. Cedar Rapids was lower, with a composite index of 92. Of all the cities in Iowa that participate in the survey, Burlington had the highest index, at 96.9, and Mason City had the lowest, at 89.

More than 300 cities with populations of 35,000 people or more and metro areas with 50,000-plus people participate in the quarterly survey.

Iowa City data is collected by employees at the Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce and the Iowa City Area Development Group, which use the information to show potential employers and employees the cost of living differences of moving to Iowa City from their current location.

Although Iowa City ranks about on par with the national average, Kelly McCann, director of communications at the Chamber of Commerce, said the comparison is completely relative depending on where a person is moving from.

“When you’re comparing prices, it’s all relative to what you’re comparing it to,” McCann said. “The Cost of Living Index data from 2010 shows Iowa City is competitive to other communities and its neighbor, Cedar Rapids.”

The index compiles data on 57 different items, from the price of a 12-inch Pizza Hut cheese pizza and a 12-ounce bag of regular potato chips to the average cost of a full vision eye exam and a man’s haircut.

Of the composite areas, Iowa City ranked low in utilities costs — 20 points below the national average — but higher in transportation at 102.8.

Compared with other university towns, Iowa City’s rankings varied. Lincoln, Neb., had a lower overall index at 91.7; Lafayette, Ind., home of Purdue University, was slightly higher at 98.1; and Urbana-Champaign, Ill., home to the University of Illinois, was at 96.8.

Of all cities in Iowa, Iowa City had the highest rent for a two-bedroom apartment, with an average price of $958.

Compared with other university towns, that was also high. Urbana-Champaign had an average price of $749, and the average rent in LaFayette was $744.

In Iowa City, newly constructed homes with two bedrooms and about 2,400 square feet, cost an average of $270,506. The high in Iowa was Ames at $316,415. The low was in Mason City at $216,710.

ICAD President and CEO Joe Raso said people sometimes think of Iowa City as an expensive place to live because of high housing costs.

For Aaron Smith, an assistant professor in the School of Urban and Regional Planning at UI, who moved to Iowa from Laramie, Wyo., the housing selection in Iowa City was refreshing.

“There was a much wider selection here than there was in Laramie,” he said.

Fairbanks said in moving from the East Coast to the Midwest, his family was able to nearly double the size of their home for about $20,000 more than they had paid in Vermont.

Sarah Burnett, who moved to Iowa City last summer from Urbandale, said she and her husband found an apartment in the same price range as their previous location, but it is smaller and not as nice.

Dean Frutiger, project manager of COLI at the Council for Community and Economic Research, said those who gather the data on products follow strict guidelines on what data to collect, when and how, to ensure that the data is comparable from place to place.

The COLI index is meant to serve as a quarterly snapshot and provide professionals moving around the country a way of gauging what they’re going to need moving from one place to another, Frutiger said.

Terri Larson, president of the Iowa City Area Association of Realtors, said the cost of living is just one of a number of factors people look at when considering moving to Iowa City.

“Sometimes there’s a preconceived notion about Iowa; (people) are thinking of Iowa as lots of cornfields, lots of open space, and they’re usually surprised when they come to Iowa City and they find out it’s not the case at all,” Larson said. “They’re shocked that people go to public school. That’s usually a really big surprise for people when they start to investigate how great our school system is in Iowa City.”

For Orentlicher, his time in Iowa City has been overwhelming positive.

“I like having Prairie Lights and the readings they have,” he said. “The Iowa Writers’ Workshop is nice, and I like that it’s a pedestrian city. I walk to my office and downtown; I hardly use my car anymore.”

Burnett agreed. She and her husband are selling one of their two vehicles because they no longer use it, she said.