Cedar Rapids, Iowa

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Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Official seal of Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Seal
Nickname: "City of Five Seasons"
Location in the State of Iowa
Location in the State of Iowa
Coordinates: 41°58′59″N, 91°40′7″W
Country United States
State Iowa
County Linn County
Incorporated 1849
Mayor Kay Halloran
Area  
 - City 166.8 km²  (64.4 sq mi)
 - Land 163.5 km²  (63.1 sq mi)
 - Water 3.3 km² (1.3 sq mi)
Elevation 247 m  (810 ft)
Population  
 - City (2005) 123,119
 - Density 738.4/km² (1,912.6/sq mi)
 - Metro 246,412
Time zone CST (UTC-6)
 - Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-7)
Website: http://www.cedar-rapids.org/

Cedar Rapids is the second largest city in Iowa after Des Moines. It is the county seat of Linn County, Iowa, United States. The population was 120,758 at the 2000 census. The city is named after the Cedar River.

Cedar Rapids has been residence to famous figures, including American artist Grant Wood, the Wright Brothers, journalist and historian William L. Shirer, writer and photographer Carl Van Vechten, and Dr. Alexander Lippisch. See also Notable natives on this page.

A unique attribute of Cedar Rapids is that its city hall and county courthouse are located on Mays Island, an island on the Cedar River running through the city. Paris, France and Osaka, Japan are believed to be the only other cities in the world to have their municipal buildings located on an island in a river.

Cedar Rapids is known as the City of Five Seasons, where the fifth season is "a time to enjoy." The symbol of the five seasons is the Tree of Five Seasons sculpture in downtown Cedar Rapids. The name "Five Seasons" and representations of the sculpture appear in many forms.

Contents

[edit] Geography

Cedar Rapids is located at 41°58′59″N, 91°40′7″W (41.983100, -91.668529)GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 166.8 km² (64.4 mi²). 163.5 km² (63.1 mi²) of it is land and 3.3 km² (1.3 mi²) of it (1.99%) is water.

[edit] ZIP codes

Cedar Rapids is divided into fourteen ZIP Codes. Mays Island and the downtown area are covered by 52401. The northeast quadrant is covered by 52402 and 52411. The southeast quadrant is covered by 52403. The southwest quadrant is covered by 52404. The northwest quadrant is covered by 52405. Post Office boxes are covered by ZIP codes 52406, 52407, 52408, 52409, and 52410. Several other ZIP codes are for specific business (Aegon USA, Rockwell Collins, etc.).

[edit] Streets and addresses

The city is divided into four quadrants. For addresses, from north to south the city is divided by 1st Avenue (Business Highway 151), and east to west by the Cedar River. A street address in Cedar Rapids usually consists of the house number, the street name, and the quadrant. For example, 123 Example St NW. The quadrants are one of four labels; NE, SE, SW, or NW. The only exception would be government addresses on Mays Island, which have no quadrant label.

1st Avenue and the Cedar River (as well as the downtown area) tend to run diagonally instead of straight north/south/east/west. (In fact, 1st Avenue runs directly west-east on the west side of the city, SW to NE in the middle, and south-north on the east side.) Thus, the area designated NE is geographically the northern section from east to west. NW is a small western contingent, SE is the eastern contingent, and SW is the southern contingent. There are some areas in western Cedar Rapids where some NW addresses are actually south of some SW addresses.

[edit] Transportation

Cedar Rapids is served by The Eastern Iowa Airport (formerly known as the Cedar Rapids Airport), a regional airport that connects with other regional and international airports.

Interstate 380, part of the Avenue of the Saints, runs north-south through Cedar Rapids. U.S. Highways 30, 151, and 218 and Iowa Highway 13 and Iowa Highway 100 also serve the city.

Cedar Rapids is served by four freight railroads. They are the Union Pacific, the Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Railway (Crandic), the Canadian National, and the Iowa Northern. The Crandic and Iowa Interstate Railroad are both headquartered in Cedar Rapids. The Iowa Interstate reaches the city via the Crandic tracks, running a daily train from Rock Island, Illinois to Cedar Rapids.

The city is also served by public transportation consisting of buses and taxis, as well as a series of skywalks connecting several downtown buildings for foot traffic.

Tree of Five Seasons sculpture, downtown Cedar Rapids.
Enlarge
Tree of Five Seasons sculpture, downtown Cedar Rapids.

[edit] Neighborhoods

The Czech Village in Cedar Rapids is located on 16th Avenue SW. It is home to such Czech-related businesses as Zindrick's Czech Restaurant, Sykora Bakery, Polehna's Meat Market, Boženkas, Czech Feather & Down Company, and Czech Cottage. The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library is one of the major tourist attractions in Cedar Rapids.

Two Miss Czech-Slovak USA queens can claim this community as home: Lisa Volesky and Stasia Krivanek. Olga Drahozal is the famed band leader of the Czech Plus Polka Band, a performing group that frequents the Kosek Band Stand. She, along with Bessie Duggena and the late Leona Poduška, taught Czech School (Česka Škola) at Wilson Middle School.

In addition, there are twelve active neighborhood associations in Cedar Rapids.

[edit] Metropolitan area

The Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Statistical Area consists of Linn, Benton, and Jones counties. The MSA had a 2000 census population of 237,230, with an estimated 2005 population of 246,412. [1] (Linn County was the only county in the MSA before MSA definitions were redefined after the 2000 census.)

Cedar Rapids' main suburbs are Marion and Hiawatha. A number of small towns have experienced growth as bedroom communities of Cedar Rapids. These include Ely, Swisher, Shueyville, Palo, Fairfax, Walford, Robins and Bertram.

[edit] Landmarks

The Tree of Five Seasons sculpture is the city's centerpiece, located where 1st Avenue crosses the Cedar River. It was constructed in the mid-nineties by a local businessman who commissioned a three-dimensioned version of the city's logo. Also located near the center of the city along the Cedar River is the historical Czech Village, a business district composed of several ethnic businesses and historical buildings, thus helping to maintain the city's Czech heritage. As well as the Czech Village, Cedar Rapids is home to National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library. In 2003, the African-American Historical Museum and Cultural Center of Iowa opened its doors. Cedar Rapids is also home to the historical 26 acre (105,000 m²) Brucemore Estate, on which sits a 21-room mansion. Cedar Rapids is home to the Iowa Masonic Library and Museum. The downtown includes a Science Center and an Art Museum housing the largest collection of Grant Wood paintings in the world. The 1920's Paramount Theatre is home to the Cedar Rapids Symphony Orchestra, the Cedar Rapids Area Theatre Organ Society and Community Concerts. Concerts and other events, such as high school graduations, local prom events, and sporting events, are held in The U.S. Cellular Center, formerly known as The Five Seasons Center, located in the heart of downtown Cedar Rapids. Cedar Rapids is also home to the Mother Mosque of America (built in 1934), which is believed to be the oldest purpose-built mosque in the U.S.

[edit] Demographics

As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 120,758 people, 49,820 households, and 30,838 families residing in the city. The population density was 738.4/km² (1,912.6/mi²). There were 52,240 housing units at an average density of 319.4/km² (827.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 91.86% White, 3.71% African American, 0.25% Native American, 1.77% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.55% from other races, and 1.79% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.71% of the population.

There were 49,820 households out of which 29.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.4% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.1% were non-families. 30.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.5% under the age of 18, 10.8% from 18 to 24, 30.7% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 95.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $43,704, and the median income for a family was $54,286. Males had a median income of $37,217 versus $26,251 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,589. About 4.9% of families and 7.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.8% of those under age 18 and 6.9% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Government

[edit] City commission government

City Hall, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Enlarge
City Hall, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

From April 6, 1908, to December 31, 2005, Cedar Rapids used the city commission form of government. It was one of the few larger cities remaining to operate under this model. Under this form of government, the council was made up of a public safety commissioner, a streets commissioner, a finance commissioner, a parks commissioner, and a mayor. The council members worked on a full-time basis, and served two year terms, and were considered department heads. The last mayor of Cedar Rapids under this form of government was Paul Pate. After 2005 the city changed to a mayor-council-manager form of government.

[edit] Mayors of Cedar Rapids

Mayor Party From To
Don Canney n/a n/a n/a
Larry Serbousek n/a n/a n/a
Lee Clancey Democrat n/a 2002
Paul Pate Republican 2002 2005
Kay Halloran Democrat 2005 present
  • It should be noted that party affiliations are not recognized by the city government.

[edit] New form of government

In 2005, a movement began to change the commission form. A panel was created to study the issue, and has recommended that voters be presented with three options:

  • Stay with the current commission form of government.
  • Adopt a "strong mayor form" where the council would be part time, the mayor would be full time, and a city manager would run the day to day affairs of the city.
  • Adopt a "weak mayor form" of government, in this form the mayor and council would both work on a part-time basis. A full-time city manager would run the day-to-day operations of the city.

In 1994, voters were also asked if they would like to change the form of government. At that time, voters decided to keep the commission form.

On June 14, 2005, voters went to the polls to decide whether to adopt a new form of government or continue with the commission form. This time, with very low turnout, voters decided to change the government — 17,064 voted to change the government to 7,741 who wanted to stay with the commission form.

The new form of government features a part-time council made of eight members and a part-time mayor. The city has been divided into five districts, with one council member elected from each district. The remaining three members were elected on an at-large basis. Initially the terms for some of the council members will be shorter so that the elections will be staggered. In the following election cycle the term for the council members will be four years long. The mayor will also have a four-year term. The mayor will be paid $30,000 and the members of the council will be paid $15,000.

The current city council divided the city into five districts. Once that was done over 30 candidates ran for election on November 8, 2005. Kay Halloran, a retired attorney and state legislator, became the first mayor elected under the new system. Several members of the city council were elected outright; however, the remaining races were close enough to require a runoff election, which took place in December.

The new council and mayor are in the process of hiring a permanent city manager to run the day-to-day affairs of the city. Mr. James Flitz, formerly the city attorney, was appointed the interim city manager. Department directors will report to the city manager, who will have the authority to hire and fire these heads except in the case of the police and fire chiefs, which would require council approval for hiring and firing. The new council met officially for the first time on January 3, 2006.

[edit] Business and industry

Cedar Rapids is home to several large businesses and industries, including Cargill, Alliant Energy, Rockwell Collins, Quaker Oats, AEGON, McLeodUSA, Archer Daniels Midland, Qwest, GreatAmerica Leasing and a major factory for Square D. Although many of these companies have been located in Cedar Rapids for quite some time, a larger number of high-tech industries are locating in or around Cedar Rapids because it is part of the Technology Corridor, a region of the state that also includes the Iowa City metro area to the south. Much of Iowa's technological businesses and industries operate from this corridor.

[edit] Education

[edit] Universities, Colleges, and Technical Colleges

[edit] Public Elementary and Secondary Schools

The largest school district serving the metropolitan area is the Cedar Rapids Community School District. Its high schools include

Middle Schools include

Elementary Schools include

Other public school districts serving Cedar Rapids, Marion, and the surrounding area include:

[edit] Private Elementary and Secondary Schools

[edit] Sports

Cedar Rapids is home of the minor-league baseball team Cedar Rapids Kernels, a member of the Midwest League since 1962. The ice hockey team Cedar Rapids RoughRiders are a member of the USHL and were once Clark Cup Champions. There is also a junior hockey league, the Cedar Rapids Hockey Association, with mini-mite-high school teams. Sports facilities include Veterans Memorial Stadium for baseball, Kingston Stadium for football and track, the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena for hockey, and the U.S. Cellular Center (formerly the Five Seasons Center) for basketball. This arena also hosts the Iowa High School volleyball championships and many concerts.

[edit] Notable natives

People from Cedar Rapids and the surrounding area.

[edit] Real people

[edit] Fictional characters from Cedar Rapids


[edit] External links

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