October 25, 2012
News
Northeast CR business Department of center in the works Education considers There are plans to construct a 19-acre business complex in northeast Cedar Rapids in order to bring high-end retailers to the city. The complex, called The Fountains, is in the initial stages of development by Ahmann Properties, led by Joe Ahmann. The Fountains will be located on the corner of Blairs Ferry and Edgewood roads, north of HyVee. The land for the center will be bought from Transamerica Life Insurance Co. It will have 45,000 square feet for retail and 200,000 square feet for offices. Ahmann’s goal for the complex is to create an upscale center to bring more high quality retailers and restaurants to Cedar Rapids. He plans to accomplish this goal through the The Fountains’ atmosphere. “We will have a pond with a fountain and lights as well as a boulevard entry that will lead to a roundabout, where we will create a really cool public space with benches. We want this area to create its own atmosphere, which we think will be a real perk for office tenants,” Ahmann said. Ahmann stated that he
is looking to attract retailers that have the same quality as Ann Taylor, Chico’s, Coldwater Creek, and J. Jill. The only obstacle to The Fountains is a city ordinance created after the land was rezoned for Life Investors Insurance (now Transamerica Life Insurance Co.). It restricts the tenants on the land to staying open no later than 10 p.m. However, the Cedar Rapids City Council has ratified a change in this ordinance to eliminate this restriction. It was first approved at the September 25 meeting and received a final sanction during the council’s October 9 meeting. Ahmann has set a tentative timeline on The Fountains’ completion. After acquiring the land for the project, he hopes to begin work on the infrastructure this fall and continue with the foundations for two buildings this winter, pending weather. His target date for the opening of The Fountains is June 2013, but if the weather is uncooperative, it will open in the fall of 2013.
changes in scheduling
The Iowa Department of Education is considering the idea of placing a minimum amount of hours a school has to be in session, which would replace the 180 day requirement. The Department of Education thinks the requirement would be approximately 1080 hours of school per year. This requirement comes from the 180 days of school multiplied by about six hours a day. The idea has been debated by some including Principal Tom Keating. “I think this idea would make things a lot more flexible and more innovative for the students. For example, if one of our sports teams make it to state, we wouldn’t have to worry about trying to fit in a full day of school. Instead we can just move some of those hours to another day,” Keating said. This new system could also create innovative calendars, and allow some schools to operate for four or six Daniel Pape days a week instead of five. News Editor The Iowa Department of
Chico’s is one of the retailers Ahmann mentioned when listing the types of stores he would like to bring to The Fountains. He is looking for businesses of the same caliber as Chico’s, in addition to Ann Taylor, Coldwater Creek, and J. Jill. AP Images
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Education has already allowed the WACO Community School District to start this system next year in hopes that other schools will think about changing their calendars. The WACO Community School District will have longer school days but only four days of school a week for the 2013-2014 school year. Other schools have submitted different types of innovative calendars that differ from the typical 180 day school year. If a new system is put in place, students will have to make some kind of adjustment, whether they agree or disagree with the system. “As a student I definitely want the 180 days, but it makes sense to switch to hours as long as I’m out of school on schedule!” junior Nick Robinson said. Decisions for applying these changes could take place as early as the next school year. Kyle D’mello Sports Writer