Monthly Archives: January 2016

Jan 18

Utah could overtake Iowa in population in 2020

Posted on Monday, January 18, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

Speaking of up-and-coming locations zooming past more-established ones, the Census Bureau put out its 2015 state population estimates at the end of the year. Iowa crept upward, but it’s no match for what’s going on in the South and West. … Continue reading →

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Jan 15

North Liberty special census blows Newton out of the water

Posted on Friday, January 15, 2016, at 10:14 AM by Jeff

The result of North Liberty’s mid-decade special census is out, and the city’s bigger. Much bigger. It added the population equivalent of Spirit Lake in five years to reach 18,228. Depending on the outcome of a Waukee special census being taken for … Continue reading →

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Jan 14

We cannot allow a corn-license-plate gap

Posted on Thursday, January 14, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

Nebraska has held much tighter control over specialty license plates than Iowa, but in the past few years that has loosened. Now Nebraskans can have specialty plates for Creighton University, the state’s sesquicentennial (2017), and members of the military. But … Continue reading →

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Jan 13

Falling behind Futility U

Posted on Wednesday, January 13, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

When Bill Snyder started his first year as Kansas State’s football coach, three months before Taylor Swift was born, the Wildcats trailed in their series with Iowa State by 20 games. The Iowa State program as a whole had about … Continue reading →

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Jan 12

Adair-Casey losing its high school

Posted on Tuesday, January 12, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

(Here would be a good spot for a Duffy cartoon: The Adair water tower with a frowny face.) The school district that won the first two state championships in Iowa’s current 8-player-football classification is no longer able to continue on … Continue reading →

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Jan 11

‘The Good Wife’ goes to ‘Iowa’

Posted on Monday, January 11, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

Prime-time CBS drama “The Good Wife” focused Sunday’s episode on fictional presidential candidate/Illinois Gov. Peter Florrick running against the actual candidates for the 2016 Democratic nomination. In the end, the Iowan who got shown in the best light might have … Continue reading →

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Jan 08

North Tama smallest public school in 11-man football

Posted on Friday, January 8, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

The classifications (but not districts) for the next two years of Iowa high school football are out, and North Tama finds itself looking up. With 107 students in grades 9-11 (the “BEDS number”), North Tama will be the smallest public … Continue reading →

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Jan 07

Year in review: Up and down Door County

Posted on Thursday, January 7, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

September 14, 2015: The north end of WI 42 brings you right to a ferry to Washington Island. It does not lead to the Ultimate Question. An unexpected four-day break offered me the chance to close some gaps in my … Continue reading →

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Jan 06

Year in review: Clinching US 61 in Wisconsin (and Iowa, again)

Posted on Wednesday, January 6, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

June 18, 2015: US 61 still runs through Lancaster, Wisconsin, despite WI 129 being an obvious bypass route. Going through town is a less-straight alignment for 61. A roadgeek meeting in Madison plus a two-day summer trip offered chances to … Continue reading →

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Jan 05

Year in review: Circumnavigating Iowa

Posted on Tuesday, January 5, 2016, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

When I looked at the towns in Iowa I had yet to visit, I noticed many of them were on the periphery of the state. Then, I noticed that my least-recently-visited counties were also on the periphery of the state. … Continue reading →

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