Author Archives: Jeff

May 18

Algona, Lu Verne look into consolidation

Posted on Tuesday, May 18, 2021, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

What’s left of what once was the Corwith-Wesley-Lu Verne school system — officially never consolidated but together for three decades — is probably going away soon. Algona and Lu Verne have formed a reorganization committee, Radio Iowa reports. Realistically, this means … Continue reading →

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May 17

Diverging diamond interchange coming to Coralville

Posted on Monday, May 17, 2021, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

I-80’s 1st Avenue exit in Coralville, scheduled for replacement in 2023, will be Johnson County’s first diverging diamond. That will be a year after I-380 at Tower Terrace Road becomes the first such exit in eastern Iowa. The interesting thing … Continue reading →

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May 14

790,150: Not officially a magic number, but a curious one

Posted on Friday, May 14, 2021, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

We have a lot of census-related numbers floating around right now, and each makes one piece of a puzzle, but it will be hard to put them all together until the granular data comes out later this year. Here’s what … Continue reading →

Posted in Iowa Miscellaneous, Maps | Comments Off on 790,150: Not officially a magic number, but a curious one
May 12

RAGBRAI XLVIII, v3.0

Posted on Wednesday, May 12, 2021, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

Maps for this summer’s RAGBRAI route, which is last summer’s RAGBRAI route, were released online May 3. Wait, didn’t we do this already? Yes, we did! But what’s presumably the final route has some notable differences from the previous final route, … Continue reading →

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May 11

Well, that’s embarrassing

Posted on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

My chronology of Iowa congressional districts had Tama Jim Wilson’s election years off by a decade. He was elected to the U.S. House in 1882 and 1884. Blog-me should’ve told map-me about this, but even then the error has been … Continue reading →

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May 10

Council Bluffs dual, divided freeway completion this week

Posted on Monday, May 10, 2021, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

An e-mail from a mailing list and this DOT press release bring good news for western Iowa: The I-80 dual, divided freeway separation will be completed this week. There will be some closures to get lane shifts complete, but starting … Continue reading →

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May 07

KSO: A saga in three paragraphs

Posted on Friday, May 7, 2021, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

KSO, Iowa’s other three-letter AM station starting with a K, debuted Nov. 2, 1925. The Berry Seed Co. of Clarinda had specifically applied for the letters: “Keep Serving Others.” The following articles are from the Clarinda Journal in 1932, which … Continue reading →

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May 05

License Plate Letters — KMA

Posted on Wednesday, May 5, 2021, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

KMA 960 AM is one of Iowa’s oldest radio stations. Its call letters, chosen specifically by the May Seed & Nursery Co., mean “Keep Millions Advised.” The May family owned the station from its beginning in 1925 until 2019. Here … Continue reading →

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May 03

US 61 four-lane: Where the rest stands now

Posted on Monday, May 3, 2021, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

The DOT has released final plans for four-laning US 61 from the north end of the future Mediapolis bypass to just north of IA 78, including a new interchange with a slightly extended IA 78. Typically, there would be a … Continue reading →

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Apr 30

IA 58 extension to get exit numbers

Posted on Friday, April 30, 2021, at 10:00 AM by Jeff

July 15, 2007: One of the places getting new BGSs and exit tabs on IA 27/58 in Cedar Falls. In Cedar Falls, the Avenue of the Saints is officially IA 27/58. The IA 58 freeway was talked about for decades … Continue reading →

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