WEDNESDAY, MAY 30, 2018  |  IN THIS ISSUE  
 
A MidAmerican Energy wind farm in central Iowa. CREDIT MIDAMERICAN 
MidAmerican Energy will be the first investor-owned electric utility in the country to generate renewable energy equal to 100 percent of its customers' usage on an annual basis upon the completion of its newest proposed wind project, the company announced today.

MidAmerican has proposed an additional investment of $922 million related to its Wind XII project, which was formally filed with the Iowa Utilities Board today. If approved, the project is expected to be complete in late 2020. The company has said the project can be done without a rate increase for customers.  
  
The utility's previously announced Wind XI and repowering projects, when combined with Wind XII, will provide customers with 100 percent renewable energy on an annual basis. 
             
"Wind XII will transform our 100 percent renewable energy vision from a bold dream into a reality," Adam Wright, MidAmerican's president and CEO, said in a statement. "Wind XII is a clear demonstration of our commitment to and investment in the cleaner, more sustainable energy future our customers want and our environment deserves. We have been able to invest in renewables while at the same time keeping electric rates affordable for the long term, creating a one-of-a-kind win-win solution."
 
The 591-megawatt Wind XII project is expected to create more than 300 full-time jobs related to construction and another 28 full-time positions for ongoing operations and maintenance.
In addition, Wind XII will provide an average $6.9 million per year in additional Iowa property tax payments on wind turbines.
In 2017, MidAmerican Energy paid $19.6 million in Iowa property taxes on wind turbines.
 
The company is currently exploring potential wind farm sites in Iowa and will announce wind farm locations prior to constructing each site. MidAmerican continues to use natural gas, nuclear and coal-fueled plants to ensure service even in times of low wind.   
Text2GDP grows 2.2 percent in first quarter
 
The United States' real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 2.2 percent in the first quarter of 2018, according to the "second" estimate released today by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

In the fourth quarter of 2017, real GDP increased 2.9 percent.

The GDP estimate released today is based on more complete source data than were available for the
"advance" estimate issued last month. In the advance estimate, the increase in real GDP was 2.3
percent. The change was primarily due to downward revisions to private inventory investment, residential fixed investment and exports.

The deceleration in real GDP growth in the first quarter of 2018 versus the prior quarter reflected slower consumer spending; exports; local, state and federal government spending; and a downturn in residential fixed investment. These movements were partly offset by an upturn in private inventory investment and a larger increase in nonresidential fixed investment. Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, decelerated.

Gross domestic income (GDI) increased 2.8 percent in the first quarter, compared with an increase of just 1 percent in the fourth quarter. The consumer price index increased 2.6 percent in the quarter and 2.3 percent when excluding food and energy prices. That compared to 1.9 percent at the end of last year. 
 
The Iowa Lean Consortium (ILC), a nonprofit founded eight years ago to promote business efficiency throughout the Iowa economy, will merge with Iowa State University's Center for Industrial Research and Service (CIRAS) effective July 2, according to an ISU news release. 
 
The merger comes after advisory boards decided earlier this year that both organizations would be more effective at aiding Iowa businesses if they joined forces. CIRAS and ILC leaders expect the merger to elevate both entities by aligning resources in several new ways - although early changes are expected to be minimal.

"The most important thing is that we'll be able to provide better services and support to our members," Teresa Hay McMahon, executive director of the ILC, said in the release. "Joining CIRAS will give us the resources to help our current and future members like never before."  
 
CIRAS will have day-to-day oversight of the consortium, but the ILC board of directors, as well as its teams and volunteers, will continue to play an integral role in devising ILC programming.

CIRAS Director Ron Cox said the merger will help the center accelerate its goal of getting Iowa businesses to think and act more efficiently. Lean manufacturing techniques, as pioneered by Toyota Motor Company in the 1980s, are a proven way to help companies become more productive. However, a recent survey found that only 19 percent of Iowa businesses have substantially embraced such tools.
 
CIRAS was founded in 1963 as a corporate outreach arm of ISU's College of Engineering and currently exists as part of both the College of Engineering and t he university's Office of Economic
Development and Industry Relations. The ILC was formed in 2009 when a cross-section of organizations met to discuss ways to jointly sponsor and deliver lean training events. Today, roughly 130 organizations are members of the Iowa Lean Consortium, which sponsors more than two dozen events and half-day workshops each year.
For the complete list of this week's Movers & Shakers, see the May 28 edition of the CBJ.
Text5Summer Gallery Walk returns to Downtown Iowa City  

One of Downtown Iowa City's most popular traditions, the Summer Gallery Walk during the Iowa Arts Festival, returns this Friday with 16 curated artist showcases available for viewing from 5-8 p.m. 

Patrons visiting seven of the   16 venues during the Gallery Walk will be entered for a chance to win a $50 gift certificate from Textiles. In order to qualify, participants will have their Gallery Walk postcard or map stamped at each location visited. Completed cards may be dropped off at any participating venue.  
 
Artists and venues will include:  
  • Katelyn McDonald at Moss Iowa City
  • Barry Phipps at rsvp
  • Chelsea A. Flowers at Public Space One
  • Claudia McGehee at Willow & Stock 
  • Iowa City Branch of National League of American Pen Women at Us Bank 
  • John Moyers at MidWestOne Bank
  • Bill Adams and Sandy Dyas at Englert Theatre
  • Linda Brown and Nancy Ostrignai at Old Post Office Gallery
  • Christine Manwiller at Textiles
  • Nancy L. Purington at M.C. Ginsberg
  • Shumpei Yamaki at AKAR
  • John, Jane and Kara Schlabaugh at Iowa Artisans Gallery
  • Lawrie See at Glassando
  • Art Club members from Coralville Central Elementary, Kirkwood Elementary, and Grant Wood  Elementary at United Action for Youth
  • Elinor Krieger Coble at Ten Thousand Villages
  • Kathy Edwards Hayslett at Over the Moon 
 
May 30
1 Million Cups, by 1MC, 9-10 a.m., Geonetric, 415 12th Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids and MERGE, 136 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City. Join for community connections, startup pitches and free coffee. Free. For more information, visit facebook.com/1MCICR.
 
Fastest Growing Companies , by Corridor Business Journal, 5:30-8 p.m., Coralville Marriott, 300 E. Ninth St., Coralville. This annual event identifies and honors the region's most dynamic companies that have made significant contributions to the local economy. Tickets: $70 after. To register, visit corridorbusiness.com/events or contact ashley@corridorbusiness.com .
 
May 31
Ground Breaking: Prospect Meadows , by Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance and Marion Chamber of Commerce, noon, 1890 County Home Road, Marion. Help celebrate the ground breaking for this major baseball complex. Free.
 
Ribbon Cutting: Office Evolution , by Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance and Marion Chamber of Commerce, 4 p.m., 1120 Depot Lane SE, Ste. 100, Cedar Rapids. Help welcome Office Evolution to the Cedar Rapids business community. Free. For more information, visit bit.ly/2Kr9UqH.
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Headlines from CBS2/FOX 28
These news items are provided by CBS2/FOX 28  
 
Matthew 25 has spent more than a decade improving Cedar Rapids neighborhoods and worked tirelessly in the Time Check area on flood recovery after the devastation of 2008. Now the local nonprofit is focusing on fresh food as it kicks off the Cultivate Hope Market. On Tuesday afternoon, shoppers enjoyed a huge variety of produce grown just steps away in Matthew 25's urban gardens near G Avenue and Fourth Street. With a band, live broadcast by KMRY Radio and activities for kids helping to provide the entertainment, scores of people purchased bags of green beans, lettuce, peppers, rhubarb and squash, or as Cultivate Manager Bridget Fonseca likes to say, "From A to Z, everything from asparagus to zucchini." Everyone is invited to shop at the market, but it is specifically aimed at providing healthy food to an area where 85 percent of the kids are eligible for free or reduced price meals at school.

A Tuesday afternoon crash sent one person to the hospital in Linn County. The Linn County Sheriff's Office says the wreck occurred around 12:48 p.m. on Williams Boulevard above Highway 30. Patricia McKinstry, 53, of Walford, was driving south on Williams when her vehicle struck a vehicle turning north driven by 47-year-old Anita Berry of Elberon. Bernice Beatty of Atkins, a passenger inside Ms. Berry's vehicle was taken to a local hospital for non-life-threatening injuries. Ms. McKinstry initially refused treatment or treatment, but eventually went to a hospital to be checked for injuries. The crash is under investigation.

T hese news items are provided by CBS2/FOX 28 
CBS2 Chief Meteorologist Terry Swails' Weather First Forecast

It will be feeling tropical outside today as Tropical Depression Alberto sends moisture into the Midwest. It will be partly to mostly cloudy, warm and muggy. Temperatures will climb into the low to mid 80s and the humidity will be high. There will be a break from rain showers around midday, but additional showers and storms will develop this afternoon. Most of the heavy rain will be located near and east of the Mississippi. It will dry out to end the week but it will still be warm. Temperatures will be in the upper 80s to low 90s Thursday and Friday with plenty of sunshine. Another cold front moves into Eastern Iowa this weekend and will bring a chance for storms Saturday. Temperatures will be held down close to 80 Saturday and Sunday.