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FRIDAY, OCT. 20, 2017 | IN THIS ISSUE
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 Daly outlines goals, perspective as head of Corridor joint venture
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Jennifer Daly, speaking at the Meld/BluPrairie offices in Coralville.
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Making the Corridor a magnet for both business and talent is Jennifer Daly's vision for the future as the new president and CEO of Iowa's Creative Corridor Development Corporation, a joint venture between the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance and the Iowa City Area Development Group.
"Economic development is one of those words that everybody thinks of in different ways," Ms. Daly said at a reception Thursday hosted b Meld, BluPrairie and the University of Iowa John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center. "Some people think of it immediately as, 'Oh you're those smokestack chasers. You chase companies and try to convince them to come here.'"
Ms. Daly said attracting new business is certainly a large component of ICCDC's role, "but today economic development is far, far more than that. It's certainly business development, but it's also entrepreneurship. It's workforce development and talent."
Perhaps most important of all, she said, is a region's ability to both recruit and retain talent.
"That is everything," Ms. Daly said. "It is the heart of economic development and the regions that are winning the talent race are the regions that are developing and having huge success. Places like Austin, places like Denver. These have been magnet cities for talented people to come to... even people who maybe even don't have a job. They just say that place just sounds great. I'm just going to go there and I'll figure it out. Those are the communities that have been incredibly successful."
Ms. Daly most recently served as CEO of the Greater Peoria Economic Development Council in Illinois, but the former UI graduate and co-founder of the Iowa Children's Museum said she is eager to put her skills to work in the place she thinks of as home.
"Our goal is business attraction - bringing companies here, inviting them to come and join us in the Corridor and also workforce development whether it's attracting talent, keeping our talented people here, helping people find the quality opportunities or helping our employers find good, quality workers," she said. "I'm excited to do whatever I can to help my hometown be fantastic. It already is fantastic, but to share that with the country and the world."
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CBJ Report on CBS2/FOX 28: IC housing, UI Health Care, donuts
In this week's CBJ Report, Editor Adam Moore discusses a proposal to build "missing middle" housing in Iowa City, the naming of a new leader at UI Health Care and a new donut concept rolling into northeast Cedar Rapids. Watch the full report
here.
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Basepoint Wealth LLC, an independent financial advisory firm, has launched from a new headquarters in Cedar Rapids.
Billing itself as "the largest fee-only financial advisory firm in the Corridor," Basepoint Wealth will focus on providing financial planning, tax advisory and investment management services to individuals and businesses across the country.
The firm is owned by Kate Wallace, Allen Wallace, Bryan Knudson and Landis Wiley, financial advisors formerly affiliated with Ameriprise Financial Services. They previously managed more than $300 million in private wealth assets, according to the firm. Basepoint Wealth also counts three advisors - Ron Malick, Chris Blanchard and Gary Godrey - and six support staff members.
"As a team with over 130 years of combined experience working with individuals with complex financial planning and investment needs, we are excited to bring access to the growing RIA [registered investment advisor] style of service to clients in the Corridor," Mr. Wiley said in a press release. "We are uniquely positioned to deliver a client experience in a truly independent, unbiased way."
The firm has formed strategic partnerships with some of the leading providers in the industry, including Fidelity Clearing & Custody Solutions, which will act as the primary custodian for client investment assets. Basepoint also uses
eMoney Advisor financial planning software,
"The technology and tools available in the independent RIA space are years ahead of much of the industry, and we look forward to harnessing that to bring personalized accurate advice to our clients," Mr. Wallace, director of wealth management, said in a release.
Basepoint has offices in Cedar Rapids, Davenport and Dubuque. For more information, visit the firm's
website.
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CBJ to host third-annual Cyber Security Breakfast
Registration is now open for the Corridor Business Journal's latest edition of its popular Cyber Security Breakfast, which will be held Nov. 1 from 7:30-9:30 a.m. at the Cedar Rapids Marriott, 1200 Collins Road NE.
The event, featuring a panel of local industry experts, will address the three main areas of cyber risk: People, technology and governance. Attendees will walk away with knowledge of the most common ways businesses are compromised and steps to stop, or at least slow down, hackers.
Aaron Warner, founder and chief executive officer of ProCircular, will moderate the panel discussion. Mr. Warner is a certified information systems security professional, security+engineer, and a full member of the FBI/DHS Infragard partnership. Prior to his work at ProCircular, he was CIO and CTO of Integrated DNA Technology.
Panelists will include:
- Jane Drews, chief information security officer, The University of Iowa
- John Henk, senior vice president and chief information officer, MidWestOne Bank
- Andy Neller, information security manager and security official, Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield
- Shadrack Roberts, chief information officer and security officer, Global Risk & Compliance, U.S. Army Sustainment Command
- Travis Wendling, supervisor, Risk Advisory Services, RSM US LLP
Tickets to the Nov. 1 event are $35 through Oct. 25, and $50 after. Breakfast will be provided. For more information or to register, visit
www.corridorbusiness.com/events or contact Ashley Levitt at (319) 665-6397, ext. 311, or
[email protected].
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Strellner announces retirement from AbbeHealth
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Dan Strellner, president and CEO of AbbeHealth, and Kathleen Horan, vice president of Aging Services. CREDIT AbbeHealth
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Dan Strellner, president and CEO of AbbeHeath, a UnityPoint Health - Cedar Rapids affiliate, has announced plans to retire after 17 years in the role.
Mr. Strellner joined AbbeHealth in 1980 and served in several roles prior to being named president and CEO in 2000. During his tenure, Mr. Strellner guided the development of the regional nonprofit through a series of partnerships and affiliations that now provide mental health and aging services to more than 17,000 children and adults in a nine-county area.
The organization's board has announced that Kathleen Horan, vice president of Aging Services, will succeed Mr. Strellner, effective Jan. 1, 2018. In her new appointment, she will serve as executive director at Aging Services, in addition to her role as president and CEO of AbbeHealth.
"AbbeHealth has a long history of providing quality mental health and aging services to the communities we serve and is well positioned for the future thanks to Dan Strellner's leadership," AbbeHealth Board Chair Trish Ellison said in a press release. "Kathy Horan is the right person to lead our network of affiliate organizations in the coming years and we look forward to continuing to help individuals achieve their optimum level of independence and success under her leadership."
AbbeHealth was incorporated in 1991, and currently employs approximately 535 people across 25 locations. It became an affiliate of UnityPoint Health - Cedar Rapids in January 2017.
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Short-Term Event Planner
Innovation Ecosystem Tour, by NewBoCo, 3-4 p.m., Geonetric, 415 12th Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids. NewBoCo representatives will offer a public tour of the Geonetric building and some of the innovative things occurring inside, including Vault Coworking, the Iowa Startup Accelerator and Iowa BIG. Free and open to the public. For more information or to register, visit
bit.ly/2wy4Auq.
Ribbon Cutting & Grand Re-opening: Dwell Home Furnishings & Interior Design, by Dwell, 4 p.m., 250 12th Ave., Ste. 100, Coralville. This event will mark the grand re-opening of Dwell's new showroom space as part of its 20th anniversary. Free. Call (319) 337-9637 for more information.
Oct. 23
Introduction to Innovation, by NewBoCo, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Geonetric, 415 12th Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids. It's easy to talk about innovation but hard to actually implement. This lunch-and-learn will explore innovation strategy and how you can make it more than just a goal for your organization. Cost: $49, includes lunch. For more information and to register, visit
bit.ly/2y17XxB.
Coralville Roundtable, by Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce, noon-1 p.m., Monica's, 303 Second St., Coralville. Roundtables are social lunches over the noon hour. All are invited to network, keep up-to-date with chamber and community events and frequent a member restaurant or business. Free for members. Call the chamber (319) 337-9637 if interested and not a member.
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Everybody's reading for the weekend
Forward the FREE CBJ Business Daily newsletter to your friends and colleagues, and share the feeling of being informed! Use our fast, one-minute subscription to the CBJ's newsletters
here, or check out our other subscription options
here.
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Headlines from CBS2/FOX 28
These news items are provided by CBS2/FOX 28
Mt. Pleasant resident Asucena Ramirez, 24, returned home this week after spending nearly 20 days in the Hardin County Jail. She was arrested on Oct. 3 when Immigration Customs and Enforcement agents in Cedar Rapids detained her for reportedly "violating the law." However, her attorney, Dan Vondra, said Ms. Ramirez went through all the right channels to get to Iowa. "She's not a danger to the community. She's not a flight risk. She went to every check-in, and she has a good underlying case," he said. In 2016, Ms. Ramirez came to the U.S. seeking asylum from domestic violence she endured in Guatemala. "Essentially, she turned herself in to border patrol... and they paroled her in," he said. "They gave her what's called humanitarian parole." The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services says "humanitarian parole" is a condition granted to people with extraneous circumstances who would otherwise be rejected from coming into the United States. Mr. Vondra said Ms. Ramirez attended check-ins with ICE in Cedar Rapids. "Then on the fifth time she went to immigration, customs, and enforcement ... she didn't come out," he said. In a statement from ICE after Ms. Ramirez's arrest, the agency said in part, they "...issued her a notice to appear before a federal immigration judge." The next step in her case is to wait to get her application for asylum approved, but Mr. Vondra said it could take at least a year before a judge will hear the case.
Smoking, chewing tobacco and e-cigarette use in all Iowa City parks are now banned. On Tuesday, the city council overwhelmingly voted six to one to make the ban final. The ban is enforced at all 42 parks. Iowa City Parks and Recreation Director Juli Seyde Johnson is happy the ban passed. "I think this just adds to the wellness that we offer through our park system," Ms. Johnson said. Leaders at the department say they will help to enforce the changes. "We'll have signs up throughout the parks. We ask if people see people that are not following the rules they should let us know but that's really how the enforcement will happen." Iowa City Mayor Jim Throgmorton opposed the ban, but he says he will also help enforce it. "I am not going to do anything to resist the ordinance - I trust the judgement of our council. So our city government will proceed to enforce the ordinance as best we can," he said.
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hese news items are provided by CBS2/FOX 28
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CBS2 Chief Meteorologist Terry Swails' Weather First Forecast
A pleasant and warm day is expected for today with mostly sunny skies. Winds will increase out of the south with gusts near 30 mph helping drive in the warm air as temperatures climb well into the 70s. Clouds will build late tonight and through the day on Saturday ahead of the next storm system. Southerly winds will lead to another warm day with upper 60s to lower 70s. Moisture will be on the increase as a cold front approaches from the west leading to the chance of scattered showers and thunderstorms through the day with rain becoming more likely Saturday night and ending by Sunday morning. A few of the storms could be strong with gusty winds and locally heavy rain.
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