(Radio Iowa) – The leader of the group pushing for a casino license for Cedar Rapids says they aren’t giving up. Linn County Gaming Association board president Anne Parmley says the group had hoped the governor wouldn’t sign the bill that puts licenses on hold. “Well, I think it would have been pessimistic not to hold out hope. So yes, we held out a little hope, but figured this probably be the outcome,” she says. The bill the governor signed Friday freezes the casino licenses at 19 for the next two years. Parmley’s group had artist renderings of the facility done and was preparing for the license approval process to start. “How we look at it now is we have to wait two years and work over those two years to ensure that things move forward in two years, so we can build that facility out and start gaining the benefits for Linn County,” Parmley says.

Parmley says they’ll continue working on their plan and keep supporters up-to-date. “Standing in front of city council letting them know what’s going on, as well as the supervisors, those groups have been incredibly supportive of this effort and will continue to be active with them in understanding what’s going to happen,” Parmley says. ” I think this gives developers more time to just kind of moved the whole concept, location and all that forward.” The Republican leader in the Iowa Senate, Jack Whitver, said “gaming fatigue” led lawmakers to the temporary moratorium as they want to see how things shake out. Parmley says the gambling competition with the border states of Nebraska, Wisconsin, and Illinois is one of the things that could be an impact in the next two years.

And the concern will remain about how a Cedar Rapids casino impacts existing casinos. She expects another study to look at that issue. “And I think that study would both look at cannibalization as well as you know, within the state but across the borders, and really given us better information to look at as far as what that exactly means these days,” she says. Parmley says the moratorium is disappointing — but they have to move forward. “You kind of have to figure out what’s in your control. And right now, the two-year delay is not in our control. So we just have to push forward and we’re really excited about what’s possible,” according to Parmley. “The city is very much behind, pushing forward, despite the delay, and getting really excited about what that side of the river could look like with this facility.”

The license moratorium will expire in July of 2024.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – A Pottawattamie County man was arrested a little after 2-a.m. today (Tuesday), following a traffic stop in Red Oak. According to Red Oak Police, officers arrested 44-year-old Matt Len Staley, of Oakland, on a Felony charge of Possession of a Controlled Substance/3rd offense, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia (A simple misdemeanor). Staley was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $5,000 bond. Red Oak Police were assisted during the incident by the Mills County K9 “Judge,” and Mills County Sheriff’s Deputies.

(Radio Iowa) – Ten million Americans camped for the first time during the height of the pandemic according to Campgrounds America and — with the popularity of R-V campgrounds growing — a city in the one of Iowa’s tourism hot spots is reviewing its zoning rules for R-V parks. Okoboji City Administrator Michael Meyers says R-V camping is currently allowed in his city’s commercial district along the Highway 71 corridor.

“It just kind of came up here and we kind of started doing a hard look at our own zoning text and trying to figure out how we fit into that puzzle,” Meyers said. “I think the feel of the community is that we want to make that a conditional use moving forward.” Making property use conditional in a commercial zone gives Okoboji residents a chance to provide input.

“Our zoning districts are generally split into two different sections: permissible uses and conditional uses,” he said. “Conditional uses generally require much more approvals from the city including going through the Planning and Zoning Commission as well as going to the Board of Adjustment, notification of neighbors and just some heightened regulations around the specific use.”

Okoboji’s Planning and Zoning Commission will meet soon to consider these changes, which would ultimately have to be approved by Okoboi’s City Council. According to the R-V industry, more than 50 new campgrounds and R-V parks opened this summer in the United States.