Des Moines’ city hall is getting an overhaul…and it means some of its operations will have to temporarily relocate. The historic building is getting new heating and cooling equipment, and a new sprinkler system. The 3-million dollar project is expected to start next summer. Des Moines’ 25-year comprehensive plan will include downtown development…and the city…… MORE
Des Moines’ city manager says he’s waiting for a detailed list of concerns from the city’s fire fighters’ union to see what can be done to ease tension in the department over leadership. 86 percent of the union’s members voted no confidence in the chief this summer. They’ve been making their complaints via social media.…… MORE
Plan DSM was on display last night at Bright Grandview Clubhouse for the first of four public meetings. Mayor Frank Cownie says they’ll incorporate the feedback into the final draft sometime in February, and will rewrite codes to comply with it. The next meeting is Tuesday at Polk County River Place. Building up Iowa’s relationship…… MORE
The state Department of Justice and Department of Corrections need more money from the legislature’s budget in the upcoming year, at least that was the center of discussion at the first meeting of the Governor’s Working Group on Justice Policy Reform. The group of state leaders met at the capitol on Thursday in what is…… MORE
A commercial delegation from China is in Des Moines today finalizing more than a dozen contract for Iowa products. Overall exports to China for the first half of this year are up more than 63 percent from the same time last year, making China the state’s third-largest export market. Iowa saw an uptick in its…… MORE
Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders’ efforts in Iowa have been paying off in recent weeks, as he has taken the lead (albeit by one point) over long-time front-runner Hillary Clinton. A lot of that support is funneled by a more focused organization in Des Moines at the state campaign’s headquarters. According to the campaign, a…… MORE
Iowa’s governor was among five U-S governors who met with China’s president yesterday in Seattle to discuss ways to work together on clean energy technology. The gathering signed an agreement to cooperate on boosting businesses that create renewable and clean energy. Governor Branstad says a Chinese delegation will be visiting Des Moines tomorrow. Republican state…… MORE
For weeks, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has been dodging the question on whether she opposes or supports the controversial Keystone XL Pipeline, and all it took was one simple question from a Drake University student about it for Clinton to finally come clean. “I oppose it,” Clinton said when she was asked her position…… MORE
The Justice Department awarded more than 19-million dollars in grants to dozens of police departments seeking to start using body cameras, but only one Iowa city was among the recipients. The Dubuque Police department already had 60-thousand dollars in matching funds for the cameras, and received the allocation, while Des Moines was turned down for…… MORE
Repealing and replacing Obamacare is one of the main issues Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum is campaigning on while touring Iowa this week. Known for his more social conservative values, the former Pennsylvania senator has recently come out hard against the Affordable Care Act, and touts a constructive reform plan. He spoke to the Torch’s…… MORE
