Gazette Daily News Podcast: Thursday, December 7, 2023

The Gazette Daily News Podcast

Stories referenced

– 71-year-old Cedar Rapids woman killed in fire

– Private funding will be key to 5-year plan for revitalizing downtown, Cedar Rapids City Council says

– Big Grove Brewery announces opening date for new Cedar Rapids location

Episode Transcript

You are listening to The Gazette's daily news podcast on Thursday, December 7th, 2023. This is the podcast where we give you quick bites from the latest headlines coming out of the Gazette newsroom.

I'm Bailey Cichon filling in for Stephen Schmidt,

A 71-year-old Cedar Rapids woman is dead after a Tuesday afternoon apartment building fire. Wasfia Elshannaway was one of four people taken to the hospital with smoke inhalation and other injuries. The fire broke out on the third floor of the apartment building at 210 19th St. in Northeast Cedar Rapids. Fire responders were called at 2:13pm. Firefighters and police removed several people from the building. Two cats were killed in the fire and two others were rescued by Cedar Rapids Animal Care and Control according to a news release from the fire department.

The cause of the fire was accidental but what started the fire has not been released due to the ongoing investigation. For more details, read Emily Andersen's story at thegazette.com. Find the link in the episode description.

Cedar Rapids City Council signed off on a 5-year downtown action and vision plan on Tuesday. Now, the Downtown Self-Supported Municipal Improvement District Commission will form a task force to recommend a downtown management structure in 2024. According to the plan, the desired result would be a business plan for the preferred option and a collaboration commitment from the City, Economic Alliance and Downtown Self-Supported Municipal Improvement District Commission. For more details, read Marissa Payne's story at thegazette.com.

Big Grove Fans can now mark their calendars for the opening of Big Grove Brewery's Cedar Rapids location. The brewery announced its fourth and newest location at 170 First St. SW will open Dec. 14. Big Grove is also in the process of opening a new distribution center in Iowa City known as "The Hop Lot". The Gazette's Elijah Decious reports that Big Grove plans to open the hop lot by February. For more details on the new facilities, read the story at thegazette.com.