Iowa

Iowa, Scott County face eviction crisis

Published

2 years ago

October 2, 2024

Press Room

Iowa and Scott County are both in the midst of an ongoing eviction crisis.

Nick Smithberg, executive director of Iowa Legal Aid, says the agency has five eviction help desks in the state. The first one was established in Polk County about 3 1/2 years ago.

Now people headed to eviction court in Scott County can get help right outside the eviction courtroom in the Scott County Courthouse, where Iowa Legal Aid partners with other agencies to find resources for people about to be removed from their homes.

“Most of the cases we work on are non-payment cases. If you don’t get the rent paid, you’re not really going to solve the problem,” he said.

When clients face eviction, legal aid representatives gather details and accompany clients into the courtroom.

Ninety percent of the time, Smithberg says this can prevent or postpone an eviction. Many clients they see are facing eviction for the first time.

“Their situation is so precarious,” he said.

They’re part of a big percentage of Iowa residents. “Forty percent of the people in this state can’t afford their basic needs. That’s food, clothing, transportation, shelter. You have people who are what they call rent-burdened who are spending more than 30 percent of their income on rent. So, if anything goes wrong, there’s no cushion.”

It’s not unusual to see 30 to 40 people in eviction court on some days. The demographic is comprised of an over-representation of women, people with disabilities, and people of color.
Eviction means they will face even more challenges.

“People who are subjected to an eviction literally have a shorter life expectancy,” Smithberg said. “Hospitalization rates go up, people have issues with mental health, increased suicide. So the consequences of an eviction are very serious.”

They’re also pushed into undesirable housing. That might mean children in those situations will grow up in unsafe, unhealthy dwellings and neighborhoods: “The single greatest predictor of an eviction occurring in a household is the presence of a child,” he said.

Kelle Larned is The Salvation Army program and operations director. The Salvation Army is the lead agency for homeless prevention in Scott County.

“We’re seeing a lot of households with multiple children and they’re both working,” she said. “The issue in Scott County is the rent is too high.”

Often, parents in these working-poor families make $19 to 20 an hour. and they still get evicted.

“You are talking about hundreds of people in hotels every single night,” Larned said. “The working poor right now are falling through the cracks.”

“What surprises most people is the amount of families … people who are really trying and want to better their situation, but don’t know how,” she said.

Smithberg and Larned say it’s important for renters in danger of being evicted to talk to their landlords because landlords will often work with renters to prevent an eviction.

To contact Iowa Legal Aid, visit here.

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Iowa

Iowa State adds women’s wrestling, Alli St. John to coach

Published

9 hours ago

April 17, 2026

Press Room

Iowa State adds women’s wrestling, Alli St. John to coach

Iowa State announced Thursday the addition of women’s wrestling as its 18th varsity sport, with the program scheduled to begin competition during the 2027-28 academic year. The team is the first varsity sport added at the university since soccer in 1996. Iowa State will be the 12th school in the state of Iowa to have an NCAA women’s wrestling program.

The Cyclones will be only the second Power Four institution to feature a varsity women’s wrestling program, joining the University of Iowa.

The university appointed Alli St. John, a two-time World Wrestling Championships silver medalist, as the program’s first head coach. St. John, who has spent the last three years with the Cyclone Regional Training Center, was a two-time women’s college national champion at King University.

“I am incredibly honored and grateful for the opportunity to be the first head coach of women’s wrestling at Iowa State University,” St. John said. “This is a historic moment not only for Iowa State University, but for the sport of wrestling, too. Iowa State has a rich wrestling tradition, and I’m excited to expand that legacy on the women’s side as we work to build a premier program in Ames that produces not only NCAA champions, but World and Olympic champions as well.”

The program will support a roster of 30 student-athletes with 10 scholarship equivalents, matching the scholarship limit of the men’s team. Official competitions will be held in Hilton Coliseum, with practice facilities in Beyer Hall.

The university also announced a major restructuring of its wrestling leadership, naming long-time men’s head coach Kevin Dresser as the Director of Wrestling. In this new capacity, Dresser will oversee both programs, assisting with fundraising and mentoring the coaching staff, which includes newly promoted men’s head coach Brent Metcalf.

“The addition of women’s wrestling is an exciting opportunity for Iowa State Athletics,” Dresser said. “The fact that it is one of the fastest growing sports at the high school level coupled with the overall love of wrestling in the state of Iowa makes this a very good decision. I can envision the Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk dual already and the excitement it will bring to the sport. I am excited to roll up my sleeves and help start another wrestling program.”

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Iowa

Top 16 announced in Coolest Thing Made in Iowa contest

Published

21 hours ago

April 17, 2026

Press Room

Top 16 announced in Coolest Thing Made in Iowa contest

DES MOINES, Iowa — After a week of voting, a list of more than 50 is down to the Top 16 in the Coolest Thing Made in Iowa Competition.

Hosted by the Iowa Association of Business and Industry and MidwestOne Bank, the Coolest Thing Made in Iowa Contest is a newer competition that highlights items that are designed or produced in the state that carry national, even international, impact.

58 products were initially nominated in the contest’s third year, on Thursday, officials announced the Top 16 had been chosen after a week of public voting. Products that made the cut include agricultural equipment, construction materials, food, and beverages.

Mi-T-M ePowerStation (Mi-T-M Corporation – Peosta)
Pella Steady Set (Pella Corporation – Pella)
Beer Caves (Walk-In Coolers & Freezers) (Leer, Inc. – Carroll)
Weiler D1075 Blasthole Drill (Weiler – Knoxville)
Butter Braid Pastries (Country Maid, Inc. – West Bend)
Ironclad Tornado Shelter & Gun Safe (Ironclad Shelter Solutions, LLC – Earlham)
Spalding Arena Renegade Basketball Hoop (Spalding – Jefferson)
Winnebago EKKO 23B (Winnebago – Forest City)
Gushers (General Mills – Cedar Rapids)
Cedar Ridge Straight Bourbon Whiskey (Cedar Ridge Distillery – Swisher)
Load Cell (Scale-Tec – Anamosa)
Flexzilla Garden Hose (Legacy Manufacturing – Marion)
Marie Callender’s Pot Pie (Conagra – Council Bluffs)
23-28XL Scraper (Mobile Track Solutions – Elkader)
Sterzing’s Potato Chips (Sterzing Food Company – Burlington)
dScribe Studio, 55″ – Digital Lightboard (Revolution Lightboards – Dubuque)

“This is where the competition really comes to life,” said Nicole Crain, ABI President. “These Top 16 products represent the very best of Iowa manufacturing — innovative, high-quality, and made right here in our state. Now it’s up to Iowans to help decide which product rises to the top.”

Voting to decide the Top 8 moves to a bracket-style tournament, which opens on April 17 and runs through April 22. Participants can vote in each matchup, once per day (every 24 hours) per device. The Top 8 will be announced on April 23.

The 2026 Coolest Thing Made in Iowa will be revealed live in June during ABI’s annual Taking Care of Business Conference in Coralville and Iowa City.

Previously, the Vermeer Automated Hay Baler won the first contest in 2024, and the John Deere CP770 Cotton Picker won the second contest in 2025.

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Iowa

April rains ease drought across Iowa, Drought Monitor map shows

Published

1 day ago

April 16, 2026

Press Room

April rains ease drought across Iowa, Drought Monitor map shows

The last few weeks of rain have alleviated some drought conditions in Iowa, though some areas of the state are still experiencing a moderate drought.

The U.S. Drought Monitor offers a state-by-state tracking of drought conditions nationwide. New maps and forecasts are released each Thursday. What are the current drought conditions in Iowa?

US Drought Monitor map: How much of Iowa is in a drought?

The latest Drought Monitor report, released on April 16, indicated that roughly 22% of the state is experiencing some form of drought. It includes observations as of 8 a.m. April 14, so even more rain has fallen since then.

This is an improvement from the last report, released on April 9, which showed that 73% of Iowa was experiencing some form of drought.

Here is the breakdown of drought conditions in Iowa as of April 16:

83% of the state of Iowa is experiencing no drought conditions
17% of the state is experiencing abnormally dry conditions
5% of the state is experiencing moderate drought conditions
0.02% of the state is experiencing severe drought conditions

The April 16 map shows abnormally dry and moderate drought conditions mainly in western and southern Iowa. Parts of northwest Iowa are in moderate drought, while a separate stretch of dry conditions runs across south-central into southeast Iowa.

Polk County is not experiencing any dry conditions. Des Moines has recorded 5.06 inches of rain so far in April, well above the normal monthly total of 1.70 inches, according to the National Weather Service.

Current conditions are an improvement from a year ago, when 86% of Iowa was abnormally dry, and 30% was in moderate drought, according to the Drought Monitor.

All 99 counties in Iowa were categorized as drought-free last August thanks to record-setting rainfall totals during the summer. It held this designation for several weeks before the first reports of abnormally dry conditions returned at the beginning of September 2025.

Iowa Drought Monitor tracks conditions weekly

The U.S. Drought Monitor offers a state-by-state tracking of drought conditions nationwide. New maps and forecasts are released each Thursday.

The intensity levels range from abnormally dry, or D0, to exceptional drought, or D4.

Typically under D0 conditions, corn can show drought stress. Pond levels start to decline under moderate drought conditions and soybeans abort pods, according to the Drought Monitor. The Drought Monitor also has a look-back chart that compares drought conditions from 3 months ago up to 1 year ago.

Cooper Worth is a service/trending reporter for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at cworth@gannett.com or follow him on X @CooperAWorth.

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