Iowa

Mazahir Salih sworn in early for Iowa City council’s final two 2023 meetings

Published

2 years ago

November 22, 2023

Mazahir Salih sworn in early for Iowa City council’s final two 2023 meetings

Mazahir Salih made her return to the Iowa City council a tad early thanks to an obscure procedural rule.

Salih was victorious in Nov. 7’s At-Large election and because of state provisions, she’ll assume her seat for Tuesday’s council meeting in place of Andrew Dunn.

Dunn was appointed to fill the seat vacated by Janice Weiner at the beginning of this year after she was elected to the Iowa Senate. Candidates appointed by the council are eligible to serve until the next council meeting following an election and completion of the county’s vote canvass, according to state law.

“If the vacancy is on a multimember body to which more than one nonincumbent is elected for the succeeding term, the nonincumbent who received the most votes shall be deemed elected to fill the remainder of the unexpired term,” according to Iowa Code 69.12.

In this case, voters selected Salih and Moe for the At-Large seats currently held by Bergus and Dunn. Bergus first joined council in 2020 and will serve in her At-Large seat through the end of 2023 before moving to council District A, where she beat two-term incumbent Pauline Taylor.

Dunn’s appointment aides Salih’s early arrival

Because Dunn was appointed by the council, not selected by voters, he has been forced to forgo his seat for the last two meetings of 2023. Dunn will assume the District C seat currently held by retiring long-time councilor John Thomas at the council’s first meeting of the new year on Jan. 2, 2024.

More: Iowa City council: Bergus bests Taylor, Salih returns, Moe and Dunn secure seats

This quirk in Iowa state law allows Salih to jumpstart her second go-around on the Iowa City council. She was sworn into her new position on Friday at city hall.

Salih is familiar with Iowa City government

Salih spent four years on the council between 2017 and 2021 but opted not to run for reelection to focus on her role as the executive director of the Center for Worker Justice of Eastern Iowa. She told the Press-Citizen she always knew she would be back.

More: ‘A beacon of hope’: Mazahir Salih is the Press-Citizen Person of the Year 2017

She will continue to advocate for underserved communities in Iowa City, she told the Press-Citizen on election night. That starts with advancing affordable housing efforts.

On Nov. 28, the council will continue discussions and vote on the second consideration of changes aimed at helping produce affordable housing in the area. The first consideration of the area’s Accessory Dwelling Unit codes passed through the council unanimously.

More: Iowa City Council’s affordable housing-based code changes, explained

Peterson also set to take over early for Jones in Coralville

In Coralville, councilor Keith Jones will also yield his seat to top vote-getter Royce Peterson. Jones was appointed to the council in the summer of 2021 and vowed not to run for reelection, allowing residents to choose his successor.

Coralville’s race was an uncontested two-person race for two seats, with Peterson and Rich Vogelzang earning victories. Both will begin their proper four-year terms at the council’s first meeting of the new year on Jan. 9, 2024. Peterson is expected to be sworn at the council’s final meeting of 2023 on Dec. 12.

Jones was in his normal seat Tuesday, Nov. 14, because the auditor’s office could not yet notify all parties that election results had been finalized.

Ryan Hansen covers local government and crime for the Press-Citizen. He can be reached at rhansen@press-citizen.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @ryanhansen01.

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Iowa

Joann liquidation sales near their end. When will Iowa stores close for good?

Published

11 hours ago

May 23, 2025

Press Room

Joann liquidation sales near their end. When will Iowa stores close for good?

Say goodbye to Joann stores because the craft retailer is permanently closing its remaining Iowa stores by the end of May.

Joann shuttered 255 locations in April, including two in Iowa, months after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the second time within a year. Since filing for bankruptcy, the company has held going-out-of-business sales at the locations.

At those sales, prices are marked down 70% to 90%, according to Joann.com. (Note: sales on the online site have ended.) Stores are also selling the furniture, shelves and equipment, according to the site.

When is Joann closing its stores?

The more than 440 stores that remain will be closed by May 31, said Jo Anne McCusker, a spokesperson for GA Group, the retail liquidator that won all of Joann’s chain’s assets through auction in February. The chain’s website says many stores will close by May 30.

When are Joann stores in Iowa closing?

There are seven Joann stores that will close in Iowa by May 31, according to USA TODAY. The Ames location was not included in a list the company provided to USA TODAY, but the location is listed as a liquidation store on Joann’s website.

Ankeny: 1205 SE 16th Court, Suite 200
Cedar Rapids: 255 Collins Road NE
Clive: 9999 University Ave.
Davenport: 902 W. Kimberly Road, Suite 41
Dubuque: 2600 Dodge St., Suite A-4
Iowa City: 1676 Sycamore St.
Waterloo: 1407 Flammang Dr.

Have any Iowa stores already closed?

USA TODAY reported that two Joann stores in Iowa were included in an earlier round of store closures.

JoAnn stores in Mason City and Muscatine closed on April 28.

Kate Kealey is a general assignment reporter for the Register. Reach her at kkealey@registermedia.com or follow her on Twitter at @Kkealey17.

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Iowa

Northwestern Men’s Basketball Announces Iowa State Exhibition Series

Published

1 day ago

May 22, 2025

Press Room

Northwestern Men’s Basketball Announces Iowa State Exhibition Series

Northwestern University men’s basketball has announced a historic “home-and-home” exhibition series with Iowa State that will be played over the next two years.

The series begins Sunday, October 26, 2025, when Northwestern travels to Ames to face the Cyclones at Hilton Coliseum. Iowa State will return the favor during the 2026 preseason, visiting Welsh-Ryan Arena on either Saturday, October 24, or Sunday, October 25, 2026:

The matchup represents significant firsts for both programs. Northwestern will break new ground by playing its first preseason exhibition against a Division I opponent in program history. For Iowa State, the October contest will mark their first exhibition game at Hilton Coliseum since 2017, when they defeated Emporia State 77-68.

The Cyclones will enter the Northwestern exhibition having already completed their preseason opener at Creighton on October 17. The 2025 schedule marks the first time Iowa State has played two exhibition games in a single season since 2009, when they defeated Black Hills State 96-47 and UNC Pembroke 106-54

Both teams enter the series following contrasting 2024-25 campaigns. Iowa State posted a 25-10 record and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, earning the 13th spot in ESPN’s Way Too Early Top 25 rankings. Northwestern finished 17-16 in their third consecutive winning season.

Specific tipoff times and television broadcast schedules will be announced at a later date. Northwestern’s full 2025-26 schedule has yet to be released, buttickets are currently available for purchase.

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Iowa

Iowa baseball defeats Rutgers, punches Big Ten Tournament semis ticket

Published

2 days ago

May 22, 2025

Press Room

Iowa baseball defeats Rutgers, punches Big Ten Tournament semis ticket

In Iowa baseball’s (33-20-1, 21-9 Big Ten) first game in the 2025 Big Ten Tournament vs. Rutgers (29-28, 15-15) Wednesday night from Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Neb., the No. 3-seeded Hawkeyes defeated the No. 10-seeded Scarlet Knights by a score of 4-3 to win the Pool C grouping and clinch a semifinal appearance on Saturday.

Cade Obermueller started on the mound for the Hawkeyes, where he threw a stellar seven shutout innings, allowing four hits and one base-on-balls with 10 strikeouts. Three additional pitchers would see action for Iowa, including Brant Hogue, who picked up a stressful save after allowing Rutgers to pull within one run.

In total, the Hawkeyes’ pitching staff would combine for 13 strikeouts, while allowing three base-on-balls and three earned runs on nine Rutgers hits.

As for the offense, Iowa would record 10 hits, with Miles Risley leading the Hawkeyes with one RBI on 3-of-4 from the plate. Caleb Wulf (2-4) and Kellen Strohmeyer (1-3) also contributed one RBI each. While Gable Mitchell did not record an RBI, he still batted a productive 3-for-5 at the dish.

Although the Hawkeyes’ win secured them a spot in the semifinals, they will still play their second game of pool play tomorrow vs. No. 6-seed Indiana (31-25, 16-14) from Omaha.

Tomorrow’s game against the Hoosiers, initially scheduled for 2 p.m. CT, has now been rescheduled for 9 p.m. at Charles Schwab Field on the Big Ten Network. In addition to the telecast, fans can listen to the action through the Hawkeyes Radio Network alongside play-by-play voice John Leo and color analyst John Evans.

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions. Follow Scout on X: @SpringgateNews

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