28 Feb 2007

How Do We Judge the Economy?

By Administrator

How do we know how well our local economy is faring? We're bombarded with anecdotes - this business closing, this restaurant opening, quarterly earnings from Deere - but how do those translate into a bigger picture?

21 Feb 2007

What Shakespeare Can Teach Business: Juliet Goodfriend, February 22 at St. Ambrose University

By Administrator

Juliet Goodfriend The "real" world can teach you about marketing, or annual reports, or human resources. The real world can't teach you much about literature, or philosophy, or art.

Juliet Goodfriend thinks that higher education and corporations put too much value on those real-world skills, and not nearly enough emphasis on the liberal arts. In her words, there's too much focus on "professional training at the loss of real education."

14 Feb 2007

Best of the Quad Cities: Introduction, Hall of Fame, & Major Awards

By Jeff Ignatius & Mike Schulz


Reader issue #620 You might notice something different in the River Cities' Reader Best of the Quad Cities poll this year: For the first time, we're offering "staff picks" for certain categories.

This doesn't mean that we're invalidating our readers' choices. Rather, we're offering individual picks based on our experience, as a way to broaden the conversation a little. Sometimes the best things in our community are popular; other times, they need a little push to get the recognition they deserve.

14 Feb 2007

Best of the Quad Cities: Food & Drink

By Jeff Ignatius & Mike Schulz

Restaurant that opened in 2006

1. Fields of Pizza

2. Red Robin Gourmet Burgers

3. Portabella's Italian Bistro

 

14 Feb 2007

Best of the Quad Cities: Business

By Shawn Eldridge

Alternative-health-care provider

1. Palmer Clinics

2. Harvey Jack Chiropractic

3. Genesis Continuing Care

 

Fitness club

1. YMCA

2. Gold's Gym

3. Ultimate Fitness

 

Flower shop

1. Flowerama

2. Hy-Vee

3. K'nees

 

Place to buy cool home accessories/furnishings

1. American Furniture

2. Pier 1 Imports

14 Feb 2007

Best of the Quad Cities: Civics & Media

By Jeff Ignatius & Mike Schulz

Community-service organization

1. American Red Cross

2. YMCA

3. United Way

 

14 Feb 2007

Best of the Quad Cities: Nightlife

By Administrator

Local blues band

1. Ellis Kell Band

2. Electric Leroy

3. Shane Johnson

 

Local country band

1. Dani Lynn Howe Band

2. Jim the Mule

3. A Fifth of Country

 

Local jazz band

1. Josh Duffee & His Orchestra

1. The Tritones Jazz Ensemble

3. Craig Bentley Jazz Trio

 

Local rock band

1. Crossroads

14 Feb 2007

Best of the Quad Cities: Arts, Culture, & Leisure

By Jeff Ignatius

Local theatre organization

1. Circa '21

2. Quad City Music Guild

3. Comedy Sportz

 

Local theatre production

1. Cats (Circa '21)

2. White Christmas (Circa '21)

3. Grease (Circa '21)

3. It's a Wonderful Life (Quad City Music Guild)

3. The Nutcracker (Ballet Quad Cities)

 

Annual family event/festival

1. Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Fest

07 Feb 2007

Other Ways of Moving People Around

By Administrator

proposed railway map Passenger rail to the Quad Cities is part of a larger discussion about how a community moves its people. While our transportation policy most often focuses on how to move automobiles from one place to another, alternative transportation has frequently been ignored.

That's shifting. An aging population, traffic congestion, air-travel hassles, high fuel prices, and concern about global warming have all sparked renewed interest in mass-transit options such as passenger rail (getting from city to city) and commuter rail (transportation within a city).

27 Dec 2006

The Cingular Deal: What Could Have Been

By Administrator

The announcement last week that Cingular Wireless has selected Davenport for a 510-job call center was great news, but with a big asterisk.

There's no denying that the jobs (which will pay an average of just over $21,000 a year) are welcome. They probably won't attract new people to the Quad Cities, but they will provide a substantial number of people with higher incomes.

And a $3.4-million loan from the City of Davenport - to be repaid through taxes from increased property values at the call-center site - seems a fair incentive, given the magnitude of the project and the fact that the jobs will actually be new.

But the location of the call center combined with the size of the incentive gives me pause. These jobs might merit millions of dollars in assistance, but that money should be used to encourage development where it wouldn't happen otherwise. In other words, this is a project that deserved tax-increment financing downtown, but not at the northern-Davenport site Cingular is considering.

Pages

Subscribe & Listen to Reader Podcasts

On Stands Now

 

Tagged Content

    

Two Ways to Subscribe

1. Subscribe to free weekly e-mail content updates.

You'll get both the current official narrative challenge and What's Happenin' in the Quad Cities.
(Did you know we publish a new Real Astrology and RCR Crossword every week?) 

Subscribe!

* indicates required

2. Get 12 monthly issues mailed first class for $48

Get 12 issues mailed monthly for $48 per year.

Get the printed Reader edition mailed to you (or anyone you want) first-class for 12 months for $48.
$24 goes to postage and handling, $24 goes to keeping the doors open!

Click this link to Subscribe now.

 
 

Meetings Calendar