• The National Trust for Historic Preservation has awarded U.S. Representative Jim Leach (R-Iowa) its Civic Leadership Award. The honor recognizes outstanding contributions by an elected official, a government staff person, a public agency, or a not-for-profit organization at the local, state, or national level.
Rock Island Economic Growth Corporation, which has long been a model of progressive development in the Quad Cities, is starting to ruffle a few feathers - with quite a few more likely to follow. That's because the not-for-profit organization has delved into the development of affordable housing, building 71 units for the Rock Island Housing Authority in the coming years, including six scattered-site homes this year in established - although still sensitive - neighborhoods.
• Studies show that in crashes involving a motorcycle and another vehicle, the motorcyclist's right of way was violated two-thirds of the time. To make motorists more alert to others on roadways, Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack has declared May "Motorcycle Awareness Month.
Nick Clooney hit upon an interesting idea when he was approached about doing a book about film: that movies sometimes should be looked at outside the realm of entertainment. A persistent literary representative kept asking him to write a book, but he kept deferring because of his schedule as host of American Movie Classics.
• The Quad Cities Convention & Visitors Bureau (QCCVB) is now offering bicycle rentals from its offices in downtown Davenport (102 South Harrison Street) and downtown Moline (2021 River Drive). The hours for rentals from both offices are 8:30 a.
A sign in the parking office of the City of Davenport reads, "Parking Should Be a Non-Event." That's certainly the dream in Davenport, but currently it's far from being a reality. Right now the city's parking system is getting pressure from two sides.
• The Family Museum of Arts & Science has achieved the highest recognition for a museum, accreditation by the American Association of Museums (AAM). Of the nation's nearly 16,000 museums, approximately 750 are currently accredited.
The Americans Who Tell the Truth project started with one portrait. Then it became a planned series of 50. Now, even its creator isn't sure where it will stop. The genesis of the project was the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
• A recently released report by the Washington, D.C.-based group American Rivers warns that the Mississippi River could face "ecological collapse" unless Congress directs the Army Corps of Engineers to fix problems afflicting the river in the next Water Resources Development Act.
The number of entries in this year's River Cities' Reader short-fiction contest jumped to over 120, up more than 25 percent from last year. There was one significant rule change - the word limit was cut from 250 to 200 - but that didn't seem to affect the quality of entries.

Pages