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| For street addresses, the city is divided into four quadrants. For addresses, from north to south the city is divided by the ], and east to west by 1st Avenue (Business Highway 151). A street address in Cedar Rapids will usually be '''Number Street Name XX'' where XX names the part of the city where the address is located. XX will usually be one of four labels - those being NE, SE, SW, and NW. The only exception would be government addresses on Mays Island - which will have either E. or W. as the label. | For street addresses, the city is divided into four quadrants. For addresses, from north to south the city is divided by the ], and east to west by 1st Avenue (Business Highway 151). A street address in Cedar Rapids will usually be '''Number Street Name XX'' where XX names the part of the city where the address is located. XX will usually be one of four labels - those being NE, SE, SW, and NW. The only exception would be government addresses on Mays Island - which will have either E. or W. as the label. | ||
| == Government == | |||
| Currently, Cedar Rapids uses the ] of government. It is one of the few larger cities to use this form of government. The council is made up of a public safety commissioner, a streets commissioner, a finance commissioner, a parks commissioner, and a mayor. The council members work on a full-time basis, and serve two year terms. The council members are considered department heads. The current mayor of Cedar Rapids is Paul Pate. | |||
| Lately, a movement has begun to change the form of government. In the summer of ] voters will decide whether to adopt a new form of government or keep the current form. A panel was created to study the issue, and have recommended that voters be presented with three options; | |||
| * The current commission form of government. | |||
| * A ] form where the council would be part time, the mayor would be full time, and a city manager would run the day to day affairs of the city. | |||
| * The ] form of government. In this form the mayor and council would work on a part time basis. A full time city manager would run the day to day operations of the city. | |||
| In 1994, voters were also asked if they would like to change the form of government. At that time voters decided to keep the commission form. | |||
| == Transportation == | == Transportation == | ||
Revision as of 06:35, 23 February 2005
Cedar Rapids is a city located in Linn County, Iowa. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 120,758. It is the county seat of Linn CountyTemplate:GR. The city is named after the Cedar River.
Cedar Rapids is the home of Coe College and Kirkwood Community College. It was the birthplace of actors Elijah Wood and Ashton Kutcher, actress Terry Farrell, as well as Ron Livingston. Cedar Rapids has also been residence to famous figures, including the American artist Grant Wood , the Wright Brothers, journalist/historian William L. Shirer, and Dr. Alexander Lippisch.
Geography
Cedar Rapids is located at 41°58'59" North, 91°40'7" West (41.983100, -91.668529)Template:GR.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 166.8 km² (64.4 mi²). 163.5 km² (63.1 mi²) of it is land and 3.3 km² (1.3 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 1.99% water.
Cedar Rapids is divided up into five zipcodes. 52401 covers the northeast part of the city, 52402 the eastern part of the city, 52403 the southeast part of the city, 52404 the northeast part of the city, and 52405 the northwest part of Cedar Rapids. 52405 is the zip code for PO Box addresses.
For street addresses, the city is divided into four quadrants. For addresses, from north to south the city is divided by the Cedar River, and east to west by 1st Avenue (Business Highway 151). A street address in Cedar Rapids will usually be 'Number Street Name XX where XX names the part of the city where the address is located. XX will usually be one of four labels - those being NE, SE, SW, and NW. The only exception would be government addresses on Mays Island - which will have either E. or W. as the label.
Government
Currently, Cedar Rapids uses the commission form of government. It is one of the few larger cities to use this form of government. The council is made up of a public safety commissioner, a streets commissioner, a finance commissioner, a parks commissioner, and a mayor. The council members work on a full-time basis, and serve two year terms. The council members are considered department heads. The current mayor of Cedar Rapids is Paul Pate.
Lately, a movement has begun to change the form of government. In the summer of 2005 voters will decide whether to adopt a new form of government or keep the current form. A panel was created to study the issue, and have recommended that voters be presented with three options;
- The current commission form of government.
- A strong mayor form where the council would be part time, the mayor would be full time, and a city manager would run the day to day affairs of the city.
- The weak mayor form of government. In this form the mayor and council would work on a part time basis. A full time city manager would run the day to day operations of the city.
In 1994, voters were also asked if they would like to change the form of government. At that time voters decided to keep the commission form.
Transportation
Cedar Rapids is served by The Eastern Iowa Airport, a regional airport that connects with other regional and international airports. The city also has public transportation consisting of buses and taxis, and a series of skywalks connecting several downtown buildings for foot traffic.
Interstate 380, part of the Avenue of the Saints, runs north-south through Cedar Rapids. U.S. Highways 30, 151, and 218 and Iowa Highways 13 and 100 also serve the city.
Business/industry
Cedar Rapids is home to several large businesses and industries, including Rockwell Collins, Quaker Oats, Aegon, McLeod USA and ADM just to name a few, along with hundreds of smaller and personal businesses. A portion of the reason behind the high number of large industries resides in the fact that Cedar Rapids is part of the Iowa Technology Corridor, a region of the state that also includes Iowa City from where much of the state's technological businesses and industries operate.
Historical landmarks
Located near the center of the city along the Cedar River is the historical Czech Village, a business district composed of several ethnic businesses and historical buildings, thus helping to maintain the city's historical Czech heritage. Along with the Czech Village, Cedar Rapids has the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library. In 2003, the African-American Historical Museum and Cultural Center of Iowa opened its doors. Cedar Rapids is also home to the historical 26-acre Brucemore Estate on which sits a 21-room mansion.
Sports
Cedar Rapids is home of the minor-league baseball team Cedar Rapids Kernels, the ice hockey team Cedar Rapids RoughRiders and the basketball team Cedar Rapids River Raiders.
Demographics
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there are 120,758 people, 49,820 households, and 30,838 families residing in the city. The population density is 738.4/km² (1,912.6/mi²). There are 52,240 housing units at an average density of 319.4/km² (827.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 91.86% White, 3.71% African American, 0.25% Native American, 1.77% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.55% from other races, and 1.79% from two or more races. 1.71% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 49,820 households out of which 29.9% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.4% are married couples living together, 10.0% have a female householder with no husband present, and 38.1% are non-families. 30.2% of all households are made up of individuals and 9.7% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.36 and the average family size is 2.96.
In the city the population is spread out with 24.5% under the age of 18, 10.8% from 18 to 24, 30.7% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 35 years. For every 100 females there are 95.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 92.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $43,704, and the median income for a family is $54,286. Males have a median income of $37,217 versus $26,251 for females. The per capita income for the city is $22,589. 7.5% of the population and 4.9% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 8.8% of those under the age of 18 and 6.9% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
