Comments for Business 380

Comment on ‘Iowa’s Creative Corridor’ new regional brand for 7-county area by Ann Grey

Ann Grey — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 01:15:50 +0000

…and it cost how many $$$ to come up with this change? What was the price tag for changing the colors on a barber pole?

Comment on C.R. Piano Lounge sold, name changed to The Vault, adding food by Robert Hutchins

Robert Hutchins — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:03:29 +0000

It’s not negative if it’s based on fact. So many great restaurants have come and gone in this city in just the last 5-10 years, because people don’t want new and exciting, or anything more than $5-10 per person. I lament it more than anyone, but the fact remains that the people of this city, as a whole, do not embrace change or “thinking outside the box”.

Comment on C.R. Piano Lounge sold, name changed to The Vault, adding food by jay kilgallon

jay kilgallon — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 16:06:29 +0000

Thinking outside the box is what the new owners will be doing.. Hats off to them we do not need people with negative altitudes! Life is too darn short…

Comment on C.R. Piano Lounge sold, name changed to The Vault, adding food by Robert Hutchins

Robert Hutchins — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 19:33:54 +0000

I give this place 6 months before it closes – what tipped me off was when he said that they wanted to bring a “different” kind of food to CR. The cretans in this city don’t want different – they want the same food and atmosphere that they’ve enjoyed for the last 50 years, so long as it’s a national chain restaurant. Very sad.

Comment on Sonic restaurants close in Cedar Rapids, Coralville, Waterloo by James Surratt

James Surratt — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 04:02:03 +0000

Unfortunately they can’t compete with McDnoald’s for speed as their food takes a bit longer to cook. But they were a nice alternative to McD’s. Food is really getting to be expensive, especially beef.

Comment on Sonic restaurants close in Cedar Rapids, Coralville, Waterloo by E. Karsten Kroeger

E. Karsten Kroeger — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 00:52:15 +0000

well that sucks, I liked Sonic! back to McD’s I guess…until the new Chick Fil A comes

Comment on Sonic restaurants close in Cedar Rapids, Coralville, Waterloo by Dave Seavy

Dave Seavy — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 00:25:28 +0000

It is unfortunate, and the restaurant business is so volatile as it is. Of course when you have the Golden Arches right next door, the deck is really stacked against you.

Comment on Sonic restaurants close in Cedar Rapids, Coralville, Waterloo by Doug Kach

Doug Kach — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 21:58:31 +0000

no big surprise, figured that when they built them….sorry to see the owners lose their investments, but this is Cedar Rapids

Comment on Lundy’s Hallmark closing at Sycamore, ending 60 years in I.C. by Rupert Jones

Rupert Jones — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 23:41:09 +0000

Is his last name Lundquist or Lundy?

Comment on Des Moines to get Southwest service through AirTran transition by E. Karsten Kroeger

E. Karsten Kroeger — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 17:38:08 +0000

Good for DSM, but when will the Eastern Iowa Airport get a true low fare carrier? While I dont see Southwest coming here anytime soon, it would be nice to see a carrier like Frontier, which does serve cities of our size, bring in flights. Allegiant is good but only of you are going to Florida. Vegas or Phoenix. We need a true low fare carrier that can give us access to more cities via a hub.

Comment on No Iowa restaurants planned for closing by Ryan’s owner by James Surratt

James Surratt — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 02:42:53 +0000

Glad to hear that the Cedar Rapids Ryan’s will not close, It was sad to see Old Country Buffet close in Coralville. My wife and I went to eat at Ryans after we found out about the Coralville closing. It was just as good as OCB. The hostess said that when OCB closed, Ryan’s got their manager back. Let’s hope Ryan’s stays around for a long time.

Comment on $59.5 million trash-to-ethanol project in Benton County secures funding by Fred Snow

Fred Snow — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 19:10:29 +0000

Pass the Agsugar?

Comment on As insurance pays for less, hospitals seek outside help by georgejones

georgejones — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 07:08:32 +0000

This is another example of why we need single payer like modern countries have. They are selling policies that dont cover things leaving people with insurance, and bankruptcy. Healthcare issues cause 60% of personal bankruptcies in America. This needs to stop.

Comment on MidAmerican to acquire 3 Iowa wind developments by joshua brown

joshua brown — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 08:24:47 +0000

Positioning for having dominance in the area for energy and when they want to sell they can corner the market or prices as well as raise the rates without fear of competition moving in on them, interesting.

Comment on Jerseys Downtown opens in restored Roosevelt building by joshua brown

joshua brown — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 08:18:00 +0000

To me its great someones trying, but yeah there seem to be way to many sports bars in the area or bars in general popping up.

Comment on Cargill’s C.R. soybean crushing plant slated for $20 million upgrade as Des Moines plant closes by Kevin Curl

Kevin Curl — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 21:23:54 +0000

Now this is the kind of expansion needed downtown. Something that actually creates and sustains meaningful jobs!

Comment on Jerseys Downtown opens in restored Roosevelt building by Fred Snow

Fred Snow — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 20:26:31 +0000

“Pendergast said the space was appealing because it is close to the new downtown events center, expected to open in the fall of 2012, and far enough from a jointly owned business, Jersey’s Pub N Grub at 5761 C St. SW, that it won’t siphon away existing clientele.”

“For two decades, America’s convention center business has been declining, resulting in a nationwide surplus of empty meeting facilities, struggling convention halls and vacant hotel rooms. How have governments responded to this glut? By building more convention centers, of course, financed by debt backed by new taxes and fees on already struggling taxpayers.
Are they banking on all those convention center visitors?”

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204720204577126603702369654.html?KEYWORDS=Convention+center

Sorry, I’ll pass on the bleu cheese burger. My ever increasing tax bill for ever more foolish downtown schemes is making me sick.

Comment on Jerseys Downtown opens in restored Roosevelt building by terry elam

terry elam — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 19:01:06 +0000

Great location. this will provide a great venue to watch a road Roughrider game.

Comment on Jerseys Downtown opens in restored Roosevelt building by Charles Michaels

Charles Michaels — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 17:13:28 +0000

Gotta agree with Steve – the mere fact that it is a “sports bar” makes me want to stay away.

Comment on Jerseys Downtown opens in restored Roosevelt building by steve jackson

steve jackson — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 15:38:01 +0000

great. just what CR needs, another sportsbar. more buckets of beer and tvs.

Comment on Iowa City restaurant facing Jan. 29 demolition by Steve Hanken

Steve Hanken — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 14:22:16 +0000

What was Iowa City before this business of filling it up with multi level apartment houses all made of brick with shops on the bottom level and all looking like some Stalinist Moscow development? Once every quirky thing about Iowa City is gone down the Papajohn school of business efficency worm hole, you can pretty much flush Iowa City down the drain as a destination for anything other than those who happen to attend the University for four years and never return after that.

Comment on Law: Age discrimination in the workplace by Dave Seavy

Dave Seavy — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:26:02 +0000

The youngbloods would do well to remember that even though a college degree looks impressive on paper, nothing beats experience. If the youngsters take the time to watch and listen, they can gain an invaluable education from people who’ve been at it far longer. I’ve gained more knowledge from older folks that paved the path for me than I ever did in school. Just as important to remember: You too will be an old fart eventually. Imagine some young cocky newbie putting you in his/her crosshairs because they have the misconception that you have less to offer than they do.

Comment on Country bar coming to downtown C.R. by Tim cardimon

Tim cardimon — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 17:50:09 +0000

Just what downtown needs, another bar or two. Oh, I forgot we need bars downtown to handle the hundreds of thousands staying at our hotel and seeing no-name acts at our cement slab they are calling an amphitheatre.

Comment on Country bar coming to downtown C.R. by Jack Lorenz

Jack Lorenz — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 14:58:14 +0000

If you’re going to rip off a cheesy 1970′s TV show; you might as well go whole Hogg and name the bar “The Boar’s Nest”.

Comment on Lithia sells Hiawatha auto dealerships to McGrath Automotive by Randy Rhoads

Randy Rhoads — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 01:42:30 +0000

I wish McGrath all the best. I’ve bought a few new cars from them over the years and believe their Service Dept is top notch with Hesley at the helm. I have had two bad experiences with Lithia and believe they failed in CR on their own merit or lack of. I will not miss Lithia and their management style.

Comment on Chick-fil-A planning restaurant near Lindale by Chaim Finestein

Chaim Finestein — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 01:42:07 +0000

Is this the same Chick-fil-A which is openly against gays?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/01/chick-fil-a-donated-anti-gay-groups-2009_n_1069429.html

Comment on Chick-fil-A planning restaurant near Lindale by Tim cardimon

Tim cardimon — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 23:32:26 +0000

Great, love Chick-fil-A. BUT–will they be open on Sunday? If I ran a Mall, I would demand they be open the same times as the Mall. Same as Fareway. There are a lot of people that look at Sunday as just another day—that like chicken and groceries.

Comment on Mix 96.5 becomes history as Clear Channel opts for country format by Lori Morris

Lori Morris — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 22:45:45 +0000

I like country music, but do we really need ANOTHER country music station in this area!?

Comment on Mix 96.5 becomes history as Clear Channel opts for country format by Steve Miller

Steve Miller — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 20:52:59 +0000

Time to delete them from my favorites button. Sad day!

Comment on Lithia sells Hiawatha auto dealerships to McGrath Automotive by Amber Kopecky

Amber Kopecky — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 23:56:29 +0000

I have to agree with the Steves on this article and the issue at hand. I know first hand that the McGrath family was not truthful in this article. It disgusts me that a locally owned company goes around firing the local employees who didn’t ask for a buyout to happen, but tried to be optimistic at the same time. What locally owned company wants to be known for firing/letting go several employees two weeks before Christmas? I know I wouldn’t want to have that on my conscious.

Comment on Lithia sells Hiawatha auto dealerships to McGrath Automotive by McGrath Automotive

McGrath Automotive — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 18:47:43 +0000

Our focus is to create an excellent customer experience for all service and sales customers so it is terrible to hear that you feel this way. We are in contact with hundreds of customers on a daily basis and tens of thousands over the years and the key to our success is having a great relationship with our customers. Like any business we could not have major success without having a loyal customer base that comes to see us for all of their service and sales needs. If there is an issue we would like to take all necessary measures to correct it. The situation you describe is not general practice, nor something we condone as a company. We would like the opportunity to discuss this situation further with you and in greater detail. If you are open to that idea, please email lmcgrath@mcgrathauto.com and let us know the best way to reach you.

Comment on Iowa at the center of fight over renaming high fructose corn syrup by CLWalker

CLWalker — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 17:52:15 +0000

This story mainly gives comments in favor of changing the name. It appears to be written in a way to support the very deceptive name change.

The big producers of High Fructose Corn Syrup are trying hard to hide the name High Fructose Corn Syrup. I think this name change is happening since increasing numbers of the public are beginning to learn about the serious unhealthy side of HFC. Plus some food producers are beginning to advertise that their product does not contain HFCS. I think the large producers of HFCS fear that their profits are on the edge of decline.

I agree with comments made by Jkers and Katheena. Also HFCS is metabolized in a different way than Sugar, increasing the potential for obesity. This is the part of the story that producers of the very profitable HFCS are not telling.

Comment on Iowa at the center of fight over renaming high fructose corn syrup by j kers

j kers — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 14:48:08 +0000

Curt 00 click on the link I posted. There’s truth and don’t be afraid to see it…