HomeMy WebLinkAbout04.28.2003• •
COUNCIL WORK SESSION
April 28, 2003
4:30 p.m.
Council Chambers
Members present: Mayor Rooff, Kincaid, Welper, Greenwood, Hurley, Getty, Clark.
Members absent: Jordan.
Moved by Getty, seconded by Hurley that the Agenda, as proposed, be approved. Ayes: Five.
Absent: Jordan, Clark. Motion carried.
Clark now present at 4:33 p.m.
Jeff Kutz, from John Deere, gave a power point presentation on the Cedar Valley TechWorks.
Mr. Kutz updated the council on the presentation to the Iowa Legislators last week.
Mr. Kutz explained the definition of Biotechnology, Biomass, Bioenergy and the Bioeconomy.
Biomass is anything that is not a mineral or a metal. It is a source material that is derived from
plants, including agricultural crops, forestry products and the processing streams in the food, feed
and fiber industries. Biomass is a carbohydrate -based material that is biodegradable and
renewable over a short time frame.
Mr. Kutz reviewed the impact of the Bioeconomy on government, industry, agriculture, and the
economy.
The world's biomass resources are an unlimited, untapped opportunity. Currently, only seven
percent of the world's biomass is utilized, leaving ninety-three percent of unrealized potential.
Over 2,200 million acres of biomass resources are located in the United States, with a good
portion of it located in the Great Prairie. According to the USDA, the top states for corn, wheat
and soybean production are located in the Great Prairie. These crops are the biomass resource
for such industrial building blocks as resins, polymers, fibers, paints and adhesives.
Highway I-80 is the primary transportation corridor that connects the farmland of Iowa with the
power centers of the east and west coasts. Within Iowa, the I-80 Corridor encompasses the key
ingredients for Iowa's participation in the new economy. Those key ingredients include centers
of research and education, finance and political power, including the University of Iowa, Iowa
State University, Des Moines and the Quad Cities.
The connections between these centers provide the opportunity to further enhance the new ideas,
patents and businesses that are being generated in the I-80 Corridor through the addition of the
information technology and expertise located in Cedar Rapids, the advanced manufacturing
facilities and educational institutions located in Waterloo -Cedar Falls and the farmland located
within the Cedar River Watershed.
Access to the Cedar Valley TechWorks would be improved by extending Commercial Street to
Falls and Westfield Avenues through the middle of Deere's Westfield site to the existing
interchange of US. Highway 63 and relocated U.S. Highway 218.
The Cedar Valley TechWorks facility will be located in 750,000 square feet of existing office
and manufacturing space previously occupied and donated by John Deere. Deere & Company is
donating five buildings to the Waterloo Development Corporation which will house innovative
and diverse programs and businesses with a focus on agricultural technologies.
Cedar Valley TechWorks will include four programs. Bioproducts Merchandise Mart will
provide a location for the display and marketing of biobased products and processes that are
ready and available for the market. TechWorks Manufacturing Mall will facilitate the
commercialization of new products and create new businesses. TechWorks Education Center
will ensure the availability and quality of the necessary knowledge workforce and will help to
educate the general public about the bioeconomy. The Ag-Tourism Exhibit Center will provide
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Council Work Session
April 28, 2003
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multiple activities for visitors, such as the Two -Cylinder and Collector Clubs, Silos and
Smokestacks Trail Head, and a place for collectors of antique tractor parts to display their wares.
With no further business before the council, it was moved by Clark, seconded by Kincaid that the
meeting be adjourned at 4:51 p.m. Ayes: Six. Absent: Jordan. Motion carried.
Nancy Eckert
City Clerk
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