“Providing investments in transportation, small business development, affordable housing, water treatment systems, and environmental conservation will give a needed boost for Iowa’s economic and environmental development,” Harkin said. “I am pleased to have secured these essential funds to continue improving the quality of life for all Iowans.”

Harkin also noted that the committee is providing $228 million for the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas, which is $20 million above the president’s request. In the Midwest region, a large share of this funding is for fighting against methamphetamine trafficking. Harkin has been a leading advocate for sufficient funding for this important account in the Treasury Department.

Details of the Iowa projects follow:

Statewide Projects

Main Street Iowa Program: $500,000 to restore historic downtown areas and develop affordable housing above downtown storefronts. These funds, which Harkin has secured for the past several years, are competitively awarded to small communities in Iowa by the Iowa Department of Economic Development.

“Over the past two summers, I have visited many Iowa communities that have benefited from the Main Street Iowa Program,” Harkin said. “I was so impressed by the caliber of these projects that I wanted to make sure more communities were able to receive these important funds.”

America’s Agricultural Heritage Partnership (Silos and Smokestacks): $750,000 to continue the development of a plan to link the diverse sites and attractions, and to enhance the existing local heritage sites and attractions through technical assistance and support.

“These funds will help communities, sites and attractions tell the story of American agriculture in Iowa,” said Harkin. “Bringing as many as one million new visitors to Iowa, Silos and Smokestacks is a good investment to promote tourism and create jobs. This is an investment that preserves our past and invests in our economic future.”

Des Moines River Greenbelt: $3.5 million for recreational projects along the Des Moines River. Funding will be split among the following three projects: the Fort Dodge Riverfront Redevelopment project, Des Moines’ Principal Riverwalk, and the Cordova Center at Lake Red Rock near Pella.

Iowa Stormwater Runoff Control Project: $250,000 to develop manual outlining best practices and develop runoff improvement projects that will inform and educate residents, businesses and design professionals on design, construction, and management of these practices and their water quality benefits.

Homeward, Inc.: $200,000 to fund a non-profit rural development entity to leverage private investment in small business development and construct affordable housing in an economically distressed region of the state.

$500,000 for the purchase of buses and related equipment for Iowa urban and rural transit agencies.

$2 million to improve bus service for better job access. With this program, it is easier for people without their own cars, in many cases disabled individuals, to work.

$2 million to continue the development and implementation of a system to locate buses to improve the efficiency of service, particularly for point to point service mainly used by the elderly and disabled in smaller communities.

$2 million for design and environmental work on an improved U.S. 20 in Woodbury, Ida and Sac counties.

Northeast Iowa

Upper Mississippi River Blufflands Region: $550,000 for acquisition of conservation easements from willing sellers. Glacial bluffs in the Mississippi River region face significant threats due to inappropriate land use and overdevelopment and the funding will help protect hundreds of acres.

Northern Tallgrass Prairie National Wildlife Refuge: $500,000 for land acquisition in Northeast Iowa and Minnesota. The refuge has a proven track record of preserving one of the most endangered ecosystems in North America, with only one percent of the original native prairie remaining.

Upper Mississippi River Fish and Wildlife Refuge: $400,000

Ames & Research at ISU

City of Ames: $1 million for the Ames bus transit facility.

ISU Center for Non-destructive Evaluation: $1 million for non-destructive evaluation at Iowa State University. This funding will come through NASA and will be used to research smart materials for aerospace applications.

Center for Aviation System Reliability: $2 million for this FAA-initiated center that is a consortia of Iowa State University, Northwestern University, and Wayne State. Its main focus is the development of nondestructive evaluation methods to test for metal faults in aging aircraft.

Titanium Engine Consortia: $1 million for this ISU consortia that includes Honeywell, GE, Pratt and Whitney and other engine manufacturers. It is engaged in the development of nondestructive evaluation methods of aircraft engine titanium parts.

ISU Center for Portland Cement Concrete Pavement Technology: $550,000 for this center that conducts research to improve the quality of and the ability to use recycled materials in cements as well as methods to use composites that use less material.

Burlington

Iowa Army Ammunition Plant: $300,000 to help sick workers and retirees through ongoing assistance in collecting requisite medical records and completing claims forms, because there is no Resource Center in the state available to help these former workers file claims. The Iowa Army Ammunition Plant presents unique challenges because it was (and is) an Army facility as well as a nuclear weapons plant, with much crossover of workers and of records between the sections, and with environmental contamination from both parts.

Clear Lake

City of Clear Lake: $368,000 through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for ecosystem restoration and a general investigation to improve their watershed to reduce pollutants.

Cedar Rapids Area

Mid-America Housing Partnership (MAHP): $200,000 for a revolving loan fund that will promote home ownership.

Johnson County Housing Trust Fund: $100,000 for capitalization of loan funds.

$250,000 for Edgewood road in Cedar Rapids to eliminate traffic delays and safety concerns. This road is important to business development in the area and providing improved access to the airport. Harkin had provided $3 million earlier for a bridge over the UP mainline track.

$1 million for further work to widen and reconstruct a portion of Highway 6 in Coralville creating a 5th lane for turning. This is a continuation of funding provided last year.

Council Bluffs

$3.5 million for the Council Bluffs southeast arterial roadway from U.S. Highway 6 to I -29 that will improve access to the Council Bluffs airport, accommodate economic growth that is expected to result in considerable housing construction, and provide an alternative route to I-80.

Council Bluffs Airport: $2 million for paving and marking a new runway to allow the airport to land corporate jets, useful to attracting and maintaining businesses in the area.

City of Council Bluffs: $300,000 to assist with historic downtown renovations.

Denison

East Boyer River Levee Project: $150,000 for flood control along the right bank of the river.

Des Moines

$5 million for continued work on an east-west connector road south of downtown Des Moines. This project will help open up the area south of downtown including Riverpoint West to housing and light business development. It is a part of the ML King highway project. Congressman Leonard Boswell was also very active in acquiring the funding for this project.

$5 million for the I-235 project in Des Moines. The funds will be used for further construction of the east west connector south of downtown. Congressman Leonard Boswell was also very active in acquiring the funding for this project.

$1.5 million for the partial cost of the Waukee/West Des Moines I-80 Interchange to improve access to the Jordan Creek Mall and other new development in the area.

Des Moines Riverwalk: $2 million in additional funding through the Department of Transportation.

Science Center of Iowa: $500,000 to develop exhibits at their new facility.

Des Moines & Raccoon Rivers: $175,000 for a flood control study to find a solution for downtown flooding.

Hoyt Sherman Theater: $300,000 to help restore masonry and windows to the original historic condition, and conserve the 17th and 18th century art collection.

Dubuque

Lock and Dam 11: $1.5 million to repair this crumbling lock. While the Administration requested no funding for this project, repair work would be postponed an additional year without more funding.

Fort Dodge

City of Fort Dodge: $450,000 for the redevelopment of the Lincoln Neighborhood.

$2.25 million for improving U.S. 20 in Webster County.

Keokuk

Lock and Dam 19: $4.8 million for restoration of this crumbling lock to replace a damaged miter gate. Should the existing miter gate fail, navigation on the river could be compromised until funds are available for a new gate.

Mason City

Mason City Airport: $2.5 million to rehabilitate the main runway and to purchase additional land.

Ottumwa

City of Ottumwa: $1.95 million for the Ottumwa combined sewer system.

Chariton Valley Switchgrass Project: $500,000 for for installations to the Ottumwa Generating Station that will allow the cofiring of 12.5 tons per hour of biomass. Previous years funded work with cooperating farmers to develop biomass supply for future cofire activities, and helped conduct agronomic, environmental, and market development activities to support biomass production and use. Research activities have included; gasification, assessing genetic variability traits, economic analysis, soil quality, and the benefit-cost analysis of switchgrass versus coal.

Rathbun Lake: $250,000 for wetland restoration.

Quad Cities:

$1.1 million for the I-74 bridge in Bettendorf.

City of Davenport: $1 million for a sewer separation project. Both sanitary wastewater and storm water use the same sewer system. This system does not meet current environmental standards because during heavy rain events, the water discharges into the river without being treated.

Scott County Housing Trust Fund: $200,000 to support affordable housing. Funds will be used for the construction and rehabilitation of modest income family owned housing as well as support for the homeless.

City of Davenport: $156,000 for flood protection for the water treatment plant. This funding will allow construction to begin next year rather than in 2006, as would be the case under the President’s request for this project.

City of Bettendorf: $250,000 for the River’s Edge Redevelopment Project.

Duck Creek: $50,000 for ecosystem restoration.

Sioux City

Perry Creek Flood Control Project: $1 million for this project that Harkin got back on track in last year’s appropriation measure. The project was delayed because the cost of the project was higher than anticipated when legislation authorizing the project initially passed.

Storm Lake

· City of Storm Lake: $500,000 for the dredging of Storm Lake, $250,000 for water infrastructure improvements, $400,000 for the Storm Lake Destination Park Interpretive Center, and $10,000 through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for ecosystem restoration.

Waterloo Area

$2.5 million for an improved U.S. 63/218 interchange. This is the beginning of a project to widen the road from four to five lanes and create more frontage for homes. It will also improve truck access to Deere facilities and other companies near downtown.

· City of Waterloo: $200,000 for redevelopment of deteriorated housing stock in the former Rath packing plant neighborhood.

· University of Northern Iowa’s Ag Based Industrial Lubricants Program: $500,000 to help continue a nationally recognized program at the forefront of applying crop-based oils to industrial uses.

· University of Northern Iowa’s GeoInformatics Training, Research, Education, and Extension Center (GEOTree): $750,000 to develop the use of geospatial technologies, particularly satellite remote sensing, for managing environmental and natural resources. Funds will be used for education and training, research and development, and extension and outreach to help state and local governments learn to manage geospatial data to respond to situations ranging from terrorist attacks to urban growth and environmental problems.

University of Northern Iowa: $3 million for construction funds for a parking facility. $5.1 million has been provided for this project in past years. Additional funding is expected to allow for the project to be completed in the Highway reauthorization bill.

Cedar Valley Tech Works: $250,000 for redevelopment of a formerly blighted industrial area to create a bio-based technology cluster that will pull together a number of cutting-edge bio-based industries in the Cedar Valley area.

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