Q: When did the Courier stop printing in Waterloo?
A: On Oct. 20, 2008, the Courier ended its printing operations in Waterloo, contracting to have the paper printed in Cedar Rapids and shipped back. On Aug. 30, 2021, the Courier moved its print operations to Davenport when the Cedar Rapids printer ceased its print operations.
Q: How many epidemiologists and contact tracers do Johnson, Linn and Polk counties have compared to Black Hawk County?
A: Johnson County has 20 contact tracers at the moment. The county has one epidemiologist, but the position is currently open and has not yet been posted. At the height of the pandemic Linn County had two trained epidemiologists and up to 40 contact tracers. Linn County stopped contact tracing Jan. 1, but continues to have two epidemiologists. Black Hawk County has two epidemiologists and five contact tracers. Polk County did not respond to our request for information.
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Q: What actually are the symptoms for the omicron? It says to get tested if you have the symptoms, but I don’t know what they are.
A: The most prominent symptoms from omicron are cough, fatigue or tiredness, congestion and runny nose, sore throat and headache. Unlike in previous variants, the loss of taste and smell seems to be uncommon, doctors say.
Q: I was wondering how they filmed the scene in “North By Northwest” on Mt. Rushmore?
A: According to the website The Take: The only authentic shots of Mt. Rushmore in “North by Northwest” are the ones showing the monument from a distance. The shooting and ambulance scenes were filmed in the actual monument cafeteria and surrounding grounds. The rest was filmed on an MGM soundstage using set pieces, special effects, and clever camera work.
Q: How much money did the Cedar Falls Schools get from the COVID payout from the government and why could they not disburse that to paraeducators instead of giving a $14,000 raise to the top guy?
A: Cedar Falls Community Schools received $6.24 million in federal emergency relief funds to help it recover from COVID-19 disruptions. There is some discussion by the district’s administration of using some of the money to provide employee incentives. Those funds won’t be used to pay salaries or give staff members a raise. The compensation increase for Superintendent Andy Pattee approved by the Board of Education in October was not funded through the federal relief dollars. His salary and other benefits grew by $13,222 for the current fiscal year.
Q: Where does the money come from when the Waterloo school board asks for supplemental spending authority from the state of Iowa?
A: When Waterloo Community Schools and other districts ask for and receive additional spending authority from the state, it gives them the ability to increase property taxes and spend that money for the purposes requested. If the school board chooses to use that additional authority, it is approved in the spring as part of the district’s property tax levy. So, the money comes from the school district’s property taxpayers.
