Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.
A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.
The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.
The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
With the potential of throwing plans for 2010 election night parties into disarray, the Hotel Fort Des Moines, which has been a landmark on Iowa’s political landscape for nearly a century, will close for 14 months of renovations starting later this year.
When it reopens, it will have a new name: The Hilton Fort Des Moines.
The plan is not yet set in stone, but owner Jeff Miller tells the Des Moines Register that a franchise agreement with Hilton has been signed, which makes it likely to happen.
Under the terms of the plan, the hotel would pay an $85,000 franchise fee along with 5 percent of gross revenue from room rentals and 3 percent of food and beverage income. In exchange, it would benefit from Hilton’s international network, which books reservations and provides other services for its franchisees.
During presidential campaigns, the hotel is among the most popular places to stay for candidates and their large entourages while in Iowa. That phenomenon is nothing new. Over the years, the hotel has hosted many presidents and presidential candidates, including Calvin Coolidge, Woodrow Wilson, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Richard Nixon. Other notable guests include Nikita Krushchev, William Jennings Bryan, Charles Lindbergh, Liz Taylor, and Mae West.
Opened in 1919, the hotel was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
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