An open house will be held from 4:30p.m. – 6:30p.m., Thursday, Feb. 26 for the community to provide input on a proposed Overlay District in the MedQuarter’s 55-square block medical district.
The event will be held at First Lutheran Church, 1000 3rd Ave SE, Cedar Rapids hosted by representatives of the Cedar Rapids Medical Self-Supported Municipal Improvement District (SSMID) Commission and employees from the City of Cedar Rapids Community Development Department.
The MedQuarter’s award-winning Master Development Plan (MDP) provides a roadmap for the future of the medical district and serves as a guide for economic development decisions and physical improvements. One of the policy initiatives identified in the MDP was to create a comprehensive set of MedQuarter Design Standards & Guidelines to be adopted by the City of Cedar Rapids and incorporated into the new MedQuarter Overlay District.
The Medical SSMID Commission invites the community, especially property owners, district partners and developers, who are interested in the MedQuarter to provide input on the design standards and guidelines.
The MedQuarter Overlay District Standards and Guidelines will apply to new construction, additions to existing buildings and/or the exterior rehabilitation of buildings located within the MedQuarter boundaries. Overlay Districts assure uniform development standards which encourage high quality infill development while also improving the efficiency of development plan approvals which are goals of the Medical SSMID Commission. The City of Cedar Rapids currently has Overlay Districts for three other core areas where redevelopment is occurring and has found them to be beneficial.
The MedQuarter was the result of Vision Cedar Rapids Downtown Framework Plan 2007 (JLG Plan) and the 2009 Neighborhood Planning Process, which developed districts to help grow downtown Cedar Rapids. Its major medical providers— Mercy Medical Center, UnityPoint Health – St. Luke’s Hospital and Physicians Clinic of Iowa—are committed to developing Cedar Rapids as a medical destination, where many health care needs are met in one area of the downtown. Recently recognized as a top ten city in the nation that delivers high-quality, low-cost healthcare by the Institute for Health Care Improvement, the Cedar Rapids MedQuarter is intended to create jobs, fuel economic development, improve the city’s tax base and enhance the quality of life within the community.
CONTACTS: Cedar Rapids Medical SSMID Commission Members
Phil Wasta, Tallgrass Business Resources, 319/731-3039
Standards Committee – Chair
Dr. Julianne Thomas, Group 411 & 10th Street Medical Building, 319/364-3496
Branding & Marketing Committee – Chair
