By KRISTA KIELSMEIER
Herald-Index Staff Writer
Prairie Meadows and the Polk County Board of Supervisors rode a wave of generosity to donate $550,000 to assist flood victims in Polk County.
The board of supervisors had pledged to match the proceeds from the July 16 Ridin' the Storm Out benefit concert at Prairie Meadows. The event raised $275,000, and the supervisors approved a resolution at their Aug. 5 meeting to match that total. The money will go toward the Home Restoration Program run by the Polk County Housing Trust Fund, a nonprofit organization that supports affordable housing.
The funds have been primarily targeted toward impacted homes in the Birdland, Saylor Township, Pleasant Hill and Four Mile areas, but other county homeowners are eligible to apply for assistance.
About 60 homes in the Pleasant Valley Mobile Home Park in Pleasant Hill have been selected for assistance, according to Sheila Lumley, director of the Polk County Housing Trust Fund.
"There were trailers that were damaged below the trailers that (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) wouldn't cover because the actual living quarters weren't submerged, but it did affect insulation and duct work underneath the trailers that could cause problems with mold for the residents of those mobile homes," said Supervisor Tom Hockensmith.
Lumley said around 150 homes will be repaired as a result of the combined effort of Prairie Meadows and the board of supervisors.
"There's a huge need, and there was before the floods," she said.
She noted that heavy rains had led to sewer back-ups due to the aging infrastructures of some county communities.
Lumley said the Home Restoration Program will cover "anything that requires repair or rehabilitation at the property" to fill in where FEMA and homeowners' insurance fall short. There are no income requirements to qualify for assistance from the fund.
The Ridin' the Storm Out concert featured REO Speedwagon, and tickets sold for $20 each. Lumley called the response to the event "tremendous" and praised the idea of a local concert to meet local needs, especially as much of the state's focus has been on flood-ravaged Cedar Rapids.
The goal is to complete the program's home restoration projects by December 2008, so families can be comfortable through the winter months.
"Obviously, you want to do it as fast as you can," Lumley said.
You can now pre-order Live in the Heartland over at the REO Speedwagon store. The DVD will begin shipping August 1ST. This exclusive DVD includes 6 previously unaired songs, as well as a bonus interview with Kevin Cronin and Neal Doughty and special acoustic performances of "I Needed to Fall" and "Ridin' the Storm Out" taken from "REO Speedwagon XM Artist Confidential."
Click here to pre-order.
As natives of the Midwest, members of REO Speedwagon are doing their part to help aid victims of the ongoing floods in Iowa.
The veteran rock act will donate time between tour stops to headline the Ridin' the Storm Out-Floods of 2008 Relief Concert, to be held July 16 at Prairie Meadows in Altoona, Iowa.br/>
"When [a natural disaster] happens in your backyard, you say, 'Wait a minute, this is our responsibility,'" band frontman Kevin Cronin tells Billboard. "We can't sit back and wait for Bono to save everybody-he's doing plenty as it is."br/>
Cronin first learned of the devastating Iowa floods during a recent European tour in support of REO Speedwagon's most recent album "Find Your Own Way Home."br/>
"I turned on the TV one day and saw a video of a house basically being washed away into a river -- it was terrible," Cronin recalls. "The Mississippi River is pretty much the epicenter of where all of our fans are and where we play most of the time."br/>
Tickets for the relief concert are on sale for $20 via ticketmaster.com. To support the cause, Ticketmaster has agreed to waive convenience and handling charges. Additionally, the Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino will match money raised through ticket sales, according to Cronin.br/>
All proceeds from the benefit show, which also features the Little River Band and others, will be distributed to flood victims via the Greater Des Moines Community Foundation.br/>
"Unfortunately, we can't be there filling sandbags, but we can play our music," Cronin says, noting that additional benefit concerts are in the works.
REO Speedwagon recently performed a 16-song set in Chicago, recorded in awe-inspiring Hi-Definition for the hit PBS concert series Soundstage.
REO Speedwagon: Live in the Heartland (2008) Check : http://www.pbs.org/wttw/soundstage/airdates.html for local listings broadcast times in your area.
REO Speedwagon returns to the Midwest to headline the "Ridin; the Storm Out -Floods of 2008 Relief Concert, to be held at Prairie Meadows in Polk County, Iowa on Wednesday, July 16th, 2008, with 100 percent of the proceeds going to flood victims. The Little River Band is the special guest, with additional guests TBA. Doors open at 5 PM, and concertgoers must be 21 and over for admittance.
The ticket price is $20, and will go on sale to the public Wednesday, July 2nd, at 10:00 a.m. Tickets are available in person at the Meadows Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster Express at 866-448-7849, Ticketmaster Charge-By-Phone in Des Moines at (515) 243-1888, or online at www.Ticketmaster.com. In support of this benefit, Ticketmaster has agreed to waive all convenience and handling fees.
Prairie Meadows has underwritten the entire cost of this concert, which includes all ticket sales and revenue from a silent auction to be held that evening. Corporate and media organizations voicing support for this endeavor have been increasing by the hour. A Web site linked to Prairie Meadows detailing additional information and funding opportunities is expected to be up and running on or around July 1st.
All checks should be made payable to "2008 Flood Relief and Recovery Fund" and mailed to the Prairie Meadows Accounting Department, PO Box 1000, Altoona, Iowa 50009-0901. Monetary donations may also be deposited in any of the flood relief barrels placed throughout the Prairie Meadows facility through July 16th.
Prairie Meadows will deliver the donations to The Greater Des Moines Community Foundation, which has volunteered to act as a conduit in distributing the donated funding directly to Polk County for the flood victims.
REO Speedwagon recently performed a 16-song set in Chicago, recorded in awe-inspiring Hi-Definition for the hit PBS concert series Soundstage.
REO Speedwagon: Live in the Heartland (2008) Check : http://www.pbs.org/wttw/
soundstage/airdates.html for local listings broadcast times in your area.
..Hey Sports Fans,
Have you guys heard about our ESPN Battle of Bands...my last battle of bands was at my high school in 1968, and as legend has it, our opponent, (who will remain nameless, but they may have been an early incarnation of Styx), beat us by utilizing some questionable ballot collection tactics. I have carried that loss with me for many years, but you can help vindicate the embarrassing loss by going to espn.com, and casting your vote for us. Again, go to espn.com, keyword: take me out, and vote for our rocking version of the classic, "Take Me Out To The Ball Game". I'm not sure what we get if we win...um, probably a hot dog or something, but it is fun, and we do appreciate your support.
Play Ball,
KC
REO Speedwagon recently performed a 16-song set in Chicago, recorded in awe-inspiring Hi-Definition for the hit PBS concert series Soundstage. REO Speedwagon: Live in the Heartland (2008)' airs on July 3rd at 9 PM CDT (check local listings for broadcast times in your area). Kevin Cronin (lead vocals, guitar), Bruce Hall (bass), Neal Doughty (keyboards), Dave Amato (lead guitar) and Bryan Hitt (drums) perform in front of fans on their home turf, spanning REO's 35-year career - from the Number 1 hits "Keep On Loving You" and "Can't Fight This Feeling" to tracks from their most recent album release, "Find Your Own Way Home".
