Coralville Archives » Lynda Waddington

02Feb 2019 by Lynda Waddington

Could Wahls be a champion?

Gazette Column

No one wanted to brave the frigid elements this past Wednesday, not even those who have repeatedly confronted rain and snow in previous years to count the number of homeless on the streets. Point-in-time counts of sheltered and unsheltered homeless people, required by the federal government, take place annually on the last Wednesday of January. But not this year. Dangerous temperatures have pushed Iowa's count to Feb. 6. It goes without saying, or at least it should go without saying, that if it is too risky to count those experiencing homelessness, it is too dangerous to be experiencing homelessness. That seems to be what one of Iowa's newly elected lawmakers was thinking on Tuesday night when he invited a man named Rick into a Des Moines hotel lobby to warm…

27Mar 2016 by Lynda Waddington

Johnson County MPO: Bikes, cars & buses, but no train

Gazette Column

Corridor residents hoping for passenger rail will need to wait a little longer. But they can bide time by helping to shape long-range planning of existing Johnson County MPO transit options. The Metropolitan Planning Organization of Johnson County held the first of three public workshops Wednesday night in North Liberty. The meetings are an opportunity for citizens interested in the future of public transit, roads and trails to give input on long-range planning projects. “Future Forward 2045” is a document that outlines how the metropolitan communities — Iowa City, Coralville, North Liberty, Tiffin and University Heights, as well as the county areas immediately adjacent to those communities — will invest in transportation. This type of planning is also a requirement for state and federal funding. Feedback is being solicited in…

10Aug 2015 by Lynda Waddington

Few travelers on path to equity

Gazette Column

What’s most disappointing is how few came to participate. There were three things I wanted to do Thursday night. I could have watched Jon Stewart bid his final farewell to Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show.” I was tempted to gather with political friends and family to watch members of the GOP presidential field face off in their first televised debate. But I chose to attend a local meeting at the Coralville Public Library. Specifically, I sat with about 15 people as Kingsley Botchway, Iowa City Community School District’s relatively new equity and staffing director, provided an update and outline of the district’s equity plan. Then I listened as about half of those gathered offered concerns and feedback. It was both an uplifting and sobering experience. While most news reports (and…

21Jun 2015 by Lynda Waddington

Of bullets, Bibles and bullies

Gazette Column

Nothing I write can return Andrea Farrington to her family and friends. That truth rests like a chunk of lead in my stomach. It has been sitting there all week as details of the cowardly mall shooting and remembrances of the young, vibrant woman are heard and absorbed. Sure, there are lessons to be learned from this tragedy, but they are the same lessons we’ve too often been offered. When does the learning begin? Everything I’ve read and heard from Farrington’s friends in the wake of her murder indicates that the young woman followed “best practices” when dealing with an unstable person and unsolicited interactions. She avoided contact. Farrington reported uncomfortable and threatening instances — and she wasn’t the only one to do so. In short, she did what society…

09Feb 2015 by Lynda Waddington

There’s still time to be brave

Gazette Column

Those living with mental illness asked to speak up, break stigma Sit down and have a conversation with Iowa City blogger Brook Easton and you won’t walk away with the impression that she is a person coping with health challenges. And, frankly, that’s the point. Easton, a wife and mom of two boys, is like so many others — a quarter of all Americans, according to national studies — who live with a mental illness. It’s a challenge she knows well, one that she shares with her father and a son. “So many times, to a person seeing only the outside, it is invisible,” she said. “People see someone holding down a job or going to school. What they can’t see is what is happening inside that person’s head.” And,…

27Oct 2014 by Lynda Waddington

Think LOST stinks? Hold your nose, blame lawmakers.

Gazette Column

No one wants to pay more taxes, but sometimes it really is the best of the bad options. When Johnson County voters flip their ballots this November, they’ll be asked if they are willing to increase sales tax by a penny for each dollar spent. If your gut instinct is similar to mine, the pencil will immediately gravitate toward the “no” oval. Sales taxes are among the most regressive rate options for revenue generation. Because they are levied at a flat rate, and because spending as a share of income falls as income rises, sales taxes inevitably take a larger share of income from low- and middle-income families than they take from those in higher income brackets. In other words, all saved income is exempt, while all spent income is…

06Jul 2014 by Lynda Waddington

Sullivan, Botchway got it right

Gazette Column

While there was plenty to be learned at a Hunger Forum this week hosted by the Crisis Center of Johnson County, two of the most important thoughts elevated within the discussion were not limited to food security. Johnson County Supervisor Rod Sullivan noted that if communities want more people to come forward and access available services, there needs to be a widespread effort not to bruise the dignity and pride of those in need. “There is a stigma associated,” he explained, and immediately received mild pushback from another panelist. While I may receive some similar pushback, let me say that I agree with Sullivan. Society cannot on one hand decry the people receiving state food assistance as incapable of making healthy food choices and, on the other hand, berate parents…

27Apr 2014 by Lynda Waddington

Bring on the Herkys to rally Iowans

Gazette Column

If asked to list the greatest moments of community unity in our nation’s or even our state’s history, recent disasters would probably fill the top 10. It’s difficult to look beyond “Boston Strong,” the upcoming 25th anniversary of the crash of Flight 232 in Sioux City or the cleanup of the 2008 floods in Eastern Iowa when asked for examples of human collaboration. Perhaps this is because it is in those moments, when everything seems at its worst, we most need to concentrate on what’s good. We promise we will never forget the horrific incident, as well as the atmosphere of goodwill in its wake. Yet, the collective conscience is short-lived. My son, born in 2002, has no direct memory of the World Trade Center and Pentagon bombings. What he…