The state transportation commission has approved grants to help build roads for a casino, an ethanol plant and a plant that makes egg cartons. Department of Transportation systems planner Stuart Anderson says the city of Riverside will get nearly 600-thousand dollars in what’s called a “RISE” grant. He says the city applied for the funding to improve Iowa Highway 22 to improve access for the Washington County Casino and Golf Course Resort east of Riverside.
While some might question the use of state funds to help a casino, Anderson says this is not something new. Anderson says other communities have taken advantage of RISE funds for projects related to casino development. Anderson says the money is only used for public roadway improvements. The casino is expected to create 570 new jobs and more than 120 million dollars in associated capital investment.
The City of Clarion also won over 338-thousand dollars for a road improvement project. He says there’s a company that will locate on the roadway called Clarion packaging which makes egg cartons. He says the project will create 80 new jobs and more than 19-million-dollars in associated capital investment.
Floyd County was the third recipient of RISE funds. He says the county applied for the funding to provide access to the proposed VeraSun Energy ethanol plant south of Floyd. The commission approved 318-thousand dollars for the Floyd project, which Anderson says will create 53 new jobs. Each of the projects requires some local matching funds.