Studio 13 owners plan fourth LGBTQ+ bar in Ames
AMES — The Studio 13 group of bars will soon hit four: a Studio 13 Ames is scheduled to open Aug. 1. The bar will be at 400 Main St., the former home to a salon, and will add to Spectrum Hospitality’s existing collection of its original Studio 13 in Iowa City, a Studio 13 Waterloo, and Club Basix in Cedar Rapids. A group spokesperson wrote by email that the company decided to expand to Ames after “numerous requests, market research, and outreach to and from the local community.” The group also said it would be following its standard approach of connecting with the local pride group and student groups “to provide a space for year-round community engagement as well as our weekly drag shows, dancing, comedy, karaoke and more.”
Groups sue Trump EPA to reinstate river protections
Five Iowa rivers that show heightened levels of cancer-causing nitrates should be reinstated on a list of waterways that the federal government is obligated to clean up, says a lawsuit filed by several groups Thursday, reports The New Lede. The Cedar, Des Moines, Iowa, Raccoon, and South Skunk Rivers were on a list of “nitrate-impaired” waterways up until last fall, when the Trump-influenced Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) removed the rivers from the list. The removal means the EPA is no longer obligated to create plans for cleaning up those rivers. The rivers are of heightened concern in Iowa following reports that the state has starkly high cancer rates that may be related to nitrates in the water. The suit was filed by Food & Water Watch Iowa, the Iowa Environmental Council and the Environmental Law & Policy Center. The EPA has refused to comment on the lawsuit.
State, federal primary elections for Iowa Tuesday
STATEWIDE — Primary election day for state and federal offices in Iowa are Tuesday. Most polling places will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.; find your polling location here. In addition to party primaries for state Senate and House seats, tomorrow also features party contests for several congressional seats, a Senate seat, and for governor on the Republican side. Iowa primaries are closed; you need to be a registered member of a party in order to vote in that party’s primaries, but you may register to vote at a polling place and vote the same day. Find more information, including a list of candidates, here. Winners will compete against the opposing party’s candidate, if there is one, in the Nov. 3 general election.
