WATERLOO | They’ve overlooked downtown Waterloo and followed its fortunes for more than a century. Well, at least most of them. And not always in the same location….

The statues on top of the old YMCA — now, River Plaza — building on West Park Avenue overlooking the Cedar River are known locally as the “Green Goddesses.”

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We know the importance of the maintenance and repair of our buildings.

External parts of a building will be weathered quickly when exposed to the natural environment. Without proper maintenance, they will deteriorate easily.  Overlooked dilapidation and inadequate maintenance in the building may lead to loose mosaic tiles and plaster of external walls, spalled concrete and threaten public safety which is why we spare no expense to assure that are buildings are safe and up to code.

WATERLOO | Ty Graham is not afraid of heights. But high winds gave him moments of concern as he dangled some 200 feet above downtown Waterloo on Monday.

Graham climbed to the top of the 70-foot flag pole atop the Black’s Building to replace a pulley that was broken in a storm earlier this year. Wind gusts of more than 25 mph caused the pole to sway as Graham made his ascent.

“You can hear it coming,” he said of the wind. “A couple of times I was like, ‘you’ve got to be patient, you’ve got to relax.'”

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By Angela Holmes

BLACK HAWK COUNTY—The downtown resurgence in Waterloo and Cedar Falls has drawn residents to a lifestyle where shops, restaurants and sometimes even jobs, are right out their back door.

Both cities in the Cedar Valley have experienced a growing interest in downtown living in loft-style apartments in the upper floors of renovated historic buildings, as well as new properties.

“The last 30 years, it was dying. People went to the mall,” developer Mark Kittrell said of downtown Cedar Falls. “Main Street has been revitalized within the past two decades with specialty shops and upscale restaurants. It was built by the community, one-by-one.”

Mr. Kittrell and Jean Fischer, of Cedar Falls-based firm Eagle View Partners, are watching their development dreams become a reality with the first phase of the River Place project under construction near the Cedar River in downtown Cedar Falls.

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We are pleased to announce that Black’s Sky Room and the original Tea Room are both once again available for events.

These two historic spaces were renovated in 2010.

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