What's Happening in Davenport, IA…

A vacant parcel of land in the west end of Davenport has received a facelift and a new purpose.

The lot currently has a building that houses the off-road vehicles, boat, and other seasonal equipment of the Davenport Fire Department. The city has paid for upgrades to the building that include heating and electricity, and has cleared the lot which had become overgrown. The cost of such upgrades and transformation was under the city’s budget of $700,000. Banner printing is often used at such sites to inform the community of such upgrades.

Rick Dunn, First Ward Alderman, said that he had been pushing for close to 10 years to find a repurposing solution for the vacant Blackhawk Foundry lot. He said the property was contaminated and overgrown so that building new homes or creating a park for the community were not options for the site.

Jim Morris, the fire marshal for the Davenport Fire Department, had been looking for several years for a new space. This lot, he said, will allow the department to have storage space outside of the station, which has been getting close to capacity in recent years.

The transformation has been noticed by those in the community. Dunn said that a storage area of the police department for equipment and evidence is planned for the site as the next step.