Ape center raises cash, plans to add chimps, visits

Des Moines’ sometimes-troubled ape research facility, formerly Great Ape Trust, is back on solid financial ground with a trimmed-down operation, is attracting research grants, and may house chimpanzees and breed bonobos, said Jared Taglialatela, the facility’s director of research. Look for partnerships with area universities, a new membership program, and, eventually, a revived public visitation program to support its mission of science, conservation and community engagement. Read more

 Export-Import Bank chairman urges Iowa small businesses to use its services

Fred Hochberg, chairman and president of the Export-Import Bank of the United States, was in Des Moines this week to pitch his agency’s services as a playing-field leveler for small businesses seeking to broaden their export activity. Read more

 Register publisher takes job in Cincinnati

Gannett Co. Inc. announced that Rick Green, the president and publisher of The Des Moines Register, has been named president and publisher of the Cincinnati Enquirer, which is also a Gannett publication. Green will also have the title of regional president of Gannett U.S. Community Publishing Ohio. Read more

 Developer could put its signature on vacated Urbandale hotel property

A respected Greater Des Moines real estate developer could change the face of a shuttered Urbandale hotel. Signature Real Estate Services has a contract to buy the Villa Lodge at 11000 Douglas Ave., which had fallen into disrepair. Residents were told to move out in October because of a range of maintenance issues. Read more
 
Iowa slips to 16th in Healthiest State rankings

Iowa’s Healthiest State Initiative announced that Iowa’s ranking in the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index has dropped from 10th last year to 16th in the nation this year. Officials were quick to point out, however, that Iowa’s overall wellness score has remained virtually unchanged for the past three years, while other states, among them Alaska, Wyoming, New Mexico and Texas, have pushed Iowa out of the top 10. Read more