West Bancorporation Inc. has received preliminary approval from the Treasury Department to participate in the Troubled Asset Relief Capital Purchase Program, it announced yesterday. The company will receive $36 million in capital, dependent on several conditions including shareholder approval at a special meeting on Dec. 23 to authorize the issuance of preferred stock. The Treasury Department is expected to announce today the next round of banks approved under the Capital Purchase Program.

The Iowa Transportation Commission this morning approved a $3.4 million Revitalize Iowa’s Sound Economy (RISE) Local Development grant to the city of West Des Moines to assist in road development for Microsoft Corp.’s planned data center in the West Grand Business Park. The grant will be used to extend approximately 900 feet of Grand Avenue west of South 88th Street and about 2,800 feet of South 88th Street from Raccoon River Drive north through the intersection of Booneville Drive. Funding for the grant comes from the city’s share of the RISE fund. Earlier this year, the Iowa Economic Development Board awarded Microsoft nearly $28 million in incentive funds to build the $594 million data center in West Des Moines, including more than $12 million for street and infrastructure improvements.

The American College of Emergency Physicians has given Iowa a C grade for its support of emergency patients in a national report card released this morning. The report, which ranked Iowa 19th among the states, gave the nation an overall C- grade. Massachusetts earned the highest overall grade with a B, and Arkansas ranked last in the nation with a D-. Iowa ranked sixth among the states for having a large number of emergency departments and pediatric specialty centers, but 42nd for its low number of emergency physicians and neurosurgeons, according to the National Report Card on the State of Emergency Medicine. The report recommended that Iowa enact medical liability reforms to attract more physicians and nurses, seek increases in Medicare reimbursement rates and take steps to reduce overcrowding of admitted emergency patients, particularly in urban hospitals.

801 Chophouse (formerly known as 801 Steak and Chop House) has opened its third Midwest location in the Power & Light District in Kansas City, Mo. The new location has two floors of dining, a large bar and private dining options and is designed to resemble a late-1920s New York City steakhouse. Sheri Osborn, formerly with the Des Moines location, is the new general manager, and Chris Dennis, formerly with the Omaha location, is the new executive chef. Owners Kevin and Jimmy Lynch also will rename their Omaha location to 801 Chophouse from Paxton Chop House to create a common brand among their locations. The Lynch brothers opened 801 Chophouse in Des Moines in 1993.

The job market for technology professionals looks grim as seven in 10 recruiters and hiring managers expect to curtail hiring plans in the next six months, according to a Dice survey of more than 1,000 participants. Nearly half (48 percent) indicated that layoffs are likely and 70 percent of respondents have seen an increase in the number of candidates applying for positions.

The Tribune Co. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as it faced a deadline on $70 million of unsecured debt yesterday. According to a court document filed with the U.S. bankruptcy court in Delaware, the publisher of the Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times had $7.6 billion in assets and $12.97 billion in debt as of Dec. 8. Its unsecured creditors include JPMorgan Chase Bank with an $8.57 billion claim under a senior facility, and Merrill Lynch Capital Corp. with a $1.6 billion claim under a bridge loan facility. Its equity holders include a Tribune employee stock ownership plan with 56.52 million shares. The filing does not include the Chicago Cubs baseball team or Wrigley Field, which owner Sam Zell has been trying to sell.

Des Moines Area Community College has dedicated its new $14 million health sciences building and announced that it will be named after Iowa Health – Des Moines, the largest donor. Iowa Health gave $325,000 to the capital campaign and announced an additional $175,000 donation to establish a DMACC scholarship fund. The 58,000-square-foot building will offer classrooms and state-of-the-art laboratories that will accommodate DMACC’s 15 current and six new health science degree programs. Classes in the new building will begin Jan. 12. It is the first new academic building to be built on the Ankeny campus in 13 years and is the first multistory building on campus.

Former governors Robert Ray and Thomas Vilsack and first lady Mari Culver announced the formation of the Iowa Legal Aid Foundation yesterday at an event at the Capitol. The philanthropic fund-raising arm of the nonprofit organization will seek to increase support to extend its services. For more information, go to www.iowalegalaidfoundation.org.