The Illinois Council of Convention & Visitor Bureaus (ICCVB) has named Dave Herrell, President and CEO, Visit Quad Cities, as their new chairman. This industry-led group works together with the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, Office of Tourism to enable its members to be more effective and efficient in attracting visitors to their communities. “I am humbled to join alongside my peers and serve this extremely valuable organization, said Herrell in a Tuesday news release. “ICCVB and its 38 member destinations throughout the State of Illinois are critically important... Read More

The Bass Federation Inc. (TBF) will be bringing the 2021 TBF Junior World Championship (JWC) to the Quad-Cities! The event is set for July 28-30 on the Mississippi River in the Quad Cities bi-state regional destination in Illinois and Iowa. The 2021 JWC includes a two-person team format and three days of competition, launching from Rapids City, Illinois. The TBF Junior program includes all anglers 8th grade and under at the time they qualified through their home state’s Junior program. Only the top Junior angler teams from each state’s sanctioned program are invited to attend and compete for... Read More

Visit Quad Cities, the region’s official destination management and marketing organization, was honored with two awards on Wednesday during the 2021 Iowa Tourism Conference in Des Moines. One was for Outstanding Website (Metro) and the other for Outstanding Niche Market Initiative for the Visit Quad Cities Stir Crazy campaign. According to the Iowa Tourism Office, this year’s awards recognize the amazing work and innovation by Iowa’s outstanding tourism organizations during a year filled with challenges and change. “On behalf of the Visit Quad Cities Board of Directors, our team, and... Read More

Nearly six years after launching the Q2030 regional action planning process, leaders of Q2030 are creating a new stand-alone nonprofit organization. They’re seeking its first executive director, to start this summer, and raising $400,000 to implement the long-range plan. The new organization – announced Thursday — includes a diverse board representing the business, government, nonprofit and education sectors within the Quad-Cities. The first four champion organizations – Quad Cities Chamber, Quad Cities Community Foundation, United Way Quad Cities and Visit Quad Cities – have strengthened... Read More

If you have a personal or professional event you typically go out of town for, Visit Quad Cities wants you to consider bringing it back home. Visit Quad Cities – the area’s destination management marketing organization — officially launched its new “Bring It QC” initiative today, April 5. The program is designed to connect Quad Citizens with the Visit Quad Cities team to identify potential new meetings, events, conventions, and conferences that could be held in the Quad Cities regional destination. Many Quad Citizens travel out of town to attend conferences, professional association... Read More

BREAKING NEWS: The International Softball Congress (ISC) will return to the Quad-Cities to celebrate its Diamond Anniversary at the 75th Annual ISC Men’s Fastball World Tournament on August 14-21, 2021. Due to ongoing effects of the pandemic and future unknowns associated with it, the 2021 ISC World Tournament will move from its scheduled site in Kitchener, Ontario, to Sheridan Meadows Park in Eldridge, Iowa, according to Visit Quad Cities. “With the potential travel restrictions and the impacts on sponsorships and volunteers in the Kitchener area, the host committee suggested to us that... Read More

The Quad Cities Chamber is calling on Q-C and State of Illinois elected officials to support allowing bars and restaurants to serve customers indoors in a safe and responsible manner. The State of Illinois has placed additional restrictions on businesses starting Wednesday because of increased Covid-19 positivity rates across the state and region. While most businesses can continue to operate without further adjustments, bars and restaurants are being targeted with additional restrictions despite adapting their practices based on Covid-19 guidelines, according to quadcitieschamber.com. “As colder... Read More

The inaugural Quad Cities Corporate Games (QCCG), a project of the Iowa Sports Foundation in partnership with Visit Quad Cities and the Davenport Parks and Recreation Department, will be held June 1 – July 31, 2021. Company pride, corporate wellness, employee engagement and team-building are all benefits for companies on both sides of the Mississippi River participating in the bi-state Corporate Games. “We are thrilled to launch the Quad Cities Corporate Games with our partners at the Iowa Sports Foundation,” said Dave Herrell, President and CEO, Visit Quad Cities. “We have had a long-standing... Read More

EAST MOLINE – Leaders of the hospitality industry across the Quad-Cities and Illinois are trying to put a positive spin on an economy devastated by coronavirus. Tuesday wrapped up a day and a half of meetings as Visit Quad Cities hosted the Illinois Council of Convention & Visitor Bureaus (ICCVB) for its fall conference at the Bend Event Center. “It was a great opportunity for Visit Quad Cities to host this event. We had 30 chief executive officers from around the state of Illinois,” Dave Herrell, president/CEO of Visit Quad Cities, said Tuesday, noting an additional 100 people who work... Read More

Saturday in the Arts is a comprehensive, in-depth feature on a topic, trend or personality impacting the Quad-Cities, posted every Saturday morning on QuadCities.com. This week we look at the various downtown businesses of the Illinois and Iowa Quad-Cities and how they’ve been impacted by, and have adapted to, the covid-19 pandemic.   The popular Rock Island Brewing Company (RIBCO), in the middle of The District at 1815 2nd Ave., has been through a lot since it opened in 1979. Hailed as a leader in Q-C live entertainment (its starry roster of guest acts includes Bo Diddley, The Wallflowers,... Read More