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[Note: This material is copyright by the Des Moines Register, and is reproduced here as a matter of "fair use" for non-commercial, educational purposes only. Any other use may require the prior approval of the Des Moines Register.]

Word came that a spectacular development was being planned for Court Avenue in Des Moines - it's hard to remember exactly what, because there have been so many breathless proposals - and once again, the optimists believed it might actually come off.

Nothing's changed there, of course. No movie theater complex. No downtown grocery store.

The gazillion-dollar-rain-forest- jungle thing that's supposed to attract 1 million - yes, 1 million visitors a year - was all set for Coralville. It fizzled. Now they're trying to kick-start the thing in Des Moines or Dubuque.

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