Des Moines’ success in downtown development was feted in a New York Times article on Tuesday. “This year, with the completion of the Wellmark headquarters and several other projects, Des Moines will add almost 700,000 square feet of downtown office space. Developers are expected to complete 175 housing units,” the article noted. To read the complete article, click here.

This morning, on the one-year anniversary of the signing of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Sen. Tom Harkin announced the latest round of stimulus funding for Iowa. A $8,463,000 grant to the Ames Transit Agency from the U.S. Department of Transportation will be used to construct an intermodal transportation facility in Ames. The facility will link public and private transportation modes for Iowa State University students, faculty and visitors, as well as other Ames residents.

A bill requiring informed, written consent for genetic tests and limiting insurance companies from using test results to deny coverage was approved 48-0 Tuesday in the Iowa Senate, IowaPolitics.com reported. Using genetic information for criminal investigations and to identify deceased persons, establish paternity, screen newborns and conduct scientific research would still be allowed. Sen. Pam Jochum, D-Dubuque, said the bill came to her from a group of doctors and hospital administrators who found that family members of breast cancer sufferers weren’t being tested for a gene marker that could increase their propensity for the disease. The group told Jochum that people weren’t being tested for fear that the information could be used against them and classified as a pre-existing condition in an insurance policy.

ING Groep NV reported a fourth-quarter loss as the bank and insurer set aside 930 million euros ($1.28 billion) for extra payments to the Netherlands after receiving state aid, Bloomberg reported. The net loss narrowed to 712 million euros from 3.71 billion euros in the year-earlier period, the company said in a press release. Excluding divestments and special items, the company had a 74 million-euro profit in the three months ended Dec. 31.

The State Judicial Nominating Commission is accepting applications to fill the vacancy on the Iowa Court of Appeals that occurred when Judge Robert Mahan retired on July 31, 2009. The vacancy had been held open by the Iowa Supreme Court, along with other judicial vacancies, due to budget cuts. The commission will meet on March 29 and 30 to select three nominees to submit to Gov. Chet Culver, who must choose one person from the list of nominees.

Dice Holdings Inc., a provider of specialized career Web sites with operations in Urbandale, today announced new leadership in two of its emerging, domestic brands – financial services and health care. Constance Melrose will become the managing director of eFinancialCareers North America and Tim Stene has joined the company as the managing director of AllHealthcareJobs. Melrose, who joined the company in 1999, will continue as the vice president of treasury for Dice Holdings. Stene, who before joining Dice was president of Kforce Healthcare Staffing, has more than 18 years of sales and operational experience in medical staffing.