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Linn County hotels hit record 68.7% occupancy

KCRG data shows the highest rate in Iowa, with hotel tax revenue up 146% after QTS broke ground.

By Jordan BeckPublished Jul 21, 2026, 7:25 AM CT1 min read
TheCRPulseBUSINESSLinn County hotels hit record68.7% occupancy#hotels #data centers

Linn County hotels reached a record 68.7% occupancy rate, the highest of any city in Iowa, according to data KCRG requested from the City of Cedar Rapids and Local Tourism Department.

Martin Malamud said he tried every outlet available during the Iowa State Baseball Tournament and found no rooms left in Cedar Rapids. Melissa Schnuelle said her group got a special deal for just over $400 a night while others paid nearly $800.

Hotel tax revenue spiked 146% in October 2025 compared with the same month a year earlier, three months after QTS broke ground on its data center campus. KCRG reported.

QTS construction involves more than 4,500 workers on site and is expected to reach about 7,000 at peak. Three data center projects are under way in Linn County and expected to continue for several more years. The Gazette noted.

Julie Stow, executive director of Cedar Rapids Tourism, said the data centers have "definitely" contributed to the occupancy. She also noted that entertainment and other construction projects have had an effect.

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Sources

  1. 1.Record hotel occupancy in Cedar Rapids. Is data center construction to blame? - KCRG — Google News — Cedar Rapids & Linn County
  2. 2.Record hotel occupancy in Cedar Rapids. Is data center construction to blame? — KCRG
  3. 3.U.S. energy secretary cites Cedar Rapids AI data center — The Gazette

This story was researched and drafted with AI assistance and reviewed by a human editor before publication. Read our Editorial Standards & AI Disclosure. Spot an error? Request a correction.

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