Nearly two decades after record flooding, Cedar Rapids couple continues fight to save their home

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — More than 18 years after floodwaters inundated Cedar Rapids and upended numerous lives, Ajai Dittmar and Greg Vail remain in a state of suspension.

Uncertainty over the future of their home along the Cedar River hasn’t necessarily changed with a decision by the Cedar Rapids City Council to establish the fair market value of their property, at 1426 First St. NW.

The council voted unanimously at their Aug. 11, 2026, meeting to establish that amount as $130,000 for the riverfront three-bedroom, two-bath home.

Related: Cedar Rapids couple battles prospective eminent domain

“This motivates me because it’s going to remove that limbo,” Vail said after the meeting. “I’m interested in going to court and resolving this issue.”

Dittmar, who watched the council members vote on their home’s value, was equally determined.

“We’re not giving up,” she said. “We’re not willing to let the house go down.”

Nearby roads have been dismantled and sidewalks removed around their home, which they bought nearly 20 years ago, attracted to the abundance of nature and scenic views of the river.

They rebuilt on their own after the record flooding in June 2008, even as neighboring homes have been demolished, one-by-one. Built in the 1890s, the home — which features 9-foot ceilings on its main floor — was inundated with 7 feet of floodwater.

Brenna Fall, Cedar Rapids public works director, said the city cannot leave a home between the river and the flood control system. The couple’s property would become “green space,” she said, unlike the nearby casino under construction, condos and other multi-unit housing in the area that continues to proliferate after the flood.

But Vail and Dittmar said they are willing to raise their home up, have it moved or otherwise work with the city under agreed-upon conditions.

Vail has responded to the city’s offer to meet, saying he is not interested in negotiating a purchase price for their home. “Rather, I am willing to participate in discussions regarding the ‘conditions necessary’ to achieve a mutually acceptable voluntary acquisition of the property,” he wrote in response.

A voluntary acquisition has been the crux of the issue with the city, as they maintain the city is violating federal code by beginning the eminent domain process.

Since the 2008 flood, voluntary acquisition was completed on about 1,400 properties; eight properties went through condemnation proceedings and just seven remain, including the Vail/Dittmar home.

An online petition asking the city to pause condemnation proceedings against their home — the last one standing on its block in the historic Time Check Neighborhood — had garnered nearly 1,700 signatures as of Aug. 11, plus numerous other hand-signed petitions.

“We are not asking the City to abandon flood protection,” the petition on Change.org notes. “We are asking the city to choose an alternative that does not require destroying our home. Demolition should not be treated as the only option when preservation and relocation have not been fully exhausted.”

“I thought I could get maybe 100 signatures,” Dittmar said, adding that she was surprised at the amount of support, as well as the response from the city of Cedar Rapids, which posted a reply on Facebook, saying “The City remains committed to working respectfully with property owners while advancing the flood protection improvements identified in the Flood Control Master Plan.”

Several residents spoke on behalf of Vail and Dittmar at the City Council meeting, including Kathy Potts, who asked the council to remove the item from the consent agenda — typically non-controversial resolutions that are approved together as a slate — and vote on it separately.

“Don’t hide behind a consent agenda,” she said. “This is someone’s home.”

Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell did remove the item from the consent agenda to consider on its own, with a presentation ready to go that detailed the flood acquisition process so far.

That process has taken a toll on Dittmar, who was moved to tears as the City Council voted to put a price tag on her home.

“This process is so personal and they made it very public,” she said after the meeting. “It’s not about the money. We love this community. We want to stay here. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t keep fighting.”

The couple has long put off improvements to their home, including a two-stall garage and other renovations, with the involuntary acquisition looming over their lives.

“All I care about is saving my home,” Vail said. “This isn’t political. I want to finally be able to move on.”