IOWA CITY, Iowa -- The "Magic Bus" will be back in business at a new location this Saturday for the Iowa-Iowa State football game.
Jeremy Freerks, a member of the Iowa City Ducks Rugby Club, which owns and operates the "Magic Bus," said Thursday afternoon the bus will now be located at 747 West Benton St. in Iowa City.
Freerks said they have around three acres of land which will hold the tailgate and parking for attendees. He added about two acres of the land will be used for parking.
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The location is not as close to Kinnick Stadium as its former location at 817 Melrose Avenue, but Freerks said it is about a seven to ten minute walk to the stadium. He added they will have a shuttle to transport people to and from the stadium if they do not want to walk.
Magic Bus organizers got some help from Kraft Foods Inc., who donated money to the bus to pay rent for the entire football season at its new location.
“They definitely gave us a big boost,” Freerks said. “We have many other sponsors. I hope the local sponsors continue to contribute so we can keep the Bus a cheap and fun tailgate and be able to donate as much money to charity as possible.”
Two bands will be performing at the Bus’ 2010 debut — 17 Candle, a Des Moines based band who played the halftime show at the Outback Bowl on Jan. 1 of this year, and The Uniphonics out of Iowa City.
The "Magic Bus," a long-time Iowa football tailgating staple, was homeless after Outside Properties bought the property at 817 Melrose Avenue in 2009 for $500,000. A conflict with rental prices left the bus to try and find a new location. Its first proposed location, at 110 Woodside Dr., was denied a temporary-use permit in July after neighbors complained and they failed to meet two of the seven required criteria to receive city approval.
The bus did not operate on Sept. 4, when Iowa played Eastern Illinois, for the first time in several years.
But Freerks said their new location will be set for the rest of the season.
“We have all of the approvals from the city that we need and the neighbors are OK with it,” Freerks said.
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