2022 Best of the Corridor

The CBJ is proud to unveil our 17th annual Best of the Corridor list, which encompasses 50 categories, ranging from the best professional firms to the best specialty retailers.

The interest in the annual competition was also large this year, with 4,809 votes, up from around 3,000 last year. It certainly is great to see interest in and engagement with local businesses, especially after the uncertainty of the past few years with the pandemic and derecho.

With those significant challenges, it is also great to see so many of the area’s longtime businesses still going strong. A business enters into the Best of Hall of Fame when it appears on the Best of Corridor list at least 10 times. Several of this year’s winners are already in the Hall of Fame with their continued dominance: Cedar Graphics (Best Printer), Hills Bank (Best Bank), Midwest Janitorial Service (Best Commercial Cleaning/Janitorial Services Company), OPN Architects (Best Architectural Firm), RSM (Best Accounting Firm) and Tallgrass (Best Office Equipment & Supplies).

Several more are knocking on the door of the Hall of Fame. Especially For You has won Best Walk or Run Event each of the nine times the category has been available. Culver’s Garden and Greenhouse has been voted Best Landscaping/Nursery seven times, and McGrath Automotive has won Best Auto Fleet Dealer seven times. The Hotel at Kirkwood has won six times as Best Banquet/ Event Facility, and Big Grove has won five straight years as Best Brewery.

Nine different companies won multiple awards this year: Cedar Rapids Toyota, deNovo Marketing, GreenState Credit Union, Hills Bank, Marketing Innovations, Mediacom, RSM US LLP, Skogman and UnityPoint. Mediacom was this year’s biggest winner, earning the titles of Best Cybersecurity Company, Best IT Support Company and Best Local Internet Service Provider.

It is also exciting to see new names on the list. Breaking into the realms of Best of the Corridor this year are: The Webster as Best New Restaurant, Paramount Theatre as Best Fine Arts Venue, Cedar Rapids Toyota as Best Auto Dealer, Iowa Eyecare as Best Optometrist/Ophthalmologist and Palmer Group as Best Staffing/Temp Agency. Jason Smith, CEO of TrueNorth Companies, was voted Best Business Leader for the first time, a title his father, Duane Smith, has held three times.

Thank you to our readers who support our area businesses and to the businesses themselves for their continued excellence and resilience during challenging times. You are what makes the Corridor a great place to live, work and play.

–Angela Holmes, Interim Editor