Alderman Mike Matson, 7th Ward, gave a brief presentation on the Sister Cities Committee’s recent visit to the City of Langfang, China and presented Mayor Frank Klipsch with a proclamation cementing Davenport and Langfang’s relationship.
Representatives from Langfang have visited Davenport twice and Matson’s group’s visit finalized the Sister Cities agreement. Along with the proclamation, the alderman also presented Langfang’s gift, masks of historic Chinese families, to the mayor.
In his presentation to the City Council, Matson said the City of Langfang is interested in educational exchanges that would involve students and teachers.
The group visited a design center where whole cities are designed for construction over 10 years. He noted that Langfang didn’t exist in 1985 but now has a population of about 5 million people. Rapid growth is a struggle, Matson said, noting that air quality and water quality are issues the Chinese are facing.
The Davenport contingent also visited Beijing during the trip and spent about 90 minutes with Ambassador Terry Branstad, former Iowa governor. The group’s meeting was only supposed to be a half hour in length.