Governor Culver signs agreements with new Great Places
Memorandums of Understanding move work plans forward
For Immediate Release April 23, 2007
(DES MOINES, Iowa) – Governor Chet Culver today signed agreements with Iowa’s six new Great Places, approving work plans designed to make each – Adams County, Dubuque, Fairfield, Guttenberg, Jackson County and Mason City – a great place to live, work and raise a family.
The six new Great Places join Clinton, Coon Rapids and Sioux City as partners with the state in the Great Places initiative, which combines the resources of state government and local assets to cultivate the unique and authentic qualities that make Iowa’s districts, regions, communities and neighborhoods special. The Great Places initiative also bolsters the state’s other successful economic tools like Vision Iowa and the Iowa Values Fund. Today’s action authorizes the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA) to oversee the objectives outlined in each community’s work plans.
“Iowa Great Places is making significant progress in redefining the way state government works with the people of Iowa,” DCA Director Cyndi Pederson said. “Rather than forcing communities and local leaders to make their plans fit state programs, we are identifying resources that can be used to make their visions a reality. Rather than building a community’s plan one piece at a time, we are synchronizing and streamlining the process in collaboration with local leaders so we can combine assets and resources for high impact and results.”
Last year, representatives from 71 places expressed interest in visioning and enhancing their place and could choose a “short” or “long” track based on their readiness to move forward with their plans. Places that chose the long track option are working with state agency coaches to further develop their proposals for consideration in future years. Thirty-five places submitted proposals on the short track, and state agency advisors and the Citizen Advisory Board narrowed the group to 12 finalists in September before the board identified the six new places in October.
In developing their proposals, places were asked to address seven unique and authentic qualities that make places special: engaging experiences; rich, diverse populations & cultures; a vital, creative economy; clean and accessible natural and built environments; well-designed infrastructure; a shared attitude of optimism that welcomes new ideas; and based on a diverse and inclusive cultural mosaic.
“Iowa Great Places is successful because it empowers individuals and organizations to collaborate in new and meaningful ways,” Pederson said. “When we have the freedom to be creative, we can be more efficient in meeting the needs and desires of Iowa’s communities.
In addition to creating new ways in which Iowans and state government work together, Great Places is also creating new partnership opportunities within state government.
Today’s signing ceremony featured an Alcohol Beverages Division semi-truck decked out with art touting Mason City’s assets and vision for its future. The “Mason City truck” joins ABD trucks touting Clinton, Coon Rapids and Sioux City on delivery routes throughout the state. ABD is also providing trucks for each of the other five Great Places to promote their communities. The estimated annual value of the trailer space is roughly $60,000 each.
“The Iowa ABD trucks travel to all corners of the state, in essence, giving Iowa Great Places a traveling billboard to promote their communities” said Iowa ABD Administrator Lynn Walding. “The Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division looks forward to adorning more of its trailers in partnership with the Iowa Great Places initiative.”
Following are summaries of the work plans in the Memorandums of Understanding signed by Culver today:
Adams County – Adams County proposes to build a stronger foundation to invest more in the arts, cultural and heritage tourism, recreation and other elements that contribute to a high quality of life. The building blocks of that foundation include continued preservation of the French Icarian Colony Village, further renovation of the Corning Opera House Cultural Center, development of a new aquatic center, increased community beautification on Corning’s main thoroughfare, conversion of existing buildings into the Corning Center for the Fine Arts, development of amenities at Lake Icaria for camping, continued restoration of Johnny Carson’s birthplace and development of Cedar Hills at Lake Icaria as a second-home community/resort facility.
Dubuque – Dubuque’s proposal calls for building a tri-state community health center, expanding the Mississippi River Museum campus with Rivers of America Museum, renovating the historic portion of Carnegie Stout Library to expand city library services, building a state-of-the-art indoor and outdoor performing arts center, partnering with local education professionals to create bi-lingual curriculum, developing an integrated walking/biking/hiking trail system, developing passenger train service, identifying a warehouse district by converting buildings into multi-use structures, creating the Recovery Center to offer mental health substance abuse service and implementing a plan to offer community-wide Wireless service.
Fairfield – Drawing on its arts community, local foods and cultural richness, Fairfield’s vision works to expand the dynamic economy through a new Civic Center, marketing plan and business incubator, and an investors’ roundtable. It works to improve the natural beauty, redeveloping its downtown streetscape, restoring the Maasdam Barns and implementing a bikeway/walkway plan for the community. It enhances educational opportunities with its community supported radio station, sustainable living educational opportunities and educational kiosks. It works to cultivate the cultural richness and recreational opportunities through a trails system, a Vedic Observatory, and its 1st Friday Art Walk. It works to strengthen opportunities for community philanthropy and enhances art projects around the area.
Guttenberg – A finalist in last year’s Pilot Project, Guttenberg has made extensive progress on last year’s proposal, an effort to redevelop the riverfront. This year’s proposal continues development with a branding campaign, Marina dredging, shoreline stabilization, mussel relocation, slips and docks and educational kiosks.
Jackson County – Jackson County’s proposals focuses on developing and expanding canoe trails on the Maquoketa River, hooking into the proposed Mississippi River Trail via the Jackson County Bike Trail, rehabilitating the Clinton Engines Administration Building (listed on the National Register of Historic Places) as a museum dedicated to the history of business and industry, providing people with disabilities access to sidewalks in Bellevue’s commercial area, creating Bellevue’s Mill Creek Walkway and preserving the Jackson County Insane Asylum to make it safe for demonstrating the kind of treatment administered to mentally ill patients in the past.
Mason City – “Pride of the Prairie” proposes to reconnect the Park Inn Hotel – designed by Frank Lloyd Wright – with the adjacent City National Bank building to create a historically significant hotel and conference center in downtown Mason City. The proposal also calls for installing wayfinding signage, maps and kiosks, and the development of an interpretive center to complement the Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Stockman House.
More information about Iowa’s nine Great Places and the program is available at www.iowagreatplaces.gov.
