Iowa Downtown Resource Center
The Iowa Economic Development Authority’s (IEDA) Downtown Resource Center helps communities learn more about the importance of downtown development and specifically how your community can implement strategies to make downtown more viable. Community involvement may range from a simple downtown walk around to Main Street Iowa (MSI) program services.
Eligibility, Requirements and Information
A downtown or traditional commercial district represents a community’s history and helps define the community. Does your downtown present a unique identity with features and strengths to draw residents, visitors, businesses and commerce? Would you be proud to show your downtown to potential new business prospects or even someone considering a move to your community? If downtown development or downtown revitalization is not an active segment of your community’s economic or community development plans, your efforts may be incomplete.
ASSESSING DOWNTOWN
What are your downtown’s strengths? Weaknesses? What can be done to make it more attractive to customers? The IDRC offers a variety of services to help communities identify these strengths, weaknesses and solutions.
Downtown Assessment Visit ($2,500) The experienced professionals in the IDRC perform an intense, on-site study of your downtown, including a public presentation and written report that provide short and long1range recommendations to use for planning.
Downtown Walk Around ($300) This visit offers communities an honest first impression of its downtown — helping to identify downtown strengths, challenges and basic revitalization strategies.
DOWNTOWN NETWORKING
Iowa Downtown Conference – The Iowa Downtown Conference is the premier statewide annual conference for professionals and volunteers involved with downtown revitalization in Iowa and neighboring states.
Iowa Downtown Forums The IDRC hosts a series of Downtown Forums annually across the state to provide communities the opportunity to network about downtown ideas, successes and challenges.
Newsletter: Iowa Downtown Resource Published three times per year, the Iowa Downtown Resource is the state’s downtown revitalization newsletter. To subscribe, visit the IDRC website.
MAIN STREET IOWA
Main Street is a time-tested movement. Main Street Iowa (MSI) is a leading voice for preservation-based economic development and traditional commercial district revitalization. Working together, local leaders implemented practical strategies producing fundamental changes in Iowa’s main streets for over three decades. MSI provides a variety of services and training opportunities for designated Main Street programs to build the capacity of the local revitalization effort. During the start-up phase of a Main Street program, MSI invests approximately $120,000 in technical assistance and training for local programs. Throughout the life of a Main Street program, MSI invests an average of $15,000 annually.
Source
Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA)
Eligible Applicants
All Iowa cities
Contact Person
Jim Engle
Iowa Downtown Resource Center, Director
Iowa Economic Development Authority
1963 Bell Avenue
Des Moines, IA 50315
Phone: 515-348-6180