Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism (https://www.iowawatch.org/tag/economic-development/page/2/)
A handful of small Iowa towns with populations of less than 5,000 and not part of a larger metro area, bucked the trend and grew their populations in the 2020 census data just released. Growing small towns have one or more factors working in their favor, a summer-long IowaWatch investigation revealed for this special report.
We asked leaders in several rural Iowa towns for ways small Iowa towns could be vital. Jobs are a given, although those interviewed said having jobs, alone, does not guarantee vitality if other dynamics are not present in town.
Listen as reporters in the 2019 IowaWatch Simpson College Journalism Project take you to small-town Iowa and the struggles those towns face. Part of a series.
Small towns around Iowa have been fighting to support themselves as rural populations continue to decline, while state government has been investing more in larger cities where the population is growing.
HUMESTON, Iowa — A small group of businesses in one southern Iowa town has found a way to stay open by banding together to attract spending customers to town, rather than compete against each other. “Why not Humeston?” Leigh Ann Coffey, owner of Sweet Southern Sass, said when asked why business owners choose to open a business in a small town. This report is the result of an IowaWatch Simpson College Journalism Project involving student journalists in Simpson’s spring 2019 journalism seminar. Reporters for the project were:
Randy Paulson
Zoe Seiler
Emily Carey
Austin Hronich
Taylor Bates
Dustin Teays
The journalists worked on this story starting in January 2019 with Lyle Muller of IowaWatch and Mark Siebert, Simpson assistant professor of multimedia communication. Sweet Southern Sass, Snyder’s, Grassroots Gallery & Cafe, Snips of Thread Quilt Shop and Grampa Jims formed a group “Shop Humeston.”
This IowaWatch Connection podcast examines Iowa’s tax breaks for new businesses after a recent deal to bring a new Apple Inc. center to Waukee. Good deal or not?
The Republican and Democratic candidates for governor wasted no time digging into the merits of a $100 million tax break that lured a $1.6 billion fertilizer company to Lee County. Republican Gov. Terry Branstad and Democratic challenger state Sen. Jack Hatch also lobbed accusations of improper behavior as elected representatives.