Council pledges financial support for Main Street Iowa

     There were several items on the April 18 Monticello City Council agenda that pertained to some decisions regarding the Main Street Iowa Community designation.

     The vibrant Main Street Iowa committee, made up of local residents, business owners, and community leaders offered a presentation to the council. That was led by Deb Bowman, Sheila Tjaden, Dr. Quinn Behrends, and Brooke Prouty (director of Uptown Marion Main Street).

     In the end, Behrends made a financial request to the council of a dollar-for-dollar match of the amount pledged thus far. The council approved a not-to-exceed pledge of $40,000 a year for three years, for a total of $120,000.

     Bowman prefaced that she was part of the Main Street Iowa committee in 2019, which was unsuccessful in securing the designation at that time following a presentation in Des Moines.

     “But we received the city council’s support as we hoped,” Bowman said of the city’s pledge a few years ago.

     She said one of the big reasons for the denial to become a Main Street Iowa Community was in large part due to not having enough monetary support from overall businesses and community residents.

     Behrends said they’ve already been able to secure $53,000 in pledges for the first three years, thanks to a $5,000 pledge from Black Hills Energy. And, they have 20 to 30 pledged commitments from downtown businessowners.

     “If we’re rejected a second time,” noted Bowman, “the pledges go away. But I’m very optimistic this time.”

     The MSI committee started meeting in January at Java Jones as a committee of about five people. Now, they’ve grown to 30 and found larger meeting space at the Innovation Lab on First Street.

     “We have a great representation of people,” said Bowman. “We definitely have the support going.”

     The committee has spent over 1,000 hours meeting, discussing ideas, and researching the MSI process.

     “There is a whole different excitement we didn’t have then,” Bowman said of the reformation of the MSI committee.

     When it comes down to dollars and cents, here is the basic makeup of the MSI budget/pledges: one third from the city, one third from the businesses, and one third from the general public.

     “This is what Main Street Iowa should feel like,” Bowman said as she asked committee members to stand in the audience. “It’s fun!”

     Tjaden explained the three pillars of any community that greatly contribute to its success: healthcare, education, and a downtown.

     “If these are strong and solid, good things will ripple from them,” she said.

     Tjaden has been part of the Jones Regional Medical Center family through its expansion projects. She was part of the high school/new middle school “Vote Yes” committee. And now she serves on MSI.

     “We found out the power of a good community,” she said of the JRMC project. “We saw the commitments that were brought together. After the hospital was built, the pride was just amazing, and it’s a huge economic engine. It serves a community need.”

     Tjaden also praised the economic impact of the Kirkwood facility, which partners with nine area high schools brining students to Monticello on a daily basis.

     “There has been a lot of success that rippled from that,” she said.

     Tjaden sees downtown revitalization in much the same way.

     “If it’s strong, I see success as well. MSI provides support, stricture, and accountability to make this a success. But, can Monticello afford not to invest in MSI?”

     Behrends shared that he moved away from the community for eight years after college. Since coming back, he’s started his own business downtown and a family.

     “I could have gone anywhere,” he said. “I chose to move back.

     “Monticello has so many positives going for it right now,” he continued. “People come to town for a variety of reasons. They’ll come back if we have an inviting downtown.”

     Prouty said MSI has been a “game changer” for the City of Marion. It has provided so much growth and excitement to the community.

     “This was what the community as a whole wanted, and we keep the positive momentum going,” she said of the naysayers.

     Mayor Dave Goedken said MSI excites him because of the possibilities for upper-story housing, which would help the city’s housing needs.

     “It’s the quickest way to utilize and fix up the upper levels of the buildings,” he said.

     “Vacant space doesn’t make any money,” noted Prouty.

     The MSI application is due May 27. If successful, the committee would head to Des Moines for presentations on July 16. They will find out in August whether they were chosen or not.

     If designated a MSI Community, they would have until Nov. 1 to hire a MSI Director. That person would work between 25 and 36 hours a week.

     Aside from the council approving the financial pledge of support, they also designated Parks and Rec Director Jacob Oswald as the city’s representative on the MSI governing board, which would oversee the director, once hired. Oswald would have voting power on the board.