The Ankeny school district has purchased nearly 40 acres in a rapidly developing area east of Interstate Highway 35, Polk County records show.

The school district paid Hope K Farms LLC $2.98 million for the undeveloped land located roughly south of Northeast 94th Avenue/Enterprise Road and east of Northeast 29th Street.

The parcel is south of Crossings at Deer Creek and a townhome development.

The purchase provides the school district “flexibility for future planning in an area that has been identified for current and future development,” the district wrote in a news release. “Enrollment trends indicate future needs for additional elementary and/or middle school capacity within the district.”

In the 2022-23 school year, 12,399 kindergarten through 12th-grade students were enrolled in the Ankeny school district, Iowa Department of Education data shows. In the past decade, the district’s enrollment has increased 34%, or by 3,194 students.

The district paid for the property with money from the statewide local option sales tax for schools fund called Secure an Advanced Vision for Education, according to a spokesperson.

The transaction was recorded April 17.

In other transactions:

A neighborhood shopping center on the corner of Ashworth Road and 60th Street in West Des Moines has been sold to two California residents, records show. Virinder Singh Grewal and Paramijit Kaur Grewal, both of Modesto, Calif., paid Ashworth Partners LLC $6.3 million for property at 5917 Ashworth Road. The 2.5-acre parcel includes a 19,736-square-foot retail center built in 1997. The center is anchored by Kum & Go convenience store. The property is valued at $3.6 million. The transaction was recorded April 20.

50th Street LLC, based in Antioch, Tenn., paid SZ Real Estate Investment Co. Inc. $425,000 for property at 4671 N.W. 50th St. in Des Moines, records show. The nearly 1-acre parcel includes a 5,016-square-foot, one-story multifamily residence that include 11 units. The property is valued at $504,000. The transaction was recorded April 20.

Marco Properties LLC, located in Des Moines, paid Nelson Family Farm LLC $1.7 million for property at 4995 N.E. 39th Ave. in Des Moines, records show. The transaction, recorded April 21, includes over 17 acres of mostly farmland.

Viha Properties LLC, an Arkansas limited liability company, paid GBP Hotels LLC $2.27 million for property at 2602 S.E. Creekview Drive in Ankeny, records show. The 1.3-acre parcel includes a 28,534-square-foot hotel with 54 rooms. The two-story structure, built in 1995, is occupied by Econo Lodge. The property is valued at $2.17 million. The transaction was recorded April 21.

VK Capital LLC, located in Des Moines, paid ColaMan RE Holdings LLC $600,000 for property at 5616 Hickman Road in Des Moines, records show. The property includes a two-story, 7,304-square-foot apartment building constructed in 1969. The building includes eight units. The property is valued at $677,000. The transaction was recorded April 21.

Dallas County
Charles Scheib paid Mark and Gayle Lange $1.36 million for farmland in Dallas County, real estate records show. The land is located about one-half mile south of Iowa Highway 141 between Wink and D avenues. In a related transaction, Josef and Monica Scheib and Dane and Paige Scheib paid Mark and Gayle Lange $1.36 million for farmland, a different parcel that is also located about one-half mile south of Highway 141. Both transactions were recorded April 17.

Cameron and Lola Koch paid William and Lola McCool $1.1 million for property at 3905 Berkshire Parkway in Clive, records show. The property includes a 3,028-square-foot house built in 2012, The transaction was recorded April 18.