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Economic Development

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Ankeny 10th fastest-growing city in U.S.

New U.S. census data shows Ankeny as the 10th-fastest-growing city in the country for cities of more than 50,000 residents.

The Des Moines suburb had 65,284 residents on July 1, 2018, up 4.6% in a year. Buckeye, …

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Empower Rural Iowa Act signed into law

Gov. Kim Reynolds on Monday signed House File 772, the Empower Rural Iowa Act. The legislation, which passed the Iowa Legislature unanimously, was a key priority in Reynolds’ Condition of the State address, and was based …

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Tariff fallout continues

Reuters reports that Chinese officials have said trade talks won’t resume anytime soon after President Donald Trump contended Chinese companies are bolting to Vietnam and elsewhere because of the tariffs. 

Closer to home, Bloomberg reports the Trump administration’s …

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Iowa unemployment rate steady at 2.4%


Iowa’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate stayed at 2.4% in April, well below the national figure of 3.6%. Beth Townsend, director of Iowa Workforce Development, said in a statement that Iowa’s unemployment has been at historically …

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IEDA approves aid for Facebook, Vermeer


The Iowa Economic Development Authority board today approved aid for Facebook’s expansion in Altoona and Vermeer’s reconstruction from tornado damage in Pella. The Facebook package included a 20-year local property tax exemption through a program …

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Overall, the rural economy is in the dumps

The negatives outweighed the positives in a monthly survey of bank presidents and CEOs in a 10-state area that includes Iowa, according to the survey’s co-founder, Ernie Goss, the Jack A. MacAllister chair in regional …

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Warren County Small Business Grant Contest seeks applications

Warren County Economic Development Corp. is now accepting entries for the Warren County Small Business Grant Contest. The contest awards $6,000 to an existing small business and $4,000 to a startup business. All Warren County …

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Community Foundation celebrates 50th birthday with mural

The Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines (#GIVEdsm) is celebrating its 50th anniversary by commissioning a downtown mural by artist Ben Schuh.

The art, to be located on a wall on the west side of …

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DMACC to host groundbreaking on tech center

Des Moines Area Community College is hosting a groundbreaking ceremony today at 10 a.m. for a new automotive technology center on the Ankeny campus. The Karl Chevrolet Automotive Technology Center at DMACC will open in …

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Iowa’s ranking by U.S. News & World Report slips from 1st to 14th

U.S. News & World Report’s annual Best States Rankings placed Iowa at 14th this year, down from No. 1 in the 2018 rankings. Iowa was one of two states that dropped out of the top 10 list …