There are some initial signs that businesses in Iowa’s Golden Circle, particularly in areas to the west and south of Polk County, could be climbing out of their shells.

Economic development officials in Dallas, Warren and Madison counties said they are getting more telephone calls from businesses inquiring about expansion and they are seeing more investment activity than they have in two years.

For the first time, county officials are also working to hire full-time marketing professionals who can focus more aggressively on attracting new businesses.

The reasons for the improving economic outlook vary, ranging from better access to Des Moines because of the recently completed Iowa Highway 5 in Warren County, to proximity to Des Moines’ quickly growing western suburbs for companies in Dallas County.

In most cases, the counties that surround Polk are doing the best in the areas that are closest to Des Moines. For Dallas County, that means the business from West Des Moines, Clive and Urbandale that is spilling over into Waukee and neighboring communities.

“Companies are starting to become more confident,” said Linda Schaut, executive director of the Greater Dallas County Development Alliance. “It’s been good to hear because this is not what we’d been hearing for a long time.”

Schaut has been leading an effort in recent weeks to interview as many companies in Dallas County as possible to determine their needs. So far, she said has spoken with about 50 companies, ranging in size from businesses with “three employees to those with several hundred.”

What she has found, she said, is that though unemployment in the county has risen, there are labor shortages in some industries, particularly among biotech-related firms.

Earlier this year, officials in Schaut’s office teamed with their counterparts from Madison and Polk counties to conduct a massive study of the area’s labor market.

The study, the results of which are expected in the next four weeks, looked beyond unemployment rates to determine whether workers in certain industries or at specific companies may be underemployed. It also seeks to plot on a map where there are geographic concentrations of workers with certain skills.

Economic development officials hope that the study’s results will give them a far deeper insight into their local labor markets. They also hope the map will help them attract new businesses by showing prospective employers where different types of workers are located.

“Knowing where commuting patterns are helps us identify sites for businesses,” Schaut said. “We want to get our finger on the pulse.”

Other projects in Dallas County include continued study of a regional airport and the Jordan Creek Town Center, which when complete in the fall 2004 will be the biggest and most expensive retail mall in Iowa.

Major employers in Dallas County include meat producer Tyson Foods Inc., trucking firm Barr-Nunn Transportation Inc. and beverage distributor Atlantic Bottling Co.

In Madison County, economic development officials said they have realized that government agencies need to work together to lure companies to the area. The Madison County Development Group and the Madison County Chamber of Commerce joined forces to hire Chris Nolte, who will serve as director for both organizations, according to Brenda Hollingsworth, president of the chamber’s board of directors. Nolte starts June 16.

The purposes of Nolte’s position are to help unify Madison County’s resources and to attract businesses that would be good for the county as a whole.

“We’re looking at the big picture and how the push from West Des Moines is going to affect us in the short and long terms,” Hollingsworth said. “This is either going to be a great hit or a big flop.”

To the east, officials in Warren County are making a similar move, raising money from cities and private sources to pay for a marketing director to boost the number of businesses in the area.

“We’re gearing up to do a more aggressive approach to attracting business in the community,” said Stacie LoVan, executive director of the Warren County Economic Development Corp. “In the past, we’re mostly been reactive.”

Part of what is driving Warren County officials is the need to diversify the county’s tax base to better support local schools following a spurt in residential housing. The number of houses in the area has risen as Highway 5 neared completion.

Carol Sinclair, executive director of the Indianola Chamber of Commerce, estimates that the new highway has cut the drive time to West Des Moines in half to 20 minutes. It also has made it easier for Des Moines-area business people to get to Indianola.

Sinclair said some retailers who are unable to find desirable space in Valley Junction are moving to Indianola instead.

“We think we can draw these people a little better than we’ve been able to in the past,” she said. “The completion of the bypass will secure some good opportunities for growth.”

Some companies in Indianola include cement mixer manufacturer Cemen Tech, farm equipment maker Alamo Group, Iowa, and toy maker Manley Toy Direct, which recently expanded its warehouse to 270,000 square feet. LoVan said 14 companies expanded in Warren County last year, adding 250 new jobs. Those numbers could rise this year.

“Since the beginning of the year, we’ve had many more requests for projects than normal,” LoVan said. “It’s not just the typical initial phone calls, but people saying ‘let’s talk about this.'”

In Story County, the Ames National Animal Disease Lab and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services are to receive $33 million to modernize their equipment and facilities.

Combined, the two employ more that 550 workers and have an annual operating budget of $45 million.   Ames has become one of the bright spots of Iowa’s growing biotechnology industry with several new companies in this specialized field.

Last fall, a fourth building at Iowa State University’s Research Park was opened. One of the first companies to enter the new building was CombiSep, whose technology works to discover the chemical recipes of unknown compounds.

Another of the new companies in the building is Phytodyne, the brainchild of two Iowa State professors. Phytodyne works with plant retroviruses, which can be used to introduce new genes into crops and other plants.

Other ideas are getting their start at the Research Park, too. Ames entrepreneur Kevin Maher started GlobalVetLink in 2001. The company’s equipment tracks animals via the Internet, which can help livestock growers and health officials better keep tabs on diseased animals.