Spencer an 'Iowa Great Place'

(Photos by Kris Todd) Spencer delegates proudly display the town's new Iowa Great Places designation paperwork outside the Iowa Capitol. Front row from left: Katrina (McGranahan) Brown of Waukee, Cindy McGranahan and Jim Schooley. Back row: Delray Bredehoeft, Bob Fagen, Robyn Larsen, John Rahn and Connie Goeken. Missing from photo: Steve Bomgaars, Bob and Kaylene Rose. [Order this photo]

It became official at the state level Monday: Spencer is one of Iowa's Great Places.

The announcement, which came during an afternoon ceremony held in the Iowa Capitol, designated Spencer, along with West Union, Marquette/McGregor and Warren County as Iowa's newest Great Places.

Cyndi Pederson, the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs director, shows a proclamation and an award certificate given to representatives from Spencer, West Union, Warren County and Marquette/McGregor during Monday's presentation. [Order this photo]

"This has been a terrific month for Iowa," Cyndi Pederson, director of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, said. "We received letters of intent from 19 different communities, and four went through the application process this year. They shared their hopes and dreams for the future and showed remarkable commitment to their place and to the program.

The interest, enthusiasm and energy shows there are people all over this state with the passion to achieve their vision."

"The idea is as simple as it is unique," Pederson explained of the special Iowa Great Places designation. "...The Great Places designation calls on state agencies and Iowans to work together to help places navigate through the maze of state resources, to levy local assets and to make Iowa communities great places to live, work and play."

(Photo by Kris Todd) Sen. David Johnson, right, visited with several of the local representatives attending Monday's Iowa Great Places designation. [Order this photo]

Monday's announcement came after members of the Iowa Great Places Citizen Advisory Board toured the four finalist locations last week. The board's recommendation, and Pederson's approval, brings the total number of Iowa Great Places to 20.

Spencer's proposed project, titled "Sparkle in Spencer and Ignite Your Imagination," highlights several components. They include:

* Spencer's Grand Avenue boulevard enhancements and bridge revitalization.

* The Spencer Community Theatre remodel and expansion.

* The Parker Historical Museum remodel and expansion.

* The adaptive reuse of the historic 1914 old high school and 1937 auditorium.

* A "Pathway to Information" project, which will bring Spencer's cultural and historic assets to its people via informative kiosks.

* A continued expansion of the Little Sioux River trail.

Robin Anderson, the Iowa Great Places Citizen Advisory Board vice chair from Mason City, said of Spencer's proposed project, "In Spencer, we saw a community that really does have a very firm foundation. We saw a lot of strength there."

In reference to a televised segment on Sunday's "CBS Sunday Morning" show featuring the late Dewey Readmore Books, she added with a smile, "For those of you who didn't see them on the 'CBS Sunday Morning' show, they also have a great legacy for embracing culture and a great deal of diversity -- even the four-legged kind."

Next, as representatives from each of the four new Great Places received a proclamation from Lt. Gov. Patty Judge and an award certificate from the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, which administers the Iowa Great Places program, Judge said, "As Iowans, we must preserve this sense of community that sets our state apart. And, the Iowa Great Places program was designed to do just that."

She then told local representatives in attendance, "You are role models for towns and cities across the state that may also aspire for this designation. I thank you for what you've done. It builds not only your community, but sets a model for communities across the state. On behalf of Gov. Culver and myself, I want to say, 'Congratulations on becoming an Iowa Great Place.' We look forward to working with you in the next few years to make the state and your communities even better."

Pederson then told those attending the ceremony, "While the benefit of this designation will expire on June 30, 2012, now is the time to roll up your sleeves, and the real work begins. ... Prior Great Places have leveraged state dollars in the ratios of 13-1 and 19-1. There is your baseline: You want to beat that. We really look forward to working with all of you."

The newly-identified Great Places are expected to develop work plans and sign memorandums of understanding with the state later this year.

State agencies, meanwhile, continue to work with Iowa's previously-identified Great Places -- Adams County, Appanoose County, Charles City, Council Bluffs, Davenport, Decorah, Dubuque, Fairfield, Guttenberg, Jackson County, Mason City, Perry and Valley Junction of West Des Moines -- to achieve their visions by identifying technical assistance and existing programs such as grant and financial aid programs, and the State Historic Preservation Tax Credit program. The program's pilot places -- Clinton, Coon Rapids and Sioux City -- complete their three-year participation this year.