Council Bluffs Workshop: Researching and Preserving Historic Buildings--Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011

Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs
600 E. Locust Street
Des Moines, Iowa 50319

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Nov. 7, 2011
Contact: Jeff Morgan, 515-281-3858

Fall Speaker Series final presentation moved to Sunday
Presentation at WHTC focuses on researching and preserving historic buildings

The final presentation of the Pottawattamie County Historical Society’s Fall Speaker Series at the Western Historic Trails Center in Council Bluffs has been changed to 2 p.m. Sunday, November 13th. The discussion had been scheduled for Nov. 20, 2011.

“Preservation, Preservation, Preservation” will feature a panel discussion about historic preservation, including historic downtown districts, Haymarket Square, residential areas and the 100 Block of West Broadway.

The panel will include:

• Rose Brown, Council Bluffs Planning and Development Department representing the city’s Preservation Commissiom
• Jim Kieffer, president, Preserve Council Bluffs
• Arlo Burke, president, Main Street Council Bluffs
• Kori Nielsen, executive director, Historic General Dodge House
• Ralph Wright, Pottawattamie County Historical Society

The panel discussion is free and open to the public. Audience participation is encouraged and the discussion will include a question and answer period. WHTC is located at 3434 Richard Downing Avenue in Council Bluffs. Call 712-366-4900 for more information.

The Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs is responsible for developing the state’s interest in the areas of the arts, history and other cultural matters with the advice and assistance from its two divisions: the State Historical Society of Iowa and the Iowa Arts Council. DCA preserves, researches, interprets and promotes an awareness and understanding of local, state and regional history and stimulates and encourages the study and presentation of the performing and fine arts and public interest and participation in them. It implements tourism-related art and history projects as directed by the General Assembly and designs a comprehensive, statewide, long-range plan with the assistance of the Iowa Arts Council to develop the arts in Iowa. More information about DCA is available at www.culturalaffairs.org.

Recap : Redevelopment Public Input Meeting

Approximately 20 downtown property owners, interested citizens of Red Oak, and community leaders attended the fourth of five public input meetings at 7:00 pm on Tuesday, November 1st at the Green Hills Area Education Agency Victory Conference Center in Downtown Red Oak.  Daric O'Neal and Mike Thompson with Alley Poyner Macchietto Architecture presented concepts and ideas related to Redevelopment Opportunities in Study Area.  Items discussed including parking, second story housing, vacant or empty lots, and vacant buildings.  Those in attendance had an opportunity to ask a lot of questions and engage in dialogue related to the subjects.

If you were unable to attend, the presentation can be viewed by clicking here, or it can be found in the "Downloads" section of this web site.

Financial Incentives for Historic Properties Workshop in Council Bluffs

PRESS RELEASE: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Re: PRESERVE COUNCIL BLUFFS TO OFFER PROGRAM ON FINANCING THE PRESERVATION OF HISTORIC PROPERTIES
Contact: President Jim Kieffer, Preserve Council Bluffs (712-256-0923) or JKiefferJr@cox.net

Preserve Council Bluffs (aka Council Bluffs Historic Preservation Alliance) will host a program on financial incentives for the rehabilitation of historic commercial and residential buildings on Thursday, November 3, 2011 at 7 pm in the first floor meeting room of the Council Bluffs Public Library, 400 Willow Avenue, in downtown Council Bluffs.

Presenter of the program will be Vincent Lintz, president of Preservation Iowa – the statewide nonprofit dedicated to historic preservation which exists to build partnerships that enhance Iowa’s economic and cultural future through the preservation of Iowa’s historic resources.  He comes with more than 30 years of experience working with communities promoting affordable housing and economic development on local, state, regional, and national levels.

Mr. Lintz’s responsibilities with Preservation Iowa include implementing the programs and policies of Preservation Iowa with emphasis on the Main Street Development Loan Program; networking with national, state, area agencies, and other organizational partners to further the mission of Preservation Iowa; and guiding the development of additional funding mechanisms for preservation activities throughout Iowa.

The program is for owners of historic buildings that lie within the designated boundaries of historic districts or are independently designated; those considering purchasing or investing in such buildings; realtors; anyone involved in city government, its boards and commissions; attorneys and CPAs; chambers of commerce, and anyone interested in historic preservation.

President Jim Kieffer, who welcomes all who are interested in attending, says: “This program furthers the mission of our organization, which is to promote and preserve the heritage of Council Bluffs through its architecture, sites, and people.”

The program is open to the public. There is no charge for admission.

Recap : Zoning and Codes Public Input Meeting

Approximately 35-40 downtown property owners, interested citizens of Red Oak, and community leaders attended the third of five public input meetings at 7:00 pm on Tuesday, October 25th at the US Bank Community Room in Downtown Red Oak.  Daric O'Neal and Mike Thompson with Alley Poyner Macchietto Architecture and Steve Jensen AICP, ASLA with Steven Jensen Consulting  presented concepts and ideas related to Zoning Overlay Districts, Pattern Books, Form Base Guidelines, and Smart Codes.  Those in attendance had an opportunity to ask a lot of questions and engage in dialogue related to the subjects.

If you were unable to attend, the presentation can be viewed by clicking here, or it can be found in the "Downloads" section of this web site.

November 3, 2011 Steering Committee Agenda

You can find the agenda for the next Steering Committee Meeting to be held at 6:00 pm, November 3rd, 2011 at the Montgomery County History Center by clicking here.

Recap : Fountain Square Park Public Input Meeting

Approximately 50 to 60 downtown property owners, interested citizens of Red Oak, and community leaders attended the second of five public input meetings at 7:00 pm on Monday, October 17th at the US Bank Community Room in Downtown Red Oak.  Daric O'Neal with Alley Poyner Macchietto Architecture presented concepts and ideas related to Fountain Square Park, it's current and potential uses, the bandstand, war memorials, playground, site furnishings and landscape.  Those in attendance had an opportunity to ask a lot of questions and engage in dialogue related to the subjects.  There were some great ideas that came from this meeting.

If you were unable to attend, the presentation can be viewed by clicking here, or it can be found in the "Downloads" section of this web site.

Fountain Square Park Public Input Meeting

When:  Monday October 17, 7:00 pm at the US Bank Community Room.

Plan on attending this community meeting where you can provide your thoughts on the future of downtown Red Oak.  Have and opinion?  Please share it.  Got an idea?  Express it graphically.  Just curious.  Come and listen.  These meetings will be "town hall" style with a little presentation and a lot of interaction, discussion, and sketching of thoughts and ideas.  Everyone will have an opportunity to be heard.

Specific topics for the Fountain Square Park Public Input Meeting includes discussion of items specific to the park itself, including but not limited to the bandstand, park furnishings, war memorials, Red Oak "wall of fame", landscaping and park activities.

Recap : Historic District Public Input Meeting

Approximately 65 to 70 downtown property owners, interested citizens of Red Oak, and community leaders attended the first of five public input meetings at 7:00 pm on Tuesday, October 11th at the Red Oak Grand Theatre.  Daric O'Neal with Alley Poyner Macchietto Architecture presented information to the public on the National Register of Historic Places and Main Street Iowa programs.  The information was well received, and people in attendance had an opportunity to ask a lot of questions and engage in dialogue related to the subjects.

If you were unable to attend, the presentation can be viewed by clicking here, or it can be found in the "Downloads" section of this web site.

KCSI Radio Interview

Jan Norris and Daric O'Neal had a chance to speak with Jerry Dietz about the project and the upcoming public input meetings.  The audio from that interview can be found by clicking here.  (Please be patient, the file is large.)

Presentation

In addition to the information available this web site, the actual presentation from the July 28th, 2011 public  meeting can be found at the link HERE.  Please keep in mind while viewing the presentation, that there was a presenter describing the information on each slide.

Public Meeting

On July 28th, 2011 there was a public meeting regarding the proposed downtown improvements master plan.  The meeting started with a walking tour at 6:30 pm in which interested persons could follow and listen to a guided tour of the immediate square and observe some of the existing conditions.  At 7:00 pm, the meeting moved indoors, to the conference center at the Area Education Agency, for a presentation by Daric O'Neal of Alley Poyner Macchietto Architecture.    As a result of that meeting, this web site was created to share the information with all interested persons. Please make sure you review all of the pages on this site as well as take the time to complete the on line survey and give us your opinion regarding any of the thoughts presented here.

Birds Eye View of Downtown : North is to the Right