Our Agency

Iowa Great Places Citizen Advisory Board Meeting
May 3, 2023 - 1:00 p.m.

Board Members Present: Aaron Burnett, Andrew Denkinger, Barbara Determan, Sara Kurovski, Tammy McCoy

Board Members Present via Zoom: Darryl High, Danna Kehm, Jacque Rahe, Duane Hagerty (joined at 1:31 p.m.)

Board Members Absent: Angel Wallace

Guests Present: Rick Peterson, Rita C. Grimm

Public Present: None.

Staff Present: DCA Director Chris Kramer, Administrator David Schmitz, Arts in Community Development Program Manager Jon Berg, and Board Administrator Sarah Florian.

Call to Order
Determan called the meeting to order at 1:03 p.m.
Welcome
Determan welcomed board members to the meeting.
Roll Call
Florian called the roll and deemed a quorum present.

Approval of Minutes
Rahe moved to approve the March 8, 2023 Minutes. McCoy seconded and the motion carried unanimously. Kurovski abstained.

Report from Chair
Determan reported that the next board meeting will be held at IEDA | IFA, 1963 Bell Avenue, Suite 200, on September 28, 2023. Determan welcomed new board members Drew Denkinger and Sara Kurovski and invited them to introduce themselves. The seat on the board that must be filled by someone under the age of 30 remains open.

DCA Director’s Report
Kramer shared a legislative update which included information about state government realignment. Kramer also shared that Produce Iowa is coming up on the ten year milestone and provided a programmatic summary update from the last decade. Kramer shared an update on the budget, which prompted a brief discussion. Kramer highlighted the recent Iowa Great Places Annual Meeting, the Cultural Leadership Partners, the Iowa Culture Leadership Cohort, and additional updates, with discussion by the Board. Kramer shared that the Preserve Iowa Summit, which will include professional development and discussions, will be held at the Warrior Hotel in Sioux City on June 1-3. Kramer shared details about the Fine Arts Education Summit that will be held at DMACC’s FFA Enrichment Center on June 13. Kramer shared a recap on the National History Day competition as well as updates on the State Historical Building renovation. 
 
Administrator Updates
Schmitz updated the board regarding annual Iowa Arts Council grants, Meet the Artist events for Iowa Artist Fellows, the Arts & Economic Prosperity study and our State Partnership Award from the National Endowment for the Arts. Kramer shared a summary of recent Iowa organizations that have received direct NEA grants.
 
Program Updates
Berg shared an Iowa Great Places Annual Meeting summary and provided an update on funding agreements, noting the 13 active Iowa Great Places grants and the end of the fiscal year process, which prompted board discussion. Berg closed with sharing the funding timeline going into the end of the year.
 
Board Discussion
Determan shared that the meeting will be focused on considering applications for designation.  She reviewed the process of panel review and site visits and the process for presentation and discussion during the meeting.
 

Proposed Iowa Great Place	Applicant	City	County
Sweet Vale of Avoca: Revitalizing the Land Between Two Rivers	City of Avoca	Avoca	Pottawattamie
Lansing: Bridges to Renewal	City of Lansing	Lansing	Allamakee
City of Grimes	City of Grimes	Grimes	Polk
Explore Polk City	City of Polk City	Polk City	Polk

 
The order of presentation and discussion was as follows: City of Polk City, City of Lansing, City of Grimes, and City of Avoca. Berg shared the staff recommendations and cumulative panel scores from the application review and Determan and staff answered questions related to the process.
 
Motion #1 - Burnett moved to designate the City of Polk City as an Iowa Great Place. McCoy seconded the motion. Kurovski and Denkinger abstained. Motion carried.
 
Motion #2 - McCoy moved to designate the City of Lansing as an Iowa Great Place. Kurovski seconded the motion. Motion carried.
 
Motion #3 - High moved to designate the City of Grimes as an Iowa Great Place. Rahe seconded the motion. Kurovski and Denkinger abstain. Motion carried.
 
Berg shared information from further discussion and a site visit with Iowa City/Coralville/North Liberty about their redesignation application. Additional discussion ensued. Berg provided additional information about the further discussion and site visit with Guttenberg regarding their redesignation application. Additional discussion ensued.
 
Motion #4 - McCoy moved to redesignate Iowa City/Coralville/North Liberty as an Iowa Great Place. Burnett seconded the motion. High abstained. Motion carried.
 
Motion #5 - Hagerty moved to redesignate Guttenberg as an Iowa Great Place. Rahe seconded the motion. Motion carried.
 
Public Comment
No members of the public were present to comment.

Adjournment
Determan adjourned the meeting at 2:51 p.m.