Des Moines' population growth outpaces state, Midwest (Franklin: credit, homes)

[atler8]

I do know that Fort Atkinson, 30 miles southeast of Madison, has been stymied in it's desire to annex south by the refusal of Koshkonong Township to allow it.
By comparison in Iowa, the township system does not wield similar power but annexation by cities can neverthelss be difficult.

[capitalcityguy]

At the end of the day, Madison has a HUGE advantage by having a major university within its limits. Des Moines would look a lot different today if either ISU or Iowa would have located here.

[fezzador]

KC and Omaha have satellite campuses. No reason why Des Moines couldn't have one... UIDM has a nice ring to it. It'd provide hundreds of jobs and provide a local rivalry with Drake and perhaps Northern Iowa.

[atler8]

I'm afraid that the time for establishing satellite campuses or more state university campuses has come & gone.
I recall that in the days of exploding college enrollments in the 1960's, it was thought that a four year state university needed to be established in western Iowa to better serve that portion of the state.
A long search & study process was undertaken & the city of Atlantic was chosen for the site amidst great fanfare by the citizens of that community.
Well, you can see where that proposal went.
It is too bad that there is not another university of some size, preferably larger than Drake University, in Des Moines proper. A nice chunk of additional college students & the resulting payroll would be a dynamic addition to the city.
But I'm going back to my perhaps tiresome advocacy for more annexations by the city of Des Moines to ensure that it is never strangled & landlocked & unable to bring in new areas for development.

[tollfree]

Originally Posted by fezzador

KC and Omaha have satellite campuses. No reason why Des Moines couldn't have one... UIDM has a nice ring to it. It'd provide hundreds of jobs and provide a local rivalry with Drake and perhaps Northern Iowa.

Wouldn't work well with the Iowa/Iowa State split, which is basically the driving force behind all things Iowa.

[fezzador]

Iowa/ISU is big, but it's not the be-all, end-all. That's Alabama, where I live. UAB is a satellite of the University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa), and just about every student will pull for either the U of A or Auburn before UAB.

[tollfree]

Same deal with UNI, regarding the Iowa/ISU football game (there is no event that comes close in magnitude to that in Iowa). UNI sometimes has a better basketball team than Iowa or ISU, but it doesn't really get noticed as much as it should, besides that year they beat KU.

[fezzador]

The Iowa State Fair blows the Iowa-ISU game out of the water. It does a much better job of attracting out-of-state (and even international) tourists.

[tollfree]

It may attract more people and be a larger event (also over a week long), but the Iowa vs ISU game is basically what Miss Venezuela is to Venezuelans. Even if you don't watch it, you'll hear a lot about it.

Iowa doesn't offer much variety though, so it's to be expected.

[Tek_Freek]

Originally Posted by RonnieJonez

It may attract more people and be a larger event (also over a week long), but the Iowa vs ISU game is basically what Miss Venezuela is to Venezuelans. Even if you don't watch it, you'll hear a lot about it.

Iowa doesn't offer much variety though, so it's to be expected.

Like Ronnie I-can't-spel-my-last-name's posts.