Iowa town will revise plan to halt Ankeny encroachment

Alleman will drop a 6-acre parcel from its annexation proposal to resolve concerns Polk County supervisors raised last week, Mayor Bob Kramme tells Axios.

Why it matters: Supervisors said they would reconsider the small city's plans to expand its territory after rejecting a request to support the proposal last week if the proposal is modified.

• If supervisors back the plan, it could strengthen Alleman's case before Iowa's City Development Board.

Catch up fast: Kramme told Axios that annexing nearly 1,970 acres of unincorporated land would protect the town of about 450 people from Ankeny's rapid expansion.

• Alleman's plan includes some of the same areas that would be annexed under a competing request that goes before the Ankeny City Council Monday.
• Both plans are vying for the support of local governments to help strengthen their cases before the CDB.

Zoom in: The parcel Alleman is eliminating from its proposal covers an area near Northwest 54th Street and Irvinedale Drive. The land doesn't overlap with Ankeny's plan.

• Supervisors had raised concerns that the parcel creates a disconnected "island" of land, which isn't allowed under state law.

What's ahead: Alleman's plan will be reconsidered by supervisors in coming weeks, Supervisor Bob Brownell told Axios.