The Midwest's fastest-growing metro has big challenges ahead
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The Des Moines metro is gaining national attention for attracting millennials with its affordability, career opportunities and quality of life, Newsweek reports.
Why it matters: The growth indicates a strong outlook for the region's economic resilience and talent pool as other Midwest cities experience population decline.
- It also brings growing pains as the metro confronts housing, infrastructure, debt and environmental challenges.
Driving the news: The metro remains the fastest-growing in the Midwest, with an estimated population of nearly 754,000 last year, up more than 6% from about 710,000 in 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
- Some metro city leaders think those numbers could be underestimated. Altoona, Clive, Grimes, Johnston and West Des Moines are conducting special census counts this summer.
State of play: The renaissance is associated with more than $3 billion in investment in the downtown area over the past decade, according to the Greater Des Moines Partnership.
- That followed the completion of several major downtown attractions such as the Casey's Center in 2005 and the John and Mary Pappajohn Sculpture Park in 2009.
Zoom in: The metro's median home price remains below $300,000, significantly lower than the typical U.S. home price of about $441,000, according to Redfin data.
- And a strong jobs base in insurance, health care, data centers and technology helps retain families, per Newsweek.
Yes, but: The metro still grapples with challenges, including housing affordability and public transportation shortfalls.
- New property tax restrictions and record levels of city debt have raised concerns about whether local governments can sustain the same level of building incentives and related programs that support growth.
- A water crisis has left residents scrambling for solutions to reduce nitrates, primarily attributed to agriculture.
What we're watching: Des Moines City Council approved its first citywide housing plan this month, establishing long-term strategies to potentially transform hundreds of blocks of the city's aging neighborhoods over the coming decades.