Rural housing assessment grant received

The Montgomery County Development Corporation (MCDC) met Jan. 14 for its regular monthly meeting.
MCDC executive director Steve Adams informed the board they had received a $10,000 Rural Housing Assessment grant from the Iowa Economic Development Authority.
“This will allow us to do an assessment, but we’re going to need a steering committee to help us on that, and a general committee that will participate in some workshops,” Adams explained.
The steering committee will aid in organizational purposes, and Adams said he anticipated the general committee would host two or three interactive workshops.
“After the workshops, the committee will then go out and try to get public input on what their thoughts are, and the final phase is the actual planning workshop where we decide what we want to do moving forward,” commented Adams.
Adams added that he needed committed members, as this was going to be a working group, and he didn’t want anyone to volunteer who wouldn’t be able to attend the meetings.
MCDC Board Chair Ann Carder added that the committee did not need to be comprised solely of MCDC board members, and instead could include some board members and some active members of the community. Adams said they needed to get all the information, workshops, and meetings taken care of by end of 2022.
Final decisions on committee members will be finalized between an upcoming executive board meeting and the next MCDC regular meeting in February.
Carder also updated the board on their efforts for retail recruitment, and said they had a meeting discussing recent retail and real estate trends for 2021 with Retail Strategies, Inc. Also, they had made specific progress on a local level.
“We have come up with a plan in which they will be conducting a monthly Zoom meeting with Steve Adams and I, and others who want to be involved, so that we’re getting updated results monthly,” Carder said.
Also, a recap will be provided that Carder said will be shared with the other members of the retail recruitment committee and the board. Also, efforts continue to boost the number of retailers in the Red Oak community.
“Their national retail recruitment focus will be under the direction of Steve Adams, looking at national firms that have a regional presence in the general merchandise area, and specialty retailers. They will be updated on our property availability on a regular basis. Also, we’re not going to be prioritizing restaurant recruitment, but if there is someone interested in coming, we won’t turn them down,” advised Carder.
The next regular meeting of the MCDC Board is scheduled for Feb. 11.