The annual professional skateboard “Dew Tour” is coming back to Des Moines on July 29-30, 2022. The tour, powered by Mountain Dew, will be held at Lauridsen Skatepark at the north end of the Principal Riverwalk next to the Des Moines River. The Lauridsen Skatepark is the perfect venue for the event as the 88,000 square feet park is the largest open skatepark in the nation. 

The “Dew Tour” is an innovative contest that connects the globe’s best skateboarders, snowboarders, skiers, artists, and fans. The “Dew Tour” celebrates creativity and individual style. 

This year’s “Dew Tour” will be the finals of the skateboard competition so it will feature the world’s top skaters. The athletes will compete in the men’s and women’s individual Street and Park style skateboarding, as well as Adaptive skateboarding. Also, the “Dew Tour” will bring back the “Battle of the Shops,” which highlights regional skate shops that compete as a team on the Street course. Des Moines own skate shop, Subsect Skate Shop, will compete against other Midwest shops from Chicago, Kansas City, St. Louis, and Minneapolis.

In prior years, the “Dew Tour” was an Olympic qualifying event. As such, many Olympians are expected to compete in Des Moines at this year’s event. According to dsmskatepark.com, the Lauridsen Skatepark will challenge the athletes on features that include a “promenade, flow bowl, amoeba pool, snake run, and a skateable art piece entitled WOW.”   

The “Dew Tour” will be fun for all of Des Moines in that it will also be host to a public two-day festival for fans of all ages. For one general admission ticket, fans will have the opportunity to visit the “sponsor” village, attempt the public skate pump track, consume festival food and beverages, and attend professional athlete “meet and greets.” If you can’t make it to Lauridsen Skatepark, the “Dew Tour” will be livestreamed on DewTour.com, Facebook Live, YouTube, and other social media platforms.

Fun, exciting events coming are returning to Des Moines. Be part of the action! I’d love to talk to you about buying and selling commercial real estate in and around Des Moines. Feel free to contact me about your commercial real estate needs.Portions of my blog reference the Catch Des Moines article: “2022 Summer Dew Tour Skateboard Competition and Festival Returns to Des Moines, Iowa July 29 & 30” Link here: https://www.catchdesmoines.com/articles/post/2022-summer-dew-tour-skateboard-competition-and-festival-returns-to-des-moines-iowa-july-29-30/

Internet that is! 

Google Fiber opened its only Iowa office in West Des Moines late last month. This move provides one or two gigabit fiber-optic internet to the city – which offers internet speeds 100x faster than the average broadband connection! 

Only 17 metro areas in the country have access to this type of fiber-optic internet – and West Des Moines is the only place in Iowa to have this internet opportunity. 

Residents were able to connect to the Google Fiber at the end of March. The West Des Moines Chamber of Commerce President, Katherine Harrington, said that the city hopes to set West Des Moines apart by providing the fast internet speed to its residents. Harrington indicated: “We are here to be game changers.” Harrington further noted that the project is yet another step toward West Des Moines’ “2036 plan” to distinguish the city.

Mayor Russ Trimble agreed with Harrington when he stated he was “extremely proud and happy to be delivering [high-speed reliable internet] to the residents and businesses of West Des Moines.” 

West Des Moines is half-way done with the conduit network construction. Google Fiber hopes to complete that construction by the end of next year. To help offset the cost to taxpayers, six other broadband providers can pay to run their fiber through the network.

By early 2024, the West Des Moines homes that desire this super-fast internet service can be connected to Google Fiber.  Andy Simpson, Google Fiber’s central region general manager, noted that “the stability, the pricing, and the quality of Google Fiber internet are key.” Google Fiber is striving to make West Des Moines residents happy with their internet connectivity and speed stating: “We want to be that seamless connectivity in the background.”   

While exciting for West Des Moines, the project was not without controversy. In 2020, after West Des Moines invested approximately $40 million in a partnership with Google Fiber, Mediacom sued the city. In January 2022, the city settled the lawsuit with Mediacom providing a financial payout and granting access to parts of the fiber-optic network. The settlement allowed the project to move forward and now West Des Moines residents and businesses are looking forward to the super-fast internet connectivity. 

West Des Moines commercial real estate is poised to be fast-moving thanks to super-fast internet provided by Google Fiber! I’d love to talk to you about buying and selling in and around Des Moines. Feel free to contact me about your commercial real estate needs.

Portions of my blog reference the Des Moines Register’s article written by Sarah Kay LeBlanc: “West Des Moines gets Iowa’s only Google Fiber office, giving access to 1 or 2 gigabit fiber-optic internet.” Link here: https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/local/west-des-moines/2022/03/24/google-fiber-internet-west-des-moines-iowa-valley-junction-speed/7154926001/ 

Recently, Avison Young’s Capital Markets Group sold an Amazon fulfillment facility near Des Moines for a whopping $326,000,000! The transaction is the highest recorded sale in Polk County’s history! 

Capital Square, from Richmond Virginia, purchased the 2.7 million square feet four-story building from Mesirow Realty Sale-Leaseback, Inc. The building was incredibly desirable as it is setting the standard for the next generation of industry logistics properties. According to James Hanson, a part of the Avison Young Capital Markets team that represented Mesirow, there was “tremendous interest” from investors in the “innovative facility.”  Another member of the Avison Young Capital Markets team, Jonathon Hipp, agreed: “It’s a state-of-the-art Amazon property that plays a critical role in the company’s distribution network and an excellent long-term investment.” 

The lease is set to expire in 2041. And, Amazon has the option to renew the agreement and also extend the lease term.  

Des Moines commercial real estate sales are turning heads and setting records in Iowa! I’d love to talk to you about buying and selling innovative buildings in and around Des Moines. Feel free to contact me about your commercial real estate needs.

Portions of my blog reference Corridor Business’s article “Amazon facility near Des Moines sells for more than $325 million. Link here: https://corridorbusiness.com/amazon-facility-near-des-moines-sells-for-more-than-325-million/

In 2021, the Des Moines Industrial Transloading Facility broke ground. The facility brings freight — by truck or rail — to a central location where it is placed into truckloads and then distributed. Construction is moving right along – the facility will be fully operational by early 2022. 

The 31-acres site has direct access to Iowa Interstate Railroad, Norfolk Southern Railroad, and BNSF Railroad. It is the “premier rail-based transportation hub in Iowa.” The facility, located one mile off the intersection of Interstates 35 and 80, is a logistics “park” where bulk materials are transported between semi-trailers and trains – and back again. The transportation facility will provide “flexibility and reduced shipping costs” that will benefit businesses and consumers to the tune of over $10,000,000 per year! According to Brian Crowe, Executive Vice President of Economic Development at the Greater Des Moines Partnership, the Des Moines Industrial Transloading Facility “will be instrumental for Greater Des Moines’ current and future business growth, particularly for manufacturing, logistics, and distribution companies that need healthy supply chain connectivity.”

The Des Moines Transloading Facility is a collaboration between Des Moines Industrial, Des Moines Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, the City of Des Moines, Greater Des Moines Partnership, Iowa Department of Transportation, and the Federal Railroad Administration. Erin Olson-Douglas, Development Services Director for the City of Des Moines, noted: “This is a rare opportunity to utilize a sweet spot of railroad carrier convergence on an underutilized site that is proximate to major street and highway corridors.” There was a clear need for this type of facility. The logistics, supply chain, and cost advantage are benefits, as is a reduction in carbon emissions through the use of rail shipping. Erin Olson-Douglas furthered: “Des Moines is proud to be the community of choice to host this facility, and we look forward to its future success.”  

Des Moines’ innovations are attracting businesses to the area. I’d love to talk more about innovative things happening in our neighborhoods. Feel free to contact me about how your commercial real estate development might fit into the thriving economic environment in and around Des Moines.

Portions of my blog reference Midwest Contractor’s article “Construction Begins on Des Moines Industrial Transloading Facility. Link here: https://www.acppubs.com/articles/construction-begins-on-des-moines-industrial-transloading-facility

In my previous blog post, I noted that Meta – previously known as Facebook – recently announced a final expansion at the Altoona Data Center which made the site the company’s largest operational data center … WORLDWIDE!

In addition to Meta, Apple also has a data center in Iowa – in Waukee! The $1.375 billion state-of-the-art data center is located on 2,000 acres of a 3,500-acre site. The land, which spans about a mile, is owned by 28 property owners.   

Iowa is becoming a data center! Apple, Meta, Google, and Microsoft all have roots in our state. Why Iowa? The companies have indicated that Iowa has a “large inventory of land, low energy costs, high portfolio of renewable energy, and low risk of natural disasters.” 

The data centers are excellent for Iowans! Not only are most buildings being powered by 100% renewable energy, the data centers provide local construction and operations jobs, as well as data center employment opportunities. And, often, public improvement funds are tied to the projects which can be used by the cities where the centers are located.

What an exciting time to be an Iowan! I’d love to talk more about innovative things happening in our neighborhoods. Feel free to contact me about how your commercial real estate development might fit into the bustling communities in and around Des Moines.