Pictured left to right: Rich Ziettlow, volunteer with the Le Mars Main Street program, stands with Clint and Nate Kass as they are recognized as recipients of the Iowa Main Street Challenge Grant program. Le Mars Main Street Director, Lori French stands with the group.
(Fort Dodge) — The Le Mars Main Street program was awarded a Main Street Iowa $100,000 Challenge Grant from the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA). Le Mars Main Street Manager, Lori French, was at the Ft. Dodge conference to receive the grant award. “The news of receiving this grant was very exciting! We are thrilled to observe more growth to our beautiful downtown and keep its enduring historical integrity. Mary Reynolds, Dr. Steve Collins, Richard Ziettlow and owners Nathan and Clint Kass worked incredibly hard obtaining this grant. The grant supports the renovation of the vacant second floor above VanderMeer Bakery into four apartments – two one-bedroom and two studio apartments, which will strengthen, and promote the downtown living area options.”
When notified of the grant award, Nathan and Clint Kass were excited to be able to add to the vibrancy of Le Mars’ downtown. “After seeing the impact previous Challenge Grant projects have had on our downtown, we wanted to work with our local Main Street program and pursue a Challenge Grant to facilitate making our project a reality. We love the direction in which we see Le Mars moving and are grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the future of our community. We want to thank Mary, Steve and Rich for all the work they did to make this a reality.”
In addition to the $100,000 Challenge Grant, the City of Le Mars, as they have for prior Challenge Grant winners, will contribute to the project, in this case, $37,500.
This is the seventh Main Street Iowa Challenge Grant for Le Mars since 2011 bringing the total for the seven Challenge Grants to $505,000. The City of Le Mars has contributed an additional $227,500 in support of the projects. Total project costs improving Le Mars’ downtown are $1,763,800. The seven projects have added 12 high-end apartments, a four-unit Bed and Breakfast and restored the historic exteriors of two downtown buildings.
