University of Iowa students are partnering with communities in eastern Iowa to help local leaders identify abandoned properties and decide which ones hold the greatest potential for reuse. The properties the students are cataloging are called brownfields. These are sites where redevelopment has been complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or...

Leaders of Iowa City's downtown say a plan to bring recycling services to downtown alleyways next month should keep tons of recyclables out of the city's landfill while at the same time keeping alleys cleaner. Downtown District Executive Director Nancy Bird said the overall plan, which is expected to eventually include composting, is built on a 2015 study of garbage bins in downtown alleys...

The City of Maquoketa recently completed a $4 million renovation of its downtown, and city leaders want to show it off. To help, they’ve turned to the University of Iowa’s Marketing Institute and Iowa Initiative for Sustainable Communities (IISC), working with marketing students in the Tippie College of Business to develop a new brand and marketing strategy to attract more tourists.

Two groups of University of Iowa Graduate Students asked the public for feedback on plans they came up with for the City of Mason City, a partnering community with Iowa Initiative for Sustainable Communities (IISC). One of the groups is looking at the city’s comprehensive plan. The other is focused on a first of its kind sustainability plan. Attendees had the opportunity to look at what the...

Four University of Iowa students, a college professor, the program coordinator for Iowa Initiative for Sustainable Communities, 2 team members from ECIA, Preston Mayor Steve Ritenour and 2 representatives from Preston Growth and Development gathered in Preston Council Chambers last Thursday to discuss potential housing options for the city’s Marvin Property.

Mason City has many projects in the works and a two year-long initiative is helping move things forward with the help of University of Iowa students.

Parks and Recreation Department worked with students in the Urban and Regional Planning department at the University of Iowa earlier this year to develop a long-term vision for the park project as part of a greenspace study with the City, SIMPCO and Downtown Partners.

The University of Iowa has received a five-year, $3 million National Science Foundation Research Traineeship (NRT) grant to develop a Sustainable Water Development graduate program.

MASON CITY, Iowa – Some graduate students getting ready to go into the workforce are getting an early chance to apply their skills.

There are problems with storm-water runoff in the city of Decorah, but there also are solutions, Bailee McClellan, of the University of Iowa’s School of Urban and Regional Planning, told the Decorah City Council Monday night.