Students from the School of Art & Art history developed two public art pieces. The first project emblematizes the Decorah eagles in a sculpture that celebrates the natural assets of Winneshiek County. The second playfully acknowledges the mythical gnome-like “nisse” of Norwegian culture through several small ceramic doors and windows that will be displayed in local parks for the mischievous “nisse” to use.

Students in the School of Urban & Regional Planning conducted an economic impact analysis of extending the current fiber optic system and provided recommendations on how best to continue enhancing the service and a 28E partnership between six stakeholders.

Civil and environmental engineering students determined the best location for a new nature center and created preliminary 3D designs for the structure near Decorah, IA.

Neste Valley Recreational Area sits just 2.5 miles from Decorah and was sited to be its next destination park. The Winneshiek County Conservation Board envisioned a variety of recreation offerings at the park, including picnicking, camping, hiking trails and conservation education.

MFA students in the School of Art and Art History created 10 small statues of Nisse, gnome-like figures from Scandinavian folklore, for the 2015 Nordic Fest Celebration.

Following the success of the "Gnomes on the Trail" event during the 2013 Nordic Fest celebration, the Winneshiek County Conservation Board aimed to create new gnome statues along the trail for trail users to interact with.

UI ceramics artists Andrew Haley and Keva Hawkes created 18 Nisse scultures for the trail.  

Researchers from the GEEMaP program, College of Engineering, and Department of Earth & Environmental Sciences collaborated to predict and map where frac sand mines may be most likely to occur in Winneshiek County if the industry enters the area.

Students in the College of Law conducted statutory and case law research to contribute to the development of the potential regulations being considered by Winneshiek County. In response to the potential entry of the frac sand mining industry into the area, Winneshiek County sought research and recommendations on best practices for interacting with the industry. This project brought together the University of Iowa Citizen lawyer program with county attorneys to provide legal research and analysis on regulatory options available to the county.

Winneshiek County sought to understand the possible economic impacts that the frac sand mining industry could have if it became established in the county. For this project, graduate students in the School of Urban and Regional Planning performed a comprehensive economic impact study that evaluated the short and long-term gains and losses to the county's economy that could follow from the industry’s establishment. The students assumed a single-mine scenario to contextualize mining impacts in three areas: county accounts, private accounts, and social costs.

Students from the Urban and Regional Planning Department completed a housing plan for Sioux City, IA with the main goal of coordinating reinvestment in distressed areas.

This project focused on the Leeds Neighborhood, located in northeast Sioux City. The commercial corridor within this neighborhood serves as the northeast entryway into Sioux City. The corridor contains a mixture of small retail stores, restaurants, and service establishments that serve the local neighborhood. As new national brand commercial developments continue to develop to the south of the Leeds neighborhood, the future character of its commercial corridor has been called into question. Students from the Urban & Regional Planning Dept.

Graduate students in the School of Urban and Regional Planning conducted a project that aided Sioux City in fulfilling its recently-designated Blue Zones ProjectTM requirement of developing an active transportation plan.

Student in the School of Urban and Regional Planning conducted a project that evaluated the workforce of Cedar Rapids and determined the gap between supply and demand for quality workers. Students sought to understand the reasons for both attracting and retaining new workers.

Students in the School of Urban and Regional Planning conducted research on best practices for creation of a SSMID for Cedar Rapids, IA. Students held public meetings and worked with CV/NB Main Street staff to acquire the necessary support to pass a SSMID.