A group of graduate students from the University of Iowa's IISC program are spending the academic year studying the housing needs of the city of Clinton.
As part of their graduate capstone project, Masters of Public Affairs students will work with the Clinton Substance Abuse Council, the Clinton Police Department, and other service providers to identify local, proactive strategies for addressing opioid addiction and abuse in the community.
The City of Clinton seeks to update its Housing Needs Assessment, which was last completed in 2016. A Housing Needs Assessment is a tool to help decision-makers ensure that existing and future residents can find safe, secure, and quality housing that meets their needs and budgets. The assessment evaluates both housing needs and housing availability, typically determining the number and types of new units needed to accommodate needs, as well as other factors like vacancy, housing quality, rental needs, and more. Housing Needs Assessments are useful to housing
As part of the Senior Design Capstone Course, Civil & Environmental Engineering students redesigned the old YMCA complex in Clinton, Iowa, including rehabilitation of the historic YMCA structure, demolition plans for an adjacent deteriorating structure, and designs for a new restaurant and entertainment venue.
Two students from the Tippie College of Business Marketing Institute developed marketing strategies and materials to promote the sale of lots in the City of Preston's new subdivision, Harvest Heights.
Students enrolled in the School of Planning and Public Affairs Public Policy and Persuasion course worked with key stakeholders to develop a set of proposed policy solutions for creating additional workforce housing options for Maquoketa residents.
Students in the Spring semester Policy and Persuasion course continued developing policy recommendations around high-priority housing issues in Waterloo, building on work done by groups in the previous semester and creating both policy recommendations and resources.
Students in the Fall semester Policy and Persuasion course worked with Waterloo representatives to first identify some of the most pressing issues related to home ownership and affordability, and then to develop policy recommendations for the City moving forward.
Four student groups focused on distinct, yet overlapping housing issues:
As part of their Senior Design Capstone course, Civil & Environmental Engineering students created a master plan for development of a 24-acre greenfield site in Manchester, Iowa..
Manchester Enterprises Incorporated (MEI) is a non-profit development group in the City of Manchester. They have acquired 24 acres of land near the intersection of Highway 20 and Bailey Drive. The City of Manchester is partnering with MEI to create a Master Development Plan for the property. The site lends itself for either a mixed-use development or single-family home development.
As part of their capstone project, second-year graduate students from the School of Planning & Public Affairs created a neighborhood plan for Waterloo's Church Row neighborhood.
The City of Waterloo (pop. 67,798) sought assistance with the development of a Neighborhood Plan for Church Row, a core neighborhood located near downtown in order to foster a more safe, attractive, and welcoming area that provides opportunities for economic development, healthy and affordable living, and a high quality of life for residents.
As part of their Senior Design Capstone course, Civil & Environmental Engineering students created designs for development of a new residential neighborhood in Manchester, as well as a stormwater management plan for the site.
