Trending
Webster City has received a $20,000 Creative Places Accelerator grant from the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA). Janet Adams, Tim Adams, Mo Seamonds and Amelia Oliver wrote the grant application, following up work done by Anna Woodward, when she was Director of the Webster City Area Chamber of Commerce. The team has named the project "Spark WC." Tim Adams built a wooden booth that will be used at "pop-up" events. The Spark team promises dates and times for these will be announced soon.
"It's really about creativity and inspiration," said Oliver. "We know there are people here who have really good ideas but aren't sure how to execute them," she added. The grant money must be used to develop arts-based programming to improve the quality of life in Webster City.
The grant will help build a collection of stories, memories and events that will culminate in an art show that will be held in June 2027. When the booth is at an event, it will establish a focal point where individuals can bring written stories, tell about memories and history of Webster City, and help build a collection of concepts that can be added to the creative energy in the community.
Investing in the arts is already paying off for Iowa. IEDA says 43,000 Iowans work in arts-related fields, and create $4.5 billion each year in economic activity. That's 2.3% of the state's gross domestic product. These positive results have earned the arts a place in the state's larger economic development initiatives.
A 2015 article in The Christian Science Monitor cited evidence showing up to 70% of millennials, those born 1981-1996, "decide where to relocate based on quality-of-life factors." This can be seen in the rapid growth of "lifestyle cities," such as Austin, Texas, Cambridge, Massachusetts and Denver, Colorado.
Aging residents, a falling birthrate, and restricted immigration have put downward pressure on Iowa's population, yet the Midwest is increasingly attractive to those fleeing the cost, congestion and crime of urban America. In the last few years, Webster City has become home to families from Arizona, Texas, Illinois and California who say they're here for "a better life."
We need those people, and more like them, to meet our targets for economic prosperity.
City Manager John Harrenstein doesn't need convincing when the subject of public art comes up. In 2013-2022, while city manager in N. Mankato, Minnesota, he had a front row seat for the effect art had in neighboring Mankato. That city's "art in the alley," and "city art walking tours" have helped revitalize its downtown, created foot traffic and retail sales, brought visitors to town from across the Midwest, and, perhaps most importantly, boosted the community's pride in itself.
Harrenstein, a vocal supporter of the continuing work of Arts R Alive, recently said, "Art takes mundane streets and gives them a sense of place. It takes you from simply existing to truly experiencing. It helps people imagine what can be."
Perhaps to put it into a Webster City context, Tim Adams, a man who makes his living as an artist, deserves the last word. Asked what he sees ahead for Spark WC, he doesn't hesitate: "I want this project to make Webster City residents feel proud and engaged."
(Can the below paragraph be in a boxed or sidebar?)
First Spark WC event this Saturday
Day Okay Jazz Project will be performing inside Wildcat Distillery on Saturday, September 5th from 7-10 p.m. due to high predicted temps and heat index. The Spark WC Booth will be either inside the Wildcat Distillery space or outside near the back or front entrance. People who are interested in sharing stories or memories about Webster City can visit the booth and talk to one of the committee members or write down their stories.