FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 26, 2008

1000 Friends of Iowa Announces 2008 Best Development Award Winners

MEDIA CONTACT:     Stephanie B. Stegeman, Board Member
                                    Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
                                    Cell: 515-326-1526

DES MOINES – We are pleased to announce the following winners of the 2008 Best Development Awards:

• New Residential: Upper Mississippi Valley Redevelopment Company, 1820 East Thirteenth Street, Village of East Davenport Development in Davenport, Iowa
• Renovated Residential: The HEART Program’s Washington Street Project in Dubuque, Iowa
• Renovated Commercial/Civic: M+ Architects, ISU Design West development in Sioux City, Iowa
• New Commercial/Civic: RDG Planning & Design, Marion Arts and Environmental Center at Lowe Park in Marion, Iowa
• Mixed Use: LADCO Development, Village of Ponderosa in West Des Moines, Iowa
• Leadership: City of Iowa City, Iowa City Subdivision Code in Iowa City, Iowa
  

1000 Friends of Iowa established the Best Development Awards in 2001 to recognize cities, companies, and individuals and also to recognize development projects in Iowa that reflect smart growth and sustainability principles.  The winners of our Best Development Awards are models of how responsible development practices provide benefits to the community, the environment, and quality of life for future generations.

Click on one of the following links for complete details on the 2008 Best Development Awards Winners, or to learn more about the Best Development Awards and principles of smart growth.

For additional information please contact Stephanie Stegeman by email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 515-326-1526.

A new video series from the Iowa Learning Farm, "A Culture of Conservation",  offers viewers an opportunity to learn about the impact we have on our soil and water and what each of us can do to protect and preserve our precious natural resources. All Soil and Water Conservation District offices & Iowa State Extension offices will have copies of the video series beginning in December.

To request a "A Culture of Conservation" contact the Iowa Learning Farm by emailing This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it For more information about the Iowa Learning Farm, visit www.extension.iastate.edu/ilf/.

The Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority (DART) has created it's first citizen's advisory group, the Transit Riders Advisory Committee (TRAC). Visit www.ridedart.com for complete details. 

We are pleased to announce 1000 Friends Board Member, Erv Klaas is the recipient of the 2008 Hagie Heritage Award! The Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation has scheduled an Open House to honor Erv's "exhaustive volunteer efforts to promote smart growth, farmland protection, water quality, public conservation education, and more." The open house will begin at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, September 28, 2008 at the Story County Nature Center, McFarland Park, in Ames. For complete details about this event and to read more about Erv's work, follow this link. Stacie Bendixen of the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation wrote an article, "Conservation Champion" published in the Ames Tribune. You can read her article here.

By Jay E. Howe, Free Press Field Editor

Reprinted with permission from Page 2A Adair County Free Press August 20, 2008

Last Saturday was the 10th anniversary of when 1000 Friends of Iowa was founded to 1) conserve and protect farmland and natural areas, 2) revitalize neighborhoods, towns and cities and 3) improve Iowa’s natural environment. It was celebrated at the Ankeny  grain-livestock farm of Craig and LaVon Griffieon. From their farmstead you can view south to sprawling urban development upon lands that are the richest in the world, with corn suitability ratings well over 90. The roof of the mega-church rises just down the gravel road, making one wonder if its parishioners have read Isaiah 5:8-10, where the prophet admonishes us to respect the land as sacred creation or eventually be impoverished.

Mary Brubaker Shares Memories of One of Our Thousand Friends  

Jeannette Eyerly lived a full, celebratory, worthwhile hundred years full of community service and  professional accomplishments -- and so much more. While her husband pursued his career as an editor of the Des Moines Register and Tribune, Jeannette Eyerly raised a family, baked bread, entertained friends, mentored students, gathered in a circle of loyal friends, wrote fiction and non fiction and was honored for her pioneering talents as a writer of ground-breaking, provocative novels for teenagers.   She was devoted to and enjoyed the pleasures of two daughters, six grandchildren, ten great-grandchildren and scores of friends and admirers.  

Eyerly's public service included establishing a community mental health center, serving on the Iowa Commission for the Blind and being president of the Des Moines Child Guidance Center.  She received the Iowa Author Award from the Des Moines Public Library foundation, and was inducted into the Iowa Women's Hall of Fame in 2006.

Informative speakers and presentations, a fantastic Iowa grown lunch, wonderful entertainment, and incredible weather made the 2008 Annual Meeting & 10th Anniversary Celebration a great success! Thank you to all who attended, presented and worked so hard to put it together! We'll udpate this page with more about the  day, so please check back. If you have pictures, stories or thoughts on the event you'd like to share, we invite you to email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , and we'll add them here.