River Bend Neighborhood

Businesses and nonprofit concerns, all with a vested interest in the vitality of the neighborhood, have stepped forward to sponsor the River Bend Neighborhood Home Tour.  Prudential Realty is the 2008 Tour Leader.  Jake Stanton of Prudential Realty says, “we invested in this tour because we believe in community and this is good business”.

Partner sponsors of the 2008 tour are the Neighborhood Development Corporation (NDC), Community Housing Development Corporation (CHDC) and Neighborhood Finance Corporation (NFC).

Supporting sponsors are Rob Langloss of Burnett Realty, Mic Hayes and Brian Byrnes of Central Iowa Lending, along with Anne Bickell of Iowa Realty.  “River Bend is the last great find in Des Moines for unique historic homes that are still affordable” says Anne Bickell of Iowa Realty.  “You get a lot of house for the money and the opportunity to join a large group of committed individuals changing the face of this neighborhood”.

“The Neighborhood Development Corporation (NDC) is excited to showcase its Wherry Block development at the corner of 6th and College Avenue as a part of the tour,” said Brian Douglas, Project Manager for NDC, “there is great potential for further redevelopment along 6th Avenue by building off of the strength and diversity of the River Bend Neighborhood.

The 2008 River Bend Neighborhood Home Tour is coming up next weekend, September 6 and 7. More information about the homes on display and details about times and tickets can be found at:
http://www.riverbendneighborhood.com/category/hometours/ .

Neighbors and business owners from the River Bend Neighborhood met earlier this week to brainstorm ideas for the revitalization of the Sixth Avenue corridor.  Sixth Avenue is a main thoroughfare into downtown Des Moines.  It cuts right through the middle of the River Bend Neighborhood, and in recent decades has fallen on hard times. The brainstorming session sought ideas for reversing that trend, and for revitalizing and beautifying this commercial corridor.

One of the brainstorm meeting’s attendees was Neighborhood Finance Corporation (NFC) employee Steve Wilke-Shapiro. Wilke-Shapiro is Real Estate Development Manager for the agency. He recapped the discussion at the Salvation Army offices in this entry on his blog:

“Sixth Avenue is a north-south thoroughfare forming the spine of the River Bend neighborhood. It runs more or less from downtown at the south to Interstate 80 (where it turns into NW 6th Drive). Along the way it strings together a variety of destinations including Mercy Medical Center and North High School as well as crossing I-235, University, and Euclid.

“It is also, for the most part, underutilized and dreary, particularly for the pedestrian. Until now.

“Aaron Todd and Brian Douglas of the River Bend Neighborhood have recognized that the time is ripe for dealing with 6th Ave. The two are project co-leaders of a planning effort to remake 6th Avenue as a neighborhood asset. Toward that end they convened a visioning session of sorts that brought together neighborhood residents, business, and non-profit representatives to start the visioning process for a revitalized 6th Avenue.

“The visioning session commenced with small groups brainstorming “vision” statements and putting into words the elements of a successful streetscape revitalization. After sharing the results with the full group, we proceeded into a SWOC (Strengths - Opportunities - Weaknesses - Challenges) analysis. The next group exercise was a review of the suggested streetscape improvement elements identified by previous plans, and submitted to the city planning staff. The meeting concluded with a discussion of what type of neighborhood festival might work to showcase the neighborhood.

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6^th Avenue Revitalization Planning Meeting
Monday, July 21, 2008 at 7:00pm
Salvation Army Building, 1330 6^th Ave

Please plan to attend this meeting to learn about plans for the 6^th Avenue commercial corridor and to provide input for its improvement.  Citizens’ and business owners’ suggestions will be incorporated into vision for a revitalized 6^th Avenue and a concrete plan for its improvement.

It’s imperative that a cross-section of the local community is present to ensure that all voices and perspectives are heard.  We need to show the City that we are committed and ready to improve the safety, aesthetics, and investment potential of River Bend’s commercial center.

In addition, the River Bend Neighborhood Association will also be sponsoring an ice cream social at the meeting.  We hope you can make it!

If you have questions, please contact one of the meeting organizers:
Aaron Todd  515.720.1765
Brian Douglas  515.708.1189
Jeanne Johnson  515.883.2940

Millie Carr, above, has opened up a new restaurant, Something Good Restaurant and Catering, in the River Bend Neighborhood. Located at 1610 Sixth Avenue, the restaurant serves up traditional Southern-style home cooking.

Here’s what she’s serving up:

Mmmmm!

Hours:

• Tuesday-Friday: Lunch is served 11am-2pm. Dinner is served 5-8:30pm
• Saturday & Sunday: Noon - 5pm

Images: Holly McQueen/Des Moines Register