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2016-04-14 Info Packet
� 5 i CITY COUNCIL INFORMATION PACKET CITY OF IOWA CITY www.icgov.org April 14, 2016 IPI Council Tentative Meeting Schedule APRIL 19 WORK SESSION IP2 Work Session Agenda IP3 Pending City Council Work Session Topics MISCELLANEOUS IP4 Memo from NDS Dir.; Neighborhood Services Coordinator; and Development Service Coordinator: Update on Rose Oaks Development I135 Information from Mayor Pro tem Botchway: Johnson County Hunger Task Force Report IP6 Information from Council Member Mims: Regional Assessment Reveals Performance & Opportunities For Iowa's Creative Corridor IP7 Copy of press release from Council Member Mims: Joint Emergency Communications Center receives Team Telecommunicator of the Year Award IPS Memo from Interim City Manager: Low Barrier Emergency Shelter Report IP9 Memo from Equity Dir: Diversity Implementation Update and Status on Racial Equity and Diversity Initiative (1st Quarter 2016) I1310 Copy of letter from Schenker: Notice of Mass Layoff IP11 Letter from Mediacom: Channel adjustment IP12 Community Police Review Board Forum IP13 Bar Check Report —March 2016 IP14 City Council Economic Development Committee Minutes — February 4 Memorandum from Police Chief to Interim City Manager: St. Ambrose Study on ICPD Traffic Stops. [Distributed as late handouts on 4/19/16.] Power Point Presentation from Dr. Barnum [Distributed as late handouts on 4/19/16.] Summary of Results ICPD Traffic Study 2015 [Distributed as late handouts on 4/19/16.] February 25, 2016 Information Packet (continued) 2 DRAFT MINUTES IP15 Airport Commission: March 17 r ..III CITY COUNCIL INFORMATION PACKET CITY OF IOWA CITY www.icgov.org April 14, 2016 IP1 Council Tentative Meeting Schedule / APRIL 19 WORK SESSION IP2 Work Seion Agenda IP3 Pending City ouncil Work Session Topics IP4 Memo from NDS DiNeighborhood Services Coordinator: Update on\Mem aks Developmen 1135 Information from Mayor Potchway: Johns/( IP6 Information from Councilr Mims: Reyior Opportunities For Iowa's Creatr IP7 Copy of press release from Co Center receives Team Telecomr IP8 Memo from Interim City Manager: I139 Memo from Equity Dir: Diversity Diversity Initiative (151 Quarter 2 I1310 Copy of letter from Schenker- otice of Mass Layo 1131111 Letter from Mediacom: Channel adjustment IP12 Community Police Reiew Board Forum IP13 Bar Check Report rch 2016 IP14 City Council Ec nomic Development Committee Minutes — ; and Development Service County Hunger Task Force Report Assessment Reveals Performance $ ber Mims: Joint Emergency Communications of the Year Award -ler Emergency Shelter Report Cation Update and Status on Racial Equity and / DRAFT MINUTES IP15 Airport Commission: March 17 4 r i -04-W16 City Council Tentative Meeting Schedule IN _ Subject to change CITY OF IOWA CITY April 14, 2016 Date Time Meeting Location Tuesday, April 19, 2016 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall 7:00 PM Formal Meeting Monday, April 25, 2016 4:00 PM Reception Emma J. Harvat Hall 4:30 PM Joint Entities Meeting Tuesday, May 3, 2016 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall 7:00 PM Formal Meeting Tuesday, May 17, 2016 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall 7:00 PM Formal Meeting Tuesday, lune 7, 2016 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall 7:00 PM Formal Meeting Tuesday, June 21, 2016 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall 7:00 PM Formal Meeting Tuesday, July 5, 2016 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall 7:00 PM Formal Meeting Tuesday, July 19, 2016 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall 7:00 PM Formal Meeting Tuesday, August 2, 2016 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall 7:00 PM Formal Meeting Tuesday, August 16, 2016 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall 7:00 PM Formal Meeting Tuesday, September 6, 2016 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall 7:00 PM Formal Meeting Tuesday, September 20, 2016 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall 7:00 PM Formal Meeting Tuesday, October 4, 2016 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall 7:00 PM Formal Meeting Tuesday, October 18 5:00 PM Work Session Emma J. Harvat Hall Formal Meeting IP2 1 l i N r®�L% , CITY OF IOWA CITY 410 East Washington Street Iowa City, Iowa 52240-1826 (3 19) 356-5000 (319) 356-5009 FAX www.icgov.org City Council Work Session Agenda Tuesday, April 19, 2016 Emma J. Harvat Hall - City Hall 5:00 PM ■ Questions from Council re Agenda Items ■ Council Appointment [agenda item # 20] ■ Presentation from St. Ambrose University's Dr. Barnum regarding the ongoing Police Department disproportionate minority contact traffic stop study ■ Information Packet Discussion [April 7, 14] Joint agenda items [IP # 5 Info Packet of 4/7] KXIC [IP # 6 Info Packet of 4/7] ■ Council Time ■ Meeting Schedule ■ Pending Work Session Topics [IP # 3 Info Packet of 4/14] ■ Upcoming Community Events/Council Invitations r 04-14- IP3 CITY OF IOWA CITY UNESCO CITY OF LITERATURE PENDING CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION TOPICS April 14, 2016 May 3, 2016: • Review of Downtown Streetscape Master Plan May 17,2016: • Review downtown traffic model report June 7, 2016• • Waste minimization strategy review (multi -family recycling, curbside composting, single stream recycling, plastic bags and cardboard) — Relates to item 6 May 21, 2016: • Staff presentation of a preliminary affordable housing action plan —Relates to item 10 Strategic Plan / Budget Related Topics: 1. Review and consider amending the City's Tax Increment Finance (TIF) Policy (Economic Development Committee to make recommendation to full Council) 2. Consider amending the City's Annexation Policy to require the provision of affordable housing in new residential/mixed-use areas 3. Evaluate the implementation of a Form Based Code in one or two parts of the community 4. Provide timely and appropriate input on the ICCSD's planned 2017 bond referendum 5. Significantly improve the Council and staff's ability to engage with diverse populations on complex or controversial topics 6. Evaluate and consider implementation of a plastic bag policy 7. Undertake a project in FY 2017 that achieves a significant measurable carbon emission reduction 8. Set a substantive and achievable goal for reducing city-wide carbon emissions by 2030, and create an ad- hoc climate change task force, potentially under an umbrella STAR Communities committee, to devise a cost-effective strategy for achieving the goal. 9. Identify and implement an achievable goal to reduce disproportionality in arrests 10. Identify a substantive and achievable goal for the provision of affordable housing in Iowa City and implement strategies to achieve this goal 11. Determine scope of Council identified on/off street parking study 12. Determine scope of Council identified housing market analysis of core neighborhoods 13. Determine scope of Council identified complete streets study 14. Determine use of affordable housing funds resulting from the sale of the Court / Linn property Other Topics: 15. Discuss marijuana policies and potential legislative advocacy positions 16. Discuss formation of staff /citizen climate adaptation advisory group 17. Permanent City Manager 18. Review the Child Data Snapshot (IP2 2/18) and discuss related strategies with local stakeholders r -14 4 CITY OF IOWA CITY IP4 MEMORANDUM Date: April 14, 2016 To: Geoff Fruin, Interim City Mana From: Doug Boothroy, Director Nei hb�-►�►�jjRoo d and Developme t Services Tracy Hightshoe, Neighborhood Services Coordinator l John Yapp, Development Services Coordinator 7 y_ Re: Update on Rose Oaks Development Introduction: Staff, Mayor Throgmorton, and Mayor Pro Tem Botchway met with the Rose Oaks management team on Monday April 11 to discuss the Rose Oaks project, how residents are being communicated with, what resources there are for residents, and the status of the Rose Oaks project. Status of residents: According to Rose Oaks Management, to date there are 154 occupied units out of the 400 units on the property. Reportedly, of these 154 households, 40 have indicated they will be moving by the end of April, and another 47 have indicated they are interested in the incentive and are actively looking for another unit to move to (these numbers will change sometimes on a daily basis). Rose Oaks management has indicated that for households whose leases have ended but they have not found another unit, management is giving them more time and allowing them to stay on a short-term basis without a lease. Management has also indicated that for families with children, they will be able to stay in Rose Oaks until the school year has ended. Management has indicated they have approached every household in Rose Oaks by letter, by knocking on their door, and by having open office hours in the Rose Oaks office. While management has a Spanish translator on -staff, there is acknowledgement that for some non- English and non -Spanish-speaking households, communication has been difficult. Status of Site Plan: The site plan for Rose Oaks is not yet approved. City Departments have made comments on the site plan, and the designer for Rose Oaks is revising their site plan to meet City requirements for items such as pedestrian connectivity, building set -backs, screening and landscaping, etc. Staff would characterize the site plan deficiencies as numerous but minor. Once the site plan meets City codes and requirements, we are obligated by law to approve the site plan. Status of Building permits: No building permits have been issued to date. For demolition of existing buildings and construction of new buildings, no permits will be issued until the site plan is approved. Interior demolition (removal of appliances, fixtures, etc.) may be done without a permit. Permits for interior remodeling of existing buildings that keep their same building footprint and do not affect the site surrounding the building may be issued prior to site plan approval, consistent with how we treat structures in the rest of the City. Assistance to residents: Staff has spoken with Shelter House staff, who has offered to take the lead in meeting on-site with residents to help them navigate various assistance programs available to them including programs for security deposits, assistance with rent payments, moving expenses, utility deposits, etc. Shelter House staff, with the assistance of other area local agencies, have started meeting with residents on-site. The City has agreed, as authorized by Interim City Manager Fruin, to contribute $15,000 in HOME funds to Shelter House to provide assistance to qualifying Rose Oaks tenants. Rose Oaks management has offered April 14, 2016 Page 2 office space on-site for Shelter House staff and their partner agencies to use. Many of the local agencies have staff or volunteer resources available to them for translation assistance. Their capacity to provide translators will depend on the language spoken by the tenant. The City may be a resource for translation services if there are no volunteers or staff available for that particular language; Interim Manager Fruin has authorized use of City funds for translation services as necessary. Short-term impact: In the short term, the intent of Rose Oaks management is to incentivize residents to voluntarily terminate their lease (the incentive is receiving their full security deposit plus $500 per household) to be able to begin the reconstruction and remodeling project. Management has been willing to work with local agencies such as Shelter House to assist affected residents. In discussions with management, they are open to modifying their project phasing to begin the project by remodeling existing buildings on the west side of the property, and then opening those buildings for households remaining on-site before proceeding to the next phases of the project. It is still unclear how many households this would accommodate due to uncertainty with if and how many households will be willing to move either off-site or on- site, but it will be in the range of 40-60 households. Long-term impact: In the long-term, management has acknowledged rents will likely increase. They have offered to provide `rent stabilization' for households remaining on-site for approximately six months, and provide ample notice for any rent increases. As noted, since 2012 the city no longer allowed Housing Vouchers to be used on the Rose Oaks property due to living conditions and management practices under the previous owner. The Housing Authority will consider allowing housing vouchers to be used in Rose Oaks upon the completion of their reconstruction / renovation project. From Mayor Pro tem Botchway 1P5 Johnson JOHNSON COUNTY Social Services County Lynette Jacoby, LMSW—Social Services Coordinator Johnson County Hunger Task Force Report February 26, 2016 Prepared by: Lynette Jacoby Research Assistant: Natalie Veldhouse, VISTA Need In August 2014, at the direction of the Johnson County Board of Supervisors, the Johnson County Hunger Task Force was created to address the increasing number of residents facing food insecurity. Food insecurity is a broadly used measure of food deprivation in the United States. The USDA defines food insecurity as meaning "consistent access to adequate food is limited by lack of money and other resources at times during the year." Feeding America has estimated that 1 in every 7 Johnson County residents is in need of food assistance (2013). 40% of those are above the 185% income eligibility criteria and do not qualify for governmental food assistance programs. The chart below, from Iowa State University Extension and Outreach's Poverty and Food Needs for Johnson County, provides a county and state comparison of food insecure individuals by income. Johnson County has a higher percentage of food insecure residents than the state, but at 14.2% is slightly lower than the national rate of 15.8%. Map the Meal Gap, Feeding America 2012 Children Children in households with income at or below 130% of the federal poverty guidelines are eligible for free lunch. Children from households with income between 130% and 185% are eligible for reduced lunch. According to the Iowa Department of Education, Basic Educational Data Survey (BEDS) as published in the United Way of Johnson and Washington County's Community Indicator's Report, every school district in Johnson County experienced an increase in the percent of kids that qualify for and participate in either free or reduced lunches. Between 2000 and 2010 the number of children eligible for free and reduced lunch jumped 64% in the Iowa City Community School District and 71 % in Lone Tree compared with a statewide increase of 38%. In 2014-2015 the free and reduced lunch rate in the Iowa City Community School District climbed to 33.7%. 2 Johnson County Statewide Individuals who are food insecure Number of persons............................................................... 18,640 384,730 % of total population............................. .................. 14.2% 12.7% Food insecure individuals with incomes r= I95% of poverty Number of persons............................................................... 11,184 234,618 % of total population.......................................................... 8.5% 7.6% Food insecure individuals with incomes >I85% of poverty Number of persons............................................................... 7,456 155,113 % of total population .............................................. SJ% 5.0% Map the Meal Gap, Feeding America 2012 Children Children in households with income at or below 130% of the federal poverty guidelines are eligible for free lunch. Children from households with income between 130% and 185% are eligible for reduced lunch. According to the Iowa Department of Education, Basic Educational Data Survey (BEDS) as published in the United Way of Johnson and Washington County's Community Indicator's Report, every school district in Johnson County experienced an increase in the percent of kids that qualify for and participate in either free or reduced lunches. Between 2000 and 2010 the number of children eligible for free and reduced lunch jumped 64% in the Iowa City Community School District and 71 % in Lone Tree compared with a statewide increase of 38%. In 2014-2015 the free and reduced lunch rate in the Iowa City Community School District climbed to 33.7%. 2 Percent of youth receiving free or reduced lunch by school district and year 40 30.4 30 17. 20.9 20. 18. 20.2 20 ■ 2000-01 11. 107'4 ■ 2009-10 0 Clear Creek College Iowa City Lone Tree Solon State total Amana Community Seniors According to Feeding America, in 2014, 9% of American seniors aged 65 and older experienced food insecurity. In Johnson County the poverty rate for seniors living in poverty increased 63% from 3.8% to 6.1 % between 2000 and 2008 (United Way of Johnson and Washington County's Community Indicator Report). Food security barriers for seniors may include limited finances, but also encompass their ability to access food sources which may be comprised by mobility issues and lack of transportation. Food Deserts According to the USDA's Food Access Research Atlas, Johnson County has four tracts that qualify as a food desert. To qualify as a food desert an area must have a poverty rate greater than 20%, or the tract's median family income must be less than or equal to 80% of the statewide median family income or the tract is in a metro area and has a median family income less than or equal to 80% of the metro area's median family income AND there must be at least 500 people and/or at least 33% of the tract's population living more than one mile (urban) or 10 miles (rural) from a grocery store. An additional measure includes a .5 mile distance in urban areas with at least 100 households and no access to a vehicle. store Low access & low income at 5, 1 8 10 ' miles 2.5% of households have no vehicle 8 are > .5 miles from a grocery store 3 Low access & low 'linin income at .5, 1810 Br miles [year G 3.5% of households — --- ----------------- have no vehicle 8 are >.5 miles from -' grocery store ---1-6wE R �.. Low access & low income at I..n .5, 1 810 miles Low access 81ow ;I., 4.3% ofhouseholds have no income at 5, 1 8 10 vehicle 8 are > .5 miles from miles a grocery store 5% of households have no vehicle 8 are >.5 miles from a grocery .. '�• store Low access & low income at 5, 1 8 10 ' miles 2.5% of households have no vehicle 8 are > .5 miles from a grocery store 3 Areas included in the food deserts include a large geographical region from 2nd Street in Coralville stretching south to Highway 1 S and bordered by Kansas Ave and Mormon Trek, the area of Riverside Dr. from Highway 6 to Napolean St. SE and Scott Blvd. and the heavily student populated, Manville Heights southwest to Melrose Avenue. Hunger Task Force The Johnson County Hunger Task Force (JCHTF) cast a wide net, bringing together individuals across disciplines to collectively discuss challenges, gaps and opportunities to decrease food insecurity in Johnson County. The JCHTF met on 10 different occasions between October 2014 and February 2016. More than 60 individuals, including several local and state elected officials, community members, faith leaders, providers, and growers participated in at least one Task Force meeting. There was an average of 15 attendees per meeting. Additional individuals participated in subcommittee meetings. The email distribution list for the JCHTF includes nearly 150 interested community members from diverse backgrounds. Hunger Task Force Subcommittees Early on, through a priority setting exercise, the JCHTF established four priority areas; collaboration, healthy foods, access, advocacy and funding. Subcommittees were formed for the first three while it was determined that the establishment of the Advocacy and Funding Subcommittees would occur after the Access Subcommittee completed a community assessment and the JCHTF developed a set of recommendations. • Collaboration Subcommittee established the following priorities: 1.) Improve education and communication between funders, providers and those in need 2.) Identify available resources, needs and issues, outcomes and impact. This committee explored the idea of a shared data system for the food pantries, generated suggestions for local funders to work more collaboratively and discussed the need for a pantry point -in -time survey. The point -in -time survey was delegated to the Access Subcommittee. The Collaboration Subcommittee intends to reconvene, if needed, following approval of the JCHTF recommendations. • Healthy Foods Subcommittee established the following priorities 1.) Increase accessibility to healthy food 2.) Increase education on nutrition, food preparation and budgeting 3.) Improve nutritional value of food available 4.) Develop a cost efficient network making healthy food available to those in need 5.) Increase access to diverse, fresh and local foods for everyone 6.) Increase food choices at pantries, including food to meet cultural needs. The Healthy Foods Subcommittee sponsored a community meal on September 11, 2015 with the Coralville Ecumenical Food Pantry and the Hunger Task Force serving as the hosts. Locally sourced foods were used in the meal. Outreach for the event was targeted to food insecure households. The 150 individuals attending the event enjoyed a great meal, music, activities and received recipes for the food served. The subcommittee developed a tool kit for easy replication of community meals. Moving forward the committee would like to expand to offer three — four community meal events annually. • Access Subcommittee established the following priorities 1.) Assess unmet food 12 needs and increase access points where needed 2.) Develop recommendation to increase access and reduce barriers to obtaining unmet food needs. The Access Subcommittee developed and conducted surveys with providers, key informants, pantry guests and food insecure residents not accessing services. The committee reviewed and analyzed data and prepared a comprehensive summary of findings on the barriers and potential service, system and outreach needs that could help to reduce food insecurity in Johnson County. Community Assessments o Key Informant Interviews and Focus Groups o Food Pantry Recipient Survey o Food Interview with food insecure residents not accessing services o Food Assistance Provider Survey o Spatial Analysis of Food Access in Johnson County Assessment Findings Key Informant and Focus Groups The goal of the key informant interviews and focus groups was to reach out to community members who may be directly or indirectly serving food insecure individuals and have special insight into the barriers and needs of a specific population or geographical region. Key informant interviews were held with: • Jama Lidral, Free Lunch Program • Joan VandenBerg, Iowa City Community School District • Pastor Diane Townsley, Oxford United Methodist Church • Tess Knox, Social Worker at Clear Creak Amana School District Focus groups/community meetings were held in: • Shueyville • Swisher • North Liberty • Sharon Center Throughout the interviews common obstacles to food security identified included; lack of transportation, limited or no programs in the rural areas and lack of knowledge of available services. There were a number of individuals who theorized that some households in need may not access services due to a perceived stigma of doing so or a belief that others have a greater need than they do. When asked for solutions to reduce hunger within their respective communities responses included; a mobile pantry, delivery service, backpack programs, rural bus service, and expanded outreach on available services. Food Pantry Recipient Survey The Food Pantry Survey was completed between August 17 and September 5, 2015 at six food pantries including; Crisis Center of Johnson County (CCJC), North Liberty Community Pantry (NLCP), Coralville Ecumenical Food Panty (CEFP), Iowa City Compassion, Clear Creek Amana Community Food Pantry (CCACFP) and the Solon Community Food Pantry. 473 pantry guests voluntarily completed an in-depth interview -style survey sharing their personal needs, barriers to services and suggestions for improving services and increasing access to food. Interviews were conducted in English, Spanish and French. The survey interviews were completed by interns, Ameri-Corps and VISTA workers and volunteers who attended a survey administration training prior to meeting with pantry guests. Solon Community CCA Food Pantry, 9 Number of Surveys by Location Community Food Pantry, Coralville Ecumenical 3 Food Pantry, 64 ■ Crisis Center ■ IC Compassion N. Liberty Communitym" Pantry, 86 Crisis ■ N. Liberty Community Pantry ■ Coralville Ecumenical Food Pantry IC Compassion, 26- ■ Solon Community Food Pantry ■ CCA Community Food Pantry The most surveys were completed at the Crisis Center of Johnson County (60%), the largest area food pantry, followed by the North Liberty Community Pantry (86) and the Coralville Ecumenical Food Pantry (64). Limited surveys were obtained from Solon and Clear Creek Community Pantries due to volunteer scheduling and construction issues. The following tables summarize results for questions on the Food Pantry Recipient survey. Household Demographics: How many people do you live with including yourself? More than 4 19% 4 19% 13% ■1 ■2 N ■4 ■ More than 4 Nearly 50% of the recipients accessing the pantries had one or two people in the household. 0 How many children under the age of 5 do you live with? 3% 1% 0% 9% � ■0 II ■1 ■2 ■3 ■4 How many adults over the age of 65 do you live with? 9%3% 0% ■0 ■1 m ■3 27% of pantry guests reported having at least one child under the age of five in their household while 12% indicated that at least one person in the household was over the age of 65. How do you get to this pantry? 250 200 ■ Drive own car or borrow a car 150 ■ Ride with someone ■ Bus, taxi, SEATS 100 ■ Bike or Walk ■ Other 50 0 Crisis Center Coralville North Liberty IC Compassion The method of accessing pantries varies considerably depending on the site. For instance, 56% of the Crisis Center guests reported getting to the pantry with their own vehicle or borrowing a vehicle compared with 89% at the North Liberty Community Pantry, 48% at the Coralville Ecumenical Food Pantry and 34% at Iowa City Compassion. A large percentage of guests also used public transportation, walked or biked; Crisis Center (31 %), CEFP (43%), and IC Compassion (42%), but only 2% did so at the (NLCP). 7 Families that pay more than 30% of their income for housing are considered housing- cost burdened and may have difficulty affording other necessities including food. Families that pay more than 50% for housing are considered severely housing -cost burdened. 81% (416 of 473) of the survey respondents reported being severely housing -cost burdened. Please let us know which ways you and those in your household will get food this month. Congregate Meals Backpack Frog Free Meal sites Garden/farm Free/reduced lunch SNAP/Food Stamps Food Pantries 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400 450 500 Food pantries were cited as the most common way in which recipient food needs were being met, not surprising since the survey was conducted at pantries. 52% (245) of survey respondents reported receiving SNAP food assistance benefits and 21 % relied on family or friends for food. 9 How much of your need is being met by pantries? - ■ All All Very little6% 12% Most ■ Most 16% ■ About half Less than half 29% ■ Less than half About half 38% ■ Very little ■ Didn't answer One in five pantry guests reported that the pantry met most or all of their food needs while nearly 6 out of 10 guests reported that half or more of their food needs were met by pantries. Yes, 3 - 6 d 1 In the last 30 days, did you ever eat less than you wanted to because you did not have enough food in your home? Yes, 7 or more days 11%— ■o ■ Yes, 1 - 2 days ■ Yes, 3 - 6 days ■ Yes, 7 or more days Nearly 50% of all pantry guests reported eating less than they wanted to on at least one occasion in the last 30 days due to insufficient food in the home. 0 How many food pantries have you visited in the last 30 days? 3 pantries 2 pantries 1-/ 1 pantry 84% ■ 1 pantry ■ 2 pantries ■ 3 pantries During the previous 30 days 84% of pantry guests indicated visiting only one pantry, 71 or 15% visited two pantries, three visited three pantries, and three people did not respond to the question. Variety of items was identified as the most common reason (54%) for visiting more than one pantry, closely followed by not enough food at one pantry (49%). Number of respondants visiting the pantry nearest their home in the last 30 days No. 31% ■ Yes 1410Yes'' ■ No 10 In the last 30 days you have been to 2 or more pantries. What were some of your reasons for visiting more than one pantry? 4'R 50 -----------47 40 30 20 6 10 0 Variety of items Not enough at 1 Hours of pantry Convenience Transportation pantry During the previous 30 days 84% of pantry guests indicated visiting only one pantry, 71 or 15% visited two pantries, three visited three pantries, and three people did not respond to the question. Variety of items was identified as the most common reason (54%) for visiting more than one pantry, closely followed by not enough food at one pantry (49%). Number of respondants visiting the pantry nearest their home in the last 30 days No. 31% ■ Yes 1410Yes'' ■ No 10 Nearly one-third of the pantry guests surveyed were not at the pantry nearest their home. Overwhelmingly, not knowing about it was the most common reason for not visiting this pantry (64%). Convenience was the second most common response (15%). If you ran a food pantry, what would you consider the five most important items to keep in stock? Item Based on what you have told me you are eligible to go to pantry, but Percent of respondents you haven't listed this pantry as being visited in the last 30 days. What were 276 some of the reasons for not visiting this panty? 100 259 90 Fresh fruit 80 53% 70 230 60 Meat 50 48% Bread 122 40 Rice 89 19% Canned vegetables 78 30 22 74 16% 20 9 10 Paper products 62 13% 0 60 13% Didn't know Convenience Transportation Hours Food doesn't Don't wantto 58 about it meet needs be seen by Hygiene products neighbors Nearly one-third of the pantry guests surveyed were not at the pantry nearest their home. Overwhelmingly, not knowing about it was the most common reason for not visiting this pantry (64%). Convenience was the second most common response (15%). If you ran a food pantry, what would you consider the five most important items to keep in stock? Item Frequency Percent of respondents Milk 276 58% Fresh vegetables 259 55% Fresh fruit 249 53% Eggs 230 49% Meat 226 48% Bread 122 26% Rice 89 19% Canned vegetables 78 17% Other protein 74 16% Cereal 72 15% Paper products 62 13% Pasta 60 13% Boxed meals 58 12% Hygiene products 57 12% Other dairy 55 12% Beans 53 11% Canned fruit 52 11% Baby Formula 39 8% Cleaning products 35 7% Buffer 33 7% Drinks 27 6% Baby food 24 5% Microwavable meals 13 3% Feminine products 13 3% Desserts 8 2% 11 Pantry guests prioritized milk, fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, meat and bread as the most important food to stock in a pantry. The items securing the least votes were desserts, microwavable meals and feminine products. What would help you meet your household needs? Other Frequency Percent Mobile pantry 153 32% Free community meals Needs are being met 29% Home delivery 123 26% Transportation to/from pantry 104 Garden Backpack Program 94 20% Summer Lunch Program for Kids 71 Household Freezer Help signing up for SNAP 59 13% Senior Din in 45 Hygiene /Toiletry Items Closeraccessto WIC 23 5% Prefer not to answer 109 Household Cleaning Supplies/ Paper... Home Delivery Drinks / Water, Coffee, Powered Drinks Ethnic Foods Special Dietary Needs Healthier Options Fresher Items/Longer Shelf life More Fresh Fruits & Vegetables More Proteins / Meats Increase Food Assistance /SNAP Increased Income Transportation Expended Hours/ Emergency Food Bank More Baby Items (diapers, food) Increase allotment of food or Increase... More Variety More Pantries 0 10 20 30 40 Pantry guests were offered an open-ended question; what would help you meet your household needs? 274 responses were provided. The responses were categorized by like answers. The top five responses included 1) More meat and protein 2) More SNAP benefits 3) More income 4) More variety and 5) transportation and increase allotment of food/more frequent pantry visits permitted. Which of the following programs and services would help meet your food needs? Program/Service Frequency Percent Mobile pantry 153 32% Free community meals 139 29% Home delivery 123 26% Transportation to/from pantry 104 22% Backpack Program 94 20% Summer Lunch Program for Kids 71 15% Help signing up for SNAP 59 13% Senior Din in 45 9.5% Closeraccessto WIC 23 5% Prefer not to answer 109 23% 12 Programs that pantry guests identified that would help to meet food assistance needs were fairly evenly split. Mobile pantry was the most popular option followed by free community meals and home delivery. Senior dining and closer to WIC access were the least popular, however it should be taken into consideration that only 27% of respondents reported having a child under five in the home and 12% having a household member over the age of 65. It was notable that 59 people indicated they would like help signing up for SNAP. There were 228 individuals that did not identify receiving SNAP to meet their household food needs. Food Interview with food insecure residents not accessina services The purpose of the food interview was to learn more about the barriers and needs of food insecure residents who were not accessing food assistance programs at the time of the interview. There were many challenges in identifying and locating individuals that met the survey criteria. The goal was to obtain 30 — 40 surveys. Despite rigorous outreach and a small incentive for participation, only nine interviews were conducted. Survey respondents resided in North Liberty, Oxford and Iowa City (mobile home courts and low income senior housing). The interviews were completed by students from the University of Iowa Master of Public Health Qualitative Research class. In addition, the students completed observations in 10 locations, including grocery stores, senior and other dining and pantry sites, and on public transportation. Common barriers for accessing food that were identified, during interviews, included; lack of knowledge about services, assumption that if ineligible for one service they do not qualify for any services, location of pantries, transportation, operating hours of pantries not conducive for working people or those with children, stigma, fear of lack of confidentiality (more specific to smaller communities) and concern about "taking food away from move deserving people". A sampling of quotes from survey participants regarding personal barriers to accessing services: /think transportation is a major barrier because food boxes are HEAVY. Right? And so, if you're--, `cause it's all canned goods, dried goods, you know, and that stuffs really heavy. And so if you're takin' the bus, and you have this enormous food box, you know? It's really hard to get it home. So 1 think transportation is definitely an issue... 1 would go once a week every week, but you know, it's hard, the buses don't get close to there and my legs are bad. 1 need to use the pantry, but the hours — closing at 4:30, what do you do about the people who get off work? ... They still need you (pantry), because they working that don't mean that they don't need the pantry, you know. 1 get $16 (n food stamps]. And so, my money is limited so 1 can't spend more than $50 out of my money. And so that gives me like $66 ... it'd be nice to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner, you know. 1 can't eat breakfast, lunch and dinner now. Recommendations to reduce barriers included; adding more direct bus routes to pantries and grocery stores, adding more weekend and evening routes and expansion to rural areas, mobile food pantries, food stands, increase outreach and awareness regarding 13 food resources, expanded hours at existing pantries, more physical space for pantries and educate the public on the face of food insecurity in Johnson County. Food Assistance Provider Survey An electronic survey was sent to 16 food assistance providers, predominately pantry and dining program directors, to gather information on program eligibility criteria, data and demographics, organizational and client needs and potential solutions to address the need. 12 providers responded to the survey some via telephone interviews. Seven pantries, three dining sites and two suppliers (HACAP and WIC) responded to the survey. How often can clients use your food -related services? 1 time per week 6 of 7 pantries As much as needed 1 of 7 pantries 3 of 3 dining programs The average pounds of food provided per visit, at the five pantries that tracked weight, ranged between 20 — 34 pounds with an average of 24.45 pounds. Does your organization deliver to the ill, aged, or those unable to come themselves? Yes 2 of 7 pantries (one for illness and short-term only, the other doesn't publicize) No 5 of 7 pantries Elder Services was the only program identified providing delivery service of prepared meals. Can others pick up food for friends or family who can't get it themselves? Yes 6 of 7 pantries 1 of 3 dining sites Case by case basis 1 of 7 pantries What are the eligibility criteria for your program? Resident of specific city 2 of 7 pantries Resident of County 1 of 7 pantries 1 of 3 dining programs Picture ID 2 of 7 pantries No criteria 4 of 7 pantries 2 of 3 dining programs Are you receiving Table to Table donations? Yes 7 of 7 pantries 2 of 3 dining programs Do you receive donations of fresh produce? Yes 3 of 7 pantries 2 of 3 dining programs No 4 of 7 pantries (3 of 4 interested) 1 of 3 dining programs (1 interested) What are the most and least popular fresh fruits and vegetables? Pantries Dining Programs Most Popular Least Popular Most Popular Least Popular Any fruit Oranges Turnips Potatoes No responses Cucumbers Zucchini Kohlrabi Apples Carrots Gr. beans Kale Oranges Potatoes Corn Bok choy Bananas Tomatoes Apples Eggplant All fruit Onions Leafy greens 14 What fruits and vegetables do you consistently receive enough of? What would you like to receive more of? Would like more of: Receive enough of: Fruit Many in -season produce is popular initially, but after a few Peppers weeks less so Onions Summer squash Carrots Cucumbers Lettuce 2 0 Green beans Corn Meat What are the highest demand pantry items? s Highest Demand Pantry Items 6 4 2 0 Meat Eggs Milk Fresh fruit Canned fruit bread The providers identified cost, lack of storage, and limited refrigeration and freezer storage as the primary challenges to consistently stocking these high demand items. Are there parts of the county that you feel are underserved? • Those living in rural communities with limited access to food pantries • Lack of hot meal programs outside of Iowa City • North Liberty • Individuals with mobility issues • Mobile home parks • Older adults living in senior housing • Individuals without access to transportation • Those unable to use services closest to them for eligibility reasons What challenges does your organization face in meeting the need of food recipients? • Storage for perishable and non-perishable goods • Access to fresh fruits and vegetables • Not enough volunteers • Having enough items that families need (inventory challenges) • Language barriers, lack of interpreters • Not enough funding for inventory What resources would benefit your organization? • 46% (6 of 13) interpreters/multi-lingual volunteers, identified by the three largest pantries • 23% (3 of 13) storage • 0% technical support, a better location, different hours 15 How can Johnson County help more in your organization's efforts? • Continue the Hunger Task Force, lots of great collaboration and innovative ideas • Help increase community awareness about hunger • Assistance with storage • Help purchase food stock and grants to support our work • Continued financial support Spatial Analysis of Food Access in Johnson County Katie Gandhi, University of Iowa Urban and Regional Planning intern at the Crisis Center utilized data from the Crisis Center, the U.S. Census and the Iowa GIS Data Repository to review food insecurity throughout Johnson County. A site suitability analysis was completed to determine ideal locations for new senior dining, pantry services and the addition of backpack programs. Since the completion of the spatial analysis in the May 2015, there have been several changes which impact some of the report findings and recommendations. Lone Tree was identified as a suitable location for a new senior dining program however dining services are already being offered in this community and were inadvertently not factored into the study. Several backpack programs were being offered throughout the County at the time of the analysis, however the presence of backpack programs in schools tends to be fluid. These programs are often funded on a short-term basis. The Coralville Ecumenical Food Pantry will have a new, more centrally located home in the spring of 2016 which likely alters the recommendation for site suitability for additional pantry services in Coralville. Site Suitability for a New Pantry Location �� uia -� �VppiveWN � 51 \ "/n..ev PviNri� 'gvR.�s s PI Le92nE,W 3VMd SIM. b..a8 on the fonnuWng r!Md.: a.. _...... apfXhin me of of . bps stop Hnanthan e! mil exi wingh'*M density Mo Faeniwf *M3re Man "miles lra m'SA'•X1xBn9 Motl Pantry Stes � _ lZ RepMaC hr F(utle Gandfl a oMtes 16 The spatial analysis concludes that there are areas of Johnson County that could benefit from additional services. The map above illustrates site suitability for additional pantry services in Iowa City. The areas highlighted in purple have a high client density (greater than 100), is located more than .25 mile from a bus stop and more than .83 miles from an existing food pantry. The researcher established these criteria based on the JCHTF's desire to target new programs and/or facilities in areas of need, including areas that lacked access to transportation and in some cases were not already supported by other services. The spatial analysis also includes a recommendation for senior dining program in Coralville and additional pantry and senior dining services in North Liberty. The site suitability study recommends the addition of pantry services in the far southwest corner of Johnson County. Summary of Key Findings The Access Subcommittee took a comprehensive approach to reviewing food insecurity in Johnson County, interviewing consumers and providers of services, key informants and community members, and the under -served. Additionally, data from a variety of sources including Feeding America, the U.S. Census and the Iowa Department of Education was utilized to substantiate need by target population. A spatial analysis was also conducted to determine geographic need within Johnson County. In analyzing the data from the various populations surveyed there were many common themes regarding needs and barriers. Barriers to Increasing Food Security CONSUMERS • Transportation • Lack of awareness about resources and eligibility requirements • Logistics of carrying heavy groceries when walking or using public transit • Service providers offer limited or no evening and weekend hours • Stigma • Difficulties with completion and approval of SNAP application • Availability of healthy foods • Limited services (food deserts) in rural areas • SNAP not accepted at Farmer's Markets and CSA's • Program restrictions with providers and SNAP for PROVIDERS • Lack of dry, cold, freezer storage in Johnson County • Regulations on storage, foods that can be accepted and distributed, eligibility for accepting SNAP (Feeding America, FDA, USDA, OAA) • Limited resources • Limited inventory to meet demand; including protein, non-food items, pet foods, donation of local produce • Lack of participation in summerfeeding programs and school breakfast • Lack interpreters • Limited culturally diverse foods (urban pantries) The Access Subcommittee noted several key findings from the data collected: ➢ 81% of pantry visitors are severely housing cost burdened (spending more than 50% of income on housing costs) ➢ 48% of pantry visitors are not receiving SNAP benefits ➢ 58% receive half or more of their food from food pantries ➢ 48% of pantry visitors reported eating less than they wanted on at least one occasion the last 30 days because they did not have enough food ➢ 21% of pantry visitors reported getting their food from friends or family in the last month ➢ 31% surveyed were not at the pantry nearest their home; 17 63% of those didn't know about their community pantry ➢ 15% reported visiting more than one pantry during the last month • 50% of those reported not receiving enough food at one pantry • 53% of those reported visiting more than one pantry for the variety of items ➢ Milk, fresh vegetables and fruit, eggs and meat were the most important foods respondents felt pantries should stock ➢ Providers reported offering little outreach, yet have a high demand for services ➢ 86% of pantries reported the highest demand items to be meat, and eggs ➢ 3 of 8 pantries (38%) offer Saturday hours ) and 0 pantries are open after 7:00 pm. 6 of 8 pantries (75%) are open at least one evening until between 6:00 — 7:00 pm. ➢ 100% of the urban pantries reported that their organization would benefit from interpreters ➢ The three largest pantries in the County identified lack of storage as a barrier to meeting the food needs of recipients ➢ There are no backpack orfood pantry services in the secondary schools ➢ Dining programs are lacking or non-existent beyond Iowa City (excluding senior dining) ➢ There is no on-going food delivery service, with the exception of Meals on Wheels, a program for the aging, and a small rural pantry that doesn't promote the service. A major grocery retailer has begun providing delivery service however SNAP isn't a payment option for this service. ➢ Transportation barriers were noted on every assessment ranging from, no public transportation available in some communities, long distances to a bus stop, limited or no evening/weekend service and in some areas there is no direct bus routes to grocery stores from high density low income areas ➢ The stigma and fear of being identified were more commonly identified as barriers in the rural areas Recommendations The Access Subcommittee developed a list of solutions to help reduce hunger in Johnson County. The solutions were grouped into three separate categories; services, systemic, and outreach. While some of the solutions consist of new programming opportunities that would require a financial investment, others have no price tag attached and include policy changes, program modifications and focused outreach efforts. The Hunger Task Force was presented with a comprehensive list of potential solutions along with the rationale for each proposal. (Solutions and Rationale to Reduce Hunger in Johnson County, located in the appendix) Those present at the February 8, 2016 JCHTF meeting participated in a priority setting activity to establish the recommendations that would be used to develop an action plan to reduce local hunger. Each JCHTF was provided the opportunity to select their top three solutions within each category. Decisions were based upon data to substantiate the need in addition to likelihood that the solution could be achieved within a reasonable amount of time. IR Service Priorities to Reduce Food Insecurity Based on percent of votes received Farm stands near food deserts & schools/include education Mobile Pantry to rural areas & food deserts Pantry or backpack programs in secondary schools Additional funding to pantries to increase inventory for meat, milk and eggs Delivery service Plant fruit bearing trees to increase inventory at pantries/dining Community dining in Coralville & N. Liberty Senior Dining in Coralville Community Meals Pilot purchase of mini -portable cart for those with transportation barriers Bus passes to pantries 0 10 20 30 40 Systemic Priorities to Reduce Food Insecurity Based on percent of votes Obtain local food storage facility to be shared by pantries Improve bus routes, more direct routes from food deserts Expand SNAP to all city farmer's markets Expand pantry hours to include more evenings and weekends Reduce eligibility barriers at pantries and other food resoures Central point of contact/staff dedicated to hunger Apply for Ameri-Corps Food -Corps grant Advocate for Food to Farm regulations Advocate for less restrictive SNAP guidelines, increase benefits & reduc app barriers Regionalize bus service 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 19 Outreach Priorities to Reduce Hunger Based on a percent of votes Website to serve as a centralized location for information for growers & eaters Brochure of food resources; include eligibility rules, distribute widely SNAP outreach Outreach to growers to donate produce Promote summerfeeding programs Promote school breakfast programs Bus route information dessimination Community awareness campaign on hunger 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 Recommendations based on identified priorities: Services Systemic Outreach 1. Farm stands near food 1. Acquire local storage to be 1. Shared website for deserts & schools include shared by pantries (ideally growers and eaters — an education component dry, frozen & refrigeration) centralized location for (collaborate with Grow Jo 2. Improved bus routes — information Co) direct routes to grocery 2. Brochure of food resources 2. Mobile pantry to rural stores from food deserts to include eligibility areas and food deserts 3. Expand SNAP acceptance requirements 3. Pantry/backpack programs to all city farmer's markets 3. SNAP outreach to secondary schools Roughly 30 solutions to reduce hunger in Johnson County were generated; along with the documented need. The recommended priorities were determined by selecting the top three identified solutions as a starting point with the hope that over time additional solutions/interventions would be initiated by anyone having an interest in addressing hunger. Hunger is not an issue that can be solved by one entity alone. Feeding America has estimated that an additional $9.3 million would be needed to address the 18,760 food insecure Johnson County residents. 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The data is based on comprehensive qualitative and quantitative information and gathered through focus groups and survey responses from 2,200 local participants earlier this year. The Assessment revealed a region that has performed well against state and national averages for many key economic and demographic indicators. It also assessed that Iowa's Creative Corridor holds its own against some of the top comparison regions in the Midwest, including Des Moines, Madison, WI, and Fort Collins, CO. The Corridor's performance during the Great Recession in the late 2000s was among the strongest in the country, buffered by the region's stable, diverse economy and well-established anchor institutions and companies. The Regional Assessment also indicated that while there were certain local variations, the Creative Corridor largely demonstrated notably low rates of poverty and competitive, growing levels of individual and household incomes. Wages were competitive and rose faster than the Corridor's comparison areas, potentially because of what was identified as the region's principal challenge, a tight labor market with low rates of unemployment and high labor force participation percentages. In fact, the Creative Corridors labor force growth has not kept pace with the region's population and employment increases. Challenges to retain and attract talent, especially young professionals, were cited by respondents to the Regional Assessment's public input process as key local concerns. J. Mac Holladay, founder and CEO of Market Street Services, the firm contracted to facilitate the Creative Corridor's strategic visioning process, commented, "I was pleasantly surprised to see how well the Creative Corridor has performed in recent years, especially during the Great Recession. It's a testament to your tremendous assets in the region and how you've been able to leverage them." The full assessment is available here for more information. The Regional Assessment is Phase Two in the Regional Vision Rising process, a comprehensive, inclusive and forward -seeking effort to create a regional strategy for Iowa's Creative Corridor. Assessment information will contribute to the vision planning process and assist in prioritizing regional needs. The Regional Vision Rising process began in February 2016 and will take approximately seven months. At the end of the months -long effort, the Creative Corridor will have a consensus -based, achievable roadmap to guide the area's path to short and long-term economic growth. Market Street Services, Inc., a community and economic development consulting firm, is facilitating the process. Creative Corridor Regional Vision is supported through resources from the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, Corridor Alliance, East Central Iowa Council of Governments, Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation, Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce, Iowa City Area Development Group, Kirkwood Community College, Marion Chamber of Commerce, MEDCO, MedQuarter, University of Iowa and United Way of East Central Iowa. The Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance is providing staff support to the process. -- About MarketStreet Inc. Founded in 1997, Market Street is an independent, national workforce, community, and economic development consulting firm. Market Street brings original insights and clarity to the evaluation and revitalization of the places where people live, work, and grow. Through honest and informed assessments, Market Street works with the community to create meaningful change. Market Street's community clients are successful at creating stronger programs, increasing operational budgets, and creating new quality jobs that improve the quality of life in their communities. • iowa's (creative corridor REGIONAL ASSESSMENT CREATIVE CORRIDOR REGIONAL VISION STRATEGY Submitted by Market Street Services, Inc. www.marketstreetservices.com April 7, 2016 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction .............................. Project Overview ..................... Regional Assessment............ The Creative Corridor Story Strong but Uneven Population Growth and Change A Quality but Constrained Workforce with Strong Resident ..1 ..2 ..3 ..7 ..7 15 A Resilient, Diverse Local Economy and Competitive Business Climate...............................................................28 Strong Entrepreneurial Legacywith a Still -Evolving Startup Ecosystem...............................................................38 A Nice Place to Live but Not Without Necessary but Elusive Regionalism Conclusion 46 56 .o. Photos used on cover and only for purposes associated with this proposal are sourced from the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance website (left, right); and C Luzav10 I Dreamstime.com - Iowa City Photo (middle). • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment INTRODUCTION Regional cooperation has become the hallmark of successful communities across the nation. Working together provides an opportunity to celebrate local strengths while combining and optimizing limited resources. In the Creative Corridor, there are multiple communities, including the Cedar Rapids and Iowa City metro areas that could and should be leveraged for greater economic growth and prosperity. There has been significant progress in recent years, but there is still more to do. In December of 2008, 30 leaders from this region assembled, still coming to grips with the impact of recent devastating floods, and agreed that the collective region should focus on three strategic imperatives: 1) achieve full flood recovery, 2) develop and implement a regional brand; and 3) develop and implement a regional economic development strategy. With flood -recovery projects largely completed and the Creative Corridor brand successfully launched, the first two imperatives have been completed, but not the third. To this end, the region is now ready to embark upon the creation of a comprehensive, consensus -based Regional Vision Strategy for the Creative Corridor. This process will also serve as the East Central Iowa Council of Governments (ECICOG)'s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) process. It is understood that the agency will submit the CEDS to the U.S. Economic Development Agency in the fall of 2016. Further, a concurrent regional transportation planning process will be managed by ECICOG, with the goal of integrating the two efforts as much as possible during the processes. ECICOG will combine the primary strategy deliverables from each process into a single document, the Comprehensive Regional Development Strategy (CRDS). A diverse Steering Committee representing all aspects of Iowa's Creative Corridor will guide this process and ensure that it lays a foundation allowing individuals and businesses in the region to thrive. The strategy process will build on regional strengths, preserve local identity, and add value to the existing efforts of individual organizations throughout the region. The partners supporting this project include the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance (CRMEA), Corridor Alliance, East Central Council of Governments, Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation, Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce, Iowa City Area Development Group ([CAD), Kirkwood Community College, Marion Chamber of Commerce, Marion Economic Development Group (MEDCO), Med Quarter Regional Medical District, University of Iowa, and United Way of East Central Iowa. C, n J—] ECONOMIC 11F, M �O G I� ALLIANCE Marion Economic oe�eiw,.�,mm icac L. IMA Ck1'A'°' COMMUNITY FOUNDATION ECIC: G r/Ip^� Mapo MARION .N.ii6FC°. e° Chamber Kirkwood COMMUNITY MedQUARTER COLLEGE L—irIT-P, your 146fiwe RCgronal MEtliC lDi5tr 1. ft TaE LINIWMM U lows Market Street Services, a national community and economic development strategy -creation firm based in Atlanta, is facilitating the strategic planning process. MARKETH Page 1 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment PROJECT OVERVIEW Moving from brand to strategy will require that the concepts that informed the Creative Corridor label be expanded to a complete focus on all aspects of the seven -county region's competitive position, key challenges and opportunities, and vision for its successful future. Thus, the Creative Corridor strategic process begins with the gathering and assessment of comprehensive qualitative and quantitative information to set up a baseline of findings that will drive the remaining phases of the process. Stakeholder input was purposely designed to be representative of all key public and private Creative Corridor constituency groups. The phases of the Regional Vision process are as follows: PHASE ONE: STAKEHOLDER INPUT The first phase involved reaching out to as many regional stakeholders as possible through an online survey, individual interviews, and focus groups to help identify the region's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges. PHASE TWO: REGIONAL ASSESSMENT This Regional Assessment provides an objective examination of the region's advantages and challenges. Supplementing quantitative findings with qualitative data from Phase I, the Assessment will tell the "story of the Creative Corridor," highlighting key findings from the research and identifying initial strategic implications. The seven -county region will be benchmarked against Iowa and the United States, as well as Des Moines, IA; Fort Collins, CO; and Madison, WI to provide greater context for the analysis. PHASE THREE: CREATIVE CORRIDOR ECONOMIC ANALYSIS This phase will take a deeper dive into the region's economic and workforce -related dynamics to provide greater context for understanding regional opportunities and challenges. The Analysis will seek to identify the target business sectors which have the greatest potential to drive job creation, elevate standards of living in the community, and provide the greatest opportunities to catalyze growth and development. PHASE FOUR: CREATIVE CORRIDOR REGIONAL VISION STRATEGY The Vision Strategy will build off of the findings of the first phases and also incorporate existing efforts. Examples of best practice programs, policies, and initiatives from communities around the country will be included when relevant and appropriate to help form strategic recommendations and their subsequent implementation. The final product will be an aggressive and ambitious blueprint for advancing the Creative Corridor's economy, workforce, and long-term prosperity. PHASE FIVE: IMPLEMENTATION PLAN The final phase will provide a roadmap for regional leaders to activate and operationalize the Strategy. The Plan will identify lead implementers, key partners, budget considerations, and timelines for implementation of each recommendation. Additionally, performance metrics will be provided to enable stakeholders to track the progress of implementation and goal attainment. MARKETH Page 2 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment REGIONAL ASSESSMENT The Creative Corridor Regional Assessment explores the strengths and challenges of the region, evaluating them through what Market Street believes to be the three critical aspects of a community: people,jobs and prosperity, and quality of life and place. Findings related to these key attributes are incorporated into six key stories that frame the discussion of the most important issues impacting the Creative Corridor's competitiveness as a place to live, work, visit, and do business. These stories represent themes that emerged from extensive public input provided by the Creative Corridor residents, businesses, and community leaders, as well as a comprehensive analysis of data covering regional demographic, socioeconomic, and economic trends. The six stories are: • Strong but Uneven Population Growth and Change • A Quality but Constrained Workforce with Strong Resident Wellbeing • A Resilient, Diverse Local Economy and Competitive Business Climate • Strong Entrepreneurial Legacy with a Still -Evolving Startup Ecosystem • A Nice Place to Live but Not Without Challenges • Necessary but Elusive Regionalism FOCUS GROUPS AND INTERVIEWS: A thorough assessment of a community's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges must be informed by input from the people that live and work in the area. A series of focus groups and interviews with individuals from the region's public, private, and non-profit sectors was conducted in February 2016. Public input — including focus groups, interviews, and an online survey — is differentiated throughout the report and presented in bold, blue text. ONLINE SURVEY: In addition to in-person input solicited via six focus groups and 12 interviews, an online community survey was open to the public for roughly three weeks in February 2016. A total of 2,091 residents, workers, and business leaders responded to the survey, providing perspectives that will help supplement face-to-face meetings and quantitative analysis. In total, over 2,200 people contributed to this process to date through public input. The survey was open to all regional stakeholders but is not considered a scientific sample. Perspectives that may have not been captured in the survey were instead informed by carefully planned interviews and focus groups with leaders from across the Corridor. DATA SOURCES: A variety of public and private data sources are used throughout this Assessment. A great deal of information is drawn from the Census Bureau and other public sources including the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the Iowa Department of Education (IDoE), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Proprietary data covering economic composition (employment, wages, exports, etc.) are provided by Economic Modeling Specialists, Inc. (EMS[). MARKETH Page 3 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment COMPARISON GEOGRAPHIES: Throughout this assessment, the seven county Creative Corridor region is utilized as the primary geographic unit of analysis, and is typically referred to as "the Creative Corridor," "the Corridor," or "the region." Intra -regional dynamics are occasionally discussed at the county or sub - county level. Certain indicators were not available for Cedar and Iowa Counties. RESEARCH DYNAMICS: When the five -county region (Cedar Rapids and Iowa City metropolitan statistical areas or MSAs) is the profiled geography, it will be italicized as the "Creative Corridor," while references in graphics will have an asterisk to denote this composition. In addition to state and national averages, the region's performance is benchmarked against three metros with which it shares certain characteristics and/or competes for jobs, workers, and investment: the Des Moines -West Des Moines, IA MSA; the Fort Collins, CO MSA; and the Madison, WI MSA. These metros are often identified by their principle city (e.g. "Des Moines") throughout the report. As will be seen in the report, the Creative Corridor is comprised by two, fairly distinctive "nodes" north and south corresponding to the Cedar Rapids and Iowa City metropolitan areas. This is in addition to the two rural Corridor counties that are not included in these MSAs. Within these sub -geographies are even more distinctive component districts, including some that have much different racial and economic profiles than the region -at -large. The issue of "one region, multiple segments" and how to differentiate their challenges and opportunities is an important yet difficult one from a research and strategy standpoint. Market Street feels that the Regional Assessment must be focused on broader Corridor -wide issues as opposed to finer - grained analysis of its component MSAs, municipalities, or districts. A segmented approach would ultimately be counter-productive to the goal of developing and implementing a strategic vision and action plan for the full breadth of the Creative Corridor. That said, certain data were disaggregated for component MSAs, counties, and cities when most beneficial to illuminating regional trends. MARKET sr Page 4 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment TABLE OF FIGURES Figure 1: Population Change By County, Creative Corridor, 2004-2014...........................................................................7 Figure 2: Population Change, Benchmark Regions, 2004-2014...........................................................................................8 Figure 3: Components of Population Change, 2009-2014.....................................................................................................9 Figure 4: Creative Corridor Domestic Net Migration 2001-2013......................................................................................10 Figure 5: Population Change by Race and Ethnicity, 2004-2014......................................................................................11 Figure 6: Population Change By Age Group, 2009-2014.....................................................................................................12 Figure 7: Survey Results "Please Indicate If You Disagree Or Agree With The Following Statement About Young Professionals (Working Ages 25-34): . ........................................................................................................................... 13 Figure 8: Educational Attainment, 2014...................................................................................................................................... 16 Figure 9: Population Change by Educational Attainment, 2009-2014............................................................................16 Figure 10: Share Of The Population With A Bachelor's Degree Or Higher By Age Group, 2014 .........................17 Figure11: K-12 Snapshot, 2013-2014..........................................................................................................................................18 Figure 12: Public School Performance, 2013-2014.................................................................................................................19 Figure 13: Iowa Public High School Graduate Intentions, 2013-2014............................................................................20 Figure 14: Enrollment And Degree Completions At Public And Private, Non -Profit Higher Education Institutions, 2013-2014.......................................................................................................................................................................21 Figure15: Labor Force, 2004-2014................................................................................................................................................23 Figure 16: Per Capita Income, 2004-2014...................................................................................................................................24 Figure 17: Household Income Distribution Change, 2009-2014.......................................................................................25 Figure18: Poverty Rates, 2014........................................................................................................................................................26 Figure 19: Change In Poverty Rates, 2009-2014......................................................................................................................26 Figure 20: Total Jobs, 2005-2015...................................................................................................................................................28 Figure 21: Average Annual Figure 22: Overview Of Creative Corridor Figure 23: Top 15 Employers In The Creative Corridor 29 30 31 Figure 24: Survey Results — "Please Rate The Following Elements Of The Creative Corridor's Business Climate According To The Degree To Which Each Is An Advantage Or Disadvantage To Existing And ProspectiveNew Businesses.".............................................................................................................................._..........................32 Figure 25: Average Rental Rates, December 2015..................................................................................................................34 MARKET sr Page 5 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment Figure 26: Survey Responses — "From The Standpoint Of Economic Development, What Do You Believe To Be The Creative Corridor's GREATEST STRENGTH OR ASSET As It Seeks To Grow Quality Jobs That Elevate Standards Of Living For Its ResidentsY........................................................................................................................................35 Figure 27: Survey Responses — "From The Standpoint Of Economic Development, What Do You Believe To Be The Creative Corridor's Biggest Challenge As It Seeks To Grow Quality Jobs That Elevate Standards Of LivingFor Its ResidentsY....................................................................................................................................................................36 Figure 28: Employees By Firm Size, Q4 2009-Q4 2014.........................................................................................................38 Figure 29: Employees By Firms Age, +/- 10 Years, Q4 2009-Q4 2014............................................................................39 Figure 30: Please Rate the Following Components of the Creative Corridor's Entrepreneurial Climate: 41 Figure 31: Venture Capital Investments, 2014..........................................................................................................................42 Figure 32: University Research Activity(FY2013)............................................................................._......................................43 Figure 33: Patents Per 10,000 Residents, 2003-2013.............................................................................................................44 Figure 34: Survey Responses — "What Do You Think Could Be Done To Make The Creative Corridor More Attractive For Young ProfessionalsY.............................................................................................................................................47 Figure 35: Survey Responses "Please Rate The Following Aspects Of The Creative Corridor's Quality Of Life, Based On Your Experiences Where You Live."..........................................................................................................................49 Figure 36: Violent And Property Crime Rates, Incidents Per 10,000 Residents, 2013 ...............................................50 Figure 37: Metro Home Affordability, 2014...............................................................................................................................51 Figure 38: Single Family; Home Value Index; Recession And Recovery Figure 39: Transit Data, 2014 52 53 Figure 40: Survey Responses - "Imagine That You Went Home, Packed Your Bags, And Didn't Return To The Region For Ten Years. What Would You Want To See Different (If Anything) About The Region When You ReturnY..................................................................................................................................................................................................... 54 MARKET sr Page 6 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment THE CREATIVE CORRIDOR STORY The following narratives comprise the Creative Corridor's "story' for the purposes of this Regional Assessment. Key takeaways are listed at the end of each story section. Strong but Uneven Population Growth and Change Unlike many communities in Iowa, the Creative Corridor population is growing as its population diversifies. This is a positive and notable trend, although certain dynamics of this population growth and sub -regional variations in growth are potential concerns. Population growth is often seen as a fundamental indicator of a region's attractiveness as a place to live, work, and play, though the components of population change are also important. For example, growth may be flat overall, but the percentage of higher -skilled residents may be increasing. In the case of the Creative Corridor, both overall growth and the dynamics of that growth are positive. This indicates that there are factors like job availability, quality of life, cost of living, and other elements that are compelling factors for talent retention and attraction. FIGURE 1: POPULATION CHANGE BY COUNTY, CREATIVE CORRIDOR, 2004-2014 Benton County, IA 26,478 26,720 25,680 (1,040) I♦.9% (798) 1-3.0% e8% 10.3% Cedar County, IA 17,980 17,959 18,411 452 2% 431 2.4% 0.5% 0.2% Iowa County, IA 15,787 15,763 16,375 612 3:9% _ 588 3.7% 0.8% 0.4% Johnson County, IA 119,827 _130,913 142,287 11,374 8.7% 2_2,460 18.7% 1.7% 1.7% Jones County, IA 20,397 20,100 20,454 354 1.8% _ 57 0.3% 0.3% 0.0% Linn County, IA 197,950 208,973 217,751 8,778 4.2% 19,801 10.0% 0.8% 1.0% Washington County, IA 21,080 21,255 22,070 815 3.8% 990 4.7% 0.8% 0.5% Source: United States Census Bureau, Population Estimates In the Creative Corridor, population growth trends in the seven counties varied widely. National post - recession trends have shown a growing preference for Millennials and baby boomers to live in urban communities that boast walkable neighborhoods, bike paths, entertainment options, and other amenities. Population growth dynamics within the Creative Corridor mirror the national trends. The denser, urban core counties of Johnson and Linn exhibited the fastest population growth, while more rural Corridor counties trailed. Benton County actually saw a population decline over a ten-year period and post - recession timeframe. While the University of Iowa student population comprises a large share of Johnson County's population, enrollment growth at the university was not the reason for the county's large MARKETH Page 7 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment population increase. In fact, student enrollment at the University of Iowa actually decreased slightly (-0.6 percent) between 2009 and 2014. FIGURE 2: POPULATION CHANGE, BENCHMARK REGIONS, 2004-2014 Creative Corridor 419,499 441,683 463,028 21,345 4.8% 43,529 10.4% 0.9% 1.0% Des Moines 511,667 562,540 611,549 49,009 8.7% 99,882 19.5% 1.7% 1.8% Fort Collins 271,515 297,233 324,122 26,889 9.0% 52,60719.4% 1.7% 1.8% Madison 568,170 605,797 633,787 27,990 4.6% 65,617 ''-X11.5% 0.9% 1.1% Iowa 2,942,311 3,008,331 3,107,126 98,795 3.3% 164,815 -5.6% 0.6% 0.5% United States 292,805,298 306,771,529 318,857,056 12,085,527 3.9% 26,051,758 8.9% 0.8% 0.9% CAGB -Compound Annual Growth Rate Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimate When viewed against its benchmark regions, the Creative Corridor's population trends compare favorably. Though trailing metro Des Moines and Fort Collins — two of the fastest growing regions in the Midwest — the Corridor's growth actually exceeded fast-growing Madison as well as state and national figures. Continuing decades -long trends, consolidating population growth among Iowa's more urban regions accounted for all of the state's recent population growth, with the five fastest growing counties all located in metro areas. In 1970, Iowa's four major metros — Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, Iowa City, and Quad Cities — accounted for 36.8 percent of the state's population. In 2014, they accounted for 45.8 percent. In order to understand more about the sustainability of population trends and how they affect workforce capacity, it is important to examine the components of population change. Population growth stems from two sources — natural change (the number of births minus the number of deaths) and net migration (domestic and international). These components offer insight to how a particular community is growing. In the Creative Corridor, much of the region's population growth (62.3 percent) can be attributed to natural change rather than net migration. Only Iowa featured a larger percentage of its growth from this source. Of its net migration, the majority of new Creative Corridor residents came from overseas; a trend also mirrored in the state as a whole. It is likely that Iowa's manufacturing and agriculture employment base, its public and private universities, and the state's long history of refugee resettlement have been key components to attracting international migrants to Iowa. MARKET sr Page 8 - April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment FIGURE 3: COMPONENTS OF POPULATION CHANGE, 2009-2014 100°h 1 '. 80% 27.1% 60% 40% 20% 0% -20% Creative Des Moines Fort Collins Madison Iowa Corridor Source: United States Census Bureau, Population Estimates ■ Domestic Migration International Migration ■ Natural Change While overall population growth is a positive development, the challenge the Creative Corridor faces in attracting migrants from elsewhere in the U.S. can be seen when comparing data to the benchmark regions. As noted previously, the Des Moines and Fort Collins metros are among the Midwest's fastest growing. A large percentage of this growth is coming from migrants from elsewhere in the country, a strong indication of the real and perceived attractiveness of these communities. Migration — both domestic and international — is often linked; in other words, newcomers to Des Moines and Fort Collins are likely drawing additional waves of migration from their personal networks outside the region. Similar, though less intensive, domestic migration trends can be seen in the Madison metro. Numerous public input respondents commented on the challenges of attracting talent to the Creative Corridor. Largely, these centered around either a lack of or misperception of the region to outsiders or the lack of a critical mass of quality of life amenities that one might find in a larger metropolitan area. Survey respondents who reported having lived in the region for less than five years were asked, "What brought you to Iowa's Creative Corridor?" Roughly 60 percent responded that it was to be closer to family or because of better employment opportunities. Many open-ended responses noted that a spouse had obtained local employment or was returning home. Looking deeper into domestic migration trends can also be illuminating. Analysis of data from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) shines light on top source and destination counties for Creative Corridor migrants. The IRS's Statistics of Income program compiles information on individual tax returns and tracks tax returns' county of residence in previous years to the current year's county of residence. Thus, it is able to provide more detailed information on the movement of households between counties. Additionally, the MARKETE Page 9 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment number of exemptions that move from county to county on each tax return can provide a rough estimate of the net flow of individuals from each county of origin to their destination county. FIGURE 4: CREATIVE CORRIDOR DOMESTIC NET MIGRATION 2001-2013 Black Hawk County, IA 1,255 Polk County, IA -2,809 Muscatine County, IA 885 Hennepin County, MN -781 Cook County, IL 763 Maricopa County, AZ -690 Scott County, IA 686 Dallas County, IA -518 Clinton County, IA 672 Denver County, CO -392 Des Moines County, IA 670 Dane County, WI -350 Delaware County, IA 619 King County, WA -325 Dubuque County, IA 611 Ramsey County, MN -267 Rock Island County, IL 478 Harris County, TX -265 Louisa County, IA 453 Collin County, TX -246 Source: Internal Revenue Service The Creative Corridor saw nearly all of its net domestic migration from in-state source counties. IRS data shows that eight of the top 10 sources for new residents (filing taxes) were counties in Iowa. Conversely, nearly all the top Creative Corridor destination counties were out of state metro counties save for the top outmigration location of Polk County — the largest in the Des Moines metro and home to the city of Des Moines — and Dallas County, featuring the region's largest suburb, West Des Moines. Top destination counties were located in the metros of Minneapolis, Phoenix, Denver, Madison, Seattle, Houston, and Dallas. Outmigration data support anecdotal feedback from public input participants that Des Moines was an attractive draw for Creative Corridor residents as well as urban counties in other major metro areas. While many noted that a strong entry-level job market was an advantage for Des Moines, others said that positive changes in Downtown Des Moines and other young -professional -serving amenities were compelling advantages. It should be noted that part of the migration to the Des Moines MSA could be attributed to University of Iowa students who filed taxes in the Creative Corridor returning home after graduation. Migration to Sun Belt metros might be partially due to the movement of retirees. As the Creative Corridor grows it is also becoming more diverse. This mirrors the trends being seen in its comparison communities, and cities and states across the country. Over the past ten years, the United States has rapidly diversified. The U.S. Census Bureau predicts that by 2044, no one racial or ethnic group will make up the majority of the population, and that by 2020, over half of U.S. children will be a minority race or ethnic group. Similar trends are already occurring in the Creative Corridor, where the younger population is more diverse. In 2014, roughly 87 percent of residents in the region were White, non - Hispanic, while 77.5 percent of children under the age of 10 in the Creative Corridor were White, non - Hispanic. That said, the Creative Corridor, the comparison metro areas, and Iowa are still very much White MARKETH Page 10 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment majority, none features a minority population above 18 percent. This is compared to the U.S., where minorities comprise roughly 38 percent of the population. FIGURE 5: POPULATION CHANGE BY RACE AND ETHNICITY, 2004-2014 Creative Corridor 5.2% 70.9% 75.1% 55.7% Des Moines 13.2% 47.8% 67.0% 69.2% Fort Collins 15.5% 47.6% 41.8% 48.1% Madison 6.6% 34.4% 59.3% 51.0% Iowa 0.5% 46.0% 58.1% 55.5% United States 0.7% 10.4% 33.5% 36.9% Source: United States Census Bureau, Population Estimates While the base was small in the Creative Corridor, in terms of raw percentage change, the region diversified faster than all the comparison areas from 2004 to 2014. Growth in the Black not Hispanic, Hispanic, and Other, not Hispanic cohorts could also be tied to the notable increases in international migration noted earlier in this report. Input participants cited the Creative Corridor's increasing diversification as a positive, but noted that more could be done to embrace it. Others identified efforts such as Diversity Focus as examples that the Corridor is working to be more welcoming and inclusive. Overall, input participants felt that the growing diversity of the population was an asset. They think businesses should see the value in diversity, while residents should go outside their "comfort -zones' to truly embrace diversity and inclusion, rather than simply "going with what they know." This was echoed by an online survey respondent, who noted, "We give ourselves credit for being welcoming, but as a member of a multicultural family, I see very little 'unforced' diversity in many non-professional settings." Survey participants' opinions on diversity varied by geographic perspective and race/ethnicity. Iowa City was seen to be more diverse — largely attributable to the university — while Cedar Rapids and other cities in the region were less so. Many input participants felt there were not enough cross - community events to bring people from different cultural backgrounds together. Of survey respondents who self -identified as members of minority groups, sentiments on regional inclusion were less positive. Roughly 45 percent of minorities agreed that "opportunities, communities, and networks in the region are accessible and open to a diverse range of people and cultures." Just over 38 percent agreed that "the Creative Corridor is a welcoming place," compared to 68.4 percent of White non -Hispanics. A smaller percentage of minorities, 32.3 percent, felt that the Creative Corridor was inclusive. MARKET LT Page 11 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment Looking at a community's age dynamics can provide additional perspective on its growth trends and workforce sustainability. As noted previously, even if a region's population is not increasing, its demographics can still be improving if percentages of younger, educated residents increase. The age distribution of the Creative Corridor is similar to that of its comparison communities with roughly half of residents younger than age 35 and half age 35 and older. The prime working -age cohort in the Creative Corridor - adults ages 25 to 44 - represented 26 percent of the regional population. This figure was slightly below Des Moines and Madison, but equivalent to all other benchmark geographies. Comparing the number of younger workers with those nearing retirement age highlights potential labor force sustainability issues as the pool of "replacement" workers is smaller than the older cohort. The Creative Corridor's 25 to 44 year old workforce is slightly larger than the group ages 45 to 64. On paper, this bodes well for workforce sustainability, provided that younger workers stay in the community. However, a closer look at age-related growth trends shows that the Creative Corridor's percentage of prime working age residents is growing at a slower rate than the comparison areas. FIGURE 6: POPULATION CHANGE BY AGE GROUP, 2009-2014 Creative Corridor 0.6% 7.4% 3.3% 0.5% 4.5% 15.7% Des Moines 6.8% 7.1% 9.1% 4.5% 9.0% 18.6% Fort Collins J 2.7% 18.6% 9.9% .8% 3.0% 31.7% Madison 1.4% 11.5% 3.8% I -0.3% 3.5% 22.9% Iowa -0.5% 7.8% 4.0% I -1.4% 1.3% 9.2% United States -1.4% 7.1% IIIL9% -2.3% 4.1% 16.7% Source: United States Census Bureau, Population Estimates In fact, the Creative Corridor's growth in the 25 to 34 year old cohort trailed all the benchmark geographies. A slight Corridor rise in 35 to 44 year old residents was ahead of Madison, Iowa, and the U.S., but greatly trailed growth in Des Moines and Fort Collins. If there is a positive to be seen in these trends, it is the Creative Corridor's average age of new domestic in -migrants. The median age of new Cedar Rapids residents moving from another state was 23.9 while Iowa City's figure was 23.1. These figures were lower than Des Moines (28.3), Fort Collins (25.7), and Madison (25.4). Despite lower levels of domestic in - migration, the Creative Corridor should nevertheless be encouraged by the greater percentage of young people moving to the region. Issues of attracting talent to the Creative Corridor and "brain drain" of the region's graduates and young adults are not new to the community. A number of initiatives aimed at retaining and attracting talent to the Creative Corridor have been launched in recent years, including the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance's Stay Here and Workforce Campaign programs, an online job portal, CRICJobRush.com, Pickyourpace.com, and even the region's rebranding itself. In summer 2015, Iowa Watch and the Corridor MARKETH Page 12 - April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment Business Journal hosted a forum dedicated to brain drain that examined this topic in detail and sought ideas on how to address these issues. Because labor force availability was far and away the top competitive issue cited by Creative Corridor input participants, the attraction and retention of young workers was an important corollary to those discussions. Interestingly, young professional focus group participants felt that more emphasis and effort should be put on "rooting, rather than recruiting" young professionals. Transplants to the region were said to be especially vulnerable to being lost to other regions because they do not have any roots with the community. Group participants noted that the first three to six months were critical to getting new young professionals integrated into regional networks. All input participants spoke highly about the region's two young professional groups, EPIC and ImpactCR, as well as the Next Gen Summit, adding however that more outreach is likely needed to connect with young professionals outside the two principal cities as well as better connecting the two YP groups themselves. FIGURE 7: SURVEY RESULTS "PLEASE INDICATE IF YOU DISAGREE OR AGREE WITH THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT ABOUT YOUNG PROFESSIONALS (WORKING AGES 25-34):" The region retains recent college graduates from the area's higher education institutions. 40.3% The Creative Corridor retains graduates that grew up in the region. 35.6% The region can successfully compete for young, new residents from outside the community. Iowa's Creative Corridor has housing options that are attractive to young professionals. Young professionals can afford to live in the Creative Corridor. 27.0% 21.6% 0% 10% 20% 300/a 40% 5090 60% 70% 809'o 90%100% ■ Strongly Disagree or Disagree ■ Neither Agree Nor Disagree ■ Strongly Agree or Agree Source: Market Street Services, Creative Corridor Regional Vision Strategy (2016) Question was presented to 366 individuals that self -identified themselves as between the ages of 25 and 34. Opinions regarding the region's ability to attract and retain young professionals were somewhat divided among the survey participants between the age of 25 and 34, though nearly half felt that the Creative Corridor can successfully compete for young, new residents from outside the community. Interestingly, input participants were less optimistic about the region's ability to retain recent college graduates from the area's higher education institutions or graduates that grew up in the region. Many felt that the Creative Corridor could not provide the career opportunities or quality of life — including entertainment options for YPs — sought by these residents. Despite these MARKET LT Page 13 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment perceived challenges, input participants nevertheless acknowledged that many expatriate residents were returning to the Corridor later in life. The next section of the Regional Assessment looks more specifically at population dynamics related to perceived and actual workforce quality and sustainability. KEY TAKEAWAYS ✓ When viewed against its benchmark regions, the Creative Corridor's population trends compare favorably, though population growth in the seven counties varied widely. ✓ The majority of Creative Corridor population growth stemmed from a natural change, while international migration accounted for a larger portion of net migration. o Domestic migration patterns reveal that the main source of new, domestic migrants to the Creative Corridor were from other counties in Iowa, while the top destinations for out - migrants were Des Moines and large, out-of-state metro counties. ✓ Similar to national trends, the Creative Corridor is becoming more diverse, yet still remains predominantly White, non -Hispanic. ✓ While, the Creative Corridor's 25 to 44 year old workforce is slightly larger than the group ages 45 to 64, growth trends indicate that the region's percentage of prime working age residents is growing at a slower rate than the comparison areas. ✓ The region's in -migrant profile shows that the Corridor has been able to attract young, educated workers, but not in numbers sufficient to allay concerns over workforce sustainability. MARKET sr Page 14 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment A Quality but Constrained Workforce with Strong Resident Wellbeing The people in a community are its greatest asset, which is why workforce capacity is a top concern for regions across the country. Because every business requires qualified, reliable employees, workforce availability and quality are key site location components and the most important competitive criteria in today's knowledge-based economy. Regions must ensure they are effectively satisfying employer needs in all sectors by effectively formalizing integrated college and career preparation "pipelines" as well as attracting top talent to the community. Opportunities should be provided for all residents regardless of race, class, ethnicity, age, gender, or personal background. The most established indicator of a region's workforce skills capacity is its rate of educational attainment. Some of the top "talent hubs" in the nation now feature upwards of 40 to 50 percent of the working -age population with at least a bachelor's degree. However, the number of adults with two-year degrees and career -specific certificates is also critical to accommodating the labor demands of employers in production fields and other sectors. Data show that higher levels of education lead to higher wages, lower unemployment rates, and, ultimately, higher levels of personal well-being and prosperity. In 2014, the average U.S. unemployment rate for adults with a high school diploma was 6 percent with weekly earnings averaging $668. For workers with a bachelor's degree, unemployment dropped to roughly 3.5 percent while earnings rose to $1,101 per week. On average, a full-time worker in 2014 with a bachelor's degree would have earned approximately $22,500 more than one with only a high school diploma. Attainment rates show that the Creative Corridor has a well-educated workforce, with nearly half of adults possessing an associate's degree or higher. Compared to the benchmark communities, the Creative Corridor has a greater share of residents with an associate's degree or higher than Des Moines, Iowa, and the United States. The region's percentage of bachelor's -plus degree holders notably trails Fort Collins and Madison, but it should be noted that these communities represent some of the best educated workforces in the nation. This is partially a reflection of the regions' dominant sectors; Madison has a large concentration of jobs in information and management of companies sectors while Fort Collins is especially strong in professional, scientific, and technical services employment. Overall, the Creative Corridor's bachelor's -and -above attainment rate of over 37 percent compares very favorably with most U.S. regions. MARKET sr Page 15 — April 2016 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10°% 0% • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment FIGURE 8: EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT, 2014 Creative Des Fort Madison Iowa United Corridor'" Moines Collins States ■ Graduate or professional degree ■ Bachelors degree ■ Associate's degree ■ Some college, no degree ■ High school graduate (includes equivalency) ■ Less than a high school diploma Source: United States Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1 yr. estimates The Creative Corridor has seen increases in the educational attainment of its residents over the past five years equivalent to most of its comparison geographies. Between 2009 and 2014, the region experienced a 14.3 percent increase in the number of residents with a bachelor's degree or higher. This was above only the U.S. figure, but roughly equivalent with trends in Des Moines and Iowa. Fort Collins and, especially, Madison saw significant increases in bachelor's -plus attainment. The Creative Corridor also lagged all comparison areas in rise in resident attainment of bachelor's degrees. This would seem to indicate that more can be done to retain graduates of regional colleges and universities, most prominently the University of Iowa. �y(et11:7�'AZi]•illi_\IC�P►[ya_1Rely:l'���llL�l_\IC�7�1_1�_\�%11�I�I��I�IrBL•bIrFC! Creative Corridor" -10.6% 4.8% 2.3% 7.9% 8.6% 26.5% 14.3% Des Moines -4.3% 7.6% 11.5% 18.7% 10.3% 30.1% 15.7% Fort Collins JWA.8% 13.2% 12.7% 22.6% 24.6% 6.3% 17.5% Madison 6.2% 0.5% 14.7% 16.1% 24.6% 27.9% 25.9% Iowa E.7% 0.2% 0.3% 15.8% 9.5% 27.2% 14.7% United States 1.3% 2.9% 4.1% 15.1% 12.2% 17.3% 14.0% Source: United States Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1 yr. estimates A very positive trend is the percentage of Creative Corridor residents ages 25 to 44 with a bachelor's degree or above. As can be seen in figure 10, the Creative Corridor's young professional workforce degree MARKETH Page 16 - April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment attainment is comparable to even the talent meccas of Fort Collins and Madison. This bodes well for the skill capacity of the Corridor's future workforce although, as noted earlier, the current availability of qualified workers is a challenge in the region. Further, Market Street has worked in other major metros where the opposite is true and regions are facing the troubling dynamic of a younger workforce without comparable skill levels as older workers. FIGURE 10: SHARE OF THE POPULATION WITH A BACHELOR'S DEGREE OR HIGHER BY AGE GROUP, 2014 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 0.0% Creative Des Moines Fort Collins Madison Iowa United States Corridor* Source: United States Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1 yr. estimates In 25-44 ■ 45-64 Because of its lower net in -migration rates, the onus on the Creative Corridor to develop its incumbent workforce is even greater. Both data and qualitative feedback demonstrate that the region's Pre -K to 16 pipeline is doing a sufficientjob preparing students for college and careers. Public Pre -K-12 Education Creating a quality workforce and talent pipeline begins with a community's youngest residents. At 61.3 percent, the Creative Corridor's percentage of three- and four-year olds enrolled in Pre -K was over 10 percentage points higher than all the comparison areas, including the U.S. (47 percent). The region's participation rate has also risen by 11.6 percentage points in the previous five years. These results can partially be attributed to the state of Iowa's investment in Pre -Kindergarten and early childhood education. Iowa's Statewide Voluntary Preschool Program (SVPP) and Shared Visions (SV) were created to provide young children with the opportunity to receive affordable early childhood education. Notably, the Creative Corridor's Pre -K enrollment for its three- and four-year olds was 14 percentage points higher than its in- state comparison region Des Moines. Clearly, Creative Corridor parents are taking better advantage of these programs than the state's most populous region. MARKET sr Page 17 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment Overall, as of fall 2014 there were roughly 70,000 students enrolled in all Creative Corridor school districts. Even though the region is comprised of over 30 different districts, the three largest — Cedar Rapids Community, Iowa City and Linn -Marr — account for over half of local students enrolled in public school. Growth in K-12 student enrollment has been slower in the Corridor than the comparison regions, mirroring relatively slower overall growth in the population at large. The percentage of Creative Corridor students eligible for free and reduced lunches (F&RL) — a common proxy for a district's lower-income student population — is equivalent to the comparison regions but growing more slowly than all the competitors. However, there are district -level variations. For example, just over 50 percent of students in the Cedar Rapids district are eligible for F&RL. The district in the region with the highest rate of eligibility was Olin Consolidated in Jones County at 74.1 percent. Other rural districts also featured higher comparative assistance levels; Midland and Anamosa districts, also in Jones County, had F&RL percentages of 46.5 and 45.7 respectively, while the Washington district in Washington County had 47.1 percent of its students eligible for this aid. FIGURE 11: K-12 SNAPSHOT, 2013-2014 Creative Corridor 70,160 5.3% 33.2% 26.1% 14.7 3.9% Des Moines 105,072 11.8% 38.0% 37.9% 15.2 7.3% Fort Collins 46,494 8.5% 32.0% 32.0% 17.9 3.8% Madison 95,813 9.1% 32.2% 38.2% 14.0 0.8% Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Because of inconsistencies in the performance reporting criteria of different states, Market Street only feels comfortable comparing the Creative Corridor public school performance to metro Des Moines districts and the state of Iowa as a whole. As seen in figure 12, the Creative Corridor is performing equivalently to these comparison geographies, with nearly 90 percent of district four-year cohorts graduating and a 2.5 percent dropout rate. This is especially notable because in the 2013-14 school year, Iowa had the highest four-year graduation rate of all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. There are slight inter -regional variations in Creative Corridor student performance likely tied to differences in student welfare. But compared to the performance gaps in most other U.S. regions, these disparities are negligible. Of most concern should be the 4.9 percent dropout rate in the Cedar Rapids district, which is nearly double the region as a whole and over 2.0 percentage points higher than Des Moines districts and the state. MARKET sr Page 18 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment FIGURE 12: PUBLIC SCHOOL PERFORMANCE, 2013-2014 Creative Corridor 89.5% 2.5% 19,742 100.0% Cedar Rapids 85.00/6 4.9% 5,029 22.5% Iowa City 90.40/6 1.9% 3,602 18.6% Linn -Mar 91.5% 2.1% 1,961 9.0% College 94.4% 1.40/6 1,353 6.8% Solon 96.5% 1.5% 467 3.2% Washinqton 85.80/6 1.3% 546 2.9% Remaininq districts 90.4% 1.5% 6,784 37.0% Des Moines MSA 91.5% 2.7% 29,479 State Summary 90.5% 2.7% 145,702 Source: Iowa Dept. of Education Overall Creative Corridor student outcomes support the positive feedback from input participants regarding the region's K-12 systems. Students performed well on the state's 2014-15 Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) reports. Roughly 77 percent of 8<h graders were proficient in reading and in math. Additionally, progress has been made over the past five years, with proficiency rates on an upward trend in Corridor districts. Between 2010 and 2015, the share of 81h graders proficient in reading increased by 7.2 percentage points and by 3.7 percentage points in math. Likewise, 11`h graders have also had high proficiency rates. Roughly 82 percent of 111h graders were proficient in reading on the 2014-15 AYP report, while 86 percent were proficient in math. Statewide, 80.9 percent of 111h graders were proficient in reading and 84.5 percent were proficient in math. Similar to the trend in 81h graders' performance, reading proficiency increased by 4.7 percentage points and math proficiency increased by 8.6 percentage points over the five-year period. Public input participants spoke highly of the region's educational offerings, citing that there were quality options from the Pre -K to PhD levels for residents across the Creative Corridor. This is especially notable in that public school quality and performance is often the topic of greatest concern in Market Street's client communities. In the Creative Corridor, there were far fewer comments of this type. Though feedback regarding the public school systems was positive overall, there were nevertheless concerns regarding the growing socioeconomic challenges of the region's central city school populations in Cedar Rapids and Iowa City. Some input participants felt that more could be done to effectively manage the growing diversity in the school systems, with staff better trained and more intentional in accommodating diverse student populations. One program cited as a local strength was Kids on Course, which provides tutoring and support for area students, among other services, and is designed to build relationships with elementary school students that continue through post -secondary education. Kids on Course also has a six-week academically -focused summer program free for students in need. In the summer 2015, 80 percent of students were eligible for free and reduced lunches and 44 percent were non-White. MARKETE Page 19 - April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment As seen in figure 13, given that many of the quality, high paying jobs in today's economy require some sort of additional training or education beyond a high school diploma, it is a positive sign that the majority of students in the Creative Corridor intend to continue their education after graduation. While there are wide swings in post -graduate intensions among the various Creative Corridor districts, overall percentages are equivalent to Des Moines' districts and stronger than statewide figures. FIGURE 13: IOWA PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE INTENTIONS, 2013-2014 Creative Corridor 45.3% 35.4% 1.9% 8.1% 2.3% 7.0% 100.0% Cedar Rapids 45.2% 35.5% 2.2% 4.9% 3.7% 8.5% 22.6% Iowa City 54.6% 28.1% 2.1% 5.3% 1.3% 8.5% 18.6% Linn -Mar 60.9% 23.1% 2.2% 4.1% 1.0% 8.7% 9.1% Colleqe 39.5% 44.1% 0.7% 3.0% 2.0% 10.7% 6.6% Solon 50.7% 27.5% 0.0% 0.7% 1.4% 19.6% 3.0% Washinqton 35.1% 41.0% 1.5% 20.9% 1.5% 0.0% 2.9% Remaininq districts 38.3% 40.5% 2.0% 12.8% 2.5% 3.8% 37.2% Des Moines 45.1% 33.6% 1.6% 7.6% 2.4% 9.7% - Statewide 39.7% 38.5% 2.4% 10.0% 2.9% 6.6% - Source: Iowa Department of Education, Bureau of Information and Analysis Services, Basic Educational Data Survey, Address and Graduate Intentions Files. As previously mentioned, the majority of input participants spoke highly of the area's public school districts. When asked on the online survey, "What do you think needs to be done - if anything - to improve the school district with which you are most familiar?" many of the responses centered around the topics of funding, facility improvements, increased utilization of technology in the classroom, and more project -based, hands-on learning opportunities. Teacher pay was also mentioned often as a challenge for faculty retention. Other issues of concern included classroom over -crowding and the requisite need for "forward-looking planning to accommodate growth." Higher Education Higher education capacity is a strength in the Creative Corridor given the presence of the University of Iowa and the comprehensive region -wide programs offered by Kirkwood Community College to its nearly 22,000 students. Interestingly, however, the region's per capita enrollment figure trails the other comparison regions, though it exceeds both the Iowa and U.S. figures. While per -capita enrollment trails the comparison communities, the Creative Corridor is issuing nearly as many degrees as Des Moines and Fort Collins. The region also issued more certificates than Fort Collins. This strong degree output bodes well for workforce sustainability if, 1) degree programs are aligned with employer need, and 2) graduates can be retained in the Creative Corridor. MARKET ST Page 20 - April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment FIGURE 14: ENROLLMENT AND DEGREE COMPLETIONS AT PUBLIC AND PRIVATE, NON-PROFIT HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS, 2013-2014 Creative Corridor Coe College Cornell College Kirkwood Community College Mercy -St Luke's School of Radiologic Technology Mount Mercy University Shiloh University 60,934 131.6 10,017 1,167 1,500 --- 284 - 1,148 --- 262 - 21,889 --- 1,972 436 24 --- - 11 2,147 --- 513 - 50 --- 2 University of Iowa 34,176 --- 6,984 720 Des Moines 95,530 156.2 13,371 1,339 Fort Collinsl 66,219 204.3 11,114 1,098 Madison 110,513 174.4 17,256 2,601 Iowa 296,853 95.5 43,442 8,010 United States 24,616,743 772 3,426,396 658,492 Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Note: Institutions included were for public and private, nonprofit 2- and 4 -year institutions w/in 50 miles of central zip code. Enrollment is the 12 - month unduplicated headcount total ' The distance from the central zip codes was slightly modified for Fort Collins to exclude the University of Colorado Kirkwood Community College is often cited as one of the Creative Corridor's few truly regional entities. Kirkwood has at least one location in each of the seven Creative Corridor counties and seeks out and establishes partnerships with businesses, community services, government programs, and other educational institutions across the region. Kirkwood has a number of corporate partnerships and collocated businesses. Transamerica has a data center on Kirkwood's main campus and over 3,000 employees spread over two Cedar Rapids campuses. Diamond V also works with Kirkwood as a part of animal health science program for research and development. The College works with its partners to ensure that workforce demands are being met, students are properly trained, programs are relevant and not duplicative, and the region's education pipeline is efficient. At the high school level, Kirkwood provides dual enrollment, post -secondary, and career -focused programs for students across the Corridor. If students are unable to travel to one of the campus locations, Kirkwood can make arrangement to offer distance learning accessibility. Working with the University of Iowa, the two organizations have collaborated for a number of years on 2 -plus -2 programs. Recently, they broadened their relationship to include the Kirkwood Regional Center at the University of Iowa. In addition to traditional college programming, the Center houses the Workplace Learning Connection (WLC), which brings high school students together with local business to provide job shadowing, internships, and work- MARKETH Page 21 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment based learning opportunities. Kirkwood also serves 4,500 students enrolled in adult literacy, English language acquisition, GED preparation, adult high school, and other related programs. Many input participants, particularly those from the business community, praised Kirkwood for its industry partnerships, citing it as one of the key strengths in the region. One online survey respondent stated, "I think Kirkwood Community College is doing a good job working with the industries in the area to determine their issues and what types of skilled workers are needed." Another remarked, "Kirkwood should be applauded and supported for its efforts to add needed training programs quickly and efficiently." Potential new/enhanced training opportunities noted by survey respondents included computer science, IT, and software development programming in addition to a renewed focus on trades -based training. Needless to say, the University of Iowa exerts a strong presence over the Creative Corridor. Its nearly 35,000 students comprise a significant part of the Iowa City population while administration, faculty, staff, and others associated with the university are the region's dominant employment base at nearly 23,000 persons, roughly 35,000 if you add the University of Iowa hospital system. Combined, nearly 70,000 individuals out of a region of 463,000 have a direct relationship with the University of Iowa. As will be discussed more in the regionalism section of this report, this influence extends far and wide in Creative Corridor policies, perspectives, and politics. The university not only serves to educate students, but also acts as a powerful Creative Corridor talent magnet for students and professionals alike. From a talent perspective, the University of Iowa not only draws students from across the Midwest but is increasingly attracting international students, especially from China, to the Creative Corridor. Some of these trends are reflected in the international migration data seen in the first section of this report. However, a recent annual report by the University of Iowa showed that roughly half of students with bachelor's degrees stayed in the state after graduation. Data were not available to determine how many of those retained graduates matriculated to the university from the Creative Corridor or elsewhere in Iowa. As could be expected, a high percentage of public input respondents identified the University of Iowa as a major Creative Corridor strength, if not its top asset. From its key role as a talent attractor to the potential to retain its graduates to work in the local economy to the amenities drawn to the Corridor to capitalize on the student population to the urban assets being developed in Downtown Iowa City, stakeholders feel the university is a transformative presence. Beyond simply attracting students, many local residents identified the University of Iowa as the most marketable asset to attract young professionals regardless of life stage, in part because it has made the Creative Corridor a more progressive, culturally and politically aware, inclusive and tolerant, and thoughtful region. Additionally, as one survey participant noted, "Even if people don't know exactly where we are off the top of their heads, we have the Big Ten brand that is nationally recognized and can be built on." MARKET LT Page 22 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment Workforce Capacity The top competitive issue in the Creative Corridor is well known to businesses, economic development professionals, education and training officials, and government. There is a workforce availability challenge in the Creative Corridor that is threatening the region's ability to grow sustainably and profitably. The sheer volume of discussion and concern related to the provision of skilled talent to local employers is testament to the primacy of workforce development as a strategic priority in the Creative Corridor. Data support these concerns; between 2004 and 2014, Creative Corridor jobs grew by 5.4 percent, the population increased by 4.8 percent, but the labor force only increased by 1.4 percent. Available employment is likely being absorbed by the existing labor force, a trend supported by rising incomes from wages as described in the following section of this report. Seen comparatively, the Creative Corridor labor force' has grown slower than all the benchmark geographies, including Iowa. Greater Des Moines stands out as a region with a fast-growing labor force, with Fort Collins and Madison not far behind. Clearly, if the Creative Corridor cannot expand its labor force at faster rates, the region's economic prospects will be threatened. Additionally, while the Creative Corridor's labor force participation rate (adults employed or looking for work) was 68.8 percent — higher than the national and state rates — it decreased by 4 percentage points between 2009 and 2014. This has likely also influenced slower than average total labor force growth. FIGURE 15: LABOR FORCE, 2004-2014 Creative Corridor 243,202 257,911 261,478 3,566 1.4% 18,275 7.5% Des Moines 295,697 322,402 342,305 19,904 6.2% 46,609 15.8% Fort Collins 165,779 170,486 178,609 8,123 4.8% 12,831 7.7% Madison 350,641 360,734 376,139 15,405 4.3% 25,498 7.3% Iowa 1,626,857 1,677,918 1,707,126 29,208 1.7% 80,269 4.9% United States 149,153,917 153,850,000 156,986,250 3,136,250 2.0% 7,832,333 5.3% Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Every few years, Kirkwood Community College produces a Skills Report sponsored by the Corridor Alliance of economic development groups to identify gaps between the talent needs of industry and the existing skills of the region's workforce. Following on the heels of reports in 2000, 2006, and 2010, the 2014 Skills Report found that more than 75 percent of the region's new and replacement jobs will require some form of post -secondary education. Employers also anticipate that 65 percent of future job openings will stem from replacement needs, either from employee churn or retirements. Key factors identified by employers as supporting their growth ambitions were the "quality and capability of the workforce, strong partnerships 1 Defined by the government as the civilian non -institutionalized population over the age of 16 either employed or unemployed, but actively looking for work. MARKETH Page 23 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment with regional educational institutions (University of Iowa, Kirkwood Community College, private colleges, K- 12), a geographic location that supports commerce and community involvement, and an economy that is showing signs of recovery." Roughly three-quarters of employers responding to the Skills 2014 Report felt that the area had strong job applicants and a current workforce with the soft skills and occupational skills necessary to be effective employees. What these results imply is that the Creative Corridor's current workforce meets employer needs, but there are simply not enough available adults to satisfy businesses' demands. This assessment was echoed by an input participant who remarked that "the region has the appropriate offerings for degree programs, but keeping the folks in the region is the challenge." Of online survey respondents that self -identified as a manger, executive, or business owner, roughly 46 percent reported that they "disagreed" or "strongly disagreed" with the statement "My business has no problem finding qualified employees locally," and "My business has no trouble recruiting workers from outside the region to the Creative Corridor." Resident Wellbei While not always the case in economies experiencing population and employment growth, these trends have translated into higher wages and incomes in the Creative Corridor and impressively low and slow-growing rates of poverty. Per capita income is the most basic indicator typically used to measure the average well-being of residents in communities. In the Creative Corridor, per capita income increased by 39.2 percent between 2004 and 2014, outpacing the growth rates of all of its comparison communities with the exception of Iowa. The region's per capita income also exceeded the rate of inflation over the ten-year time period, illustrating that residents have experienced real gain in their purchasing power. Furthermore, a higher percentage of Creative Corridor income is derived from wages, as opposed to investment income (e.g. dividends, interest, and rent) or transfer receipts (government benefits like Social Security). This is a positive sign that a high degree of Corridor adults are employed in the region. Yet, this is also an indicator of the aforementioned lack of local workforce slack. FIGURE 16: PER CAPITA INCOME, 2004-2014 Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) MARKETE Page 24 — April 2016 r• I 00 009 r Chg. Chg. Creative Corridor $33,221 $39,767 $46,244 16.3% 39.2% Des Moines $38,427 $43,157 $48,797 13.1% 27.0% Fort Collins $33,060 $36,990 $43,584 17.8% 31.8% Madison $38,406 $43,189 $49,969 15.7% 30.1% Iowa $32,148 $38,123 $44,937 17.9% 39.8% United States $34,316 $39,376 $46,049 16.9% 34.2% Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) MARKETE Page 24 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment In addition to per capita income, median household incomes also increased in the Creative Corridor over the most recent five-year period. Both the Cedar Rapids and Iowa City MSA median household incomes increased at faster rates than all of the comparison communities. Between 2009 and 2014, the median household income in the Cedar Rapids MSA increased by 16.0 percent and by 22.6 percent in the Iowa City MSA. In 2014, Cedar Rapids had a median household income of $61,865, trailing only Des Moines; the rate in the Iowa City MSA for that year was $59,791. FIGURE 17: HOUSEHOLD INCOME DISTRIBUTION CHANGE, 2009-2014 Creative Corridor* -5.4% -16.3% -5.5% 20.6% 26.8% 85.6% Des Moines -11.1% -6.6% 7.3% 1 3.8% 15.5% 57.5% Fort Collins -13.4% __22.5% 4.0% -5.0% 2.3% 59.0% Madison -3.1% 8.8% ' 5.1% 4.2% 16.2% 48.5% Iowa -10.7% -9.7% 1.8% 6.2% 24.4% 59.7% United States -3.6% 3.3% 0.2% 3.0% 15.0% 34.1% Source: United States Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1 yr. estimates Income among Creative Corridor households was also more equitably distributed than nearly every benchmark community. Roughly 41.5 percent of households in the Creative Corridor had a household income of less than $50,000. Only Des Moines had a smaller percentage of households at the lower end of the income distribution. Part of the Creative Corridor's strong performance related to indicators of income and wealth can be attributable to a stable residential market with high percentages of homeownership. In a clear divergence from national trends, rates of homeownership in the Creative Corridor actually increased since 2006. Currently, 70.6 percent of homes are owner -occupied in the combined Cedar Rapids and Iowa City MSAs. Nationally, homeownership rates hit a historic low in 2015 at 63.4 percent. The Creative Corridor also had the highest rates of homeownership among all the benchmark regions. Rising per capita and household incomes, high rates of homeownership, strong labor force participation, and a stable, growing economy have all combined to keep poverty rates comparatively low in the Creative Corridor. This is a very positive trend for the region and again indicates that growth has been more equitable in the Corridor than in the majority of U.S. regions. As seen in figure 18, both total and youth poverty rates in the Creative Corridor are lower than all comparison geographies; the Corridor's youth poverty rate is especially low relative to the benchmark areas and over 10 percentage points below the national figure. MARKET sr Page 25 - April 2016 2S% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0% • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment FIGURE 18: POVERTY RATES, 2014 Creative Des Moines Fort Collins Madison Iowa United States Corridor Is Poverty Rate, All Ages a Poverty Rate, Age 0-17 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, SATE Not only are total and youth poverty rates in the Creative Corridor low, they are comparatively more stable. Only Fort Collins experienced more positive poverty trends than the Corridor from 2009 to 2014, while the Creative Corridor's ten-year performance from 2004 to 2014 was stronger than all comparison geographies for both poverty measures. FIGURE 19: CHANGE IN POVERTY RATES, 2009-2014 Creative Corridor 4.0% 26.6% -0.3% 18.3% Des Moines 26.1% 46.9% 19.4% 61.2% Fort Collins -5.6% 55.3% -2.4% 24.5% Madison 6.6% 47.9% 27.5% uui 46.0% Iowa 7.7% 21.0% 0.9% ILL 25.6% United States 12.5% 30.2% 7.0% IM 20.3% Source: United States Census Bureau, SATE Poverty, per capita income, household income, and homeownership trends in the Creative Corridor are all extremely positive and convey that the average Corridor resident is better off than the average American. Even during the Great Recession, the region proved resilient. Even so, although the Creative Corridor's measures of individual and household wellbeing are strong, aggregating data at the regional level almost always masks certain local issues that must be acknowledged MARKETH Page 26 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment and addressed strategically. In the Corridor, there are areas — principally in core urban neighborhoods — where unemployment and poverty rates are considerably higher than the regional average, with correspondingly lower median family incomes. Many of these neighborhoods have relatively high populations of individuals of color, recent immigrants and refugees, and young children. While these features are not uncommon in urban areas in Iowa or elsewhere in the U.S., allowing these trends to perpetuate risks further constraining an already tight workforce and exacerbating issues related to public safety, public health, and educational performance and attainment. As was noted previously, numerous stakeholders expressed concern over academic performance, graduation rates, degree attainment, and workplace outcomes of certain central -core neighborhood populations in the Creative Corridor. If reading proficiency and academic achievement are not addressed, these children face limited prospects for the future while the Corridor's workforce will continue to perform at less than full capacity. In the next section of this report, the focus will shift from people to companies, with an examination of trends across a variety of indicators to determine the recent and current strength of the Creative Corridor economy and explain how the region has built wealth. KEY TAKEAWAYS ✓ Educational attainment rates show that the Creative Corridor has a well-educated workforce, with nearly half of adults possessing an associate's degree or higher. The Corridor's educational attainment rate of residents between the ages of 25 and 44 rivaled that of its comparison communities. ✓ Performance outcomes and measures support input regarding the Creative Corridor's strong Pre -K to 16 talent pipeline. High proficiency rates and high school graduation rates coupled with low dropout rates make the Corridor's public systems competitive, although intra -regional performance is somewhat divergent. ✓ Higher education capacity is a regional strength in the Creative Corridor. Output of graduates is high, with the number of degrees and certificates awarded comparable to the Corridor's comparison communities. Additionally, the University of Iowa acts as a strong attractor of talent. ✓ Workforce capacity and availability are top concerns for the region. Growth in the Creative Corridor labor force trails that of its comparison communities and has not kept up with the pace of job growth. ✓ Population and employment growth trends have translated into higher wages and incomes in the Creative Corridor and impressively low and slow-growing rates of poverty. These also indicate a more equitable wealth distribution than in most of the comparison communities. MARKET sr Page 27 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment A Resilient, Diverse Local Economy and Competitive Business Climate The Great Recession changed everything about the U.S. economy and its metropolitan areas. Six years after the official end of the recession, 93 percent of U.S. counties still have not fully recovered their lost employment. Greater Austin, Texas, the best performing metro during the recession years, claims that title solely due to the fact that it did not lose any netjobs during the period. With these trends as a backdrop, the recessionary performance of the Creative Corridor economy is all the more impressive. Between December 2007 and June 2009, the Creative Corridor had a net loss of only 1,400jobs, representing a 0.6 percent decline. Other metros in the country faced crippling job loss over the same period, including declines of over 10 percent in regions like Las Vegas, NV, Detroit, MI, and Rockford, IL. In fact, out of over 300 MSAs in the U.S., only 25 fared better than the Creative Corridor during the Great Recession based on net job performance. The region's stability during the recession affects the tenor of its job growth in the post -recession years. Quite simply, the Creative Corridor had a shallower hole to dig out of when the U.S. economy began to expand again. Figure 20 displays the job growth in the Creative Corridor and its comparison communities over the past ten years. Between 2005 and 2015, the number of jobs in the Corridor increased by 9.8 percent, outpacing Madison, Iowa, and the United States. However, as noted, growth in the past five years has been less robust, most likely because the recessionary impacts were less damaging. The strength of the Des Moines and Fort Collins regional economies — two of the top performing metros in the country — is also clearly evident in this data. FIGURE 20: TOTAL JOBS, 2005-2015 Creative Corridor 246,799 256,993 270,927 13,934 5.4% 24,128 % Des Moines 336,606 345,484 383,937 38,453 11.1% 47,331 Fort Collins 144,789 146,845 166,386 19,541 13.3% 21,597 Madison 381,644 375,114 404,191 29,077 7.8% 22,547 105.9% Iowa 1,644,967 1,629,819 1,735,685 105,866 6.5% 90,718 IN 5.5% United States 148,660,331 144,442,383 156,106,469 11,664,086 8.1% 7,446,138 IM5.0% Source: Economic Modeling Specialist, Inc. (EMSp, econom icmode ling. com As with job growth, unemployment rates in the Creative Corridor have been more stable in recent years than most U.S. communities. During the recession and recovery years, the unemployment rate in the Creative Corridor peaked at 6.4 percent compared to 10 percent nationally. The most recent figure in November 2015 showed the Corridor unemployment at 2.9 percent, considered by many economists to be a level approaching full employment. This further highlights the constrained labor market in the region. MARKETH Page 28 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment Given the labor market realities, one would expect to see upward pressures on wages. This is borne out by the data. Though the Creative Corridor's 2014 wages are equivalent to most of the comparison areas, they have risen faster than all geographies except Des Moines and Iowa. y $50,000 Cn m 3 $40,000 A 7 $30,000 d X $20,000 I $10,000 $0 FIGURE 21: AVERAGE ANNUAL WAGE Creative Des Moines Fort Collins Madison Iowa Us Corridor ■ 2009 :. 2014 A09-14% Chg. Source: BLS QCEW 1 S.0% 14.5% 14.0% 13.5% 13.0% 12.S% 12.0% 11.5°i A look at the economic structure of the Creative Corridor provides some clues as to why the region's recessionary performance was so consistent. The presence of the University of Iowa was clearly a stabilizing force for the Corridor during and after the recession, as was the region's health care and government employers. Over the five-year period profiled in figure 22, the largest net gains in the Corridor economy were classified under government, which includes public universities and colleges. Employment at the Pre -K to 12 public school districts, University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics, and local, state, and federal government are also covered under the government sector. Of the government's net gain of 2,816 jobs, roughly 2,600 stemmed from employment in State Government from Education and Hospitals. In a testament to the diversity and sustainability of the Creative Corridor economy, nearly every regional sector grewjobs from 2010 to 2015. While growth rates trailed the U.S. in most sectors, Market Street believes — as stated — this is a result of greater stability in the Corridor during the recession. A standout sector in the post -recession years has been construction, which accounted for 12.4 percent of the net jobs gained between 2010 and 2015, outpacing the national rate by 3 percentage points. MARKET sr Page 29 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment FIGURE 22: OVERVIEW OF CREATIVE CORRIDOR ECONOMY Crop and Animal Production Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction Utilities Construction Manufacturing Wholesale Trade Retail Trade Transportation and Warehousing Information Finance and Insurance Real Estate and Rental and Leasing Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services Management of Companies and Enterprises Admin. and Support and Waste Mgmt./Remed. Svcs. Educational Services Health Care and Social Assistance Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation Accommodation and Food Services Other Services (except Public Administration) Government 13,319 13,316 (3) 0.0%W%• 1.50• 0.82 7,772 6,944 (828)'-10.7% 1 2.9%0 1.370 0.65 11,810 11,881 71 - 0.6%,4.1%0 1.100 0.66 3,265 3,454 189 5.8%F4.8%0 0.780 1.23 7,942 8,397 454 5.7% 14.8%140 0.490 0.74 796 1,505 709 JFF9.0% 18.-4 0 0.390 0.57 13,123 13,500 377 1 2.9% 18.4'0 0.790 0.80 5,692 6,590 898 115.8% 9.9%(._i 0.970 0.90 26,977 28,060 1,083 4.0% 12.7%0 0.830 0.86 2,890 3,134 245 ' 8.5% 11.7%0 0.700 0.47 18,847 20,630 1,783 9.5% 15.8%0 0.910 0.78 10,637 10,959 323 3.0% 0.0%0 0.850 0.91 48,858 51,673 2,816 5.8%1 -1.8%0 1.23 (�O 1.01 Source Economic Modeling Specialists, Inc. (EMSI), econom icm ode ling. com Similar to national trends, retail trade and accommodation and food services comprised a large portion of Creative Corridorjob growth in recent years. Combined, the sectors of government, construction, retail trade, and accommodation and food services, accounted for 60 percent of net job growth in the Creative Corridor. While these sectors are typically low paying, the high average wages for government and construction jobs helped bolster overall incomes in the region during this five-year period. Location quotients (LQ) as displayed in figure 22 also speak to the stability of the Creative Corridor economy. LQs are ratios of the region's share of employment in a given business sector divided by that same sector's share of total national employment. A location quotient great than 1.0 indicates that the region's share of employment in a given sector is greater than the average American community, and may be a sign that the region affords businesses in this sector with some level of competitive advantage. In addition to the many sectors more concentrated than the U.S., the region has a wide variety of employment categories with job levels nearly equivalent to the national composition. In other words, the Creative Corridor is not overly dependent on a handful of sectors but rather takes advantage of a strong base of employment in multiple sectors to drive its economy. Employment composition and concentrations are borne out by a look at the largest employers in the Creative Corridor. The list is dominated by education, government, and healthcare employers, with a strong MARKETH Page 30 - April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment base also found in equipment design and construction because of the presence of Rockwell Collins and related firms. FIGURE 23: TOP 15 EMPLOYERS IN THE CREATIVE CORRIDOR University of Iowa 22,827 Education Iowa City, Iowa University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics 11,551 Healthcare Iowa City, Iowa Rockwell Collins, Inc. 9,400 Electronic Equipment & Design Cedar Rapids, Iowa Transamerica 3,800 Insurance/Financial The Hauge, The Netherlands UnityPoint Health - St. Luke's Hospital 2,979 Healthcare Cedar Rapids, Iowa Cedar Rapids Community School District 2,879 Education Cedar Rapids, Iowa Whirlpool 2,500 Equipment Manufacturing Benton Harbor, Michigan Nordstrom Direct 2,150 Logistics/Distribution Seattle, Washington Mercy Medical Center 2,140 Healthcare Cedar Rapids, Iowa Pearson 1,765 Publishing Iowa City, Iowa Iowa City Community School District 1,700 Education Iowa City, Iowa Veterans Health Administration 1,562 Healthcare Iowa City, Iowa City of Cedar Rapids 1,309 Government Cedar Rapids, Iowa ACT, Inc. 1,243 Education Iowa City, Iowa Four Oaks 1,100 Non-profit Cedar Rapids, Iowa Source: Economic Alliance Market Street will take a much more in-depth look at the regional economy and occupational compositions in phase II of this strategic process, the Creative Corridor Economic Analysis. Business Retention and Attraction Over the last two decades, roughly 60 percent of net new U.S. jobs in the private sector were created by existing establishments, underscoring the importance of business retention and expansion (BRE) strategies to economic development and job creation. Iowa's program, Business Expansion and Strategic Trends (BEST), utilizes the Synchronist system to support their outreach and service to existing companies by leveraging data and trend analysis. Regional economic development organizations (CRMEA, [CAD) and their local counterparts implement existing business programs using the Synchronist tool, with data generated by existing business visits stored in a shared database. The use of BRE software and joint data sharing differentiate the Creative Corridor as a more proactive region for existing business programming than most metro areas. Supporting this assertion are the area BRE programs that have been recognized for excellence. Both [CAD and the Marion Economic Development Corporation received awards in 2015 for their BRE programs from the Professional Developers of Iowa. MEDCO was honored, specifically, for the assistance it provided to Legacy Manufacturing with their expansion in the Marion Enterprise Center. Business Climate When it comes to assessing business climate competitiveness, a number of factors are taken into consideration. The business environment (state taxes, access to capital, permitting, etc.), labor market MARKETH Page 31 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment (labor costs, workforce educational level and skills, availability of labor, etc.), infrastructure (rail and highway accessibility, certified sites, energy costs, etc.) and other aspects can affect a companys decision to relocate to or from a state. Iowa typically does not rank high on the lists of best places to do business, yet it has still retained companies and attracted others. So, while a state's business environment has a large effect on the overall business climate considerations, there are also key regional factors that come into play when a company is deciding where to do business. Regional business leaders were optimistic about their future in the Creative Corridor. Roughly 68 percent of the nearly 800 business representatives from the online survey reported that it was "likely" or "highly likely" that their business will add employees in the region. Even more encouraging, 91.4 percent reported that it was "unlikely" or "highly unlikely' that their business will relocate from the Creative Corridor and move elsewhere. FIGURE 24: SURVEY RESULTS — "PLEASE RATE THE FOLLOWING ELEMENTS OF THE CREATIVE CORRIDOR'S BUSINESS CLIMATE ACCORDING TO THE DEGREE TO WHICH EACH IS AN ADVANTAGE OR DISADVANTAGE TO EXISTING AND PROSPECTIVE NEW BUSINESSES." Interstate accessibility Availability of water and sewer Roadway connectivity and capacity Availability of quality office space Availability of industrial land for development Availability of high-speed internet Cost of labor Availability of business financing Cost of health care Provision of economic incentives Cost of utilities Availability of skilled labor Passenger air connectivity Code enforcement Ease and speed of permit review process Cost of permit acquisition Affordability of passenger air travel Localtaxes %14.3M63.8% %... 53.9% f'. 47.8% W. 39.9% 39.2% 45�9%38.8% 37.2% 0'. 23.5% 0'. 64,161% 1%22.4%18.5% 18.5% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 500/6 60% 70% 800/6 90%100% ■ Major disadvantage or Disadvantage Neutral ■ Major advantage or Advantage Source: Market Street Services, Creative Corridor Regional Vision Strategy (2016) MARKETH Page 32 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment Question was presented to 785 individuals that self -identified themselves as owners, executives, or managers at their place of employment. Figure 24 displays survey participants' responses regarding various business environment considerations of the Creative Corridor. Transportation accessibility, water and sewer capacity, office space, and land availability ranked highly, while costs associated with taxes, air travel, and permitting process finished poorly. Key categories are profiled in more detail below. • Location and connectivity: According to Area Development's 29`I' Annual Corporate Survey of 252 decision -makers at companies with sales of one billion or more, the number one site selection factor in 2015 was highway accessibility. In the Creative Corridor, roughly eight out of ten survey respondents from the business community felt that the region's interstate accessibility was a "major advantage" or "advantage," while 63.8 percent felt that roadway connectivity and capacity were advantages. The region's competitive advantage regarding location and access to both roadways and rail lines is visible in the high location quotient in the region's transportation and warehousing business sector. Roughly 6 percent of private sectorjobs in the Creative Corridor are in transportation and warehousing. I-80 and I-380 were both cited by input participants as strengths of the region. While there were complaints regarding the congestion along I-380, people were optimistic about the potential of expanding it to six lanes, as well as the extension of Highway 100 that will help to divert some of the traffic off I-380. Others, however, noted that perceptions of traffic are relative, and the drive along I-380 in the Creative Corridor was rarely congested. The Eastern Iowa Airport is the principal passenger and cargo airport in the Creative Corridor. Roughly 84 million pounds of cargo went through the airport over the past year, an increase of 33.3 percent since 2010. Passenger travel has also increased over the past five years, with over a half a million departures between October 2014 and 2015. Overall, passenger departures increased by 21.1 percent. Some input participants felt that passenger air costs were too high and flight options too infrequent. Nearly 60 percent of survey respondents felt that the affordability of air travel was a "disadvantage' or "major disadvantage' to the region's existing and prospective new businesses. Nevertheless, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, average airfare for departing passengers out of Eastern Iowa Airport in the 2015 second quarter was $402, which was only slightly higher than the $394 average airfare out of Des Moines International. The presence of Eastern Iowa Airport is supplemented by multiple general aviation facilities across the Corridor which not only accommodate private air travel but also provide compelling opportunities for fixed -base operator service expansion and economic development. • Utilities and communications: Availability of water and sewer was rated highly favorable by input participants from the business community, with 72.6 percent rating it as an advantage to the region's business climate. Given the demands of the local economy, the region is well equipped with water and wastewater treatment infrastructure. Both Cedar Rapids and Iowa City MARKETH Page 33 — April 2016 ' Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment boast high quality facilities with long-term growth capacity. Low utility rates were also said to be a regional advantage. Broadband was also rated favorably by survey respondents and was spoken highly of by most input participants. The majority of survey respondents felt that the availability of high-speed internet was an advantage to the region. The Creative Corridor had more than 160 route miles of advanced fiber optic network' with dark fiber running down 1-80 and features best -in -class connectivity to the University of Iowa and affiliated facilities. However, some input participants identified gaps in service, especially for numerous off -campus student residences in Iowa City and wide swaths of the Corridor's more rural counties. • Development sites: The Creative Corridor offers a number of large -site, infrastructure -serviced, rail and interstate adjacent business and industrial parks, including Becca Industrial Park, Vinton Industrial Park, Tipton Business Park, Hiawatha Business Park, Iowa City Industrial Park, University of Iowa Research Park, Marion Enterprise Center, and Cedar Rapids Land and Air Super Park, to name a few. Five of the sites are Certified Shovel Ready by the state of Iowa. The corridor also features the largest "superpark" in Iowa. Identified weaknesses in the region's product included spec office buildings and intermodal yards for transferring large volumes of freight. Certain parks in more rural areas also were said to need greater infrastructure capacity and transportation connectivity. • Real estate rental: The average rental price for office space was competitive in the Cedar Rapids metro area (data for the Iowa City MSA was not available) and was the lowest of the comparison communities. However, office property asking rent has increased at a faster rate in the region than all the benchmark communities other than Fort Collins. FIGURE 25: AVERAGE RENTAL RATES, DECEMBER 2015 Cedar Rapids $11.74 9.0% $5.46* 10.0% $12.18 2.8% Des Moines $12.63 1.7% $6.97 19.9% $13.72 6.1% Fort Collins $15.55 11.2% $8.28 -3.3% $17.43 2.6% Madison $13.73 0.4% $5.57 -1.2% $14.31 0.4% Iowa $11.95 2.0% $5.46 10.0% $12.87 6.8% Source: Loopnet Note: Data for the Iowa City metro was not available. `Indicates that the data was only available at the state -level Overall, however, 62.2 percent of survey participants reported that the region's availability of quality office space were a "major advantage" or "advantage" to the Creative Corridor's 2 "Location Data Centers in Iowa's Creative Corridor." Iowa's Creative Corridor. Retrieved from: iowacityareadevelopment.com/webms/File/2013%20Data %20Center%20Booklet.pdf MARKETE Page 34 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment business climate. Industrial property asking rent was only available at the state level, but indicates rates are likely competitive given that they were lower than the Des Moines, Fort Collins, and Madison metro areas. Retail property rental rates were also the lowest of the comparison communities. Survey respondents that self -identified as decision makers in their companies were also asked more general questions about the Creative Corridor and its principal competitive challenges and opportunities. These responses are profiled in the following word clouds. FIGURE 26: SURVEY RESPONSES — "FROM THE STANDPOINT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE TO BE THE CREATIVE CORRIDOR'S GREATEST STRENGTH OR ASSET AS IT SEEKS TO GROW QUALITY JOBS THAT ELEVATE STANDARDS OF LIVING FOR ITS RESIDENTS?" C-' GRE AREA V1 ] LOW BUSINESSES r v PLACLEDUCATED-'--q LIFE GOOD C60WASCHOOLS T N COST EDUCATION sTRONc�o a�a 0 Source: Market Street Services, Creative Corridor Regional Vision Strategy (2016) Question was presented to 785 individuals that self -identified themselves as owners, executives, or managers at their place of employment. Echoing feedback from focus groups and interviews, the largest terms in the figure 26 world cloud on the Creative Corridor's greatest strengths centered on the people and workers in the region. "Good people, "great work ethic" and "quality of the workforce" were among some of the responses used to describe the labor force and the region's strengths. In addition, terms associated with the Creative Corridor's higher education capacity and costs of living and business were featured prominently in open-ended survey responses. Interestingly, the region's competitive transportation capacity did not emerge as a frequently cited advantage. MARKET LT Page 35 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment Perceptions about strong productivity among Creative Corridor workers were borne out by data, but ranked equivalently to the benchmark geographies. The ratio of output (as measured by gross regional product) perjob can be used as a general measure for labor productivity. In the Creative Corridor, an average of $98,079 was generated in gross regional product for every job, which was roughly comparable to the benchmark communities. Madison averaged the highest at $103,544 perjob, while Iowa averaged the lowest at $91,585 perjob. Another measure to gauge labor productivity, the average value of exports per job, was $126,717 in the Creative Corridor in 2013; that ranked as the second highest figure behind only Madison. FIGURE 27: SURVEY RESPONSES — "FROM THE STANDPOINT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE TO BE THE CREATIVE CORRIDOR'S BIGGEST CHALLENGE AS IT SEEKS TO GROW QUALITY JOBS THAT ELEVATE STANDARDS OF LIVING FOR ITS RESIDENTS?" z ENOUGH NEEDtIBUsINESSES CEDAR WORKFORCE H LACK CORRIDOR J OBSPE PLE �o d QUALITY AREAWORKa NEVA CITY ATTRACTING WANT LIVING HIGH YOUNG RAPIDS O REGION Source: Market Street Services, Creative Corridor Regional Vision Strategy (2016) Question was presented to 785 individuals that self -identified themselves as owners, executives, or managers at their place of employment. Echoing feedback from focus groups and interviews and key data indicators, the largest terms in the figure 26 word cloud on competitive challenges in the Creative Corridor focused on workforce issues. Terms associated with "people" in relation to challenges were "need," lack," and "not enough." Additionally, terms like "attracting," "city," and "life" likely refer to challenges employers face in drawing talent to the Creative Corridor. Overall, nearly 40 percent of survey respondents felt that the availability of skilled labor was a "disadvantage" or "major disadvantage" for the region. MARKET LT Page 36 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment Concerns over labor availability in the Creative Corridor echo those from corporate leaders across the country. In Area Development magazine's most recent Annual Corporate Survey, 50 percent of corporate respondents rated the availability of skilled labor as a "very important" location factor, which ranked fifth among their principal competitive concerns. Site location professionals have also expressed more vocally in recent years that talent dynamics are now the top selection criteria valued by most clients. The Creative Corridor's constrained labor capacity must be a priority strategic concern for its Regional Vision and strategic activities moving forward. Job creation can be achieved by three primary sources — business expansion/retention, business recruitment/relocation, and entrepreneurship — and all three require an available and sustainable workforce to be successful. The next section of this report explores these dynamics and others as they relate to the region's entrepreneurial capacity and ecosystem. KEY TAKEAWAYS ✓ The Creative Corridor's diverse economy proved resilient throughout the recession, while nearly every business sector has continued to add jobs since 2009. ✓ The Creative Corridor has a constrained labor market with an extremely low unemployment rate. o The low unemployment rates put upward pressure on average wages in the region, which increased at faster rates than all the comparison communities with the exception of Des Moines and Iowa. ✓ The Creative Corridor has a competitive business climate to offer new and potential companies. Regional business leaders are optimistic about future hiring, worry about the supply of available labor. o Leaders' assessments of a productive Corridor workforce were borne out by data. MARKET sr Page 37 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment Strong Entrepreneurial Legacy with a Still - Evolving Startup Ecosystem As one stakeholder said, "The bedrock of our community has been what we've built ourselves." The Creative Corridor boasts a number of homegrown companies and established entrepreneurs, with the business sectors they operate in as diverse as the overall economy itself. Although several established entrepreneurial firms are now large, third or fourth-generation family-owned companies, others have since merged or been taken over by multi -national corporations. Companies like Rockwell Collins, CRST, Hupp Electric Motors, TrueNorth, ACT, Apache, and Diamond V, to name a few, all got their start in the region and have continued to provide jobs for thousands of local residents and serve as critical assets for worker retention and attraction. While the Creative Corridor's entrepreneurial "ecosystem" in the modern tech economy is still evolving, the presence of the University of Iowa, research -intensive companies, established entrepreneurial mentors, capital availability (for those who know where to look), and an active event and networking culture provide a solid base for future expansion. Integrated DNA Technologies and, more recently, Higher Learning Technologies, are examples of startups that have succeeded in the Creative Corridor. While conceptions about what constitutes a "small business" vary, the SBA Office of Advocacy defines them as companies with fewer than 500 employees. According to the Office of Advocacy, 63 percent of net new jobs created between 1993 and mid -2013 stemmed from these small businesses. Slightly under half of the Creative Corridor's jobs are in SBA -defined small businesses, with their growth from 2009 to 2014 trailing all the comparison geographies, most notably Des Moines, Fort Collins, and Iowa. Of the approximately 13,000 Corridor jobs created during this period, only 9.1 percent were in small businesses. The Creative Corridor's overall growth and expansion of 500 employee and larger firms has been more equivalent to the benchmarks. FIGURE 28: EMPLOYEES BY FIRM SIZE, Q4 2009-Q4 2014 Creative Corridor 97,356 104,947 1.2% 12.8% Des Moines 134,888 168,988 WL 7.3% 9.6% Fort Collins 67,746 43,688 "" .8% """ Madison 156,238 135,899 8.7% Iowa 677,402 613,908 2.0% Source: United States Census Bureau, Quarterly Workforce Indicators (QWp MARKETH Page 38 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment While these data would seem to imply that the Creative Corridor's small business sector is less dynamic than well-known startup hubs like Fort Collins and Madison, additional data analysis is necessary to confirm this assessment. • Examining the Creative Corridor's share of employment at firms with fewer than 50 employees, the narrative changes slightly. In Q4 of 2014, the Corridor had nearly 28 percent of its jobs in 50 -and - less employee firms. This was greater than Des Moines (23.3 percent), but trailed the other comparison areas. In Fort Collins, over 40 percent of jobs are in firms of this size. More concerning for the Creative Corridor is that the share of jobs in 50 employee and less firms decreased by 2.5 percentage points from Q4 2009 to Q4 2014, the largest drop of all the benchmark geographies. • So-called "self-employment" refers to an individual who works for him or herself as opposed to an employer that pays them a salary or wage. It is considered a viable proxy for a communitys entrepreneurship capacity. In the Creative Corridor, 5.3 percent of total employment is comprised by those who are self-employed. This figure is equivalent to Des Moines, greater than Madison (4.6 percent), and trails Fort Collins (7.0 percent), Iowa (6.8 percent), and the U.S. (6.3 percent). That said, the Corridor's self-employment rates declined less than all the comparison areas over the past five years — a period that was difficult for small businesses across the country. • Finally, looking at the dynamics of "young" firms (those in business less than 10 years), provides even more perspective on entrepreneurial dynamics. While the percentage of the overall economy comprised by these firms in the Creative Corridor is equivalent to the benchmarks, its five year performance has been notably worse than all the comparables except Madison. FIGURE 29: EMPLOYEES BY FIRMS AGE, +/- 10 YEARS, Q4 2009-Q4 2014 Creative Corridor 32,060 170,242 -12.7% % Des Moines 46,080 257,797 -3.6% �.1% Fort Collins 32,101 79,334 1A96 Madison 47,418 244,721 -2.7% —.2% Iowa 205,380 1,085,930 -12.9% M.0% Source: United States Census Bureau, Quarterly Workforce Indicators (QWQ The general takeaway from this analysis is that the Creative Corridor has a slightly less robust base of small businesses as the state, nation, and Des Moines, and notably less capacity than acknowledged startup hubs in Fort Collins and Madison. Seen broadly, the small business momentum in the Corridor in recent years has also been declining based on data examined. MARKETH Page 39 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment Despite this conclusion, there has not been a complete dearth of small business success stories in the recent history of the Creative Corridor, some of which represent the region's fastest growing companies. These include Clickstop, which launched in 2005, Involta in 2007, Health Solutions in 2004, and Ready Wireless in 2008; all of these firms have been on Inc.'s 5000 fastest-growing private companies in America list. On the whole, public input participants were complimentary of the Creative Corridor's startup ecosystem and hopeful for the future. This was especially true for the potential to start a business, though not necessarily scale it. Multiple resources were said to exist to launch a concept, including small business competitions, incubation and coworking facilities, a 1 Million Cups program, networking events, seed capital investment opportunities, and others. There is camaraderie among entrepreneurs in the Corridor and willingness to support and mentor fledgling founders that was said to be more authentic than in many communities, largely because of the comparatively small breadth of the ecosystem. One participant said that Creative Corridor entrepreneurs have "one degree instead of six degrees of separation." According to input respondents, challenges arise when a startup tries to scale to a more sustainable size and market reach. Finding sources for Series A, B, and later -stage capital investment rounds as well as sourcing the talent necessary to grow technology businesses were said to be the principal challenges to growing a startup in the Creative Corridor. Founders have to bootstrap in the Corridor to a greater degree than in more established entrepreneurial hubs and plumb every possible resource for advice, mentorship, capital, and identification of potential employees, whether local or virtual. While this is a common issue in regions across the country, the Creative Corridor is not necessarily on the radar of the most well-known venture capital firms. One input respondent said that a VC from Silicon Valley was dismayed that he actually had to take a connecting flight to reach the Creative Corridor. In addition to this lack of external awareness, respondents said there is an underdeveloped — though growing — understanding among local residents that entrepreneurship is a viable career path. Focus group participants admitted that it is difficult to change people's perceptions about the Corridor because traditional television ads do not work in the venture capital and entrepreneurial world; it takes a grassroots effort to really get people to start looking at Iowa. Further, the Creative Corridor cannot tout any "homeruns" to build and expand the investor pool and interest in Iowa. Still, individuals from the entrepreneurial and startup community felt that many of the pieces were in place to start changing those perceptions and that "the ecosystem is coming." Average small business loan size in the Creative Corridor was the highest of all the comparison communities and had the largest increase over the past ten years. This could indicate either less restrictive access to loans in the Corridor, a greater need for capital, or both. One contributor to the growth of the Creative Corridor's startup ecosystem is a relatively new Cedar Rapids Community School District program called Iowa BIG. Students who are a part of the BIG program attend classes part-time at the Vault, a co -working space for entrepreneurs. The goal is to foster student interest by providing hands-on, competency -based learning. MARKETS Page 40 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment The following chart displays the viewpoints from the Vision Strategy online survey of respondents who self - identified as entrepreneurs. FIGURE 30: PLEASE RATE THE FOLLOWING COMPONENTS OF THE CREATIVE CORRIDOR'S ENTREPRENEURIAL CLIMATE: Entrepreneur -focused events and meetups 22.1% — Small business development support .. ®�27.4/. 97 1 Incubation facilities "'„ 23.0% , 265% ' Mentorship opportunities 28.6% 20.5%' Acceleration programs 22S% '1&0.6%J Availability of talent (skilled employees) ^. 28.3% J�- Availability of low interest loans 30.1%®_9i Availability of seed loansiirl 26.5% Availability of venture capital 25.7%36.396Availability of angel investment22.3% 50.9% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 500/o 600/6 70% 80% 90% 100% ■ VeryWeak or Weak ■ Neutral ■ Very Strong or Strong ■ Don't Know or N/A Source: Market Street Services, Creative Corridor Regional Vision Strategy (2016) Question was presented to 113 individuals that self -identified themselves as entrepreneurs or small business owners As can be seen, input participants from the small business and entrepreneurship community felt that the entrepreneur -focus events and meetups were strong in the Creative Corridor. Startup Weekend, 1 Million Cups, entrepreneur roundtables, and EntreFEST are just a few of the events and programs held throughout the year in the region. Small business development, incubation facilities, mentorships opportunities, and acceleration programs also ranked favorably among entrepreneurs. There are a number of Corridor programs and facilities dedicated to supporting the area's small businesses and entrepreneurship climate, including the University of Iowa's John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center (JPEC), NewBoCo accelerator, UI Research Park, the Vault, IC CoLab, and the Entrepreneurial Development Center. Three principal challenges were identified by survey participants as the most pressing issues faced by regional entrepreneurs. These included talent, perceptions, and capital. Availability of talent and skilled employees had the largest percentage of respondents ranking it "weak" of all the entrepreneurial climate considerations. A lack of programmers and coders was singled out as a MARKET LT Page 41 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment need. Surveyed entrepreneurs also noted how difficult it was to compete for talent against large, established companies that can afford to pay premiums for the most in -demand talent. The lack of capital — especially in post -seed rounds — noted by focus group and interview participants was echoed by online survey respondents. Capital formation challenges are common throughout the state, prompting the Iowa Partnership for Economic Progress to hire the Battelle Memorial Institute in 2014 to assess business and entrepreneurial activity. The report found that Iowa trailed the United States and its benchmark states across a variety of indicators used to measure entrepreneurial activity. The authors wrote, "A strategic priority for Iowa must include accelerating the development of Iowa's emerging entrepreneurial eco -system." Indeed, as figure 31 shows, Iowa trails the benchmark states of Colorado and Wisconsin by a significant amount in overall and per capita venture capital investment. FIGURE 31: VENTURE CAPITAL INVESTMENTS, 2014 Iowa $16.7 $5.3 $22.0 $7,080 Colorado $670.2 $123.9 $794.1 $148,267 Wisconsin $75.2 $11.6 $86.8 $15,076 Source: National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) The establishment of several local and regional revolving loan funds (RLF) since the natural disasters of 2008 has provided additional access to capital. As part of regional economic recovery efforts, ECICOG established an RLF with funding from the Economic Development Administration with a capital base of nearly $4 million that provides low interest loans to businesses throughout the region. More recently, several locally based funds have also been established, including city -funded programs in Cedar Rapids, Marion, and Iowa City and funds established by economic development organizations such as MEDCO in Marion and the Czech Village New Bohemia Mainstreet District. Considered the "steel mills of the 21' Century," today's research universities are expected not only to educate students but also contribute actively to local and regional economic development. This is especially true in relation to the transfer of university -developed technologies and the commercialization of sponsored research. Data from the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) shows that research expenditures in the Creative Corridor as represented by the University of Iowa are slightly above those of Iowa State in Central Iowa (Des Moines and Ames MSAs) and Colorado State in Fort Collins. MARKET Page 42 — Apni 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment FIGURE 32: UNIVERSITY RESEARCH ACTIVITY (FY2013) Creative Corridor University of Iowa 6.0 $435,377,000 29 6 96 24 53 $1,205,342 Research Foundation Des Moines Iowa State 6.3 $300,829,796 79 2 98 24 25 $9,108,374 Colorado State Fort Collins 4.0 $313,238,032 26 7 113 21 64 $1,153,043 University _ Madison University of Wisconsin- 18.0 $1,123,501,000 63 7 386 157 167 $94,170,000 Madison Source: Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) Associated impacts from research expenditures are also roughly equivalent in the Creative Corridor to the Des Moines and Fort Collins regions. However, when compared to the University of Wisconsin -Madison, the third -ranked U.S. higher education institution in research expenditures in 2013, the capacity of the Creative Corridor comes into clearer focus. Wisconsin -Madison received $94 million in license income in 2013 compared to $1.2 million at the University of Iowa, and far exceeded Creative Corridor totals for discovery disclosures and patent measures. In order to expand research and affiliated activities, both the Iowa Board of Regents and University of Iowa leaders will need to be more purposeful and aggressive about investments in research and development and technology transfer and commercialization. The Battelle report noted that, while Iowa's industrial and university -based research expenditures have increased in recent years, there must be more support provided to transfer and commercialize this research. Input respondents noted that the University of Iowa, which traditionally has not placed a premium on sponsored research and had a reputation for being difficult to partner with, was nevertheless improving in capacity and attitude. Major investments in a huge biomedical research district as well as the launch and expansion of research centers across the campus were said to be indications that a commitment to sponsored research and partnerships was becoming a university priority. Some noted that a "culture change" will be necessary among long-time administrators and faculty to truly transform the University of Iowa into a top -tier U.S. institution in research output, commercialization, and technology transfer. A key measure of regional innovation that incorporates both public and private institutional research as well as corporate and individual innovation is the rate of patent awards. An analysis of patents per 10,000 residents reveals that the Creative Corridor's per capita patent output exceeds Des Moines, but is well below Madison and Fort Collins. Encouragingly, the Corridor's relative patent awards increased faster than all the comparisons except Madison from 2008 to 2013. MARKET ST Page 43 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment FIGURE 33: PATENTS PER 10,000 RESIDENTS, 2003-2013 Cedar Rapids, IA 4.98 4.16 7.01 2.85 2.04 Iowa City, IA 3.39 3.55 4.02 0.47 0.63 5 -county Creative Corridor 4.40 3.94 5.87 1.94 1.47 Des Moines -West Des Moines, IA 2.91 2.58 4.60 2.02 1.681 Fort Collins -Loveland, CO 16.98 10.79 11.66 0.87 (5.32) Madison, WI 4.92 4.28 7.20 2.2 8 Source: USPTO The two most common sources of patentable research were higher education institutions and private businesses. In Madison, the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation is a major driver of the region's intellectual property and patents. However, in Fort Collins, the business community drives much of the innovation. In 2013, 369 utility patents were issued in Fort Collins, but only 15 came from Colorado State. In Madison, 150 of the 453 patents issued were from the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation. In the Cedar Rapids MSA, 105 of the 184 patents awarded originated from Rockwell, while in the Iowa City metro, 17 of 65 patents issued in 2013 were awarded to the University of Iowa Research Foundation. While patent awards are an important indicator of innovation capacity, they are an imperfect measure of the economic impact of that research. For that reason, efforts to help not only the University of Iowa and other institutions commercialize their research as well as support private businesses to capitalize on innovation by successfully launching new products and expanding to new markets are also paramount. The following section in the Creative Corridor's Regional Assessment will look at "place -based" factors of competitiveness for residents and businesses. KEY TAKEAWAYS ✓ The Creative Corridor has a slightly less robust base of small businesses as the state, nation, and Des Moines, and notably less capacity than acknowledged startup hubs in Fort Collins and Madison. Seen broadly, the small business momentum in the Corridor in recent years has also been declining based on data examined. ✓ Creative Corridor entrepreneurs and small business owners ranked many of the components related to the entrepreneurial climate as "strong" or "very strong" and felt that many of the pieces were in place to advance a growing startup ecosystem. ✓ Lack of available tech talent and investment capital were the top challenges identified by Corridor entrepreneurs and small businesses. Lack of external perception of the Corridor's entrepreneurial sector was also noted as a deficit. MARKETH Page 44 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment ✓ The Creative Corridor's per capita patent output exceeds Des Moines, but is well below Madison and Fort Collins. The rate of patent awards in the Corridor increased faster than nearly all the comparison areas. MARKET sr Page 45 — Apni 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment A Nice Place to Live but Not Without Challenges With the competition for talent more intense than ever and the trend of young professionals choosing a place to live before finding ajob, community and economic development professionals have no choice but to consider quality of life and quality of place factors when assessing their own communities. An employment opportunity and job offer is no longer enough to attract workers; todays talent is demanding more from the communities they call home. Trends show that the presence of walkable neighborhoods, cultural activities, entertainment options, as well as old standbys such as good schools and safe streets are high on the lists of not only talent but also businesses looking for places to call home. Above all, the cultivation of community assets, amenities, and resources should provide a wide range of choices for individuals whatever their stage of life, race and ethnicity, personal or political preferences, or religions. A key demographic to take into account when thinking about quality of life and place is the young professional cohort. As discussed in this report's section on talent, YPs represent the future and will largely determine the long-term sustainability of regional businesses across multiple sectors. Without sufficient capacity of next -generation talent, employers will go elsewhere. Certainly, the University of Iowa is a major asset for the attraction of YPs in that thousands of students come to the Creative Corridor every year to enter the university. Doing everything possible to ensure that university graduates have options to stay if desired has been and should be a priority strategic concern for the Corridor. Young professional participants in focus groups and interviews were especially complimentary of efforts in recent years to make the downtowns of Cedar Rapids and Iowa City more dense, urban, and pedestrian and bike -friendly. Respondents spoke especially highly about the growth in the NewBo and Czech Village areas of Cedar Rapids. The subject of affordable housing came up often during conversations with young professionals. They reported that the issue is not just simply being able to afford a home, but more about being able to afford a quality home in the type of environment they prefer — for example, downtown Iowa City. These preferences can also be seen in the word cloud created from the top responses of young professional online survey respondents as seen in figure 34. MARKET sr Page 46 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment FIGURE 34: SURVEY RESPONSES - "WHAT DO YOU THINK COULD BE DONE TO MAKE THE CREATIVE CORRIDOR MORE ATTRACTIVE FOR YOUNG PROFESSIONALS?" coo Z CITY � 4 HOUSING LIKE DOWNTONAGTIV WF RESTAURANT A n LIHCORRMR THTNENTERTAINMENT W Qr TIvNS OPPaRifum sS� CEDAR PEOPLE AFFORDABLE Source: Market Street Services, Creative Corridor Regional Vision Strategy (2016) Question was presented to 366 individuals that self -identified themselves as between the ages of 25 and 34. As with communities across the country, young professionals in the Creative Corridor are interested in downtown living with nearby amenities. Housing options and affordability as well as entertainment, events, and transportation capacity were also frequently mentioned terms related to improving the Corridor's competitiveness for YPs. One reason for the development of new amenities in downtown Cedar Rapids and Iowa City as well as the revitalization of NewBo and Czech Village was the tremendous influx of capital following the 2008 flood. Over a billion dollars in reinvestment has led to the rehabilitation and redevelopment of dozens of high- profile projects in Cedar Rapids and Iowa City. In order to ensure investor confidence in potential new developments and safeguard completed projects against future damage, it is critical that flood -control mechanisms be implemented to prevent against any future flood events. Flood protection is among the top priorities of the city of Cedar Rapids. However, although Congress has approved the city's flood -protection plan and authorized over $73 million in project funding under the Water Resources and Development Act (WRDA) of 2014, there have been multiple funding delays preventing flood -control projects from moving forward. District enhancements in Cedar Rapids and Iowa City have certainly benefitted more than just young professionals. Indeed, many place -based benefits prized by Millennials —walkability, proximity to amenities, MARKETH Page 47 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment diverse entertainment options — are also valued by adults at all ages. Similarly, factors like good schools and safe streets are also important criteria for Millennials looking for places to live and work. Overall, online survey respondents expressed strong satisfaction with the Creative Corridor and feel confident they will remain in the region. However, participants were less sure that children, once grown, will choose to live in the Corridor. While 77 percent of respondents reported that it was "very likely" that they will continue to live in the region, only 22.5 percent though it was "very' likely" that their children (once grown) will want to live in the Creative Corridor. Breaking down quality of life and place into their component parts, the chart in figure 35 lists the most important criteria that typically contribute to a community's competitiveness in these categories. Many important factors such as quality health care, public safety, cost of living, and arts and culture finished strongly. However, diversity of housing, shopping and nightlife, and, quite clearly, mobility options that do not include a car were identified as key concerns. MARKET LT Page 48 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment FIGURE 35: SURVEY RESPONSES "PLEASE RATE THE FOLLOWING ASPECTS OF THE CREATIVE CORRIDOR'S QUALITY OF LIFE, BASED ON YOUR EXPERIENCES WHERE YOU LIVE." Availability of quality healthcare options Volunteer opportunities 304 Sense of personal and property safety Cultural and arts facilities and programs Overall cost of living Dining opportunities Housing affordability Aesthetics and appearance of the community Entertainment and recreational amenities for families Diversity of housing options Quality of development, planning, and land use Shopping opportunities Nightlife options for adults Ability to access shops, restaurants, and services without using a car 100 63.3% 19.9% 46.8% 0.1 95.5`�b L.1% 36.1% 1% Nei 46.5% . 42.2% 41.0% MI 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% ■ Very poor/Below average In Average ■ Above average/Excellent Source: Market Street Services, Creative Corridor Regional Vision Strategy (2016) Health Care: Hospitals and other health care sub -sectors comprise one of the largest employment categories in the Creative Corridor. With the presence of the medical school at the University of Iowa, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics system, and Iowa City VA Health Care System in Iowa City along with Unity Point Health -St. Luke's Hospital and Mercy Medical Center in Cedar Rapids, the Creative Corridor provides a very competitive and accessible array of choices for patients. In fact, according to 2014 data from Sperling's, the Iowa City MSA had one of the highest number physicians -per -capita (1017 for every 100,000 people) in the country. For contrast, Cedar Rapids had 168 physicians per 100,000 residents, Des Moines 261, Fort Collins 241, and Madison 524. The national average is 261. MARKETH Page 49 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment Seeking to capitalize on opportunities in the health care sector, hospital and business leaders in Cedar Rapids have designated a 55 -square block district near downtown as the MedQuarter Regional Medical District. The staffed district seeks to revitalize the area, improve quality of life, and promote economic development. Adding to the Creative Corridor's standing as a center of health and wellness, Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, and Marion have all been certified as Blue Zone communities. This is accomplished by meeting certain criteria designed to make healthy choices easier for residents through permanent changes to environment, policy, and social networks. Online survey respondents feel positively about the Creative Corridor's health care capacity. Roughly 77 percent of survey respondents felt that the availability of quality health care options was "above average" or "excellent." Public Safetv: Perceptions and realities of public safety are key criteria considered by residents and businesses when comparing communities as places to live, work, and conduct business. This is especially true for families. Data show that both violent and property crime in the Creative Corridor are slightly lower than the comparison regions and well below national rates. Incidences of property crime are especially low in the Creative Corridor. Encouragingly, both measures of crime are also decreasing in the Corridor, though at rates slower than Fort Collins and the U.S. FIGURE 36: VIOLENT AND PROPERTY CRIME RATES, INCIDENTS PER 10,000 RESIDENTS, 2013 Creative Corridor 219.2 2,068.9 -5.4% -11.5% Des Moines 266.6 2,751.8 -21.9% -3.8% Fort Collins 202.8 2,151.7 -25.6% -19.4% Madison 216.7 2,253.7 -7.0% -15.0% Iowa 273.0 2,198.2 -5.5% -10.2% United States 379.1 2,733.3 -17.2% -15.0% Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Moody's Analytics Personal and property safety ranked highly in the online survey, with roughly two-thirds of input participants rating it "excellent" or "above average." This is notable because, very often, community perceptions of crime are worse than the reality. Lifestyle Amenities: Very often, where larger communities have advantages over smaller places is in their breadth and variety of amenities such as arts and culture facilities and programs, diverse nightlife, availability of destination retail brands, and multiple top-ranked restaurants. The two communities in which this dynamic does not always apply are college towns and tourist areas. In the case of the Creative Corridor, the presence of the University of Iowa has driven development of a critical mass of amenities typically found only in larger cities. When paired with a population center such as Cedar Rapids and its MARKETH Page 50 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment suburbs, the Creative Corridor fights above its weight in terms of quality of life attractions. Arts and culture amenities such as Theater Cedar Rapids, the Paramount Theater, Giving Tree Theater, National Czech & Slovak Museum, and the soon -to -open new Hancher Auditorium provide multiple options for local art patrons. Indeed, nearly half of online survey respondents said the region's arts facilities and programs were "above average' or "excellent." Identified improvements cited by input participants included doing more to embrace the arts regionally, developing a broader mix of attractions, and better coordinating events and festivals regionally. Survey respondents were less encouraged by the Creative Corridor's nightlife amenities. However, excitement over developments in Downtown Iowa City, NewBo and Czech Village in Cedar Rapids, and traditional and new -build core developments in Marion, Coralville, and other suburbs makes many in the region optimistic about the region's future entertainment capacity. Housing: Especially as housing prices skyrocket in traditionally expensive markets such as Seattle, the Bay Area, Southern California, New York, Boston, as well as formerly mid -priced regions such as Austin, Texas, Portland, Oregon, and others, the issue of housing cost and rental affordability has become an even greater place -based concern for businesses and talent. Lower cost markets are proving to be viable location alternatives for many individuals and firms priced out of higher -cost markets. In public input, feedback on relative housing -cost burden varied between the northern and southern nodes of the Creative Corridor. Iowa City stakeholders were more vocal about affordability challenges than residents of metro Cedar Rapids counties. This is borne out by the data as seen in figure 37. Factoring in median household income and median value of single-family homes, housing affordability in Iowa City was more constrained than the Cedar Rapids MSA. In context, however, Cedar Rapids homes are actually the most affordable of all the comparison geographies. While higher than Cedar Rapids, Des Moines, and Iowa, Iowa City housing was still more affordable than the national average and below the rates in Madison and Fort Collins. FIGURE 37: METRO HOME AFFORDABILITY, 2014 Cedar Rapids, IA $61,865 $149,600 2.42 Iowa City, IA $59,791 $193,500 3.24 Des Moines $62,446 $164,400 2.63 Fort Collins $56,575 $269,700 4.77 Madison $60,903 $221,100 3.63 Iowa $53,712 $133,100 2.48 United States $53,657 $181,200 3.38 Source: United States Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1 yr. estimates Not only is Iowa City housing less affordable than in the Creative Corridor's northern end, but prices are increasing more rapidly. Only Fort Collins saw a greater rise in housing prices in the post -recession MARKETH Page 51 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment years. Interestingly, Cedar Rapids housing appreciated much faster during the recession, but has slowed during the recovery period. FIGURE 38: SINGLE FAMILY; HOME VALUE INDEX; RECESSION AND RECOVERY Cedar Rapids, IA Iowa City, IA Des Moines, IA Fort Collins, CO Madison, WI United States $121,700 $164,200 $141,400 $233,000 $207,300 $186,900 $132,500 $167,900 $147,900 $227,500 $204,500 $171,100 $141,400 $193,200 $165,000 $310,400 $220,100 $182,400 Source: Allow 2.3% 4.6% -2.4% -1.4% -8.5% E 6.7% M15.1% 11.6% 7.6% ■ 6.6% Online survey respondents generally found housing costs in the Creative Corridor to be competitive, with 41 percent rating them "above average' or "excellent" and 38.5 percent labeling them "average." As mentioned previously, among the comparison areas the Creative Corridor has the highest percentage of owner -occupied homes and a relatively smaller portion of households that are renting. As with single- family home prices, rental costs are higher in the Iowa City MSA than the Cedar Rapids metro. The median rent in Cedar Rapids MSA was $695 in 2014 and $911 in Iowa City. Very likely, rental rates in Iowa City are higher because of the demand from University of Iowa students; this is reflected in a 2.0 vacancy rate for Iowa City rentals compared to 7.1 percent in Cedar Rapids and 6.3 percent nationally. Perceptions of a lack of housing availability as well as affordability issues among Iowa City stakeholders are thus borne out by data. Input participants also reported that there was a lack of short-term rental options in the Creative Corridor, especially in Iowa City. This issue made it more difficult to hire summer interns who did not have relatives with housing in the area. Mobility and Transportation: The movement of goods and people around a region and connectivity to outside markets are important concerns for employers and residents. In public input, while congestion on I-380 was highlighted as a weakness, 45.5 percent of survey respondents still felt that overall mobility was a strength in the region. While some complained of the time necessary to commute from one end of the Creative Corridor to another, others with perspective on benchmark regions acknowledged that travel times across were manageable. Per the data, only Iowa drivers spent less time commuting than Creative Corridor residents. In fact, almost 80 percent of Corridor commutes take less than 30 minutes. This is compared to a little over 63 percent at the U.S. level. Degree of transit usage in the Creative Corridor was largely dependent on location. As seen in figure 39, Cedar Rapids experienced by far the fewest transit trips per capita in 2014 while Iowa City transit was used by a higher percentage of residents than all the benchmark regions. Cost per trip was also highest in Cedar Rapids and lowest in Iowa City among the comparison areas. This is consistent not only MARKETH Page 52 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment with the presence of the University of Iowa and its related transportation services (along with Iowa City Transit busses), but also the fact that the campus is spread out and integrated into the urban fabric as opposed to being self-contained like most colleges and universities. FIGURE 39: TRANSIT DATA, 2014 Cedar Rapids, IA 1,302,572 177,844 7.32 $6.01 Iowa City, ]A 7,317,956 106,621 68.64 $1.73 Des Moines, IA 4,703,386 450,070 17.78 $5.27 Fort Collins, CO 2,928,873 264,465 27.47 $4.69 Madison, WI 15,492,317 401,661 38.57 $3.34 Source: National Transit Database (NTD) Because a larger percentage of online survey participants were from Cedar Rapids and its suburbs, response percentages for transit availability reflected these biases. Roughly 63 percent of survey respondents rated the ability to access shops, restaurants, and services without using a car as "very poor' or "below average." Interview and focus group participants also identified public transportation capacity as a competitive weakness in the Creative Corridor. Through a process coordinated by ECICOG, commuting options in the corridor will be enhanced by several new public services — branded Iowa's Creative Corridor Ride Connect - including, ride sharing, van pooling and a new express bus service between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City. These services will be phased in between spring 2016 and the summer of 2017. While an exact route is yet to be formalized for express bus service, planners expect stops to be located in downtown Cedar Rapids, Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, perhaps Coralville, the University of Iowa medical campus, and downtown Iowa City. A study was also commissioned to examine options for rail connectivity between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City, but the results of the report have been delayed. One of the final online survey questions concerned participants' visions for what they would like to see occur in the Creative Corridor in the next ten years. The results of the most frequently used terms can be seen in figure 40. MARKET LT Page 53 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment FIGURE 40: SURVEY RESPONSES -"IMAGINE THAT YOU WENT HOME, PACKED YOUR BAGS, AND DIDN'T RETURN TO THE REGION FOR TEN YEARS. WHAT WOULD YOU WANT TO SEE DIFFERENT (IF ANYTHING) ABOUT THE REGION WHEN YOU RETURN?" oIE LP O s IES O RESTAURANTS H a r .AREASO� NAREA OF p RTUNITIESpo ENTERTAINMENT HOUSING TI� INGS TITIES H Source: Market Street Services, Creative Corridor Regional Vision Strategy (2016) The majority of responses centered on many of the characteristics associated with quality of place in the Creative Corridor. Housing, transportation, restaurants, entertainment, and bike trails were all cited as aspects residents would like to see improved or added upon. Developing regional downtowns into more compelling destinations was also mentioned often by focus groups and survey participants. The more developments that come online will reduce the need to travel outside the region to larger communities to access these amenities, respondents said. KEY TAKEAWAYS ✓ Young professionals, one of the most coveted demographics by communities, are pleased with changes being made to Creative Corridor downtowns and other amenities, but identified the lack of affordable housing (primarily in Iowa City) and the need for more entertainment options as challenges in the retention and recruitment of YPs. ✓ Existing residents responding to the online survey feel confident they will stay in the Creative Corridor, but are less sure their children will locate in the region when grown. MARKETE Page 54 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment ✓ Quality health care, public safety, low cost of living, and arts and culture capacity were all identified as quality of life strengths in the Creative Corridor. ✓ Challenges were said to be a lack of housing diversity, insufficient comparative shopping and nightlife amenities, and few viable mobility options besides driving. MARKET sr Page 55 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment Necessary but Elusive Regionalism The federal government recognized the connectivity between the Cedar Rapids and Iowa City metros when it designated the two -region geography a Combined Statistical Area (CSA) based on data from the 2010 Census. What this means is that commuting, residency, and employment patterns were defined enough to demonstrate that the Creative Corridor was an integrated economy and labor shed. While the notion of regional cohesion is understood objectively by most in the Creative Corridor, subjectively many still feel the divides between the Corridor's northern and southern nodes present obstacles to building a more unified, collaborative, coordinated and complementary relationship between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City. Some of the variations between the Cedar Rapids and Iowa City MSAs are quantifiable and understandably lead to the conclusion that Creative Corridor populations have real differences. In addition to the data already referenced in this report related to variations in health care capacity, transit usage, housing costs, public school performance, and other factors, additional differences emerge when trends are compared for the MSAs and their component counties. For example, five-year population growth rates in Johnson County (8.7 percent) are more than double those in Linn County (4.2 percent). Different rates of growth lead to different perceptions of the value of growth and its impact on the community. For example, some input participants were dismayed at the historical and recently renewed "slow - growth" philosophy of the Iowa City Council which they believe drives residential investment to suburban counties and exacerbates the city's lack of affordable young professional and market -rate housing. Respondents with experience trying to obtain development permits in Iowa City also noted their difficulty in securing these approvals in a timely manner. Quantitative differences are especially stark between Johnson and Linn counties in relation to educational attainment. In 2014, 51.7 percent of Johnson County adults had a bachelor's degree or above compared to 30.7 percent in Linn County. Nearly one in four Johnson County adults has earned a Master's or PhD. Data show that poverty is also higher in Linn County, a fact that leads to more acute health issues than in Johnson. Most recent health rankings show that 7.6 percent of Johnson County residents are considered to be in poor health compared to 11.1 percent in Linn County. The economies of the two nodes are also different, with Iowa City leveraging a base in education and health care while Cedar Rapids relies more on financial services and production employment. Economic variations affect perceptions of the two communities, with Cedar Rapids seen as more "blue collar' than communities to the south. Without a doubt, the presence of the University of Iowa in Iowa City influences many of these trends and perceptions. While this reality will not be changing, many in the Creative Corridor see the lines blurring between the influence of the university over its home community and those outside of Iowa City. In fact, some input participants feel that a stronger leadership position from the university on the benefits of regionalism could help bring the two principal communities together. Entities such as Kirkwood Community College are also expanding across the breadth of the Corridor and can truly be considered regional in scope and impact. The Grant Wood Area Education Agency and the local lowaWORKS agency also encompass the Iowa City and Cedar Rapids metros. Complicating matters, MARKETE Page 56 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment however, is the fact that entities like this with a footprint spanning the two metros are rare. The Creative Corridor features two MSAs, two metropolitan planning organizations, two United Ways, two principal transit systems, two community foundations; the list can go on. The issue of regional differences was one of the most common themes to emerge during Regional Vision public input. Many respondents commented on the core challenges of regionalism in the Creative Corridor. Feedback included: • "Iowa City and Cedar Rapids just have different philosophies on things." • "When you talk about the Creative Corridor, there are differences in opinions and beliefs, even when it comes to the economy and population." • "Post -flood has not seen the same sense of regionalism. We've had to focus on our own issues. • "We're in silos. No one has looked at the bigger picture." • "We don't lack the infrastructure to come together, but need to work on the relationships to build community and networks." • "The cultures of the two towns are just very different." • "You have the issue of two extremely different counties that just have different challenges." • "Folks down here (Iowa City) are still a little trepidacious about talk of working with the north end." • "We're not thinking of running up and down the Corridor as something I do." Perspectives on regionalism in the Creative Corridor were said by some to be influenced by constituency groups. For example, a young professional said that his generation does not see the region as two separate places. "We just kind of treat it as one chunk." Interestingly, a mid -career professional echoed that sentiment, noting, "Twenty miles is less of a chasm, especially as I get older." For some, government has been slower to acknowledge and appreciate regionalism than the business community. Indeed, one government official noted, "There isn't much of a relationship as opposed to there being a bad relationship." While informal relationships exist between government representatives in the Iowa City and Cedar Rapids communities, no formal groups or councils are charged with bringing leaders together. This notion of lack of "common ground" or "neutral territory' was also raised by many input participants. Others noted that what the Corridor needs are opportunities for "shared experiences' that compel constituents to come together in new and productive ways. Trust- and relationship - building were said to be important to ensuring that new connections are made and regionalism becomes more viable in the Corridor. Creating a sense of urgency for regional collaboration as well as defensibly articulating the benefits of these partnerships were also noted as critical to achieving success. One leader said about a regional brand, "We have to believe it before we can sell it." MARKET LT Page 57 — April 2016 �' Iowa's (crective corridor Regional Assessment While the challenges of improved regionalism in the Creative Corridor were mentioned often, many stakeholders also said that examples of regional cooperation and integration are becoming more frequent, with the perceived potential of these efforts becoming more pervasive. The prime example cited of these positive trends was the creation of the Creative Corridor brand itself and the recent formation of a joint venture between [CAD and the Cedar Rapids Alliance. Others said they were starting to see more cross -participation on boards and leadership groups. "Before, leadership didn't even know each other. At least now they've been introduced." Another noted, "If we acknowledged our regionality that would be huge because there are so many ways that we already operate as a region." A number of stakeholders in the region are proudly touting themselves as "Corridorians," a person who lives in Cedar Rapids and works in Iowa City or vice versa. One leader noted, "The biggest thing each city has in common is that a significant workforce lives in the other city." In fact, numerous opportunities for regional connections were identified, including the linking of bike trails, major highway projects like the I-380 expansion, Forever Green interchange or Tower Terrace construction, or the role that arts can play as a regional binder. The variations between the north and south nodes of the Creative Corridor themselves were seen by many as an opportunity as opposed to a challenge. One leader noted, "Externally, it's a strength that we have two anchor cities that complement each other." Another said, "Each place has its own unique identity, and that's okay. We offer choices — that's a good thing." Online survey participants also weighed in on the issue of regionalism. Roughly 81 percent of survey participants reported that they were familiar with the Creative Corridor brand. Additionally, there was little variation among the tenor of input responses from the seven different counties of the region. Many survey participants felt that the Creative Corridor was already a cohesive region, although hundreds of others felt differently. Many stakeholders from the business community felt that it made sense to market the community together rather than as two separate metros. Presenting the Creative Corridor as one region would raise its population profile to nearly half a million people, which would help catch the attention of site selectors, destination retailers, and potential residents. As the Creative Corridor process moves forward, opportunities to address the barriers impeding improved regionalism as well as strategies to more effectively bind the Corridor's northern and southern communities will be proposed, discussed, and confirmed. KEY TAKEAWAYS ✓ Despite being a Combined Statistical Area, a lack of perceived regionalism in the Creative Corridor can be a problem. ✓ Certain differences between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City are quantifiable, while others are based on perceived variations by stakeholders in both communities. MARKETE Page 58 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment o The presence of the University of Iowa in Iowa City certainly affects actual and perceived differences in the north and south ends of the Corridor. ✓ Examples of intra -regional coordination are occurring more frequently, while many in the Creative Corridor feel that even the differences between Cedar Rapids and Iowa City are a positive because they provide residents and businesses with choices. MARKET sr Page 59 — April 2016 • Iowa's creative corridor Regional Assessment CONCLUSION The assessment of a community's competitive position always leads to identification of opportunities to be leveraged and challenges to be addressed. Before a Regional Vision for the Creative Corridor can be formalized and pursued via strategic implementation, it is necessary to frankly analyze, report, and discuss both its positives and negatives in order to determine the optimal path forward for the region. Trends and current conditions in the Creative Corridor were presented in this report through the lens of six "stories" designed to leverage a narrative format to communicate competitive realities and issues. These stores were: • Strong but Uneven Population Growth and Change • A Quality but Constrained Workforce with Strong Resident Wellbeing • A Resilient, Diverse Local Economy and Competitive Business Climate • Strong Entrepreneurial Legacy with a Still -Evolving Startup Ecosystem • A Nice Place to Live but Not Without Challenges • Necessary but Elusive Regionalism Key conclusions from these narratives paint the picture of a Creative Corridor moving forward successfully but facing challenges that threaten to dampen or derail that success. However, strong, diverse economic fundamentals, stable anchor employers, dynamic institutional assets, competitive demographic and quality of life factors, and the great, untapped potential of a unified regional presence bode well for a continued dynamism in the Creative Corridor for years to come. As the phases of the Corridor's strategic vision process continue, additional research into the region's economic structure and targeted opportunities will be paired with the findings of the Regional Assessment to establish the framework and key recommendations of the draft Regional Vision Strategy. Upon confirmation of the Creative Corridor's strategic blueprint, an Implementation Plan will be developed to ensure that the strategy is actionable and benefits from sustained, coordinated, collaborative, and effectively resourced implementation. MARKETsr Page 60 — April 2016 From Council Member Mims 1 04-14-16 IP7 �Ecc14!Rbe . Am Joint Emergency Communications Center News Release To: All Local Media Outlets From: Tom Jones, Executive Director Date: April 13, 2016 RE: Joint Emergency Communications Center receives Team Telecommunicator of the Year Award Iowa City, IA, April 13, 2016 - The staff of the Johnson County Joint Emergency Communications Center (JECC) was presented with the Team Telecomunicator of the Year Award for 2015 at the Iowa APCO Spring Conference in Des Moines on April 12, 2016. The JECC was one of three finalists for the award. The team was nominated by the management staff of the JECC for the teamwork that was displayed during the tragic shooting that occurred at the Coral Ridge Mall on June 12, 2015. "The teamwork went beyond those that were working that evening as well. We had staff come into work without being called in because they knew the center would be overwhelmed with phone calls and radio traffic. Our overflow E-911 system was also put to use and calls were being answered by the staff at the Cedar Rapids Joint Communications Center in addition to the JECC. This was truly a team effort by everyone and a great example of inter -agency cooperation", said Tom Jones, Executive Director for the JECC. In total over there were over fifty-three (53), 9-1-1 calls that were answered in a 12 minute period from the start of the incident. Of those 53 calls, forty-one (41) were in the first three (3) minutes. During those first 3 minutes, twenty-one (21) calls were answered by Jonson County and twenty (20) calls were answered by Cedar Rapids. Over the next ninety (90) minutes, the JECC received and processed a total of 215 phone calls. In addition to the phone calls in the first 3 minutes, three dispatchers handled a total of forty- six (46) radio transmissions from responding officers. F11B Photo attached courtesy of the JECC. Pictured from Left to Right: Lori Snider, Tiffany Regenwether, Kelsey Marquez, Rick Gisolf and Logan Hanrahan. I 1 04-14-16 -`f,;.p CITY OF IOWA CITY IP8 Wig MEMORANDUM Date: April 12, 2016 To: City Council From: Geoff Fruin, Interim City Manager Re: Low Barrier Winter Emergency Shelter Report From December 14, 2015 to March 13, 2016 the Shelter House operated a Low Barrier Winter Emergency Shelter in Iowa City. This marked the second consecutive winter that this type of shelter has been operated in Iowa City, although this year's offering was three weeks longer than the previous year. The shelter operated from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. and provided minimal accommodations (e.g. cots, bedding and restrooms) under the watch of trained employees. This year's shelter was located at 1925 Boyrum Street. The space was generously donated by Southgate Companies. Funding was provided by a number of local governments including Iowa City ($20,000), Johnson County ($15,000), Coralville ($2,500) and North Liberty ($1,000). Other private sources came from the Community Foundation of Johnson County, United Way, Housing Trust Fund of Johnson County and others. Day to day operations were managed by the Shelter House. A summary of the operations are summarized below: • 175 unique individuals were served (40% increase over year 1) • 2,950 nights of shelter were provided (66% increase over year 1) • An average of 32.4 individuals were served each night (25% increase year 1) • No reports of frost bite or death due to exposure • Iowa City Police had 21 calls for service for 'vagrancy' during shelter operations (67% decrease from 2014 when no shelter existed and 64 calls for service were recorded) The Low Barrier Winter Emergency Shelter continues to provide a vital service to the Johnson County community. The service would not be possible without the leadership from the Shelter House and the members of the Local Homeless Coordinating Board. Financial support from public and private entities are also critical to sustain the operations. Perhaps the most crucial component to the operation is the identification of a viable location. Finding a suitable location and willing property owner will continue to be a very difficult challenge in the coming years. The City of Iowa City has again budgeted $20,000 for this service in FY 2017. If you have any questions about this past year's operations or our commitment for the coming year please feel free to contact me. r �`�.®fir CITY OF IOWA C I TY IPg ' 602 MEMORANDUM Date: April 8, 2016 To: Geoff Fruin, Assistant City Manager From: Stefanie Bowers, Equity Director Re: Diversity Implementations Update and Status on Racial Equity and Diversity Initiative (15' Quarter 2016). Introduction: This memo serves as an update for the ongoing staff responsibilities of the Ad Hoc Diversity Committee's recommendations that were adopted by way of resolution in June of 2013. It also provides the most recent activity on the Action Plans from the 2014 and 2015 Reports on Equity and the Action Plan and the Racial Equity and Diversity Initiatives adopted by resolution in February of 2015. This is the last update for 2015. Council Hold Listening Posts No posts held during this time. Staff Roundtables January 6, the City Manager's Roundtable was held. Persons in attendance included the City Manager, Assistant City Manager, Police Chief, Finance Director, City Clerk, Communications Staff, Community Outreach Assistant for the Police Department and the Equity Director along with representatives from the Black Voices Project, the Coalition for Racial Justice, the Human Rights Commission, and the Center for Worker Justice of Eastern Iowa. Topics included a discussion on the My Brother's Keeper Program and the Utility Discount Program. March 2, the City Manager's Roundtable was held. Persons in attendance included the City Manager, Assistant City Manager, Police Captain, City Clerk, Communications Coordinator, Community Outreach Assistant for the Police Department, Human Rights Investigator and the Equity Director along with representatives from the Black Voices Project, the Coalition for Racial Justice, the Human Rights Commission, and the Center for Worker Justice of Eastern Iowa. Discussion included City code enforcement of rental properties, the Senior Center and its current initiatives to increase membership diversity and the upcoming Council Work Session on the Disproportionate Minority Contact Traffic Stop Study. Expand Coffee with a Cop January 28, Coffee with a Cop was held at Bread Garden Market. February 26, Coffee with a Cop was held at the west side Java House. Participate in United States Department of Justice Pilot Program National Initiative for Building Community Trust and Justice The Police Department is still awaiting a response from the United States Department of Justice on the inquiry to participate in the Building Community Trust and Justice Offer Police Ride Alongs to Community Members To encourage more relationship building activities with police officers and members of the community the Police Department offers ride alongs to members of the community who wish to participate. Expand the Use of Body -Mounted Cameras within the Police Department This was completed in August of 2015. Participate in the Disproportionate Minority Contact Study The Police Department continues to participate in the study on disproportionate minority contact in traffic stops with Dr. Christopher Barnum of St. Ambrose University. Dr. Barnum will report out on the most recent data (2015) at the April 19 Council Work Session. Encourage Other Jurisdictions within Johnson County to Establish Community Police Review Boards No update at this time. City Departments Receive Trainings on Competency, Bias, Awareness and Cultural Consciousness January 22, the Human Rights Office sponsored a free community training on Employment Barriers Faced by People of Color. Maria Flores, Program Manager from the Equal Employment Opportunity Office facilitated the training. City staff from the City Attorney's Office, Human Resources, Housing Authority, Police Department, Human Rights and Neighborhood & Development Services attended the training along with other organizations, businesses and community members. Engage with Communities of Color by Actively Participating in Events, Programs, Activities, and Outreach January 18, City staff from the Human Rights and Police Department along with several Council members including the Mayor attended Martin Luther King, Jr. National Holiday Day events at The Spot and Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church. February 20, a Living Museum with The Dream Center was hosted at the City's Robert A. Lee Recreation Center. Youth dressed as historical figures and provided visitors with an interpretation of Black History. City staff from the Human Rights and Police Department were in attendance. March 18, the Mayor Pro Tem Kingsley Botchway, Councilmembers Assistant to the City Manager and Police Chief attended a luncheon at the Kingdom Center hosted by Pastor Vincent Allen, Executive Director Lady Gerri Allen, and Project Events Coordinator Nikia Adams. This was the second consecutive year of the luncheon. Pastor Allen provided a tour of the Kingdom Center's facility and program offerings and partner organizations were detailed. Provide Support and Resources for a Regional Community Identification Program. gri oin.q Partner with the Government Alliance on Racial Equity (GARE) January 20, Human Rights staff and the Finance Director participated in the GARE webinar Contracting for Equity: Best Local Government Practices that Advance Racial Equity in Government and Procurement. February 2, Human Rights staff participating in the Midwest Racial Equity Convening Planning Session. The convening will be held in Chicago, Illinois in April. February 4, Human Rights staff and GARE staff worked on and completed a Racial Equity Narrative for the GARE website. Review and Discuss Committee Reports from the Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee of Johnson County The City Clerk has been including the meeting minutes of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Committee of Johnson County in Council Information Packets. Collect and Analyze Data on Individuals who Apply for Employment with the City The City has been collecting data annually on the race and ethnicity of individuals that apply for employment with the City through the new MUNIS Enterprise Resource Planning System. The data is voluntarily submitted by the applicant. Results will be reported out on in the 2016 Report on Equity. Collect and Analyze Data on Individuals who Apply for Appointment on City Boards/Commissions The City has been collecting data annually on the race and ethnicity of individuals that apply for appointment on a City board/commission through a voluntary survey that is a part of the application. Human Rights staff began circulating this year's survey to board and commission staff in mid-February. Results will be reported out on in the 2016 Report on Equity. Evaluate a Racial Equity Impact Review Tool for City Budgets, Programs, Policies and Services Staff is working on determining with what departments to start a pilot use of the Review Tool. Increase Racial/Ethnic Diversity of the Applicant Pool for Hiring within the Police Department No updates at this time. Increase Awareness of the Options to File Complaints of Discrimination against the Police Department or other City Services, Programs or Operations January 22, the Human Rights Office sponsored a free community training on Employment Barriers Faced by People of Color. Maria Flores, Program Manager from the Equal Employment Opportunity Office facilitated the training. This training included information regarding how to file complaints of discrimination. Other Items to Note: January 4, City staff joined the My Brother's Keeper Alliance List Serve. The List Serve offers webinars on topics of note. January 5, the Council adopted a Resolution in Support of Muslim Communities. January 5, the Mayor proclaimed January 18 to be Martin Luther King, Jr. National Holiday. January 7, the Communications Department sent out a media release listing community events, programs, and activities planned for the National Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday. January 11, Human Rights staff and the Community Outreach Assistant for the Police Department attended the monthly Juvenile Disproportionate Minority Contact Committee meeting. January 19, the Human Rights Commission made a $300 financial contribution to the Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County to offset the costs of community events for Black History Month. January 21, Human Rights staff met with the Director for Parks and Recreational Services to discuss the City's racial equity and diversity initiative. January 21, Human Rights staff participated in the webinar on Leveraging the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act & Engaging Workforce Investment Boards sponsored by the My Brother's Keeper Alliance. January 26, Human Rights staff participated in the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention webinar on Police/Community Trust. Local and National Perspectives. January 29, the Iowa City Public Library (ICPL) debuted 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten. This program encourages parents and caregivers to do just that: read 1,000 books before the child starts kindergarten. February 4-11, the ICPL held a variety of events/programs in honor of Black History Month including a Concert by Gospel Explosion Ministry's Choirs, a film screening of Bessie about the legendary blues singer, and documentary Twenty Feet from Stardom that explores predominately African-American singers. February 8, the Community Outreach Assistant for the Police Department attended the monthly Juvenile Disproportionate Minority Contact Committee meeting. February 11, the Human Rights Department received full points on the STAR Community Rating System. February 11, the Communications Department sent a media release of community events planned in honor of Black History Month. February 16, the Mayor proclaimed the month of February to be National Black History Month in Iowa City. February 16, the Council adopted an amendment to include Housing Choice Voucher and other Rental Subsidies in the definition of Public Assistance Source of Income under the City's fair housing laws. February 19, City staff from the Police Department attended the Soul Food Dinner and Entertainment at City High School event. February 20, City staff from Parks and Recreation, Police Department and Human Rights attended the Living Museum with the Dream Center. The event was held at the Robert A. Lee Recreational Center. February 24, the ICPL joined the national movement to make math the cool thing to do after school by hosting a Crazy 8s Math Club for elementary students in kindergarten through second grade. February 25, the Human Resources Department sponsored an Employment Fair for Spring and Summer positions at Mercer Park Aquatic Center. Estimated attendance was 50 with over 60 jobs promoted. Laptops were available for participants to use to submit their application. 31 total applications were received. March 1, the ICPL added laptop computers to its list of materials available for check out. March 1, the ICPL produced handbills on How to get a Library card in Spanish, Arabic and French as part of its outreach in the Iowa City Community School District. March 8, City staff from Neighborhood & Development Services met with community members to discuss the City's existing Micro Loan Program and how the City can best increase the number of persons applying for the loan, particularly women and persons of color. March 17, City staff updated the diversity list used to send out notice of events, programs and activities. March 21, the City was one of several sponsors for a program entitled Leading the Inclusive City. University of Iowa Professor Robin Hambleton presented on how cities can take steps to minimize inequality, advance social justice and bolster community empowerment. March 29, the Equity Director attended the Higher Education Recruitment Consortium (HERC) Introductory Meeting in Ankeny. This meeting was to explore the formation of a regional affiliate for the state of Iowa. HERC member benefits include accessing a diverse applicant pool, building relationships across Iowa and providing professional development opportunities. See Attachment for a complete list of the Police Department's activities for the first quarter. TO: Stefanie Bowers FROM: Lt. David Droll RE: DIF Reporting for ICPD 1st Quarter 2016 DATE: April 8, 2016 ICPD's DIF Reporting for the first quarter of 2016 is below. COMMUNITY OUTREACH: Documentation of any participation of an event, attended or presented, by a Department Member to a community member or organization. 40 ICPD Officers attended 392 events in the first quarter of 2016 totaling 440.59 hours and made contact with approximately 10,976 community members. Several community outreach efforts included community member ride alongs. Of particular note is the Department's participation in the Johnson County Explorers. The Department also had Coffee with a Cop in January, February, and March. Locations for the events included the Bread Garden, Java House and Oaknoll Retirement Center. COMMUNITY PRESENTATIONS: Documentation of any participation in a community presentation by a Department Member. 17 ICPD Officers participated in 43 community presentations in the first quarter of 2016 totaling 70.75 hours making contact with 2,401 community members. During this quarter, the Citizen's Police Academy was held. This was attended by 30 community members. CULTURAL COMPETENCY TRAINING: Documentation of any training by a Department Member involving cultural competency. Cultural competency training refers to training directed at an ability to interact effectively with people of different cultures, ethnicity, and socio-economic backgrounds. All members of the Department completed on-line training on Ethics in January 2016. All sworn members of the Department completed on line training regarding Biased Based Policing in March 2016. Community Outreach Assistant, Henry Harper attended a 2 hour Diverse Discrimination Training. Two Command Staff members attended a "Post Ferguson" discussion in February. PUBLIC EDUCATION EFFORTS ON RIGHTS: Documentation of any participation of an event, attended or presented by a Department Member to a community member or organization where focus is on education of one's rights. 3 ICPD Officers participated in 5 public education efforts on rights in the first quarter of 2016 totaling 5.5 hours and making contact with 203 community members. COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS: Documentation of any partnership between the Department and another Community Organization. ICPD worked with 32 community partners that led to attendance at 113 events by 24 officers who spent 181.5 hours with 1,802 community members. Of note is the Department's partnership with agencies that involve elder abuse, child protection, sexual assault, and domestic violence, bike library, homelessness, and restorative justice, The Department also conducted 1,319 extra patrol efforts, 398 foot patrol efforts, and made 110 school visits. It should also be noted that the Department sent 4 sworn Officers to 40 hours of Crisis Intervention Training. Chief Hargadine also attended a two day Crisis Intervention Administrator's Orientation. This training provided officers and Chief Hargadine with a basic understanding of the use of Crisis Intervention skills to manage potentially volatile situations that involve people who have a serious mental illness, in crisis, suicidal, or emotionally unstable. SCHENKER April 14, 2016 Ted A. Harms, State Rapid Response Coordinator Iowa Workforce Development 3420 University Avenue Waterloo, Iowa 50701 Mayor Mark Worrell City of West Branch 110 N Poplar Street PO Box 218 West Branch, Iowa 52358 Mayor Matthew J. Hayek City of Iowa City 410 E. Washington St. Iowa City, Iowa 52240 Re: Notice of Mass Layoff — Schenker, Inc. Schenker, Inc. Human Resources 1305 Executive Blvd., Suite 200 Chesapeake, VA 23320 U.S.A. www.dbschenkerusa.com Lee Sininger Phone +1 714 920 7164 Fax +1 757 821 3663 This Notice of Mass Layoff is being provided to you in compliance with the federal WARN Act (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act). This information is based on the best information available to us, but may change due to subsequent events beyond our control. The affected facility is located at: Main Building, 160 Fawcett Drive, West Branch, Iowa 52358 The expected date of the mass layoff is June 15, 2016. This action is expected to be permanent. Attached is a list of the names and job titles of the remaining positions to be affected. Bumping rights do not exist. There is no union representing the affected employees. A ,k& For further information regarding this Notice, please feel free to contact me at (714) 920-7164. Sincerely, Lee Sininger Director, Human Resources FMC No.911 F All business undertaken subject to the terms and conditions of Schenker, Inc. SCHENKER LIST OF NAMES AND JOB TITLES OF THE POSITIONS TO BE AFFECTED Name Title SUPV, MAINT II LOGISTICS COORD MECHANIC I MECHANIC I IP11 Mediacom 0 ®® 0 0 April 8, 2015 Dear Ms. Karr: On or about April 30, 2016 Mediacom will be moving the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries from the Movies and Music Tier package to Digital Family TV. Hallmark Movies & Mysteries will continue to air on channel 292 standard definition and in high definition on channel 785 after the change. If you have any questions, please contact me directly 319-395-9699 ext. 3461 or via email at Igrasslev@mediacomcc.com Sincerely, 0�t4 ' Lee Grassley, Senior Government Relations Manager *A Mediacom digital converter, digital adapter or cable card are required to view this channel. In order to view in high definition an HD converter or cable card are required. N T t 7" �3 .ewae Ms. Marian Karr —t Nrn City of Iowa City 410 E. Washington St. `n Iowa City, Iowa 52240-1826 Dear Ms. Karr: On or about April 30, 2016 Mediacom will be moving the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries from the Movies and Music Tier package to Digital Family TV. Hallmark Movies & Mysteries will continue to air on channel 292 standard definition and in high definition on channel 785 after the change. If you have any questions, please contact me directly 319-395-9699 ext. 3461 or via email at Igrasslev@mediacomcc.com Sincerely, 0�t4 ' Lee Grassley, Senior Government Relations Manager *A Mediacom digital converter, digital adapter or cable card are required to view this channel. In order to view in high definition an HD converter or cable card are required. From: City of Iowa City<CityoflowaCity@public.govdelivery.com> Sent: Tuesday, April 12, 2016 1:40 PM To: Kellie Tuttle Subject: Community Police Review Board - Community Forum © SHARE Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page. City of IOWA CIN FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Date: 04/12/2016 Contact: Kellie Tuttle Phone: 319-356-5043 Community Police Review Board Forum The Community Police Review Board will be holding its Annual Community Forum for the purpose of hearing views on the policies, practices and procedures of the Iowa City Police Department. When: Tuesday, April 26, 2016 Time: 6:00 PM Where: Iowa City Public Library, Rm A (123 South Linn Street, IC) The forum will be taped and rebroadcast on the Interactive City Channel 4. About the Community Police Review Board. t r , WI h wmr�� Questions? w� Contact Us CITY OF IOWA CITY UrAKOC"VOTUTtRATurn STAY CONNECTED: SUBSCRIBER SERVICES: Manage Preferences I Unsubscribe I Help Iowa City Police Department and University of Iowa DPS Bar Check Report - March, 2016 uL .... Possession of Alcohol Under the Legal Age (PAULA) Under 21 Charges FIS 2+ 4 Numbers are reflective of Iowa City Police activity and University of Iowa Police Activity' Business Name Occupancy (occupancy loads last updated Oct 2008) = University of Iowa Monthly Totals Bar Under2l PAULA Checks Prev 12 Month Totals Bar Under2l PAULA Checks I Under 21 PAULA Ratio Ratio (Prev 12 Mo) (Prev 12 Mo) 2 Dogs Pub 120 0 0 0 7 0 _ 0 0 0 Airliner 223 3 6 2 19 12 4 0.6315789 0.2105263 American Legion 140 0 0 0 Atlas World Grill 165 0 0 0 Bardot Iowa 2 0 0 25 3 3 0.12 0.12 Baroncinf- 0 0 0 Basta 176 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 Blackstone` 297 0 0 0 Blue Moose- 436 2 0 0 18 3 2 0.1666667 0.1111111 Bluebird Diner 82 0 0 0 Bob's Your Uncle 260 0 0 0 Bo -James 200 0 0 0 19 0 0 0 0 Bread Garden Market & Bakery - 0 0 0 Brix 0 0 0 Brothers Bar & Grill, [It's] 556 6 4 4 117 30 32 0.2564103 0.2735043 Brown Bottle, [The]` 289 0 0 0 Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar- 189 0 0 0 Cactus 2 Mexican Grill (314 E Burlin€ 1 0 7 3 0 13 0 4.3333333 Cactus Mexican Grill (245 s. Gilbert) 1 0 4 7 0 4 0 0.5714286 Caliente Night Club 498 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 Carl & Ernie's Pub & Grill 92 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 Carlos O'Kelly's" 299 0 0 0 Chili Yummy Yummy Chili 0 0 0 Chipotle Mexican Grill 119 0 0 0 Clarion Highlander Hotel 0 0 0 Clinton St Social Club 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 Monday, April 11, 2016 Page 1 of 5 Iowa City Police Department and University of Iowa DPS Bar Check Report - March, 2016 Possession of Alcohol Under the Legal Age (PAULA) Under 21 Cha rges1t�"� )) PH _?: 2 Numbers are reflective of Iowa City Police activity and University of Iowa Police Activity Business Name Occupancy (occupancy loads last updated Oct 2008) = University ofIowa Monthly Totals— Bar ChecksUnder2lPAULA Prev 12 Mo Bar Checks Unde Club Car, [The] 56 0 0 0 8 0 Coach's Corner 160 0 0 0 2 14 Colonial Lanes" 502 0 0 0 0 0 Dave's Foxhead Tavern 87 0 0 0 3 DC's 120 1 5 1 100 5 Deadwood, [The] 218 0 0 0 2 Devotay` 45 0 0 0 Donnelly's Pub 49 1 0 0 4 Dublin Underground, [The] 57 0 0 0 1 Eagle's, [Fraternal Order of] 315 0 0 0 Eden Lounge 2 6 1 27 1 EI Banditos 25 0 0 0 EI Cactus Mexican Cuisine 0 0 0 EI Dorado Mexican Restaurant 104 0 0 0 EI Ranchero Mexican Restaurant 161 0 0 0 Elks #590, [BPO] 205 0 0 0 Englert Theatre- 838 0 0 0 ' Fieldhouse 178 2 2 1 58 1( FilmScene 0 0 0 First Avenue Club- 280 0 0 0 5 0 Formosa Asian Cuisine- 149 0 0 0 Gabes- 261 0 0 0 4 0 George's Buffet 75 0 0 0 5 0 Givanni's" 158 0 0 0 Godfather's Pizza 170 0 0 0 Graze- 49 0 0 0 2 0 Monday, April 11, 2016 nth r21 0 0 0 0 Totals PAULA 0 Under 21 Ratio (Prev 12 Mo) 0 PAULA Ratio (Prev 12 Mo) I _ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 14 0.54 0.14 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 C 0 1 0.3703704 0 0 0.0370370 0.3275862 0.1206897 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 N 0 Page 2 of 5 Iowa City Police Department and University of Iowa DPS Bar Check Report - March, 2016 Possession of Alcohol Under the Legal Age (PAULA) Under 21 (( PH 2. ' 2C Numbers are reflective of Iowa City Police activity and University of Iowa Police Activity Business Name Occupancy (occupancy loads last updated Oct 2008) University = Monthlv Totals Bar Under2l PAULA Checks Prev 12 Month Totals Bar Under PAULA Checks Under 21 ] (P PAULA Ratio Ratio (Prev 12 Mo ev 12 Mo) Grizzly's South Side Pub 265 1 0 0 14 0 0 0 0 Hilltop Lounge, [The] 90 0 0 0 17 0 0 0 0 Howling Dogs Bistro 0 0 0 IC Ugly's 72 1 0 0 38 0 0 0 0 India Cafe 100 0 0 0 Iron Hawk 0 0 0 Jimmy Jack's Rib Shack 71 0 0 0 Jobsite 120 1 0 0 47 0 0 0 0 Joe's Place 281 2 0 0 17 0 0 (, 0 Joseph's Steak House- 226 0 0 0 Linn Street Cafe 80 0 0 0 Los Portales 161 0 0 0 Martini's 200 3 1 0 57 22 4 C 0.0701114 Masala 46 0 0 0 Mekong Restaurant- 89 0 0 0 Micky's- 98 1 0 0 4 0 0 Mill Restaurant, [The]- 325 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 Moose, [Loyal Order of] 476 0 0 0 Motley Cow Cafe- 82 0 0 0 ' Noodles & Company- 0 0 0 Okoboji Grill` 222 0 0 0 Old Capitol Brew Works 294 0 0 0 One -Twenty -Six 105 0 0 0 Orchard Green Restaurant- 200 0 0 0 Oyama Sushi Japanese Restaurant 87 0 0 0 Pagliai's Pizza- 113 0 0 0 ' Monday, April 11, 2016 Page 3 of 5 Iowa City Police Department and University of Iowa DPS Bar Check Report - March, 2016 Possession of Alcohol Under the Legal Age (PAULA) UndenifthEirk$sf , Numbers are reflective of Iowa City Police activity and University of Iowa Police Activity Business Name Occupancy (occupancy loads last updated Oct 2008) = University of Iowa Monthly Totals Bar Checks Under2l PAULA Prev 12 Month Totals Bar Checks Under -21 PAULA Under 21 PAULA Ratio Ratio (Prev 12 Mo) (Prev 12 Mo) Panchero's (Clinton St)- 62 0 0 0 Panchero's Grill (Riverside Dr)— 95 0 0 0 Pints 180 1 0 0 57 1 0 0.0175439 0 Pit Smokehouse— 40 0 0 0 Pizza Arcade 0 0 0 Pizza Hut- 116 0 0 0 Players 114 0 0 0 Quinton's Bar & Deli 149 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 Rice Village 0 0 0 Ride 0 0 0 Ridge Pub 0 0 0 Riverside Theatre— 118 0 0 0 Saloon— 120 1 0 0 2 0 0 o u Sam's Pizza 174 0 0 0 Sanctuary Restaurant, [The] 132 0 0 0 Shakespeare's 90 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 Sheraton 0 0 0 Short's Burger & Shine— 56 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 Short's Burger Eastside 0 0 0 Sports Column 400 6 5 0 84 62 21 0.7380952 0.25 Studio 13 206 0 0 0 10 0 0 0 0 Summit. [The] 736 6 3 1 105 30 44 0.2857143 0.4190476 Sushi Popo 84 0 0 0 Szechuan House 0 0 0 iakanamiRestaurant— 148 0 0 0 iaqueria Acapulco 0 0 0 Monday, April 11, 2016 Page 4 of 5 EV E E C E C C C C C C C C Iowa City Police Department and University of Iowa DPS Bar Check Report - March, 2016 Possession of Alcohol Under the Legal Age (PAULA) Under 21 Charges Numbers are reflective of Iowa City Police activity and University of Iowa Police Activity Business Name Occupancy Monthly Totals Prev 12 Month Totals Under2l PAULA (occupancy loads last updated Oct 2008) =University of Iowa BarBar Checks Under2l PAULA Checks I Under2l PAULA Ratio Ratio (Prev 12 Mo) (Prev 12 Mo) TCB 250 2 0 0 42 0 0 0 0 Thai Flavors 60 0 0 0 Thai Spice 91 0 0 0 Times Club @ Prairie Lights 60 0 0 0 Trumpet Blossom Cafe 94 0 0 0 Union Bar 854 7 7 1 103 40 37 0.3883495 0.3592233 VFW Post #3949 197 0 0 0 Vine Tavern, [The] 170 1 0 0 14 0 0 0 0 Wig & Pen Pizza Pub— 154 0 0 0 Yacht Club, [Iowa City]— 206 0 0 0 8 0 0 0 0 Yen Ching 0 0 0 Z'Mariks Noodle House 47 0 0 0 Totals 54 39 22 1075 286 186 0.2660465 0.1730233 Off Premise 0 0 3 0 0 94 0 0 Grand Totals 25 280 * includes outdoor seating area exception to 21 ordinance Monday, April 11, 2016 Page 5 of 5 CITY OF IOWA CITY 1P14 ui Ao a �vmNN MEMORANDUM Date: April 13, 2016 To: Mayor and City Council From: Wendy Ford, City Council Economic Development Committee Re: Recommendations from City Council Economic Development Committee At their April 12, 2016 meeting the City Council Economic Development Committee approved the February 4th minutes with the following recommendations to the City Council: 1. Cole moved to recommend the request to the full City Council for the City of Literature for $60,000, per the discussion. Throgmorton seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. 2. Cole moved to recommend the request to the full City Council for a funding request for the Englert Theater for $70,000, per the discussion. Throgmorton seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. 3. Cole moved to recommend the request to the full City Council for a funding request for the Mission Creek Festival for $ 20,000, per the discussion. Throgmorton seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. Additional action (check one) X No further action needed Board or Commission is requesting Council direction Agenda item will be prepared by staff for Council action MINUTES APPROVED CITY COUNCIL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE FEBRUARY 4, 2016 CITY MANAGER'S CONFERENCE ROOM, CITY HALL, 12:00 P.M. Members Present: Rockne Cole, Susan Mims, Jim Throgmorton Staff Present: Wendy Ford, Eleanor Dilkes, Tom Markus, Geoff Fruin, Tracy Hightshoe, Others Present: Mike Frantz (Community Investors); Peggy Slaughter (Midwest Realty); Tom Frantz (Frantz Investors) RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL: Throgmorton nominated Mims for the position of Chair. Cole seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. Cole moved to recommend the request to the full City Council for the City of Literature for $60,000, per the discussion. Throgmorton seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. Cole moved to recommend the request to the full City Council for a funding request for the Englert Theater for $70,000, per the discussion. Throgmorton seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. Cole moved to recommend the request to the full City Council for a funding request for the Mission Creek Festival for $ 20,000, per the discussion. Throgmorton seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. Throgmorton moved to adjourn the meeting at 1:60 pm. Cole seconded the motion. Motion carried 3-0. CALL MEETING TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order by staff member Wendy Ford at 12:01 P.M. ORGANIZATION OF COMMITTEE: Ford noted the need to entertain a nomination from the Committee Members for a Chair. Throgmorton nominated Mims for the position of Chair. Cole seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Next the minutes of the December 15, 2015, meeting were reviewed. Throgmorton moved to approve the minutes as presented. Cole seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. EDC February 4, 2016 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE ORIENTATION AND BACKGROUND: Ford proceeded to give Members some background on the Economic Development Committee. Speaking to the history of Economic Development, Ford stated that in 2007 she became the first full-time Economic Development Coordinator. Before that time, the position was one that was split between two or three staff members in the Community Development department. The main goal of Economic Development is to help build the tax base and to help foster a community that supports growing businesses. This means higher wages and more economic activity for both the private sector and the public sector, which is good for everyone. Ford noted that Economic Development used to be all about bringing new jobs into the area, but that now the focus is more on creating a community that is attractive to prospective employees, in order to build the workforce in the area. In this vein, economic development work now includes ensuring a physically attractive community, a community that would support entrepreneurial business, mid-sized businesses, and also those businesses that are mature and need to continue to grow and hire new employees. Ford stated that this means economic development work includes helping to build upon the cultural identity of Iowa City, as well. To those ends, she has served in an ex -officio role on the boards of the Summer of the Arts, Englert Theater, City of Literature and the Iowa Downtown District. Ford described some of the day-to- day activities including fielding calls from would-be entrepreneurs to developers and business owners. She gave some recent examples of businesses she has worked with and the range of questions staff answers. She noted that staff also works closely with groups such as ICAD, the Chamber, the Convention and Visitors Bureau, and also with regional groups such as the Corridor Business Alliance. Ford noted the two program budget lines in Economic Development are the Community Development Assistance line and the Economic Development Assistance line of the budget. The Community Development Assistance line has typically funded organizations such as Englert Theater, Riverside Theater, Film Scene, while the Economic Development Assistance line is for funding opportunities that arise during the year. This line has traditionally been funded with $100,000 per year and been used for projects like the food enterprise kit, a resource kit for those interested in using commercial kitchen facilities and growing those skills into a marketable business at the 1105 Project. It has also been used to fund such things as the Meta Communications parking incentive. On page 8 of the meeting packet, Ford pointed out a table showing incentives or funding assistance that has been provided over the last seven years. She wanted this to give Members an idea of what Economic Development has done in the past, especially in light of today's financial requests. Ford noted that she also included the slides from Tracy Hightshoe's slide program that shows the before and after pictures of the investments that were made using the 'Building Change' program over the last three years. This program has helped to leverage a relatively large investment from the private sector downtown, according to Ford. Cole then asked questions about the funds, specifically about the difference between these two and how they are used. Ford noted that the Community Development fund is one that has longer standing commitments typically, whereas the Economic Development assistant line is funded with $100,000 each year and is sometimes referred to as the'Economic Development Opportunity Fund,' for opportunities to assist in Economic Development endeavors during the fiscal year. Throgmorton thanked Ford for the table noting that this summary is very helpful and that he had not seen this information in this format before. EDC February 4, 2016 Next, Ford talked about the City's Economic Development policies, noting that the last update was in April of 2014. She added that the changes made in 2014 were an effort to align with the Strategic Planning priorities. She anticipates with the new City Council Strategic Priorities coming forward in the next month or so, that this will guide the Committee as they contemplate updating policies going forward. One change made in 2014, according to Ford, was the statement that any TIF request would only be considered in a rebate form. She noted that Members can see this manifested in the table on page 8. Cole asked if they are categorically ruling out'money up front TIFs' at this point. Mims stated that the policy states the preferred way is rebates, and that an applicant would need to have a pretty compelling reason to receive funds upfront. Throgmorton noted in the Council's strategic plan update, there will be more emphasis on sustainability, social justice, racial equity, and inclusivity. He added that he believes they will need to revisit the Economic Development policies and try to think through how they can reasonably be modified in such a way as to more directly take these values into account. Cole agreed with Throgmorton's statement, adding that the policy needs more clarity and the need to educate the development community about it. Regarding TIFs, Cole noted his concerns in the past with 'money up front,' but that he believes there might be circumstances under which he could support this. Throgmorton also added in considering changes to the Economic Development policies, that how we interact with the Chamber, with ICAD, and also with regional economic development organizations should be considered. He suggested changes may be subtle, but he believes they need to be cognizant of these. Ford continued, noting that she also included a couple of educational pieces that she uses with developers. She noted Markus' leadership in the area of engaging a financial analyst non-profit organization called the National Development Council (NDC) to help staff analyze projects for any type of financial incentive. She noted how important this work is and with NDC's assistance, how thorough and objective we are able to be. Markus spoke briefly about the importance of financial analysis, and how the NDC partnership really helped develop a 'gap analysis' process for the City. He continued to explain the gap analysis to Members, noting that very few cities in Iowa use this excellent tool. Markus also noted that the City has had to turn away developers once this gap analysis was performed, as the project did not meet the City's criteria for TIF need. He added that what they need in a policy, therefore, is a consistent approach, and if changes are made, there is a strong reason to do so. Ford spoke briefly about the national training program that the NDC offers. Ford and Hightshoe have completed the training, while Simon Andrew and Kris Ackerson are currently taking the training. Markus continued to tout the benefits of the gap analysis tool and how prudent the City has been in its use of TIF. Ford then shared a slide show that further explained what TIF is and also what it is not. Projects meeting the City's TIF requirements are those with high quality architecture; have a level of sustainability higher than code requires; and include affordable housing if a residential project in the Riverfront Crossings area. Ford noted that there are 12 TIF districts in Iowa City. Throgmorton noted the chronological pattern, especially along Highway 6 and wondered whether the various TIF districts cohere as a whole now, even though each district was created at different times for particular purposes. He gave some examples, wondering if these various districts could in some instances be thought of as a whole. Markus responded, noting that there is a fixed period of time available in each TIF district, and that as development occurs, timing becomes a critical part of how you develop one of these districts with that fixed period in mind. Ford and Markus responded to Member questions regarding TIFs and urban renewal districts, and how they work within the city. Continuing, Ford explained the process used when a developer inquires about TIF for a project. EDC February 4, 2016 Ford referred to a list of TIF projects within the city, noting the increase in property values in City - assisted TIF projects. She responded to Member questions, further explaining the totals shown in the table of TIF -funded projects. Cole asked if dilution of market share was part of the evaluation when assisting business. Markus and Fruin responded that TIF applications are required to include market studies to help in the evaluation. Throgmorton then spoke to the urban renewal report the Council received last year, noting that having the table helps to clarify, for him, what exactly is taking place with these TIF projects. He added that they also need to find better ways of communicating the ideas embedded in both the table and the map. Ford shared that she always tries to give an illustration of how the process works, as well, so that she can show the 'before' and 'after' effects of a particular project from a property value standpoint. She gave Members several examples of this, noting that the other taxing jurisdictions are taken into consideration in Iowa City's model. Ford continued to clarify Iowa City's TIF policy and the accompanying table and map, giving examples of projects that have been undertaken and how well these projects have progressed per staffs expectations. Ford also spoke to other communities within Johnson County who use TIF and the difference between their use and Iowa City's. Markus and Fruin gave Members some further history on TIF and its uses, as it was originally meant to be used. Markus also spoke to the bond rating analysis done on cities, noting that neighboring jurisdictions do not do well in this area due to their vast use of TIF for debt service. He noted, Iowa City continues to maintain its triple-A bond rating. Wrapping up her slide presentation, Ford showed Members the specifics of the City's tax levy, its implication in school funding and a comparison of Iowa City's and Coralville's impact on the state budget to backfill the school district a portion of TIF revenues diverted from schools. Throgmorton thanked Ford for the presentation, noting that it was extremely helpful and informative. He also stated that he wanted to throw out an idea for both the Committee and staff to think about. The idea is to schedule a one to two-hour meeting, that would be televised, in which Ford would go through the slide presentation, as she just did for the Committee, and where the Council would invite those who have been skeptics of TIF to attend this meeting so that they can observe and ask questions about TIF. He would like to see a dialogue on how TIF about it and hear how folks think the City is doing with its use of TIF, in an effort so that the public can come to a better understanding of how Iowa City uses TIF. Cole spoke again to the communication issue and how they might better facilitate this. CONSIDER ANNUAL REPORT AND REQUEST FOR FUNDING FROM CITY OF LITERATURE (John Kenyon, Executive Director): John Kenyon, Executive Director, and Eileen Johnson, Chair of the City of Literature Board, were both introduced. Ford introduced the request, noting the City of Literature has requested $60,000 for FY17. This would include what has been a regular funding of $50,000 per year since its inception, plus $10,000 for the book festival, which a few years ago was moved from the University of Iowa Library to the City of Literature. Ford stated that Kenyon would give Members some background on the City of Literature organization and answer any questions on this year's funding request. Kenyon spoke to Members, thanking the Committee for hearing their request. He began by explaining that the Iowa City UNESCO City of Literature organization is an independent 501c(3) that manages the City's designation as a City of Literature. Iowa City is the third city in the world to be given this designation and has had this designation since November of 2008. Continuing, Kenyon explained how the organization was set up and the driving force behind it. He also explained what the organization does, and the type of programming and advocacy that takes place throughout the year. Cole moved to recommend the request to the full City Council for the City of Literature for $60,000, per the discussion. EDC February 4, 2016 Throgmorton seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. CONSIDER ANNUAL REPORT AND REQUEST FOR FUNDING FOR ENGLERT THEATER (Andre Perry, Executive Director): Andre Perry, Executive Director and Bill Thomason, finance director, from the Englert Theater were introduced. Ford noted that the Englert has submitted their request for funding for FY17, with a request to also keep a placeholder for them in FY18 and FY19 budgeting process. Ford noted that a few years ago the Englert increased their request from $50,000 to $70,000, with the idea that $20,000 of this amount would be used for capital improvements. She noted the capital improvements over the last couple of budget cycles have included significant roof repairs, the renovation of the second floor gallery/lounge and the addition of a concession station on first floor. Ford pointed out how the Englert has grown, with a current budget of just over $1.5 million per year. Ford turned the floor over to Perry. He began by explaining the mission of the Englert and how they bring in entertainment for the community, but also perform outreach in terms of supporting other non -profits and partner with them in programming. The Englert sees approximately 65,000 patrons a year, and are selling around 35,000 tickets each year, as well. Working with other non -profits, the Englert is able to give away approximately 5,400 tickets each year. Perry noted that they are also working on various revenue streams, such as increased rental of space, in order to off -set the withdrawal of the University uses. Lastly, Perry noted that a new festival was started last fall — the Witching Hour. He stated that it was well received and they hope to grow festivals such as this. Cole suggested considering the use of matching funds in future fundraising efforts. Cole moved to recommend the request to the full City Council for a funding request for the Englert Theater for $70,000, per the discussion. Throgmorton seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. CONSIDER ANNUAL REPORT AND REQUEST FOR FUNDING FOR MISSION CREEK (Andre Perry, Co -Founder and Producer): Ford noted that Perry is also present for the Mission Creek Festival request for funding. Perry spoke to this request, noting that the City has been very supportive with this festival in the past. He gave new Members a brief history of the festival, noting that it is a six-day festival that takes place in downtown Iowa City, using both traditional and non-traditional performing spaces, and offers programming across a range of mediums — music, literature, comedy, art, food culture, tech — to name a few. This will be the 11 th year of the festival. The past three years Mission Creek has worked with the Englert in providing administrative support and helping to keep things running smoothly. Perry then spoke to some of the emerging areas of their festival and how they hope to make their mark. He also spoke briefly to the outreach that takes place, such as with The Dream Center. Perry noted that this request is for $20,000, which is an increase. They will be seeing some shifts in their funding in 2017 and this is planning ahead for that and the collaboration with the Englert Theater. Cole moved to recommend the request to the full City Council for a funding request for the Mission Creek Festival for $ 20,000, per the discussion. Throgmorton seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0. EDC February 4, 2016 STAFF REPORT: Ford noted she brought along a list of financial resources that staff uses when helping local businesses. Markus stated that the reason Mike and Tom Frantz and Peggy Slaughter are present is because he wanted them to observe the EDC in process, as they will most likely be the new owners of the Moss property development. He noted that they will be meeting with staff after the EDC meeting. Throgmorton then asked Ford if she would provide him with a hard copy of today's slide presentation. At this point Mike Frantz spoke to the Committee, touching briefly on TIFs, gap analysis, and types of investment that take place in the community. He agreed that these are very important topics for the community to understand. He stated that he hopes they can come to an agreement with the City, something that may be outside of the normal development perspective. COMMITTEE TIME: None. OTHER BUSINESS: None. ADJOURNMENT: Throgmorton moved to adjourn the meeting at 1:50 pm. Cole seconded the motion. Motion carried 3-0. EDC February 4, 2016 Council Economic Development Committee ATTENDANCE RECORD 2016 Key: X = Present O = Absent O/E = Absent/Excused TERM NAME EXP. A on Rockne Cole 01/02/18 X Susan Mims 01/02/18 X Jim Throgmorton 01/02/18 X Key: X = Present O = Absent O/E = Absent/Excused CITY O F IOWA C1TY MEMORANDUM Late Handouts Distributed Date: April 18, 2016 To: Geoff Fruin, Interim City Manager C..ft19 I Ik., From: Chief Sam Hargadine (Date) Re: St. Ambrose Study on ICPD Traffic Stops The ICPD started to collect demographic date on traffic stops in July of 1999. The first report where an analysis had been done was in January of 2004 titled "Traffic Stop Practices of the Iowa City Police Department: January 1 —December 31, 2002." The research team was from the University of Louisville and this report was frequently referred to as the Louisville study. In 2006 the Command Staff was approached by Dr. Christopher Barnum, Associate Professor of Sociology and Criminal Justice and Director of Graduate Studies Masters in Criminal Justice at St. Ambrose University. Dr. Barnum was familiar with the Louisville study and became interested in analyzing ICPD traffic stop data utilizing a differing approach. Dr. Barnum initially indicated a desire to study the data for a six month period of time. After an initial review of the six months period of time, both Dr. Barnum and I determined that a more in-depth analysis was needed in order to better understand operational trends in the department. I maintained the working relationship with Dr. Barnum and provided him data for the years 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2011 and 2012. Unfortunately, a transition to a new data management system resulted in conversion problems that prevent us from analyzing 2008 and 2009 data. Throughout this partnership with Dr. Barnum, our officers were not advised of the study due to the potential of changing behavior patterns. In June of 2013 the City Council passed Resolution 12-320 establishing an Ad Hoc Diversity Committee to study City transit and law enforcement operations as they relate to minority populations. Over the course of six months the Ad Hoc Diversity Committee held 22 committee meetings. Several community discussion forums were held with community members from diverse backgrounds to discuss and receive feedback about transit and law enforcement operations. During this time a renewed conversation on disproportionate contact with minority populations was sparked. Based on the community conversation generated by the Ad Hoc Diversity Committee, I worked with Dr. Barnum to incorporate more traffic stop data and finalize his analysis. While this study was initially intended for internal and academic purposes, I felt it was appropriate to have a public discussion on the topic. By participating in the multi-year study, I hope it sends a clear message that the ICPD has taken the issue of disproportional minority contact very seriously in the past and will continue to do so in the future. The ICPD is one of two police departments in the state that collect and analyze traffic stop data. Dr. Barnum presented the results of his analysis to the City Council on June 16, 2014. At that time we set a twofold goal: Reduce the traffic stop disproportionality as experienced in the high levels in 2010-2012 and gain the confidence and trust of our community, especially the minority community. There were three additional items reported to the City Council in 2014 that were not in Dr. Barnum's report which were: Complete CALEA® assessments in 2007, 2010 and 2013. The 2013 assessment team was provided with Dr. Barnum's report. CALEA® is the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies. The accreditation process requires compliance with rigorous standards that meet the best practices for police agencies in the U.S. and April 18, 2016 Page 2 Internationally. Proof of compliance is also required and continually monitored over three year periods. All traffic stops are videotaped and routine and continued random audits by supervisors have not shown any pattern of biased based policing or unprofessional behavior. Complaints that have come in claiming racial bias have been taken seriously and are fully investigated by supervisory staff. Dr. Barnum has met with the officers twice to explain the methodology and results of the findings. The first meeting was in 2014 after it went public that the data was being analyzed and again on April 13, 2016. The officers asked concerned questions and were genuinely interested in the results of the analysis. Concerns nationwide about police misconduct and the perceptions of police by the entire community do weigh heavily on the minds of the officers. It is my belief that ICPD officers continually strive to improve the ways in which they serve. Ongoing professional development includes annual training specifically on race based traffic stops. Officers have also been through diversity training provided by Diversity Focus and Diversity, Privilege and Unconscious Bias training with Dr. Eddie Moore and Diane Finnerty. Several officers also participated in the all -day Government Alliance on Race & Equity (GARE) training held in November of 2015. The latest analysis generally indicates that most of the department's outcome measures are trending in the right direction. The data also indicates that there is still work to be done and the department remains committed to eliminating the disproportionality of traffic stops, and the equal treatment of all. My recommendation is to continue with the data collection and analysis which needs to be discussed publicly and with the officers. Continual refinement of the data should lead to better understanding. March 17, 2016 Page 1 MINUTES DRAFT IOWA CITY AIRPORT COMMISSION MARCH 17, 2016 — 6:00 P.M. AIRPORT TERMINAL BUILDING Members Present: Julie Bockenstedt, Minnetta Gardinier, A. Jacob Odgaard, Chris Ogren Staff Present: Michael Tharp, Eric Goers Others Present: Matt Wolford, Carl Byers, Philip Wolford, Harrel Timmons, Terry Edmonds, Bob Libby RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL: (to become effective only after separate Council action): None. DETERMINE QUORUM: The meeting was called to order at 6:05 P.M. ELECTION OF OFFICERS: The election of Airport Commission officers was the first order of business. Ogren made the motion to nominate Odgaard for the Chairperson position. Gardinier seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0, Odgaard abstaining. Next the position of Secretary was addressed. Gardinier nominated Bockenstedt for the Secretary position. No second was heard. Bockenstedt noted that her term expires next March so she questioned being nominated for this position. Members briefly discussed this issue with her. Bockenstedt asked if they could hold off for another month on filling this position, especially since she has not been on the Commission very long at this point. Tharp noted that they could appoint a temporary Secretary at this point. Goers then reviewed what the bylaws are for the election of officers, noting that they should elect a Secretary today if at all possible. Bockenstedt again noted that she is not comfortable being elected for this position, due to her short time on the Commission, and she asked that they defer the election of Secretary until next month. Odgaard moved to defer nomination of the Secretary until the next meeting. Bockenstedt seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-1, Gardinier in the negative. Tharp then asked Members to nominate someone as a temporary Secretary for this meeting. Bockenstedt stated that she would be willing to do this on a temporary basis, for one month. Ogren nominated Bockenstedt to be the temporary Secretary for one month. Odgaard seconded the motion. The motion carried 3-0, Bockenstedt abstaining. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: The minutes of the February 18, 2016, meeting were reviewed. Ogren moved to accept the minutes of the February 18, 2016, meeting as presented. Odgaard seconded the motion. The motion carried 4-0. 04-14-16 IP15 March 17, 2016 Page 2 PUBLIC DISCUSSION: None. ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION/ACTION: a. Airport Master Plan — Tharp stated that Carl Byers is present this evening in Melissa Underwood's place, as she was unable to attend. He noted that the 'alignment shift' was presented to the FAA on the runways and that they are behind this plan. Byers reviewed these changes, noting that the FAA will typically not fund 'one way' pavement, but in this case due to the mitigating circumstances, the FAA would most likely help fund the project. Byers added that funding may be an issue, however, due to this coming under discretionary funding. He further explained how the FAA would most likely approach this project and what the Commission might expect. Odgaard asked for some clarification on the funding issue and Tharp responded to these concerns. He noted that the FAA would like to see the obstruction mitigation take place first and then to displace the thresholds. Byers continued to address Member concerns, noting that sometimes going to the FAA offices in person can help in receiving the needed funding for such projects. Members discussed this idea, with Tharp responding to Member concerns regarding the needed funding for such projects and how meeting with the FAA in person may help them achieve this. Discussion continued, with Members questioning timeframes for this obstruction mitigation and the timeframe for completing the plan. b. Terry Edmonds Ground Lease — i. Public Hearing — Tharp stated that he and Gardinier met with Terry Edmonds regarding his desire to build a 52 X 56 hangar on the south side of hangar K, where he could then store his aircraft. Tharp noted that the lease in Members' packets is lacking the terms and he then gave them an updated version of this 30 -year lease for their review. The agreement does require the Airport to put utilities in this area, according to Tharp, which will help with Edmonds' hangar, but will also allow for further development in the area in the future. Total cost for the Airport's obligations of this will be around $50,000 and would come from the Airport's cash accounts. Gardinier asked what rent would be, and Tharp noted that it would be $600 per year. ii. Consider a resolution approving a 30 -year ground lease with Terry Edmonds - Gardinier moved to approve Resolution #A16-08, approving a 30 -year ground lease with Terry Edmonds. Ogren seconded the motion. The motion carried 40. C. FAA/IDOT Projects: AECOM (David Hughes) i. FY16 Apron Expansion — Tharp noted that Hughes is unable to attend this evening as he is traveling. He did note that they held a pre-bid conference earlier today and several contractors did attend this. Tharp gave a quick review of the project, noting that the bids will open on the 23`d and should be presented at the April meeting. ii. FYI Obstruction Mitigation — Tharp stated that, again, this is tied to the Master Plan completion and is therefore on hold at this time. March 17, 2016 Page 3 iii. FYI IDOT Grant Application — The call letter went out last month and is due April 29th, according to Tharp. He briefly reviewed the projects they are considering for this round, noting that they should have something to review at the April meeting. d. Airport Operations — i. Strategic Plan- Tharp stated that they are still waiting for the Master Plan to be completed before beginning this process. ii. Budget — 1. Annual Report — Tharp stated that he will be emailing the proposed annual report to Members for their review and that he hopes to then have it approved at next month's meeting. 2. Equipment Upgrade Schedule — Tharp stated that he has been working on this with the shop recently, attempting to set up a schedule for the Airport. He spoke to some of the equipment the Airport uses and the various ages of such equipment. He then responded to Member questions regarding this type of schedule. iii. Management — 1. Computerized Maintenance Management System — Tharp noted that he put some information regarding this in Members' meeting packets. He briefly spoke to what this type of system would entail, adding that lease agreements could also be added to this computerized system and he explained the benefits of this. Bockenstedt asked what this type of system would cost, and Tharp noted that it would depend on how intricate of a system they would like to have. Odgaard stated that he would like to hear what others have to say about this type of system, whether it be City departments or other airports. Tharp stated that he would like to have a subcommittee work on this and Members briefly discussed the idea. Ogren and Bockenstedt volunteered for this subcommittee. 2. Consider a resolution adopting 2016 Airport Emergency Plan — Tharp noted that he has received input from both Ogren and Bockenstedt regarding the emergency plan and that he has incorporated their ideas into the final plan. He noted that they are still in open meeting so would therefore need to watch what they discuss regarding this. Odgaard moved to approve Resolution #A16-09, adopting the 2016 Airport Emergency Plan. Ogren seconded the motion. The motion carried 4-0. Ogren noted that they had discussed having emergency personnel, such as police and fire, take part in an emergency drill at the Airport, and Tharp stated that he is still looking into this. Members agreed that they would like to have something like this on a periodic basis and several audience members noted that various emergency personnel are interested as well. e. FBO/Flight Training Reports L Jet Air — Jet Air's representative Matt Wolford addressed Members concerning the monthly maintenance report. He noted that there has been a lot of trash pickup with the high winds and then March 17, 2016 Page 4 reviewed some of the other maintenance issues they have been faced with. He also spoke to the de-icing material they have been using. Bockenstedt then asked for some clarification on what Jet Air charges the Airport for and what they don't charge for. Wolford responded to these questions, giving some examples. Speaking to the flight training side of business, Odgaard shared what he has been encountering, such as a problem with the auto pilot. Wolford continued, stating that things have been going well in their shop. He briefly spoke to some feedback they have received regarding the self -serve and the facilities, noting that they have been hearing good things from pilots. Gardinier suggested putting up signs, asking if those visiting the Airport were happy with the service they received. 1. Hangar Proposal — Wolford then spoke to Jet Air's desire for additional hangar space. He shared a handout with Members, noting that these are some potential ideas for moving forward with this. Wolford noted that perhaps a subcommittee could work with them on this, in order to achieve what is best for both the Airport and for Jet Air. Gardinier stated that she would be happy to work with them on this. Philip Wolford and Harrel Timmons also spoke to Jet Air's business and what they hope to achieve with additional hangar space. The discussion continued, with Members asking questions of Jet Air concerning their proposal for a new hangar. The discussion also touched on possible revenues for the Airport should they decide to move ahead with this plan. Members spoke to having a subcommittee, with Gardinier stating that she is interested in being part of this, as did Odgaard. Gardinier then asked Goers about possible conflicts of interest with Odgaard being an employee of Jet Air as a flight instructor. Goers responded, giving Members examples of when this might be an issue. Consider a resolution to adjourn to Executive Session pursuant to Section 21.5(1)(k) and (1) of the Iowa Code to discuss the professional competency of individuals whose appointment, hiring, performance, or discharge is being considered when necessary to prevent needless and irreparable injury to that individual's reputation and that individual requests a closed session. Ogren moved to adjourn to Executive Session at 8:03 P.M. Gardinier seconded the motion. The motion carried 4-0. Gardinier moved to adjourn the Executive Session at 8:40 P.M. Bockenstedt seconded the motion. The motion carried 4-0. Bockenstedt moved to increase the salary for the Airport Operations Specialist to the max for grade 23, retroactive to the anniversary date, as discussed in Executive Session. Ogren seconded the motion. The motion carried 4-0. f. Commission Members' Reports — Gardinier noted that on hangar 13 the rubber gasket on the door is falling off. Tharp will have maintenance check on this. March 17, 2016 Page 5 g. Staff Report — Tharp noted that the FAA outreach meeting will be at the Airport on July 21St. He will share further information as it is known. May 11th and 12th is the Iowa conference and Tharp shared what he knows about this. The conference will be in Dubuque this year. Ogren asked about the possible 'debt free' celebration they had discussed. Tharp stated that he has not made definite plans yet, but that they should be able to get something going. Members also briefly spoke to their new Commission Member, who should start attending next month. Tharp explained the confusion with filling this seat and why there was a delay. SET NEXT REGULAR MEETING FOR: The next regular meeting of the Airport Commission will be held on Thursday, April 21, 2016, at 6:00 P.M. in the Airport Terminal Building. ADJOURN: Ogren moved to adjourn the meeting at 8:50 P.M. Gardinier seconded the motion. The motion carried 4-0. CHAIRPERSON DATE Airport Commission March 17, 2016 Page 6 Airport Commission ATTENDANCE RECORD 2016 Key: X = Present X/E = Present for Part of Meeting O = Absent O/E = Absent/Excused NM = Not a Member at this time TERM 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 s 0 0 0 0 A A cn C1 V 00 o N N N W NAME EXP. O V W o N i N o 0 N o V cn cc s 0 M Q N o cn cn to cn cn cn cn cn Gn in c) c) c) c> Minnetta 03/01/19 X X X O/ X X X X X X X X X X Gardinier E Jose 03/01/16 O/ X X X X X X X X X X O/ X NM Assouline E E Chris Ogren 03/01/18 X X X X X X X X O/E X X X X X A.Jacob 03/01/18 X X X X O/ X X X X X X X X X Odgaard E Julie 03/01/17 N N N N N N N N X O/ X X X X Bockenstedt M M M M M M M M E David Davis 03/01/17 X O X O O N N N NM N N N NM NM M M M M M M Key: X = Present X/E = Present for Part of Meeting O = Absent O/E = Absent/Excused NM = Not a Member at this time ICPD TRAFFIC STOP ANALYSIS ICPD STOP MAP ral Ridge Mall®, ; � Waterworks Prairie Park 1 Osh Sy O Zw:e: 1 Zoos: 2 Z.One: 3 Zone: 4 Zp z S Zptt: 6 4• Zptl: 7 Z.: S OL Cbralville sms: � Rd ¢� 6S&. os PN S n 7th �*a"� s _ 6"' y • IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIY """ IZIW srh sr A _ Hickory Hill Park If �N \•� ZSe A �.rh. �.s Zonex 9 Zones 10 Zane:11s Zanex 12 ark Rd Zane: 14 Zonex 13 v ZoltE:'f6 " \.. v �� s ersity of Iowa. .... SrT:ef5f aoc W \al $ Universityof Iowa;' Iowa City 6 a Hospitals'and N'nics ` H SW 27 r06 — t j O E "St Z� F. rOWT Sr .� :17 zone: l8 Zooe:1 University :20 ZQy)e:$ zone: 22 �sl+p is 23 zone: 24 o Heights r^ 6 A/ - ✓WBenton St 'Kirkwood Ave A � C a m B s H 218 KN k v_� d :i --)" Zane7'27 Zonex ffi 4 t Zane: 29 Zane: 30 Zane: 3'1 *r Zone: 32 bwa City Muni o rn B � t � toarhon Trekd��g4. 27 10 Zn: 34 Zr. 3 -' - eaZn: 33 40 Ht Terry Trueblood a e Recreation Area > 6 �... .. Sycamore t - -� Li Zone: 41 Za`tl:!! vast SW Zane: 43 : M 45 s 46 .. Zone: 47 0309r2brid: 48 C , z � 5 m o n y` :E Zr ' 49 zml�- 50 Zrm 51 52 , Zee Z.- as Zr - 36 THE NUMBER OF STOPS BY ZONE 45.00% 35.00% 30.00% 25.00% 15.00% 10.00% 5.00% Percents For Department N =12850 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 57 60 64 ral Ridge Mall®, ; � Waterworks Prairie Park 1 Osh Sy O Zw:e: 1 Zoos: 2 Z.One: 3 Zone: 4 Zp z S Zptt: 6 4• Zptl: 7 Z.: S OL Cbralville sms: � Rd ¢� 6S&. os PN S n 7th �*a"� s _ 6"' y • IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIY """ IZIW srh sr A _ Hickory Hill Park If �N \•� ZSe A �.rh. �.s Zonex 9 Zones 10 Zane:11s Zanex 12 ark Rd Zane: 14 Zonex 13 v ZoltE:'f6 " \.. v �� s ersity of Iowa. .... SrT:ef5f aoc W \al $ Universityof Iowa;' Iowa City 6 a Hospitals'and N'nics ` H SW 27 r06 — t j O E "St Z� F. rOWT Sr .� :17 zone: l8 Zooe:1 University :20 ZQy)e:$ zone: 22 �sl+p is 23 zone: 24 o Heights r^ 6 A/ - ✓WBenton St 'Kirkwood Ave A � C a m B s H 218 KN k v_� d :i --)" Zane7'27 Zonex ffi 4 t Zane: 29 Zane: 30 Zane: 3'1 *r Zone: 32 bwa City Muni o rn B � t � toarhon Trekd��g4. 27 10 Zn: 34 Zr. 3 -' - eaZn: 33 40 Ht Terry Trueblood a e Recreation Area > 6 �... .. Sycamore t - -� Li Zone: 41 Za`tl:!! vast SW Zane: 43 : M 45 s 46 .. Zone: 47 0309r2brid: 48 C , z � 5 m o n y` :E Zr ' 49 zml�- 50 Zrm 51 52 , Zee Z.- as Zr - 36 45.00% 35.00% 30.00% 25.00% 20.00% 15.00% 10.00% 5.00% Percents Days N = 3650 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 57 60 64 45.00% 35.00% 30.00% 25.00% 20.00% 15.00% 10.00% 5.00% Percents Nights N = 9200 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 57 60 64 TRAFFIC OBSERVATIONS o. 2015 traffic observations = 27,032 o. 2007-2012 traffic observations = 28,951 ► Total traffic observations = 55,983 TRAFFIC OBSERVATIONS 2007-2015 o. Zone 21 traffic observations = 11,880 ► Zone 29 traffic observations = 8,114 ► Other zones traffic observations = 7,038 ► Spread over zones 27, 28, 30 and 38 ► Observations made from 9/01/15 through 2/28/16 2015 OBSERVATIONS WE FOCUSED ON ZONES WHERE MOST STOPS WERE MADE Previous traffic stop observations and 2010 Census Bureau data suggest that about 10% of the drivers on the roads in most areas of Iowa City are minority°°°�� drivers—both days and nights. ► Percentage white ► Percentage African-American ► Percentage Hispanic/other ► Percentage Asian ► Percentage minority (total) 89.0070 04.0070 03.0070 04.0070 07.0070 ZONE 21 DAYS (DOWNTOWN AREA) ► Percentage white ► Percentage African-American ► Percentage Hispanic/other ► Percentage Asian ► Percentage minority (total) 74.00% 16.00% 02.00% 08.00% 18.00% ZONE 21 NIGHTS (DOWNTOWN AREA) ► Percentage white ► Percentage African-American ► Percentage Hispanic/other ► Percentage Asian ► Percentage minority (total) 73.00% 23.00% 02.00% 02.00% 25.00% ZONE 29 DAYS (BROADWAY AREA) ► Percentage white ► Percentage African-American ► Percentage Hispanic/other ► Percentage Asian ► Percentage minority (total) 68.00% 31.00% 01.00% < 01.00% 32.00% ZONE 29 NIGHTS (BROADWAY AREA) ► Percentage white ► Percentage African-American ► Percentage Hispanic/other ► Percentage Asian ► Percentage minority (total) ZONE 30 DAYS & NIGHTS 78.00% 15.00% 02.00% < 05.00% 17.00% ► Percentage white ► Percentage African-American ► Percentage Hispanic/other ► Percentage Asian ► Percentage minority (total) ZONE 28 DAYS & NIGHTS 86.00% 13.00% < 01.00% < 01.00% 14.00% Please keep in mind that roadside observations are simply a sample of the drivers on the roads. As such, the values indicated in the results should be treated as estimates with a fai interval generous confidence DAYS 45.00% 35.00% 30.00% 25.00% 20.00% 15.00% 10.00% 5.00% Percents Days N = 3650 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 57 60 64 0.4 0.35 0.3 0.25 0.2 0.15 0.1 0.05 0 nr or min ppea-- 13 20 29 21 22 27 28 percent minority stopped days benchmark ► The highest degrees of disproportionality is concentrated in areas where the fewest stops were made ► A disparity index shows that the average degree of disproportionality across all areas of town was approximately five percentage points higher than the corresponding benchmark values. ► The index gives a ballpark estimate of disproportionality. AVERAGE DISPARITY ACROSS ZONES Zone 27 Days Zone 27 Days race Freq. Percent Cum. Asian/Pacific Islander 16 7.02 7.02 Black/African American 39 17.11 24.12 Caucasian 164 71.93 96.05 Latino/Hispanic 3 1.32 97.37 Other 5 2.19 99.56 Unk 1 0.44 100.00 Total 228 100.00 Zone 28 Days Zone 28 days race Freq. Percent Cum. Asian/Pacific Islander 12 4.29 4.29 Black/African American 60 21.43 25.71 Caucasian 189 67.50 93.21 Latino/Hispanic 10 3.57 96.79 Other 5 1.79 98.57 Unk 4 1.43 100.00 Total 280 100.00 Zone 30 Days Zone 30 Days race Freq. Percent Cum. Asian/Pacific Islander 7 2.69 2.69 Black/African American 66 25.38 28.08 Caucasian 164 63.08 91.15 Latino/Hispanic 17 6.54 97.69 Native American/Indian 2 0.77 98.46 Other 3 1.15 99.62 Unk 1 0.38 100.00 Total 260 100.00 NIGHTS 45.00% 35.00% 30.00% 25.00% 20.00% 15.00% 10.00% 5.00% Percents Nights N = 9200 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 57 60 64 0.4 0.35 0.3 0.25 0.2 0.15 0.1 0.05 0 Percent of Minority Drivers Stopped -- Nights 13 20 21 22 27 percent minority stoppednights benchmark K.] KIS: ► The highest degrees of disproportionality is concentrated in areas where the fewest stops were made ► A disparity index shows that the average degree of disproportionality across all areas of town was approximately five percentage points higher than the corresponding benchmark values. ► The index gives a ballpark estimate of disproportionality. AVERAGE DISPARITY ACROSS ZONES Zone 20 Nights Zone 20 Nights race Freq. Percent Cum. Asian/Pacific Islander 56 11.43 11.43 Black/African American 90 18.37 29.80 Caucasian 302 61.63 91.43 Latino/Hispanic 28 5.71 97.14 Other 8 1.63 98.78 Unk 6 1.22 100.00 Total 490 100.00 Zone 27 Nights Zone 27 Nights race Freq. Percent Cum. Asian/Pacific Islander 14 6.73 6.73 Black/African American 46 22.12 28.85 Caucasian 129 62.02 90.87 Latino/Hispanic 3 1.44 92.31 Native American/Indian 1 0.48 92.79 Other 10 4.81 97.60 Unk 5 2.40 100.00 Total 208 100.00 Zone 28 Nights Zone 28 Nights race Freq. Percent Cum. Asian/Pacific Islander 61 10.30 10.30 Black/African American 105 17.74 28.04 Caucasian 360 60.81 88.85 Latino/Hispanic 36 6.08 94.93 Other 19 3.21 98.14 Unk 11 1.86 100.00 Total 592 100.00 Zone 30 Nights Zone 30 Nights race Freq. Percent Cum. Asian/Pacific Islander 20 5.08 5.08 Black/African American 92 23.35 28.43 Caucasian 250 63.45 91.88 Latino/Hispanic 26 6.60 98.48 Native American/Indian 1 0.25 98.73 Other 2 0.51 99.24 Unk 3 0.76 100.00 Total 394 100.00 OFFICER LEVEL ANALYSIS (% Minority / Min. Benchmark) : (% W&A / W&A Benchmark) Kol Disparity Index 1 Em OUTCOMES Minority-yes/Minority-no) : (White-yes/White-no) ► Values > 1 suggest disproportionality ODDS -RATIOS OR = 0.73 no yes Total minority 545 29340 29885 white 19437 89400 99837 Total 19982 109740 129722 WARNINGS OR = 1.28 no yes Total minority 29371 514 29885 white 89420 19417 99837 Total 109791 19931 129722 CITATIONS OR = 1.97 no yes Total minority 29612 273 29885 white 99342 495 99837 Total ARRESTS 119954 768 129722 OR = 1.99 no yes Total minority 29688 197 29885 white 99488 349 99837 Total 129176 546 129722 SEARCH REQUESTS citations 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 arrests 2005 2006 2007 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2005 2006 2007 search requests 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 hit rates a 2015 Results suggest a degree of racial disproportionality in traffic stops conducted by the ICPD. A ballpark estimate of the level of disproportionality indicates that minority drivers were stopped on average about five percentage points higher than the observation benchmark values. Comparatively little traffic stop disproportionality was found in areas of town where the lion's share of traffic stops were made. Most disproportionality occurred in areas where stops were less frequent. Individual officer analyses show that two officers' disparity index values were considerably higher than other officers' values. SUMMARY ➢ Disproportionality in most stop outcomes decreased in recent years. The single exception was citations, where disproportionality increased. It should be noted however, that odds -ratio values for citations were comparatively modest. ➢ In recent years, officers were about twice as likely to arrest a minority driver as others during a stop ➢ In recent years, officers were about twice as likely to request a voluntary search from a minority driver as from other drivers. This occurred even though seizures or hit rates resulting from voluntary searches were about the same for minority and non -minority drivers. ► Overall, results suggest that the levels of disproportionality in stops and outcomes is trending lower. SUMMARY Late Handouts Distributed Summary from Dr. Barnum e+Iltill(- (Date) Summary of Results ICPD Traffic Study 2015 In recent years some residents of Iowa City, Iowa have expressed concern over the potential for racial bias in the City's police department's traffic stop activity. In response, the City retained our research team to analyze the Iowa City Police Department's traffic stop data. The focus of our investigation was an assessment of racial disparity in traffic stops, with a goal of evaluating two broad categories of discretionary police traffic stop conduct: (i) a comparison of the demographic information of drivers stopped by the ICPD to a valid benchmark and (ii) an analysis of racial disparity in the outcome or disposition of a stop. To evaluate traffic stop demographics our team utilized a driver -population benchmark fashioned from roadside observations and census data. In Iowa City, the population characteristics of some neighborhoods vary across areas of the city. Consequently, the benchmark consists of several observation zones corresponding to one square mile areas in Iowa City (see the map at the end of this document). The traffic observers watched traffic both day and night. The observers surveyed traffic in multiple waves of observations that occurred between 2007 and 2015 and made more than 55,000 total observations. A large portion of these were completed during a survey that was conducted from September 2015 through February 2016 (more than 27,000 observations). During this time, the observers concentrated their efforts on surveying the sections of the community where the ICPD made most of their traffic stops. Figure 1, below gives percentages of stops made by the ICPD across all one square mile zones of the city. Figure 1. The percent of traffic stops made by the ICPD by zone. 45.00% 40.00% 35.00% 30.00% 25.00% 20.00% 15.00% 10.00% 5.00/ 0.00% PERCENTS FOR DEPARTMENT N =12550 .I... -.I 1._ .11111 1.111 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 57 60 64 10 Figure 1 shows that ICPD officers made by far the most stops in zone 21 (the downtown area) followed by zone 29 (which roughly corresponds to the Broadway -Cross Park area of town). The traffic observations and census data used to construct the benchmarks suggests that most sections of Iowa City are relatively uniform in terms of the percentage of minority drivers on the roads. In most areas, the benchmark information indicates that minority members comprise about ten percent of the drivers on the roads. However, in zones 21, 28, 29 and 30 the benchmark percentage of minority drivers was found to be higher than in other areas of the city. Table 1 below gives the benchmark values for all areas of town. Table 1. The percentage of minority drivers on the road in selected zones Zone Days Nights All other areas 90% 10% 90% 10% Evaluation The process of comparing police data to the benchmark is straight forward. It centers on identifying differences between the racial demographic percentages from ICPD traffic stops to the corresponding benchmark information. Any difference between benchmark values and police data signifies disproportionality. Figures 2 and 3 give the day and night comparisons of ICPD traffic stop driver's race percentages to benchmark values for the areas of town were the most stops were made. White & Asian Minority White & Asian Minority 21 93% 7% 82% 18% 28 86% 14% 86% 14% 29 75% 25% 68% 32% 30 83% 17% 83% 17% All other areas 90% 10% 90% 10% Evaluation The process of comparing police data to the benchmark is straight forward. It centers on identifying differences between the racial demographic percentages from ICPD traffic stops to the corresponding benchmark information. Any difference between benchmark values and police data signifies disproportionality. Figures 2 and 3 give the day and night comparisons of ICPD traffic stop driver's race percentages to benchmark values for the areas of town were the most stops were made. Figure 2. Comparison of benchmark values to the percentages of minority drivers stopped for days. 0.4 Comparison for days 0.35 0.3 0.25 0.2 0.15 0.1 0.05 ' 0 13 20 21 22 27 28 29 30 ■ percent minority stopped days ■ benchmark Figure 3. Comparison of benchmark values to the percentages of minority drivers stopped for nights. Comparison for nights 0.4 0.35 0.3 0.25 0.2 0.15 0.1 0.05 0 II 1111111111 13 20 21 22 27 28 ■ percent minority stoppednights ■ benchmark 29 30 Figures 2 and 3 are very similar. Each shows some degree of disproportionality between police traffic stops involving minority drivers and observational benchmark values. For each figure, the 3 highest degrees of disproportionality tended to be concentrated in areas where the fewest stops were made. Correspondingly, the degree of disproportionality was much lower in the areas where the most stops were made—like zones 21 and 29. We computed a disparity index that is useful in assessing the average level of disproportionality across all areas of the city. For each zone, the index equals the difference between the percentage of minority drivers stopped and the benchmark value, weighted by the number of traffic stops made in the zone. When summed across all zones, this index gives a ballpark estimate of disproportionality. Results show the index equals approximately 5% for both days and nights, meaning across all areas of the city, the weighted average degree of disproportionality was approximately five percentage points higher than the corresponding benchmark values. It is important to keep in mind that the roadside observations that form the benchmark are generated from a sample of the drivers on the roads. As such, the index values should be treated as estimates and interpreted with a generous degree of latitude in terms of margin of error. Officer Level Analysis Next we computed disparity index values for each officer making at least twenty stops in 2015. The index is calculated by assessing two ratios: the percentage of minority drivers stopped against the minority benchmark to the percentage of White & Asian drivers stopped against the White & Asian benchmark. Figure 4, gives the index values. Figure 4. Individual officer disparity index values C] 901 Disparity Index N O 2 4 6 weighted index The horizontal axis in figure 4 shows the disparity index values. Scores greater than one indicate disproportionality. The greater the value, the more disproportionality. For instance, a score of two suggests that minority drivers were twice as likely to be stopped as were other drivers. The blue bars in the graph signify a given officer's score. The vertical axis shows the frequency or number of officers with a given disparity index score. A unit normal curve is superimposed across the distribution of officers' scores. The two solid vertical black lines show important markers of the distribution. The thick line gives the mean disparity index value for all officers. This equals 1.71. The thin vertical line shows an index value that is two standard deviations above the mean. This value equals 3.54. In a normal distribution, values greater than two standard deviations above the mean occur with a low probability. Most of the officers' disparity index scores in figure 4 are tightly grouped together about the mean. However, there are two values that are quite different from the rest. These two values sit well beyond two -standard deviations above the mean. Sampling theory suggests that scores this extreme are unlikely to be due to chance. It is important to note that extreme values like these also pull the mean of the entire distribution higher. When the two extreme scores are ignored, the mean of the distribution becomes 1.62 (with a median of 1.46). Given that the extreme index values suggest that minority drivers are four to five times more likely to be stopped than others, these values indicate a high degree of disproportionality. Stop Outcomes Next we examined trends in stop outcomes. We assessed disproportionality in citations, arrests, consent searches and hit -rates or seizures from consent searches over a ten year period using an odds ratio -ratio. Like the disparity index above, odds -ratio values greater than one indicate disproportionality. Each odds -ratio is computed by comparing the ratios of exposure to non -exposure (for example, comparing the probability of receiving a citation to not receiving a citation) for minority and non -minority drivers. The figures below give the odds -ratios. Figure 5. Department odds -ratios for citations citations 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Figure 6. Department odds -ratios for arrests arrests 3.08 3.18 2.54 12.82 12.61 2.55 2.33 2.05 1.97 IrIK�b�rI�I�IiI�I�fiI�F [�i Z�7 f i I�j i �i�L[eI�7 C EE7 Figure 7. Department odds -ratios for search requests search requests 1111110al 2005 2006 2007 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Figure 8. Department odds -ratios for hit -rates resulting from consent searches hit rates 1.2 1.1 1.05 2006 20131 Interpretation The odds -ratios for citations in figure 5 indicate that disproportionality in citations for minority drivers has increased over the last ten years. In 2005-2007, White & Asian drivers were more likely to receive a citation as the result of traffic stop than were minority drivers. This pattern reversed in 2010. From that year on, minority drivers were on average about one -and -a -half times more likely to receive a citation than were non -minority drivers. Note, that even though the results indicate a degree of disproportionality, the values of the most recent citation odds ratio are fairly close to one, suggesting a comparatively low level of disproportionality. The odds -ratios for arrests shown in figure 6 have been declining over the last four years. In 2015, minority drivers were about twice as likely to be arrested during a traffic stop as were White & Asian drivers. This value has been steadily declining every year since 2011—when minority drivers were 3.18 times more likely to be arrested compared to other drivers. The odds ratios for voluntary search requests in figure 7 have also been decreasing over the last several years of the study. Voluntary search requests occur in contexts where the circumstances of the stop do not permit an officer to search based on probable cause. The driver must give the officer voluntary consent. The information in figure 7 shows that in 2015 officers were about twice as likely to request a search from a minority driver as from others. This value is down from 5.62 in 2007. Finally, the information in figure 8 for hit -rates is mixed. In comparison to White & Asian drivers, in some years officers were more likely to seize evidence or contraband from minority drivers as the result of a voluntary search. However, in other years the opposite was true. Additionally, the odds ratio values for each year were comparatively low. This information suggests that officers were about equally as likely to make a seizure during a voluntary search from non -minority drivers as from minority drivers. so taken together, the information in figures 7 and 8 suggests that although the odds were about the same that a seizure would be made during a voluntary search of minority and non -minority drivers, officers still were about twice as likely to request such a search from a minority driver. Bullet -Point Conclusions and Suggestions ➢ Results suggest a degree of racial disproportionality in traffic stops conducted by the ICPD. A ballpark estimate of the level of disproportionality indicates that minority drivers were stopped on average about five percentage points above observational benchmark values. ➢ Comparatively little traffic stop disproportionality was found in areas of town where the bulk of the traffic stops were made. Instead, most disproportionality occurred in areas where stops were less frequent. ➢ Individual officer analyses show that two officers' disparity index values were considerably higher than other officers' values. ➢ Disproportionality inmost stop outcomes has decreased in recent years. The single exception is citations, where disproportionality increased. It should be noted however, that odds -ratio values for citations were comparatively modest. ➢ In recent years, officers were about twice as likely to arrest a minority driver as others during a stop ➢ In recent years, officers were about twice as likely to request a voluntary search from minority drivers as from other drivers. This occurred even though seizures or hit rates resulting from voluntary searches were about the same for minority and non -minority drivers. ➢ overall, results suggest that the levels of disproportionality in stop outcomes has been trending lower. We suggest that the City continue to monitor these indicators for at least the next couple of years. .81 mw ma Wa�lxw46 N ioms x�x �: ars` i urs xira xy.rx xr• Gowlvdk em si � � � rxe lJ 5� N _ 1_ s i sins. i HPAA ` i�.. pHickory� �h PG i �'Ire�uw Lr Tww .+Y-8'il l X11 1(D ryal Iowa.._ I b fowa City Untais6 ox owa h I w 1 OSW xl K sl' a p E�w fi Lina E $i Iia t�1� H11 H s s f 6 9r � a i O � � i W1011$1 H ;...-KihwUW Av S _....__ p{ I 1 Har ars a�a .38 ( rra xarw f'� a32 c aciy Alum t ora ora rw xy . s rsw p 7my inxeAbod lgnArcs a M a arw sa0ltaaH� ora t � al.w ora � zrla r e� w aro o.Kl a i i Summary of Results ICPD Traffic Study 2015 In recent years some residents of Iowa City, Iowa have expressed concern over the potential for racial bias in the City's police department's traffic stop activity. In response, the City retained our research team to analyze the Iowa City Police Department's traffic stop data. The focus of our investigation was an assessment of racial disparity in traffic stops, with a goal of evaluating two broad categories of discretionary police traffic stop conduct: (i) a comparison of the demographic information of drivers stopped by the ICPD to a valid benchmark and (ii) an analysis of racial disparity in the outcome or disposition of a stop. To evaluate traffic stop demographics our team utilized a driver -population benchmark fashioned from roadside observations and census data. In Iowa City, the population characteristics of some neighborhoods vary across areas of the city. Consequently, the benchmark consists of several observation zones corresponding to one square mile areas in Iowa City (see the map at the end of this document). The traffic observers watched traffic both day and night. The observers surveyed traffic in multiple waves of observations that occurred between 2007 and 2015 and made more than 55,000 total observations. A large portion of these were completed during a survey that was conducted from September 2015 through February 2016 (more than 27,000 observations). During this time, the observers concentrated their efforts on surveying the sections of the community where the ICPD made most of their traffic stops. Figure 1, below gives percentages of stops made by the ICPD across all one square mile zones of the city. Figure 1. The percent of traffic stops made by the ICPD by zone. 45.00% 40.00% 35.00% 30.00% 25.00% 20.00% 15.00% 10.00% 5.00% 0.00% PERCENTS FOR DEPARTMENT N =12850 1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 57 60 64 Figure 1 shows that ICPD officers made by far the most stops in zone 21 (the downtown area) followed by zone 29 (which roughly corresponds to the Broadway -Cross Park area of town). The traffic observations and census data used to construct the benchmarks suggests that most sections of Iowa City are relatively uniform in terms of the percentage of minority drivers on the roads. In most areas, the benchmark information indicates that minority members comprise about ten percent of the drivers on the roads. However, in zones 21, 28, 29 and 30 the benchmark percentage of minority drivers was found to be higher than in other areas of the city. Table 1 below gives the benchmark values for all areas of town. Table 1. The percentage of minority drivers on the road in selected zones Zone Days Nights White & Asian Minority White & Asian Minority 21 93% 7% 82% 18% 28 86% 14% 86% 14% 29 75% 25% 68% 32% 30 83% 17% 83% 17% All other areas 90% 10% 90% 10% Evaluation The process of comparing police data to the benchmark is straight forward. It centers on identifying differences between the racial demographic percentages from ICPD traffic stops to the corresponding benchmark information. Any difference between benchmark values and police data signifies disproportionality. Figures 2 and 3 give the day and night comparisons of ICPD traffic stop driver's race percentages to benchmark values for the areas of town were the most stops were made. Figure 2. Comparison of benchmark values to the percentages of minority drivers stopped for days. 0.4 Comparison for days 0.35 0.3 0.25 0.2 0.15 0.1 0.05 ' 0 13 20 21 22 27 28 29 ■ percent minority stopped days ■ benchmark Figure 3. Comparison of benchmark values to the percentages of minority drivers stopped for nights. Comparison for nights 0.4 0.35 0.3 0.25 0.2 0.15 0.1 0.05 0 II II II II 11 11 13 20 21 22 27 28 ■ percent minority stoppednights ■benchmark FIE 30 Figures 2 and 3 are very similar. Each shows some degree of disproportionality between police traffic stops involving minority drivers and observational benchmark values. For each figure, the 3 highest degrees of disproportionality tended to be concentrated in areas where the fewest stops were made. Correspondingly, the degree of disproportionality was much lower in the areas where the most stops were made—like zones 21 and 29. We computed a disparity index that is useful in assessing the average level of disproportionality across all areas of the city. For each zone, the index equals the difference between the percentage of minority drivers stopped and the benchmark value, weighted by the number of traffic stops made in the zone. When summed across all zones, this index gives a ballpark estimate of disproportionality. Results show the index equals approximately 5% for both days and nights, meaning across all areas of the city, the weighted average degree of disproportionality was approximately five percentage points higher than the corresponding benchmark values. It is important to keep in mind that the roadside observations that form the benchmark are generated from a sample of the drivers on the roads. As such, the index values should be treated as estimates and interpreted with a generous degree of latitude in terms of margin of error. Officer Level Analysis Next we computed disparity index values for each officer making at least twenty stops in 2015. The index is calculated by assessing two ratios: the percentage of minority drivers stopped against the minority benchmark to the percentage of White & Asian drivers stopped against the White & Asian benchmark. Figure 4, gives the index values. Figure 4. Individual officer disparity index values Z E Disparity Index N 0 0 2 4 6 weighted index The horizontal axis in figure 4 shows the disparity index values. Scores greater than one indicate disproportionality. The greater the value, the more disproportionality. For instance, a score of two suggests that minority drivers were twice as likely to be stopped as were other drivers. The blue bars in the graph signify a given officer's score. The vertical axis shows the frequency or number of officers with a given disparity index score. A unit normal curve is superimposed across the distribution of officers' scores. The two solid vertical black lines show important markers of the distribution. The thick line gives the mean disparity index value for all officers. This equals 1.71. The thin vertical line shows an index value that is two standard deviations above the mean. This value equals 3.54. In a normal distribution, values greater than two standard deviations above the mean occur with a low probability. Most of the officers' disparity index scores in figure 4 are tightly grouped together about the mean. However, there are two values that are quite different from the rest. These two values sit well beyond two -standard deviations above the mean. Sampling theory suggests that scores this extreme are unlikely to be due to chance. It is important to note that extreme values like these also pull the mean of the entire distribution higher. When the two extreme scores are ignored, the mean of the distribution becomes 1.62 (with a median of 1.46). Given that the extreme index values suggest that minority drivers are four to five times more likely to be stopped than others, these values indicate a high degree of disproportionality. Stop Outcomes Next we examined trends in stop outcomes. We assessed disproportionality in citations, arrests, consent searches and hit -rates or seizures from consent searches over a ten year period using an odds ratio -ratio. Like the disparity index above, odds -ratio values greater than one indicate disproportionality. Each odds -ratio is computed by comparing the ratios of exposure to non -exposure (for example, comparing the probability of receiving a citation to not receiving a citation) for minority and non -minority drivers. The figures below give the odds -ratios. Figure S. Department odds -ratios for citations citations I11 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Figure 6. Department odds -ratios for arrests arrests i I i 7Qt 2005 2006 2007 2010 2011 2012 2013 Figure 7. Department odds -ratios for search requests search requests 2014 2015 IIIIIIINI 2005 2006 2007 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Figure 8. Department odds -ratios for hit -rates resulting from consent searches hit rates 1.2 1.1 1.05 2006 2013 2015 1110 -1.1 1.6 Interpretation The odds -ratios for citations in figure 5 indicate that disproportionality in citations for minority drivers has increased over the last ten years. In 2005-2007, White & Asian drivers were more likely to receive a citation as the result of traffic stop than were minority drivers. This pattern reversed in 2010. From that year on, minority drivers were on average about one -and -a -half times more likely to receive a citation than were non -minority drivers. Note, that even though the results indicate a degree of disproportionality, the values of the most recent citation odds ratio are fairly close to one, suggesting a comparatively low level of disproportionality. The odds -ratios for arrests shown in figure 6 have been declining over the last four years. In 2015, minority drivers were about twice as likely to be arrested during a traffic stop as were White & Asian drivers. This value has been steadily declining every year since 2011—when minority drivers were 3.18 times more likely to be arrested compared to other drivers. The odds ratios for voluntary search requests in figure 7 have also been decreasing over the last several years of the study. Voluntary search requests occur in contexts where the circumstances of the stop do not permit an officer to search based on probable cause. The driver must give the officer voluntary consent. The information in figure 7 shows that in 2015 officers were about twice as likely to request a search from a minority driver as from others. This value is down from 5.62 in 2007. Finally, the information in figure 8 for hit -rates is mixed. In comparison to White & Asian drivers, in some years officers were more likely to seize evidence or contraband from minority drivers as the result of a voluntary search. However, in other years the opposite was true. Additionally, the odds ratio values for each year were comparatively low. This information suggests that officers were about equally as likely to make a seizure during a voluntary search from non -minority drivers as from minority drivers. So taken together, the information in figures 7 and 8 suggests that although the odds were about the same that a seizure would be made during a voluntary search of minority and non -minority drivers, officers still were about twice as likely to request such a search from a minority driver. Bullet -Point Conclusions and Suggestions ➢ Results suggest a degree of racial disproportionality in traffic stops conducted by the ICPD. A ballpark estimate of the level of disproportionality indicates that minority drivers were stopped on average about five percentage points above observational benchmark values. ➢ Comparatively little traffic stop disproportionality was found in areas of town where the bulk of the traffic stops were made. Instead, most disproportionality occurred in areas where stops were less frequent. ➢ Individual officer analyses show that two officers' disparity index values were considerably higher than other officers' values. ➢ Disproportionality in most stop outcomes has decreased in recent years. The single exception is citations, where disproportionality increased. It should be noted however, that odds -ratio values for citations were comparatively modest. ➢ In recent years, officers were about twice as likely to arrest a minority driver as others during a stop ➢ In recent years, officers were about twice as likely to request a voluntary search from minority drivers as from other drivers. This occurred even though seizures or hit rates resulting from voluntary searches were about the same for minority and non -minority drivers. ➢ overall, results suggest that the levels of disproportionality in stop outcomes has been trending lower. We suggest that the City continue to monitor these indicators for at least the next couple of years. 'Ill