Last night, the Iowa City City Council voted unanimously to create two Urban Renewal Areas – one at North Dodge and Scott (former ACT campus) and another at Sycamore. The Urban Renewal designation is a tool cities can use to target specific areas that are underutilized or deteriorated for redevelopment and revitalization. It is the first step to creating Tax Increment Financing (TIF) districts, a public incentive that can spur private-sector development that aligns with the city’s priorities.
The North Dodge and Scott Urban Renewal Area consists of approximately 150 acres encompassing the northwestern portion of the former ACT campus. The area is currently being redeveloped to convert former office buildings into senior housing. Future plans include new commercial development along Highway 1, such as a grocery store, restaurant, offices uses, and more. Redevelopment of this area will reactivate this part of town, increase housing supply, and drive economic activity.
The Sycamore Urban Renewal Area is located along the commercial area between Highway 6 and the Iowa Interstate Railroad and Sycamore Street and the eastern boundary of Procter & Gamble. These boundaries align with Greater IC’s Strategic Investment District, a public-private collaboration to create a community-informed development plan to drive economic growth and housing opportunities in this critical neighborhood.
The Sycamore area has long been recognized as a place with strong fundamentals, but real redevelopment barriers: aging commercial properties, fragmented site design, infrastructure challenges, and limited internal connectivity. These conditions have constrained private reinvestment for years, despite the area’s strategic location and proximity to jobs, services, and existing neighborhoods. The Strategic Investment District plan provides a roadmap for redevelopment that increases housing supply, walkability, and would make the area more attractive to residents and draw people from across the community. The plan’s success requires partnership with city leadership and alignment with their Comprehensive Plan, as well as market-driven investment from our local development community.
Urban Renewal designation for the ACT campus and Sycamore is a necessary first step to address barriers to development and demonstrates the City’s commitment to strategically partner with private investment in these areas.Greater IC advocated for these designations to Council and are grateful for their support and proactive approach to developing these neighborhoods. Greater IC will continue to encourage thoughtful, collaborative redevelopment of these areas and the potential for Tax Increment Financing (TIF) to help make these plans a reality.
