Weekend Pick: Planning To Be Merry and Safe

Local meteorologists are warning about winter weather this weekend. How much of the precipitation will fall as rain, ice, and snow is still uncertain, as is the timing of any hazardous conditions in the Des Moines area. Be prepared for whatever comes down and remember to allow extra time for traveling. If you can, try riding a local bus instead of putting another car on the road, or in the ditch, and let somebody else scrape the windows.

I realize it is the winter holiday season, that cabin fever already is starting to set in, and that there are gifts to buy and friends to greet. I accept that this is Iowa. I know people will be driving when it might be more prudent not to be on the roads. A major snow event is not in the forecast for this weekend, but with icy conditions expected a few road safety reminders are appropriate:

*Do not follow closely behind snow plows. *Make sure all of your vehicle’s windows are clear of snow and ice. *Knock excess snow off the top of your vehicle. *Remember school children and other pedestrians are bundled up against the cold and wind so their vision and hearing is impaired. *Remember stopping on ice is a whole lot different than passing over a slick patch in four-wheel drive. *Find a web site about driving in winter conditions and refresh your memory of how to deal with spin control.

With several forums featuring presidential candidates being held this weekend, there should be plenty of political entertainment. For people still trying to decide for whom to caucus, there are a few opportunities to see candidates in smaller venues. For instance, Joe Biden is scheduled to be at a forum hosted by A Mid-Iowa Organizing Strategy (AMOS) on Sunday, December 2nd, at Central Presbyterian Church (3829 Grand Avenue) at 1:00 p.m. It needs to be noted for people wanting to check out the caucus exhibit at the State Historical Building (6th Street & East Locust) that the building will be closed on Tuesday, December 4th for a presidential debate hosted by Radio Iowa and National Public Radio.

A few holiday activities are planned for this weekend, including the Waterbury Holiday Home Tour. Tickets are $15 in advance and $18 on Saturday and Sunday. Plus, the Polar Express movie returns to the at the Science Center starting December 1st. People who saw this in a prior year told me it was very good on the IMAX screen but it can still be disturbing for younger children. Tickets are around $8 if purchased only for the theater. A Christmas Potpourri (gifts, baked goods, and lunch) can be enjoyed on Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Basilica of St. John (1915 University Avenue).

“The Culture Buzz” on KFMG (99.1 FM) made a recommendation for the Birds show at the Olson-Larsen Gallery in Valley Junction. The opening reception is on Friday, November 30th, from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m.

M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa. 

Let It Snow, Let It Glow, Let It Flow

AroundDesMoines.com has received requests from readers for more information about holiday goings-on. There are many events on our calendars and Christmas activities are getting mixed in with political showcases and professional development meetings. There is no way I am going to be able to list everything that is happening in the next four weeks, but I will try to capture an array of seasonal celebrations.

Holiday Carols in Concert will be performed at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, November 29th at the Central Presbyterian Church (39th and Grand) by the Southwestern Community College Concert Choir. December 2nd is the first Sunday of Advent. Look for other church-based holiday celebrations in this period leading up to Christmas Day.

In the spirit of the season, please consider donating to the Salvation Army’s 2007 Miracle of the Bell campaign. Money is tight for several households this year, but money raised through the kettle donations helps central Iowa families, your neighbors. Buy your gifts with cash and drop the change in the kettles. You could have a little less weight to carry around as you shop and a whole lot less debt to move around in 2008.

Another fundraising event special to this time of year is Jolly Holiday Lights at Waterworks Park (off of Fleur Drive). Driving through the display costs $9 per car and may be done from 5:30 to 10:00 p.m. through January 1st. The money goes to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Public transit doesn’t pass by the park and it is too cold to walk there, so I cannot speak personally about this event. Several news publications across the country ran an Associated Press travel story on November 18th that mentioned this Des Moines light show.

If you like to shop at the malls, no doubt you will find a Santa, maybe some elves, and other entertainment to entice you to spend your money on photographs, train rides, or in toy stores. I also noticed a sign in one of the local grocery stores that Santa would make an appearance on Saturday, December 1st, so keep your eyes open for these assorted visits from the North Pole.

You can support up to 300 craft folks at the Fairgrounds from 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Friday, November 30th and then during the day on Saturday and Sunday, December 1st and 2nd. A smaller venue of such folks can be found on Craft Saturday, December 8th, at Vaudeville Mews on Fourth Street.

Valley Junction has two more Holiday Open Houses on Thursdays (November 29th and December 6th) from 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. These offer a mix of local, artistic, and fair trade shopping choices. In years past I have watched lunch-time performances from the skywalk near the Kaleidoscope and expect there will be some this year. In addition, there is another Holiday (Farmers) Market on Saturday, December 15th at Capital Square and Nollen Plaza.

In the evenings, there is the fun of ice skating at Brenton Plaza. Maybe we should start a tradition of a Christmas tree in the parking lot across Robert D. Ray Drive from the rink.

Yes, I did save the big events for last. The Radio City Music Spectacular brings the Rockettes to Des Moines from Thursday, December 6th through December 30th. The Des Moines Ballet performs the Nutcracker at Hoyt Sherman Place on December 7th through the 9th with a special gala and silent auction the evening of Saturday, December 8th.

The Weekend Pick posts on Thursdays may include other seasonal events. In addition, I will try to have another special holiday selection post next week.

M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa.

Commentary: Building the Power Girls’ Network

Over the past year, as I have beaten the laundry of women’s equality against the rocks lining river banks, I have observed the old girls’ network holding fast. If the old boys’ network is Ivy League connections, corporate boardrooms, and bonding rituals that include hazings and sports, then the old girls’ network is humanitarian service organizations, not-for-profit meeting rooms, and bonding rituals based in shared nurturing. There are women, however, of all ages, who want to move away from the old girls’ network and merge the old boys and the old girls into a new power girls’ network. Hopefully we can drop the hazing rituals, though.

Volunteer work seems to have been replaced with e-mail petitions. All we have to do to make a difference anymore, it seems, is to type our name into a form provided by some organization funded by a financier and send it off into cyberspace. Meanwhile, local organizations and local chapters of national groups struggle to attract people to meetings, let alone to do all the work involved in maintaining and promoting an organization.

We are spread thin by daily demands. Our daily newspapers and other publications (broadband, broadcast, or broadsheet) seem only to leave us wanting more, or take so much time to sort through that we have no time left to volunteer. Yet, we are offered a multitude of choices for networking that seek to make our lives better.

As I rush out the door to attend yet another meaningless political talk about women and families, I hasten to finish this commentary. I keep waiting to see the presidential candidates talk about men and families. Heck, maybe someone can bring back the idea that men should receive wages when they marry and then when the first child is born. (By the way, November 25 was the United Nations International Day for Elimination of Violence Against Women.)

I am asking for readers’ input on two items. There is a survey to assess what a permanent edition of Leading Voices: Iowa might include. The survey will take only a few minutes to complete. I also have started to put together a list of women’s organizations and groups in Iowa. This is incomplete and in need of better online formatting, but it already is an impressively-long list. I know there are organizations and other items missing from it and would appreciate help completing the list. Thank you.

M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa.

DMPS School Board Meeting 11/20/2007 – Policy Governance

Policy Governance, a registered trademark of John Carvey, is the name given to a process by which a board measures and monitors a business’ operations. The process also has been applied to school boards and the districts they oversee. The Des Moines Public Schools (DMPS) School Board voted on November 20th to be governed by Policy Governance as detailed in a collection of individual policies.

Board Vice President Ginny Strong sees the implementation of Policy Governance as a means by which the board can hold the superintendent accountable for managing the schools. Strong compared the idea of Policy Governance to the practice in prior years of superintendents informing the board about what should be measured and how it would be measured. Teree Caldwell-Johnson abstained from voting because she wanted to talk with board members of other school districts about their experiences with Policy Governance before supporting its application in Des Moines. Jon Narcisse was concerned about delegating to district staff oversight that should remain with the elected board. Connie Boesen believes Policy Governance gives more clarity for the board. Board President Dick Murphy praised Strong’s work and comments on Policy Governance as “outstanding again.” Murphy later noted that Iowa City’s school board has used Policy Governance for about two years and that board is happy with it. These are similar to comments the individual members made at the November 6th board meeting.

At the request of DMEA President Alan Young, the board changed a few words. For instance, changing “undignified” to “unprofessional” with reference to staff working conditions. DMEA is the union representing teachers and school staff. At both the November 6th and November 20th meetings, Young objected to the phrasing of Policy Governance items in negative terms, e.g., “the Superintendent shall not fail to provide quarterly summaries….” Young also recommended that the various measurement and policy guidelines be organized and weighted in terms of importance.

Other members of the public speaking at the November 6th meeting were Bob Mickle and Nan Stillians. Mickle repeated his regular comment that neighborhood associations are a good way to reach the public but that they take several weeks to discuss an issue. Stillians noted that some of the proposed policies had backwards language and were difficult to understand.

Information provided in the November 20th agenda listed the dates of work sessions and Board meetings in which Policy Governance was discussed. At the November board meetings, board members stressed repeatedly that Policy Governance is intended to help improve board and community communications, as well as establishing guidelines for evaluating the superintendent. Comments made during the November 6th meeting and after the November 20th meeting indicate that the discussion of Policy Governance at the school board meetings held in July were little more than a word-for-word reading of the proposed policies. The work sessions were open to the public, but I do not know what, if any, advance public notice was given for them.

Patty Link, chair of the linkage committee, a formal term indicating communications between the community, the board, and the district administration, asked how the community representatives to the linkage committee is to be appointed. Link asked if she should just choose someone. Murphy responded, “sure.” Boesen said that there are interested volunteers and that the linkage committee (Link, Boesen, and Jeannette Woods) would discuss the process.

Beth Nigut, the district’s general counsel, said the 100-800 Series of Policies and Procedures would still exist and govern the board, except where the new Policy Governance policies conflict.

M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa and reports on school board meetings for AroundDesMoines.com.

DMPS School Board Meeting 11/20/2007 – Schools First

Schools First is the name given to the program to renovate and to build schools in the Des Moines Public Schools (DMPS) system with money generated from a one-cent sales tax. At the October 16th school board meeting, Superintendent Dr. Nancy Sebring and Chief Operations Officer Bill Good reported on a budget problem caused by a low appraised value on a building that was to be sold. At the November 20th meeting, Sebring and Good presented a solution that left renovations to Roosevelt High School and to Jackson Elementary School on budget and on schedule. They recommended that the Pappajohn Center not be used for the Central Campus high school. However, they left open the use of the center for other purposes. The current owners of the Pappajohn Center asked for 30 days to re-consider they’re willingness to sell the building to the DMPS.. Sebring said a professional development center could be another use for the building if the DMPS acquires it.

Sebring and Good recommended to buy the Wallace-Homestead property at 1912 Grand. This property is next to the present Central Campus. Currently gutted with some recent work done, such as mechanical system upgrades, the 1912 building would cut about $450,000 over 10 years from the estimated operating expenses of using the Pappajohn Center due to reduced need to pay for parking and busing. Talking about the Pappajohn Center, Sebring said, “We realized we’d outgrown that building before we ever got into it.” The previous plan had included building an addition to the Pappajohn Center, but limited land availability would curtail the size of the addition. When calculating how the 1912 building compares to the Pappajohn Center, Sebring and Good applied the Pappajohn space allocations to the 1912 building and found the 1912 building to have greater room for program growth. The present Central Campus building would be renovated in stages, starting with elevators, electrical, and code upgrades. Sebring suggested that the schools might work with businesses to complete renovation work.

Comments offered on the proposal were similar to opinions expressed at previous meetings. Douglas Haefele, a Johnston resident who attends high school both in Johnston and at Central Campus, spoke on behalf of 20 students who want to stay at the Pappajohn Center. Convenience to the public library and to food were important, as was a projector in every classroom. He even liked the atmosphere of downtown. Another commentator noted that the teachers liked the classroom electronics, too, when they worked.

Sharon Walsh expressed displeasure at the lack of advance notice Sebring gave to the site committee about her recommendation. Sebring and Good replied that they were not starting from scratch at the 1912 building but incorporating site committee suggestions made for the Pappajohn Center.

Most of the school board members acknowledged comments made previously. Board Member Teree Caldwell-Johnson wanted to know if inflation and increased maintenance expenses, e.g., for cleaning additional space, had been included in calculations of costs. Good replied that they had been. Caldwell-Johnson also commented that the facade of Central Campus was not the best message about downtown Des Moines that people driving from the airport could receive. Board Member Patty Link said, “I don’t have a lot to say because I haven’t had a whole lot of time to think about it.”

The future location of Scavo is still up in the air. Sebring said the district has received two grants to help rethink high school education. Where to locate Scavo might be considered within the larger consideration of what alternative education sources are wanted in Des Moines.

M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa and reports on school board meetings for AroundDesMoines.com.

Commentary: When businesses, consumers and economics collide

The wishes of residents near proposed and current Hy-Vee and Dahl’s grocery stores are running head first into the freedom of commerce that the companies have a right to expect. The silent third partner in that mix, though, is the underlying condition of and expression of Des Moines’ economy. With this being the famous Friday-after-Thanksgiving shopping day, it seems an appropriate time for a commentary about the larger conflicts represented by the proposals of the grocery store chains.

The downtown farmers market is an example of business over economics. Thousands of people crowd Court Avenue on Saturday mornings over the summer and the businesses and organizations who are allowed to participate can benefit. Yet, the contrast between the hordes of shoppers flooding into malls on this post-Thanksgiving shopping day and the emptiness of downtown Des Moines was very stark. If the downtown farmers market was about economics, the downtown retail scene would be much stronger. An example of business over economics is Mainstream Boutique. This clothing retailer has a store on the skywalk level that is open for the few hours when office workers take lunch. The business also has stores in Valley Junction and in Pella. On Saturday mornings, it has a booth at the downtown farmers market. Alas, by being at the market instead of opening its skywalk store on Saturdays, all that consumer traffic generated by the market is given no reason to stay downtown. Moreover, businesses from other communities who use the market to reach new customers have no incentive to open fixed stores downtown.

The skywalk system itself is an economic noose. An article on the Minneapolis skywalk system recently appeared on MinnPost. The article looks at the view of Jan Gehl, a Danish architect, who states that Minneapolis is not large enough to sustain two levels of businesses, i.e., street level and skywalk level. It is an observation about Minneapolis I have made myself and I find Des Moines’ skywalk system to be even less valuable.

My word limit is about to be reached and the grocery stores still have not been discussed. The question usually asked is, how do we balance the desires of residents for neighborhood-sized businesses with businesses’ desires to decide for themselves how they want to invest their resources? While this is a very important question and one definitely meriting hours and hours of public meetings, we also need to be asking how the resulting compromises will grow the economy of the city. Building the economy means creating jobs (full- and part-time, low- and high-skills), increasing sales tax revenue, and otherwise creating enough growth in wealth to at least sustain the current average household income.

The Dahl’s plan that I have seen concerns me as both a resident and in terms of economics. The specifics of those concerns will need to be covered in another post. For readers who want more information now, check out the discussion thread about the Dahl’s on Ingersoll at absolutedsm.

M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa.

Weekend Pick: Buy that turkey a thank you gift

The Christmas season officially starts with Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade today. Oh, wait, I’m not in New York City this year. Okay, I’ll say Des Moines beat New York to the punch with a record-breaking, 4.8-inch, day-before-Thanksgiving snowfall. That’s as good a signal of Christmas approaching as is Macy’s Santa Claus. I have mixed opinions about Christmas Day but I choose to accept the Christmas season as a time to emphasize joy of and kindness towards each other. Thus, a “Merry Christmas” may be interpreted as a celebration of Christ’s birth or it may be given and accepted as a seasonal thank you. If there is a drawing for Secret Santas, though, you’re on your own.

Being an advocate of public transportation, I have a challenge for shoppers. Thanksgiving is relatively early this year, so there are plenty of extra days in which to shop for Christmas presents. On one of your outings, leave the car at home and take the bus. Calculate how much money you save by not driving your car, e.g., reducing the odds of an icy crash and avoiding $3.00 a gallon gasoline. Use the savings to buy yourself a special stocking stuffer. Because you will not have a car in which to toss packages and you will have to carry whatever you buy on and off of a bus, you may find yourself re-thinking your gift ideas. Heck, maybe you will decide to give someone who keeps talking about possibly taking the bus to work a nice beverage container or a brief case. Here’s a bit of advice: a canvas bag helps with the schlepping of gifts.

If free entertainment and avoidance of any place that has more than one person waiting at a cash register is more your speed, the Des Moines Public Library has a few options. On Friday, November 23rd, at 2:00 p.m., Charlotte’s Web will be the movie at Franklin Avenue (5000 Franklin Avenue) and Ratatouille will be shown at the East Side branch (2559 Hubbell Avenue). On Saturday, the 24th, the Central Library (1000 Grand) will show A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving at 10:00 a.m. On Friday morning, 10:00 a.m. to noon, at the Central Library there will be Thanksgiving Break Craft Time for all ages. For Central Library activities, the phone number to use in pre-registering is (515) 283-4152, ext. 3.

A Fall Into Winter Family Festival will be held at the State Historical Building (6th and East Locust) on Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. This free event is sponsored by Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield. There will be a fiddle and banjo band to which to dance, weavers and other crafts folks to observe, and wreaths and squirrel, er, I mean bird, feeders to build, among other activities.

Temperatures on Saturday and on Sunday have been forecasted to be above freezing. If you haven’t already, check your winter preparations for your sidewalk, your car (or other transportation), and your residence.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving.

M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa.

DMPS School Board Meeting 11/20/2007

The premiere of a documentary on the 100-year history of the Des Moines Public Schools was shown before the start of the board meeting. Copies of the video are being distributed to all schools. (See the Comments section below for a review.)

A physical education teacher asked the board to add baffling in the ceilings of newly-renovated gymnasiums in elementary schools to reduce echos and to prevent noise-related health problems. The teacher commented that when students and the teacher cannot hear each other, students become unruly and thus not prepared to learn.

Superintendent Dr. Nancy Sebring recognized Blake Hammond, the sixth grade science teacher at Merrill Middle School for winning the ISEA Excellence in Education Award. Also as part of the superintendent’s report, Sebring read a proclamation from the governor recognizing the 100.5 anniversary of the DMPS. (The 100th anniversary was in May of this year.) She reported that school board members would be delivering cakes to all the schools on November 21st and that students would receive a special cupcake at lunch.

There were some interesting statistics to be found in the consent agenda. The contract with Air Filter Sales & Services was extended for another year. The contract allowed for four extensions and this is the fourth. The cost is estimated at $76,644 for 5,771 filters. Another contract extension was with Microsoft for licensing of assorted software, at $35.59 per license. The number of computers used by the district increased by 41.3% from 2003 to 2007 and the cost of licenses rose by 47.8% (4,600 to 6,500 computers; $156,492 to $231,335).

The reappointment of Marilyn Farr to a three-year term on the Tax Oversight Committee also was on the consent agenda. Nan Stillians expressed concern about the lack of notice in the reappointment process. She told the board, “since you have the power over [the oversight committee]…yet they’re the ones overseeing you,” there should be more public scrutiny of appointments. Farr is the Polk Des Moines Taxpayers Association representative to the committee. Board President Dick Murphy said he had heard, too late to make the agenda, from another person interested in serving on the committee. Murphy said that agenda item would be added to the next board meeting.

As Sebring prepared to talk about Schools First, Board Member Ginny Strong asked other board members if they shared Jon Narcisse’s concern about relying upon having a single board member reviewing payments as no discrepancies have been found that were not easily resolved (e.g., an invoice filed out of alphabetical order). Connie Boesen and Patty Link agreed with Strong that they were comfortable with having one (rotating) member checking bills. Murphy said he was “happy to trust the other board members.” Narcisse noted that he had talked with other school boards in Iowa and that their members receive copies of bills. This led to a discussion about the number of bills various school districts approve and if those are the bills published in local newspapers, such as the monthly listing of DMPS bills in the Des Moines Register. The DMPS School Board agenda notes that a list of bills will be furnished to the Board of Directors at the board meeting, the secretary will furnish information as requested on any of the items, and that prior to the meeting one member of the board will have checked the list with the invoices.

A separate post will be made reporting on the Schools First and Policy Governance discussions and actions at the meeting. Board Member Jeannette Woods was not present at the meeting due to a family health matter.

M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa and reports on school board meetings for AroundDesMoines.com. 

Fourmile Creek Floodplain & Floodway Updates

A public meeting was held on Tuesday, November 20, 2007, on Des Moines’ east side to talk about the revised floodplain and floodway maps around Fourmile Creek. The maps were updated recently thanks to a survey by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and compilation of data from storm events. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) last updated the zones in 1987. I was unable to attend the meeting, but I did talk with employees in the city’s community development and engineering departments.

One of the many questions I had was about the proper name for the waterway. I have seen it spelled as one word, as two words, and with a numeral. The single-word version is what the city uses officially. The creek starts in Boone County, runs for 26 miles, and has a drainage area of 92.7 miles. In the graphic to the right, Fourmile Creek is shown in orange. The creek curves down from the northwest (not shown), starting at a point roughly north of the arm jutting off of Saylorville Lake. As the creek heads towards the Des Moines River, it runs through Pleasant Hill from University to Scott Avenue.

Both of the city employees with whom I spoke stressed the large size of the creek’s drainage area when talking about flood control. Planning Administrator Mike Ludwig pointed out that Des Moines has authority over only a small part of the creek’s route. Development decisions made by other municipalities and county governments impact how much water runs into the creek and how quickly it enters the waterway. I talked to people who know the east side area and they thought the city had spent money on flood control about five to ten years ago. However, according to a city engineer who deals with storm water and sewers, a storm basin and related work was not connected to any flooding of Fourmile Creek.

The current map revisions, according to the city employees, came about when residents who live near the creek complained in 2000 or 2001 that their properties were being flooded. Apparently, the 1987 maps did not include those properties in the floodway or in the flooplain. The city received grant money to help pay for an updated study. The Army Corps of Engineers was already in the city doing analysis on the Des Moines River.

FEMA manages the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which has three parts: flood insurance, floodplain management, and flood hazard mapping. The FEMA web site has an interactive tool to determine how much flood insurance would cost depending on the risk (low to moderate, with and without prior flood claims; high; and, coastal high). Insurance may be bought for either ground or contents separately or for both together. Prices for combined insurance covering $250,000 and $100,000 in ground and content damage, respectively, range from $317 annually for low to moderate risk without prior flood claims to $5,358 per year for a high risk coastal residence. Separate $500 dollar deductibles apply to ground and to content damage even when combined insurance is bought. Some mortgage lenders may require homeowners in a floodplain or a in floodway to buy flood insurance.

A floodway is defined as the channel of the creek plus the adjacent land that is needed to spread the flood waters without raising the elevation of the water’s surface more than a foot. A floodplain is the relatively level land on either side of the creek’s banks that is subject to flooding. The 100-year floodplain is the area around a waterway that is expected to flood once every hundred years. Just glancing at the new maps it appears that, in general, the floodway has been reduced slightly but the floodplain has been expanded by several blocks. However, any given piece of property along the course of the river may have a different type or degree of change as the adjacent land.

The revised maps will not help to provide relief from flooding. Instead, being included in one of the designated areas may allow homeowners, renters, and businesses to obtain flood insurance under the NFIP. In addition, the designations will not limit development but certain requirements, such as the height of living space above flood levels and inclusion of retention ponds, may apply.

The Army Corps of Engineers applies a cost-benefit analysis to flood control measures. According to the storm water engineer, there is a negative cost benefit assigned to Fourmile Creek. In contrast, the value of some businesses along the Des Moines River means there is a high benefit compared to cost for changes along that waterway. Residents living near Fourmile creek believe the cost of insurance should be included in the cost analysis done by the Corps. Flood analyses were also done for the Raccoon River and Walnut Creek.

M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa.

Singing the Blues at the Newly Expanded Forest Avenue Library

Built in 1992, the Forest Avenue branch library was the smallest one in the Des Moines Public Library system. The addition of 2,300 square feet at Forest Avenue means the North Side library now has the smallest space. Although regular branch hours do not include Sundays, the Forest Avenue branch opened on Sunday, November 18, 2007, for a celebration of the renovation. With a table full of delicious appetizers arranged by Something Good Restaurant & Catering and a history of the Blues given by Fruteland Jackson, about 100 people of all ages enjoyed the special day.

After the posting of the colors by the Des Moines Police Honor Guard and the singing of the national anthem, a few short speeches were given. Don Mayberry, president of the King-Irving Neighborhood Association expressed the sentiment of the community when he said, “I wanted everybody to know how enthused we are about this beautiful building.” In the welcome speech, Forest Avenue Branch Manager Sally Wisdom told how Kesho Scott, an associate professor at Grinnell College, shared a command from her mother when Scott spoke at the 1992 opening of the building. In her introduction of Jackson, Scott repeated that phrase: “Get your butt to the library.” Scott added, “it is a statement we’re going to be saying forever.”

Wisdom has been branch manager for about four-and-a-half years. She has been an employee of the public library for two decades, previously working at the downtown central library and at other branches. In an interview with AroundDesMoines.com, she said, “our library is very well supported by the community.” She added, “we have a very dedicated, hard working staff.” There are ten people who work at the library either full time or part time. The Friends of the Forest Avenue Library hold a soul food festival in March. There is a foreign language section with an emphasis on books and other materials primarily in Spanish and in Vietnamese.

A display case in a meeting room told the story of the expansion in numbers. My favorite one was that 50,000 books were moved, twice. Other numbers were: 3,700 carpet tiles used; 3,650 feet of data/phone wire laid; 600 fluorescent light fixtures installed; and 150 gallons of paint applied. In addition, the library was closed for 5 weeks.

The design of the library is long and narrow. There is a tall window that offers a view of Evelyn Davis Park to the west, which is a nice touch. A new teen area offers a place for older students to gather. Over the check-out desk is a large neon sign giving the library’s web site address. The sign is very visible but its message about the future of libraries is very subtle. The ceiling should not be ignored by visitors to the branch. The bright red struts and the location of windows on the front side of the building make me want to dig out information on the building’s original architectural designs.

Jackson’s talk on the Blues ranged from the 1500’s when the blues was first observed in print, referring to turmoil, to the global reach of the musical style in the 21st century. For a person born in Mississippi, he talked fast, as though he had so much to say and too little time. Sadly, he noted that in Chicago, where he now lives, there is no radio station playing the Blues. If not for the Internet, his three CD’s would not be heard in the city. This was an example he shared of how the Blues are now just coasting along and starting to fade away.

M.R. Field is editor of Leading Voices: Iowa.

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