It has been more than a year since my book on Louis Sullivan’s Merchants National Bank in Grinnell was released by Pomegranate Communications of Petaluma, CA.  The book, which features the wonderful photography of David Kennedy, is not on the best-seller list.  But it has done nicely at the bank and the near-by Pioneer Bookshop.

So, I was quite surprised to hear from my friend, Grinnell College alum Tina Strauss who lives near Chicago, that the book had received a nice review in Style 1900 magazine -  a publication that focuses on the  Arts and Crafts Style and related interiors and antiques.

Click here for review

It’s always nice to get a good review, even a year after publication.  You can still find the book online through Pomegranate, or at the bank or Bookshop here in Grinnell

No parental pride involved here, but…

Yesterday’s highly-organized Bike to School Day at Grinnell High School drew about 60 students, many of whom started the ride in my front yard.

A local high schooler, Anthony Mitchell, does free-lance work for KCCI-TV in Des Moines.  He was on hand to collect video and interviews, just in case Channel 8 might want to use the piece.

Anthony’s piece didn’t make it on the air, but it’s on the KCCI website.

In the piece, you’ll see both of my sons — Robbie, who’s a 16-year-old sophomore and the lead organizer of the "Bike Gang", and Jack — the 17-year-old student body president-elect who, I suspect, believes he is the actual "new sheriff in town."

Click here to see the video!

Marc Kramer, a faculty member at the Wharton School of Business, recently posted his list of what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur. Common traits he noted among all entrepreneurs include:

1. Habit of reading. Every single successful entrepreneur I have met has been a voracious learner. They read biographies of other famous people, and devour books on strategy, product development and trends. They read newspapers and online sites, but rarely magazines.
2. Young start. They typically all sold products and services starting as teenagers. They loved to work and make money.
3. Driven. They always wanted to be good at something. Not all of them were academic stars, but they wanted to succeed.
4. Unique vision. They see things differently than everyone else. They have a gut instinct about trends and opportunities that have been honed through experience, observation and reading.
5. Love of travel. They love to travel and learn about other cultures. They aren’t so arrogant as to think the Western culture is the most intelligent.
6. Intellectual curiosity. All of them are interested in learning about other businesses, listening to other people’s stories and questioning why things are a certain way.
7. Don’t suffer fools. Successful entrepreneurs surround themselves with smart people who question their ideas and assumptions.
8. Good listeners. A lot of people like to hear the sound of their own voice, but successful people are good listeners.
9. Marathon workers. There is no such thing as a 40- hour work week. In fact, a 60-hour week would be considered a vacation. These people love to work.
10. "No" is not in their vocabulary. The only "no" these people remember is when their parents told them not to run in the street. Barriers are just challenges.
11. Big thinkers. All of these people thought about how they might have an impact on their industry, region and country.
12. Competitive spirit. They love competition. Typically these people liked to compete either athletically or through the arts. The tougher the competition, the more pumped up they become.
13. Fearless. These people don’t worry or shy away from adversity. They believe in the adage "what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger".
14. Fighting spirit. By all rights, Felix Zandman, a Holocaust survivor who had to live under the floorboards for more than a year and watched his family carted off to concentration camps, could have died mentally along with most of his family. His will to overcome adversity allowed him to start a family and build a global empire.
15. Risk-averse. "Wait a minute," you’re probably thinking, "doesn’t he mean ‘risk-takers’?" You read correctly. These people focused on the opportunity, researched the market, spoke to customers and market experts and developed a variety of financial models to determine the chances of their ventures’ success.

Successful people are noncomplainers who are focused on goals, and money is a byproduct to be used to create more success.

JO Parker from the Montezuma Republican forwarded some new images on the streetscape work underway around the Courthouse Square. 

It’s looking good!!

Yes, the Friends of Cedar Rock were in Grinnell on Saturday.  Yes, they had a great visit and loved the tours of the Sullivan Bank and Ricker House.

But, they are on a greater mission.  They are marking the 100th anniversary of the first Prairie School buildings in Iowa.

In 1908, Frank Lloyd Wright was in Mason City, developing plans for a downtown business block that would feature an adjoining bank and hotel — which would become the Park Inn (the only surviving Wright hotel in the world) and the City National Bank.

During that time, he was asked by a local doctor, George Stockman, to design a four-bedroom house which was completed that year. 

Work began on the bank and inn the following year, but Wright left the US for Europe that October.  His chief draftsman, William Drummond, supervised the construction and the project was completed in 1910. 

Local leaders had also been discussing with Wright the possibility of a housing development.  His decision to leave for Europe with the wife of a client scuttled those plans.  In 1911, they suggested to Wright’s talented draftswoman, Marion Mahoney Griffin, that she consider  taking on the project.  She recommended that her husband, Walter Burley Griffin, get the job.

Griffin had also worked for Wright.  He had earlier designed projects in Grinnell, including a fountain in Central Park and a home, the B.J. Ricker House.  He also had ideas for a housing development north of Ricker House.  Griffin took an 18-acre parcel, formerly a garbage dump, along Willow Creek in Mason City and created the Rock Crest, Rock Glen development.  It remains the largest collection of Prairie Style homes surrounding a natural setting.

Other Prairie School architects designed homes in Rock Crest, Rock Glen, including Drummond, Barry Byrne and Curtis Besinger.  Wright would return to America and design other houses in Iowa communities such as Oskaloosa, Marshalltown and Quasqueton.  But his first — and the first of the Prairie School — came 100 years ago in Mason City.

You may have read in the Grinnell paper last week that PowI-80 has already raised more than $110,000 to establish a low-rate revolving loan fund for small businesses.  Our goal is to reach $250,000, which can be used to fill gaps between business capital, bank financing and the ultimate cost of a business start-up or expansion.

The cover story in this week’s Des Moines Business Record looks at a revolving loan fund launched in Ankeny which targets high-impact jobs.  The article describes nicely why Ankeny is doing what it’s doing, which mirrors exactly what PowI-80 is trying to do.

Contact us if you have questions about our revolving loan fund proposal.

Click here to read the Business Record article.

Representative of PowI-80 and the Grinnell Area Chamber of Commerce will be in Des Moines Monday for the announcement of Iowa’s newest Cultural and Entertainment Districts.   Downtown Grinnell is expected to join the list of areas in Iowa that demonstrate a well-recognized, labeled, mixed-use, compact area of a city in which a high concentration of cultural facilities serves as the anchor.

The proposed Grinnell district, which was developed in a plan submitted by PowI-80, the Chamber, Grinnell Renaissance, Imagine Grinnell and the Grinnell Area Arts Council, will include the entire Central Business District, much of the historic neighborhood along Main and Broad Streets between 6th and 11th Avenues, and a large part of the Grinnell College campus.

Cultural Districts can be found in small rural communities or in large urban areas with the potential for more than one cultural and entertainment district. They are established to encourage city and county governments to partner with a local community nonprofit or for profit organization, businesses, and individuals to enhance the quality of life for citizens of this state. Cultural Districts also enrich local economies through developing and sustaining cultural facilities in a synergetic fashion.

More than 90 cities in the United States have planned or implemented a Cultural District—positioning the arts and culture as the center of revitalization efforts. The impact of Cultural Districts is measurable. The arts and areas with historic structures attract residents and tourists who also support adjacent businesses such as restaurants, lodging, retail and entertainment. The presence of the arts and cultural opportunities enhances property values, the profitability of surrounding businesses and the tax base of the region. These districts attract a diverse and well-educated workforce—a key incentive for new and relocating businesses. And these districts contribute to the creativity and innovation of a community.

The benefits offered to certified districts could include historic tax credits for rehabilitation of historic structures or other incentives which create live/work space for cultural workers, space for cultural and entertainment enterprises and access financial assistance programs from state agencies and other funding partners.

    * Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs: Iowa Community Cultural Grants, Cultural Enrichment Operating Support Grants for Multi-discipline organizations.
    * Iowa Arts Council: Project and Residency Grants, Operational Support Grants for Arts Organizations. Special Initiatives Grants.
    * State Historical Society of Iowa: Historic Resource Development Program (HRDP), Temporary Property Tax Exemption, Federal Rehabilitation Investment Tax Credits and Iowa     Historic Property Tax Credit.
    * Iowa Department of Economic Development (www.state.ia.us/ided)
    * Iowa Finance Authority (www.ifahome.com)

A busload of Frank Lloyd Wright devotees is headed for Poweshiek County tomorrow.

The group, organized by Friends of Cedar Rock, has stops planned in Grinnell and Marshalltown where it will visit Louis Sullivan’s Merchants National Bank building and Wright’s Sunday House in Marshalltown.  The group will depart from and return to Wright’s classic Usonian-style house Cedar Rock near Quasqueton in Buchanon County.  For more on Cedar Rock click here

                  Exterior of Cedar Rock      

                       Interior of Cedar Rock

The architectural tour is one of two the group has planned to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Prairie School architecture in Iowa.  It was in 1908 that Wright was commissioned to building a hotel and adjoining bank in downtown Mason City.  That same year, construction of Wright’s Stockman House in Mason City was completed.

Although Wright never designed a building in Grinnell, there are strong Wright links here.  He worked for Sullivan from 1887-1893 and, for the rest of his life, would refer to Sullivan as his leiber meister or ‘master.’  Wright also employed a young architect, Walter Burley Griffin, and a talented draftswoman, Marion Mahoney, in his practice.  The two, who would later marry, collaborated on the famed Ricker House at 10th and Broad in Grinnell.

The group will arrive in Grinnell about 11am, tour the Sulliavn Bank and Ricker House, then enjoy a box lunch in Central Park.

Be sure to say ‘hello’ if you see them!