Hydrants, roads show early Prairie Trail progress
By GUNNAR OLSONREGISTER STAFF WRITER
Ted Rapp of DRA Properties brought his Chevrolet Suburban to a stop in the approximate center of the 2-mile-wide construction project that is the Prairie Trail development in Ankeny.
Large earthmovers dotted the landscape, and much of the prairie land beneath these yellow machines was the deep brown of freshly turned soil. Here and there were the early signs of a new neighborhood - fire hydrants and dozens of narrow wooden stakes pointing toward the sky, all of it weaved together by a concrete web of new streets.
"It's taking some form now," said Rapp, an Ankeny resident who, as a director with master developer DRA Properties, is overseeing much of the work here. "It's nice to see the paving going down."
The 1,031 acres of Prairie Trail, near the geographic center of Ankeny, were long coveted by city officials. In 2005, city officials brokered a deal for Iowa State University to sell the land to a master developer - chosen by city leaders - to build some 3,000 homes and a new city center.
Only in the past six months have the concepts and sketches of Prairie Trail begun to take shape in bricks and mortar.
"I would say that by the middle of October you will see multiple basements out there," Rapp said.
During an hourlong interview and driving tour last week, Rapp touched on the highlights of the project and offered insight into what to expect in the coming months.
He discussed the "new urbanism" architectural concepts of Prairie Trial: "better density" of homes, parks within five minutes of every home, and a system of sidewalks and paths that make it easy for residents to leave their cars parked.
Many of those cars will be parked in garages behind the houses and out of sight, at least in greater numbers than in other suburban neighborhoods, he said.
He said between 16 and 18 homes will be built for a home show this spring. The designs will soon be presented for approval before the architecture committee, comprised of representatives from the city, DRA Properties and an outside consultant.
Rapp guessed the homes would come with price tags ranging from the mid-$200,000s to $700,000, and possibly more, depending on the bells and whistles.
The city of Ankeny will be putting in as much as $20 million of infrastructure in Prairie Trail. Planning and Building Department Director John Peterson said all of the city's projects so far are on schedule, including paving streets and installing water and sewer lines. He said the steel skeleton of the new police department is also beginning to take shape.
"Finally you can see, 'Oh, there's a building going up there; they're not just moving dirt,' " Peterson said.
Rapp said he didn't know of another project like the city center to be built in Prairie Trail because it really will be in the middle of town.
"As we got into it we realized that it was unique to Iowa if not the Midwest," he said.
It might sound flowery, Rapp said, but Dennis Albaugh, the local self-made billionaire who is president of DRA Properties, sees Prairie Trail as being his family legacy.
"He's very dedicated to taking the donut hole in the middle of town, which is what some people have taken to calling it, and seeing that it is built right," Rapp said.
Reporter Gunnar Olson can be reached at (515) 284-8039 or golson@dmreg.com
Lane closures
Ongoing work at the Prairie Trail development will require traffic on nearby portions of State Street to be restricted to one lane in each direction for extended periods of time during the rest of the construction season. For more information, contact Public Works at 963-3520.
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