11-02-2025
City council rezones Des Moines property to make way for controversial rowhome development
DES MOINES, Iowa — Des Moines city council members approved rezoning a one-acre plot along Grand Avenue despite widespread objections from neighborhood residents.
Developer Adam Sieren of Premier Construction intends to tear down the existing single-family home on the property and build a development consisting of eight rowhomes. Sieren originally proposed a 15-unit development.
Speakers at Monday night's meeting accused council members of both hypocrisy and of favoring a developer over the people who live in the neighborhood.
'I don't understand why he is more important than the neighborhood, the neighborhood does not want this. He put his worst foot forward to start out. A terrible plan, and I understand it looks better now than it did, but it doesn't look better to us,' neighborhood resident John McManus told the council.
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Sharon Koele said, 'Did he ever intend to build 15 units, or is it like he's trying to sell you his used car, and he says I'll sell it to you for $15,000 and you talk him down to $8,000 and you feel like you got a good deal.'
'You spend time and taxpayers dollars on plans and studies about saving trees, maintaining neighborhoods, having deals with neighborhood associations, listening to your constituents, and you dismiss them all,' said Amanda Duncan in her address to the council.
The developer also spoke. Sieren said he would still prefer to build a 15-unit development but scaled back because of concerns from the neighborhood.
'The plan of 15 units on an acre is a medium density and there's projects all over this city that are high-density designation so 15 units on this site I think is appropriate…on this one-acre site,' said Sieren.
The final vote went the way neighbors feared. The council opted to dismiss the Plan and Zoning Commission's denial of rezoning and approve the project.
'What we're voting on is the rezoning of this property, not a site plan This applicant still has to go before the city and demonstrate the site plan format that it meets all the requirements in terms of grading, stormwater management trees etc. So this developer still has work to do but I believe it's important and I'm supporting the rezoning,' Councilperson Mike Simonson said.
Council members voted unanimously in favor of the rezoning.
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