Invest DSM reports record 2024 activity, expands to two more special investment districts

Amber Lynch, executive director of Invest DSM, updated the Des Moines City Council and Polk County representatives at the April 21 work session on the nonprofit’s 2024 activity and near-term plans.

"2024 was maybe our, I think definitely our biggest year yet," Lynch said as she summarized grant and redevelopment work across Invest DSM’s neighborhoods. Lynch reminded the council that Invest DSM was formed in 2019 by a joint resolution of the Des Moines City Council and the Polk County Board of Supervisors to focus on “middle market” neighborhood stabilization.

The organization has grown to a staff of eight and added a part‑time chief financial officer to manage rising transactional complexity, Lynch said. Invest DSM reported it completed 338 grant‑funded projects in 2024 and said those projects catalyzed roughly $30 million of private and public investment during the year. Since the program began in 2020, Invest DSM said it has completed more than 1,300 projects across its original four districts, prompting about $76 million in assessed‑value investment.

Most work, Lynch said, serves existing homeowners: she reported that about 93% of the organization’s grant projects since 2020 have been homeowner renovations rather than developer‑led work. Invest DSM said its homeowner programs typically cost‑share projects on an approximately 1:2 ratio (Invest DSM : owner), while commercial and single‑family developer programs involve larger owner investments and smaller Invest DSM subsidies.

Lynch described development and rehab projects underway or planned in multiple neighborhoods: completion of several substantial rehabs in the Drake neighborhood, a sold rehab in Franklin, infill new‑construction parcels in Columbus Park, and a planned 24‑unit condominium project at 125 Kingman Boulevard being advanced with Home Inc. and the Cutlers. Lynch said Invest DSM bought a half‑block east of Drake Park that contains 11 residential structures; staff plan to start rehabilitation on at least three of those homes this spring. The organization also purchased the former Northwestern Hospital site at 40 Eighth and Franklin from NDC in late 2024 and plans renewed neighborhood visioning for that site.

Lynch said Invest DSM has broadened its footprint: "we've now gone from our original 4 areas up to 6 neighborhoods that we will be serving." She said the organization completed planning for two additional special investment districts and will open homeowner grant programs in those districts on May 1; other non‑homeowner grant lines are likely to open later (Lynch indicated the staff expectation of a January opening in the next calendar year).

On pipeline and demand, Lynch told the council Invest DSM ran roughly 730 grants through its process last year when counting projects in application, under construction, or completed, and that at the time of the presentation there were about 150 homeowner projects signed and under construction plus another 250 names on a waiting list. Lynch said Invest DSM had already completed another 60 homeowner renovation projects so far in the current year.

Lynch also described Invest DSM’s redevelopment strategy for sites that require acquisition and holding until financing or market conditions allow redevelopment. Examples cited included the Kingman Boulevard condo project, the half‑block near Drake Park, and design work on historic commercial buildings in Columbus Park. She said the Highland Park Flats, a two‑story, 12‑unit project, had a developer agreement recently approved by council and that the developer would exercise an option to purchase later in the spring.

On measurable outcomes, Lynch shared preliminary assessment data showing that average assessed values in Invest DSM’s four original special investment districts had outperformed comparable city neighborhoods in dollar change and percent change between 2019 and 2025, with Franklin as an exception in percent change because its starting assessment base was higher. Lynch emphasized the results as an early, limited indicator and cautioned against treating assessment changes as the only measure of impact.

Council members who spoke during the discussion praised the program’s focus on homeowners and neighborhoods while urging continued communication about the mix of low‑cost homeowner grants and the fewer, higher‑cost infill projects. One council member noted that homeowner renovation grants averaged about $12,000 while single‑family developer subsidies could approach $90,000 on a per‑project basis, and encouraged clearer public messaging about scale and beneficiaries.

Lynch closed by describing administrative improvements: Invest DSM has begun implementing a custom database to manage thousands of project records, earned two awards from the Iowa chapter of the American Planning Association, and completed an audit cycle with no outstanding issues.

Invest DSM plans neighborhood launch projects for the two new special districts, to open homeowner programs there starting May 1, and to phase other grant lines later to allow staff capacity for homeowner demand.

Ending: Lynch said staff will continue to refine program roll‑out, provide the council with updated slides (she offered to share one revised slide with the city clerk), and return with further implementation details as projects move from design into construction.