Grinnell’s application for the Iowa Reinvestment Act has been selected to move to the second round of consideration. Grinnell’s application is one of only five proposals that moved on to this round.

The act allows the city to apply for tax breaks for up to 25 acres of land. The City will be able to reinvest in their own area the money collected from sales and hotel revenue which would usually go to the state.

Grinnell’s application is composed of five different development projects, which would cost $127 million. The largest of these projects is the college’s $100 million renovation and remodeling of Alumni Reciation Hall/Carnegie. The other projects included in the application include transforming the community center into a hotel and events center, upgrading Central Park, improvements to the area between the college and downtown, known as the “zone of confluence”, and Phase 5 of reconstruction in downtown Grinnell.

The city has agreed to sell the community center to Hubbell Reality, a Des Moines based company specializing in historic renovations. Hubbell Reality is currently working in Grinnell building the loft apartments attached to the Spaulding Center for Transportation. The conversion of the community center to a hotel and events center is part of the application specially designed to increase the number of visitors to Grinnell, especially to the college.

The five remaining applicants will appear before the Iowa Economic Development Authority near the end of May to pitch their projects in person and answer questions related to the project.