Plan Revealed for New Iowa Soccer Stadium

Pro Iowa, the campaign working to bring a USL Championship soccer club to the state, has detailed plans for a mixed-use development anchored by a new stadium.

Pro Iowa is working in partnership with Krause+, the real estate development arm of Krause Group, and the City of Des Moines, to drive revitalization of areas downtown of the state capital, including transformation of the Dico Superfund site, into a community space with connectivity to recreation, housing, commerce, and entertainment.

Pro Iowa and Krause+ are collaborating with the City to seek approval from the Iowa Economic Development Authority to establish a reinvestment district that would open access to tax-generated funds from the Iowa Reinvestment Act (IRA) for the redevelopment of the Dico Superfund site.

The site would house a ‘Global Plaza’ and Iowa’s first professional soccer stadium. If approved, the reinvestment district would include 65 acres of total development set to activate sections of Raccoon River, serve as a connector for downtown, and create “dynamic, mixed-use neighborhoods”. Krause+, along with Sherman Associates, would lead development of areas included within the reinvestment district.

Beyond the Dico Superfund site, Krause+ plans to redevelop parts of the Western Gateway to include hospitality, food and entertainment, retail and housing. Pro Iowa said final plans for the reinvestment district and stadium development continue to take shape, with input from various community and cultural groups and business leaders and will be finalized by the end of the month.  

“The Pro Iowa Stadium and Global Plaza will be a welcoming space for sports, community gatherings and events that will continue to ensure a vibrant downtown and further contribute to a strong region,” said Jay Byers, president and CEO of the Greater Des Moines Partnership.

“The stadium project provides a solution to transform the long-standing contaminated Dico site, which has long been an eyesore in a prime area that is the gateway to our Downtown core.”

To date, Pro Iowa has raised $13.7m in private donations toward development of the stadium, which will be owned by Iowa Soccer Development Foundation, a local nonprofit. The stadium development is viewed as a catalyst for additional development of the reinvestment district.

Pro Iowa said the project is a “long-term commitment” that will take years to complete but provide “positive economic impact” for decades to come.

The Krause Group in September completed a deal to take over Parma, with Kyle Krause becoming the Italian Serie A club’s new president. Parma in December announced it will submit a new proposal for the redevelopment of the Stadio Ennio Tardini, driven by the club’s American ownership group.