Iowa’s first agrihood opens in Cumming.
Story by Tracy Dickinson
Photography Courtesy Middlebrook
Featured in September/October 2020
Early last year Diligent Development of Des Moines announced plans for Iowa’s first agrihood, a project described as a “sustainable farming community for the modern age” and a hometown concept that marries the past and the future.
Well, that future is here, and it’s redefining “hometown” in a beautiful way.
Middlebrook Development, located in Cumming, just south of West Des Moines, covers over 500 acres, with four residential plats, a farm, and a variety of commercial projects.
According to Kalen Ludwig of Peoples Company, “In a lot of ways, the pandemic has actually sparked interest, even beyond the Des Moines area. We’ve had people contact us from Chicago and other cities wanting to simplify the way they’re living and get out of those huge metropolitan areas. Our first residents have moved in, and our model home is open, which incorporates all our architectural standards for Middlebrook.”
The development has also been chosen as one of two sites for the 2021 “Town and Country” HomeShowExpo next July.
Middlebrook, Iowa’s first agrihood, is modeled after several similar projects across the U.S., including Serenbe in Georgia, one of the nation’s first agrihoods. That community, developed by Stephan D. Nygren, is a model of integrated agriculture and a range of housing options mixed with retail, efficient infrastructure options, and services that nurture the community.
Nygren describes his development philosophy as “radical common sense,” which resonates with American homeowners these days. Agrihoods offer multiple benefits to communities, including promoting the health of the residents, encouraging social interaction, conserving the environment, and creating jobs that support the local community and economy.
Middlebrook is putting its own spin on the agrihood concept in order to achieve similar goals. The Middlebrook community farm saw its initial harvest before the first homes were completed, and sales of local produce have continued, with adjustments for social distancing and health restrictions.
“We’ve had people contact us from Chicago and other cities wanting to simplify the way they’re living and get out of those huge metropolitan areas.”
Kalen Ludwig, Peoples Company
Dan Fillius, the community’s farmer, oversees the farm along with a part-time assistant. “Right now, we have just four acres in crops, with the goal of 20 acres eventually. We have 2 acres of sweet corn; 2⁄3 acre of pumpkins; 2⁄3 acre of vegetables, including tomatoes, cucumbers, watermelon, kale, zucchini, beets, and carrots; and the rest in cover crops,” he says. “We’ll also be certified organic in 2021. We’re already two years into the three-year process of accomplishing that.”
Fillius, known in the Middlebrook area as Farmer Dan, currently lives in the Des Moines area and teaches at Iowa State University Extension in addition to his work at the farm. He and his wife, a teacher at Des Moines Lincoln High School, moved back to Iowa to be closer to family.
The Middlebrook connection was a fortuitous bonus. “We were working with a real estate agent, looking for a house to start a small farm, and our agent was connected to this project. When he found out what I did, he said Middlebrook was in need of a part-time farmer, and the rest is history.”
Fillius has been managing farms for more than a decade and is excited about the agrihood concept and its community connection. He says Middlebrook added an online order option for vegetable sales this summer. Customers can order ahead and schedule a pickup time.
Within the next year or two, Fillius says, Middlebrook hopes to have its own CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) through which customers can contract preseason for weekly produce. Ultimately, the farm will supply enough fruits and vegetables to meet the needs of the estimated 1,000 future Middlebrook residents.
“We’ve already got a weekly farmers market,” says Fillius. “Friday evenings from 4–7 through October we have fresh produce, other local products, and food trucks and live music.”
The market site alongside the farm also features an enclosed chicken yard, a large coop, and a remodeled farmhouse. An old schoolhouse across the road is being transformed into a wine bar and beer garden.
The philosophy behind agrihood development views community on multiple levels—land use, housing trends, environmental concerns, and food consumption. An agrihood is designed to address each of those, and Middlebrook is on track to accomplish that.
In addition to single-family homes and the community farm, Middlebrook will offer townhomes, senior living, high-end estate homes, parks, environmentally appropriate landscaping, and access to the existing Great Western Trail bike trail.
In many ways, most Iowa towns have been a type of agrihood for decades. But as communities spread out and metropolitan areas grow, many believe that the traditional Iowa lifestyle is being lost.
Many of today’s home buyers are looking for neighborhoods that offer the best of yesterday with the amenities of the future—a small-town country feel with the perks of urban life close by.
Middlebrook seeks to be that hometown. •
Resources
- Developer Diligent Development
- Real Estate Broker Peoples Company
