Alley KADTS Accept Award

The Alley KADTS accept their award last week at the Iowa Capitol Building.

Des Moines, Iowa – Bringing vitality, energy, and a sense of place was part of the inspiration for the creation and development of ‘The Alley’ in Oskaloosa.

1000 Friends of Iowa proudly announced nine recipients as its Best Development Award winners of 2016 in December.. Five independent jurors from across the state selected projects that implement the efficient use of our resources to develop sustainable communities that provide a high quality of life.

This past week, 3 of those individuals who helped to make the Alley possible received their award at the Iowa State Capitol.

“When we [KADTS] first met, there were 5 women sitting at a round table, with totally different personalities. And you know what you call that? The perfect storm.”, said Karen Hafner, one of the Alley KADTS to those at the capitol. “It took off; their passion for what they wanted to do, and commitment for what they wanted to do for their community… They wanted to do something special for the community; create a place of gathering.”

“The human element really came out through the Alley”, added Hafner. “They wanted everyone to be welcome, and they wanted everyone to enjoy the history of Oskaloosa. The nicest part of all of it was that they never once did it for anything except the community.”