99 Communities in Iowa:
Making Space for Local
Patronage
Deborah Tootle
Department of Sociology and
ISUEO Community and Economic Development
Overview
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A state of small towns
About Sigma
Social climate and amenities?
Strategies for increasing local patronage
Reflections and questions
“Iowa Is a State of Small Towns”*
• 921 incorporated places of10,000 or less
• 40% of Iowans live in these small towns
• Only 10 states have more people living in small
towns
Do you live in a
small town?
*Besser, Terry. 2016. Leadership Patterns, Civic Engagement and Quality of Life Amenities in Small Iowa
Towns. Iowa State University. Department of Sociology.
About Sigma
• Third wave of studies of 99 small Iowa
communities (aka Sigma)
• First survey in 1994
• Followed by survey in 2004
• Followed by project in 2008 on
development of rural amenity inventories
About Sigma: Where is Sigma?
“Sigma” can be anywhere in rural Iowa …
“Sigma illustrates the current status of Iowa’s
communities … It is created using information
provided by citizens …. Sigma is based on
resident’s ratings of their own communities”
Vern Ryan
SIGMA
Population 500- 10,000
About Sigma: Survey Data*
• Began in 2014 with
survey of 99 rural Iowa
communities
• 1 town (population of
500-10,000) in each
county
• Random sample 150
households in each town
* A Longitudinal Study of Rural Community
Social Capital, Amenities and Quality of Life
funded by US Dept. of Agriculture
About Sigma: Case Studies
• Summer of 2015 – case studies on amenities, social
capital and networks in 6 communities: Cherokee,
Donnellson, Epworth, Hamburg, St. Ansgar, Webster
City
• Focus on local leadership, organizational networks,
social capital, amenities and quality of life
Social Climate: What’s New and
Different?
Social ties trumping
employment?
Quality of
government services
improving
Can still count on
each other, but not
as much?
Gas
station/convenience
stores popular
meeting places
Lack of strong
feelings about local
leadership
Other Changes in Sigma: Less …
Local church
attendance
Local shopping
Sense of
community
Civic engagement
and social capital
Involvement in local
organizations
Community
attachment
Discussion:
How do the changes we find in
Sigma compare to what is
happening in your community?
Social Climate: Quality of Life
and Local Amenities
• Quality of life defined by how a place meets the
needs and wants of residents
• Determined by availability and quality of local
amenities
• Sigma did not rate very well on community
amenities
Amenities in Sigma
Percent Selecting "Good" or "Very Good"
Outdoor recreation
60
Quality eating establishments
50
Overall downtown
50
Cultural features
49
Indoor recreation
37
Quality downtown retail
36
Variety eating establishments
32
Movie theater
27
Variety downtown retail
16
0
20
40
60
80
Discussion:
How do the amenities in your
communities compare to those
we found in Sigma?
Connecting the Dots in Sigma
Communities with
better social climate
better at developing
local amenities.
Amenities affect
patronage
In Sigma, social
climate, amenities
and local shopping
ALL in decline
Could social climate,
and amenities be
affecting local
shopping?
Digging Deeper: Downtown
Amenities
N of
establishments
open every day
% Parking
spaces occupied
N of storefront
residential units
Pedestrians
downtown on
weekday pm
Outdoor
cleanliness
N of people on
benches on
summer
afternoon
Buildings in
disrepair
N of vacant
buildings
N of restaurants
N of parks
Local
Patronage
Presence of
Farmers’
Market
Digging Deeper: Case Studies
Civic
Engagement
Social
Capital
Shared
Leadership
Cultural,
Entertainment
and
Downtown
Amenities
Digging Deeper: Case Studies
A few
definitions:
Social capital – networks of relationships
Bonding
Bridging
Civic engagement – civic/community
participation
Shared leadership – interactive and inclusive
leadership
3 Promising Practices for
Increasing Local Patronage
• Build social capital (especially bridging)
• Increase civic engagement
• Encourage shared community leadership
Promising Practice #1: Build
Social Capital
• Build new social connections and relationships
(social capital)
• Small rural communities tend to have more
close-knit social relationships (bonding social
capital)
• Work on building stronger bridging social
capital; facilitates tapping into additional
resources (social, financial, human, physical)
Social
Capital
The more people
know and trust each
other and have built
expectations of
reciprocity …
the more likely they
can work together to
solve problems
(Putnam 1993,
2000)
Promising Practice #2: Increase
Civic Engagement
What was the #1 Reason in
2014 for not being more
involved?
Promising Practice #2: Increase
Civic Engagement
What was the #1 Reason in
2014 for not being more
involved?
No one asked.
Promising Practice #2: Increase
Civic Engagement
Other reasons include:
1. Don’t have time
2. No interest
3. Don’t know how
4. Don’t have skills
5. No community
volunteers needed
6. Help not accepted
Promising Practice #2: Increase
Civic Engagement
• Ask … individuals and organizations
• Be strategic – look for talents and skills
you need
• Welcome newcomers and embrace
diversity
Promising Practice #3: Community
Leadership
• Focus on organizational and community
leadership efforts,
– Decentralized
– Shared
• Leadership training can
provide skills and knowledge that facilitate
volunteerism
Discussion:
How easy or difficult might it be
to implement some of these
promising practices for
increasing local patronage in
your community?
Reflections and Questions
• Hopefully – stimulated thought on increasing
local patronage
• Take these ideas and others you have,
brainstorm and discuss
• Be deliberate in engaging and listening to others
• Contact us for more information on community
engagement*
*For more information, contact:
Deborah Tootle [email protected]