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Legacy Plaza Greenspace

DMACC Newton Campus Legacy Plaza Greenspace:

Supporting Students, Connecting Community

The DMACC Newton Campus, established in 1993 through a gift from the Maytag Corporation, is one example of the successful partnerships DMACC creates with private and public entities. Using that formula, we are launching a major project in Newton. Bolstered by a partnership built on a firm foundation, the DMACC Newton Campus has seen steady enrollment since its founding. However, as economic vitality in Newton waned, opportunities for residents—and specifically students—declined. Many from Newton found employment and established residences in outlying communities. This spurred DMACC, Christensen Development Newton LLC, Jasper County, and the City of Newton to partner on a new project: The Newton Legacy Reinvestment District. This partnership aims to create a vibrant space for DMACC students, Newton residents, and visitors. Its amenities and employment opportunities will help the City of Newton and Jasper County regain their status as a destination to visit, work, and live.

Project Partnerships

At the center of the Newton Legacy Reinvestment District is the DMACC Newton Campus. This ambitious project calls for Christensen Development Newton LLC to create market rate apartments, and a boutique hotel with a craft cocktail lobby bar. District plans also include an event space that will make Newton a destination for tourists, weddings, and other events as well as supporting other business, including the Iowa Speedway. Additionally, it will provide educational, employment, and housing opportunities for DMACC students to learn, work, and live. The City of Newton will enhance the City’s infrastructure through Historic Downtown Improvement and Housing Grants, rehabilitate vacant buildings through the Vacant Building Initiative, create community spaces with a bike path connector and splash pad park, and more.

Supporting Students

Enrollment at DMACC’s Newton Campus has been steady since its founding. With programs including nursing, baking, welding, a career academy and one of the only Court Reporting programs in Iowa, Newton Campus provides critical services that attract students from across the state. However, the current lack of housing and employment is a deterrent for many who now must choose to live outside of Newton and commute. This new District boosts both economic and educational opportunities by creating a shared space for gathering as a community. Specifically, this project addresses critical needs by:

  • Adding market rate housing adjacent to Campus.
  • Supporting students by providing real-world work experience in the Baking program at a new hotel and event space.
  • Creating additional modern space designed to support students in rapidly growing programs, including Cybersecurity, Court Reporting, Nursing, Welding, and more.
  • Enhancing the community by providing walkways and ample space for students and the community to gather.

Greenspace at Legacy Plaza

Located where the Maytag Plant One production facility once stood, the Newton Legacy Plaza Greenspace will be the centerpiece of the DMACC Newton Campus and serve to foster community, create connections, and beautify Legacy Plaza.

The project will connect the five acres on the east side of DMACC's Buildings 1 and 2 to the adjacent Legacy Plaza (former Maytag buildings) to create a multi-use plaza. A walking path will connect the Campus and Plaza, and attention will be paid to beautifying the area with natural vegetation along the walkways, shade trees in common areas, and shade structures in various locations. The design fosters connection, with a large lawn at the center and a covered multi-use Pavilion. The Pavilion will convert to an ice rink in the winter courtesy of the Iowa Wild hockey franchise, and in the warmer months, the Pavilion will allow for small concerts. The Pavilion and large lawn will serve as a community space, bringing together the community and all venues. An art sculpture anchors the south entrance, greeting community members and visitors to the plaza. The planned sculpture uses Corten steel and stainless-steel materials to reflect the dichotomy between the past and the current materials used by manufacturing industries. Public art is included throughout the plaza, including on the façade of various architectural features and on the academic buildings, adding further interest and beauty to the area. The academic building will include a new entrance and floor-to-ceiling windows to connect the interior with the greenspace on the Plaza. Attention has been paid to creating an intentional connection with paved sidewalks, access to activity spaces, and attractive landscaping that supports movement between academic and work-based learning opportunities in area businesses created by the Newton Legacy Reinvestment District.

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Make a Gift

When Legacy Plaza is complete, it will create a space for current and future DMACC students, residents, and visitors to gather. Your support is needed to bring this ambitious $4 million project to life. Gifts of $1,000 or more will be recognized on a donor wall that will complement the sculpture within the Plaza. The donor wall will create a legacy for our donors, along with our students and the community. Gifts to the Legacy Plaza will be showcased by the level of giving. There are a limited number of opportunities that have been set aside for donors wishing for exclusive naming rights to structures within the plaza.