Iowa in motion
6/3/2026
Beauty is easy to find in Iowa, if you know where to look, and if you take the time to really see it.
That idea sits at the heart of the 16th Annual Keep Iowa Beautiful Photography Contest, where more than 500 entries once again captured the state in all its variety: sweeping landscapes, quiet wildlife moments, vibrant communities and the everyday details that often go unnoticed. The contest is, at its core, an invitation to slow down, look closer and tell Iowa’s story through a lens.
This year’s winning images reflect just how many versions of “Iowa beauty” exist. With support from Keep Iowa Beautiful and participating photographers, we are proud to share a selection of standout work in these pages.
Fireworks tradition and trouble
In another feature story, writer John Busbee takes us back to a very different kind of Iowa scene: a three-generation family farm where Fourth of July fireworks were both tradition and trouble. What begins as a childhood memory quickly becomes something richer — an exploration of risk, nostalgia and the way time reshapes what once felt wild and immediate. Sparklers, rockets, Black Cats, and improvised experiments all find their place in a story that is equal parts mischief and meaning, grounded in the kind of rural experience that lingers long after the smoke clears.
Commercial real estate shows signs of recovery
And looking at the present day, contributor Gracie Kayko walks us through a commercial real estate market in transition in this month’s business journal feature. In Des Moines and beyond, the sector is settling into a “steady but not spectacular” rhythm. Lower interest rates are beginning to loosen activity, industrial space remains strong, and retail continues to surprise on the upside, particularly in growing western suburbs. Office space, meanwhile, is still searching for balance, creating both challenges and opportunity for those willing to reimagine older buildings. It’s not a boom cycle, but it is movement. After recent volatility, that alone signals that stability is returning, piece by piece.
Taken together, these stories share a common thread: Iowa in motion. Sometimes that motion is captured in a single photograph. Sometimes it is remembered in the crackle of fireworks on a summer night. And sometimes it is measured in the slow, steady recalibration of a market finding its footing again.
Different lenses. Same place. Still unfolding. Still worth watching.
As always, I thank you for reading. ♦
Shane Goodman
Editor and Publisher
CITYVIEW
shane@dmcityview.com
515-953-4822, ext. 305
www.dmcityview.com
