City of Des Moines

If you live in the Des Moines Metro, you can rest assured that you've got an award-winning treatment facility protecting public health in your community. The Des Moines Metropolitan Wastewater Reclamation Authority (WRA) has been awarded a National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) Platinum Peak Performance Award for a second consecutive year for maintaining 100% permit compliance without violations. Please join us in congratulating the 100+ men and women of the WRA on this well-earned achievement, and thanking them for their dedication to conveying and treating wastewater to keep our environment and waterways safe!

Keeping our 92 parks green! If you've been to Gray's Lake in the mornings lately, you may have seen this pump and hose set up on the northwest corner of the lake. As we have been working to maintain our green spaces, plants, and flowers amid water use restrictions, our Des Moines Parks and Recreation's Parks Division has been coming up with creative solutions to reduce water use while keeping our city spaces beautiful. Since they began pumping Gray's Lake water into our trucks for watering plants earlier this summer, Parks staff has been pulling about 18,000 gallons a week which is equivalent to lowering the whole lake by about the depth of a nickel. Please note this water is only being used to water trees, flowers and other plants around DSM. This solution is incredibly simple, yet it has been effective as one of the methods used to help reduce demand on our water system this summer.

Our summer budget exercise ends in just over a week! We've identified $6.43 million in administrative cost savings, but want your input prioritizing the services we provide as we close the remaining $5.57 million gap forecasted for next year's budget due to property tax law changes. This exercise remains open for you to provide your feedback through Friday, July 31 at DSM.city/Budget. ----------- ¡Nuestro ejercicio del presupuesto de verano termina en poco más de una semana! Hemos identificado $6.43 millones de dólares en ahorros de costos administrativos, pero queremos su opinión para priorizar los servicios que brindamos mientras cerramos la brecha restante de $5.57 millones prevista para el presupuesto del próximo año debido a los cambios en la ley de impuestos sobre la propiedad. El ejercicio sigue abierto para que nos brinde sus comentarios hasta el viernes 31 de julio en DSM.city/Budget.

Dedicated to service. We encourage everyone to take the time to watch this Iowa PBS profile of one of our legendary volunteers, Mike Rowley. https://lnkd.in/gwSvR9Hs Mike has donated more than 3,900 hours and that's just the tip of the iceberg of his contributions to the our cemetery system. His passion for our cemeteries have led him to locate unmarked veterans graves, research their stories, help memorialize their sacrifices with headstones, and cement their history through educational videos, articles and even a book he co-authored called "A History of Woodland Cemetery in Des Moines." His dedication to Des Moines history has provided immense benefits to our entire community. Thank you for your efforts, Mike! If you want to learn more about the countless stories that shaped our community, sign up for a walking cemetery tour to learn about Notable Women of Early Des Moines, Glendale Cemetery, Civil War History and the Woodland Cemetery. Registration is available at DSM.city/CemeteryTours

What do you want out of your career? Des Moines Police officers make a difference in our community every day and now you can join the team. DMPD is currently hiring Police Officers and Senior Police Officers (for qualified, certified candidates). Applications close on September 4. See if you have what it takes and apply today at DSM.city/JoinDMPD

Halfway through National Parks and Recreation Month, and our park goers are still going strong in celebrating parks and recreation with the Bucket List Challenge. Throughout July we are encouraging residents to discover and celebrate the power of parks and recreation by exploring our parks and programs with the Bucket List Challenge. Park visitors are encouraged to venture to the 10 different items on the bucket list, snap a photo during their visit, and submit their photos for a chance to win the grand prize! Find community, belonging, nature, well-being, and opportunities to play and connect, with Des Moines Parks and Recreation! It’s not too late to get started! 📸 Start checking off items on the list today by visiting DSM.city/ParksMonth #ThePowerOf #ParkandRecMonth #ParkandRecMonth2026 National Recreation and Park Association

Do you have a neighbor whose efforts have made a positive impact in the Des Moines community? Nominate them for a Neighborhood Champion Award! The Des Moines Community Impact and Relations department's Neighborhood Champion Awards seek to uplift the outstanding work being done by Des Moines residents and neighborhood leaders and express the City’s appreciation for their involvement and commitment. These awards are intended to be community-based, given in various categories including: - The Innovative Leader Award - The Impact-Maker Award - The Community-Builder Award Awards are open to all Des Moines residents. Nominations are open through July 31, 2026. Awardees will be announced in October 2026, during the Neighborhood Champion Awards ceremony. Learn more and submit a nomination at DSM.city/ImpactEvents.

Construction season means heavy demand for road materials. Each year, our Public Works Department uses over 16,000 tons of crushed concrete and asphalt millings for street maintenance. Instead of purchasing all new materials, our Street Maintenance Division transformed a City-owned site into a recycling facility that reuses concrete, asphalt and even soil, with potential savings estimated to be more than $400,000 per year. Recycling these materials reduces landfill waste, conserves natural resources and helps us be good stewards of both the environment and taxpayer dollars.

We're planning our Fiscal Year 2028 (July 1, 2027 - June 30, 2028) budget earlier than ever before to allow for more opportunity to hear your feedback. Recent State legislation, such as an annual 2% cap on property tax revenue growth, have left the City of Des Moines with a $12 million budget deficit to resolve. That means we must find ways to reduce costs – including adjustments to City service levels. This Thursday, July 9 at 6 p.m., join City Manager Scott Sanders at Central Library (1000 Grand Ave.) as he provides an overview of the limitations the City faces, the anticipated deficit over the next two fiscal years, and the steps taken to minimize the impact to the services you depend on. Following a presentation to provide a shared understanding of the City's role and financial structure, City Manager Sanders will answer questions about our budget process and the services we provide.

As we get ready to celebrate #America250 with Yankee Doodle Pops on Friday night, please be aware of these street closures and parking restrictions as event organizers set up for the show and fireworks display. – Street Closures – 1) Pennsylvania Ave, E Locust St to E Grand Ave – Effective 8:00 AM Thursday July 2 – 3:00 AM Saturday July 4 2) Grand Ave Bridge, 2nd Ave to Robert D Ray Dr – Effective Friday July 3, Noon – 11:59 PM 3) Locust St Bridge, 2nd Ave to Robert D Ray Dr – Effective Friday July 3, between 9:30 PM and 10:30 PM (during the fireworks) - No Parking- 1) Grand Ave, 2nd Ave to Robert D Ray Dr (Both sides) – Effective Friday July 3 - Permit Parking Only - 1) E 7th St, E Walnut St to E Locust St (East side) – Effective Wednesday July 1 – Saturday July 4