WIDA Rural Passport enters final days after strong summer response

The Western Iowa Development Association’s Rural Passport program is entering its final days after a summer that brought new customers into small businesses across Pottawattamie County and surrounding communities. Participants have until Sept. 14 to complete their travels and turn in their passport books.

WIDA Executive Director Stacie Kinney said the original expectation was that the program would end around Labor Day, but the date printed in the passport gives travelers additional time. Completed books can be turned in at any of the 43 participating businesses, through Unleash Council Bluffs or directly to WIDA. “We’re going to say the 14th, so get out there and travel that next week,” Kinney added.

The Rural Passport was launched over Memorial Day weekend as a way to encourage residents and visitors to explore businesses in smaller communities throughout the region during what is traditionally a slower time of year. The program includes stops in communities such as Treynor, Underwood, Neola, Oakland, Avoca and Walnut.

WIDA board member Brian Shea said the program has accomplished what the organization hoped it would by giving people a reason to visit businesses they may not otherwise have discovered. “It gets people out to the little towns, the little businesses, and really showcases a lot of neat businesses out there,” Shea said. “Those people need just a little extra to get people in there.”

Kinney pointed to participating businesses that have already reported examples of new traffic. At Jarvis Meats in Treynor, all 30 passports available at the business were distributed, and approximately 30 to 35 customers used the passport discount while making purchases. Many of those customers, she said, may not have visited the business without the program.

Early numbers also indicate a broader increase in activity. Kinney said WIDA has been working with Unleash Council Bluffs to review summer results, with sales at participating businesses running approximately 9 percent higher during the season.

The program was also designed to introduce travelers to more than the individual businesses listed in the passport. Kinney explained that people who make a stop in one community often discover other stores, restaurants and events while they are there. That has included visitors learning about events such as Avoca’s Longest Table and community celebrations taking place throughout the county.

Shea said that exposure can have a longer-term effect for rural communities because visitors may return after their first trip. It can also introduce people to parts of Pottawattamie County they had not previously considered. “Once people are exposed to all of our county, the possibility of them wanting to move here” increases," Shea noted.

Kinney said the program has also attracted travelers from outside the immediate area. During a recent visit to Walnut, she met a shopper from Nashville, Tennessee, while another visitor was traveling from Wisconsin and had ties to Colorado. Those encounters, she added, showed the passport was reaching beyond local residents and giving visitors another reason to explore southwest Iowa.

A total of 1,750 passport books were printed for the summer. Kinney said some businesses requested additional copies after running out, and 50 were distributed to a visiting group of Spider Riders. At least two travelers have already completed every stop in the passport.

Participants are also eligible for prizes when they turn in their completed books. Kinney noted that more than $2,000 in giveaways are available, while travelers have already received discounts and other benefits along the way.

Shea said efforts such as the passport fit into a larger goal of strengthening the county’s smaller communities. He pointed to local parks, trails and other amenities as additional ways to connect people with rural areas and encourage them to spend more time and money there. “We’re trying everything we can to grow our communities, grow the county and even Council Bluffs,” Shea said.

Planning is already underway for the next version of the Rural Passport, although details have not yet been released. Kinney said the goal is to build on this year’s response and expand the program when it returns.

Completed passports must be turned in by Sept. 14. Kinney encouraged travelers who still have stops remaining to use the final days to make another trip through the participating communities.