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With burst of single-family and townhome building permits, City of Waukee seeing rapid growth

20 commercial permits the past year have resulted in a $36 million growth in new construction, the city said.

WAUKEE, Iowa —

The City of Waukee continues to top its own building permit records. 1,719 have been issued from July 1, 2020-June 30, 2021.

A total of 20 commercial permits were issued in that timeframe, sparking a $36 million growth in new construction.

Kinship Brewing Company is part of this new growth.

Zach Dobeck opened the brewery in January, calling himself a "pioneer" for picking the spot in Waukee versus a spot like downtown Des Moines.

"We chose Waukee, just given its trajectory in growth," Dobeck said. "When we went to go build our brewery to it finally opening up, a lot more folks have been moving to this side of town." 

Not only is it a production facility, but there's a patio and a half-acre dog park. 

"The City of Waukee was super helpful," Dobeck said. "It really goes back four years ago when I sat down with Brad Deets."

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Deets told Local 5 the city's current taxable valuation of the developments is $315 million, up by nearly $100 from Fiscal Year 2020.

According to him, Waukee is at a population point where it makes sense to build commercially.  

The U.S. Census Bureau says Waukee's estimated population is now 26,166 following a nearly 9% residential growth last year.

593 of Waukee's 1,1719 permit issues were for single-family housing and 252 were for townhomes, meaning the city saw its highest single-family housing growth in history. 

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