Page 9 - Reflect DSM (City of Des Moines, IA)

ReflectDSM honors these community
insights and many more. It establishes a set
of ambitious goals, concrete actions, and
a collaborative framework to realize the
vision of a Des Moines historic preservation
program that values and respects the
intangible heritage and tangible places,
and that reflects all its histories to create a
vibrant and sustainable community where
everyone belongs. It revisits, revises, and, in
some cases, reimagines the regulatory and
administrative functions of the City’s historic
preservation program administered by its
Development Services Department staff.
At its core, ReflectDSM encourages and
accommodates public participation in the
process to save and steward the buildings,
places, uses, and intangible assets they
care about most. It recognizes that to be
successful it must use approaches that are
specific, incremental, and consistent. Figure 2. Flower planting joint event with Sherman Hill and
Oakridge neighborhoods. (Source: Rob McCammon)
The Plan also responds to and advances
PlanDSM, adopted by the City in 2016.
PlanDSM envisions a vibrant, healthy,
walkable community. It envisions a
place that offers a diversity of housing
choices, a resilient economy, protects
natural resources, and provides vibrant
and creative culture and recreational
environments that support residents
from all ages and all global heritages. It
established a series of goals and policies
related to historic preservation, as described
in Chapter 3, including to develop an
updated historic preservation plan. Figure 3. Tree canopy in the River Bend Neighborhood (Source:
KKC)

Figure 4. (Source: City of Des Moines, Communications Office)

Adopted Plan (September 2023) 3