Two New Roads Will Connect Highway 34 With Former GRC Campus

Preliminary work for the construction of two roads connecting U.S. Highway 34 with the former Glenwood Resource Center campus is under way.

Construction of two new entrances to the campus from Highway 34 is being funded by the state of Iowa as part of its agreement with the Glenwood Redevelopment Corporation, the non-profit organization responsible for overseeing the redevelopment of the former GRC campus.

The primary entrance to the property from Highway 34 will be near 240th Street and an existing road that goes under the highway to Campbell Lake and Park. The second entrance, Orchard Drive, is aligned across Highway 34 with the Levi Road intersection.

“They’re going to put an entrance where the first subway is – the underpass – the farm east of that on 34,” Mills County Board Of Supervisors Chair Richard Crouch stated last week while discussing the project. “They’re going to come down off the resource (center) ground and hook into 34 there. You’ll be able to go across 34 and go east or you can get on 34 and go west.”

The entrance from 34, across the highway from Levi Road, will replace an existing private access road near the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe Railroad line and overpass.

“They are going to revamp that (road),” Crouch said. “I don’t know how much, but there will also be an entrance there.”

Larry Winum, a spokesperson for the Glenwood Redevelopment Corporation, noted that TAB Construction, the general contractor, expects to have the road construction project completed by mid or late summer.

“I believe TAB’s contract allows through early fall, but their goal is mid-summer,” said Winum. “They are already making very good progress.”

State funding for road construction from Highway 34 was agreed upon during negotiations with the Glenwood Redevelopment Corporation regarding transfer of the former GRC property that once housed  the stated-managed facility providing residential care and vital services for Iowans with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The state is also providing funds for other areas of repurposing on the campus, including some infrastructure and the demolition of 90-plus buildings.

In April 2022, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced the state’s decision to close the Glenwood Resource Center. Since the closure in 2024, state and local officials have shared input and direction for repurposing approximately 200 acres of the 1,100-acre campus. A preliminary redevelopment plan suggested the establishment of a residential neighborhood on the property with up to 900 living units over an extended period time. The 900 units would be a combination of apartments and single-family dwellings. The neighborhood would be mixed use with the potential of light commercial and light retail businesses down the road in addition to recreational areas and walking trails. The Glenwood Community School District maintains a presence on the campus, occupying the 103 Central Building with its central administrative offices, THRIVE and APEX programs and the Lakin Child Development Center of Glenwood (formerly Kids Place).

The remaining 900 acres of the campus is designated as a state preserve.