Monona
County leads Iowa in graying population trend
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This is a photo of downtown Onawa, Iowa, location of "The Widest Main Street in the United States." Onawa is the county seat of Monona County, the only county in Iowa to have more people over age 65 than under age 17. (Photo by Jody Ewing) |
EDITOR'S NOTE: Monona
County is the only Iowa county to have more people over age 65 than
under age 17. Population experts report that many rural Iowa counties
could possess the same demographic characteristics in a few years. To
that end, Journal Correspondent Jody Ewing examines how Monona County
leaders are addressing the issues in a two-part series, starting today.
ONAWA,
Iowa -- Monona County holds a record for the widest main street in the
United States. It passes through the heart of the county seat here.
The
county now holds another mark, one that worries experts: It is the only
county in Iowa to have more people over age 65 than under age 17.
Composed
of 10 incorporated communities and their surrounding rural areas,
Monona County also has a lower percentage of young people (19 or
younger) and a higher percentage of older people (age 65+) compared to
the state.
According to Kate Schwennsen, associate dean of Iowa
State University's College of Design, Iowa ranks third among the states
in the longevity of its residents, but 49th in retaining young people.
In
the past two decades Monona County has seen that steady decline in the
number of young adults choosing to raise families here. Enrollment for
the West Monona School District currently stands at 714, down from
1,100 students 1980.
The graying of Iowa
Some analysts are asking, "Will Monona County serve as a forecaster for
the rest of Iowa?"
Schwennsen
and other leading state experts addressed Iowa's forecast and other key
issues in a forum last month at the Gateway Center in Ames. "Imagine
Iowa: Designing Iowa's Future," brought Iowa leaders together to
disclose ominous trends while debating solutions to strengthen Iowa's
development.
Their concerns reflected a number of problems that began in the 1980s
and took their greatest toll on places like Monona County.
"Between
1980 and 1990, only four states didn't grow, and only two declined --
West Virginia and Iowa," said Iowa's former state economist Harvey
Siegelman. "We lost one-third of our car dealerships, one-third of our
implement dealers, one-third of our banks. We lost two-thirds of the
value of our farmland."
Iowa Farm Bureau Federation research
specialist Mark Salvador noted the many cattle lots converted to
soybean ground in the 1970s when the cattle industry moved west and
south, and the crop's value soared to $10 per bushel. But soybean
prices and land values dived in the 1980s, and much of the land went
into conservation programs and the withering farm economy clobbered
Iowa's small towns, Salvador said at the convention.
Land values, interest rates stifle
Charles
Hitchman III, president of Blencoe State Bank with branches in Onawa
and Blencoe, cites three major factors for the declining young
population in Monona County.
"Land values went from $1,605 in
1981 to $632 in 1986," said the third-generation banker. "The interest
rate doubled from about 9 percent to 18 percent in just one year.
Farmers were trying to pay off farmland and equipment at the higher
rate. A combine alone could be $50,000, and at 18 percent they just
couldn't do it."
Banks used to lend based on capital, Hitchman
said, and when the land value sank, it took borrowing power away from
landowners. Banks lost money on property sales and equipment, often
recouping only half to 35 percent of value. Loans now are based on the
borrower's repayment capacity.
Though Monona County land values
have steadily increased since 1986 and peaked in 2003 at $1,914,
herbicide control and horsepower mechanisms have once again changed the
agricultural industry's direction.
"Cultivators and tractors got
wider and they have more horsepower now," said Hitchman. "Farmers used
to cultivate three times. Now you spray with herbicide and you're done.
You don't need all the farm labor. In 10 years, [Blencoe's] Sherman
Township lost 100 people in farming."
In addition to changes in
agriculture, Hitchman cites the lack of jobs as well as families having
fewer children for playing a significant role in Monona County's
growing elderly population.
"My parents' generation usually had
six to eight kids," he says. "My generation had three, and few moved
back once they graduated from college. We need halfway decent jobs to
encourage people to stay or come back. If you're a nurse or doctor or
teacher, or work for the county or Westendorf in administration, then
you can get a good job."
Brain Drain: Educate, export
Finding
a well-paying job often means higher education. Yet according to the
U.S. Census Bureau, only 13.4 percent of Monona County residents 25
years and older hold a Bachelor's degree or higher, compared to the
U.S. average of 24.4 percent. Those with a high school degree or higher
make up 81.7 percent, compared to the U.S. average of 80.4 percent.
"We
educate them and then send them out," said Hitchman of the
out-migration known as Iowa's 'Brain Drain.' "The reason is there are
no (available) jobs here for people with advanced degrees."
West Monona School Superintendent Dr. John Stanton echoed Hitchman's
sentiments.
"There's
not enough employment possibilities, and not enough social
opportunities that they desire," said Stanton, whose school district is
composed of 189 square miles, consolidating communities of Onawa, Turin
and Blencoe.
Despite the out-migration of Iowa's college
graduates, Stanton said he hasn't seen much of a change in Monona
County over the nine years he's served as superintendent.
"I
didn't notice we were economically disadvantaged because of this," he
said. "Since passing the one-cent sales tax for school infrastructure,
we've had two construction additions."
Part II: Education
and economic development are keys to reversing or halting graying
population trends.
Copyright ©
2005 Sioux City Journal
Monday, May 17, 2004