More than 300 people gathered at the Hotel at Kirkwood in Cedar Rapids on March 7 to attend the Dream Big Grow Here pitch off event and to celebrate the spirit of entrepreneurship in Iowa at the sixth annual EntreFest! conference.

Dream Big Grow Here is an annual statewide contest for entrepreneurs and small business owners to win cash to start or grow an Iowa business. To participate, small business owners simply upload their 'dreams' during a regional contest administered by their local economic development corporation. They then encourage friends, customers and other business owners to vote for them. Wildly popular, 225 Iowa companies competed in one of ten regional contests at www.DreamBigGrowHere.com in 2012, attracting more than 100,000 supporters, 150,000 visits, 550,000 page views and tens of thousands of online votes and comments. Each regional contest winner received $5,000 cash and a chance to win another $10,000 cash award at EntreFest! on March 7.

Celebrity emcee for the Dream Big Grow Here pitch off was Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds. "Community, local economy, giving back," she said at the podium during contestant presentations. "These are words that we just keep hearing over and over again throughout these presentations; no matter who wins, these are outstanding Iowa businesses, every one."

The winner of this year's Dream Big Grow Here pitch off event was Tom Molhulland of Molhulland Grocery in Malvern, population 1,150.  

Dari Fehr won the Iowa Lakes Corridor region's competition with her company Mock Medical. Fehr's company makes non-surgical grade tools for students in the surgical technology program. When she was a student in the program, she saw the need for the instrument kits. The students needed to learn the tools, but few sets were available, and purchasing a new set was costly. 

Dari Fehr, left, received $5,000 from the Iowa Lakes Corridor regional Dream Big Grow Here competition. She won second place at the state competition, and received an additional $1,000.

Fehr came in second place in the state competition, and was awarded $1,000. This was the first year second and third place prizes were given. "It was a nice surprise to win an award for second," said Fehr. 

"It was a good educational experience to get in front of that many people and pitch," said Fehr. She first heard of the Dream Big Grow Here competition on the radio. She entered two days before the deadline. "I've met a lot of people I wouldn't have if not for this contest, and that's huge."

Now in its second year, the Dream Big Grow Here contest has awarded over $100,000 in business cash to Iowa entrepreneurs. "We are cultivating a spirit of celebrating entrepreneurs, both through the Dream Big Grow Here contests and the Entrefest! conference," said Maureen Collins-Williams, Director of Entrepreneurship outreach for the University of Northern Iowa. "This year, seven of the ten Dream Big Grow Here finalists were from communities with fewer than 20,000 population. We were surprised and very pleased at the response from rural communities. Increasing awareness and support of entrepreneurship in rural Iowa is critical to long term economic health in the state."

The Dream Big Grow Here third place winner was Nikole and Jon Benson of Tug's Daycare and Preschool of Mason City ($500). Other statewide finalists included WW Homestead Diary of Waukon, The Chicken Sisters of Lamoni, Cryogen Design of Marshalltown, {made} of Burlington, The Depot Family Restaurant of New Virginia, Ready to Go In America of Iowa City, and Recycle Rite of Cedar Falls. More than 225 companies from 66 counties competed in a Dream Big Grow Here contest in 2012. For a complete list of contestants and videos from the regional contests, go to www.DreamBigGrowHere.com

We are very happy to announce that Grades 1-4 of the Storm Lake Elementary School will be our newest Junior Achievement partners in the 2013-14 school year. JA is a key component of the Iowa Lakes Corridor regional workforce and entrepreneurship initiatives for the next many years. We are starting the third grade after school program, More than Money, with SLES yet this school year.

Other classrooms in the region that have JA programming include Clay Central Everly's elementary, Newell Fonda's kindergarten, and Spencer's Johnson Elementary's second and fourth grades. The Spencer YMCA has implemented JA into its after school program. 

Clay Central Everly fifth grade students worked in teams in the Junior Achievement program.

JA is an organization dedicated to teaching students about entrepreneurship through hands-on programs. What began in 1919 as an after school program for high school students has grown to include middle and elementary school students, as well as programs that are incorporated into school curriculum. JA now reaches 9.7 million students worldwide each year; over 50 million have been involved in JA since its inception. 

 The Junior Achievement programs teach concepts such as consumer, cost, employment, incentives, income, specialization and profit. They also teach skills such as coin recognition, decision making, problem solving, teamwork, brainstorming, applying information and conducting research. 

In the fall of 2012, Polaris announced it was leasing the former Klaussner building in Milford. As progress can move quickly in the manufacturing industry, Polaris has recently announced they have acquired the building and is investing nearly $4 million at this time. 

Last week Polaris announced a new product line: Brutus. The new line was created in partnership with Bobcat. The companies developed Brutus together; Polaris will build the chassis and Bobcat will build the hydraulics and attachments. Polaris received just under $110,000 in tax credits from Iowa Economic Development Authority for the expansion. The funds come from the High Quality Jobs Program; Polaris has committed 40 new jobs as part of the expansion. The new Brutus line will be produced in the Milford facility.

"The impact of Polaris Industries on the entire Corridor region is growing and is significant," said Kathy Evert, president and CEO of the Iowa Lakes Corridor Development Corporation. "We are grateful for and proud of their continued investment, launch of new products, and addition of new jobs in the Iowa Lakes Corridor."

Polaris's newest products, the Brutus line, will be manufactured in the Milford facility.

Brutus is a commercial utility vehicle, and there are three models: Brutus, Brutus HD, and Brutus HDPTO. The front end attachments include an angle broom, finishing mower and snow blower. All Brutus vehicles can operate the hydraulically powered snow blade, pallet fork and materials bucket. These functions make Brutus more versatile than any competing vehicles, capable of sweeping, mowing, blowing, lifting, plowing and scooping in just one machine. A full line of cab, storage and vehicle protection accessories also are available to meet each customer's unique needs.

The Brutus line is now available to order, and shipments will begin in April. 

Last summer, the Iowa Lakes Corridor started participating in the ACCRA Cost of Living Index, along with other small cities across the United States. Each quarter, Corridor staff collect costs on items such as groceries, housing, goods, healthcare, transportation and more. These numbers are then compared with other cities to create the Cost of Living Index. 

We recently had a salary calculator embedded into our website for those looking to move to the region. They can enter their salary and location, then chose which Corridor city to compare it to. The salary calculator can be found here. If you know of anyone considering moving to the region, direct them to our salary calculator.