The Ankeny Brief
This one's a keeper. We pulled the public record on the town we live in and put it all in one place. Bookmark it, forward it - here's Ankeny, by the numbers.
The home sales, permits, events and library notes below are a snapshot from late June 2026, and most of the dated items have passed (the election and hunting-season dates below are still ahead). For what's on now, see What's On This Week and the events calendar. For newer home-sale numbers (through July 28), see the housing dashboard. One update since June: the lawn-watering ban is over. Central Iowa Water Works ended all water-use restrictions on July 27, 2026 (ciww.gov).
Five businesses registered here the week this edition was put together, in late June. A first look at who was setting up shop:
35 homes sold in the latest week of county records as of late June. The three that turned heads:
Median by month: March $351,795 → April $299,900 → May $336,000 → June $339,000. Spring spiked, then settled in the mid-to-upper $330s by June. Newer numbers are on the housing dashboard.
Most active streets through June: NE 19th, NW 17th, and NE 12th.
The city issued 263 permits worth $73.6M in the latest month on record as of June, led by the new $41.5M school, a $9.5M Baker Group office addition on SE Corporate Woods Dr, and a $4.28M manufacturing plant on SE Northstar. On the home front, 28 new houses broke ground, Greenland Homes and DS Solid neck-and-neck at six apiece.
Priciest home of the year as of June: $2.1M at 2505 NE Bellagio Ct (5,300 sq ft). Priciest permit: that $41.5M school. One family, one whole district - both betting big on the same zip code.
Ankeny's highest-rated sit-down spots by aggregate review score (mid-2026) are Main Street Cafe & Bakery, Portofino's, and Guadalajara Mexican:
See the full rundown in our guide to the best restaurants in Ankeny.
Ankeny runs on coffee, and the top-rated is 7 Brew (4.7★) for the drive-thru crowd, plus local favorites Porch Light Coffeehouse, Cafe Diem, Blue Bean, Smokey Row, and Twisted Bean.
The two big projects as of June: the South Ankeny Boulevard rebuild (SE Peterson Drive to First Street), a two-year job with utilities, new pavement, turn lanes, and a raised median, and new northbound I-35 lanes from Ankeny to Huxley, with the new NE 158th Avenue bridge slated to open in June. For what's torn up now, see our road work page.
Top-rated elementaries: Prairie Trail, Northeast, and Crocker. That $41.5M school? Built to keep up with all those young families.
Casey's General Stores is headquartered right here (1 SE Convenience Blvd) - one of just two Fortune 500 companies based in Iowa. The numbers: 2,950 stores across 19 states, 40,000+ employees, and it's the third-largest convenience chain in the country (largest that's wholly American-owned). The breakfast-pizza empire runs from our backyard.
The City Council's FY2026 budget holds the city property-tax levy at $9.90 per $1,000 of taxable value - the lowest of any Des Moines-metro city over 5,000 people. Total city budget: $198M ($152M to run the city, $46M for capital projects). Worth knowing: the city is only one slice of your tax bill - the county, DMACC, DART, and the school district levy the rest.
Property crime ticked up a bit - the usual reminder to lock the car.
The High Trestle Trail starts right here - the Ankeny trailhead is on the north side of town along 1st Street - and runs 25 miles to its showstopper: a half-mile, 13-story-high bridge over the Des Moines River valley, one of the largest trail bridges in the world (go at dusk when the blue lights come on). From Ankeny it links to the Gay Lea Wilson, Oralabor Gateway, Neal Smith, and Chichaqua Valley trails - and on to the Raccoon River Valley Trail, the longest paved loop in the country. A 2024 connection stitched it all into a 120-mile continuous loop. We also have 40+ city parks, more than 100 miles of paved city trails (per the city), and the 7.5-acre Ankeny Dog Park.
Ten minutes northwest: a 26,000-acre Army Corps reservoir with two swim beaches (Oak Grove's best for families), a 24-mile paved trail along the water, 11 campgrounds, and fishing for walleye, wiper, largemouth bass, catfish, crappie, and northern pike.
Iowa's 2026-27 season openers worth circling:
Confirm legal dates, zones, and tags at iowadnr.gov. Public land close to home: Chichaqua Bottoms Greenbelt in NE Polk County. Fishing needs only a license - no season.
Those were June's weekly staples. For this week, see What's On This Week.
Our big one. The carnival opened Thursday July 9 at The District at Prairie Trail, with live music Friday through Sunday, 24+ food vendors, a lip-sync contest, and the Grand Parade Saturday the 11th capped by fireworks. The 2026 theme was "Jingle in July."
A starter directory of weekend services - there are nearly 30 congregations in town:
Your congregation not listed? Reply and we'll add it.
Kirkendall Public Library's Summer Library Program ran through the summer: the Book Giveaway (June 24-29) handed a free book to readers who hit the halfway point, and the Finale Pool Party was July 30. The library is at 1250 SW District Dr. For hours and what's on there now, see our library guide.
The crosstown rivalry: Ankeny High (Hawks) vs. Ankeny Centennial (Jaguars). Latest from the brainy side: Centennial's Quiz Bowl team has won back-to-back Iowa state titles - taking its first ever from Ankeny High (which had held it three years), then defending it in a record ten-overtime final over Johnston. Football kicked off in late August. Schedules and scores live on our high school sports page.
The General Election is Tuesday, November 3, 2026 - polls open 7am-8pm. The dates to know:
Check your registration through the Polk County Auditor. Our plain-English Ankeny voter guide walks through every race on the ballot, and how to vote in Ankeny covers where and when.
The biggest project in town is the $41,450,789 school on N Ankeny Blvd (permit to Stahl Construction). We follow the public money, milestone by milestone - straight from the record, no spin.
One last number: the oldest home to sell in Ankeny this year (through June) was built in 1880 - it went for $120,000 out on NE 6th St. A 146-year-old farmhouse and a $2.1M new build, same town, same year. That's Ankeny in two data points.
That's your town, by the numbers. If a friend would like this, forward it - that's how this thing grows. See you next week. ●
As of the 2024 Special Census, Ankeny's official population was 76,207, up about 12% from the 2020 census. Growing roughly 2.5% a year, the city is estimated to be near 80,000 in 2026, making it one of Iowa's largest and fastest-growing cities.
Ankeny's last official count was the 2024 Special Census at 76,207 residents. With growth of about 2.5% a year, 2026 estimates put the population near 80,000 (World Population Review). The city has added more than 8,000 residents since the 2020 census.
More than 76,000 people live in Ankeny as of the 2024 Special Census (76,207), with 2026 estimates approaching 80,000. That is up from about 27,000 residents in 2000.
Ankeny is in Polk County, Iowa, just north of Des Moines.
Yes, rapidly. Ankeny has been among the fastest-growing cities in Iowa for two decades, with continual new housing, schools, and commercial development.
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