(click to enlarge)   

Ashland Meadows
Ankeny, Iowa

     Ashland Meadows is a 156 acre community located in northwest Ankeny. Planned by Environmental Design Group and developed by Mid-America, Ashland Meadows combines the most convenient elements of urban living with the modern amenities that suburban residents have come to expect.

     A variety of residential options surround a central park of almost eight acres. Paved walking trails radiate from the park in all directions and into the surrounding neighborhoods. Scattered along the trails are small “pocket-parks” which are perfect for smaller children needing to be close to home.

     At the northeast corner of the community, and at the end of a park trail, is a ten acre site recently purchased by the Ankeny School District. Plans are for a new elementary school to be constructed on the property. Trail design permits community children to walk to the school without needing to cross busy streets or walk along street-side sidewalks.

     A large lot at the southeast corner of the community has been purchased by Prairie Ridge Reformed Church. Plans are for a sanctuary and multi purpose facility to serve the congregation and the community.

     In keeping with the best of urban traditions, shopping will be only a short walk away on protected interior trails. Commercial development will be located in the southwest corner of the community, adjacent to NW 18th and State Streets. The retail development will turn its high voltage “commercial side” and parking area away from Ashland Meadows. It will invite its pedestrian “neighbors” to enter through a more intimate back door at the end of a walking trail and away from moving traffic.

     Ashland Meadows is located directly north of Ankeny’s Prairie Ridge Sports Complex. This offers convenience for those families involved in organized sports activities as well as allowing residents access to professionally improved fields for individual activities. It also allows Ashland Meadows children a safe, traffic free route to the Aquatic Center, Kirkendall Library and the Middle School, all located just south of the Prairie Ridge site.

     Today’s families are busy. Trips to school, the store, baseball and soccer all require some parental supervision or transportation. At Ashland Meadows, care has been taken to allow many of those trips to be eliminated. All three schools, elementary, middle and high are within a safe walking distance. Shopping and recreation are accessible on protected trails. Open parks allow large green spaces for residents without the requirement of weekend yard chores. Ashland Meadows in Ankeny is designed for the way families live today.