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Getting around town just got easier with the installation of 20 new directional signs in  Downtown Mason City. Funding for the signs was provided by Iowa Great Places, Principal Financial Group, Visit Mason City, Kinney Lindstrom Foundation and Main Street Mason City. A special “thank you” to Main Street Mason City for serving as the lead project coordinator. |
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Mason City CVB Celebrates 25 Years, Announces New Name |
 Founded in 1985, the Mason City Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) has been attracting tourists to North Iowa and helping create a positive experience for these travelers. Just in time for their 25th Anniversary, the Mason City CVB announced a new name and rebranding effort. The new name - Visit Mason City - was unveiled at an event recognizing May as National Tourism Month before an audience of several business leaders and tourism industry representatives.
“The strategy surrounding the change to Visit Mason City is extremely customer centered,” said Visit Mason City Executive Director Sue Armour. “Our old name created confusion among our customers and within the community. It was too complex for what we are trying to accomplish, which is attracting visitors to North Iowa. Our challenge was to find a name that would be easy to remember, be consistent with our brand, and have a call to action.”
Along with the new name, Visit Mason City worked with a marketing firm to develop a new logo, tagline and rebranding effort. The selection process for all of these items was based upon customer feedback of why tourists selected Mason City as a destination and their perception of what Mason City has to offer tourists.
“The connections to Meredith Willson and Frank Lloyd Wright stood out with the customers we spoke to and became the two influences in the design of the new logo,” explained Brent Wirth of the Trilix marketing agency. “We helped create an updated, more contemporary brand that tied music and architecture together in a logo that is unique to Mason City and will stand the test of time.” |
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Mason City Awarded 2010 Central States District Fall Barbershop Contest |
 The River City Barbershop Chorus announced Mason City, Iowa has been selected to host the 2010 Central States District Fall Barbershop Contest. The event will be held Oct. 8-10, 2010 at the North Iowa Auditorium and North Iowa Community College (NIACC) campus in Mason City, Iowa.
“We are excited to host the district contest in the North Iowa community, a fitting location since Mason City is the hometown of The Music Man which features barbershop music at its very best,” said River City Barbershop Chorus Director Jayson Ryner. “A lot of people helped to attract this event to the area. The River City Barbershop Chorus worked in partnership with the North Iowa Sports Authority and the Mason City Convention & Visitors Bureau. It’s going to be a great event for the community to enjoy.”Central States District Convention Chair Dean Beckman added “The River City Barbershop Chorus organization has helped bring barbershop singing to new heights, both on and off the stage, and we are looking forward to a first-class event.”
The Central States District Fall Barbershop Contest is a competition for barbershop choruses and individual quartets. Judges award points based upon many items including the suitability of the material to the barbershop style, consonant harmony, accurate execution and artistic delivery.
Awards during the contest include:
- Top chorus named District Champion representing the district at the International event in Kansas City, MO in 2011.
- Novice Quartet presented to the highest scoring quartet composed of fellows that have not previously competed.
- Senior Quartet presented to the highest scoring quartet composed of members at least 55 and older. Senior Quartet Champion is granted the opportunity to compete at the International Seniors competition during the mid-winter convention.
- Gold, Silver and Bronze medalist Quartets, awarded to the top three scoring quartets.
- Plateau A Chorus Champion in which the number of members in the Chapter determines the plateau chapter. Levels include Plateau AA Chorus Champion and Plateau AAA Chorus Champion. Each plateau will also have an award for most improved chorus.
This event is anticipated to attract over 500 barbershop singers and a similar number of friends and family members from the Central State District that includes the states of Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota and Kansas. This regional event has never been held in the North Iowa area. According to Sue Armour, Mason City Convention & Visitors Bureau Director, the event is estimated to generate nearly $200,000 in visitor spending to the North Iowa area.
The North Iowa Sports Authority, a partnership of the Mason City Convention & Visitors Bureau, Clear Lake Area Chamber of Commerce and Cerro Gordo County, was able to secure a grant to help attract this event to the area. “This funding gave the River City Barbershop Chorus the boost needed to seek the bid for this district event,” said Ryner. “The River City Barbershop Chorus, North Iowa Sports Authority and specifically the Mason City Convention & Visitors Bureau have been working together on this project because of the tremendous economic boost and recognition it will bring to the North Iowa area,” said Mark Stanton, Chair of the North Iowa Sports Authority. “We are thrilled to be the host community.” |
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Visitor Information Kiosks Now Available |
 Looking for a great place to eat or how about a unique place to visit or shop? These questions and more can be answered by using one of the four visitor information kiosks designed for the travelers visiting the Mason City area.
The Mason City Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) has launched four touch screen interactive information centers. The units have one goal - to help answer visitor questions. The kiosks feature easy-to-use touch screens allowing travelers to learn about the community, tourist attractions, places to do business and why the Mason City/Clear Lake area is such a great place to stay and play.
 The kiosks were designed with the visitors in mind and are located where the visitors frequent the most! The units are placed at the South Entrance of Southbridge Mall, visitor elevators at Mercy Medical Center--North Iowa, and the North Iowa Arena Concession Area at the North Iowa Fair Facility. The fourth kiosk is located in the Mason City Visitor Information Center, which is located at the Mason City CVB office located at 25 West State Street. The center is open 24 hours, seven days a week.
While in the community, we invite you to use these “virtual travel counseling” centers to discover the diversity the area has to offer. Plus each unit offers videos, printable coupons and text messaging coupons to help plan your stay. |
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Library Undergoing $9.2 million in Renovations |
 Visitors of all ages use the Mason City library to research family history, learn about the hidden treasures of the area and peruse the wonderful selection of reading materials. Soon – all will get to experience a revitalized building!
The Mason City Public Library building is currently undergoing $9.2 million in renovations. The project includes major revamping of the 68 year-old building’s Carnegie infrastructure and creating a new commons area. Construction on the building began in June 2009 and is scheduled to be complete by September 2010. The Library will move back into the renovated space during September 2010, and will then re-open in October 2010.
During construction, the Mason City Library will operate in the Mason City Room, just off of the existing library building. The following services are available in the temporary library: public access computers, wireless internet, Inter Library Loan services, books, DVDs, audio books and other library materials for loan.
The History/Archives Department and the Genealogy Department will be housed at Madison School, 2626 S. Jefferson Street, Mason City, Iowa. They are open by appointment only during the renovation of the Library building. To reach them please call History/Archives at (641) 430-4159 and Genealogy at (641) 430-4154. For any more information please call the Library at (641) 421-3668. |
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New
Architectural Interpretive Center To Be Completed
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 Looking
for Prairie School style designs by the famous Frank Lloyd
Wright, Walter Burley Griffin, William Drummond and
Francis Barry Byrne? Look no further than Mason City,
Iowa!
A new $822,000 facility to help visitors experience and understand
the significance of architecture in Mason City and to tell
the story of the Frank Lloyd Wright Stockman House is underway.
This new facility, the Architectural Interpretive Center,
will complement the existing Frank Lloyd Wright residential
home which incorporated a clever and strong separation of
public and private areas in a dwelling, and sought to include
the exterior environment in both the exterior and interior
of the living space.
Preliminary plans for the Interpretive Center are inspired
by a design by Walter Burley Griffin that was never built,
featuring two interlocking squares. The center will
be located adjacent to the Frank Lloyd Wright Stockman House
and lie just to the north of the Rock Crest/Rock Glen National
Historic District. This district is the largest collection
of Prairie School designed homes on a unified site. The project is slated to be completed in August, 2010.
Currently, Wright and Prairie School architecture enthusiasts
can tour a residential home, enjoy a Prairie School Architectural
Slide Show and Architectural Walking Tour.
Learn more by reading about Frank Lloyd Wright and the Mason City's Prairie School Architecture.
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Only
Remaining Frank Lloyd Wright Hotel
in the World Currently Under Restoration! |
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Frank
Lloyd Wright designed six hotels in his lifetime.
Only one is left - the Historic Park Inn located in downtown Mason
City, Iowa. A local group of energetic volunteers
are in the process of restoring the facility. The
project vision is to create a four star boutique hotel with
all of the modern day amenities. The $18.5 million dollar project is slated to
be completed in the spring of 2011.
Plans call
for a large restaurant-lounge area on the first floor
and a skylight room for banquets and receptions, featuring
an immense stained-glass skylight by Frank Lloyd Wright.
The second floor would include a reception room, a ladies
parlor, conference rooms and media room. There will be 28 guests rooms in the Historic Park Inn Hotel and City National Bank
Building. The bank building is next to the hotel and also designed by Wright. The hotel
rooms have been enlarged beyond Wright’s original
design to make them desirable for today's travelers. An
elevator will also be built to serve the hotel and bank
building.
 Downtown Mason City will again be blessed with the richness
of a functioning hotel designed by one of the world's most
famed architects. To actually stay in a Frank Lloyd Wright
designed facility will be a rare and memorable experience
and a great addition to the existing Wright attractions
in Mason City.
For more information regarding this restoration project
visit www.wrightonthepark.org.
Also, learn more by reading about Frank Lloyd Wright and Mason City's Prairie School Architecture.
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