Former AIB campus now home to 93 apartment units with additional plans for commercial, office space

The Village at Gray’s Lake, LLC closed on the $7.5 million purchase of the 11-acre campus on Monday. Immediate plans call for 93 apartment units in the former Fenton Hall, 2270 Bell Ave., and leased commercial and office space in the former Wells Hall. 

Owners Tina Smothers and Jason Grove plan to parcel off and sell the remaining buildings and vacant land for future development. 

“We’re hoping it will be businesses that will bring more patrons to the area, whether it’s a restaurant or a drive-thru or new housing,” said Smothers, who also owns Optimum Real Estate Management. “We’re hoping it’s mixed-used commercial and residential.”

AIB, which was founded in Des Moines in 1921, moved to the property at the intersection of Fleur Drive and Bell Avenue in 1972. 

AIB gifted the campus to the University of Iowa in January 2015. The university took possession in August 2016 and turned it into the Iowa Center for Higher Education. 

It closed about two years later, when university officials found the cost to operate and maintain the property outpaced revenue from tuition and leases by nearly $1.2 million. 

The property has been vacant since.

Smothers and Grove won a bid for the property, approved in June by the Iowa Board of Regents. 

Renovations have started on the Fenton Hall west and east buildings, which will become a mix of 1- and 2-bedroom apartments for rent starting in mid-September. The pair plans to invest $1.8 million into the project. 

Each unit will be getting new cabinets, flooring and appliances. 

“They used them as dorms but they have a full kitchen and a bathroom, so they aren’t like typical dorms where there’s communal bathrooms. They are more like apartments,” Smothers said. 

The 1-bedroom units, at 700 square feet, will rent for $999 a month. The 2-bedroom units, at 800 square feet, will rent for $1,250 a month. All utilities are included.

Common areas include a fitness center and lounge, bike storage and co-working space for tenants. There will also be three offices to rent. 

Smothers touted the apartment building’s view of downtown and its proximity to Gray’s Lake, the new Lauridsen Amphitheater at Water Works Park and the planned Fleur Drive underpass as reasons why they decided to purchase the property.

“Somebody could head out on their bike and not even cross Fleur Drive and get to MLK (Junior Parkway) and into downtown,” she said. “We just thought it would be a great opportunity for this area to have apartments — to be able to revitalize them and the building.”

The pair also plans to remodel the former Wells Hall for leased commercial space. It once held 12 classrooms. So far no leases have been signed, Smothers said.

Remaining on the campus are the Keith Fenton Administration Building, the AIB Activities Center and a vacant three-acre parcel of the land along Fleur Drive.

The pair also plans to remodel the former Wells Hall for leased commercial space. It once held 12 classrooms. So far no leases have been signed, Smothers said.

Remaining on the campus are the Keith Fenton Administration Building, the AIB Activities Center and a vacant three-acre parcel of the land along Fleur Drive.

The pair also plans to remodel the former Wells Hall for leased commercial space. It once held 12 classrooms. So far no leases have been signed, Smothers said.

Remaining on the campus are the Keith Fenton Administration Building, the AIB Activities Center and a vacant three-acre parcel of the land along Fleur Drive.