The new Plant 1 Loft Apartments in Newton are drawing tenants from neighboring counties. Christensen Development in Des Moines purchased two Maytag factory buildings in 2023, known as buildings 16 and 50, from Des Moines Area Community College and built 78 market-rate apartments. Those apartments opened in January. Executive Director of DMACC Business Resources, Kim Didier, talked with the property manager for the apartments this week, and was told nearly 30 apartments have been rented.

“They are now at 28 apartments filled and are actually starting to attract tenants from south of our county into Pella. We are meeting a need that’s not being fulfilled in Pella. We have some people who are working at Central College now signing leases there.”

The apartments are next to Legacy Plaza and the Legacy Plaza Greenspace, in buildings that Maytag primarily used for office space and research and development. Whirlpool purchased Maytag in 2006, and shut down Newton’s Maytag facilities a year later.