Ankeny Achieves Top 5 Best Places to Live

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Good morning Ankeny! Hopefully your Memorial Day Weekend headache has subsided enough for work this morning. Did you know that Memorial Day weekend kicks off the unoffical hot dog season in the U.S., where Americans consume approximately 818 hot dogs per second from now through Labor Day? Totals up to ~7 billion hot dogs over the summer. I didn’t know that either, but it may (or may not) explain the headache. Lets rock.

In today’s digest:

Lets get started.

— Chase & Chance

Our beautiful town of Ankeny just got a major shoutout! U.S. News & World Report ranked Ankeny #1 in Iowa and #4 in the nation in their 2026-2027 Best Places to Live rankings, leaping from #18 nationally last year. The ranking categories were determined by a national public survey of thousands of Americans asked what matters most when choosing where to live, and this year's verdict was value, desirability, job market, and quality of life. Ankeny City Manager Mike Schrock credited the long-term vision of elected officials, the dedication of city staff, and the countless community partners who make Ankeny a place people want to call home. So next time someone asks why you live in Ankeny, feel free to pull out your phone and show them these rankings. Pretty self-explanatory. (more)

Uptown’s West Forty Market is celebrating its 5th birthday this week! West Forty is known for locally sourced, hormone-free and antibiotic-free meats from small Iowan family farms, plus fresh bread and products from dozens of local Iowa businesses. Also known as the type of place you go to with one thing on your list and walk out with your trunk full.

Join them for “5 Years of Meat & Memories” this Friday, May 29 (10-5pm) and Saturday, May 30 (9-2pm) in Uptown for samples, drinks, giveaways, and (always) meat!

If you haven't heard of Caleb DeVan yet, you're about to. The Southview Middle School student won Iowa's Scripps Spelling Bee on March 7 at Living History Farms, and taking his talents to the DMV for the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C. (May 26–28) alongside 247 of the sharpest young spellers in the country.

The backstory makes it even better: Iowa hasn't had a Scripps regional partner since 2017, leaving Iowa kids without a direct path to nationals for nearly a decade. Living History Farms stepped up this year to bring it back, and Caleb wasted no time making the most of the opportunity. His spelling-bee journey started through Southview, and now he’s competing against the nations best! Bring it home, Caleb! (more)

In case you don’t already know him, we owe a big shoutout to Dan Holm for his outstanding coverage of Ankeny athletics! Check out Ankeny Fanatic for a more in-depth breakdown of all things Ankeny sports. In the meantime, here’s a roundup of the two Ankeny squads at last weekend’s state track meet:

The Hawkettes ended a nearly 30-year drought at Drake Stadium last weekend, breaking through to the podium. A record-shattering performance in the distance medley relay, clocking 3:55.44 to break the previous state record, helped the Ankeny girls' track team finish with 67 points and hoist the third-place trophy in Class 4A, their first team trophy since 1997. Makenna Madetzke won the individual 800m, with Ankeny Centennial's Rebecca Flick earning runner-up in the same event. Massive weekend for the girls!

The boys made noise too. Ankeny senior Hayden Carlson ran the 110 hurdles in 13.52 seconds, which happens to be the fastest time in Iowa state history. Goes without saying that he won the event.The Hawks also won the sprint medley relay in a state record-setting time of 1:43.06, breaking Linn-Mar's previous state record from 2018. All in all, a weekend worth celebrating for Ankeny track and field. Check out Ankeny Fanatic for the entire weekend’s results!

Country Music Bingo @ B&B Theaters - Grab the boots and warm up those vocal cords! Free to play, open to all ages, and prizes go to the winners! 7:30-8:30pm

Springtime Paint & Sip @ Magee’s Irish Pub - Includes two hours of instruction, all supplies, and a canvas to take home! Enjoy Magee’s food & drinks throughout. Seating is limited, so get registered! 6:30pm (info)

Cold Stone Creamery Community Event - Get some ice cream and support Heritage Elementary! 12-9pm (info)

Summer Library Program Kickoff @ Ankeny Public Library - First of many events this summer! Check out the kickoff party for mini golf, a petting zoo, tropical sno, and more! The event starts at 5:30pm! (info)

Glow-In-The-Dark Mini Golf - Also at the Ankeny Public Library, but only for “tweens” (grades 5-12) from 8-9pm! (info)

🎸Sips & Songs @ The District - Starting off the season in style! The Peoples Band & The Pork Tornadoes are performing for FREE at the district! Stick around for the Silent Disco. Gates open at 5:30, all ages welcome! 5:30-11:55pm (info)

🎸Touch of Grey @ B&B Theatres - 6:30pm (info)

Midday Mixer @ The District - Enjoy an afternoon of cocktails at Cityview Magazine’s innagural Midday Mixer! $25 ahead of time ($35 at the door) will buy you ten drink tickets to spend at nine participating businesses in the district! 1-4pm (info)

Pet Food Drive @ South Ankeny Fareway - Fareway is teaming up with the Animal Rescue League to host a pet food drive! Bring pet food from home, purchase in-store, or round up at the register to support the cause! The event runs from 10-5pm, with visiting adoptable dogs from 10-1pm! (info)

Uptown Ankeny Farmers Market - 8-12pm (info)

🎸Luke Fox @ Mullets - 7-10pm (info)

🎸The Savage Freds @ Good Times - 9pm-1am (info)

Thanks for reading today’s Digest. If you found something useful, please share it with someone who did the Murph Challenge on Memorial Day.

See you next week.