Ames, Iowa

The healthcare provider is located in Ames, Iowa. Staffed with more than 500 medical professionals and offering a full range of services, it’s one of the premier healthcare facilities in the state. The facility has received recognition at both the state and national level for its quality of care. Services include surgical, orthopedics, neurology, obstetrics, and other needs.

Home of Iowa State University, Ames is a well-regarded town and ranked as one of the Best Places to Live by CNNMoney. This is just the beginning of its accolades, as Ames is listed on “best of” lists for excellence in public transportation, happiness, technology growth, and healthy living. With engaging museums, a top-rated school system, and more than 30 parks, Ames is family-friendly and enjoyable. Ames was recently ranked the #1 Best College Town in America plus Niche.com reviewers have ranked it one of the best places to live in Iowa and raise a family. It's well-known for its family-friendly appeal and offers the feeling of a small town without compromising on the great amenities of a big city. Ames offers an assortment of events to keep the area entertaining and fun, with art walks, music walks, food festivals, and holiday gatherings.

Learn more about Ames at the official website and explore the area at the county website.

Ames Community School District runs the town’s public schools. Top-rated and known for its excellence, the school district has 1 preschool center, 5 elementary schools, 1 middle school, and 1 high school. The district offers a 21st-century learning environment and several school locations were remodeled within the last 3 years. Students begin learning music, art, and physical education in preschool, and all elementary schools offer an orchestra for students grade 4 and up. Access to computers is on a 1:1 basis. Meeker Elementary School is a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence. Ames High School is ranked #1 in the state and #916 in the whole country by U.S. News and World Report’s Best U.S. High Schools. The school ranked second in the world for academics on the OECD test, an international test of science, math, and reading skills, plus has produced 80 National Merit Scholar finalists in the last 5 years. Nearly 90% of the district’s students are proficient in math and reading. There are also 2 private schools in Ames.

Click here to read more about Ames' public schools.
Click here to read about Ames' private schools.

Getting around Ames is easy thanks to the CyRide bus system.

It’s easy to find what you need in Ames thanks to the city’s diverse shopping scene. Downtown Ames has local stores for home decor, jewelry, gifts, cooking supplies, and other goods. An international Fair Trade Store, several vintage shops, and a delightful full-service chocolate shop offer a bit of flair to the area as well. Ames’ North Grand Mall has more than 50 stores including Kohl’s, American Eagle, GAP, and Shoe Carnival. All types of merchandise are available in this enclosed shopping plaza and you can browse to your heart’s content. As for department stores, Ames has them: Target, JCPenney, Walmart, and T.J. Maxx are within the town.

As Ames is the home of Iowa State University (ISU), the city offers several venues to enjoy live entertainment. Located on the ISU campus, Stephens Auditorium is a large multi-level theater that offers a range of productions in theatre, music, and dance, including multiple Broadway productions. Each season also has a youth matinee series for children with family-friendly concerts, plays, and shows. The Ames Community Theater keeps the entertainment coming with comedies and dramas throughout the year. Ames City Auditorium is another venue offering a mix of concerts, local recitals, and special events. For movies, Ames has the Cinemark Movies 12, the Cinemark North Grand 5, and the North Grand Cinema.

Brunnier Art Museum is located at ISU and is dedicated to the decorative arts. You can see prints, dolls, textiles, carpets, and other items from the collection, plus rotating exhibits. Nearby is the Christian Petersen Art Museum which features 2 galleries and changing contemporary art exhibits. The Elizabeth and Byron Anderson Sculpture Garden is located at ISU and offers 22 acres of shaded areas, flowering gardens, and multiple outdoor sculptures. The Ames History Museum showcases local history with exhibits on Ames from prehistoric times to the present. A rich collection of paintings, memorabilia, tools, glassware, documents, and photographs share the storied legacy of Ames over the years.

Ames boasts 35 wooded parks, 30 miles of bike and pedestrian trails, 5 golf courses, an ice rink, and an aquatic center. It offers a range of outdoor recreations for any interests and features an amazing public garden, Reiman Gardens. This living garden is open year-round and sits on 17 acres offering 26 areas to explore. At Reiman are a conservatory with seasonal displays, a 2,500-square-foot butterfly sanctuary with up to 800 butterflies, hundreds of plants, and the world’s largest concrete gnome. The local ice arena is jointly run by the city and ISU with all-ages public skate sessions plus features youth and adult hockey leagues. Among the city parks is Brookside Park, a recreational space with sports fields, a skate park, a wading pool, a playground, and a walking path. Ada Hayden Heritage Park is a great spot for fishing, hiking, and bird-watching. Furman Aquatic Center opens each spring and offers a great place to splash around, get cool, and play. The facility offers a lazy river with a waterfall, 2 waterslides, a 50-meter pool, children’s slide, and toddler slide. Homewood Golf Course is a public 9-hole golf course that’s perfect for golfers of all ages and skill levels.

For indoor fun there’s Perfect Games, a fun center with 24 bowling lanes, laser tag arena, and an arcade, plus mini-golf is available in the warmer months. Sports fans will have plenty to enjoy as ISU has a football team and basketball team. There’s also an annual Ames Spring Ice Show where figure skaters show off their best moves.

Ames is one of the safest cities in Iowa and in the country. Its crime rate is 18% lower than the national average, plus it’s safer than 51% of the United States. Ames has a well-staffed police department with 49 officers and offers several community programs for crime prevention.