What’s in a name, you might ask. Quite a bit, at least for the city of Urbandale and the development area it has marketed as the Urban Loop.

In the nine months since launching the effort, the city can count eight new development projects, including the recently announced expansion of probiotics manufacturer ProbioFerm LLC on Justin Drive. On July 31, the council will have a public hearing to consider property tax incentives for a 7,500-square-foot professional office building along Northpark Drive.

The rough boundaries of the development area are 86th Street on the east, Northwest 54th Street on the north, 128th Street on the west and Hickman Road on the south. The entire area is anchored by Interstate 35/80.

Other projects are R&R Realty’s 90,000-square-foot Paradigm office building, John Deere Intelligent Solutions Group’s new 134,000-square-foot headquarters, a 53,000-square-foot flex building along 104th Street, a Casey’s General Store on land it bought in another R&R development along 100th Street, Crescent Electric’s new office and warehouse in Walnut Ridge Business Park and Source Allies’ $4.5 million expansion along Meredith Drive.

Not a bad record. 

Meanwhile, the city also has entered a contract with Confluence landscape architects and urban designers to develop a master plan for citywide entrance signage, with the Northpark Drive corridor between 86th and 100th streets a priority.