Location and Transportation

Location, location, location

Buena Vista County, whose name means "good, or beautiful view," is located in picturesque Northwest Iowa. The county is served by an excellent infrastructure of both telecommunications and transportation necessities. Storm Lake is within easy driving distance of metropolitan areas including Omaha, Des Moines, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Milwaukee and Kansas City. Whether you're looking to market locally, nationally, or world-wide, our location in the heartland is ready to serve you. If you are moving on land, by air, or through cyberspace, we have the network to get you where you're going.

Telecommunications

Storm Lake, the county seat, has true private competition for broadband services. Fiber optic cable laid underground provides cable, telephone and Internet services. T1 lines, cable modems, and dial-up Internet connections are available to businesses and residences. The Iowa Communications Network, known as ICN, is the state's vast fiber-optic network. It serves Buena Vista University, Iowa Central Community College, and other state and county facilities, and is available to area businesses and organizations for communication needs.

By Road

Storm Lake serves as the junction for US Highway 71 and Iowa Highways 7 and 110. US Highways 71 and 20, "the crossroads of America," intersect just 11 miles south of Storm Lake. Twenty four different motor freight carriers serve the community with two local terminals and 10 interstate carriers.

By Rail

The Canadian National Railroad serves the communities of Newell, Storm Lake and Alta. A thirty-minute drive will get you to the nearest piggyback service. Switch service twice a day.

By Air

Storm Lake Municipal Airport (Class C) is located just three minutes South of Storm Lake on Hwy 110. Features include two concrete runways; 17/35 5000' x 75', 13/31 3034' x 50'. Instrument approaches: NDB 35, GPS 35/17. Communications: Unicom 122.70, ARRAS 121.725, AWOS (on field) 118.525 and DTN computerized weather. Full service FBO with Phillips Jet A (premix) and 100LL with 24 hour self-service pay at pump. Airline Service at Sioux Gateway is located just 65 minutes from Storm Lake.