That’s because, over the past year, officials have been working to improve the physical appearance of the town.

City Clerk Sandy Tellinghuisen said community pride has been one of the main objectives of the changes.

“We’ve made some good progress on some different projects that have made our community look better,” Tellinghuisen said. “Anytime you have any kind of progress, whether it be small or big, it’s something you can take pride in.”

One of the major projects that was completed in 2016 was the facade project, which worked to improve the facades of the buildings in downtown Sac City.

-Messenger photo by Peter Kaspari Sac City Public Library Director Kim Nelsen looks through "Buck," a book that is part of the Great Stories Grant the library received last year. The grant provides books to area high school students.

That project had been ongoing for a number of years.

“You’ll see noticeable changes in some of the downtown businesses as far as how they look,” Tellinghuisen said.

Another physical change the town underwent was the repainting of the water tower. In addition to the fresh coat of paint, Tellinghuisen said the town’s new logo, which was adopted in 2015, was added to the water tower.

Tellinghuisen added that there have been four new billboards installed around the area touting Sac City and its attractions, as well as about five new homes that were built in the past year.

In terms of business, Tellinghuisen said the town saw some businesses leave, but also saw new ones come to town.

-Messenger photo by Peter Kaspari The water tower in Sac City was repainted with the town's new logo in 2016.

Specifically, Telling­huisen mentioned Sac City Hardware, the local hardware store downtown.

The longtime store owner had retired, and after he retired the store closed down.

“But then the mayor, Scott Bundt, and his wife reopened it, refurbished it,” Tellinghuisen said. “They have a very nice new hardware store downtown.”

However, it’s likely Sac City’s biggest claim to fame in 2016 was when the town retook the world record for world’s largest popcorn ball.

Over the summer, visitors from all across the state descended on Sac City to help put together the popcorn ball. Sac City had previously held the record twice, but both times it was beaten.

Thanks to volunteers, the popcorn ball broke the record once again, weighing in at more than 9,300 pounds.

Tellinghuisen said the popcorn ball now resides in a custom-built shelter at the intersection of 13th Street and Main Street in Sac City.

She described it as a “huge, new popcorn ball.”

Sac City is also in the process of hiring a new city administrator. The previous city administrator, Adam Ledford, left late last year to accept a similar position in Kentucky.

The new city administrator isn’t the only new face that will be coming to Sac City. At the Sac City Public Library, two new employees were hired to fill positions left open by the retirements of longtime staffers.

Kim Nelsen, director of the Sac City Public Library, said Dorothy Wirtjers became the assistant librarian last year and Lisa Scuito became the new children’s librarian last month.

“It’s great to have them with us,” Nelsen said. “They both bring new energy and new ideas.”

And though the two previous librarians have retired, Nelsen said they still stop by the library frequently, and often volunteer to help with different events.

“We have the joining of the new and the joining of years of experience all in one place,” she said. “Everyone’s willing to work together. It’s been for our benefit and that’s been great.”

Besides the new faces, Nelsen said the library has been very busy in terms of the programming it has been able to offer.

For the second year, the library received the Great Stories Grant, which is part of the American Library Association.

Nelsen said the library formed a partnership with the Flex Center at the East Sac County School District. Through this program, high schoolers receive English credit by reading books provided by the grant.

“We go to them and they also come here to the library,” she said. “It’s just a great program.”

All the materials for the program are donated to the library, and Nelsen said the students are welcome to keep their books.

And in December, the Friends of the Sac City Library held a fundraiser that ended up bringing in $700.

“We invite community patrons, community businesses, organizations, to decorate and display a decorated tree in the library,” Nelsen said. “We invite patrons to come in and vote for their favorites. They drop a dollar in a box.”

There was also a silent auction with items donated by the Friends of the Sac City Library.

“We see faces we normally don’t see during the year and see a lot of new faces,” Nelsen said. “We have an open house and we have Santa and Mrs. Claus come, local musicians that play.”

“It’s a great afternoon, too, just to visit and eat some cookies, share some laughs,” she added. “And it’s all for a good cause.”

As for the future, Tellinghuisen said the Sac City Council has a number of plans for the new year.

One of the first actions is looking at a potential housing development project.

“We’re looking at a couple different possible options,” Tellinghuisen said. “That’s something on the frontburner.”

Another item the City Council would like to tackle is a street improvement project.

“Hopefully we can start rolling on a street improvement project, which will also include doing some infrastructure work,” she said. “That is on the forefront of importance for the council. Those are the two things that are going to be real strong on their agenda.”

That wouldn’t be the first road project to be completed recently. This past year, Tellinghuisen said South Fifth Street was resurfaced, which proved to be a popular improvement in town.

“It was needed and it’s a wonderful improvement,” she said.