Ankeny Residents Request Payday Lender Moratorium

Des Moines Register
August 20, 2010
Ryan, Lisa Lavia

In Iowa, several Ankeny residents addressed city councilors during an open forum to urge them to enact a moratorium on payday lenders in the area -- which residents say could turn into a "mecca" for the high-interest loan companies. "Payday lending is predatory and needs to be limited," said Hilary Mitchell of Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement. "With interest rates as high as the ones they charge, they don't contribute to the community, and they only make financial situations worse for people who do business with them." Residents spoke up as well, saying the lenders bring blight to the community and harm its neediest members. Another resident said loan customers could be better served by other area businesses, and another called payday lenders "the worst of the worst" after witnessing several people being "preyed upon" by them. One asked the council to consider the city's many needy residents, and another told the council that payday lenders do harm to the whole community. Ankeny Mayor Steven Van Oort has educated himself about the practice and is looking for answers to his questions. He plans to work with the city attorney to determine what a moratorium could look like.
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