One Person Runs This Tiny Iowa Town

Wrap your brain around this: a tiny Iowa town with fewer than 250 people is basically kept alive by one public servant, whose duties include part-time administrator, utilities director, chief mower, and snow remover. Other duties as assigned, surely.

That town is Pisgah, IA, which is merely one square mile in size and is located in the Loess Hills in the southwest corner of the state. Recently, The Des Moines Register published an extensive piece on the city, which not only profiles the city's only public worker but also shows the bitterness the town harbors for the man due to the city's lack of financial transparency.

Todd Noah does so much for the town of Pisgah, but calls for more oversight on his city employment are raging amongst the town. Several residents of Pisgah are raising questions about the public money being spent on Noah's salary, taking their concerns beyond the city's town hall to Iowa agencies.

Per The Des Moines Register, residents filed complaints about open records violations to Iowa State Auditor Rob Sand's Office. Both Noah and Clint Fichter, an Avoca lawyer who serves as the city attorney, state critics of Pisgah's lone employee have engaged in harassment and intimidation, as well as the theft of confidential information, in what has become something of a witch hunt against the man.

The town of Pisgah has seen its population decline for years. At the end of June, the city had over $513,000 in the bank with annual expenses of over $383,000. Enter Todd Noah, who is relied upon by everyone from acting mayor Karen Wilson and various council members. Last year, Noah made $32.95/hour along with an additional $1,250/month to cover the cost of certifications he's required to have in order to manage the city's water and sewer system.

Pisgah Mayor Karen Wilson issued a statement on the work Noah does in keeping the town running smoothly:

He is an excellent public works director and he has helped keep all of our infrastructure up to date and has given us stability in a time when many communities struggle to keep a licensed operator. His work and talents go far beyond that, and he serves as our Fire Chief, he is frequently successful in obtaining grants, and has filled in to perform administrative functions when we have struggled to maintain a part-time clerk - Pisgah Mayor Karen Wilson, per The Des Moines Register's website

In 2024, Noah's pay and overtime totaled $93,573.92, plus another $15,804.64 in retirement and other benefits. That's shy of the roughly $125,000 the town accumulates in annual property taxes. If Noah were to vacate all the positions he holds, there's reason to believe the city of Pisgah would then be deemed unincorporated and taken over by Harrison County.

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This is a case of small town politics and perhaps personal grievances swallowing a city that's already struggling to survive, as evidenced by the fact that one person is responsible for so much basic maintenance and utility services. Read more about Todd Noah and the tiny town of Pisgah on The Des Moines Register's website.