The travel website Far & Wide, in its new list of “Best U.S. Towns With Fewer Than 10,000 Residents,” includes two Iowa towns, Decorah and Fairfield. Fairfield is number 99 on the list.

Referencing the influx of people who practice the Transcendental Meditation technique, the story says, “All the feel-goodness in this town carries over. There are 150 nonprofits and 400 start-up companies here, and the town is attempting to become sustainable in support of the environment.”

The number one town on Far & Wide‘s list? Monowi, Nebraska, just over the border from Iowa.

This is just the most recent in a long list of media recognitions Fairfield has received. Fairfield has become known as a center for entrepreneurship, the arts, and sustainability and has received a wide range of recognition and honors. For example:

• 2021 – “The 25 Coolest Towns in America to Visit in 2021” – Matador Network
• 2020 – Fairfield ranked among America’s top cities for young firms
• 2019 – “Fairfield to remain a ‘Great Place'” (see 2006 below)
• 2016 – Why this Iowa town is thriving when so many aren’t
• 2014 – The online news site Buzzfeed listed Fairfield #2 in its list of “11 Coolest Small Cities It’s Time to Road Trip To.” 
• 2014 — Featured on “Moving America Forward,” hosted by William Shatner, on Youtoo TV, a cable channel carried by Time Warner, Comcast, and others. The show highlights the accomplishments of individual business owners in the US — and Fairfield was the first town featured on the program, which focused on the city’s entrepreneurial spirit and how it affects residents’ quality of life. 
• 2013 – Smithsonian magazine listed Fairfield as #7 in its story about “The 20 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2013,” based on Fairfield’s qualities of entrepreneurship, sustainability, arts, and culture.
• 2012 – Oprah’s Next Chapter: Meditation – In ‘America’s Most Unusual Town’ 
• 2012 – NPR: “Fairfield, Iowa: Where ‘Art Belongs To Everyone'”
• 2010 — Milestone Award from ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability USA, in recognition of its commitment to and achievements in climate protection and sustainability.
• 2010 — Fairfield is named inaugural winner of the Grass Roots Entrepreneurship Award from the National Center for Small Communities in Washington, DC.
• 2010 – “Turning Fairfield, Iowa, Into a Rural Renaissance City” — The IEDC Economic Development Journal
• 2009 — MSN.com names Fairfield Mayor Ed Malloy one of the 15 greenest mayors in the country, along with the mayors of New York City, Chicago, and Portland. Ed Malloy chairs the MIU Board of Trustees.
• 2006 — Fairfield is named one of “Iowa’s Great Places” and receives $500,000 from the State of Iowa for community development.
• 2004 — Fairfield is named Iowa’s “Entrepreneurial Community of the Year” — the first winner of this award — by the Iowa Community Vitality Center.

The Far & Wide story links to this video about Fairfield:

Photos by Jeff Fitz-Randolph and Werner Elmker.