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U-Haul $3 million expansion continues

T-R PHOTO BY MIKE DONAHEY
U-Haul Moving & Storage of Marshalltown will soon be offering a wide variety of indoor storage units to rent in addition to trucks, towing supplies and packing materials at 1720 S. Center St.

Chris Hall, general manager of U-Haul of Moving & Storage in Marshalltown, was not surprised to learn Iowa ranked 30th in growth in the United States in 2019.

The rankings were determined after U-Haul corporate analyzed data for country migration trends. The rankings were released in January.

“Other than the weather, Iowa and Marshalltown has a lot going for it,” Hall said Friday. “One can afford to live here. Other places are too expensive.”

Hall, a U.S. Army veteran and former California resident, moved to Marshalltown last year after he was hired to manage the giant, 98,174 square-feet complex in the former K-Mart building.

Hall and his staff keep busy seven days a week renting trailers, trucks, vans and more.

T-R PHOTO BY MIKE DONAHEY
Chris Hall, general manager of U-Haul Moving & Storage of Marshalltown, displays a 5x5 storage unit Friday in clean, climate-controlled setting.

Business has been good since it opened last summer, and Hall knows it will be busier this spring when more features open such as:

• More than 700 storage units

• An inside drive-in featuring a loading and unloading area

• A showroom.

Contractors have been installing the indoor storage units ranging from 5×5 to 10×15.

The units are being installed in two phases:

• Phase I will have more than 400 units.

• Phase II will feature more than 300 units.

Hall said he already has a waiting list of 25 people who will rent units, and he expects that to increase.

Randy Dickson of U-Haul Des Moines told the Marshalltown City Council last year the company could invest up to $2-million renovating the former retail site into a state-of-the-art moving and storage facility.

U-Haul made major improvements to the parking lot and plumbing not long after the store opened.

The building was vacant for nearly 18 months after K-Mart closed in 2017.

Iowa rose 11 spots from 41st in the growth list a year ago on the annual list. Even though there was improvement in growth, the state still has not reached previous rankings of 12th in 2017 and 13th in 2016.

Growth States are calculated by the net gain of one-way U-Haul trucks entering a state versus leaving that state during a calendar year. Migration trends data is compiled from more than 2-million one-way U-Haul truck-sharing transactions that occur annually.

U-Haul Storage Standard Advantages:

• No deposit or administrative fees

• Open 7 days a week

• Storage access 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.

• ADA accessible

• Electronically controlled access

• Individually alarmed rooms

• 24-hour video monitoring

• Indoor loading/unloading

• Extra tall rooms — 10 feet

• Automatic payment plans

• Room sizes for every need

• Free use of loading carts

• Clean customer restrooms

• Online account management

Optional Storage Services:

• 24-hour access

• Storage insurance

• Package signing and receiving

• Dumpster use

HOURS AND CONTACT:

U-Haul is open daily, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with 24-hour drop off service.

For more information about the Marshalltown location,

contact 641-752-9466, email Christopher_hall@uhaul.coom or visit uhaul.com/Locations/Truck-Rentals-near-Marshalltown-IA-50158/793081/.

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