Area eateries host political events, often with no profits

When Iowans lined up to hear former First Lady and 2016 Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton speak Sunday, many were willing to stand on the North Second Avenue West sidewalk for at least a couple of hours outside Uncle Nancy’s Coffee House and Eatery.

It was the latest of what will likely end up being a long series of hosted political events in Newton this year, and many of the events have been held at local eateries. With the Feb. 1 Iowa Caucus nearly five months away, there will probably be a deluge of candidates descending upon Newton and other Interstate 80 communities — overwhelming local residents with choices.

However, which eateries or venues candidates end up using is not as scientific and calculated as some voters might think — and there isn’t necessarily a same-day profit for each restaurant.

Brad and Gina Adams bought Uncle Nancy’s in 2012 and have carried on several traditions the coffee house had established before, including hosting presidential candidates. Sunday’s Clinton appearance, which drew more than 300 people, was the second major event this summer, as Martin O’Malley spoke and took questions with about 70 people on July 3.

Gina Adams said some of her very loyal customers are active with the Democratic Party, so the candidates who end up hosting an event there happen to be from that party. However, Adams said people from any party or type of group are welcome to host events at Uncle Nancy’s.

“Anybody’s welcome,” Gina Adams said.

She said Uncle Nancy’s hadn’t hosted an event outside of regular business days (the eatery isn’t open Sundays) before last weekend’s Clinton appearance. The during-hours events provided a different kind of challenge, although there didn’t appear to be regular business occurring during the O’Malley event, which took place on a Friday morning.

Clinton, as the former First Lady, travels everywhere with heavy security, and there were several non-uniformed security at Uncle Nancy’s on Sunday. More importantly — everyone who entered the business or the next-door alley to hear audio — was subject to airport-type searches that included a wand screening. A canine inspected all media gear.

The security factor limited the number of people that could attend the Clinton appearance, as did fire codes. Newton Fire Marshal Mike Knoll had a tally counter at the front door of Uncle Nancy’s and had several conversations with event organizers about ways to limit numbers.

Uncle Nancy’s might get great notoriety out of such appearances. An Associated Press photo with Adams, staff and family appeared with a New York Times website story Monday. However, hosting political events is often an expense rather than a profit-making venture, at least initially.

“This was the first time we’ve hosted something on our day off,” Adams said.

The heavy security at the former First Lady’s event made Sunday’s event unique, but candidates often travel much differently. When former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum came to an economic round-table discussion at the Newton Development Corporation last week, he was dropped off at the south end of the Des Moines Area Community College Newton Campus by himself.

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal’s June appearance at Moo’s BBQ brought in 125 people, but not a lot of business at that hour, said Moo’s owner Jeremy Biondi.

“We had some large to-go orders, but we didn’t have the regular order counter open while Jindal was in the building,” Biondi said. “So it actually hurts business for that night, but it gets a lot of people to your place.”

Biondi said the hosting process usually begins within campaigns or local party chairs, as they reach out for a type of venue that will suit the candidate and appearance. He said staff members working for various Republican and Democratic candidates have contacted Moo’s and asked questions, such as restaurant capacity, and to see photos of the interior.

Midtown Cafe was originally announced to host former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee in an early Saturday-morning town hall meeting, prior to the he Family Leadership Summit in Ames. However, when that event was rescheduled for the mid-afternoon at Pizza Ranch of Newton, Huckabee ended up speaking to only about 25 people.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie visited Iowa Speedway during a recent race weekend as part of his Republican nomination campaign, and there have been a few candidate events hosted at private homes in the county.

Bridgehouse Coffee has hosted Republican candidate Carly Fiorina earlier this summer, along with the Jasper County GOP’s small “straw poll” event and a recent appearance by Rick Harrison, a star from The History Channel’s hit TV show “Pawn Stars,” who was appearing on behalf of GOP presidential hopeful Marco Rubio.

Bridgehouse owner Brock Patterson said the Harrison appearance came together after he received a call from Justin Arnold, Rubio’s Iowa political director, asking if Bridgehouse would be interested in hosting a meet-and-greet, which appealed to both Rubio supporters and fans of “Pawn Stars.”

Republican front-runner Donald Trump hasn’t been to Newton, but Maxim Advertising owner David McNeer spoke at a Trump rally in Des Moines. Republican candidates Ben Carson, Scott Walker and Rick Perry are yet to make a Newton stop, as is Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders.

Patterson said even though the recent political events Bridgehouse have hosted involved the Republican Party, he’s open to many types proposals about using the venue for an event.

“The potential exists for any association or group to use Bridgehouse as a meeting place,” Patterson said. “If someone is interested in is hosting an event, they merely need to contact us and make arrangements.”

Contact Jason W. Brooks at 641-792-3121 ext. 6532 or jbrooks@newtondailynews.com