(Arnolds Park)– The Arnolds Park City Council voted 4-1 Wednesday evening in favor of the city contributing financially to a conservation project just east of the city. Ron Walker, a spokesman for the city of Arnolds Park, tells KUOO news the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation plans to acquire 73 acres in that area formerly known as the Oar property…
“They are going to do earnest money that will allow them to have until November 3rd to raise the asking price of two million dollars for the property. It will ultimately come to the city for park land. We’ll cooperate with the Dickinson County Conservation Board to help manage it because they’re better at grasslands than we are. The Heritage Foundation put up $25,000. They’ve got donors who have so far put up five. The city matched the $25,000 with the Heritage Foundation and they need to raise $100,000 to hold the property until then, and then they think they’ll have a pretty good chance at raising the money.”
Walker says any work on the park and conservation area itself is likely still several years out…
“We’ll have to come up with some kind of development plan. I’m sure it will involve wetlands restoration, and holding ponds. There’s roughly 240 acres that drain through that property. It was zoned Environmentally Sensitive but it has recently been changed to Ag in the county. It presently is in the county. There will be a time lag, and there’s a chance for grants from the Water Quality Commission, through the NRCS, probably REAP. It will be a development plan that would be developed once the property’s procured.”
Walker says the project would solve some drainage issues on the east side Arnolds Park in particular…
“The drainage now comes through right at the Iowa Great Lakes Sanitary District’s lift station at Henderson Woods, it floods that area through there as well as Oak Street and some of the others so this year with the high water we had some problems.”
Councilman Jason Christiansen cast the lone no vote Wednesday evening on a motion that has the city of Arnolds Park contributing $25,000 to the Iowa Natural Heritage to assist in the acquisition.
