Input sought on park needs-Pottawattamie County

Three public meetings will be held next week to gather public comment and ideas on parks, recreation and leisure facility needs throughout Pottawattamie County.

Recreation planning consultants from Winston Associates and Ballard-King & Associates will describe their work and invite input from a broad cross-section of county residents. The needs assessment is being funded by the Iowa West Foundation.

The three public meetings are scheduled in Council Bluffs, Carson and Avoca as follows:

• Monday, April 25, beginning at 7 p.m., at the Lied Center on the campus of Iowa School for the Deaf in Council Bluffs. 
• Tuesday, April 26, also at 7 p.m., at Carson Community Center in Carson. 
• Wednesday, April 27, beginning at 5 p.m., at A-H-S-T High School in Avoca.

The public and media are encouraged to attend. Each meeting will last up to two hours. The meetings will feature keypad-voting devices for audience participation.

The study will be further informed by 5,000 mail-back surveys that will soon be mailed to randomly selected residents in the county, in proportion to population of each municipality.

Two weeks following the random survey, the survey will be open online to any county resident. A texting survey for Pottawattamie County youth between 13 and 21 years old is now “live” and can be accessed at (712) 560-9078.

Survey results and other information will be posted online to a dedicated website,
IowaWestRecStudy.org, where residents can monitor the progress of the study and post comments.

Consultants are assessing existing assets and future needs in order to offer analysis-based recommendations in regard to what facilities are needed in the county and where those facilities could best serve the residents.

There is also a countywide Recreation Needs Assessment Advisory Group including 27 local representatives from the county.

Two Great Water Trails Opening on June 19

Iowa River Greenbelt Water Trail Dedication

The 52-mile Iowa River Greenbelt Water Trail will be officially dedicated at 10 a.m. June 19, with the Steamboat Rock Portage dedication, followed by the Water Trail and Alden Portage ceremony. A public paddle from the Alden Portage to Weavers Cove will be at 2:30 p.m.

Following the paddle, participants are invited to the Calkins Nature Center for a watershed presentation and complementary meal. The presentation and meal will begin at 6:30 p.m. Participants are encouraged to bring their own canoe or kayak, although there will be a limited number of canoes and kayaks available to borrow. Contact Dave Sweeney - Southfork Watershed Alliance at dsweeney@iowatelecom.net or 641-373-4340 to reserve a canoe or kayak.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources, in addition to grants, supported the effort with guidance and advice from the DNR's River Programs team who worked with Hardin County Conservation and volunteer groups to ensure the river trail was developed according to DNR guidelines. The staff also provided physical labor for projects along the trail. The DNR's River Programs team constructed a new portage at the Steamboat Rock Dam in the fall of 2009 with final touches just being completed in the last few weeks.

"The Iowa River and its surrounding greenbelt have had a huge amount of support from the local communities over more than 60 years," said Nate Hoogeveen, River Programs coordinator for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. "In many ways, this water trails project is a culmination of several generations of conservation and recreation work along the Iowa River in Hardin County."

The dedication is hosted by the Iowa River Greenbelt Resource Trust, Hardin County Conservation, the Iowa DNR and the Southfork Watershed Alliance.

West Nishnabotna Water Trail Grand Opening

A grand opening of the West Nishnabotna Water Trail will be held on Saturday, June 19, with a ribbon cutting at 9 a.m., in the Iowa Edgington Memorial Park in Avoca. The grand opening is hosted by the Pottawattamie Conservation Board and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Water Trails program.

This day-long event will include a river race, kid's games, a public float and a canoe and kayak demonstration by the DNR's Water Trails team. Avoca mayor Scott Pigsley and Macedonia mayor Terry Pullen will be a few of the speakers at the ribbon cutting.

The West Nishnabotna Water Trail will be a 27 mile segment running from Avoca to Macedonia with access points along the route allowing paddlers to paddle just a section of their choice or the entire trail.

"The Nishnabotna is within a short drive of a huge number of people," said Nate Hoogeveen, with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources River Programs. "This river tells a great story of how a river that descends into poor quality can improve over time."

Go to Rubber Duck Outfitters for complete details and a schedule for the events.