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Quality journalism needs your support to thrive. Donate and keep the facts flowing. DECORAH — Barb Schroeder, director of Winneshiek County Conservation, presented a detailed update to the Winneshiek County Board of Supervisors Tuesday morning on the Neste Valley Recreation Area development, emphasizing safety issues, project phases and grant requirements, while addressing questions about campground competition and long-term forest management. "This is part of what started out as the Dry Run Trail Project," Schroeder said. "When you look at it on a map, it's like the ideal place to have a trail head, restrooms, a park and all the amenities that go along with that and even camping." Project Background and Phasing Schroeder described how the county began working with the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation as early as 2012, eventually securing a Land and Water Conservation Fund grant to cover essential infrastructure. Architectural planning and engineering design were completed in phases, with a focus on constructing only what was necessary to meet grant obligations. "We broke it down into phases," Schroeder explained, noting that full campground features—like electricity, water, sewer and shower houses—were always considered part of long-term goals, not immediate deliverables. Schroeder noted that current work is limited to fulfilling the terms of the grant. "Today all we are doing is what is required by that grant. The driveway, the roadways in the campground and those camping spurs," she said. Safety Concerns and Delays A narrow, single-lane driveway has delayed opening the area to the public. "It's a quarter mile back to the farmstead and it's a single track so with that knob clear back, if somebody is coming, you don't see them and somebody has to back up, that's kind of dangerous," she explained. Schroeder clarified that a full campground build-out is not imminent. "We have no plans at this time or no funding to do this aspect of the campground," she said. "So it will not be a campground for quite some time. We have a lot of work to do, but we're going back to doing this work in phases as we have money and grants available." Current Usage and Future Amenities Even without full-service amenities, Schroeder emphasized the site's readiness for limited public use once current work concludes. The property already features mowed trails along the creek and receives informal visits from bird watchers. "We already have folks coming out and birding," she said. Future plans include installing picnic tables and signage, but a full campground will not open until funding becomes available. "We'll bring out more picnic tables and make it a picnicking spot," she added. Budget and Funding Outlook The estimated cost of the current phase is closely aligned with the grant budget. "We're looking at around $348,575. In that grant budget, we had estimated $354,000. So we're real close to what we said we would do in that grant," Schroeder said. Discussion turned to potential funding for future development. "I haven't looked at it because I'm out of matching money, so I'm not even going to be writing grants right now," Schroeder said. "You know, because if I look up a price right now and I don't have the money to build it, it's not a good use of my time." Campground Competition and Maintenance Concerns When Supervisor Steve Kelsay raised concerns about the county competing with private campgrounds, Schroeder responded, "I appreciate that information. I'll be sure to visit with the board." She later added, "We did raise our rates from to 15 for non electric and 20 for electric sites." Kelsay questioned the upkeep of trails and campground facilities, including mowing, tree trimming and road conditions. Schroeder acknowledged the issues and explained that limited staffing and seasonal weather delays sometimes affect response times. "We were just... we had some rains here and so, that's coming in," she said of delayed rock delivery for campground roads. On tree maintenance, she noted, "We have other folks that come to Lake Meyer because they like the shade," acknowledging the tradeoff between natural features and RV accessibility. Schroeder also addressed general campground maintenance concerns. "We try to keep up on that," she said. "You just catch a wrong day and somebody may see something they don't like, but we try to address those things." Forest Management Opportunities Shifting to forest management, Schroeder introduced a potential opportunity through the Forest Resiliency Partnership Program from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. "This is a program that, in my thirty years, I've never seen it be offered to county conservation boards," she said. "It has to be only county conservation boards that are part of this program." To meet the minimum $100,000 threshold for the grant, Schroeder suggested including a 125-acre woodland near the secondary road shop in Freeport. "We're at $58,000. The minimum is $100,000, so we're not eligible yet…This is an area where a grant like this could come in, clean up that area, select those quality trees that you want to manage for future logging," she said. She noted the county would not be responsible for performing the labor. "This would all be contract work," Schroeder said. If awarded, the grant would fund three years of work, with a 10-year management commitment. "You have to agree that you're going to manage it for ten years," Schroeder said. "If you don't keep the management in there for the next seven years… you may have to give back what you've got." While no formal vote was taken, board members acknowledged the potential value of the program. Schroeder concluded by reaffirming the broader mission: "We want to encourage the youth to camp. They're the next generation." Unlock a world of knowledge! Sign up for free DecorahNews.com newsletters and receive local news, local events and everything that is happening in and around Decorah.

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Safety, Budget Limits Shape Future of Neste Valley Recreation Area