Parks board looking at riverfront campground

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BY CHUCK VANDENBERG
PCC EDITOR

FORT MADISON - A parking lot at the west end of Riverview Park might work as an RV camping area.

At least that's what the Fort Madison Parks and Recreation Board heard at Wednesday's regular meeting at City Hall.

DRISCOLL

Larry Driscoll, the city's Public Works director, told the board that he wanted to apply for a grant of up to $150,000 to look at turning the upper parking lot, which is just north of where the old Riverboat casino used to dock, into a campground for recreational campers. No tent camping would be allowed.

Driscoll said camping is growing in the area and there are several other RV camping areas in southeast Iowa that are usually full in the summer.

"You see the RV park in Mt. Pleasant and it's full all the time. There's nothing to do there, I just think they like to camp," Driscoll said.

Driscoll said campers have access to the catwalk over the tracks and could get downtown and visit the stores and restaurants there.

"I think it would be more utilized down there than you see at Rodeo Park," Driscoll told the board.

"I think it would pretty cost effective, too. You've got water there, sewer there, and we got concrete there. All we'd be doing is creating some green space around the RVs. There is some questionable turning points that are tough, but that doesn't mean we couldn't cut a road down to the lower parking lots so you can get out easier."

The recommendation would require a resolution from the City Council to allow Driscoll to apply for the grant.

"That's something I think's worth looking at and talking about," Board member Jim Decker said.

Driscoll said he could apply for a state recreational grant which would cover 95% of the cost to rehab the area for camping. The city would also see revenues from camping fees.

Board member Sue Pieper said she wouldn't want people taking up residency at the lot and then trashing the place. Driscoll said the city would collect a fee, and people could stay most of the year, but they would take the units out over winter.

In an unrelated issue, Driscoll said the Fort Madison YMCA is on board with managing the city pool for another year. He said before the YMCA took over management of the pool, the city was spending up to $75,000 per year and those costs have dropped to about $45,000.

He said the city had some maintenance to do this year that will cost a little more, including replacing some expensive pumps.

"We're actually replacing two high service pumps that service the slide and recirculation. We're doing some slide work and metal work with Huffman Welding to get that back up to snuff," Driscoll said.

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campground, fort madison, Pen City Current

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