Diamond Lake’s Future Development Project:
Click here for
a drawing of the project.
Click here for work in
progress photos.
The Poweshiek County Conservation
Board has recently acquired (2006) 86 acres of land (Jordan Land)
which lies directly east of Diamond Lake Park. Funding for this
land acquisition project came from a Land and Water Conservation
Grant (a federal grant), with the remaining funds coming from the
Brownell’s Family Foundation, Poweshiek County Board of Supervisors
and Diamond Lake camping receipts.
With this acquisition, the Board will
now be able to enhance and protect the Diamond Lake watershed, as
well as, develop this area for additional recreational opportunities
with the construction of a modern campground.
This 1.5 million dollar project will
focus on the development of the new campground at Diamond Lake. The
Board’s design of the campground area would include: constructing a
new 45 site electrical campground with asphalt roads and gravel
camping pads; constructing small tent camping area; constructing a
playground; constructing a restroom/shower house facility;
constructing a small picnic area; planting several (85) trees
throughout the proposed campground; and planting several acres of
native grass and forbs that would surround the campground.
Construction on the campground will hopefully start in 2010.
The Board started construction last
fall (2007) and will finish this spring on the 7 acre pond with a
silt basin at the east end. This pond project will further protect
the water quality of Diamond Lake from the east side (the last major
drainage coming into Diamond Lake which has no protection). The
Board has received two State Fish Habitat Stamp Grants, the first to
cover the cost of constructing the pond, and the second, a grant to
armor the shoreline and jetties with rip rap (large rocks).
The Board has also secured DOT
Enhancement funds to construct a one mile asphalt trail that would
run from Diamond Lake to the City of Montezuma. This trail will
connect with the proposed new campground. The $170,000 Region 6 DOT
Grant becomes available in FY ’10 and construction on the trail
should start in FY ’11.
The last phase of
the development for this 86 acre project is the construction of four
to six camping cabins located at the extreme south end of the 86
acres, just off County Road F-57. The Board would like start on the
cabins hopefully within the next 5 to 10 years, of course, when
depends on available funding.