The Iowa County Board of Supervisors voted to approve Resolution 2025-08-29 on Aug. 29, authorizing a drainage-district levy intended to accumulate funds for future river-bank stabilization and related drainage work.

Presenters told the board the levy rate under consideration is about $22.20 per $1,000 of taxable valuation, which was estimated to raise roughly $225,000 per year and about $1.125 million over five years. County staff said earlier engineering estimates for the prioritized bank-stabilization work range from $850,000 to $1.1 million.

A county staff presenter explained the plan: raise and segregate funds in a named drainage-district account so money is available if river movement or bank failure requires rapid response. The presenter said the county will ask the treasurer to place funds into a separate account earmarked for the drainage district so the money is committed to the project even if board membership changes in future years.

Engineering and funding context: staff said their usual engineer had flagged the project as requiring specialized scribe modeling and that the county had been speaking with HR Green and other firms about engineering support. Staff said they had also asked the assessor’s office for taxable valuation figures used to calculate the levy projections.

Board members noted the project is not an immediate emergency but emphasized the need to plan years ahead because river movement can accelerate bank loss. One staffer described pictures showing gradual erosion and said because of river dynamics, the county may need to act quickly in future years.

After discussion, a supervisor moved and the board approved Resolution 2025-08-29. The county clerk and county staff will proceed with the drainage-district filing and with follow-up items needed to effect the levy and segregate funds for the project.

Ending: Staff said they will return with more detailed maintenance and funding information next year and will manage the drainage-district account separately to preserve funds for future bank-stabilization work.