Pottawattamie County authorizes jurisdiction form to install Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail signs, requires volunteer release and county installation of

The Pottawattamie County Board of Supervisors on a motion authorized the board chair to sign a jurisdiction form to accept replacement signs for the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail and to allow volunteers to assist with installation under a county release and oversight.

The item matters locally because the Department of the Interior (National Park Service) is providing updated trail signs for counties along the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail at no cost to the counties; Pottawattamie County has about 20 signs identified for replacement and is one of the final Iowa counties in the project.

Natalie Hagen, the meeting presenter, told the board the National Park Service has provided the signs and that most existing posts in the county can be reused; she said the county’s inventory lists about 20 signs (labeled A through P) and that volunteers and local groups have offered to help with installation. She said some posts can be reused and that a small number of posts are missing. Jody Morris, project manager for secondary roads, and other supervisors raised questions about liability, maintenance and who would be responsible if signs were damaged or stolen after installation.

Board members and staff discussed several practical details: which signs sit on Iowa Department of Transportation rights-of-way (those remain under IDOT), which are on county right-of-way, and the role of local cities and volunteer groups in “adopting” particular signs. Community organizations mentioned in the discussion included the Pottawattamie County Genealogical Society, the Iowa Trails Association and a volunteer identified as Marsha Shadwick of the Daughters of the American Revolution, who offered to help coordinate volunteers and local work.

Supervisors said they did not want a patchwork process where volunteers installed signs but the county remained responsible for maintenance and public inquiries. As a result the board required that any non-county person or group installing signs on county right-of-way sign a release form drafted by county legal and that the county roads department remain the central contact for complaints or maintenance requests. The board also agreed in the motion that county roads staff would install the single missing post within the county’s right-of-way identified during the discussion.

The board made a formal motion to authorize the chair to sign the jurisdiction form and to require a release form for non-county installers; the motion passed. The board directed county legal to prepare a release for volunteers, county roads to oversee installation and to accept photographic verification of installed signs from volunteers when appropriate.

Background included local historical context cited during the discussion: speakers noted the county’s connections to Mormon pioneer history (references to Kanesville, pioneer cemeteries and local interpretive panels) and that some communities want to “adopt” signs and post locations. The presenter asked the board to confirm the county would provide oversight and limited installation support so the project could be completed before winter 2025.

The vote authorizing the chair to sign the jurisdiction form was recorded as passed; the board instructed staff to return any final agreements or the volunteer release to the board for signature or acknowledgement as needed.

Next steps noted: county legal will prepare a volunteer release and clarify whether city-located signs fall under city or county responsibility; roads staff will install the identified missing post; volunteers will be asked to document installations and report maintenance issues to the roads department.