Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the County Services topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
County departments recap 2025: general assistance, communications and conservation projects
Summary
Black Hawk County department heads highlighted 2025 accomplishments: general assistance supported about 2,486 households; communications saw a 20% increase in website users; conservation completed major ARPA-funded trail and lake restoration projects.
Multiple county departments presented year-end highlights to the Board of Supervisors on Dec. 2.
General Assistance (Colleen) reported heavy caseloads and partnerships with Alliance, Jesse Caspi and Operation Threshold. She said the office assisted approximately 2,486 households with basic needs — rent, utilities, transit and medications — and provided funeral services for 86 families. "We were doing about 80 intakes a week for about 3 months," she said, describing a summer surge in need when other partner funds were exhausted.
Gabby DeWitt, the county's marketing coordinator, reported digital metrics and programming highlights. Website users rose about 20% year over year, new users increased 22% and sessions grew about 7%. Top search queries included property taxes, marriage licenses, birth certificates and motor-vehicle services; video outreach produced thousands of views and sponsorship link clicks.
Mike Henderson, director of Black Hawk County Conservation, reviewed capital projects completed or advanced in 2025. Highlights included the completion of several playgrounds, hard-surfacing of the Cedar Valley Nature Trail (ARPA-supported, roughly $5 million in scope), and the KC Lake restoration (contracted dredging removed approximately 154,000 cubic yards of sediment with an alum treatment to follow subject to core-sample analysis). Henderson said docks and a floating fishing dock were added to Casey Lake (grant and REAP match funding) and erosion-control work at Hartman Preserve restored streambank and habitat.
Treasurer Linda Hintzeman summarized operations and customer-service changes: a remodeled office and kiosk check-in system, early mailing of property tax statements (over 70,000 notices), and more than 32,900 title transfers processed year to date. She said a DOT-managed kiosk platform is slated for 2026 and the office is preparing to adopt the system.
Supervisors offered thanks and asked follow-up questions about service continuity, funding sources and planned public events. No formal board actions were required for the department presentations.
