Linn County preliminarily approves FY27 conservation budget; Morgan Creek Lodge, trails and land gifts highlighted

The Linn County Board of Supervisors on Dec. 19 preliminarily approved the Conservation Department’s FY27 appropriations of $11,747,736 and projected revenues of $5,031,350 after a presentation by county staff that highlighted major projects and recent land acquisitions.

Dawn Jindrich, the county finance director, told supervisors the FY27 Conservation appropriation request is $11,747,736 with revenues of $5,031,350 and that the year‑over‑year decline from FY26 reflects a roughly $5 million bond that was included in the prior year. Jindrich said the Conservation budget exceeds county guidelines by about $18,000, driven mainly by higher utility costs at existing parks and at the new Morgan Creek Lodge.

Dennis (conservation staff) gave the department’s presentation, saying the county’s conservation system draws an estimated 2,000,000 visits a year across roughly 35 locations and about 9,100 acres. He said the department is projecting an initial shortfall in the lodge’s first year of operation and requested an $18,000 guideline increase to cover additional utility and custodial costs (examples given: $4,000 for Fireflies electricity, $10,000 for the lodge’s electricity, $3,000 for natural gas and $1,000 for consumables), which staff said would be more than covered by lodge revenues over time.

Daniel Gibbons of Linn County Conservation outlined recent land activity, including an addition to Pinnicon (Pinneken) Ridge Park and a donated 7.7‑acre parcel from the Cedar Rapids School District to address erosion and create a treatment wetland that will reduce sediment entering Morgan Creek, a watershed noted as important to Cedar Rapids’ drinking-water supplies.

Staff also described capital and maintenance priorities: continued work on the interurban trail from Cedar Rapids toward Mount Vernon (initial engineering and the first segment to Irish Lane), resurfacing older trail sections, a planned replacement of a pedestrian bridge at Pemnican Ridge with a concrete deck, baffle replacement at the shooting range, and an ongoing cashless camping initiative planned for FY27 to move reservations and payments to credit‑card only after a one‑year transition to address existing coupon/booklet redemption.

The presentation identified several funding sources: local option sales tax (projected at about $1.9 million), state REAP (Resource Enhancement and Protection) grants (staff projected a potential $62,000 award, subject to legislative allocation), and the county’s Land and Water Legacy bond program. Staff noted the conservation program has leveraged more than $13,032,000 in grant funds since 2017 to augment bond investments.

Board members asked about staffing and maintenance implications of new land acquisitions and about coordination with other county property managers and the DOT for trail routing and easements. Supervisors praised the conservation work and asked staff to continue improving reporting on federal and MPO funds that flow through reserve accounts for reimbursement.

Chair Unidentified Speaker 1 moved to preliminarily approve the Conservation budget; the motion was seconded and carried by voice vote.

Votes at a glance - Conservation (preliminary): Appropriations $11,747,736; Revenues $5,031,350 — Motion carried (voice vote). - Risk Management (preliminary): Appropriations $470,303; Revenues $459,603 — Motion carried (voice vote). - Soil Conservation (preliminary): Appropriations $387,299; Revenues $211,014 — Motion carried (voice vote). - Juvenile Justice (preliminary): Appropriations $220,108 — Motion carried (voice vote).

What’s next The approvals are preliminary budget motions; staff said they will update the budgets in scheduled fall/spring amendments as grant awards and reimbursements materialize. The board moved into a closed session at the end of the meeting to discuss one draft ordinance and one draft agreement under Iowa Code provisions cited in the record.