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Coralville commission names West Land Use park 'Colony Natural Recreation Area' to protect rare fens
Summary
The Coralville Parks and Recreation Commission unanimously approved naming the new West Land Use Area park the Colony Natural Recreation Area on April 20, highlighting efforts to preserve two rare fens and noting grant funding that helped finance the purchase.
The Coralville Parks and Recreation Commission voted unanimously April 20 to name the soon-to-open West Land Use Area park the "Colony Natural Recreation Area." The motion was made by Commissioner Mackensie Graham and approved by all commission members.
City staff told the commission the 60-acre parcel was purchased from the Colony family in 2021 with a mix of grants and local funding. Sherri Proud, director of parks, said the purchase and related grants were aimed at preserving two fen wetlands identified on the property in 2007 and protecting surrounding buffer lands from development.
The packet materials prepared for the meeting note that the City received multiple Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) grants and a 2022 Timber Stand Improvement grant totaling $101,000, of which $85,000 was applied to this property. Proud also said the City used a State Revolving Fund loan tied to wastewater plant improvements to acquire additional acreage that will help capture stormwater runoff. The Iowa Department of Transportation is purchasing 7.5 acres immediately north of the site related to interchange work; combined with the REAP-supported acreage, staff said roughly 15 acres of fen and buffer will be protected in this phase of acquisition.
According to the materials presented, the fen areas are saturated, groundwater-fed wetlands that are less common in Iowa than wet meadows or emergent wetlands and play roles in groundwater recharge and stormwater management. The packet describes one fen at about two acres with a 5.5-acre surrounding buffer, and staff noted the site’s past use as row crop farmland that had been returned to grazing prior to the City purchase.
The commission’s naming decision follows discussions with the Colony family, who suggested names including "Colony Country Park" and "Colony Natural Park." City staff recommended the name "Colony Natural Recreation Area," aligning the new site’s name with other Coralville natural spaces labeled as "Recreation Areas." The commission approved that recommendation without objection.
Next steps specified in the meeting packet include continued phased acquisitions of adjacent acreage to expand the future park and planned improvements to support pedestrian hiking; staff noted the site is approximately a quarter-mile hike in from the nearest access and that improvements will be planned to preserve the site’s natural character.
Action recorded: motion to name the parcel "Colony Natural Recreation Area," mover: Mackensie Graham, outcome: approved unanimously. The commission did not record individual roll-call votes beyond noting all members were in favor.
