Executive Director,

Tracy Daugherty Miller
Community Development Planner,

John McCurdy

Marketing and Design,

Kathleen Chester

August 2006

Volume 2, Issue 8

MEETING AND MANAGING CHANGE

Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) representatives from the Indiana and New Hampshire Divisions arrived in Centerville on Thursday, August 24, along with Indiana and New Hampshire Departments of Transportation (DOT) District officials for a transportation planning peer review. The event was hosted by Chariton Valley Planning and Development.

 

"Iowa's rural planning program is considered by the Federal Highway Administration to be one of the best rural planning programs in the United States," Franklin says.

 

A question posed by one Federal Highway Administration official was, if more federal dollars were made available for transportation improvements, would Iowa be able to match the extra funds.

 

An array of responses

Chariton Valley Planning and Development hosts Federal Highway Administration Peer Exchange

followed but with the same answer: there isn't enough extra local money to match the funds. John Goode, Monroe County Engineer said most Iowa counties have been dealing with reduced budgets and have been trying to make improvements on less money so maintaining a safe road system is a challenge.

 

Dennis Ryan, CVTPA Chairperson added he has been asked about raising weight limits to accommodate the larger and heavier agricultural vehicles.

 

"We just can't. It will be our roads it will hurt and we don't have the funds to fix them," he explained.

 

However, Daugherty Miller explained that the county engineers in the area have found creative ways to bring in the dollars to replace a portion of the aging bridge systems, including the use of on road and off road

structures.

 

Nels Christensen says he came to Iowa from South Dakota and while he has only been in Iowa six months, it has been enough time to see the value of this region's planning organization.

 

Ryan agreed that the counties involved with regional planning work well together and work hard to help each other.  

 

The group traveled by bus to view various transportation enhancement projects as well as the Honey Creek Resort State Park destination site.

 

Daugherty Miller said the peer exchange offered a wonderful opportunity to share planning strategies. "The connection has been made and hopefully the communication will continue."

 

 

 

Bill Duey, Rathbun Lake Operations Manager, discusses the Rathbun Lake Resort State Park with Federal Highway Administration Peer Exchange participants.

Mission Statement
Incorporated in May 2004, Chariton Valley Planning and Development will conduct business as a 501(c)3
corporation for the purpose of enhancing economic prosperity and planned growth in order to improve
quality of life in Appanoose, Lucas, Monroe, Wayne and contiguous counties in the State of Iowa. Primary activities will serve to stimulate and support: job creation; business investment; attraction and
retention of a skilled workforce; quality of life, recreation, and cultural enhancements; provide for
infrastructure installation and maintenance.

Historic Hills Corridor goes to the State Fair

Along with prized fruits and vegetables, a butter cow, and ice sculptures, the Historic Hills Corridor Redbud Tree Planting Program exhibit took its place in the Agricultural Building at the 2006 Iowa State Fair.  The exhibit is estimated to have been viewed by 300,000 fair goers which pass through the Ag Building during the ten day event.

 

While the butter cow and ice sculptures are now just a memory of this year’s fair, the Historic Hills Corridor Redbud Tree will live on as the Redbud tree featured in the exhibit is to be planted on the Iowa State Fairgrounds.

 

A marker identifying the tree as a Historic Hills Redbud tree is expected to be installed sometime before the 2007 state fair.

Pictured left to right: Joyce Bieber, Appanoose County; Stacey Glandon; Van Buren County; John McCurdy, Chariton Valley Planning & Development; Arnie Sohn, Iowa Department of Natural Resources; Dolores Burkland; Appanoose County; Linda Howard; Appanoose County; and Dan Tomitech, Monroe County.

Historic Hills Advisory Committee members met at Sharon Bluffs State Park in Appanoose County recently to learn more about the progress being made on the Honey Creek Resort State Park—Iowa’s first premier destination park.

 

Arnie Sohn, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Special Projects, presented the most recent master plan for the park. He told the group one of the final hurdles in the multi-year long planning process was to receive bonding authority, which was obtained a short time ago.

 

Many have inquired as to whether lots would be available for purchase. Sohn says lots are not available within the destination park as the area will remain public land.

 

Sohn says the destination park is slated to open May, 2008, with construction to begin later this fall.