Buena Vista County is once again in a holding pattern as it waits for the Federal Emergency Management Agency to review the county’s latest appeal over long‑delayed repairs to the Linn Grove Dam and adjacent parkland.
The update came during a special monthly meeting of the Buena Vista County Conservation Board on April 7, where Conservation Director Greg Johnson told board members the county has formally submitted its appeal challenging FEMA’s February 3rd project write‑up.
Johnson told Storm Lake Radio the appeal stems from FEMA’s decision earlier this year to advance both the dam and park projects through its internal system without the county’s concurrence. That triggered a new 60‑day appeal window—one the county met after the conservation board approved an updated agreement with its legal counsel, Nyemaster Goode of Des Moines.
He says the appeal is now in the hands of the State of Iowa for initial review before it moves on to FEMA’s Region 7 office.
Once the state completes its review, FEMA Region 7 will decide whether to accept or deny the appeal. If the agency denies it, Johnson says the county already knows what its next step would be.
Arbitration is not new territory for Buena Vista County. In 2025, the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals ruled that the dam project is eligible for FEMA funding — after FEMA had previously de‑obligated both the dam and park projects entirely. But Johnson says FEMA’s February determination still relies on the county’s 2021 engineering estimates, even though FEMA requested and received updated 2025 numbers last year.
The county argues that “reasonable cost” should reflect the 2025 estimates, not numbers that are now five years old. And for the park project, Johnson says the disagreement goes beyond cost inflation.
Until FEMA rules on the appeal, Johnson says the county can’t move forward with any construction or repairs at the site. Federal public‑assistance rules require an agreed‑upon scope of work before any physical work can begin.
As for what ultimately needs to be done at the dam and park, Johnson says FEMA’s process focuses on restoring the site to pre‑disaster conditions. But the county believes simply rebuilding what was there before the 2018 and 2019 floods would leave the area vulnerable to future damage.
For now, the county waits—again. Johnson says there’s far more complexity behind the scenes, but the bottom line is simple: the appeal is filed, and the county can’t act until FEMA responds.
FEMA has no set timeline for issuing a decision once the state forwards the county’s appeal.
