Photo by Janelle Tucker
The statewide nonprofit group Iowa Rivers Revival has named Dyersville its 2023 “River Town of the Year.” The group’s executive director, Luke Hoffman, says Dyersville met all of their criteria.
“Those criteria being improvements in water quality, investment in restoration and just rivers, and then finally kind of the connecting people to water or recreation elements,” he says. The North Fork of the Maquoketa River flows through downtown Dyersville – and while for many years it was viewed by some as an inconvenience due to flooding, the community is now beginning to embrace the river and take steps to improve the riverfront area. Hoffman says the city has changed that with its water plan.
“The restoration of Bear Creek for example, the wetlands at Field of Dreams, and specifically their One Water Vision plan was what drove those projects, it’s kind of what tied it all together resulting in that connecting people to water, which I think is just so important,” Hoffman says.
Dyersville Mayor Jeff Jacque says it’s a big honor. “It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity for us to receive an award like this. I can’t be prouder than our residents and all the people that help us get to this point,” Jacque says, “because there’s a lot of hands that work together. There’s a lot of opportunity here and it’s going to grow. This is just a stepping stone to grow in the future.”
The Bear Creek project was the first, and the second – – a stormwater wetland project on the North Fork just wrapped up. They’re now trying to get funding for the Dyersville Downtown Driftless Float Park project. Mayor Jacque grew up in Dyersville, and says he’s proud to see how his hometown is now embracing the water.
“The water right now is crystal clear and it’s a great place for kids to spend their summer and when you go for a walk around here just the peacefulness of the stream really awesome you could sit down here and wildlife are here the geese nesting,” he says.
The Dyersville community celebrated their “River Town of the Year” Award during a public ceremony on Wednesday at the Westside Park Pedestrian Bridge.
(By Janelle Tucker, KMCH, Manchester)