Government : Watershed Project Underway in Vinton

Middle Cedar Watershed Wetland Basin moves forward in Vinton

Many of you have asked about the digging and dirt-moving along Highway 218 and C Ave. (For those from the area, the old Corbett property.)

Back in January of 2019, Adam Rodenberg presented the project to the City Council and was working with the Benton County Supervisors on other projects in the county. Another can be found south of Garrison on former Noe property.

The council began working on this proposal with the Corbetts and the Watershed Management Authority back in 2017. You might ask, "What is the Middle Cedar Watershed Wetland Basin," as I did. The project is a large area used to contain enough water in the southern part of Vinton in an attempt to help prevent flooding in other areas of town. Benton County is just a small part of the project.

The Middle Cedar Watershed (MCW) covers ~1.5 million acres (~2,400 square miles) in East Central Iowa and spans 10 counties: Franklin, Hardin, Butler, Grundy, Marshall, Tama, Blackhawk, Buchanan, Benton, and Linn counties. The MCW consists of mostly agricultural lands (~73%) but also includes many small towns (e.g. Vinton, Traer, and Grundy Center) and several large metro areas (e.g. Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, and Cedar Falls). The Middle Cedar Watershed Management Authority (MCWMA) was formed as a result of a nearly $97 million grant awarded to the State of Iowa from the US Housing and Urban Development under the title, "Iowa Watershed Approach" (IWA). The MCWMA is filed through the State under a 28-E agreement its members consist of Cities, Counties, and Soil and Water Conservation Districts. The MCWMA works collectively to address water quality, water quantity, as well as other environmental issues that cross jurisdictional boundaries.

The city purchased land owned by the family of the late Dr. Corbett which is located between highways 150 and 218. The project will include just about 10 acres of land. The cost of this land purchase and the project is covered by grants available for needs such as this.

There are two creeks that affect flooding in Vinton. Mud Creek runs through the southern part of Vinton and affects the high school baseball diamond and the area behind Tilford Elementary (the last few years the fields have been unusable for weeks due to flooding) and the Bascom addition.

Henkle Creek, one that is more obvious to those in the downtown area is the other creek that causes flooding in Vinton. Lately, this creek has risen high enough to close 3rd St. and affect areas on 4th St.

With the completion of this project, it should help to reduce water making it to these areas.