In the event of approval of a U.S. Natural Park Service grant, Big Hollow Recreation Area located in Des Moines County, Iowa will expand by 50% over the coming years, according to a report.
The Des Moines County Board of Supervisors submitted a grant request last week to fund the $300,000 expansion of Big Hollow, including adding campsites and improving accessibility.
The Land and Water Conservation Fund, funded through the National Parks Service, seeks to support “close-to-home” recreation at the local and state levels. Local-level grants that require a 50% match are managed by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The conservation department has asked for around $150,000.
Big Hollow is the county’s largest camping area and provides modern amenities in addition to rustic tent and cabin camping. One of the main goals of the grant is the addition of 18 RV sites, expanding the park’s capacity to 50 campsites.
The additional campsites could bring $27,000 for conservation, provided they are filled with weekend visitors throughout the season that runs from April to October.
Des Moines County Conservation Director Chris Lee shared that the park’s occupancy rate for the entire season is around 60%, which implies that the campsites have the possibility of earning $57,000 annually.
This story originally appeared on The Hawk Eye.