Please take the time to read this message before Monday and get back to me with your comments. While this might appear to be a local issue, it deals with federal land and is no more local than Eddyville Dunes or the Loess Hills. Therefore, I think it would be appropriate for the Chapter ExCom to make a decision on whether or not to oppose this project. I first became aware of this project about a year ago and visited the site early last fall with some of the neighbors. Becky Soglin and I had placed our names on the Corps list to be notified about the progress of this project. Unfortunately, the consultant, Zambrana, has not been thorough in getting materials out to us in a timely manner. According to the forest resource inventory of 1994, the area being considered for this project had roosting bald eagles and osprey, and rare songbirds have been found there during nesting season. A rare trillium was found on the site by a neighbor. The biological survey for this lease application was done in August, however, and nesting birds and spring ephemerals would not be found Monday, July 31 is the last day to comment during the "scoping" period. My recommendation is to endorse the Alternate Use: Redesignation of area to *low density recreation or forest reserve*. Thanks, Jane Clark [log in to unmask] - - - - - - - - VOTE NEEDED -- -- DOES THE CHAPTER EXCOM WISH TO OPPOSE THIS PROJECT? INTRODUCTION The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island District (Corps), has contracted Zambrana Engineering, Inc. (ZEI) to conduct an assessment of a nonprofit real estate lease application for the use of Corps property located adjacent to Coralville Reservoir, northeast of North Liberty, IA. The project area is located within a 106-acre site along Coralville Reservoir approximately 4 miles from North Liberty. Access to the site is via Scales Bend Road. The proposed site was formerly leased to the Girl Scouts for camping purposes until 1990. Over the intervening years the facilities have deteriorated and understory has overgrown the former campsite (Camp Daybreak). THE PREVIOUS CAMP INVOLVED ABOUT 32+ CAMPERS FOR A 2 WEEK PERIOD FOR DAYCAMP. THERE WAS NO KITCHEN AND NO HOT WATER -- IT WAS A PRIMITIVE CAMP WITH ONE OVERNIGHT DURING THE 2 WEEKS. THE CHOICES ARE: 1. The MYCA Lease Application Alternatives: 2. Reduced Use—Reduced intensity of use and development (i.e. fewer campers, fewer facilities, shorter camping season, etc.) 3. Alternate Use—Re-designation of area to low density recreation or forest reserve 4. No Action ***ITEM ON WHICH TO VOTE: The Iowa City Area Group is considering a position of endorsing the Alternate Use: Redesignation of area to *low density recreation or forest reserve*. Their main reasoning would be that the proposed project would unduly impact the site environmentally; that the site and surrounding area are not suited to support low-impact recreational use beyond day use; and that only the Alternative Use option provides permanent protection. In addition, Alternate Use would still allow groups to go on hikes and be in involved in environmental education on the site. They also would recommend that the site have improved parking (although certainly nowhere near as big as the lot proposed for 150 cars) and better signage to create fair public access to the site. PROJECT DESCRIPTION The lease applicant, Muslim Youth Camps of America (MYCA), proposes to use the former Girl Scout campsite as a summer camp for recreational and educational activities for multi-cultural campers, and as a retreat/conference site during the non-camping season. The facilities would be available for use by other nonprofit groups when not in use by MYCA. The proposed facilities at the site include ten cabins, 12 tent platforms, a lodge, a caretaker's residence, restrooms, canoe storage, access road and parking lots. Additional facilities not shown in Figure 2, include a beach on the south side of the site adjacent to the lodge and a floating boat dock on the north side of the site near the embayment area. The proposed facilities are designed to blend in with the wooded surroundings and would be located in a way to minimize the loss of large trees. The vegetation to be cleared from the site is mostly understory, saplings and small trees. As presented in MYCA's proposal, the facilities will be located on the south face of the ridge that runs in an east-west direction through the site. Trees and understory located to the north of this ridge and in the ravine to the north would remain undisturbed, except for paths to gain access to the embayment area. Usage of the site once construction is complete and the camp is fully operational, is anticipated to be approximately 120 campers per week during a 10-week summer camp period, and about 3,000 to 4,000 retreat/conference attendees spread over the remaining 42 weeks of the year. Activities during the camping season will include swimming, boating, hiking, indoor and outdoor educational activities, onsite work activities, indoor and outdoor cultural activities, and offsite field trips to local points of interest. Similar activities are also planned during the non-camping season at a lower usage level, along with conferences and meditative retreats. Alternatives being evaluated in this study include: The MYCA Lease Application Reduced Use—Reduced intensity of use and development (i.e. fewer campers, fewer facilities, shorter camping season, etc.) Alternate Use—Re-designation of area to low density recreation or forest reserve No Action Additional information for the proposed nonprofit real estate lease at the former Camp Daybreak site at Coralville Lake can be found at the Corps website: http://www.mvr.usace.army.mil/Daybreak/index.htm (Comments from Jane from last summer, when this issue first started) Hi Rex and Becky -- I stopped and walked the area with the neighbors this afternoon. My initial thoughts are -- this land belongs to us, not the Corps of Engineers. The Corps proposes to lease this for $1 or so, or at least not very much money. And then what is now public land is no longer public. It is a beautiful woodland and it would be devastated by the proposed development of a large meeting hall and 30 cabins, plus septic and parking for 160+ cars and lighting. (It is 22 cabins and platforms plus bathrooms, lodge, etc.) It would be the only development on the lake edge. We would object if a developer wanted to build houses on this Corps property. With the ever increasing loss of natural areas, why would we not object to this? We don't have many pristine areas in Iowa, and I would say this is a pretty decent place, especially since it appears to be part of a contiguous border around the lake. This development would seriously fragment that border. I did not get into the woodland and walk, but the lakeside woods reminded me of Michigan forests. The few natural areas we have left in this state are still recovering from decades and decades of abuse, and this tract is well on its way toward recovery. If we don't save these areas, we're set back another 60-90 years to catch up. When this land was purchased by the Corps, I would imagine at least some of it was set aside for habitat, and to compensate for the loss of woodland covered by the lake. The environmental assessment is being done late in the summer, which means that all spring flowers and breeding birds won't be surveyed. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - For SC email list T-and-C, send: GET TERMS-AND-CONDITIONS.CURRENT to [log in to unmask]