Buchanan County’s money pit

The road to government waste is paved with good intentions. No one ever says, ‘let’s build a giant hole and bury $6 million in taxpayer money.”

At least not out loud. The waste part only becomes apparent after years of cost overruns and a limited return on investment. It turns out the bridge really does lead to nowhere.

Buchanan County, led by Western District Commissioner Ron Hook, seems intent on leading county taxpayers toward its own version of a costly big dig. The off-again, on-again dream of revitalizing Lake Contrary seems to be gaining momentum with a plan to spray the lakebed with a weed-killing chemical as a precursor to full-scale dredging. 

There’s no question this lake, which is located outside the city limits, is in sorry condition. Without dredging, it shares the fate of all oxbow lakes: slow decline into a sediment-filled bog. 

The question is whether the county has put forward a viable plan for saving the lake and whether the promised economic and recreational benefits will materialize. County officials breezily suggest dredging the lake for $6 million, but other media accounts have put the figure at $8 million to $11 million. It’s also worth asking whether the county is including the cost of disposing of the dredged material, which can be expensive depending on whether it’s dumped in the river or applied on farmland.

This is a considerable financial commitment any way you slice it. Taxpayers deserve full transparency on where the money is coming from and what the county would be giving up – roads, crime prevention, economic development, etc. – to put so many of its eggs in Lake Contrary’s basket.

Lake Manawa, an oxbow lake near Council Bluffs, Iowa, was dredged for $4.2 million in 2016. It’s reasonable to believe that costs have risen since then. It’s also worth noting that the state of Iowa contributed to the cost of dredging.

At Lake Contrary, Buchanan County might be on its own in shouldering the burden, which speaks volumes about what other agencies think of this project.

Before moving forward, the county needs to ask someone other than a Lake Contrary property owner about the costs and benefits. The county likes to point to Mozingo Lake, which did produce an economic benefit for Nodaway County. However, the federal government contributed to Mozingo’s development because the lake serves as a water source for Maryville.

Lake Contrary lacks that kind of utility, which means Uncle Sam is less likely to pitch in. Nor was Mozingo plagued with the kind of crime and property maintenance issues that make it a steep challenge to get Lake Contrary anywhere close to what it once was.

The decision to spray for weeds puts Buchanan County closer to a point of no return on dredging. This might be a good deal if you own lake property or a speedboat, but the rest of us are wondering if this is another bridge to nowhere.