On Friday, August 3, a portion of the newly constructed RV campground at Big Hollow Recreation Area, near Sperry, Iowa welcomed its first RV campers after a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony by the Burlington Chamber of Commerce. Utilities are not yet available in the campground but campers will be able to fill water tanks from the hydrant at the nearby tent camping area. Until enough money is raised to install electricity, campers will need to provide their own electricity via batteries or generators. By fall, it is likely that electric service will be run to the area but the timeline for electricity at the individual campsites will depend on the success of future fundraising efforts.
Throughout the year, Des Moines County Conservation has been celebrating its 50th Anniversary with numerous events, some of which have raised funds for the project via the Partners for Conservation's "One Million in One Year" campaign which seeks to raise the $1 million needed to finish the development at Big Hollow. A generous $100,000 donation from the Harry & Virginia Murray Foundation helped kick-start the campground project earlier this summer. Now, for the first time ever, RVs will have a spot to set up camp at Big Hollow.
Still to come at Big Hollow are utilities to each campsite, a shower house at the campground, a shower house and concession stand at the beach and rental cabins. Though it will take roughly $700,000 more in grants and private donations to make all of those facilities a reality, DMCC staff estimate the shower houses and concession stand could probably become reality with half that amount. The biggest cost will be the wastewater system needed to service those facilities, at an estimated cost of $125,000. Until the wastewater system is in, none of those other facilities are possible.
