Story County accepts quitclaim deeds for long‑planned Ames Lake greenbelt land

Story County conservation staff told supervisors they have received quitclaim deeds for land originally acquired by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the never‑built Ames Lake and have signed the deeds for filing with the court.

Mike Cox, Story County conservation director, traced the effort back to a 1974 letter from the Story County Conservation Board to “Colonel Walter Johnson, district engineer at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,” asking that the Corps deed the Skunk River Valley land to Story County if the lake were not built. Cox said the deeds have been approved by the court, were signed by county staff and will be returned to the court for final execution.

The county presented the transfer as a long‑running conservation victory. Cox invoked the conservation board’s multi‑decade work and thanked current and past staff and board members for persistence in preserving the property for public use. Supervisors and staff applauded the accomplishment as a milestone in the county’s greenbelt planning between Ames and Story City.

Why it matters: The transfer puts Corps‑owned acreage into county stewardship for parks, habitat and public access rather than leaving it in federal ownership or development hands. County staff said some of the land will be held for future acquisitions and public‑use improvements under the conservation program.

What happens next: Staff said the deeds still need final court execution after the county filing; project planning and maintenance needs for any newly acquired acreage will proceed through existing county and conservation board processes.