- Today
- Holidays
- Birthdays
- Reminders
- Cities
- Atlanta
- Austin
- Baltimore
- Berwyn
- Beverly Hills
- Birmingham
- Boston
- Brooklyn
- Buffalo
- Charlotte
- Chicago
- Cincinnati
- Cleveland
- Columbus
- Dallas
- Denver
- Detroit
- Fort Worth
- Houston
- Indianapolis
- Knoxville
- Las Vegas
- Los Angeles
- Louisville
- Madison
- Memphis
- Miami
- Milwaukee
- Minneapolis
- Nashville
- New Orleans
- New York
- Omaha
- Orlando
- Philadelphia
- Phoenix
- Pittsburgh
- Portland
- Raleigh
- Richmond
- Rutherford
- Sacramento
- Salt Lake City
- San Antonio
- San Diego
- San Francisco
- San Jose
- Seattle
- Tampa
- Tucson
- Washington
Linn Grove Today
By the People, for the People
Buena Vista County Faces New FEMA Appeal Over Linn Grove Dam Repairs
County prepares for another appeal after FEMA advances project without county's agreement on cost estimates
Published on Mar. 2, 2026
Got story updates? Submit your updates here. ›
The Buena Vista County Conservation Board is preparing to file another appeal to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) over long-delayed repairs to the Linn Grove Dam. This is the third appeal in an eight-year dispute that has included two previous appeals, a successful arbitration, and shifting cost estimates. FEMA has advanced the project without the county's concurrence, triggering a new appeal window for the county.
Why it matters
The dispute over funding for the Linn Grove Dam repairs highlights the ongoing challenges counties and local governments face in securing federal disaster relief funds from FEMA, even after successful arbitration. The shifting cost estimates and FEMA's reliance on outdated figures have left the county struggling to cover the full cost of restoring the dam and surrounding parkland damaged in 2018 and 2019 floods.
The details
FEMA currently lists the dam project at $3.1 million and the park project at $2.96 million, for a combined total of just over $6 million. However, the county's current engineering estimates show the dam project at $3.6 million and the park project at $6.2 million—a combined total of roughly $10 million. FEMA is still using the county's 2021 engineering numbers for the dam, even though the county provided updated 2025 cost estimates last spring. The county will work with the same legal firm that represented them in the previous arbitration to prepare the new appeal.
- The county has until April 2 or 3 to file the appeal.
- The dispute over the Linn Grove Dam repairs has been ongoing for eight years.
The players
Greg Johnson
Buena Vista County Conservation Director.
Nyemaster Goode
The law firm that will represent Buena Vista County in the new appeal, the same firm that represented the county during its first arbitration.
What they’re saying
“FEMA's Region 7 office has once again advanced the project without the county's concurrence, which automatically triggered a new appeal window.”
— Greg Johnson, Buena Vista County Conservation Director (stormlakeradio.com)
“FEMA is still using the county's 2021 engineering numbers for the dam—even though FEMA requested updated 2025 costs last spring and acknowledged receiving them.”
— Greg Johnson, Buena Vista County Conservation Director (stormlakeradio.com)
What’s next
The county's outside counsel will prepare the first appeal, which FEMA can either accept or deny. If denied, the county can again pursue arbitration.
The takeaway
This case highlights the ongoing challenges counties and local governments face in securing adequate federal disaster relief funds from FEMA, even after successful arbitration. The shifting cost estimates and FEMA's reliance on outdated figures have left Buena Vista County struggling to cover the full cost of restoring the Linn Grove Dam and surrounding parkland.
