After more than 10 years of planning, movement on the campground at the Green Castle Recreation Area occurred Monday night during the Marshall County Conservation Board meeting.

After a public hearing, board members accepted the lowest bid from Weidner Construction at a little more than $1 million. Marshall County Conservation Director Emily Herring said they had five bids on the project.

The Marshalltown based company is scheduled to begin construction in April, and it is expected to be completed in October.

“Depending on the weather, it may be open for a few weeks in October or November, depending on how cold it gets,” she said. “It will be open for sure in the spring of 2025.”

The second campground for Marshall County Conservation will feature a six-stall shower house, two accessible sites and 14 campsites along the lake.

“It’s going to be a great place for a campground,” Herring said.

The project near Ferguson was previously put out to bid after the county received just shy of $680,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money earmarked for Green Castle, but a lone bid from Con-Struct was submitted at more than $1 million in March 2022. Herring said the project also received a $400,000 Destination Iowa grant.

“Everybody is very excited,” she said. “We’ve had a lot of support from the community, board of supervisors. Everybody has wanted the project. It’s just taken a while to fundraise for it. Now that we’re there, we’re really excited for it to come. We appreciate everybody’s support and look forward to having the facility for residents of Marshall County and visitors.”

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Contact Lana Bradstream at 641-753-6611 ext. 210 or lbradstream@timesrepublican.com.