MINDEN, Iowa (KMTV) — It’s been more than a year since a tornado on April 29, 2024 devastated Minden. Since then, homes and businesses have been rebuilt. One building that hasn’t been rebuilt, though, is the water treatment facility. Construction of a permanent facility hasn’t started due to a tangle of government red tape.
The mayor told me the current location is too small to meet new regulations for water treatment plants. If the city builds the new plant on a bigger lot, FEMA can’t pay for it because of the new location. It’s a Catch-22. After my deadline, I received an email from The Iowa Department of Homeland Security referring me to a FEMA official.
WATCH KATRINA’S STORY HERE
Minden faces red tape in rebuilding water plant after tornado destruction
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT
Anchor: Continuing coverage, now, of how our neighbors are still working to recover following last year’s Arbor Day tornadoes.
In Minden, Iowa, the storms destroyed the town’s water treatment facility. Everyone agrees they need a new one, but as Southwest Iowa reporter Katrina Markel shows us, there is a whole lot of red tape in the way.
Zimmerman: “Let’s get things rollin’.”
Katrina Markel: This is why Mayor Kevin Zimmerman is losing patience. Minden’s water treatment plant was destroyed in the Arbor Day tornado. This one is temporary, and FEMA can help the city of 600 people rebuild it, but there’s a catch.
Mayor Kevin Zimmerman: “We want to move it down, out of the area, just over to another lot.”
That’s because the mayor told me the current location is too small to meet new regulations for water treatment plants.
Katrina Markel: “If it hadn’t been for the tornado, you wouldn’t be having a struggle with the water system.”
Kevin Zimmerman: “We’d still be with the same one we had that was plenty big enough and passed all the regulations. Now that it’s gone, we have new regulations; we need a bigger building, and the lot won’t cover the building.”
Why not move the plant to a new location?
Zimmerman: “We are completely at a deadlock on the water plant with FEMA.”
Basically, city officials told me FEMA can’t pay for the plant in a new location. I called the Iowa Department of Homeland Security twice. I also called Senators Grassley and Ernst, and Representative Randy Feenstra, trying to learn more.
A spokesperson for Sen. Ernst said,”Senator Ernst’s office stands ready to help Iowans navigate dealings with any federal agencies, including FEMA.”
I also called my original contact from FEMA following the tornadoes more than a year ago. Here’s what happened: “This number is no longer in service…”
Another meeting with state and federal agencies is expected later this week.
