The future of the old fort replica in Fort Madison’s Riverview Park is up for discussion in the community.
A city inspection found numerous problems, such as leaky roofs and crumbling foundations. Several of the buildings are unstable.
“While there was an awareness of it needing some love, there was not awareness that it had deteriorated to that point,” said Mayor Matt Mohrfeld.
“Now we’re looking down the barrel of a nice attraction in Ft. Madison that, overnight, we can’t use it.”
The replica is now closed to the public due to safety concerns.
Mohrfeld said an architectural study in 2014found the site in need of some repairs. The mayor said the old fort’s current condition is the culmination of years of neglecting a long-term maintenance plan and the funding that would go with it.
“What we really need to do now is put our solution hat on, and really dig deep and try to draw together for the path forward,” he said.
Toward that end, the city will hold a meeting on the topic on Tuesday, January 31. It will begin after a city council budget workshop.
Mohrfeld said public comments will be allowed during the meeting. The mayor said he wants to hear input from the community and he is open to ideas.
The extreme options are to either rebuild the replica or remove it. Mohrfeld said there are many possibilities in-between. “Do we walk away from the fort and do an interpretive center? Do we do something closer to the original site of the fort? Do we do virtual tours like Keokuk is doing with the dam?”
Mohrfeld said personally and professionally, he wants to see something in place to honor the old fort and tell its story.
“Whatever we do, I want to make sure it stays to a defined mission with a clear-cut vision,” he said.
The city’s website said the old fort replicates a military outpost that existed from 1808 to 1813.
The tourist attraction opened in 1988.
But it sits in a floodplain on the banks of the Mississippi River, and the 2014 report said some of the damage was due to flooding that has engulfed the wooden replica several times since it was built.
Tri States Public Radio produced this story. TSPR relies on financial support from our readers and listeners in order to provide coverage of the issues that matter to west central Illinois, southeast Iowa, and northeast Missouri. As someone who values the content created by TSPR's news department please consider making a financial contribution.
