571—47.43 (321G) Land acquisition projects eligible for funding.
	   47.43(1) Project narrative. Any application that includes a proposal to acquire real property must include a narrative that demonstrates a demand for the proposed area in relation to population, other riding areas, potential expansion, partnership possibilities and local support.
	   47.43(2) Site visit. The department shall complete a preliminary site visit of any proposal for which the applicant proposes to acquire real property.
	   47.43(3) Evaluation. In evaluating the proposed real property acquisition, lease or development, the department shall consider the following based on its site visit, the project narrative and any other information submitted.
	      a.    	  Park or trail capacity. The proposed acquisition, lease or development shall provide adequate user capacity for snowmobile recreation. Consideration shall be given to local populations and distance or adjacency to other snowmobile trails, trail systems or parks.
	      b.    	  Appraisal and sale. When the applicant proposes to acquire real property, the applicant must:
	       (1)  	 Provide an appraisal of the property to the department for its review and approval. The appraisal must be certified by an appraiser, licensed in the state of Iowa, and conform to the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions, Fifth Edition, which is also referred to as the Yellow Book.
	       (2)  	 Pay not more than the appraised value, as determined in subparagraph 47.43(3)“b”(1), for the real property.
	       (3)  	 Include a requirement in any proposal or option to buy the real property that such purchase agreement shall be valid for at least one year from the award of the grant.
	      c.    	  Operations. The project shall be maintained by a political subdivision in the state, capable of maintaining the area on a voluntary basis. The political subdivision shall be responsible to oversee the park operations, trail and trail system, either through its own employees or through agreements with volunteers or contractors. The successful applicants shall abide by the operational plan set forth as part of the grant agreement by the department, updated annually by the parties, and subject to input from other interested parties.
	      d.    	  Adjoining properties and the public. The successful applicant shall be responsible for ensuring that all adjoining property owners of the proposed land acquisition are notified of the proposed snowmobile riding area or trail system and must accept and consider comments from such property owners. The successful applicant shall also be required to hold a public meeting to notify the public about the proposed snowmobile riding area, trail system or trail. Such meeting shall conform to the requirements of Iowa Code section 362.3. The issues raised in any written or oral comments received shall be addressed by the successful applicant. The successful applicant shall submit a recitation of the comments as well as its response to them to the department for its review and approval prior to any real property acquisition for a snowmobile riding area, trail system or trail.
	      e.    	  Cultural, historical and natural resources. The successful applicant shall be responsible to determine if cultural or historical resources, high-quality natural areas, species of special concern, or any state or federally listed threatened and endangered species are present or likely to be present in the real property proposed to be acquired. In the event the successful applicant determines the presence of the aforementioned resources, the successful applicant must develop a mitigation plan, endorsed by an expert in the relative field(s), to mitigate or avoid negative impact to such resources, which shall be subject to review and approval of the department. Any final mitigation plan required by this rule and approved by the department shall be adopted as part of the operational plan set forth as part of the grant agreement.
	      f.    	  Soil resources. The successful applicant shall consider the grade of all snowmobile riding areas within the snowmobile area, trail system or trails proposed as part of the real property acquisition. The successful applicant shall acquire soil survey reports for such snowmobile riding area that indicate the general soil classification of that area. The report shall be submitted to the department for its review and approval. The department shall only approve snowmobile riding areas with a moderate risk or less for soil erosion due to path or trail development. Successful applicants are encouraged to consult the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the United States Department of Agriculture regarding trail or park development.
	   47.43(4) Determination. The director shall make the final determination as to whether the proposed land acquisition is eligible for funding. If any of the requirements of this rule cannot be met, the department will reject all or a portion of the grant application. Title to property acquired under this program shall be in the name of the sponsor, unless otherwise approved by the director, and may contain a reversion clause that requires the property to become property under the jurisdiction of the commission in the event the property is not used as agreed upon in the grant agreement for a period of at least 20 years from the expiration of the grant.
[ARC 1226C, IAB 12/11/13, effective 1/15/14]