High water leads to lower Independence Day tourism at Great Lakes

Tourism is down in the Iowa Great Lakes after heavy rains and high water forced the implementation of issue boating restrictions.

The Executive Director of Vacation Okoboji  Kiley Zankowski says summer business is important to the area. “We’re a very seasonal community. So, we definitely depend on tourists coming here. And so, it’s been a pretty big hit, especially hitting around the biggest holiday of the summer with the Fourth of July,” she says.

Zankowski estimates flooding has decreased tourism by 40 to 60 percent. “People can still go on the lakes, but with a lot of the docks being washed out and people having issues getting boats under bridges or out of hoists, we seen a hug decrease in people visiting the areas. It’s had a huge economic impact on our boating industry, our marinas, and our hotels.”
Zankowski says some hotel occupancy was cut in half during the Independence Day holiday.

Juli Redig has been coming to the Iowa Great Lakes from Minnesota since she was the age of her grandchildren. And they saw very few boats on the water during a visit to Arnolds Park due to a five mile and hour speed limit put in place to preserve the shoreline. “We drove around the lake here in Okoboji and it’s just sad, sad to see everybody’s boat dock, you know, up out of the water.” Redig says she’s still making the most of her family’s vacation. They brought their pontoon boat to enjoy the water slowly.

Zankowski she says there’s hope for the rest of the summer as water levels and quality continue to improve. She says the Arnolds Park amusement area and other attractions, along with the food, and entertainment give tourists other options.

(By Sheila Brummer, Iowa Public Radio)