2025 Roadside Conference

The 2025 Iowa Roadside Conference will be held at the Rhythm City Event Center in Davenport, Iowa. The conference room rate at the hotel is $107/night; to receive this rate, reservations must be made by September 17, 2025. Call 563-328-8000 to make a reservation. Other nearby hotels are the Hampton Inn & Suites Davenport, 563-441-0001 and the Holiday Inn & Suites Davenport, 563-344-2900. 

The deadline to register for the conference through this website or by mail is September 19, 2025.

All events are in the Rhythm City Events Center unless otherwise noted

Wednesday, October 1st

Noon-4:15PM      Networking Event — Golf @ Glynns Creek, 19251 290th Street, Long Grove, Iowa. Sponsored by Stormwater Supply Co.

5:00 PM               AFIRM Fall Business Meeting

6:00 PM              Dinner on your own

Thursday, October 2nd 

8:00 AM            Registration opens; Morning refreshments; Exhibits

9:00 AM            Welcome and Introduction

9:15 AM             IRVM Data logging. Darrell Inskeep, GIS Analyst, Scott County IT

10:00 AM          Break and Exhibits

10:15 AM          Adopt a Prairie/Scott County IRVM — How to Promote Conservation Through Our Roadsides. Brian Burkholder, Roadside Vegetation Specialist/Weed Commissioner, Scott County Secondary Roads Department

10:30 AM         Conservation Partnerships — Bi-CAN. Rob Liva, Co-Vice President, Quad Cities Wild Ones chapter.

11:00 AM          St. Ambrose University Student Roadside inventories. Dennis Tarasi, Biology Professor, St. Ambrose University

11:45 AM           Lunch and Exhibits

12:30 PM           Board bus for afternoon field trips to tour Nahant Marsh and Prairie Oaks 

1:00 PM             Arrive at Nahant Marsh, 4220 Wapello Avenue, Davenport, Iowa

2:00 PM            Load Bus and Depart to Prairie Oaks

2:30 PM            Prairie Oaks, 23099 260th Avenue, LeClaire, Iowa

3:30 PM            Social Hour at Prairie Oaks                                                                                                                      

4:30 PM            Depart Prairie Oaks back to Rhythm City Event Center

Friday, October 3rd 

7:00 AM            Breakfast Available

8:00 AM            Living Roadway Trust Fund Updates, Tara Van Waus, LRTF and IRVM Plan Coordinator, Iowa DOT

8:15 AM             Roadside Program Updates, Kristine Nemec, Roadside Program Manager, U. of Northern Iowa Tallgrass Prairie Center

8:30 AM            Climate Change — Its impact on Iowa. Ray Wolf, Retired Science and Operations Officer, NOAA National Weather Service

9:15 AM             Profile Products Mulch & Hydroseeding. Sonny Johns, Regional Business Manager, Profile Products

10:00 AM           Break and Exhibits 

10:15 AM            EDDMapS Data Collecting. Rebekah Wallace, Program Coordinator III, University of Georgia        

11:00 AM            On the Road Again: The Environmental Effects and Management of Native Prairie Plant Seeding on Roadsides. Wes                                      Bollinger, Master’s Student, University of Illinois                                                                      

11:45 AM             Luncheon and Door Prizes