Friends group pays for Decorah hatchery center

DECORAH, Iowa (AP) — State officials and volunteers will celebrate the opening of a visitor’s center at the Decorah Fish Hatchery that is the first such facility paid for with private money raised by a friends group.

A ribbon-cutting event will be Friday morning, marking completion of the 24-by-44 foot center funded by the Friends of Decorah Fish Hatchery.

The hatchery has become a tourist destination due to the popularity of a live eagle cam, which streams images over the Internet of an eagles nest at the site.

The Department of Natural Resources didn’t release the cost of the center.