Cordova Tower
Cordova Tower is an observation tower located on the north side of Iowa's largest lake and hydro-electric dam, Lake Red Rock. The tower resides at the west end of Marion County Highway G28 near the intersection of G28 and Iowa State Highway 14. The address of the actual tower is 1293 Emerald Ave, Otley, IA 50214. The tower is essentially equidistant from the four Marion County towns of Pella, Knoxville, Monroe and Otley. The tower features the world's longest and tallest continuous set of fiberglass stairs, ascending from the ground to the observation deck built atop a converted 100 ft by 15 ft stand-pipe water tower. The structure stands 106 ft tall 106 feet (32 m).
The construction of the tower was ordered by the Marion County Conservation Board as part of its development plan for Cordova Park, the area in which the tower stands. The tower, completed in 1998, has views of the Des Moines River valley. The structure has been awarded first place in the Grand Concepter Award from the Engineering Council of Iowa for "engineering excellence".