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  That announcement followed one by Earthpark on Thursday that its rain forest would be built near Pella on Lake Red Rock. The Pella selection was the latest step in nearly eight years of talks with Eastern Iowa communities about playing host to the $155 million attraction.

  The project’s other finalist was Riverside, located about 15 miles south of Iowa City. No specifics were given Thursday on how Pella would come up with $25 million Earthpark wants to match a $ 50 million federal grant. Earthpark CEO David Oman and officials with DML Land Management, which is developing a resort around the proposed Earthpark site, said Pella has indicated it would contribute hotel/motel tax and tax increment financing. Oman said he hoped an agreement is reached within two months.

  The local money is critical. Besides a site, Earthpark needs $25 million by the end of December or it will lose the $50 million grant.

  Oman said Earthpark’s board, in Grinnell on Thursday for a meeting closed to the public, approved the Pella site with 12 ‘‘yes’’ votes, three ‘‘no’’ votes and one abstention. Pella was chosen because of its exceptional site off Lake Red Rock and its tourism experience, Oman said.

  Factors diminishing Riverside’s chances included uncertainty over local funding, lack of community support and a smaller proposed site, he said.

  Riverside Mayor Bill Poch said, ‘‘Riverside, as a whole, I’d say, is somewhat disappointed, but in some ways we may be relieved.’’

  Earthpark officials said construction should begin in 2007 and be completed by 2010.

  The Earthpark project includes a 4-acre indoor rain forest, 600,000-gallon aquarium, exterior prairie and wetland exhibits and environmental galleries.

  The project previously had been linked to Des Moines, Cedar Rapids and Coralville, but negotiations with each community broke down over various issues and questions. Up to 16 communities were considered when Earthpark and Coralville parted ways in 2005 after five years of talks. Riverside and Pella were named finalists in July.

  Riverside city officials and residents expressed many concerns about the project over the past two months, particularly over how much they would have to contribute to the $25 million local match Earthpark required.

  In choosing Pella, Earthpark was willing to yield on having a site near a main highway. Earthpark leaders have said previously they wanted a site in an area with high visibility and the volume of drive-by traffic an interstate highway provides. Pella is about 35 miles southeast of Des Moines and 25 miles south of Interstate 80.

  ‘‘If it’s not ideal, it’s the next best thing,’’ Oman said of the Pella site. More than 350,000 tourists visit Pella each year, Oman said. Lake Red Rock is the state’s largest body of water at 15,000 acres and Knoxville Speedway and The Iowa Speedway at Newton are nearby, he said.

  The Pella proposal includes Earthpark as part of a 240-acre residential, recreation and retail development on the southeast edge of the lake. Earthpark would be located on 70 acres near a proposed water park, 300-room hotel, condominiums and marina.

  Pella Mayor Darrell Dobernecker said at an afternoon news conference in Pella that some people there still had questions about what Earthpark is, but he believed the town in general was behind it.

  ‘‘This is going to be something. We’re going to make the country step back and take notice of us,’’ he said.