Below are some brief notes from the March 4th Sigourney City Council Meeting.
Table of Contents
City Council Agenda Items
Consent Agenda
- Approval of a Consent Agenda
- The Consent Agenda included the approval of the minutes from the previous meeting, the Council Accounts Payable, approval of the credit card report and approval of Don North (Director of Public Works) to attend an Aquatic CEU Workshop sponsored by the Iowa Parks and Recreation Association at a cost of $155, approval of Tax Exemption Application for Farmers Cooperative Association at 524 North Jefferson Street, and approval of Tax Exemption Application for Amy Stewart at 1016 W Pleasant Valley Street
Public Hearings
- Public Hearing for Budget Estimate
- The proposed tax rate for July 2020 – June 2021 is $16.14087 per $1,000 land value and $3.00375 per $1,000 of agricultural land.
- The City Clerk, Angela Alderson has produced a budget packet that goes into more detail. I’m looking forward to reviewing it.
Additional City Business
- Discussion and Possible Approval to Proceed with Vacating West Half of East-West Alley East of North Warren Street Between East Jackson Street (Highway 92) and Ringgold Street
- There was an extended discussion about this alleyway, that is currently being used as a driveway/drive through for people. The residents would like the permission to buy the alley and grant the city easements so that they would have more access to their backyards/increased lot size
- Selling alleys to private customers is rare according to the City Council and the Mayor
- The concern was that we might need utility access in the future, and only one of the petitioners was available so they decided to table this motion
- Discussion and Possible Approval for Amanda Snakenberg to Permanently Place Planters Around the Sigourney Square
- Amanda Snakenberg of Barn Wired spoke about her desire to place flower planters around the Sigourney Square year round
- She has lined up the materials, the painting, the building of the planters and the flowers – the only piece left to be figured out is who will water them
Parks and Recreation
- Discussion and Possible Approval to Purchase Soccer and Flag Football Equipment From Design House Per Quote
- There was a presentation about the equipment required for the Soccer and Flag Football programs. It will be about $740 for the equipment needed.
- Presentation from Sigourney Ball Board
- Then, there was a presentation from the Sigourney Ball Board, who run the baseball program
- They are installing stairs to allow access to the top and bottom fields
- They should be almost ADA-compliant, and they’re hoping to get grants to cover the cost
- Discussion and Possible Approal of Resolution 2020-03-04 re: Approving Application for the Purpose of Receiving Benefits from the Washington County Riverboat Foundation
- This relates to the presentation from the Sigourney Ball Board, they want to apply to the Washington County Riverboat Foundation for funds to cover the construction
Street and Sanitation
- Discussion and Possible Approval of Compost Site Opening
- They want to open the compost site from April 1st to May 25th
- It’s not currently cleaned, and there is an improvement project (“Lagoon Project maybe?”) planned that will start after the site is cleaned May 27 which is why the date is set where it is
- Discussion and Possible Approval of Mower Purchase
- The mower is traded in every 2 years and a new one purchased at a cost of approximately $6500
- They’ll be buying the same model they had previously
- They’ve tried other models but none have been as reliable as the John Deere that was used
- Discussion and Possible Approval of Aerial Fiber Optic by Windstream in the City’s Right of Way
- Windstream is interested in getting aerial fiber installed
- The city noted they need to develop a permitting process because they don’t currently have one
- Discussion and Possible Approval of Fiber Optic Upgrades by Windstream in the City’s Right of Way
- This relates to the previous item, and the several companies (MCG, Windstream, Mediacom) who want to install items soon
- Set a Street and Sanitation Committee Meeting
- They need to book a meeting for Street and Sanitation
Water and Wastewater
- Discussion and Possible Approval of Agreement with Central Tank Coatings, Inc. for Water Tower Inspection and Clean Out
- The water tower was last inspected 4 years ago
- They want to repaint it in a couple of years and so they’d like to have it inspected now
- It will cost $2500, the company is based in Elgin, Iowa
Public Safety
- There are several properties of concern in town that will be discussed at the next Council Meeting
Finance
- Discussion and Possible Approval of Paying for One-Half of Catered Luncheon for Economic Development Meeting
- There is a luncheon being hosted by the city in order to sit down with the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA)
- The city is going to pay about half the fee, approximately $200
- Discussion of Accepting Credit Cards at City Clerk’s Office
- The city had a meeting with a payment processor to allow credit cards to be accepted for payment of utility bills, with the processing fee of 2.65% being added to the person’s bill
- I asked what happens if there’s a charge-back – they indicated the company will recover the fradulent fees rather than the city being responsible for that (with the city then focusing on the unpaid utility bill.)
City Clerk
The next meeting will be March 18, 2020.
Public Input
Although it wasn’t on the agenda, Amanda Snakenberg (of Barn Wired), Mayor Doug Glandon and City Clerk Angela Alderson spoke about a city project to subscribe to a new website called The Practical Historian, run by an architect named Rod Curtis.
This will provide access to a website and Facebook group with live videos and other resources for people who are doing renovations or historical preservation projects. Very cool!
Additionally, the Sigourney Fire Department might be getting voted Volunteer Fire Department of the Year, which would be an incredible honor. In 2019, 3 firefighters from Sigourney received the Sullivan Brothers’ Award of Valor.
Conclusion
I’m looking forward to the next meeting.