Regular City Council Meeting
City Hall, Cherokee, Iowa
January 22, 2008 – 7:00 P.M.
A regular meeting was called to order on this date by
Mayor Henrich. Present:
Councilpersons
Burkhart, Mallory, Stieneke, Leach, Peck, Clerk-Treasurer Taylor.
Duane Mummert, Park Supt. and Rick Dean, Cannon, Moss,
Brygger & Assoc., were present to
review plans and specifications for the community center improvement project.
Duane has gone
over the plans with each council member. John
Cook was also present representing the Board of
Directors of the Raymond and Florence Erlandson Foundation.
This foundation was established
by the Erlandson’s to improve the quality of life in Cherokee, particularly
for young people. There
was a concern that the theater lighting and sound system in the community center
auditorium would
have to be delayed, so the Board decided to donate toward that portion of the
project. A check for
$35,000 was delivered to the Cherokee Community Foundation, which will hopefully
cover half the
cost of these improvements. A
second payment is expected to be made in twelve months.
The Board
would like to be kept informed of the progress of the project and would like
representatives of the
theater and symphony to be involved in the decision making on this part of the
project. The council
thanked John and the Erlandson Foundation Board for their generous donation.
Mr. Dean said that plans and specifications are prepared
and the next step is to set a date to receive
bids and set a public hearing. Councilperson
Stieneke asked about the proposed sidewalk from the
lower level to the upper level. Will
both levels and all entrances be handicap accessible?
Mr. Dean
said that the steps at the lower level will be removed and replaced with a ramp
and a ramp will be
installed near the steps to the upper level main entrance.
Stieneke also asked whether power doors
are required for accessibility. Duane
indicated that both the upper and lower levels have one power
door, installed a couple years ago with grant funds, as the community center is
a polling location. Mr.
Dean said that power doors are not required and would cost about $2,000/door to
install. Councilperson
Burkhart suggested installing a doorbell that would signal someone in the office
if a person needed
assistance with the doors. Stieneke
asked whether the furnaces would be residential or commercial
and was concerned about continued maintenance on several units.
Mr. Dean said that Greg Kooker
would know more about that, but indicated that this will not be a complicated
system making it easy to
operate. The sound system and
lighting will be bid as alternates. Mr.
Dean said the other option would
be to possibly negotiate these items outside the contract.
Wayne Morris was present and said that he
had talked with Mr. Kooker and said they may be able to substitute some items to
save on costs. Burkhart
suggested a committee with a representative from the council, Erlandson
Foundation Board, theater and
symphony meet to work out the lighting and sound system details.
She volunteered to be the council
representative. Mr. Dean said they
could schedule a meeting in the next few weeks. Mr. Morris asked
when the project was expected to begin and how long it would take.
Mr. Dean said that once a contract
is awarded they would work with the contractor on a start date.
He did, however, say that the project would
take 6-9 months, but that the contractor will be aware that events will be going
on in the building during
construction. Mr. Dean will send
letters to area contractors regarding the project along with the city’s
published notice. On a motion by
Councilperson Stieneke, seconded by Burkhart, the council unanimously
accepted the plans and specifications, authorized accepting bids on February 21
at 4:00 p.m. and set a
public hearing for February 26.
A motion by Councilperson Leach, seconded by Burkhart,
approved the second presentation of an ordinance
establishing the position of City Manager.
Roll call was:
AYES: Leach, Peck, Burkhart,
Mallory, Stieneke
NAYS: None
On a motion by Councilperson Stieneke, seconded by Peck,
the council unanimously waived the third
presentation of Ordinance No. 530, establishing the position of City Manager,
and ordered its publication.
A motion by Councilperson Leach, seconded by Stieneke,
approved the second presentation of an ordinance
increasing the number of members on the Historic Preservation Commission to
seven. Roll call was:
AYES: Leach, Peck, Burkhart,
Mallory, Stieneke
NAYS: None
On a motion by Councilperson Stieneke, seconded by Peck,
the council unanimously waived the third
presentation of Ordinance No. 531, increasing the number of members on the
Historic Preservation
Commission to seven, and ordered its publication.
A motion by Councilman Stieneke, seconded by Leach, unanimously approved the following under “Consent Business”.
City council minutes of January 8th.
Reviewed Library Board minutes of December 5th.
Renewal of class “C” liquor license – The Other
Place.
Jan Bowles,
Account Manager with Alliant Energy, was present to review the annual report.
Ms. Bowles
complimented the council on their community center improvement project and the
new aquatic center.
She also said that Cherokee has the best snow removal in three counties!
She
pointing out support in Cherokee: Alliant
Energy Foundation Support through grants of $3,656; economic
development support of $15,657; natural gas infrastructure investments of
$114,103; city property taxes
of $33,556; energy-efficiency program involvement; Project Hometown Care Energy
Fund; and the Branching
Out tree planting program.
Kristi Quinn,
Community and Economic Development Planner for SIMPCO, was present to review
their
services in the development of a comprehensive plan.
She indicated that these plans should be updated
every 5 years. There is a grant
available through the Community Beautification and Economic Development
Program that would pay for 47% of SIMPCO’s charges for comprehensive plan
development, including mileage
costs. SIMPCO charges approximately
$10,000 for a plan, which includes several meetings, setting goals
and objectives, and research. Each
section of the plan including economic development, land use, housing,
community facilities and services, and community vision requires an average of 3
meetings. There would
be different planners for the various sections, but one lead planner would
coordinate the project. When asked
how long it takes to develop a plan, Ms. Quinn said an average of 6 months,
which allows plenty of time for
necessary research. Ms. Quinn
thanked the council for joining SIMPCO and invited a councilperson to serve
on their Board of Directors.
Megan Wiemold, a
member of the Cherokee Arena Committee, was present to request funding for arena
improvements. Ms. Wiemold passed
out information on the importance of Iowa’s equine industry and a report
on the arena and its finances. The
report shows that the committee raised $35,000 in donations to build the
arena, the liability insurance is under the city’s policy, and the arena has
been no expense to the City of Cherokee.
She indicated that they lost several shows this past year because of the
decreasing quality of the arena
footing (ground). The arena
committee isn’t able to provide the necessary footing because of their
shoestring
budget. In order for the arena to
remain in full use, the committee is requesting funding to help with the cost of
clay, sand and fuel to improve the footing.
Ms. Wiemold reported that the Cherokee arena is the best in
northwest Iowa and needs to be kept in good condition in order to get maximum
use. They charge $60 for the
use of the arena and there are no membership fees.
Councilperson Leach indicated that State law says
anyone participating inside the arena couldn’t sue the city.
This law is posted in several places at the arena.
The city’s liability insurance protects people outside the arena.
Leach reported that they recently received an
offer of a donation to purchase an arena conditioner, which will be used to
groom the arena once the footing is
in good shape. The council will
consider the request for $2,000 in funding during budget workshops.
Melissa Juhl,
Development Director for Mid-Sioux Opportunity, was present to request funding.
Ms. Juhl
explained that Mid-Sioux is a community action agency helping to fight poverty
at a local level. They have 14
programs in five counties providing basic necessities including food, clothing,
heat and housing, and have 10
employees in the Cherokee office. Mid-Sioux
is requesting $5,000 in funding from the city, but any donation
would be greatly appreciated. As
most of their funding is program-specific, local funding allows more flexibility
and can be used for in-kind match for grants, as well as incidentals, such as
office improvements. Ms. Juhl said
that Cherokee County is very generous in their donations and volunteers.
The council will consider the funding
request during budget workshops.
Mayor Henrich
indicated that Kent Wenck has been Building & Zoning Official for several
years, but there has
been no official appointment. On a motion by Councilperson Leach, seconded by Burkhart, the
council
unanimously appointed Kent Wenck to the position.
Councilperson
Burkhart had asked that an item on goal setting be put on the agenda.
She feels the council
needs to start setting long-term goals and visions by working with the
departments on their priorities. During
Municipal Leadership Academies, they have learned the importance of goal
setting. This will be introduced
during
budget workshops to get things started.
The council set
budget workshop dates for February 4, 5 and 6 starting at 4:30 p.m.
Department Heads
will be scheduled at half hour intervals to review their budgets with the
council.
A motion by
Councilperson Stieneke, seconded by Leach, adjourned the meeting at 8:45 p.m.
Motion carried.
News media –
Ken Ross, Chronicle Times; Nikki Thunder, KCHE.
ATTEST:
Debra Taylor, CMC
City Clerk-Treasurer