This meeting has a lot of necessary administrative items; one big item is the approval of the site plan for a new Holiday Inn in the new Gateway Business Park, which would be the first building of many in the new South Cedar Falls Urban Renewal Area (Item G.2.o). Other agenda items, like the monthly department reports, are also work a look. Join us at 7pm at City Hall Monday night, or even earlier at 6:05 for our Committee of the Whole, where we'll learn about Water Quality Initiatives, Streetscape update, and city cash management.
A. Call to Order by the Mayor.
B. Roll Call.
C. Approval of Minutes of the Regular Meeting of May 21, 2018. This simply affirms that the minutes are an accurate reflection of the discussions and decisions of the previous council meeting, for the record. This would not be an appropriate time to discuss the merits of the items of that past meeting.
D. Agenda Revisions.
E. Special Order of Business:
1. Public hearing on the proposed plans, specifications, form of contract & estimate of cost for the 2018 Public Sidewalk & Pedestrian Trail Improvement Project. This is an opportunity for the public to discuss the proposed improvements on the trails and for various public sitewalks around the city (costing $132K).
a. Receive and file proof of publication of notice of hearing. (Notice published May 25, 2018)
b. Written objections filed with the City Clerk.
c. Oral comments.
2. Resolution approving and adopting the plans, specifications, form of contract & estimate of cost for the 2018 Public Sidewalk & Pedestrian Trail Improvement Project. If approved, this project would move forward this year.
F. Old Business:
1. Pass Ordinance #2923, providing that general property taxes levied and collected each year on all property located within the amended Cedar Falls Unified Highway 58 Corridor Urban Renewal Area, in the City of Cedar Falls, by and for the benefit of the State of Iowa, City of Cedar Falls, County of Black Hawk, Cedar Falls Community School District, Hudson Community School District, and other taxing districts, be paid to a special fund for payment of principal and interest on loans, monies advanced to and indebtedness, including bonds issued or to be issued, incurred by the city in connection with the amended Cedar Falls Unified Highway 58 Corridor Urban Renewal Area (Amendment No. 4 to the Cedar Falls Unified Highway 58 Corridor Urban Renewal Plan), upon its third & final consideration. This is our standard Tax Increment Financing ordinance language in order to redirect property taxes which would normally be paid to the county and school districts, into a special fund for the development of the TIF District. The state makes up the school district's portion of the loss in tax revenue.
2. Pass Ordinance #2924, amending Chapter 27, Utilities, of the Code of Ordinances, relative to sanitary sewer rates, upon its third & final consideration. No concerns; we've voted to approve it in the last two meetings; this final reading and apporval means it becomes a city ordinance.
3. Pass Ordinance #2925, amending Chapter 27, Utilities, of the Code of Ordinances, relative to storm water management rates, upon its third & final consideration. No concerns; we've voted to approve it in the last two meetings; this final reading and apporval means it becomes a city ordinance.
4. Pass Ordinance #2926, providing that general property taxes levied and collected each year on all property located within the South Cedar Falls Urban Renewal Area in the City of Cedar Falls, County of Black Hawk, State of Iowa, by and for the benefit of the State of Iowa, City of Cedar Falls, County of Black Hawk, Cedar Falls Community School District, Hudson Community School District, and other taxing districts, be paid to a special fund for payment of principal and interest on loans, monies advanced to and indebtedness, including bonds issued or to be issued, incurred by the City in connection with the South Cedar Falls Urban Renewal Area, upon its second consideration. This is the same as F-1, except for the new South Cedar Falls Urban Renewal Area (and TIF district) we just approved in our last meeting.
5. Pass Ordinance #2927, amending Chapter 26, Traffic and Motor Vehicles, of the Code of Ordinances relative to establishing a 35 miles per hour speed limit on Greenhill Road from Hudson Road to West 27th Street, upon its second consideration. No concerns; 35 mph appears to be a reasonable speed for that new stretch of roadway; the rest of Greenhill Road is 45mph, but is four lane (this stretch is 2 lane).
G. New Business:
1. Consent Calendar: (The following items will be acted upon by voice vote on a single motion without separate discussion, unless someone from the Council or public requests that a specific item be considered separately.)
a. Approve the recommendation of the Mayor relative to the appointment of MaraBeth Soneson to the Utilities Board of Trustees, term ending 08/31/2024. I've found these applications to be very worthwhile and informative reading; if you're interested to learn at least one Trustee's view of the state of CFU, future direction, and the relationship between CFU and the city, check out the link .
b. Receive and file the Committee of the Whole minutes of May 21, 2018 relative to the following items: No concerns.
(1) Utilities Board of Trustees Interview - MaraBeth Soneson.
(2) Visitors & Tourism Initiatives/Update.
(3) Speed limit on South Main Street-University Avenue to Greenhill Road.
(4) Bills & Payroll.
c. Receive and file the City Council Work Session minutes of May 14, 2018. No concerns; I've posted the slides from the presentation by the law firm as a PDF Document. I noted at the start of the meeting that it was very unlikely that the public would be aware that this meeting was taking place, even though the city met the letter of the law in posting a notice in the City Hall lobby. If we want to have informed and engaged residents, we need to make these work sessions more widely known. The council agreed to have these work sessions listed on the City's website. I also want them to be held at the Hearst Center for the Arts, the Cedar Falls Public Library or City Hall so that its more convenient for citizens to attend if they desire. In my view, the Public Works Complex is not a convenient venue for the majority of our residents.
There's a great article on Strong Towns about how, nationwide, local governments need to do a much better job advertising public meetings. And it's just an excuse to say that residents don't attend these workshops, so the city shouldn't bother promoting them; if you don't want to attend, that's your perogative...but that doesn't relieve the city of the duty to make sure you know they're happening.
d. Receive and file Departmental Monthly Reports of April 2018. No concerns; worth reading to get an idea of the activities and responsibilities of our city departments.
e. Approve the following applications for cigarette/tobacco/nicotine/vapor permits: No concerns, except for smoking itself. Quitting smoking is a gift to yourself and your family! https://smokefree.gov/everytrycounts/.
(1) Dollar General Store, 2921 Center Street.
(2) Murphy USA, 518 Brandilynn Boulevard.
(3) SUDS, 2223 1/2 College Street.
(4) Up In Smoke, 2218 College Street.
f. Approve the following applications for beer permits and liquor licenses: No concerns.
(1) Dollar General Store, 2921 Center Street, Class C beer & Class B wine - renewal.
(2) Kwik Star, 2019 College Street, Class C beer - renewal.
(3) Kwik Star, 7500 Nordic Drive, Class C beer & Class B wine - renewal.
(4) Chuck E. Cheese's, 5911 University Avenue, Class B beer - renewal.
(5) Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar, 6301 University Avenue, Class C liquor - renewal.
(6) Los Cabos Mexican Restaurant, 112-114 Main Street, Class C liquor & outdoor service - renewal.
(7) Prime Mart, 2323 Main Street, Class E liquor - renewal.
(8) Target, 214 Viking Plaza Drive, Class E liquor - renewal.
(9) Fraternal Order of Eagles, 2125 West Lone Tree Road, Class C liquor & outdoor service - temporary expansion of outdoor service area. (June 22-24, 2018)
2. Resolution Calendar: (The following items will be acted upon by roll call vote on a single motion without separate discussion, unless someone from the Council or public requests that a specific item be considered separately.)
a. Resolution directing the advertisement for sale of $6,585,000 General Obligation Bonds, Series 2018, and approving electronic bidding procedures and Official Statement. Puts the process in motion to sell the $6.5M in bonds we approved in our last meeting. No concerns.
b.Resolution approving and authorizing execution of an Engagement Letter with Eide Bailly, LLP to perform the audit of FY18 financial statements and programs compliance. Regualar auditing of our city accounts. No concerns.
c.Resolution approving and authorizing execution of an Actuarial Services Agreement with SilverStone Group, Incorporated relative to Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) 75. Provides actuarial support for city finances. No concerns.
d. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of a Professional Service Agreement with Carlson Dettmann Consulting, LLC relative to a Job Classification Review, in conjunction with the City’s pay plan study. Continues the work on our city's pay structures and evaluations...this job classification review is necessary part of that. No concerns.
e. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of a Professional Service Agreement with Carlson Dettmann Consulting, LLC relative to a Performance Development Program, in conjunction with the City’s pay plan study. This would update our performance review system (employee evaluations) for about $9K. No concerns.
f. Resolution designating the dates and locations for the annual Sturgis Falls Celebration and Cedar Basin Jazz Festival Inc. Council is required to note the time and place boundaries for Sturigis Falls, for the sake of animal control. I wasn't aware that pets are prohibited at Sturgis Falls, including the parade route (see our code, Section 6-68).
g. Resolution approving and authorizing expenditure of funds for the purchase of two dump trucks. They'll be a little over $70K each. I'm not sure if these are on pickup truck chassis, or are the much bigger ones like you see in highway construction. I was interested to learn that with specialty vehicles like dump trucks and fire trucks, you usually can't just buy one new right away...you have to order it, and it might not be built ready for a year or more. Advance planning is required!
h. Resolution approving the Certificate of Completion and accepting the work of Municipal Pipe Tool Company, LLC for the 2017 Sanitary Sewer Rehabilitation Project. Simply an approval of past work completed on our sewer. No concerns.
i. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of a Maintenance and Repair Agreement with CF Gateway Park, Inc. relative to a post-construction stormwater management plan on Lots 1 and 2 of Gateway Business Park at Cedar Falls I. The first of several resolutions (i, l - q) concerning the development of the new Gateway Business Park area just northeast of Hudson & Ridgeway. No concerns.
j. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of Supplemental Agreement No. 7 with AECOM Technical Services, Inc. relative to the Downtown Levee Improvements Project. Approves $3200 of Levee Grant money for the design of lighting west of the Main Street Bridge. No concerns
k. Resolution approving and accepting the contract and bond of K. Cunningham Construction Co. Inc. for the Center Street Recreational Trail Project. No concerns. Will be great to get this project in place, to improve the non-vehicular connection of North Cedar with the rest of Cedar Falls.
o. Resolution approving a Highway 20 Commercial Corridor Overlay Zoning District development site plan for construction of a hotel and conference center on Lot 1, Gateway Business Park at Cedar Falls I. This is site plan is a major item, and worth a look. This would put a Holiday Inn / Conference Center just to the south of the Best Western on Hudson Road (near Ridgeway). I have no concerns with the project, though I believe calling it "Holiday Inn Gateway Park" would be confusing, because our main events park in downtown is called "Gateway Park".
q. Resolution approving the final plat of Gateway Business Park at Cedar Falls I. No concerns.
r. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of a Rehabilitation Contract with To Jo Construction Inc., relative to a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) emergency repair project. This resolution, and the one below, would distribute federal grant money to an owner-occupied home in need of emergency repair work. The Community Development Block Grant money for this project is designed for this purpose.
H. Allow Bills and Payroll. No concerns.
I. City Council Referrals. No referrals.
J. City Council Updates. No updates.
K. Public Forum. (Speakers will have one opportunity to speak for up to 5 minutes on topics germane to City business.)
L. Adjournment
| Council Packet Link | |
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| Meeting Date | 06/02/18 |
