This council meeting has many administrative items on it, because we will not be having a "first Monday in July" meeting. So we're front-loading in June. Items of interest include our annual appropriations resolution (#18) and a proposal to increase council compensation from $7K to $12K annually (Item #47). It also includes an agreement for the city's use of the new Cedar Falls High School Pool (Item #35).
Prior to this meeting, at 5:20 the standing committees will hear a presentation on Youth Commissions by a student resident, as well as a discussion on changing the mayor's authorities for boards and commissions appointments, and then a review of the Public Safety Department and its goals and objectives.
I hope you can join us in person, on Channel 15, or livestreaming on YouTube. Thanks for doing the hard work to be an informed and engaged resident!
Call to Order by the Mayor
Roll Call
Pledge of Allegiance
Approval of Minutes
1. Regular meeting of June 5, 2023.
Agenda Revisions
Special Presentations
Public Forum. (Speakers will have one opportunity to speak for up to 5 minutes on topics relevant to City business.)
Staff Updates
Special Order of Business
2. Public hearing on a proposed amendment to the Future Land Use Map by changing the designation from Low Density Residential to Neighborhood Commercial and Mixed Use, and on the proposed rezoning from C-1, Commercial Zoning District to PC-2, Planned Commercial Zoning District of property located at 702 LeClair Street. This requested change would accommodate some business use improvements along 1st Street; I see no concerns with the project, and note that it was approved unanimously by the P&Z.
a) Receive and file proof of publication of notice of hearing. (Notice published 06/09/2023)
b) Written communications on file with the City Clerk.
c) Staff comments.
d) Public comments.
e) Resolution approving an amendment to the Future Land Use Map by changing the designation from Low Density Residential to Neighborhood Commercial and Mixed Use of property located at 702 LeClair Street.
3. Pass an ordinance amending the Zoning Map by removing approximately 2.26 acres of property located at 702 LeClair Street from the C-1, Commercial Zoning District and placing the same in the PC-2, Planned Commercial Zoning District, upon its first consideration. (contingent upon approval of previous item) Same as Item #2 above.
4. Public hearing on proposed amendments to Chapter 26, Zoning, of the Code of Ordinances relative to allowance of vinyl siding on certain residential buildings in the Neighborhood Frontages within the CD-DT, Downtown Character District. 4, 5, and 6 relate to allowing vinyl siding on residential buildings within the Downtown Character District.
a) Receive and file proof of publication of notice of hearing. (Notice published 06/09/2023)
b) Written communications filed with the City Clerk. c) Staff comments. d) Public comments. e) Pass an ordinance amending Chapter 26, Zoning, of the Code of Ordinances relative to allowance of vinyl siding on residential buildings with six or fewer dwelling units in the Neighborhood Frontages within the CD-DT, Downtown Character District, upon its first consideration. (5 aye votes required due to denial by the Planning & Zoning Commission)
OR
5. Pass an ordinance amending Chapter 26, Zoning, of the Code of Ordinances relative to allowance of vinyl siding on single-unit and two-unit residential buildings in the Neighborhood Frontages within the CD-DT, Downtown Character District, upon its first consideration.
OR
6. Pass an ordinance amending Chapter 26, Zoning, of the Code of Ordinances relative to allowance of vinyl siding on single-unit residential buildings in the Neighborhood Frontages within the CD-DT, Downtown Character District, upon its first consideration.
Old Business
7. Pass Ordinance #3030, vacating certain public right-of-way along Hudson Road, upon its third & final consideration. This has been previously discussed by the city council and is self-explanatory in the packet.
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.)
8. Receive and file the City Council Standing Committee minutes of June 5, 2023 relative to the following items:
a) Council Policy on Official City Proclamations.
b) Green Space Policies within Subdivisions.
c) Parking Permits for Downtown Municipal Lots.
d) FY2024 Cash Management Report.
9. Receive and file the following resignation of members from Boards and Commissions:
a) Anne Bonsall Hoekstra, Art & Culture Board.
10. Approve the following recommendations of the Mayor relative to the appointment of members to Boards and Commissions:
a) Gina Weekley, Human Rights Commission, term ending 07/01/2026.
b) Jason Droste, Human Rights Commission, term ending 07/01/2026.
c) Madeleine Seymour, Human Rights Commission, term ending 07/01/2024.
d) Tyler Ingham, Human Rights Commission, term ending 07/01/2024.
11. Approve the following proclamations: The city council will be voting in Item #17 about rescinding their approvals for city proclamations; in the meantime, though, these three proclamations remain.
a) Recognizing June 19, 2023 as Juneteenth Freedom Day.
b) Recognizing July 2023 as Disability Pride Month.
c) Recognizing July 11, 2023 as 1-133d Infantry Regiment-Ironman Battalion Day.
12. Receive and file the Bi-Annual Report of the College Hill Partnership relative to FY23 Self-Supported Municipal Improvement District (SSMID) funds and an FY23 Economic Development Grant. This is a standard report from CHP as part of their grant requirements.
13. Approve an Order Accepting Acknowledgment Settlement Agreement with Baba Fareed LLC, d/b/a Great Wall China, 2125 College Street, for a second tobacco violation. Great Wall must pay a penalty for selling tobacco to minors.
14. Approve the following applications for cigarette/tobacco/nicotine/vapor permits: The City Council is the approving authority for these kinds of permits.
a) Great Wall, 2125 College St, Suite D.
b) Greenleaf Tobacco & Vapor, 502 Brandilynn Boulevard.
c) Mini Mart, 1420 West 1st Street.
d) Pheasant Ridge Golf Course, 3205 West 12th Street.
e) Prime Mart, 2728 Center Street.
15. Approve the following applications for retail alcohol licenses: The City Council is the approving authority for these kinds of permits.
a) Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar, 6301 University Avenue, Class C retail alcohol - renewal.
b) Carlos O'Kelly's Mexican Café, 6507 University Avenue, Class C retail alcohol- renewal.
c) George’s Local, 108 E. 4th Street, Class C retail alcohol & outdoor service – renewal.
d) Mulligan's Brick Oven Grill & Pub, 205 East 18th Street, Class C retail alcohol & outdoor service - renewal.
e) Starbeck’s Smokehouse, 6607 University Ave, Class C retail alcohol & outdoor service – renewal.
f) Texas Roadhouse, 5715 University Avenue, Class C retail alcohol - renewal.
g) Target, 214 Viking Plaza Drive, Class E retail alcohol - renewal.
h) Walgreens, 2509 Whitetail Drive, Class E retail alcohol – change in ownership.
i) Amvets, 1934 Irving Street, Class F retail alcohol & outdoor service - temporary expansion of outdoor service area.
j) NewAldaya Lifescapes, 7511 University Avenue, Class F retail alcohol & outdoor service – temporary expansion of outdoor service.
k) Deringer’s Public Parlor, 6027 University Avenue, Class C retail alcohol & outdoor service – 5-day permit.
l) Dollar General Store, 2921 Center Street, Class B retail alcohol - new.
m) Kwik Star, 2019 College Street, Class B retail alcohol - new.
n) Kwik Star, 7500 Nordic Drive, Class B retail alcohol – new.
o) Cooper’s Taproom, 2002 College Street, Class C retail alcohol – new.
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.)
16. Resolution Calendar with items considered separately.
17. Resolution rescinding CFD 1127.22, Council Policy – Official City Proclamations. The council approved this policy in December, and now is considering removing itself from proclamations entirely. By city code, the mayor does not have the authority to issue proclamations on behalf of the city (aside from emergency proclamations). For this reason, the city code would need to be modified to provide the mayor with this broad discretion. I hold that a proclamation is not simply an "announcement", but is a position on what is (or should be) important to the city and its residents. The reason I asked council to take on that responsibility it to ensure that proclamations are seen as the city's official position on the topic -- not just the mayor's.
18. Resolution approving and adopting the City’s FY2024 Appropriations Resolution. This is the detailed city anticipated expenditures for the next fiscal year. Staff and I have worked hard on our budget request line items to ensure as lean a budget as possible, without putting ourselves into a "hole" where we shortchange some things now, and end up with a higher cost down the road (like deferred maintenance).
19. Resolution amending an inter-fund loan from the Capital Projects Fund to the Sewer Enterprise Fund relative to funding for the Water Reclamation UV Disinfection & Biosolids Handling Facilities Improvements Project and the Bluff Street Lift Station. This changes the internal interest rates for this loan, in order to keep pace with comparable market rates. No concerns.
20. Resolution amending an inter-fund loan (#1) from the Health Trust Fund to the Sewer Enterprise Fund relative to funding for the Water Reclamation UV Disinfection & Biosolids Handling Facilities Improvements Project. Same as #19.
21. Resolution amending an inter-fund loan (#2) from the Health Trust Fund to the Sewer Enterprise Fund relative to funding for the Water Reclamation UV Disinfection & Biosolids Handling Facilities Improvements Project. Same as #19.
22. Resolution amending an inter-fund loan (#3) from the Health Trust Fund to the Sewer Enterprise Fund relative to funding for the Water Reclamation UV Disinfection & Biosolids Handling Facilities Improvements Project. Same as #19.
23. Resolution amending an inter-fund loan (#4) from the Health Trust Fund to the Sewer Enterprise Fund relative to funding for the Water Reclamation UV Disinfection & Biosolids Handing Facilities Improvements Project, Bluff Street Lift Station and the Park Drive Lift Station. Same as #19.
24. Resolution approving and adopting the City’s FY2024 Payroll Resolution. This is an annual approval which sets the pay rates for various city positions. It is important that we keep up on these increases each year, rather than allowing our rates to fall behind & causing a big jump all at once.
25. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of an Administrative Services Agreement with Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa relative to the City’s FY2024 Employee Health Plan. This health plan incorporates a 3.1% increase over 2023's plan numbers which is slightly less than inflation.
26. Resolution approving a Stop Loss Policy with Wellmark, Inc. relative to the City’s FY2024 Employee Health Plan. This is required due to a high number of large health claims by plan members. An explanation is contained on page 235 of the council packet.
27. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of a Business Associate Agreement with Pedersen, Dowie, Clabby & McCausland (PDCM) Insurance Inc., in conjunction with the Benefits Consultant Agreement relative to the City's benefit plans. This allows the city to work with PDCM on its benefit plans.
28. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of a Client Authorization to Bind Coverage relative to renewal of the City’s Public Entity Insurance for FY2024. This is a renewal of the city's insurance plan, which fortunately can include Cyber Liability due to staff's excellent efforts over the past year to improve our cybersecurity posture.
29. Resolution approving and adopting amendments to the City's Finance Policies (f/n/a Accounting Policies and Procedures and Purchasing Manual). This would modify two finance policies, 3110 and 3111. This new numbering system and "separated policies" allow individual aspects of the city's financial procedures to be updated and implemented more quickly than in the past, when the entire manual had to be reviewed and reapproved.
30. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of a Merchant Card Processing Agreement with Professional Solutions Financial Services. This allows the city to process credit cards.
31. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of an Engagement Letter with Eide Bailly, LLP to perform the FY2023 Audit. This is not a new contract, but just a statement that the City and the Auditor understand and agree on the scope of work for this year.
32. Resolution approving and adopting the City’s FY2024 Fee Schedule. This new listing would take effect July 1st, and is the proposed rate for most city-provided services.
33. Resolution approving and authorizing the expenditure of funds for the replacement of network switches relative to updating the city's network hardware. This would provide $71K for city-wide networking switches. These are vital for the city's computer systems and require strong reliability & security.
34. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of a Consolidated Public Safety Communications 28E Agreement with participating government agencies in Black Hawk County relative to providing consolidated dispatch and communications services. This agreement was last passed in February 2020; I will likely remove this from consideration in order to address several discrepancies, and will plan to include it on the July 17th agenda.
35. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of a 28E Agreement for Swimming Pool Use, Operation and Maintenance, and City funding with the Cedar Falls Community School District. This agreement will allow for the funding and use of the CHFS swimming pool once it is completed.
36. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of an Agreement with Atlantic Bottling Company relative to providing vending services for The Falls Aquatic Center, Birdsall Park, Pfeiffer Park and the Recreation Center. This five year agreement is very similar to the agreement which is expiring this year.
37. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of an Agreement with The Sherwin-Williams Company for flooring replacement in the multi-purpose room of the Recreation Center. This would approve a $10K contract for the reflooring of this Rec Center space.
38. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of three Red House Studio Lease Extensions relative to the use of 224 West Seerley Boulevard as artists' studio space, in conjunction with the Hearst Center's Visiting Artist Program. This is a continuation of the great program allowing local artists to lease an unused building on the Hearst Center property.
39. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of an Agreement with Moxie, a division of VGM Group Inc., relative to digital advertising for the Tourism & Visitors Bureau. This would provide $40K for the city's digital advertising efforts, in order to attract tourists to Cedar Falls.
40. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of an Agreement in Support of the College Hill Partnership (CHP) relative to FY2024 Tourism Activities & Economic Development Services Funding. This would provide $4500 in taxpayer funds to CHP for their tourism promotion activities.
41. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of an Agreement in Support of Cedar Falls Community Main Street (CMS) relative to FY2024 Tourism Activities & Economic Development Services Funding. This agreement would provide $20K in taxpayer funds for Community Main Street's tourism activities.
42. Resolution approving and accepting a Warranty Deed, in conjunction with the expansion of the West Viking Road Industrial Park. This action simply allows the recording of a property purchase made by the city, for $346K (to add it to the industrial park).
43. Resolution approving and authorizing the expenditure of funds for the purchase of a makeup air unit (MAU) for the 17th Street Lift Station. This necessary $200K expense would be covered via Sewer Funds.
44. Resolution approving and accepting the contract and bond of Vieth Construction Corp. for the 2023 Alley Reconstruction Project. This would allocate $255K for the reconstruction of three alleys.
45. Resolution setting July 17, 2023 as the date of public hearing on the proposed FY2024 (FFY2023) Annual Action Plan for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Consortium. This simply sets the hearing date.
46. Resolution setting July 17, 2023 as the date of public hearing to consider entering into an Agreement for Private Development, and to consider conveyance of certain city-owned real estate to Ryan Companies US, Inc. This simply sets the hearing date.
Ordinances
47. Pass an ordinance amending Chapter 2, Administration, of the Code of Ordinances relative to salaries for elected officials, upon its first consideration. The Committee of the Whole recently discussed council compensation, and determined that the current $7K/year compensation did not adequately reflect the responsibilities of the council's work and responsibility. I initiated the discussion to reflect my desire that council members should be representative of the community, which includes reasonable compensation for their time. Based on my own experience, I believe that 10 hours a week with two weeks "vacation" is a reasonable expectation for council members, equalling 500 hours a year. At the proposed $12K, this would equate to $24/hr for what is essentially a "quarter time" (as opposed to "full time") job.
I'll note, too, that I have intentionally ramped up the responsibilities of city council members, by requesting that they serve on board search panels and serving as chairs of council standing committees. I also put more responsibility on the Mayor Pro Tem to lead meetings and serve as Acting Mayor in my absence (including my recent trip to Kosovo). The council simply doesn't look like it did when the original rate was passed in 2000, and I believe the compensation ought to reflect the new responsibilities.
48. Pass an ordinance amending Chapter 19, Streets and Sidewalks, of the Code of Ordinances relative to removal of snow and ice, upon its first consideration. This change would require the clearance of ice and snow within 48 hours after the end of a snow event, and also would allow for the property owner to propose an "alternate route" for sidewalk users if clearing snow on the primary path is impractical.
49. Pass an ordinance amending Chapter 23, Traffic and Motor Vehicle, of the Code of Ordinances relative to prohibiting parking on certain portions of Bluebell Road, upon its first consideration. This was discussed in a previous council meeting, and would ban parking near the Arrowhead Clinic on Bluebell Road.
Allow Bills and Claims
50. Allow Bills and Claims for June 20, 2023. The council is the approving authority for all bills and claims made against the city since the previous council meeting.
Council Updates and Announcements
Council Referrals
Adjournment
| Council Packet Link | |
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| Meeting Date | 06/20/23 |
