This City Council meeting will again be held as a Zoom Webinar (hopefully for not too much longer!). We'll have a few public hearings, including the issuance of bonds (Items #2 - 5) and a new county-wide Hazard Mitigation Plan. Council will also vote on a new payscale market study (Item #20) and new cameras for the Cable TV division (Item #21).
There's no Committee of the Whole meeting on this night, so tune in at 7pm (various links are provided in the agenda to follow the proceedings). Thanks for doing the work to be informed and engaged residents!
To protect against the spread of the COVID-19, the meeting will be held via Videoconference. The public may access/participate in the meeting in the following ways:
a) By dialing the phone number +13126266799 or +19292056099 or +12532158782 or +13017158592 or +13462487799 or +16699006833 and when prompted, enter the meeting ID (access code) 962 7287 1738.
b) iPhone one-tap: +13126266799,,96272871738# or +19292056099,,96272871738#
c) Join via smartphone or computer using this link: https://zoom.us/j/96272871738.
d) View the live stream on Channel 15 YouTube using this link: https://youtu.be/hEX9CHe5Ijo (view only).
e) Watch on Cedar Falls Cable Channel 15 (view only). To request to speak when allowed on the agenda, participants must click “Raise Hand” if connected by smartphone or computer, or press *9 if connected by telephone. All participants will be muted by the presiding officer when not actually speaking.
Call to Order by the Mayor
Roll Call
Approval of Minutes
1. Regular Meeting of May 4, 2020. This action enters the minutes into the official record as an accurate reflection of what transpired at the meeting; this is not a time to debate the merits of the items discussed in that meeting.
Agenda Revisions
Special Order of Business
2. Public hearing on the authorization of a Loan Agreement and the issuance of not to exceed $2,800,000 General Obligation Capital Loan Notes (for essential corporate purposes). This is the public's opportunity to comment on this item.
a) Receive and file proof of publication of notice of hearing. (Notice published May 6, 2020)
b) Written communications filed with the City Clerk.
c) Staff comments.
d) Public comments.
3. Resolution instituting proceedings to take additional action for the issuance of not to exceed $2,800,000 General Obligation Capital Loan Notes (for essential corporate purposes). This would allow up to $2.8M in bonds to be sold for these essential corporate purpose projects. This is a routine aspect of government finance; no questions.
4. Public hearing on the authorization of a Loan Agreement and the issuance of not to exceed $700,000 General Obligation Capital Loan Notes (for general corporate purposes). This is the public's opportunity to comment on this item.
a) Receive and file proof of publication of notice of hearing. (Notice published May 6, 2020)
b) Written communications filed with the City Clerk.
c) Staff comments.
d) Public comments.
5. Resolution instituting proceedings to take additional action for the issuance of not to exceed $700,000 General Obligation Capital Loan Notes (for general corporate Purposes). This would allow up to $700K in bonds to be sold for these general corporate purpose projects. This is a routine aspect of government finance; no questions.
6. Public hearing on the proposed plans, specifications, form of contract & estimate of cost for the 2020 CDBG Sidewalk Infill Project. This is the public's opportunity to comment on this item.
a) Receive and file proof of publication of notice of hearing. (Notice published May 8, 2020)
b) Written communications filed with the City Clerk.
c) Staff comments.
d) Public comments.
7. Resolution approving and adopting the plans, specifications, form of contract & estimate of cost for the 2020 CDBG Sidewalk Infill Project. This would dedicate $106K in federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to improving sidewalks and ensuring their compliance with Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements. No questions.
8. Public hearing on the proposed adoption of the Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan for Black Hawk County. This is the public's opportunity to comment on this item.
a) Receive and file proof of publication of notice of hearing. (Notice published May 8, 2020)
b) Written communications filed with the City Clerk.
c) Staff comments.
d) Public comments.
9. Resolution approving and adopting the Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan for Black Hawk County. This comprehensive (400+ page) plan is an excellent guide for working to prevent and minimize the impact of natural and man-made disasters in Black Hawk County. If you're interested in what kind of disasters the county is planning for, take a look at the full draft plan online. No questions at this time, but I'll be following Cedar Falls's mitigation action progress closely in the years to come.
Old Business
10. Pass Ordinance #2963, amending the boundaries for wards and precincts within the City of Cedar Falls to incorporate recently annexed territory, upon its third & final consideration. We discussed this in previous meetings; no questions.
11. Pass Ordinance #2964, amending Chapter 16, Offenses and Miscellaneous Provisions, of the Code of Ordinances relative to prohibiting loitering, upon its third & final consideration. We discussed this in previous meetings; no questions.
12. Pass Ordinance #2965, amending Chapter 17, Parks and Recreation, of the Code of Ordinances relative to noxious weeds, upon its third & final consideration. We discussed this in previous meetings; no questions.
13. Pass Ordinance #2966, amending Section 26-121 of the Code of Ordinances by rezoning from A-1, Agricultural, to R-1, Residential and M-1, P, Planned Light Industrial, of recently annexed property located south of West Viking Road and east of South Union Road, upon its second consideration. We discussed this in previous meetings; no questions.
New Business
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.)
14. Receive and file a proclamation recognizing May 16, 2020 as Jen Fielding Learn to Swim Day. Jen Fielding had such a positive impact on water safety in our community. You can see my short conversation with her son, Roy Fielding (who passed away the next day - RIP); it's on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DT0ruH0QtTQ. The proclamation is on page 40 in the packet.
15. Receive and file the resignation of Rosemary Beach as a member of the Health Trust Fund Board of Trustees. Ms. Beach is an institution in our community; while the Board of Trustees will miss her perspective, energy and insight, she certainly has contributed more than her fair share to the well-being of the community. Thank you, Rosemary!
16. Approve the following recommendation of the Mayor relative to the appointment of members to Boards and Commissions: These two members have requested reappointment, and I'm recommending so to City Council in light of the staff's positive input.
Erik Blanchard, Parks & Recreation Commission, term ending 06/30/2023
Alan Stalnaker, Parks & Recreation Commission, term ending 06/30/2023
17. Receive and file the Committee of the Whole minutes of May 4, 2020 relative to the following items: This action enters the minutes into the official record as an accurate reflection of what transpired at the meeting; this is not a time to debate the merits of the items discussed in that meeting.
a) Capital Improvements Program (CIP) Funding Update.
b) Bills & Payroll.
18. Approve the following applications for cigarette/tobacco/nicotine/vapor permits: City Council is the approval authority for these kinds of sales permits. No questions.
a) Fareway Stores, Inc. #974, 214 N. Magnolia Drive
b) Fareway Stores, Inc. #190, 4500 S. Main Street
c) Hansen's Dairy, 123 E. 18th Street
d) Hy-Vee Food Store #2, 6301 University Avenue
e) Hy-Vee Gas, 6527 University Avenue
f) Murphy USA #6970, 518 Brandilynn Boulevard
g) Prime Mart, 2728 Center Street
h) Thunder Ridge Ampride, 2425 Whitetail Drive
19. Approve the following applications for beer permits and liquor licenses: City Council is the approval authority for alcohol sales permits. No questions.
a) Hurling Hatchet, 100 East 2nd Street, Class B beer - renewal.
b) Famous Dave's, 6222 University Avenue, Class C liquor -renewal.
c) Hy-Vee Food Store, 6301 University Avenue, Class E liquor - renewal.
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.)
20. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of a Professional Service Agreement with Carlson Dettmann Consulting, LLC for market measurement and pay plan management services. This would assign $17K in taxpayer funds to research any necessary market adjustment to the city's pay bands, which were approved in 2018. I understand that the council wishes to keep our pay-scales up to date, this would set a three-year interval between payscale adjustments. If not a significant difference from the 2017 market study, then I'll ask the City Council to consider updating the plan every five years instead of every three for cost savings.
21. Resolution approving and authorizing the expenditure of funds for the purchase of camera equipment for the cable television studio. This would allocate $193K in taxpayer funds to the purchase of new video cameras to replace existing cameras which are 8-10 years old. With my limited understanding of the ins and outs of government finance, I will find out how it is that Cable TV could have "saved the necessary funds" to cover the cost of this purchase. Since budgets are approved each year, and expended in the same year, it doesn't seem appropriate to me that a division could "save up" by not expending funds that were previously allocated. The same thing happened with funding the new Public Safety Building; the Public Safety Services Department did not return unspent funds to the central 'treasury' but instead reallocated it to construction. On principle, I question the validity of this idea of divisions "saving up their money", when in reality it's taxpayer funds allocated year-to-year. I'll need to learn a lot more about this system.
22. Resolution approving and authorizing execution of a Surface Transportation Block Grant (STBG) Program Federal-Aid Agreement with the Iowa Department of Transportation relative to the Union Road Recreation Trail Project – West 12th Street to West 27th Street. This would allow the city to move forward with obtaining $300K in federal funds to match $250K in CF taxpayer funds to construct the Union Road Recreation Trail. I just have one question, that the trail in the memo is listed at 10 feet wide; my understanding is that other rec trails are no more than 6 feet wide; the 10 feet seems excessive, and I'll ask why it's set this wide.
23. Resolution setting June 1, 2020 as the date of public hearing on a proposal to vacate public right-of-way along Prairie Parkway. No questions about the hearing date. You can see the Planning & Zoning Commission presentation on this on YouTube.
24. Resolution setting June 1, 2020 as the date of public hearing on amendments to the Citizen Participation Plan for the City's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Investment Partnership Program relative to the CARES Act. No questions about the hearing date.
25. Resolution setting June 1, 2020 as the date of public hearing on amendments to the FFY2019-2023 Consolidated Plan for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) & HOME Program funding relative to the CARES Act. No questions about the hearing date.
26. Resolution setting June 1, 2020 as the date of public hearing on amendments to the FFY19 Annual Action Plan for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) & HOME Program funding relative to the CARES Act. No questions about the hearing date.
Allow Bills and Payroll
27. Allow Bills and Payroll of May 18, 2020. No questions about the items within Bills and Payroll after a cursory look; I'll review them in greater detail on Monday morning.
City Council Referrals
City Council Updates
Staff Updates
Public Forum. (Speakers will have one opportunity to speak for up to 5 minutes on topics germane to City business.)
Adjournment
| Council Packet Link | |
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| Meeting Date | 05/18/20 |
