Portable stop signs, street and sewer issues top Waukon City Council agenda

by Dwight Jones

The Waukon City Council met in regular session the evening of Monday, October 5 with a full council in attendance. Under the Regular Business portion of the meeting, the Council approved the zoning change request for Ruth Shafer at the address of 20 Ninth Street NW, changing from R-4 to B-2.
Next, Dave Herold and Ann Hart with Allamakee Community Schools were in attendance to address concerns they had following discussions at a previous council meeting regarding the possible removal of temporary stop signs used before and after school. Herold presented the Mayor and Council with use studies that had been done at each, including near Farmers and Merchants Bank, the former C-Mart property and Gus and Tony’s restaurant.
Herold explained that he was “not aware of an injury ever occurring at one of those locations”, and feared that removing the signs would put students in danger and could lead to a child getting hurt. He explained that the “sole purpose of those signs is to insure the safety of our students”, and urged the Council to leave them as they are.
Hart and school board member Dwight Watkins then reiterated Herold’s comments. Mayor Keith Schroeder explained that the Iowa Department of Transportation (IDOT) had done its own studies, and at least one of the areas in question had very low traffic numbers. The use of such signs is regulated by the IDOT, and permits are required to use them.
Schroeder asked if it would be possible to consolidate two and route the traffic to the other. City Engineer Lyle TeKippe then explained the possibility of using a flashing yellow light in these areas. The height of the current portable stop signs was then discussed, with questions reviewed as to if they could be made taller. Councilman Joe Cunningham then stated that he believes that due to road construction currently taking place, traffic is being routed in different directions than normal, and made a motion to leave things as they are for now, with requests being submitted to the IDOT for the three portables to be continued in their current location and a wish to review the issue prior to the start of the next school year. The rest of the Council agreed and the school board seemed pleased with that decision.
The Council next shifted its discussion to a storm sewer problem that has arisen near RW Pladsen, Inc. TeKippe explained that due to some repairs that were made some time ago, the capacity of the line was reduced, causing deterioration and a “bottle neck” above the line. His rough estimate to fix the problem was $139,000.  The Council then discussed where the funds could come from to do the repairs and asked TeKippe to draw up plans and specs to get the work completed. The issue was then tabled until the additional information was made available.
Moving on, the Council took care of some “house cleaning” for the proposed Iowa Department of Transportation maintenance garage, including setting a public hearing for some limited street vacation that is needed.
The Council then reviewed and approved the plat that had been developed to break down the recently vacated portion of Eighth Street SW. Interested adjoining property owners will be splitting the parcel under terms previously agreed upon by the Council.
The Council also adopted the proposed ordinance changes for parking and traffic near the former Junior High building. A four-way stop will now be required at the intersections of First Avenue NW and Fifth Street NW, with the one-way traffic and parking restrictions removed on First Avenue NW.
The airport paving project was then reviewed, with several items on the agenda referring to it. The Council approved an internal loan to make payments to the contractor while the City awaits reimbursement from the State of Iowa via the grant it had received for the project. The Council then approved a change order in the amount of $1,920.38 and payment #1 to River City Paving for $270,018.09 for the project.
The Council then approved an ambulance purchase for Veterans Memorial Hospital from Emergency Vehicle Sales and Service for the amount of $130,190. The City merely “writes the check”, as the funds are already in place in a sub-fund via the hospital, but due to the fact that it is a “City” hospital, such transactions are run through the City.
The Council then approved a request to have the Allamakee Economic Development office submit two Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) requests on behalf of the City of Waukon - one for economic development, the other for utilities.
In closing, the Mayor gave updates on the ongoing clean-up at the C-Mart property and discussions with the IDOT on the payment schedule for the land they are acquiring from the City for the previously mentioned maintenance shed.