Waukon City Council address variety of issues at regular Monday session

by Joe Moses

The Waukon City Council met in regular session Monday evening, May 2 at City Hall to discuss a variety of issues, among them street and sewer improvements, property variances and a proposed City Manager/Administrator position. There were no comments from the public in attendance and the Council moved right into the Departmental Reports.

Water/Sewer Superintendent Bob Campbell mentioned that the City has received the preliminary permit for improvements to its wastewater treatment facility and will soon be entering the comment period of the permitting process. Waukon Police Chief Phil Young has contacted the Iowa Department of Transportation about having three signs put up for upcoming events in June, including the Eastern Iowa Tractorcade and Thunder in the Park. Keith Burrett of the City Street Department advised that two core-out street projects on the prioritized list approved at the last regular Council meeting have been done and another was scheduled to be done yet this week.

Waukon Park, Recreation and Wellness Director Jeremy Strub said the youth soccer season is in full swing and the sign-up night for summer recreation programs is this Wednesday. Strub advised that the pond and the pool in Waukon City Park are scheduled to both be filled this week. He said some fish habitat will be added to the pond soon and in July the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will be stocking the pond with bluegills.

The Council moved on to Regular Business with discussion of the variance request for a front deck at the home owned by Gary and Dawn Farley at 306 Seventh Avenue SE. There were no concerns expressed and the variance was approved. The next variance request was from Veterans Memorial Hospital for an addition to the hospital’s ambulance garage with construction likely to begin after the beginning of the fiscal year, and that variance was also approved by the Council.

The next item involved the former Iowa Department of Transportation property on the north edge of Waukon. A public hearing for rezoning a portion of this property from “M-1” to “B-2”, to allow it to be used for retail, was approved for May 16. If approved, a portion of this property will be used by Clark Tire Pros and another portion will be used by Sportsmen’s Unlimited. The resolution to renew an existing short-term loan was also approved by the Council until specifics of more long-term bond funding measures could be finalized involving several ongoing City projects.

The next two agenda items involved Fehr-Graham Engineering and that company's work in 2016 on street projects and storm sewer improvements. Both of the Fehr-Graham agreements for those improvement projects were approved. The Council also discussed Mediacom’s request to run 200 feet of cable by the water treatment facility, a request that was also approved.

Issues with the City's Well #5 were discussed in some detail. Currently, sand needs to be pumped out of this well, and meeting usage demand does not seem to be an issue with the other three wells while that maintenance takes place. The Council approved the repair and maintenance work on Well #5.

The resolution approving the funding agreement for the Green Valley Bridge project was approved. This agreement involves funding from the City at 10%, from Allamakee County at 10% and from the Iowa Department of Transportation at 80%.

The Northwest Detention Pond was discussed with a May 25 start suggested. The Rossville Road/Seventh Ave SE storm sewer project was also addressed by Lyle TeKippe, Senior Project Manager with Fehr-Graham Engineering. TeKippe recommended improvements to allow greater capacity. The motion to proceed with this project was approved.
The City's Wellmark Insurance renewal date was the next agenda item, with a motion being approved to rescind an earlier motion from March 7, 2016, a decision that saved the City a couple thousand dollars in insurance premiums. The Alliant/IPL franchise agreement was addressed by the Council, with the current electric franchise agreement recently expiring and discussions ongoing. Councilman Ben Rausch commented that the length of this agreement should be reconsidered, as a lot can charge in energy in five to ten years with renewable energy. The Council recommended ten years for the new agreement, and the City Attorney will be communicating that to Alliant/IPL soon.

Councilman Don Steffens and Mayor Duane DeWalle interviewed five candidates for an open position within the City's Street Department, and the position has been offered and is waiting on the candidate's response. Long-time Street Department employee Keith Burrett has also accepted the department's Superintendent position with an immediate start date.

FEMA has approved moving the Valley Trail in the Waukon City Park twelve feet to the west, with concrete trail surfaces and rock being used to create the revised trail. A resolution was also approved by the Council to transfer $5,500 from the General Fund to the Ambulance Trust Fund.

The meeting concluded with discussion of the City Manager/City Administrator position that has been proposed. The Iowa League of Cities was mentioned as a resource that may be helpful in researching these options. A City Administrator position would require some ordinance changes due to the level of responsibility, whereas, a City Manager position, in contrast, would not have the ability to hire or fire employees. The Council’s consensus is that these decisions need to remain with the City Council regardless of what position is decided upon or how this role is defined.

City Clerk Al Lyon commented that he has seen mention of a City Manager or Administrator position in Waukon City Council meeting minutes dating back to 1989, so the need for such a position has been recognized for quite some time. The Council would like to hear from experts and do more research before making a decision on this issue.