Waukon City Council discusses several downtown projects, follows current city ordinance in regard to pot-bellied pig within city limits

by Joe Moses

The Waukon City Council met in regular session at City Hall Monday, July 18 to discuss a full agenda of items. There were no comments during the public comments portion of the meeting.
During the Departmental Reports, Water/Sewer Superintendent Bob Campbell reported that the detention basin is holding water and operating well with the recent heavy rainfall. Street Department Superintendent Keith Burrett discussed some mechanical problems with the street sweeper and that it is in Decorah having repairs made under warranty.

Waukon Police Chief Phil Young commented on the use of portable pedestrian signs as a safety measure to make motorists more aware and encourage pedestrians to use crosswalks. Young recommended the purchase of a few portable signs that can be used for special events. Young also commented on the need for an additional reserve officer and that a candidate from the Lansing area has expressed interest. This will be added to the next meeting agenda.

Park, Recreation and Wellness Director Jeremy Strub commented that little league and the swim team seasons have come to an end. The Northeast Iowa Conference event, which is rotated through the swim conference schools every nine years, was held locally this year and was considered a huge success with over 1,000 in attendance. The new concession stand in the park is just getting started and fish for Indian Springs Pond should be added soon.

Lori Brockway with Upper Explorerland addressed the Waukon Reuse Plan. This plan involves the Northeast Iowa Regional Housing Trust Fund Program, matching funds and grants. These funds can be used for housing rehabilitation projects, emergency repairs or new construction benefiting low to moderate income households. Brockway said there have been 34 Waukon area projects completed. She provided recommendations including putting funds back into the trust fund program and in turn qualifying for matching funds in addition to the original contribution that would be eventually returned for Waukon’s use.

Under Nuisance Abatement, Sonya Lester addressed the Council regarding her pot-bellied pig that she has kept at her residence as a pet. Previously, she received a 30-day notice to remove the animal as it was in violation of city code as “livestock”. Lester was later granted a 30-day extension as the City Council researched the issue. Lester expressed that her neighbors have not had a problem with the pot-bellied pig. The Council was sympathetic to this unique situation and the personal feelings involved with a family pet, but there was concern that changing the city ordinance to include animals beyond cats and dogs could set a precedent that would be difficult to enforce and could create safety concerns. The Council voted to enforce the current ordinance and not allow the animal to remain within the city limits.

The audit agreement with Hacker, Nelson & Co. was approved by the Council. Franchise fees and possible exemptions were discussed. The Fire Station was discussed and was approved as being exempt. Veterans Memorial Hospital was also discussed as being exempt, but the school is not exempt from the franchise fee.

The document retention policy was discussed by the Council. City Clerk Allen Lyon went into detail about the process that he recommends be enacted moving forward. Another scanner will be necessary to complete this process, as old items in storage, including meeting minutes, ordinances and resolutions must be kept on records digitally in perpetuity. Old computer hard drives must be destroyed. The process was approved by the Council.

Lyle TeKippe, Senior Project Manager with Fehr-Graham Engineering, addressed the City Parking Lot behind Howards Home Furnishings. The property has been surveyed, the plat is done and is in the process of being recorded at the County Courthouse. There are four lots, with two to the north and two to the south. The property line is north of the existing retaining wall.

Howard Van Ruler of Howards Home Furnishings brought in the abstract for his property and stated that he is in agreement with TeKippe’s surveying results. The abstract showed there is another 12-1/2 feet belonging to Howards Home Furnishings into what most regard as an alley behind the building. Van Ruler suggested that the alley area could be included in an easement or in a deed to the City so necessary concrete repairs could be accomplished. City Attorney James Garrett indicated that the other properties adjacent to the City Parking Lot could be surveyed and property owners could also consider easements. Letters will be sent and TeKippe will survey the adjacent properties.

The downtown street lights were discussed, most specifically within the initial block of West Street. Ken Kerr with Kerr Electric spoke on the subject, saying he has had difficulty finding the junction box that is affecting some street lights downtown. This is a similar situation that has happened before, where a junction box has been previously placed under the concrete sidewalk and its location is not in any records on file. Kerr commented that an aluminum junction box will corrode due to water and moisture. The different gauge of wire leading away and towards the buildings indicates that a junction box is located somewhere under the sidewalk in the West Street area. The motion was approved to move forward with the street light project within the initial block of West Street.

The motion to pay $80,532.38 for the partial payment for work done at the Northwest Detention Basin was approved. The 2016 PCC Street Repair Project was also approved. PCC refers to the Portland Cement Concrete process that involves replacement of the top layer of cement that traffic makes contact with. The 2016 HMA Street Repair Project was also approved; HMA is hot-mix asphalt used for small street repairs. The Northgate sanitary sewer was discussed, and the Council agreed that Visu-Sewer needs to be used to identify the specific manholes that are causing problems or leaking.

The Countryside Estates Sanitary Sewer was the next item on the agenda. Residents of this development, Larry Gelo and Ken Lampman, were in attendance. Gelo expressed that he is not interested in having his home hooked up to the City sewer and Lampman expressed that he was well aware that he would be responsible for maintenance and repair of his own septic system. It was discussed that some homes have septic systems pointing to the back of the house and hooking up to the sewer in the opposite direction would require extensive digging and could lead to issues in basements. Lampman believes there is no need to do this if the existing septic system is working.

Bob Campbell, also a resident of this development, acknowledged their concerns, but expressed that he is in favor of the City sewer system. Campbell commented that the City is expected to have an upgraded sewer plant in the not too distant future and residents of that area will not benefit from it if they continue to utilize their own septic system, further stating that tax payers who have City water should also have City sewer. No action was taken by the Council at this time.

The Rossville Road and Seventh Avenue SE storm sewer was discussed by the Council. Garrett has sent letters seeking easements from property owners along the storm sewer that runs from near Casey's General Store south and east through the parking lot area of Waukon Banquet Center and First Baptist Church. So far, two easements have been signed.
The Indian Springs Pond was addressed by Garrett, saying that at this time there has not been a response on a settlement with the contractor regarding work completed and the reduced payment. The Valley Trail partial pay estimate to Riehm Construction Co. was approved at $4,833.60. This project in the Waukon City Park is 56% complete.

Vacancies on the Park, Recreation and Wellness Board, Planning and Zoning Board and the Water and Sewer Board were discussed by the Council. Mayor DeWalle and council members discussed some possible candidates. This will be added to the August 1 Council Meeting agenda. As a final order of business, a few routine accounting measures were discussed and approved. These include a transfer from the Hotel/Motel (Park Improvement) Fund to the2013 Flood Fund, a transfer from the Street Improvement Fund to the Storm Sewer Improvement Fund with payback and a transfer from the General Fund to the Library Fund.