By Erin M. Gentz
Index Interim Editor
The West Liberty City Council considered several new ordinances at the Sept. 3 meeting.
The second reading of an ordinance regarding solid waste collection was held. City clerk Shari Hoffert explained the amendment of fees regarding multi-residential properties. “What was happening before is that the rates were charged to the individual, so when we changed it in, I think 2012 or 2013, it was originally written with the intention where the landlord is responsible for the garbage, and they essentially divvy it out amongst their tenants. What was happening is, we were charging based on the rate that a previous city manager had put in place, and we weren’t collecting enough revenue for it. We were actually taking more down to the dump than what was being paid for. We have adjusted it to take it back to the true intent.”
Fines for weeds and nuisances
The council approved the second reading and waived the third reading on an ordinance pertaining to weeds and noxious growth.
The purpose of the ordinance is to create a uniform height for grass lawns within the city on individual properties to prevent “unsightly, offensive or nuisance conditions.”
Developed and undeveloped residential areas are not to exceed a grass height of eight inches, business and industrial areas are not to exceed six inches, and agricultural areas are not to exceed 15 inches.
Property owners are also required to control weeds. If the city abates the nuisance, owners will be charged $150 for the first offense, and $250 for subsequent offenses. If the city uses an independent contractor, the owner will also be charged a $75 administration fee for the first offense and $125 for subsequent violations.
The council also approved the second reading and waived the third reading of an ordinance regarding the prohibition of open dumping. The ordinance reads, in part, “No person shall dump, deposit, or permit the dumping or depositing of any solid waste at any place other than a sanitary disposal project approved by the Director or the State Department of Natural Resources unless the person has been granted a permit by the State Department of Natural Resources which allows the dumping or depositing of solid waste on land owned or leased by the person.” During the first reading of this ordinance, at the previous city council meeting, Hoffert explained the ordinance amendment was intended in part to prevent unauthorized depositing of garbage in Dumpsters.
ELC acquisition
The council approved the acquisition of the old ELC building from the West Liberty School District in exchange for the price value of the electrical work done at the new sports complex, approximately $27,000. Closing will occur no later than Oct. 18.
Info technology audit
The council approved a $9,500 contract with Marco Technologies for a security audit of the city’s IT server and computers to determine any cyber risk and to make sure the servers are functioning properly. City manager Lee Geertz said the last time such an audit had occurred was in 2017.
Council member Dana Dominguez asked if the audit had been bid out. Geertz explained that the city already has a contract with Marco. She added that since the city has an ongoing relationship with Marco, the company was able to identify the city’s needs with the audit.
Columbus Street sidewalk
In city engineer Leo Foley’s absence, city manager Geertz updated the council on the Columbus Street sidewalk plan. The city had been expecting the project to begin right after school started, but Geertz said All-American Concrete now has plans for a mid-September start date. Geertz said she and public works superintendent Adam Reinhardt would be communicating with the company to ensure the project stays on track.
“They’re saying that it’s going to take them only a couple of weeks to maybe complete the project,” said Geertz. “But again, with us coming into the construction season, I just want to make sure that we don’t spend another winter without this project.”
Knotty Circle Drive water leaks
Geertz also gave an update on the water leak problems on Knotty Circle Drive, saying city workers believed they had traced the problem to water lines that were damaged during the street upgrade. She said the city would be getting a second opinion on that soon. Reinhardt added that residents in the area still had safe drinking water. “Water’s going out, nothing is coming in, so people are safe.”
The water department is working on the Environmental Protection Agency’s lead service line project, with a report forthcoming in October. Workers may be coming door-to-door to collect more information from residents.
Damage at electric plant
Geertz reported that electric superintendent Cody Franklin has identified some additional damage in the electric plant due to the roof having not been repaired for several years. He will be putting together an estimate report for repairs. Mayor Mark Smith said he had stopped by the plant and encouraged council members to make an appointment to see the damage as well. “There has been, in my opinion, some serious neglect of that building that needs to be taken a look at before that gets worse.”
She also reported that a “black start test” had been attempted on the city’s generators in August. The test was done to check the city’s power availability if it were to ever be separated from the power grid. Geertz reported that a water pump on one of the generators failed, and when repairs were attempted, the pump combusted. The department was still assessing the extent of the damage. “Without being able to do a black start, it does impact the utility and out credits that we earn from our wholesale provider,” said Geertz. “But we’ll keep you up to date on that.”
Bills
The council approved Claims List #1 in the amount of $324,467.82. Dominguez noted several charges to the Lynch Dallas Law Firm. “Attorneys are expensive, but I just noticed it, and maybe by the end of this fiscal year (we should) see how much money we spent on attorneys and just consider hiring a city attorney. It might even be less expensive that contracting.”
The council also approved Claims List #2 for $46 to Cardinal Sign and Graphics for employee business cards, with mayor pro tem Cara McFerren abstaining.
The Library Prepaid Claims List was also approved, in the amount of $5,726.74.
Council comment
Dominguez said she had been approached by a citizen regarding how to purchase the homes going up near Subway. WELEAD director Ken Brooks said inquiries could be directed to his office.
“Do you know if the properties are already being sold or is there still availability?” Dominguez asked Brooks. “Because I know in Iowa City, a lot of times they’re already sold before they are built.”
Brooks said there were several types of properties being constructed in that subdivision, with much of the zero lot line construction already spoken for. He said he was not sure how many of the single-family homes had been purchased, but there were several Realtors involved with the project.
Annexation hearing set
The council will hold a public hearing on the annexation of Deepak Giri’s East 8th Street property on Oct. 1. Geertz said the city was expecting to get a response from the Muscatine County Board of Supervisors no later than Sept. 9. If the county approved the annexation request, the city could then file with the state. “There’s a whole lot of other steps after that, just so that we understand this is just the first part of many steps,” she said.