January 3, 2011 Minutes

The semi-monthly meeting of the City Council of Walcott, Iowa, was held on Monday, the 3rd day of January, 2011. Mayor Couper called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Council members present were: Kostichek, Dietz, Puck, and Koehler. Absent: Koberg. City employees present: L. Rickertsen, J. Brockmann, T. Schirman, and A. Hill.

Koehler moved and Dietz seconded to approve the agenda. Motion carried.

Consent Agenda. Puck moved and Koehler seconded to approve the consent agenda including the invoices, minutes from December 20, 2010, Resolution 2011-1, Authorizing Certain Payments Before a Council Meeting, Resolution 2011-2 Designating Official Newspaper, Resolution 2011-3 Designating Financial Institutions as Depositories, Resolution 2011-4 Establishing the Standard Mileage Rate Reimbursement, and Resolution 2011-5, Set Hearing Date for Development Agreement with T&C Storage. Roll call ayes: Puck, Koehler, Kostichek, and Dietz. Motion carried.

Appointments by Mayor. Mayor Couper reported that the council committees and Mayor Pro Tem will remain the same as 2010.

Korry Kraft : Request to Grade Alley. Korry Kraft was present and expressed concerns regarding water running onto his property after a recent watermain break in the alley near his residence. Kraft asked if the City would consider grading the alley in the spring so any water would be diverted to the street. Brockmann stated the property is flat and doesn't think it can be graded to flow to the street but he would need the engineer to take an elevation. Mayor Couper stated the City will look at the area this spring to see what can be done to help with the situation.

Donation to Durant Ambulance. Dietz moved and Puck seconded to approve a donation in the amount of $1,000 to Durant Ambulance. Motion carried.

Recreational Trail & Park Project : Rules & Regulations. Discussion was held on the proposed rules and regulations, recommended by the Park Board Committee, for the recreational trail. Mayor Couper questioned why the Park Board did not want fishing allowed. Koehler stated the Board discussed wanting time for the vegetation around the pond to grow and to wait and see what happens. Discussion was also held on ice skating. Brockmann stated he did not want to make the determination if the pond was safe to skate on. Dietz stated if there is a demand for ice skating, the tennis courts may be used as an alternative. Rickertsen will draft an ordinance for the trail regulations.

Bi-State Region Clean Air Partnership. Following discussion, Koehler moved and Kostichek seconded to table the issue until next year. Motion carried.

Ordinance 447, Amending Chapter 55, Animal Protection & Control. Dietz moved and Kostichek seconded to approve the third reading of Ordinance 447. Roll call ayes: Dietz, Kostichek, Koehler, and Puck. Motion carried.

Ordinance 448, Amending Chapter 160, Pertaining to Sewer Ejectors. Puck moved and Koehler seconded to approve the second reading of Ordinance 448. Roll call ayes: Puck, Koehler, Kostichek, and Dietz. Motion carried.

Ordinance 449, Amending Chapter 166, Pertaining to Subdivision Regulations. Dietz moved and Puck seconded to approve the second reading of Ordinance 449. Roll call ayes: Dietz, Puck, Koehler, and Kostichek. Motion carried.

Ordinance 450, Amending Chapter 167, Pertaining to Floodplain Management. Rickertsen discussed concerns that the Planning & Zoning Commission had with the ordinance. Attorney Schirman stated that addition of "Routine maintenance of existing buildings and facilities" was included in the draft ordinance that was provided to him by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources but they are not requiring the City to include it in the ordinance. Following discussion, Koehler moved and Kostichek seconded to approve the second reading of Ordinance 450, with the deletions as discussed. Roll call ayes: Koehler, Kostichek, Puck, and Dietz. Motion carried.

Public Work's Dept Report. Mayor Couper read a letter from Brockmann regarding snow removal issues: concerns that residents are blowing snow into the streets, which is prohibited by City Code, and difficulty plowing around vehicles parked on the street during heavy snowfall. Discussion was held on adding the snow removal regulations to the city website and having Public Works Department employees notify City Hall regarding violations of shoveling/blowing snow on city streets. A snow emergency parking policy was discussed.

City Clerk's Report. Rickertsen presented the Capital Improvement Planning Guide ratings to the council. The plan will be reviewed further during budget discussions. She also reported the Iowa Department of Transportation is proposing a patching project on I-80 this summer from Cedar County line east to the Mississippi River. No funding will be required from the City.

City Attorney Report. Schirman reported he contacted the attorney of the owner of the apartment building at 114 E. Lincoln Street regarding garbage issues. He stated the property was recently transferred to a different owner and hopefully the issues will be resolved in the next few days.

Questions/Concerns. Mayor Couper reported that the Region 9 Transportation Policy Committee recently approved the two bridge/culvert projects on Blue Grass Road for Region 9 Federal STP funding. He also reported on the community meeting on December 20th regarding Calvary Church being an emergency shelter. Couper stated representatives from the Red Cross were present and explained the different levels of being a Red Cross shelter. Mayor Couper stated that having a designated Red Cross shelter would be very beneficial for our community. Discussion was held regarding tax increment financing.

Puck moved and Dietz seconded to adjourn at 7:20 p.m. Motion carried. All votes on motions were unanimous, unless noted.