HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-09-17 Bd Comm minutesItem Number: 4.a.
i
CITY OE IOWA CITY
www.icgov.org
September 17, 2019
ATTACHMENTS:
Description
Economic Development Committee: June 3
��_,---.r.® CITY OF IOWA CITY
.41. A 2111
MEMORANDUM
Date: August 30, 2019
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Wendy Ford, City Council Economic Development Committee
Re: Recommendation from City Council Economic Development Committee Board
At their June 3, 2019 meeting the City Council Economic Development Committee made the
following recommendation to the City Council:
Cole moved to recommend proceeding to City Council to establish the Forest View Urban
Renewal Area.
Throgmorton seconded the motion.
The motion carried 3-0.
Additional action (check one)
x No further action needed
Board or Commission is requesting Council direction
Agenda item will be was prepared by staff for Council action
S:RECform.doc
EDC June 3, 2019 1
APPROVED
MINUTES
CITY COUNCIL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
JUNE 3, 2019
EMMA HARVAT HALL, CITY HALL, 4:00 P.M.
Members present: Rockne Cole, Susan Mims, Jim Throgmorton
Staff present: Simon Andrew, Eleanor Dilkes, Wendy Ford, Geoff Fruin
Others present: Jimmy Becker, Kevin Monson
RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL:
Cole moved to recommend proceeding to City Council to establish the Forest View Urban
Renewal Area.
Throgmorton seconded the motion.
The motion carried 3-0.
CALL MEETING TO ORDER:
The meeting was called to order at 4:00 P.M.
CONSIDER APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM THE JANUARY 18. 2019 ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE MEETING:
Throgmorton moved to approve the minutes from the January 18, 2019 meeting as
presented.
Cole seconded the motion.
The motion carried 3-0.
Consider recommendation to City Council to proceed to establish the Forest View Urban
Renewal Area:
Ford stated that staff is seeking a recommendation to the full Council to start the process to
create an urban renewal plan for Forest View. This would enable the City to consider financial
participation in projects within this designated area. Ford noted that owners of the property
approached the City regarding sharing in the cost of the infrastructure, including roads, trails,
water, sewer, and storm water within this area.
Staff believes there are at least two significant benefits to the project. The first is that there is
assurance that the developer will provide good housing options and relocation assistance for the
current residents of Forest View, and that this relocation will be offered in various forms — either
relocation to a new manufactured home or relocation to one of the multi -family buildings within
the redevelopment area, or relocation outside of the Forest View development. The second
benefit would be the creation of the new Forest View Drive, which will provide much needed
secondary access to the existing Peninsula and Mackinaw neighborhoods.
Ford shared a map with Members, outlining the proposed roads in the new project area and how
they will meet up with existing roads. The next step would be for the Council to have a
Resolution of Necessity on their meeting agenda. The Planning and Zoning Commission would
review the urban renewal plan to ensure it conforms to the comprehensive plan. There would
also be a consultation with representatives of the taxing entities of the County and the School
District. A public hearing would also be held, within a 30 -day time frame typically. Members then
asked questions of staff, mainly regarding the urban renewal process for this proposal.
EDC June 3, 2019 2
APPROVED
Cole moved to recommend proceeding to City Council to establish the Forest View Urban
Renewal Area.
Throgmorton seconded the motion.
The motion carried 3-0.
Update on Potential Commercial Tax Abatement Program Development:
Ford noted that Members recently received a memo map in their information packet that shows
the Opportunity Zones that were implemented in 2017 and some potential Commercial Tax
Abatement areas. The goal of the Commercial Tax Abatement areas would be to inspire the
property owners in these areas to reinvest in their properties, whether by improving their existing
property or building something new. Ford stated that staff is not far enough along yet with this
proposal to bring it to Council but they wanted to share this update with the Committee. She
reiterated that this abatement would be for commercial properties only and could be a sliding
scale over five to 10 years. Ford continued, giving Members examples of how such a program
might work. Throgmorton then spoke to this, noting that any economic development incentives
provided should in part be designed to get the property on track for reducing its carbon
emissions. He added that there should also be some clear benefit for low to moderate -income
households. One of the top priorities for him is childcare, for example, and he spoke briefly to
how such programs should benefit the community in certain ways. Staff and Members continued
to speak to how this type of tax abatement program might work and what areas might be
considered priorities for property owners to qualify.
STAFF REPORT:
Ford discussed Building Change, which is an FY19 program to help downtown and Northside
businesses make improvements to their facades. There were three qualifying applications. One
is the old Kresge building, which is 119 to 123 E. Washington Street, along with the old Younkers
building to the west, where the Old Brown Bottle was. These two together are eligible for the
maximum of $100,000. The other project is on Clinton Street, the McDonald Optical building.
This will be a full renovation of the brick facade, repainting, and other elements. This project was
at a $22,000 match.
COMMITTEE TIME:
None.
OTHER BUSINESS:
None.
ADJOURNMENT:
Cole moved to adjourn the meeting at 4:38 P.M.
Throgmorton seconded the motion.
Motion carried 3-0.
EDC June 3, 2019 3
APPROVED
Council Economic Development Committee
ATTENDANCE RECORD
2017-2019
Key:
X = Present
O = Absent
O/E = Absent/Excused
TERMm
o
1
Co
NAME
EXP.
V4_
%Q
-4
o
w
w
-I
V
j
V
V
c0
w
w
Rockne Cole
01/02/20
X
X
X
X
X
j X
j X
j
j
Susan Mims
01/02/20
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Jim Throgmorton
01/02/20
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Key:
X = Present
O = Absent
O/E = Absent/Excused
i
CITY OE IOWA CITY
www.icgov.org
September 17, 2019
ATTACHMENTS:
Description
Library Board of Trustees: July 25
Item Number: 4.b.
IOWA CITY
PUBLIC LIBRARY
123 S. Linn St. • Iowa City, IA 52240
DIEEUoa Elsworth Carman • Pn mE 319-356-5200 • Fax 319-356-5494 • iepl.org
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Minutes of the Regular Meeting
July 25, 2019
FINAL APPROVED
Members Present: Wesley Beary, John Beasley, Kellee Forkenbrock (in at 5:20 pm), Derek Johnk,
Robin Paetzold (via Zoom), Tom Rocklin, Hannah Shultz, Monique Washington.
Members Absent: Carol Kirsch.
Staff Present: Terri Byers, Elsworth Carman, Maeve Clark, Patty McCarthy, Elyse Miller, Angela Pilkington,
Tyler Tritten.
Guests Present: None.
Call Meeting to Order. President Beary called the meeting to order at 5:02 pm.
Public Discussion. Byers said there was another meeting with the City of Iowa City about the hourly versus
part-time permanent staff issue. Byers said custodial staff will be affected. Thejobs are under review; some
may be permanent. A memo from City administration detailing the review will be presented to City Council
on August 20, 2019.
Approval of Minutes.
The minutes of the June 27, 2019 Regular Meeting of the Library Board of Trustees were reviewed. A motion
to approve the Regular Minutes was made by Johnk and seconded by Washington. Motion carried 7/0.
Items for Discussion/Action.
Policy Review: 101: Bylaws. A motion to approve the policy with the changes proposed by Board members
was made by Johnk and seconded by Washington. Motion carried 7/0.
Board Annual Report. A motion to approve the FY19 Board Annual Report with correction to the Trustee list,
was made by Rocklin and seconded by Johnk. Motion carried 7/0.
FY19 Strategic Plan. This is the end of the year report. Carman explained Project Outcome. No action
required.
FY20 Strategic Plan. These goals are used to help with budgeting. A motion to approve the FY20 Strategic
Plan goals was made by Johnk and seconded by Washington. Motion carried 8/0.
Staff Reports.
Director's Report. Orientations for new Board members and new Foundation Board members have been
going well. ICPL once again had a presence at the Johnson County Fair as part of the Public Libraries of
Johnson County. Carman believes it is an effective way for staff to network with people from other Johnson
County libraries and a nice outreach opportunity. Radio stations KCJJ and KXIC have hosted ICPL staff on
morning live programs for some time; Carman participated for the first time this month. Children's Services
staff are distributing 40-50 snacks per day. There are specific governmental rules about how, when, and what
kind of snacks can be given to children. Community feedback has been positive.
Currently, the Digital Media Lab (DML) has 224 registered members. There have been 1,312 sessions, which
is when a member uses equipment in the room, not including classes. Staff have offered 77 classes each
month. Carman is pleased with the diversity of patronage in the space. There was a partial air conditioning
failure last Friday afternoon. We were able to get the AC unit to 50% capacity by the weekend, but it was a
bit challenging. Carman said staff did a greatjob under the circumstances. Carman is working with Facilities
Services to develop a plan to right -size the department as Council continues to discuss changing hourly staff
to permanent/part-time positions. We are asking for hours to be added to current positions, and adding one
new full-time person in Maintenance. Paetzold asked about the AC and wonders if we need to consider this
budgetarily. Carman said we have been discussing this a lot; the units were not designed for the kind of heat
we have been experiencing. The Building Manager is confident the equipment we have will work well
enough and the hope is there will be better equipment available when it's time to replace our current
system. Paetzold asked about the costs for changing positions; will the City cover the difference or is it the
Library's responsibility to bear the extra cost. Carman said the City did not ask the department for any
financial impact for this initiative. Paetzold would like clarification about the fiscal responsibility for these
staffing changes.
Departmental Reports:
Adult Services. Paetzold asked about the decrease in Summer Reading Program registrations this year. Clark
believes people do not register, even though they are participating. The teen numbers go up and down and
she believes the final report will look more positive. Clark does think the construction on the Ped Mall has
affected the summer reading numbers. Paetzold would like a comparison with the past couple of years.
Pilkington said she will be reporting on this in her report in August.
Community & Access Services. No comments.
Development Office. McCarthy thanked Shultz, Beary, Rocklin, and Paetzold for their support at the Big Book
Bash at Big Grove. The event raised more than $800 and both parties were pleased. Logsden said 100 people
visited the Bookmobile that evening. We are hoping to be invited next year.
Spotlight on the Collection. No comments.
Miscellaneous. No comments.
President's Report.
President Beary had a few housekeeping items. He reminded members to be prepared and be on time for
meetings, especially since public comments are early in the agenda. Also, he believes in letting staff do their
work. Beary appreciates diverse input and will ask for it. He believes in asking questions and providing his
opinion at the end. He suggested if a Board member is not sure, they should ask for clarification instead of
2
assuming you know what someone means. The Board dinner is postponed until September. Traditionally it
has been held in August after the Board meeting.
Announcements from Members. None.
Committee Reports.
Foundation Members. The FY2020 Memorandum of Understanding between the Friends Foundation
Board of Directors and the Iowa City Public Library Board of Trustees was presented. This year, $238,800
in unrestricted money is available for grants and provides the foundation for the NOBU budget which
Trustees may use for various purposes throughout the year.
Communications. Email with Mary Gravitt. Johnk asked if there was any further response since the exchange
included in the packet. Carman clarified there was not. Staff had already been discussing the Digital Media
Lab before we received the communication from Ms. Gravitt. Paetzold asked if we looked at the bathroom
issues Gravitt brought to our attention. Carman said we have.
Disbursements.
The MasterCard expenditures for June, 2019 were reviewed. A motion to approve the disbursements for
June, 2019 was made by Johnk and seconded by Forkenbrock. Motion carried 8/0.
Set Agenda Order for August Meeting.
Director evaluation.
Annual Staff report.
NOBU.
Adjournment. A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Beasley and seconded by Forkenbrock.
Motion carried 8/0. President Beary closed the meeting at 6:06 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Elyse Miller
Board or Commission: ICPL Board of Trustees
ATTENDANCE RECORD
12 Month
KEY:
X = Present
O = Absent
O/E = Absent/Excused
NM = No meeting
Meeting Date
Name
Term
Expiration
9/27/18
10/25/18
11/15/18
12/20/18
01/24/19
2/28/19
3/28/19
4/25/19
5/23/19
6/27/19
7/25/19
8/22/19
Diane Baker
6/30/19
X
X
X
X
X
O
X
X
X
O/E
Off Board
Wesley Beary
6/30/21
X
X
X
X
O/E
X
O/E
X
X
X
X
O/E
John Beasley
6/30/21
x
x
x
x
x
x
o
x
x
x
x
O
Kellee
Forkenbrock
6/30/23
O/E
X
X
O/E
X
X
X
X
O/E
X
X
O/E
Janet Freeman
6/30/19
x
X
O/E
X
X
O/E
x
X
X
X
Off Board
Derek Johnk
6/30/25
Not on Board
X
X
Carol Kirsch
6/30/23
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
O/E
X
Robin Paetzold
6/30/23
X
X
X
X
X
X
O/E
X
X
X
X
X
Tom Rocklin
6/30/25
Not on Board
X
O/E
Hannah Shultz
6/30/25
Not on Board
X
X
Jay Semel
6/30/19
X
X
X
O/E
X
X
X
X
X
X
Off Board
Monique
Washington
6/30/21
O/E
x
x
O
X
x
O/E
x
x
x
x
x
KEY:
X = Present
O = Absent
O/E = Absent/Excused
NM = No meeting
Item Number: 4.c.
i
CITY OE IOWA CITY
www.icgov.org
September 17, 2019
ATTACHMENTS:
Description
Telecommunications Commission: July 22
APPROVED
Iowa City Telecommunications Commission
07/22/2019 Meeting Minutes
Page 1 of 4
Minutes
Iowa City Telecommunications Commission
July 22, 2019 — 5:30 P.M.
City of Iowa City Cable TV Office, 10 S. Linn St. - Tower Place, Level 3A
Call to Order: Meeting called to order at 5:35 P.M.
Members Present: Matthew Brenton, Gina Reyes, Adam Stockman, Andrew Austin
Members Absent:
Staff Present: Ty Coleman
Others Present: Gerardo Sandoval
Recommendations to Council: None
Approval of Minutes:
Stockman moved and Reyes seconded a motion to approve the June 24, 2019 minutes as presented.
The motion passed unanimously.
Announcements of Commissioners:
Commissioners exchanged introductions with newly -appointed member Andrew Austin. Coleman
announced that Commission member James Pierce had recently indicated he would need to step down
from his responsibilities with the Commission due to conflicting commitments.
Short Public Announcements:
None.
Election of Officers:
Matt Brenton was elected as Chair and Adam Stockman was elected as Vice Chair by a unanimous vote.
Post -franchise role of the Telecommunications Commission:
Brenton summarized that since the City's franchise agreement with Mediacom had expired, the
Telecommunications Commission's authority had been reduced and the group had been asked to
consider its role going forward. Brenton said that a proposal to Council had been drafted which
recommends that the City should look into the feasibility of municipal broadband.
Coleman said that the proposal would be included within an upcoming Council information packet.
Brenton said City Council members had expressed an interest in the topic in the past. He noted that one
issue that had been brought up was that Iowa City does not own its own electric utility and that a lot of
communities who had successfully built their own municipal broadband network had done so by
"piggy -backing" off of their municipal electric utility's infrastructure.
Brenton referred to the lawsuit that had been filed by Mediacom a few years back in response to the City
leasing fiber to ImOn for the provision of Internet and phone services. Coleman explained that companies
offering cable television service are required to operate under a franchise agreement and pay franchise
fees. He said that ImOn was only intending to provide Internet and phone services and was therefore not
required to obtain a franchise and pay franchise fees. Brenton said the courts had sided with the City and
ImOn. He said ImOn had recently stated it planned to build out its broadband network and begin offering
residential broadband service over the next couple of years. Brenton said he wasn't sure if competitive
service providers such as ImOn would affect the Council's interest in looking into municipal broadband.
APPROVED
Iowa City Telecommunications Commission
07/22/2019 Meeting Minutes
Page 2 of 4
Stockman said the group wants to first see if there is any interest by Council in municipal broadband.
Brenton said that the proposal offers to set up an advisory board to look into the topic, but that if Council
does not have an interest in it, then the Telecommunications Commission would plan to disband.
Andrews said the potential for working on a municipal broadband proposal and gathering data for it was
one of the things that attracted him to the Commission. Brenton said the proposal does not include that
existing Commission members would automatically become municipal broadband advisory board
members, but said he'd expect anyone on the Commission interested in becoming a member of the
advisory board to have an opportunity to do so.
Coleman said he said he would be including a couple of documents along with the proposal to provide
information, including the excerpt from the Iowa Code dealing with municipal broadband and the City's
Cable TV Franchise Enabling Ordinance. Coleman said a memo accompanying the proposal would
suggest that the Council find a time to meet with the Telecommunications Commission to discuss and ask
questions. Brenton noted that the proposal isn't to establish municipal broadband, but rather to make a
recommendation. Brenton said it could be possible that the recommendation would be to not pursue it.
Consumer Issues:
Brenton referred to the issue described in the cable complaints report involving a customer who was not
getting the speeds he felt he should have been getting. Brenton noted that the speeds are typically listed
as being up to a certain speed. Coleman said some customers in the past have expressed that there was
nothing they could do about receiving service that didn't meet their expectations and said that bringing in
competition or discussing municipal broadband would help to address the concern of not having other
options.
Mediacom Report:
Coleman reported that he had not received any information from Mediacom other than a notice that a few
upper tier channels were being moved.
Local Access Reports:
Sandoval reported that PAN would be changing its hours based on current usage of the facilities. He
said the PAN board has been aggressively looking at how PAN can continue its mission and said they
had some promising leads. Sandoval said that activity at PAN increases when the school year begins.
He said independent filmmakers had been using the facility and the podcast room had seen increased
use. Sandoval said an upcoming project would be to provide a way to include video for podcast
recordings.
Sandoval said that PATV has been around for 40 years, starting at the City, and operating for 30 years as
an independent non-profit organization. He said PATV's building is owned by Public Access, making it
community -owned. Sandoval said PATV's funding has always been pass-through money from the cable
company, passed through the City. Despite the current lack of a funding stream, he said that the City still
contracts with PAN to provide the service so that community members can have a channel on which to
put their content.
City Cable TV Office Report:
Coleman referred to the report the Cable TV Office had submitted in the meeting packet. He mentioned
that the City's Rummage in the Ramp event would be starting soon and that Cable TV Office staff would
be doing a Facebook Live event to highlight the event and to show people what's there as well as to
inform the public of the impact the event has, including diverting items from the landfill and distributing the
profits to participating non-profit organizations.
Coleman said he had been working with the Johnson County Mobility Coordinator, as well as transit
systems from Iowa City, Coralville, the University of Iowa, and Johnson County, to produce a series of
APPROVED
Iowa City Telecommunications Commission
07/22/2099 Meeting Minutes
Page 3 of 4
short videos to highlight the public transportation offerings in our area as well as to provide some how-tos
on things like planning your route and transferring between buses. Andrews commented that the video
series is a good idea for new students coming to town.
Adjournment:
Stockman moved and Reyes seconded a motion to adjourn. The motion passed unanimously.
Adjournment was at 6:05 p.m.
APPROVED
Iowa City Telecommunications Commission
07/2212019 Meeting Minutes
Page 4 of 4
(x) = Present (o) = Absent (o/c) = Absent/Called (Excused)
Gowder
Bergus
Brenton
Johnk
Pierce
08/27/2018
Meeting not held due to
lack of quorum.
vacant
vacant
9/24/2018
x
vacant
x
vacant
x
Paterson
10/22/2018
x
o
x
vacant
x
11/26/2018
Meeting not held due to
lack of quorum.
vacant
12/17/2018
x
o
x
vacant
x
01/22/2019
Meeting not held due to
inclement weather and
lack of quorum.
vacant
resignation
Stockman
02/25/2019
x
vacant
x
x
o/c
Reyes
03/25/2019
resignation
o/c
x
x
x
04/22/2019
vacant
x
x
x
o/c
06/03/2019
Meeting not held due to
lack of quorum.
vacant
06/24/2019
vacant
x
x
x
o
Andrews
07/22/2019
x
x
x
x
resignation
(x) = Present (o) = Absent (o/c) = Absent/Called (Excused)