HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-07-02 Info Packet of 6/13 CITY COUNCIL INFORMATION PACKET
CITY OF IOWA CITY June 13, 2002
www.icgov.org
I JUNE 19 WORK SESSION ITEM
IP1 Agenda: June 19 Joint Meeting
I MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS
IP2 Meeting Schedule and Tentative Work Session Agendas
IP3 Letter from Assistant City Manager to Jon Koebrick (MCC Iowa DBA Mediacom):
Letter in Response to Mediacom
IP4 Memorandum from Personnel Administrator to City Manager: Police
Recruitment
IP5 Memorandum from Parks and Recreation Director to City Manager: Court Hill
Park Playground Accessibility
IP6 Memorandum from Community and Economic Development Coordinator:
Ribbon-Cutting for Information Kiosk
IP7 Memorandum from Senior Building Inspector: Changes Contained in the 2000
Editions of the International Codes, and Local Amendments
IP8 Letter from JCCOG Traffic Engineering Planner to Beverly Dunn: Request for a
Blind Child Area Sign
IP9 Letter from Dave Tingwald (Northside Neighborhood Association) to Hilary Sale
(Neighborhood Housing Relations Task Force): Recommendations
IP10 Memorandum from Police Officer Mebus to Police Chief: Monthly Activity
Report
IPll Iowa City Police Department P.A.U.L.A. Report - May 2002
IP12 Iowa City Police Department Use of Force Report- May 2002
Agenda: City Council Economic Development Committee, June 20, 2002
AGENDA
Joint Meeting
Johnson County Board of Supervisors
City of Iowa City
City of Coralville
City of North Liberty
Iowa City Community School Board
Wednesday, June 19, 2002
North Liberty Community Center
4:00 PM
Call to order.
Welcome and introductions.
1. Discussion of Senior High Alternative Center program expansion and facility needs.
2. Iowa City Community Schools bond issue.
3. County budget.
3. Discussion of future funding of Johnson County Senior Center.
4. Update on proposed jail bond issue.
Adjourn.
~ City Tentative Council Work Meeting Session ScheduleA,, ,~and June 13, 2002
CITY OF IOWA CITY ,-,uen,..as
www.icgov.org
l June 19 Wednesday
4:00p SPECIAL COUNCIL WORK SESSION North Liberty Community Center
·Joint Meeting: Cities of North Liberty and Coralville,
JC Board of Supervisors, lC Community School District
[July 1 Monday
6:30p COUNCIL WORK SESSION Emma J. Harvat Hall
I July 2 Tuesday
7:00p FORMAL COUNCIL MEETING Emma J. Harvat Hall
· Separate Agenda Posted
I July 4 Thursday
INDEPENDENCE DAY HOLIDAY - CITY OFFICES CLOSED
I July 15 Monday
6:30p COUNCIL WORK SESSION Emma J. Hun/at Hall
I July 16 Tuesday
7:00p FORMAL COUNCIL MEETING Emma J. Harvat Hall
· Separate Agenda Posted
[August 19 Monday
6:30p COUNCIL WORK SESSION Emma J. Harvat Hall
[August 20 Tuesday
7:00p FORMAL COUNCIL MEETING Emma J. Harvat Hall
· Separate Agenda Posted
Meeting dates/limes subject to change
FUTURE WORK SESSION ITEMS
Regulation of Downtown Dumpsters Downtown Historic Preservation
Writers' Safe Haven Opening of First Avenue
Comprehensive Plan Update Age of Consent
June 13, 2002 ~
Jon Koebrick, Director of Government Relations ~ C~t,~ Of~l~
6300 Council St., N.E.
Cedar Rapids, IA. 52402
Dear Jori:
Thank you for your letter of April 26, 2002 responding to the questions and issues raised in my
letter of March 22. I have some additional questions and comments on behalf of the City that
will address point by point.
1. The issue of the decrease in the number of channels on the basic tier will be addressed in
our analysis of Mediacom's 1240 rate filings and calculation of the maximum permitted rate.
This is satisfactory to the City.
2. The matter of subscribers not being able to reach Mediacom by telephone is addressed in a
separate letter to Mediacom regarding "Notice of Non-Compliance". Mediacom is not in
compliance with the City's franchise agreement, Section XIII F, is also in violation of the
FCC guidelines, and has 30 days from the date of that letter to come into compliance.
The phone management data provided at the request of the City indicates that during the
first quarter of 2002 Mediacom's 30 second phone response times were below the 90%
required by the FCC. Mediacom's percentages were 52%, 39%, and 51% for January,
February, and March, respectively.
It should also be noted that these percentages do not include the number of phone callers
who could not get through to Mediacom because of busy phone signals. The Cable TV
Division received many complaints of this kind. We understand that Qwest was requested to
do a busy phone signal study of the January through March, 2002 period, and that they are
unable to do such studies for past telephone activities. You have requested such data going
forward and we look forward to receiving it when it becomes available.
3. Concerns relating to the provision of notice to the City of changing the premium channels
from the analog to the digital tier remain. City Code Section 12-4-16A requires the Grantee
shall notify the City and subscribers in writing at least thirty (30) days prior to the
implementation of any change in services offered, all rates and charges of any kind, or terms
and conditions related thereto.
City Code Section 12-4-16F provides that grantee may establish charges for its services not
specified in subsection A; however all such charges, including but not limited to additional
service, leased channel, discrete channel, and production rates shall be made public and 2
copies of the schedule of charges, as originally and thereafter modified, shall be filed with
the City Clerk 30 days prior to the effective date of such charges.
While some discussions between Mediacom, the City and the ICTC did occur, as indicated
in Mediacom's response, anything less than written notice as specified in the Code is not, in
the City's view, legally sufficient. Mediacom did not comply with the Code requirements
under Sections 12-4-16 A and F of the City ordinance for notification to the City.
410 EAST WASHINGTON STREET · IOWA CITY, IOWA 52240 1826 · (319 356-5000 · FAX (319) 356-5009
Jon KoebricldMediacom
June 10, 2002
Page 2
4. With respect to the issue of adequate notification being given to subscribers regarding the
changing of premium channels from the analog tier to the digital tier, we observe the
following:
Although Mediacom did put an advertisement in the Press-Citizen on Dec. 13, 2001 that
indicates a change in lineup as you state, this is not considered legally sufficient notice
pursuant to Ordinance requirements. Also, it is not expressly clear that such a lineup change
would require subscribers with premium channels to expect those channels to disappear on
January 21, 2002 or thereabouts. Neither did it inform them that they would have to
purchase or rent a digital converter to maintain that service nor that they would have to
purchase or rent an additional digital converter for every television on which they watch
those premium selections. These changes were brought about due to new policies started
by Mediacom.
The disappearance of premium channels from the analog tier, having to rent digital
converters for premium channels, and having to rent additional converters for each TV for
premium channels were the subject of many complaints the Cable TV Office received.
These latter two areas, in terms of a change of policy, are not mentioned or clarified in any
ad or the materials distributed by Mediacom. The change in price for the digital converters
first appeared in a January 22, 2002 advertisement.
Mediacom has indicated that contractors began removing premium channel filters on
January 24, 2001 (This is assumed to be a typographical error, and should have been
'2002'). However, the City Cable TV Office began receiving complaints about this matter on
January 21, 2002, and some complainants referred to their service being cut off as early as
January 16 or 17, 2002.
Mediacom notes in its response that customers were individually notified of the relocation of
premium channels by door-to-door sales, telemarketing and automated telephone
messaging as premium channel filters were removed. After examining the telemarketing
material you provided (your exhibit #9) we believe it is misleading in that it leads subscribers
and others to think they must purchase the digital service when in fact they only need to rent
a digital converter to maintain their premium channels. The City is also unable to determine
from your response and exhibits how many customers were notified and when they received
such notice.
We do not consider the Dec. 13 and 31 Press-Citizen ads to be legally sufficient notice. All
other materials, ads and brochures that Mediacom distributed were disseminated in January
2002, or later, and since the premium channel filters were pulled beginning no later than
January 24th, 2002, we conclude that Mediacom did not comply with City Code Section 12-
4-16A for providing notice to subscribers.
5. The City appreciates Mediacom's response on providing rebates to consumers. Any
complaints for non-receipt of a rebate will be forwarded to the Company. The City, like
Mediacom, would like to ensure that all subscribers have received recompense for the
services they have lost, whether for loss of premium channels or for service outages. To that
end, the Iowa City Telecommunications Commission (ICTC) will address this issue further
during their Triennial Review with a goal of ensuring that all who are due such a refund
receive it.
Jon KoebricldMediacom
June 10, 2002
Page 3
6. The City may wish to send a representative to review the Company's outage logs pursuant to
Ordinance Section 12-4-7 D and Franchise Section Xlll D. In addition, please provide a copy
of the quarterly notice of the Company's rebate policy previously sent to subscribers, as
required by Franchise Section XIII H.
7. The City received numerous complaints from subscribers that even after contacting
Mediacom they were not able to receive cable repairs for days at a time and/or that they
were not given any call prior to a repair person showing up. These customers clearly did not
receive the "same day service" required under Section 12-4-7H of the Code, or the service
in two-hour windows as required under Section XIII M. of the franchise agreement. In
addition, a large number of complaints were from persons who simply could not get through
to Mediacom or who were routed to a Mediacom office outside the local area and from
whom they could not gain assistance. Some of these subscribers were without service for
several days or more with no means of effectively requesting service from Mediacom. As we
previously stated, some means of reimbursing these subscribers for the time they were
without service should be provided. Please provide a computer based management data
report regarding the time frames for repair response on a monthly basis since January. Also
provide a description of Mediacom's current policy regarding calling subscribers prior to a
service technician arriving for scheduled repair call.
8. With regard to complaints that subscribers' bills are not clear enough to understand, the
ICTC, during the Triennial Review process, may be helpful with identifying specific problems
and with exploring ways to solve such problems.
9. The City appreciates Mediacom's stated concerns regarding sales and telemarketing as
related in your response. We would be interested in knowing if any employees were given
discipline or remedial action for making misrepresentations during this time.
It should be noted that in the scripts you provided, the consumer/subscriber is told that they
must purchase a digital package in order to continue receiving a premium channel. In reality,
only the rental of a digital converter is needed to receive a premium channel. Many
subscriber complaints and much confusion have been generated because of this.
With respect to Section 6, Exhibit 9, Tele-Marketing Materials, please advise when the
"Forced Digital Scripts" were first used by Mediacom representatives in Iowa City. During
what period of time were these "Forced Digital Scripts" used? Are they still being used? If
not, please provide a copy of the script currently being utilized.
The City is very concerned that subscribers may be under the misconception that they need
to buy through a digital tier to receive a pay service and may have unnecessarily bought the
digital tier based on the information received from Mediacom representatives. To ensure that
all subscribers are aware of their option not to purchase a digital tier, the City requests that
the Company prepare, for City approval, a written notice to subscribers indicating: that to
purchase a pay service it is not necessary to buy a digital tier; that a pay service can be
subscribed to with only the purchase of basic and the rental of a digital converter; and that
anyone who purchased the digital tier under the misconception that it was required to
receive a pay service may mention this to a customer service representative who will
discontinue the digital service and provide the customer of a rebate for the digital service
from the time activated. The City requests that Mediacom make this a priority and, thereby,
reduce its exposure to rebates. After approval of the notice, the City requests that Mediacom
send the notice first class to subscribers in a stand-alone format.
Jon KoebrickJMediacom
June 10, 2002
Page 4
10. Between December 13, 2001 and February 14, 2002 it appears that Mediacom distributed
printed materials that changed repeatedly, causing a great deal of confusion for subscribers.
Furthermore, violations of the kind cited in number 3, involving City Code Section 12-4-16A
and 12-4-16F, appear to have occurred in that 30 days in which proper written notice of
these changes was not given to the City or to all subscribers.
The matter of channel realignment, changes in channel packages, premium packages, the
timing of these events and the information and education related to these events is perhaps
one of the most difficult to sort out:
December 13, 2002 (Exhibit 4A)
There were advertisements published in the Press-Citizen on December 13 and December
31, 2001. These advedisements contained no reference to Broadcast Basic, Family Cable,
or any of the Digital packages that would appear in the January 22, 2002 advertisement.
There is no reference made to Channel 98. There is a listing of rates for expanded and basic
at $33.04, with basic at $13.35 and expanded at $19.69. The premium channels are listed in
the digital tier (they are not noticeably pointed out); the digital packages are listed, that is to
say, their names and make-up are ail the same as they had been previously, and there is no
indication that these were soon to change. At that time premium channels were still on the
analog tier. As of January 22, 2002, however, digital converters were required for
subscribers to receive a premium channel. There were no listings in the December 13, 2001
or the December 31, 2001 ads of several of the upcoming changes. This did not appear until
the January 22, 2002 ad.
January 22, 2002 (Exhibit 4A)
The January 22 ad contained the new listing of Broadcast Basic. There is no reference to
Basic Cable. There is a listing for both Expanded Basic and Family cable in one section, but
only a price for Family Cable, and new channels are added only under the Expanded Basic
listing and none added to Family Cable. We now understand that Expanded Basic and
Family Cable are one and the same, but in this ad there is no clear indication of that. There
were many subscriber complaints about this, both in terms of their confusion and believing
they were being misled.
In this same January 22 ad all the new Digital packages are introduced, but there is no
mention of any of the previous digital packages or explanation of them (bronze, silver, gold,
platinum). The digital package tiers are first mentioned and priced in this ad, but no specifics
are given as to which channels are in each tier.
The indication that if a subscriber wants to watch more than one television that has a
premium channel service on it, and that it will cost an additional $8 for each additional digital
converter does not appear until the January 22 ad. Even in this ad, this was not clear, as it
merely stated, "Additional Digital Converter & Remote...$8." This generated many
complaints as well.
Neither the December 13 or 31 ads nor the January 22 ad mentioned when the premium
channels were going to be removed from the subscriber lineup.
FOLLOWUP QUESTIONS: There is a PRICE INCREASE NOTIFICATION in the January
22, 2002 ad in the Expanded Basic/Family Cable tier from $33.04 to $36.95. When did
subscribers begin to be charged the new higher rate? When did the new channel lineup,
digital tier packages, and use of digital boxes and digital converters go into effect?
Jon KoebricldMediacom
June 10, 2002
Page 5
January 24, 27, 28, 29, 2002
The ad that ran on these dates did list a new Broadcast Basic and Family Cable listing at the
top of the ad. Then at the lower section of the ad, where the channels are listed under
captions, the channels are listed under "Basic Services" (with a keynote at the bottom of the
page reading "Broadcast Basic"), and no channels are split out under Family Cable. Public
Access Channel 98 is listed as a new channel (Channel 98 is the Educational Channel,
Public Access is Channel 18, and it is not a new channel). In terms of digital packages,
Digital Access, Digital Variety, Digital Premium Groups, Digital Pay-Per-View, and Digital
Music are listed and do not have a full breakdown of channeis in each tier. Digital Access,
Digital Choice, Digital Value, Digital Value Plus, Total Digital, Digital Variety, Digital Pay-Per-
View, and Digital Music are the packages currently available. No prices for these packages
are listed in this ad.
February 14, 2002
This is Mediacom's brochure, which lists Basic Services (rather than breaking out Broadcast
Services and Family Cable - there is no separate listing of Family Cable), lists Public
Access as a new channel on Channel 98. There is a full breakdown of the digital package
tiers names and their prices, but no specific listing of what channels are in each digital
package tier.
FOLLOWUP QUESTION: When was the mailer marked Rate Adjustment Mailer, Section 7,
Exhibit 9 (currently has only January 2002 date on it) sent and received by subscribers?
11. Mediacom's use of the Weather Channel crawl to advertise its business office address and
local telephone number is a good start. However, it appears more needs to be done
because of the number of complaints received from subscribers who were unable to find
Mediacom's local office address or telephone number, or were unaware of these. Mediacom
could have elected to include a local origination channel of its own to be used in part for this
purpose during channel realignment. Both City Channels have already started putting up
Mediacom's office address and telephone number.
The City proposes that the ICTC review this matter during the Triennial Review process.
12. The listing of "800" numbers in the telephone directories does not meet the requirements of
a local telephone number with Section XIII (B) of the franchise agreement. The experiences
of the last quarter are a very good example of why this is the case. Many subscribers
complained when they dialed the 800 number, it was not the Iowa City office they reached
and the representatives reached in Minneapolis, Des Moines, Nebraska, Davenport were
unaware of what was happening in Iowa City. Many subscribers complained that they were
put on hold for extended periods of time or were transferred to another number, which was
also not in Iowa City.
It will be critical that Mediacom's local address and telephone number be listed in all future
telephone directory publications. This must be a local exchange number such as 351- 3984,
not an "800" or "888" number, to comply with the franchise agreement.
13. Mediacom continues to work with TV Guide and HITS as well as with the City to correctly
identify all local access channels on the digital TV Guide and the Channel 19 TV Guide.
Your assistance is appreciated and hopefully the last remaining problem will be corrected
soon,
Jon Koebrick/Mediacom
June 10, 2002
Page 6
14. Mediacom's Letter of Credit has now been filed with the City of Iowa City. This should be
kept current in the future.
15. The City appreciates Mediacom's acknowledgements, concern for subscriber confidence
and trust, and willingness to listen to and cooperate with the City. The City would appreciate
Mediacom's response to the further inquiries herein. The ICTC will probably have additional
suggestions and questions as the Triennial Review proceeds.
The City is particularly interested in working together with Mediacom to ensure that what
occurred over the last few months does not happen again, and to cooperate in helping to
restore confidence and trust on the part of our citizen subscribers. To that end, we look forward
to Mediacom working with the ICTC during the upcoming Triennial Review process.
Dale E. Helling
Assistant City Manager
cc: City Council
ICTC
Drew Shaffer
Andy Matthews
mgr/asst/Itrs/mediacom6-10~)2 doc
Mediaco - )
April 26, 2002
Sent l/ia Certified Mail - Return Receipt Requested
Mr. Dale E. Helling
Assistant City Manager
City of Iowa City
410 East Washington Street
Iowa City, IA 52240-1826
Dear Dale,
Mediacom received your request for information dated March 22, 2002 regarding various
issues related to the channel realignment of our Iowa City cable system. This
correspondence will address the questions noted in your information request. Please note
that the extensive nature of the request has required substantial research and compilation
to provide an appropriate response.
Mediacom recognizes that change in a cable system may be difficult for customers and
that the broad changes in the Iowa City cable system over a relatively short period were
not as smooth nor communicated as well as possible. As we have discussed in prior
meetings, a series of unexpected events disrupted the planned timing and execution of the
channel realignment to seriously impede our efforts for a smooth transition. Mediacom
regrets all inconveniences created for our customers and the City through the recent
changes.
The City's language is italicized below and follows with the Mediacom response to
provide a convenient comparison of the two letters.
1. The number of broadcast basic channels went from 24 channels to 22 channels. This
will be noted in conjunction with a rate review when Mediacom submits their form
1240s in calculating the Maximum Permitted Rate.
Mediacom Response: The City's observation of the change in the number of broadcast
basic channels is correct and will be noted in the FCC form 1240 for calculation of the
Maximum Permitted Rate.
2. Given the number of complaints from customers who were not able to reach
Mediacom by phone during the period since January 15th, 2002, the City requests
Mediacom's phone management data, as available, for the entire quarter of January
i through March 31, 2002. The City also requests the cable company obtain a busy
Mediacom Communications Corporation
6300 Council St. NE · Cedar Rapids, IA 52402 · 319-395-7801
Fax 319-393-7017
signal study from the phone company during the period January 1 to March 31, 2002,
and that this be provided to the City. The City also requests the phone management
data for the last quarter of 2001, ending on December 31, 2001 as well.
Mediacom Response: The phone management data from January 1, 2002 through March
31, 2002 for the Iowa City phone center is attached as Exhibit 2. We have investigated
obtaining a busy signal study from Qwest for the fourth quarter of 2001 and the first
quarter of 2002. Qwest has informed us that a study cannot be performed on past
telephone activity. We have requested a busy signal study going forward and have been
working with Qwest to get this accomplished. We will provide the City with the results
of the study upon completion.
3. There is concern that there was not adequate notification given to the City regarding
the changing of premium channels from their placement on the analog tier to the
digital tier. Please document notification that was given prior to such action and
when the action of moving the premium channels was initiated.
Mediacom Response: Randy Brown and I met with the Drew Shaffer and yourself on
November 26, 2001 prior to the Cable Commission meeting held the same day and
presented a preliminary channel line-up which clearly noted that the premium channels
would be moving to the digital tier. We discussed the reasons for this change. The plans
for the channel realignment and the headend collapse that included the transition of
premium channels to the digital tier were also presented to the Cable Commission that
evening. We subsequently received a letter from Andy Matthews dated November 27,
2001 regarding the City's concern about moving the Government access channel from 4
to 5 and a request for an additional Government access channel for Infovision. A
response dated December 4, 2001 under my signature confirmed that Mediacom would
retain Govemrnent access on channel 4 and would move TBS to channel 61 rather than
channel 5 where HBO was and provide channel 5 as an Infovision government access
channel. The channel realignment was planned for January 16 when the decision was
made to designate channel 5 as Infovision access. A copy of the City's letter and my
response with the channel lineup is enclosed as Exhibit 3. These events and
correspondence establish a notice having been provided to the City on November 26,
2001 of the relocation of premium channels on the digital tier. Additional notice was
provided to the City on January 18, 2002 of the channel realignment and premium
relocation after unexpected events forced the channel realignment to be delayed until
February 27, 2002. A copy of this letter is also attached in Exhibit 3.
The relocation of premium channels to digital began with contractors removing premium
channel filters on January 24, 2001.
4. There is concern that adequate notification was not given to subscribers regarding
the changing of premium channels from their placement on the analog tier to the
digital tier. Please document notification that was given prior to such action and
when the action of moving the premium channels was initiated.
Mediacom response: A notice was provided in the Iowa City Press Citizen on December
11, 2001 attached as Exhibit 4A. The channel lineup portion of the notice denotes
different channels such as Infovision Access on channel 5 and CSPAN on channel 14
where HBO and Cinemax were located. The notice includes all the premium channels
listed in the digital tier.
A second notice was printed in the January 27, 2002 edition of the Press Citizen that
specifically referenced the premium channels moving to Digital. The advertisement is
attached as Exhibit 4 B.
Customers were also individually notified of the relocation of premium channels by door
to door sales, telemarketing and automated telephone messaging as premium channel
filters were removed.
5. There have been complaints from subscribers that they have not been given credit for
premium channel services that were billed and paid for but were moved from the
analog tier to the digital tier during January and February. These primarily involved
Encore, HBO, and Cinemax. Are these credits being given to all who are eligible? If
so, how? If not, why not?
Mediacom response: We believe these credits have been applied to all eligible customers.
A billing report was generated to identify all customers with a premium billing code who
did not have digital prior to the removal of premium channels from the analog lineup.
All customers who had a premium service and digital received several screens of that
premium channel on their digital prior to the channel realignment. This process allowed
us to find all customers who needed the premium billing stopped because they did not
have a Digital Converter Terminal on their account. All premium billing associated with
analog carriage was stopped on January 18, 2002.
The confusion and complaints regarding credits are a likely product of the date of their
cycle billing and the mechanics of a pay in advance billing system. For ex,an~le, any
customer with an analog premium service that was invoiced prior to January 18 would
have been billed for the analog service. Customers would then have the perception that
they paid for a service that was now unavailable. The credit could only be applied at
their next billing that occurred after they had paid their bill and after the analog premium
service became unavailable. We are confident that the credits were applied because of
the automated identification process utilized through the billing system that greatly
limited the possibilities for error. Mediacom remains willing to provide credits to
customers in the event that any situations exist meriting additional credits.
6. There have been concerns expressed by subscribers that they would not have been
given credit by Mediacom if they had not complained for the outages of service they
experienced The City would like to ensure that all subscribers who experienced a
loss of service for a period of 18 hours or more receive the required credit. Please
state how many outages of 18 or more hours occurred during the aforementioned
period of time and whether aH subscribers affected have been credited for such
outages.
Mediacom response: We are not aware of any outages of 18 hours or longer during the
period of January, February and March 2002 that would have impacted 3 or more
subscribers in a given area. Individual subscribers may have experienced an outage of 18
hours or longer and may not have been provided a credit if they did not contact our
office. Credits have been applied to customers who contacted our office and reported
their individual loss of service.
7. There have been complaints from subscribers that they were not able to receive cable
repairs for days at a time and that they were not given any call prior to a repair
person showing up. The Iowa City ordinance states in Section 12-4-7H, Service
Response and Rebate, that the Grantee shall provide "same day service" response,
seven (7) days a week for all complaints and requests for repairs or adjustments
received prior to 2:00 p.m. each day. In no event shah the response time for calls
received subsequent to 2:00 p.m. exceed twenty-four (24) hours. In Section XII1. M of
the franchise agreement, Repair Calls, it states: "Franchisee shah offer subscribers
repair service appointments in two hours windows. The Franchisee shah telephone
the subscriber prior to arriving for a repair call." Please state whether Mediacom
has remained in compliance with the stipulations stated above. If not, how many
infractions occurred during the first quarter of 20027
Mediacom response: Mediacom performed same day service throughout the entire period
and continues to comply with this requirement. Two hour service appointment windows
were also maintained throughout this period. Calls were not made to all customers prior
to a service call unless requested by the customer or if a technician schedule allowed for
earlier than scheduled service calls. There is no way of calculating how many customers
received a service call without a prior call. Please note that not all customers have
telephones or answering machines to record calls and many service calls do not require
entry to the home as signal and service checks are made at the ground block where
possible or preferential for the customer.
8. There have been complaints that subscribers' bills are not clear enough to
understand Does Mediacom intend to take any measures to make the statements
clearer? Please describe.
Mediacom response: A more specific description of the complaints is needed to address
billing clarity. Please note that Cable Services Group, CSG, has been the billing vendor
for Mediacom, AT&T Broadband and TCI in the Iowa City service area for more than
five years. The subscriber bill format has not changed during the channel realignment
period and has been in place for an extended time. Mediacom will investigate whether
options are available with the billing vendor that could clear up any specific clarity issues
the City may express. In fairness, it should be noted that pro rata credit application as
required in the situation described in the response to question 5 above is inherently
difficult to convey with absolute clarity for all customers in a recurring monthly billing
process.
9. There have been complaints that subscribers have been given misleading information
by telemarketers/sales people and/or customer service representatives regarding
what they must purchase in order to receive certain premium channels, i.e. must
purchase digital package to receive Cinemax, HBO, or Encore, when only a digital
converter is necessary. In addition, some subscribers complained that they were
promised "special deals", such as one half price off for six months in one case, for
three months in another case, for a lower price in another case, etc., some then being
billed for the full amount. What action has Mediacom taken to correct this
confusion? Please supply the City with a copy of all materials used by your
telemarketers, sales persons and customer service representatives to solicit
subscribers from January 1 to March 31, 2002.
Mediacom response: Mediacom has reduced the number of marketing offers in the Iowa
City market to simplify the process for all telemarketers, door to door sales personnel and
customer service representatives. In addition, the practices of all customer contact
personnel were reviewed following complaints from the City and customers to correct
offerings that may have been misunderstood and therefore subject to miscommunication
to customers.
The purposeful miscommunication to customers by door to door sales people,
telemarketers or customer service representatives resulting in a discount offer being made
to a customer without the discount being applied to the account is unacceptable to
Mediacom. Discipline up to and including termination or cancellation of a contractual
representation agreement will occur for this type of behavior.
The materials used by telemarketers, sales persons and customer service representatives
are attached in Exhibit 9.
10. There have been complaints from subscribers that the information sent out by
Mediacom, including brochures, fliers and newspaper advertisements, has been
confusing and misleading. These involve questions of what the names of new
(packages) tiers represent compared to the existing (packages) tiers, what channels
are in the new tiers compared to the existing tiers, the comparative pricing of these
tiers, the misnaming of channels on some tiers, and the timing of when the channel
realignment was to occur. Please supply one copy of all information distributed to
subscribers and the public pertaining to all changes that have occurred to the
Mediacom cable system in Iowa City since December 1, 2001. What efforts has
Mediacom made, or will Mediacom make, to correct this confusion?
Mediacom response: The materials attached in Exhibit 9 apply to this question. As noted
in the response to question 9, Mediacom dramatically limited the number of different
offers in the market to simplify and stabilize the situation. Through cooperation with the
City, we provided frequently asked questions and answers that scrolled on the
Government access channel to inform the public. We also communicated the issues that
prevented completion of the channel realignment to the City in private meetings,
electronic message communication with the Cable Division and at Broadband
Telecommunication Commission meetings.
Current phone volume levels and activity suggest that confusion has subsided as time has
passed since the channel realignment and the simplification of marketing and
promotional offers. Mediacom will consider recommendations of the City to correct any
confusion that might remain with customers. Mediacom will exercise extreme caution in
providing additional information that could potentially confuse customers.
11. The City's cable TV ordinance Section 12-4-32H. states the following: "Notice of
complaint procedures: Grantee shall periodically and at various times of the day,
present its business office address and publicly listed local telephone number by
means of alpha-numeric display on a local origination channel." Please propose to
the City how Mediacom will comply with this requirement.
Mediacom response: Mediacom provides the business office address and publicly listed
local telephone number on the locally originated Weather Channel crawl throughout each
day. Mediacom proposes that Government access channels 4 or 5 would be good
locations to communicate this information as well. The local origination channel was
eliminated when channels were realigned. Iowa City Cable system bandwidth is now
limited such that a channel would need to be removed or limited to part time carriage in
order to provide space for a dedicated local origination channel.
12. The Cable Division has received complaints from subscribers that there is no local
telephone number published in the local telephone directory for Mediacom. Upon
checking the local telephone directories, the McLeod telephone directory does have
Mediacom's local telephone number listed while the Qwest telephone directory has
an "888" long distance number listed. This does not meet the requirements of the
franchise agreement. How does Mediacom propose to comply?
Mediacom response: Mediacom will have a local number listed in the next publication of
the Qwest telephone directory. The "888"nnmber listed in the Qwest directory is a toll
free number identical to an 800 number.
The timing of publication of the Qwest directory and closing of the Mediacom
acquisition of the cable system in 2001 are clearly relevant to inclusion of a different
Mediacom phone number. The 2001-2002 Qwest publication close date was August
2001. The closing of the acquisition by Mediacom was July 17, 2001. The window for
placing an advertisement in the Qwest book was therefore very limited. The local
number remains listed under AT&T Cable Services in the Qwest phone book due to the
timing of the sale.
Mediacom respectfully disagrees that providing a local number in the McLeod directory
and providing a toll free number of the "800" variety in the Qwest directory does not
meet the requirement to have a "locally listed telephone number" in Section XIII (B) of
the franchise agreement. Mediacom will have a locally listed telephone number in the
McLeod and Qwest directories as new editions are printed~
13. Several of the local channel listings on the digital TV Guide and on the Channel 19
TV Guide are still incorrect as of March 18, 2002. This includes, for the digital TV
Guide: Channel 98, the local Educational Channel for the schools, which is now
listed as "City"; Channel 4 which is listed as "To Be Announced" but should be
"City Channel 4 "; Channel 5 which is listed as "To Be Announced" but should be
"InfoVision"; Channel 10 which is listed as "Local Access" but shouM be the
"Library Access" Channel; and Channel 18 which is listed as "To Be Announced"
and should be "Public Access ".
On Channel 19's TV Guide for the Broadcast and Family Cable tiers, Channel 5 is
simply listed as Access TV and should be InfoVision and there is no listing for
Channel 98.
When will these corrections be made?
Mediacom response: Considerable time and effort has been spent working with the City,
TV Guide and HITS to accurately list the local access channels on both guides. As
discussed with the City and the Broadband Telecommunication Commission, the
identification of access channels is limited to a small number of default choices. TV
Guide interactive has required a source ID to customize access channel identifications.
For example, we have worked with PATV to acquire a Source ID that was determined on
April 24 and corrected on the interactive guide on the same date. We will work with the
City to acquire a source ID for Infovision to customize that channel identification and
will identify the educational access listing in accordance with Drew's electronic message
from April 16. The remaining corrections will be made as soon as possible within the
processes established by TV Guide Interactive and HITS.
14. Mediacom 's Letter of Credit, required by ordinance, was never filed with the City of
Iowa City. AT&T's Letter of Credit expired some time ago. Please file Mediacom's
Letter of Credit as required by the City of lowa City ordinance.
Mediacom response: The City should have received the Letter of Credit on March 27,
2002. A copy of the Letter of Credit is attached as Exhibit 14. Mediacom regrets that the
City did not receive the Letter of Credit earlier.
15. The cable related problems outlined herein have caused constant and continuous
hardships for City Cable TV staff during the period since January 15, 2002. First
and foremost has been the time consumed in taking the huge volume of subscriber
complaints. The amount of City staff time consumed dealing with the variety of
cable related problems has been unprecedented While normal dealings with cable
related complaints are expected, the number of complaints lodged in this
approximately eight week period is more than what the Cable TV Office normally
receives in any three year period This literally tied up the phone lines of the Cable
TV offices and created an intolerable workload for the entire permanent cable staff
for that period of time. A volume of complaints well above the norm continues to
come in. We would like to see Mediacom take further measures to communicate
complete and accurate information to local subscribers, and to move as quickly as
possible to address all complaints from subscribers in an effort to restore some of
the customer trust and confidence that has been lost in recent weeks.
Mediacom response: Mediacom readily acknowledges that the channel realignment and
transition of premium channels to digital only carriage was neither as smooth nor as well
communicated as we hope for our customers. The original delay of the project coupled
with the bankruptcy of ~Home necessitating the tmanticipated conversion of ~Home to
Mediacom Online and the variety of promotional offers created dramatic phone volume
increases and customer confusion. We sincerely regret all customer inconvenience and
related City Cable TV hardships that have been endured.
Fortunately, the telephone volume and corresponding answering response times have
returned to near normal levels for the month of April. The customer complaints reported
by Drew at the April 22nd Broadband Telecommunications Commission meeting for the
preceding 30 days also subsided by more than eighty percent from 185 to 36 from March
to April. We believe the phone volume and reduced customer complaints indicate greatly
reduced confusion with customers. Despite these improvements, Mediacom is committed
to initiating further measures to communicate complete and accurate information to local
subscribers to restore customer trust and confidence. We believe the simplification of
promotional offers and customer service representative training has reduced confusion.
Mediacom proposes to work closely with City staff to identify areas of confusion and
lowered customer trust. Mediacom proposes to further work with City staff to develop a
customer education campaign to improve the specific items that have created confusion.
Mediacom will also consider other suggestions or requests by the City to improve our
relationship with the City and Customers.
Please contact me directly at (319) 395-9699 extension 202 if you have questions or
concerns regarding the responses or if I may be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
MEDIACOM
Jon Koebrick
Director of Government Relations
Enclosures
cc: Drew Shaffer
Rick Tyler
Rick Kames
Randy Brown
Charles King
Bruce Gluckman
Jim Carey
Human Resources/Personnel
Memo
DATE: June 10, 2002
TO: Stephen J. Atkins, City Manager
FROM: Sylvia A. Mejia, Personnel Administrator,.~_%/¢''~/
RE: Police Recruitment
In response to a request from Councilmember Kanner you were recently provided
information regarding the entry-level police officer recruitment. You have
requested additional information regarding methods that might be used to expand
the minority applicant pool for this position.
As you are aware, the recruitment and testing process for the position of police
officer is under the jurisdiction of the Civil Service Commission. The issue of
recruitment of minority applicants has long been a concern of Civil Service
Commissioners. We are very fortunate to have a group of commissioners with an
understanding of personnel law and recruitment issues. Our commissioners
include an attorney, a human resources professional from the university and a
retired human resources professional with experience at the federal level. Current
and past commissioners have provided potential recruitment resources and we
have used these resources in our recruitment efforts.
In an effort to recruit minority applicants for this position newspaper ads were run in
Omaha, St. Louis, the Quad cities, Des Moines and Waterloo, all areas with a
much larger minority population than Iowa City. Ads were also run in Iowa City and
Cedar Rapids newspapers. We spent around $2,350 for newspaper advertising.
In addition, we placed job announcements on two Internet employment recruitment
sites at a cost of over $100. These web sites are specifically designed as
recruitment resources and have the ability to reach a large number of potential
applicants. We listed the job on the City of Iowa City website, the City automated
job line and we sent information in the form of a press release to all sources on the
City press release list. We also sent recruitment information and applications to the
Placement Directors at 30 colleges and community colleges, many of which have
programs in criminal justice.
In the past we have contacted colleges and community colleges with criminal
justice classes and offered to provide a speaker for classes who could talk to the
students about the position of police officer and, at the same time, provide
recruitment information to anyone interested in the position. The same offer was
made to a wide variety of organizations and clubs with minority members.
Unfortunately, rarely were we requested to come and speak to a group or a class.
We always encourage minority members of the police department to help us idenify
and encourage more minority applicants. This type of recruitment has the potential
to be successful because it allows potential applicants to discuss the position
directly with the officers.
Having worked with the Civil Service Commission I know that they are very open to
suggestions on recruitment resources. If anyone has ideas of how recruit more
minorities I believe that the Commission would be interested in receiving that
information. We want to attract minorit:~' applicants with a desire for a career in law
enforcement and will look at any option presented to us. Obviously we must look at
the most effective use of advertising dollars and staff time. Any suggestions
received regarding recruitment resources will be reviewed and presented to the
commission if appropriate.
IP5
city of iowa city
PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT
220 S. Gilbert Street
TO: City Manager
FROM: Parks and Recreation Dh'ecto~
DATE: June 5, 2002
RE: Court Hill Park Playground Accessibility
At the last meeting of the City Council, a question arose relative to the PIN grant
awarded to the Friendship Neighborhood Association for playground equipment in Court
Hill Park. Specifically, the question was whether or not this new playground equipment
would meet accessibility requirements. While we have not been able to do so yet, we
intend to meet with the neighborhood representative for this project to discuss
accessibility issues and possibilities.
City of Iowa City
MEMORANDUM
DATE: June 11, 2002
TO: City Council
FROM: Steven Nasby, Community and Economic Development Coordin
RE: Ribbon-cutting for Tnformation Kiosk
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will be hosting a
ribbon-cutting ceremony at 11:30 a.m. on June 24, 2002. HUD has installed a
consumer-oriented electronic kiosk in the Coral Ridge Shopping Center. These kiosks
are located around the country in federal buildings, shopping malls, transportation
centers, city halls, grocery stores and other easily accessible places.
The kiosks offer services to help people get information about buying homes, locating
affordable rental housing, getting job training or economic development assistance from
HUD. Tnformation on the kiosks is from HUD's internet web page (www.hud.gov}.
The Coral Ridge kiosk will contain information about local [owa City programs and
projects funded through Community Development Block Grants, Public Housing, Section
8 Housing Choice and the HONE l'nvestment Partnerships Program.
HUD has invited ]'owa City Nayor Lehman and Coralville Mayor Fauset, council members,
and community housing officials to participate in the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Members
of the public and the media are also encouraged to attend.
CITY OF I0 WA CITY MEMORANDUM
Date: June 12, 2002
To: City Council Members
From: Tim Hennes, Senior Building Inspector
Re: Changes Contained in the 2000 Editions of the International Codes, and
Local Amendments
Working in cooperation with the Iowa City Home Builders Association and
Historic Preservation Commission and having their support of the proposed
amendments, also having unanimous support of the Board of Appeals the 2000
edition of the Codes will be coming to you for your review and approval.
Following is a list of notable changes made by local amendments to the codes
and I have attached to this memorandum a list of major changes between the
1997 Uniform Building Code and the 2000 International Residential Code.
1. International Building Code (IBC) and International Residential Code
(IRC) (Local Amendments)
The majority of amendments of the IBC and IRC are for clarification of a code
requirement or to reflect local practices that have evolved from previous
building codes and their amendments.
Following are notable new amendments:
a. Amendment to Section 105.9 (2) requires a demolition permit for
the removal of any portion of a building (i.e. porch, porch railing,
decorative brackets and trim, dormers, chimneys, etc.) that is
located in the Historic Preservation Overlay Zone or a Conservation
District Overlay Zone, or is an Iowa City Historic Landmark.
Comment: The purpose of this amendment is to ensure that building features
that contribute to the historic character of landmark buildings and
buildings in historic neighborhoods are preserved.
b. Amendment to Section R326.1 to require single family dwellings,
duplex, and town houses that are constructed with the use of public
funds to be have the following accessibility features built into the
structure:
1. Wood blocking installed in one first floor bathroom to ease the
future installation of grab bars.
2. All first floor doors shall provide a minimum clear opening of
thirty-two inches (32") when the door is open ninety (90)
degrees.
3. Light and fan switches shall not be located higher than forty-
eight inches (48") above the finish floor and electrical outlets
shall not be located lower than fifteen inches (15") above the
finish floor.
4. At least one building entrance shall be on an accessible route
served by a ramp or a no-step entrance. The Building Official
may waive this requirement based on the determination that
strict compliance is financially or environmentally impractical.
Comment: Amendment requires that universal design features be incorporated
in structures that receive public funds to allow greater usability and
visitability of the structure.
2. Uniform Plumbing Code
There are no major changes to the Uniform Plumbing Code
however the amendments do reflect the requirements of the State
Health Departments amendments to the state plumbing code and
this allows for better consistency throughout the state.
3. Amendment to City Code Chapter 5 Entitled "Building and Housing" by
adding a new Article L Entitled "Licensing" to establish a procedure for
licensing of all plumbers, electricians, fire alarm installers, fire sprinkler
installers and fire sprinkler maintenance contractors.
Comment: The amendment provides for two changes to the licensing
procedure and requirements in the code. First, licensing of plumbers and
electricians remains the same but the amendment provides a centralized location
within the code specifying the requirements. Second, Licensing of fire alarm and
sprinkler installers along with fire sprinkler maintenance contractors is a new
requirement. The need for requiring the new licensing categories is to ensure a
minimum level of accountability of the design and installation of fire alarm and
sprinkler suppression systems.
4. Amendment to the City Code Chapter 5 Entitled "Building and Housing"
by adding a new Article M Entitled "Appeals" to establish a uniform
procedure for appeals of the building, plumbing, electrical, mechanical,
and fire code.
Comment: Adding the new article provides a centralized location and uniform
procedure for appeals to the codes. Presently appeals procedures are in the
respective codes and procedures for the appeals differ from code to code.
cc: Doug Boothroy, Director, Housing and Inspection Services
Bernie Osvald, Building Inspector
Sue Dulek, Assistant City Attorney
Andy Rocca, Chief, Fire Department
Board of Appeals
Kevin Hochstedler, President, Home Builders Association of Iowa City
CHANGES FROM THE 1997 UNIFORM BUIDING CODE
(UBC) AND THE 2000 INTERNATION RESIDENTIAL
CODE(IRC).
2000 IRC 1997 UBC
1. Artificial light allowed in all rooms Artificial light only allowed in
kitchens
2. Minimum one habitable room size = 150sf Minimum one habitable room size =
120sf.
3. Kitchen = 50sf minimum size Kitchen not regulated
4. 7'-0" minimum habitable headroom 7'-6" minimum habitable headroom
5. garage separation = ½' standard gypsum wall Materials required on garage side for
board one hour fire resistive construction.
6. 5.0sf minimum egress window at grade 5.7sf required for all egress windows
7. Handrail cross section = 2-5/8" max. Handrail cross section = 2-1/4 max.
8.7-3/4" max. rise - 10" min. tread on stairs 8" max. r/se 9" min. tread on stairs
9. Spiral stairs permitted as an exit Spiral stairs serving only 400sf as
an exit
10. Stair guardrails shall not be climbable Climbability is not regulated
11. Duplex = lhour fire resistive construction Duplex = 1 hour fire resistive
to the underside of roof sheathing, to attic and draft stop in the attic
12. Ventilation and access req'd for all Ventilation and access req'd only for
crawlspaces crawlspaces with wood
13. Double top plate splices = 24 inches Double top plate splices -- 48 inches
14. Fireblocking = ½" gypsum wall board Gypsum wall board thickness not
specified
15.16" high fiberglass = acceptable fireblock Fiberglass quantity not regulated
16. Roof ventilation mandated Roof ventilation only when required
by Building Official.
June 11, 2002 ~i~ iC~~ (~[~ Of'
Beverly Dunn
258 Westside Drive
Iowa City, IA 52246
Re: Your request for a Blind Child Area sign
Dear Beverly:
As you requested, this letter is to inform you as to why the City of Iowa City does not support
installing Blind Child Area signs. The Blind Child Area sign is not an approved sign in the
Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, and the Manual strongly discourages the use of
Blind Child Area signs. There is no evidence that these signs protect sight-impaired children,
nor does the sign describe to motorists where the child might be. We feel the Blind Child Area
sign provides both children and parents with a false sense of security. Parents and children
believe the signs provide an added degree of protection for children. In fact, motorists pay little
attention to these signs. The City of Iowa City does not support putting up traffic signs unless
we feel they will be effective, and we do not feel the Blind Child Area sign is effective.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions at 356-5254.
Sincerely,
Beth Pfohl
JCCOG Traffic Engineering Planner
cc: City Manager
City Council
Director of Public Works
Director of Planning and Community Development
JCCOG Director
City Engineer
Streets Superintendent
410 EAST WASHINGTON STREET · IOWA CITY, IOWA 52240 1826 · (3191 356-5000 * FAX (3191 356-5009
June 5, 2002
Hilary Sale, Chairperson
Neighborhood Relations Task Force
Civic Center
410 E. Washington St.
lowa City, IA 52240
Dear Ms. Sale:
On behalf of the members of our neighborhood association, 1 am writing to express our thanks for the work of
the task force, our support for your efforts in general, and our particular support for a few of your
recommendations, specifically (using the numbering of your recommendations following your public hearing
and revisions):
· Recommendations 3 and 21: We support the idea that existing city ordinances be enforced more
rigorously, and that Police and Housing Inspection be supported and encouraged to "cite and fine
more frequently," to "use warnings less frequently," and to issue citations for "disorderly" houses
when they meet the definition in the Iowa code, and other aspects of the recommendation. Opponents
of the recommendations of your task force have argued that current ordinances are sufficient; we agree
that this is true with respect to certain city problems, if ordinances are shown to "have teeth."
· Recommendations 9 and 12: We support the idea that the city should promulgate a packet of
information for landlords and property managers; while many landlords and property managers are
well informed, others simply do not know of laws and ordinances that govern their operation. Further,
we support the recommendation that the rental permit process should be altered to create a mandator~
lease addendum containing, among other things, acknowledgement by landlord and tenant of the legal
occupancy of rental units. We find over-occupancy of rental units to be a major cause of the
problems which underlie our neighborhood's grievances.
· Recommendation 2: We support development of the concept of residential permit parking, and our
members have an interest in the Northside being part ora pilot program, should city council choose to
pursue this option.
Please do not construe our expression of support for these few recommendations as exclusive; while we have
chosen to emphasize our support for the recommendations that most directly would benefit our neighborhood,
our members support other recommendations as well. We support the aspirations of other neighborhoods
for safety, tranquility, and a good quality of life, and we urge you to pursue adoption of your
recommendations in these other areas. Please know that you have our support for your continued work to
find solutions to the problems of our city's many neighborhoods.
ad~_ely, · ,q .
Dave Tingwald
Coordinator, Committee, Northside Neighborhood Association
cc: City Manager/~
City CouncSl/
To: Chief Winkelhake
From: Officer R. A. Mebus
Ref: Monthly Activity Report
Date: May 2002
Copy: Captain Widmer
During the period covered by this report, _8 different officers spent a total of 7.75
hours participating in 9 community events and had contacted nearly 257
persons. Listed is an overview of the different events.
DATE OFFICER Contacts Length Activity
05-01-02 Hartman 65 2.0 PiBetta Phi - Alcohol
05-06-02 Moore 20 .5 Pre School- bike safety, etc
05-07-02 Schwindt 15 1.0 Cub Scout Tour - ICPD
05-14-02 Mebus 30 1.5 Hospice- Safetylssues-Night
05-15-02 Prestegard 12 .5 PreSchool- bike safety,
stranger danger, etc
05-23-02 Fortmann 45 1.0 Lemme ADP- Bike Safety
05-23-02 Gist 45 1.0 " " " - K9
05-30-02 Wyss 25 .75 Driver Ed Presentation
During the Month of May 2002 there were 11 different officers visiting
13 different schools for a total of 41 visits and 45.75 hours.
Iowa City Police Department
P.A.U.L.A. Report-- May 2002
(PA ULA = Possession of Alcohol Under the Legal Age)
Monthl Totals Year-to-Date Totals PAULA per Visit
Business Name visits arrests visits arrests (year-to-date)
Adagio
Airliner 4 16 11 0.688
Alley Cat 5 3 11 5 0.455
American Legion
Aoeshe Restaurant
Atlas World Grill 5 10 0.000
Baldy's Wraps
Bob's Your Uncle
Bo-James 8 14 31 49 1.581
Brewery
Brothers Bar & Grill 16 6 60 13 0.217
Brown Bottle
Buffalo Wild Wings GrilJ & B-~ '1 6 0.°00
Carlos O'Kelly's
College St Billiards Club 10 4 28 5 0.179
Colonial Bowling Lanes 9 0.000
Cottage Bakery & Caf6
Dave's Fox Head Tavern
Deadwood Tavern 4 0.000
Devotay ~
Diamond Dave's (Old Capitol) 1 5 1 0.200
Diamond Dave's (Sycamore)
Dublin Underground 1 3 0.000
Duds 'N Suds
Eagle's Lodge
Elks Country Club
El Ranchero 1 2 2,000
Et Cetera i2 3 40 7 0.175
Fieldhouse Restaurant & Bar 10 14 40 48 1,200
First Avenue Club 4 0,000
Fi~patrick's 2 2 0,000
Gabe's 3 1 0,333
George's Buffet
Givanni's
Godfather's Pizza
Green Room 1 ' 0.000
Gringos Mexican Bar & Grill
Grizzly's South Side 1 5 0.000
Ground Round Restaurant
Hanrahan's
Happy Joe's Pizza
Highlander
Hilltop Tavern 1 1 0.000
India Caf~
Joe's Place [ 3 0,000
Kitty Hawk 3 0.000
La Casa
Lark Restaurant ~
Linn Street Cafb
Lou Henri
Malone's 14 8 56 72 1 ~286
Martinis 15 3 59 14 0.237
Masala
Memories 1 0.000
Micky's 4 6 0.000
Mike's Tap
Mill Restaurant 1 0.000
Mondo's (Downtown) 7 7 0.000
Moose Lodge ~
Morgan's Bar & Grill (Sheraton) 10 1 60 8 0.133
Motley Cow Caf~
Mumm's Saloon & Eatery 6 28 0.000
Okoboji Griil
One-Eyed Jake's 12 5 40 42 1.050
One Twenty Six
Outer Limits i 1 0.000
Pagliai's Pizza
Panchero's (Clinton St)
Panchero's (Riverside Dr)
Parthenon
Pizza Hut
Plamor Lanes 1 1 1.000
Press Box 1 12 0.000
Q Bar 2 16 8 0.500
Quinton's Bar & Deli 7 11 2 0.182
R T Grunts 4 2 0.500
Sam's Pizza
Sanctuary Restaurant & Pub
Serendipity Laundry Cafb
Shakespeare's 1 2 i 0.000
Sports Column 18 27 67 I 106 1.582
Summit Restaurant & Bar 16 5 65 i 45 0.692
Sushi Po Po
T.G.I. Friday's
Thai Flavors
Thai Spice
Tokyo Ichiban
Union Bar 21 25 79 108 1.367
VFW Post
Vine Tavern
Vito's 18 18 79 87 1.101
Wig & Pen Pizza Pub
Yen Ching Restaurant
Zio Johno's Spa(}hetti House
Totals: 229 136 881 637 0.723
Other PAULA at non-business locations: 40 111
PAULA Totals: 176 748
current month yeer-to-da~e
IOWA CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT
USE OF FORCE REPORT
May 2002
OFFICER DATE CASE # INCIDENT FORCE USED
59 5-1-02 2-3861 Disorderly Conduct Officer observed subject breaking dishes
in the parking lot ora church. Subject
was placed under arrest and resisted
handcuffmg. Officer used hands on
techniques to effect the arrest.
42 5-4-02 2-4000 Fight Subject taken into custody and resisted
handcuffing. Officers used hands on
techniques and took subject to the
ground to gain control.
58 5-5-02 2-4043 Bar Check Subject was placed under arrest and
began to physically resist the officer.
Officer used hands on control until
subject calmed down.
58,32 5-7-02 2-4109 Stabbing Officers located suspects in a vehicle
and ordered them out with drawn
sidearms. Upon area being safe, officers
secured their weapons. Officer used
hands on technique to take control of
suspect and place under arrest.
32 5-8-02 2-4142 Disorderly House Subject was taken into custody and
refused to submit to handcuffmg.
Officers used hands on controls to effect
the arrest.
17,55 5-10-02 2-4249 Arrest Subject was placed under arrest and
refused to submit to handcuffing.
Officers used hands on controls to effect
the arrest.
52 5-13-02 2-4354 Arrest Subject was taken into custody and
began fighting with the officer. Subject
was exposed to chemical agent.
12,43 5-14-02 2-4385 OWI Arrest Officer received a report ora vehicle
being driven on the sidewalk. Vehicle
and driver found stuck offthe roadway
between a fence and pole. Driver would
not exit the vehicle when ordered and
was physically removed and handcuffed.
Subject later became combative at the
police department and was exposed to
chemical agent.
OFFICER DATE CASE # INCIDENT FORCE USED
38 5-14-02 2-4395 Armed Subject Officer dispatched for a report ora
subject with a knife. Officer located
subject chasing another individual with a
large stick. Officer intervened and
repeated verbal commands to drop to the
ground, officer used hands on controls to
direct subject to the ground for
handcuf£mg.
22 5-15-02 2-4410 Armed Subject Officer responded to the area after
receiving a complaint ora man with a
gun. Officer encountered subject and
approached with sidearm drawn. Once
situation secure, officer reholstered.
19.60 5-19-02 2-4577 Fight Subject was placed under arrest and
refused to be handcuffed. Officers used
physical force to effect handcuffing.
Subject resisted officer's attempt to place
in squad car and was exposed to
chemical agent to gain compliance.
22,84 5-22-02 2-4698 Assault Juvenile had assaulted teacher at school
and left the building. Officers located
the juvenile and she attempted to run
from the area. Officers caught subject
and she began to resist. Officer used
hands on techniques to control juvenile.
58 5-26-02 2-4830 Armed Subject Officers received report of a subject with
a gun. Suspect located and would not
comply with verbal commands or
cooperate with investigation. Suspect
was taken into custody and resisted.
Officers used hands on controls to effect
the arrest.
58 5-29-02 2-4922 Welfare Check Subject was threatening to jump off the
Benton St. bridge into the water.
Officer pulled subject from the railing
and took to the ground for control and
handcuffing.
27 5-29-02 2-4944 Animal Sick Raccoon dispatched by officer with
sidearm.
37,11 5-31-02 2-4999 Armed subject Suspect matched the description of a
subject who had threatened others
moments earlier with a knife. Officers
confronted subject with sidearms drawn.
CC: City Manager, Chief, Captains, Lieutenants, Training Sergeant, City Clerk, Library
MARIAN KARR (~')
AGENDA
City of Iowa City
City Council Economic Development Committee
Thursday, June 20, 2002
9:30 a.m.
Lobby Conference Room
Civic Center
1. Call to Order
2. Approval of Minutes (May 16, 2002)
3. Discussion -- Alternative Senior High School
4. Discussion -- Economic Development Funding for United Action for Youth
5. Outreach and Survey of Interest -- Displaced Businesses
6. Discussion -- HCDC Representation for CDBG Economic Development Applications
7. Marketing of Economic Development Financial Assistance Programs -- Update
8. Business Outreach Program -- Major Employer Visits Schedules
9. Other Business
10. Adjournment
MINUTES
CITY COUNCIL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
THURSDAY, May 16, 2002 - 10:30 AM
CIVIC CENTER LOBBY CONFERENCE ROOM
Members Present: Ernie Lehman, Dee Vanderhoef and Ross Wilburn
Members Absent: None
Staff Present: Steve Atkins, Steve Nasby and Karin Franklin
City Council Members Present: None
Others Present: Dan Smith and Steve Kanner
Call to Order
Ernie Lehman called the meeting to order at 10:39 AM
Approval of Minutes of January 17, 2002 and March 3, 2002
MOTION: Dee Vanderhoef moved that the minutes for the January 17 and March 3 meetings be
approved as submitted. Ross Wilburn seconded the motion. Motion passed 3-0.
Report on Chanqes in Staff and Economic Development Duties
Karin Franklin updated the committee on staff changes. Economic Development has been paired with
Community Development because it was apparent to Franklin that there was some capacity in
Community Development Division in terms of work program, as well as in terms of abilities and interests
that went well with the goals of Economic Development. There are many similarities in the skills needed
to work in either division. All of the "hard" economic development: business development, financial
assistance work has been combined with Community Development into the new Community and
Economic Development Division; Steve Nasby is the Community and Economic Development
Coordinator. Some of the other functions that David Schoon was a part of, such as the downtown events,
dealing with the banners, the kiosks, etc. will either be delegated to the groups that are planning these
functions or to the City Manager's office. Steve Nasby, as necessary, will deal with issues such as a self-
supporting municipal improvement district. Dale Helling will attend the DTA meetings, as he always has.
The budget line has been kept open for a year for an Associate Planner in Economic Development to see
how this works out; it depends a lot on demand. Franklin's expectations are that Nasby will aggressively
publicize the programs and create considerable demand. Steve Nasby will work on the "hard' economic
items like TIFs, urban renewal, etc. Right now, he is responding to some requests from ICAD for some
information about business locations.
Ernie Lehman commented that he felt it was to the City's advantage to have City Staff at Irving Weber
Day in terms of public relations. He encouraged the staff to volunteer for these events in the future.
Franklin assured him that staff, such as Barb Coffey, would continue to be involved, but it will fall under
Parks and Recreation. Lehman agreed that these events should be sponsored locally and have staff
volunteers to add to the events.
Discussion of Further Marketing of Economic Development Assistance Proqrams
Emie Lehman reported that he took the brochure to the Chamber Leadership meeting last Friday and
passed it out. Nasby added that the brochure was passed out at the bi-weekly Chamber Luncheon
yesterday. Overall, the brochure has been well received and is very informative. Nasby is looking at how
to use the brochure as a tool to bring businesses to Iowa City. He will begin by targeting prospects and
market through the Chamber and ICAD to market to existing businesses. He asked the members for
suggestions on how to proceed. Wilburn countered, asking Nasby what ideas he has to pursue, recruit
and educate business about iowa City's economic tools that are available. Nasby answered that it all
depends on how progressive the City wants to get and whether they want to work with ICAD, to target
cedain industries and groups, target subsidiaries of current major employers, etc. Up to this point, the City
has not taken a very aggressive role in these matters. Vanderhoef, concerned that there was some
overlap in duties, asked how ICAD fit into this plan so those things are not double-done or done at cross-
Iowa City Economic Development Committee
May 16, 2002
Page 2
purposes. Franklin said that historically, ICAD was the primary entity for recruiting businesses to come to
Iowa City. The Chamber of Commerce was historically, the entity that nurtured existing businesses, with
the City in a responsive role. There has been a shift in duties because of the formation of this new
committee, by the creation of the three funds: the general operations fund, the capital fund, and by the
CDBG pool.
There needs to be some thought put into what to do with the operating fund and the CDBG fund, which
will be available July 1. One option is to hand out brochures, then sit, and wait for the businesses to come
to the City or to take some steps to be more assertive. Franklin asked the committee what sort of posture
they wanted to take and how involved they want to be. Lehman stated that he felt that the CDBG funding
is something that should be aggressively pursued because Iow- and moderate-income businesses may
not know that these funds are available to them. He expressed more confidence in ICAD now, than two
years ago. Lehman noted that they are now much more aggressive. Franklin pointed out that bigger
programs like tax abatement and TIF are better suited to dealing with outside, established businesses,
and that the operating funds are better suited to nuduring new businesses.
Franklin alerted the members that the Historic Preservation Commission would be approaching them
about a potential facade renovation program for downtown businesses if and when they bring forward a
proposal for designating the downtown area as a historic district. Lehman asked whether there were
federal grants or loans available for such a project. Franklin affirmed that there were, but that then the
Historic Preservation Commission would have to closely follow the Secretary of the Interior's guidelines,
whereas local funds have more flexibility.
Nasby suggested working with groups tike ISCD and the Small Business Development Center to market
Iowa City. Nasby was asked by the committee to pursue CDBG applications. Franklin asked how the
committee wanted to market the operating fund ($300,000-500,000), whether they wanted to do one big
project or several smaller ones. Capital funds are $700,00 a year, less the money allocated to Mormon
Trek Blvd. Project (won't have $700,000 again until 2005). Lehman said that he was confused, because
he thought that the portion of the fund not allocated to Mormon Trek would be available to the general
fund for allocation for Economic Development projects. Nasby clarified that there were three allocations:
CDBG, operational and a capital fund.
Wilburn said that in regards to the major employer visits that the committee should find out what the
businesses' future wants and needs are. He suggested going over hardcopy records made by Schoon
and then target any businesses that indicated a desire to expand. Lehman confirmed that Raso is aware
of the operating funds, even though the committee has never used it (Franklin thought they might have
done it last year for fiscal year '02, but nothing has been expended from it). Lehman commented that
there is no need to spend the money if a project is not identified. Vanderhoef suggested a short piece in
the Chamber newsletter on operations funds that are available. Lehman asked if a prior idea (sending
notices to banks, credit unions, the University School of Business, lending institutions, commercial
realtors, etc.) was acted upon. Vanderhoef said that staff was going to put together a meeting with some
University representatives, but this has not yet materialized. She indicated that this was because it was
desired to have all three members present at such a meeting.
Vanderhoef asked how the committee could assist ICAD on their bigger projects. She expressed that it is
important to have a City staff person and/or Councilperson there in certain stages. This will make
businesses more comfortable in coming to the City for assistance and support. Franklin agreed, but said
that a lot of the time, ICAD is just working with brokers and not the company members themselves.
Lehman added that if there is anything that the committee can do to help, just call them. Vanderhoef
suggested that it be made policy that whenever there is a direct meeting with the company members, that
a staff or Councilperson be there. Franklin noted that 9:30AM on May 29, there is a meeting with a
prospect; Nasby believes that it is with the decision-maker. Franklin said that she will get more
information, and if the decision-maker is present, she will try to have one of the committee members
there, as well.
Vanderhoef asked a question regarding prospective businesses' confidentiality and open meetings laws.
Lehman stated that all information given in the committee meetings is public. Franklin noted that the only
other way to communicate with the members is individually, also the same memo cannot be sent to more
than one member. Franklin indicated that on issues where a business is concerned about confidentiality,
Iowa City Economic Development Committee
May 16, 2002
Page 3
all of the communications would be individual and verbal. Lehman said that not respecting their
confidentiality would be counterproductive.
Vanderhoef brought to the group's attention an Iowa Press Citizen article with the headline, "Iowa City
#1". She suggested that this quote be added to the updated brochure be added to the web site. Nasby
noted that consultants have told them that it is important to include what other employers think of the City
and to not overload on aerial photos and maps.
Update on Chamber of Commerce's Iowa City Luncheons
Vanderhoef noted that she has been to all but one of these luncheons (she was in Ames for a meeting).
Dan Smith has also been to a few, but not integrally involved. Lehman noted that it is a good group of
folks that attend these luncheons. He said that he did not sense a particular goal in attending the
meetings, other than to stay informed. Franklin added that the goal was to create a venue for Iowa City
businesses to get together in an informal way and talk about things that are of concern to Iowa City and to
have resources there to answer questions. Lehman commented that he felt that it was a great idea.
Vanderhoef said that she has heard conversations on the comp plan and how it is proceeding, and what
they see as barriers for large apartment building complexes; she said that they looked at all the TIF
districts, they looked at the brochure and received Nasby's new business card. The luncheons are held at
a different place every time, which encourages businesses to come when the meeting place is nearby.
Nasby will be in attendance at all of the luncheons. Franklin noted that she spoke with Steve Atkins about
not having too many staff people.
Business Outreach Pro.qram---Maior Employer Visits
Nasby noted that Schoon left him a file, and since the April meeting was cancelled, he was under the
impression that the committee members had made visits and had reports to share. Lehman said that he
has not had a visit in the last two months; Vanderhoef and Wilburn said likewise. Nasby said that he did
not believe that all of the major employer visits had been done. Lehman suggested that the meetings be
scheduled individually. Franklin commented that it was the original goal to have the list done by July 1.
Nasby said that he will go back to the list and will contact the members regarding visits.
Qther Business
Discuss the Committee's Regular Meeting Date and Time:
Nasby asked whether the group wanted to keep the third Thursday meeting schedule. It was agreed that
the committee would keep the same schedule. The next meeting will be on June 20 at 9:30AM.
Nasby shared a site plan for the Alpla Manufacturing Company with the committee. This is an Austrian
company that makes plastic bottles, and will be supplying them to P & G. He commented that this is
hopefully the final site plan and that they will be getting a building permit in the very near future. In the
next week or two, the company wants to have a major press conference, probably with a ceremonial
groundbreaking. ICAD is interested in having Council members be a part of this.
Alpla is considering applying for tax abatement and also for the partial industrial tax exemption. It is a
complex situation and ICAD is working with them on this. A special meeting possibility was mentioned.
Lehman said that he saw a piece on TV about a new Proctor and Gamble project. He said that they were
looking at West Branch, North Liberty and Iowa City. He asked whether the committee should proceed
with this. Franklin said that this was what the May 29 meeting is about.
Nasby noted that ICAD did a wage study for the Iowa City area and if anyone is interested, he has a
copy.
Vanderhoef mentioned a workforce development commuter survey. The last one was done in 1990, and
she believes this should be a priority for the chambers and ICAD. The survey would entail what kind of
jobs draw and how far workers are willing to commute; it would take in the six-county area. She does not
know who is going to do it; it is just being thrown around right now. However, she said that she believed
that this would be something good to spend operational funds on if they needed it. Lehman said that a
Iowa City Economic Development Committee
May 16, 2002
Page 4
similar study was done in the mid-90's and was aimed at the viability of a railroad, where a lot of money
was spent verifying what they already knew. Franklin assured him that this new study would be of great
use.
Adjournment
As there was no other business, the meeting was adjourned at 11:28AM
***NEXT MEETING DATE: JUNE 20 AT 9:30AM***
IOWA TODAY ""
www.gazetteonllne,com
L O C A L · R E G I O N A L
I.C. boa.rd questions
alternat,ve schOol plan
By Zack Kucharski and Fifth Street Jn Coralville.
'me Gazette ~ member Pete Wa]t~ce
IOWA CITY -- Iowa City said the alternative school
school board members said last must have its own identity.
night that district officials
must review carefully whether "It has to be clear this is a
a partnership with Coralville school, not an office building
for an alternative high school with a school in it like we have
and will provide the best edu- now," he said~
cational facili(7 possible. Board members also want
The facility also would house district officials to work closely
social services, with a committee that has
Board members had con- spent mom than a year review-
ceres about the facility, such as lng what an expanded altema-
how much the disl~ict will pay, rive program would require.
whether the district wlwtl own
the property and who will Iowa City schools Superin-
manage the building, tendent Laue Plugge said the
As the process continues and paxtnership shows promise and
cost estimates and designs are Gazette map that the facility would need to
serve as a school first "This is
formulated, the partnership thinking outside the box. We
must be fiscally and education- from a capacity of 64 students will get mom value for our
ally ideal, board members said. to about 2,50, and as Coralville dollar with a partnership,"
"We wouldn't have City High is looking for space to expand Plugge said.
in a building that we're leas- several city programs.
Lug," said board President Lau- Coralville likely will want
ren Reece. "I think owning the The two groUPs say they significant input into the fa-
land and the building is essen- have similar needs for class- cade of the facility in the city's
rial." rooms, day-care facilities and downtown, he said. Plugge will
The possible partnership social service office space. They handle the planning stages
comes as the dis~ict tries to are interested in building at with Coralville city staff and
expand its alternative pmgrmn the intersection of 12th Avenue develop a concept plan:
Iowa City
]District w ts building
foremost to be school
By Courtney Greve builtona3V~-acresiteonthe Plugge said the parm~r-
Iowa City Press-Citizen comer of 12th Avenue and ship is ideal because of the
- . fifth Street. _33~e :City of proximity to the Coralville
If the Iowa City SchoOl ~gv/ns~land. ' Public Library, the Coralville
District partnem with the : ~ membe~ Matt RecreationDepaxtment, S.T.
City of Coralville for a new Goodlaxsoh asked how MOrlison Park and
Alternative High School, much of the building Would Northwest Junior ~
School Board members be set aside for the school. The fadh'ty will include
want to make sure the build- Superintendent Lane day care, a TV production
ingisaprimarllyaschool. Plugge said he 'will put the studio, soci~lselvicesoffices,
"We clearly need this to needs of the school at the meeting rooms, classroom
be a school first, and then it forefront of any ~on and performance space~
has these ancillary facilities with Coralville city offidals. The facility also will maxi-
"-board mem- District~ officials have esfi- mize ~fle use of building paid
mat6d: they -WOuld need for by taxes, hesaid.
President' Lauren:~e= :2~/0~feet ' ~ ~ ~Youql get plenty ofbang
said she thinks it's critical -The -~ School:: Board for the public buck," he said.
that the school district ow~s approved spending about Board members said they
the land and the buildirg. $3.4 million to ex~uand the want the school has ils own
'We wouldn't have City alternative high school to identi~ Plug, ge said people
High in a building we were serve about 200 students in currently asscciate the school
leasing," she said. Februaiy as part of its $38:7 with the central administm-
The proposed 40,000 million bond referendum for fion building because there is
square foot facility will be school improvements, no indication of a school
.lune 10~ 2002
RE: [ndustrial Park Property Owners -[owa City Opportunities
As plans move ahead for the redevelopment of the Coralville Industrial Park area several
property owners have contacted the City of Iowa City with an interest in reinvesting in
industrial properties, iowa City developers and real estate professionals have industrial,
commercial and office properties available.
To help us determine the level of interest and define what assistance may be needed we
have enclosed a very brief survey form. if you are interested in working with the City
of iowa City Economic Development Office please complete the form and return it to our
office in the return envelope.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss the economic development
opportunities in Iowa City please contact me at 356-5248 or via e-mail at Steven-
Nasby@iowa-city.org. We look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Steven Nasby
Community and Economic Development Coordinator
Enclosure
410 EAST WASHINGTON STREET . IOWA CITY. IOWA 52240 1826 ' (31g) 356 5000 , FAX (3191 356-5009
CITY OF IOWA CITY
INFORMATION RE( UEST FORM
P/ease/nd/cate your response for each app/icab/e sect/on.
Pro/~ertv Tv~e(s)
Industrial Commercial\Office Retail Other
A==roximate Size of Property
Acres Square Feet
Inve~ment Type
Own Lease
Location Preference(s)
Downtown East Towa City West Iowa City Other
Please contact me to discuss relocation or investment opportunities in the
City of Iowa City
Yes No
Thank you for your interest in the City of Iowa City. We have provided a self-addressed,
stamped envelope to return the form to the City of Iowa City.
If you have any questions or would like information on financial incentives available in
Iowa City, please contact Steve Nasby, Community and Economic Development
Coordinator at 319-356-5248 or via e-mail at Steven-Nasby@iowa-city.org.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Community & Economic Development, City of Iowa City, 410 E. Washington St., Iowa City, IA 52240
W. IEATHER C~. W~rDN~$DAY
JUNE ~.; 2°°2
TODAY 79 iOWA CITY, IOWA
Plastics maker building I-C. plant
Factory-~ '~lJ~anneu for the P~t a-~ ~ ~ p~ N~ ~ ~a~ ~t, ~, ~t~o~ ~1 Ind~l Pa~
BDI Indus~ P~k; ~ ~ ' 4~*~ ~ ~ ~. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
'upsc~e jobs' touted ~ ~ ~ ~m~ ~t ~ ~ · ~;~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ,-~ ~ ~,~.
~]pla
. ~s~n~-
~~no~
~ne M~ ~ d~
Pa e 8A
S Wednesday,
June 12,
Iowa City Press-Citizen 2002
P & G draws new
facility to Iowa City
By Sam Langenberg
~o~a c~-c~,~ Procter & ALPLA < p~,~rae~ ~t'~o
Aplast~sroanufacturingplantGamble buildingnearly five decades of expaasio,
with no la~otts or dow~i~in~'
u~ w~ se~e ~ ~ O~,~e pr0pert~ site ~ for ~ome of the
announced pla~ Tuesday tn open City based employee~ already
a production facility at 2258 Heinz begun, Gregos said. Kirl~rooc
Road in Iowa City. Community College also will pro
Alplz, a worldwide industrial vide job ~dning for local employ
manufacturer specializing in
molded and brown plastic prod- Kurk Berlanan~ senior vic(
ucts, plans W have its 58,000- president of Alpin Nortt
square-foot production facility American, said the company ~
built and on-line by December. known locally for valuing it~
An expansion already ~s in the employee~
planning stages, company offi- ~f you thoroughly Wdn you
,i~l~ said. associates and avat them witl
The announcement comes r'~-.t, the abffrry to establist
about a year after Iowa City and achieveexceptionalgoalsh~
Council members agreed to grant Pre~-Citizen no ~' he saic[
temporary prope~*y tax rebates to Alpla's local competition
Owens Brockway- another plas- worldwide. Three plants are in ttte Owens-Brockway Plasti~
ficbotflemanulacturerthatpla~s United States, including the Iowa Products, isanOhio4~sedmanu
to serve Procter & Gamble -- for City facility, which will employ 25 factmi~ firm that also pla~s tt
a new ~ in the Scott Six to 80 people, Grego~ said. make plastic bottles for Procter t
lndust~ialPark. Joe Raso, president of the Gamble: Last year, they wer~
Joe Gregos, Alph's Iowa City Iowa City Area Development granted a five-year property tm
operations manager, said the Group, said he is impressed with exempUon on a new plant.ia th{
Alph plant will make bottles for Alp]a's track record. Scott-Sixhdustv~Park.
shampoo and other hair-care "The company is globally In ~return, Owens-Br0ckwa~
p~. made at Procter & known as a manufacturer that agreed to create about 30 ney
· operates a clea~, safe production ~e positions paying abou
Alpla is a family ov~ed, enviromuent~gextremely $13.43m~ho~.Includ~gfix-tum
~ bu~ness with more than sophis~cated aad efficient pro- and equipment, the project w~
5,400 employeez at 70 plants ductJonequipment,"he~idina expected to co~ $11.7 millior~