HomeMy WebLinkAbout2007-01-30 Transcription
January 30, 2007
City Council Budget Wark Session
Page I
January 30, 2007
City Council Budget Work Session
6:30 P.M.
Council:
Bailey, Champion, Correia, Elliott, O'Donnell, Vanderhoef, Wilburn
Other:
Volland
Staff:
Atkins, Helling, Karr, O'Malley, Lewis, Mans
Tapes:
07-14, Side 2; 07-15, Sides I and 2; 07-16, Sides I and 2
RESERVES:
Wilburn/ Okay, tonight, just to kind of give you an outline of how I'd like to approach it.
There was concern/interest by several of you about, you wanted to hear a report
from Steve about reserves. I asked him to go ahead and prepare that. I thought
we'd lead off with Steve walking us through that. We had a discussion last night.
Steve and I met today and talked about the Senior Center, Parks and Rec. We
wanted community events, since that's fresh in our minds from last night. Then
I'll step out and give you all a chance to come to some closure about aid to
agencies, or finish the discussion. Then move on to CIP, and then have a
conversation about the timetable for calling the public hearing, and all that. So,
need a couple minutes? (unable to hear other person) Okay. Urn... by the way, I
said that that'd be kind of our plan tonight and see where we go. I was thinking
ballpark, we would aim for trying to close up about 9:00, 9: 15 tonight, but again,
let's see where we, see where we get with discussion. That order sound okay to
everybody? Okay.
Bailey/ Will we have some just general time...Ijust wrote down some things
that.. . general budget issues.
Wilburn! Urn, why don't we see between, either between these, after these first couple, I
don't know if your comments will be related to those, or I guess, the CIP,
General.
Bailey/ A couple ofthem are CIP.
Wilburn! Yeah, CIP and General is what I was looking at.
Bailey/ Okay.
Wilburn/ We can just open it up then for general discussion.
Bailey/ Okay.
Wilburn! (unable to hear) Okay.
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Atkins! There were questions as to how we arrive at certain recommendations when it
comes to reserve position, and often just in general, and I'm talking about the
General Fund right now. What I'm going to put up is what you have in front of
you, and I'll walk you through this. These numbers to the left of the bold line,
this is a 9-year history we prepared in order to show the growth and fund balance,
growth and expenditures, and in general in revenues, and how it compares to the
current budget proposals that you have in front of you. (noises) First column of
figures, that would be to your far left, top numbers: 9,134,547 - everybody got
that? That's...technically (unable to hear)
Elliott! These are cash balances, Steve?
Atkins! These are audited numbers. These are, have gone through out audit review
process as an independent audit.
Wilburn! So real numbers, not budget.
Atkins! They are not estimates. These are actual.
Correia! These are General Fund balances?
Atkins! General Fund balances, correct.
Elliott! So when you say it's the beginning, and pardon me, but I just need to
under. . . since this is the beginning, that means that was the cash balance at the
conclusion of the previous year.
Atkins! Correct.
Elliott! Okay, good.
Atkins! The beginning of the year, the (unable to understand) same thing. The next
number underneath is actual receipts, followed by actual expenditures, and then
the net receipt over expenditures, rather as a percentage. You with me?
So.. . historically, this is an important number, this percentage. That demonstrates
to you receipts, expenditures. That is where we are at any particular, in any of
these nine fiscal years. At the end of this fiscal year, on the net receipts over
expenditures, is 2.8%.
Wilburn! To the good.
Atkins! To the good. The important thing to note on this as you read this across, that
represents nine years of budgeting, audited numbers, and we have an annual
average end of the fiscal year, of receipts over expenditures, of2.2%. That's in
effect the budget margin. With me? Then you end the fiscal year, and you note
that number, with some minor modifications, moves up. This is the actual end of
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the year General Fund balance, as expressed in a percentage. We have, as you
know, a 30% policy. Those numbers over the last nine years average annually
34%. Now, you'll see years where there's a negative number. In doing our
analysis, we can take you through virtually year by year. Expenditures one year
maybe 98.7%. The next particular fiscal year may be 101 %. We did historical
research and we think we can answer any ofthose questions, but in preparing the
budget, remember: it's an estimate. This is how we end the year. That's the
importance of these numbers. I think, as you can see, with a 2.2% proposed
budget, 34% average proposed budget, is in general agreement with nine years
worth of fiscal history. I think the most important thing about the 2.2% average is
in the General Fund there is not a large operating margin.
Vanderhoef/ Was 2000 and 2001 where we dipped below when we had to redo our
budget?
Atkins/ No.
Bailey/ Yeah, what happens in those years...
Atkins/ ... we'll go through (unable to understand), Kevin? In this particular case, this is
the 27th pay period. Every, every 12 years, we have 27 pay periods in the fiscal
year. In this budget, in this budget we had set aside monies and paid it... but
remember, this is an active number. This has to do with when you spent
something, you have to record it. I mean, because it's a negative, don't get too
nervous about it. It's when you start running the history of those things. That's
when you have trouble. In 2012, we will have a 27th pay period. I had not
intended, because our balances remain reasonably healthy, I had not intended to
propose to you that we begin setting aside monies, in like 9,10, 11, and ultimately
12, that we would take it out of the balance in fiscal year 2012. And then you
could begin repaying it over a period of time.
Bailey/ And so in looking at 2001, was that, is that what had an impact on that?
Atkins/ (unable to understand)
O'Malley/ Yes, and on the 27th pay period, we try to expand it over two years.
Bailey/ Oh, okay, got it.
Atkins/ We estimate a payroll, the 27th pay period, which is a lot like the 26th, is about
$1.5 million.
Bailey/ And then, what happened in 2003, that it bumps up so...
Atkins/ Okay, 2003?
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Bailey/ Bumps up a little out of.. .little bit of an aberration?
O'Malley/ At that time, Regenia, we were funding our capital outlay in the General Fund
through bond proceeds, and that year we had larger capital outlay than we
expected and so we had to transfer more money from our debt service, from our
bond proceeds fund into the General Fund to pay for that capital outlay.
Bailey/ And so that's...
Atkins/ And that caused the spike.
Bailey/ Okay.
Correia! I have a question. When I'm looking at this, so I'm looking at the very first,
98.. .so you mean at the bottom, umeserved ending balance 9,975,000.
Atkins/ Right.
Correia! And when I go up to 1999, that number is up there, actual beginning balance?
Atkins/ Yep.
Correia! So at the end of 2003, at the bottom, the umeserved ending balance is $13
million. I'm going to go up to 2004 beginning, it says $15 million.
Atkins/ $15.
Bailey/ That's the year they start disagreeing, across the board.
Correia! Well, but then after that, there's the restricted, but there's no restricting that...
O'Malley/ I know in 2003, we also added the Transit Fund balance, but the other thing
that we had in 2003 and moved into 2004, is we got a new accounting system, and
we used to have a single-entry accounting system and we went to a double-entry
accounting system and some of our miscellaneous escrow accounts, we then
included in our fund balances.
Atkins/ If! recall, some of those escrow accounts were close to a million dollars, if!
remember...to hold the monies. Yeah.
Correia! And so then, between 03 and 04 is when you start to see the designated
restricted, and so what. . .
Atkins/ It's.. .go ahead...
Vanderhoef/ Is that the new accounting system policy?
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O'Malley/ Right.
Atkins/ Yes.
O'Malley/ What happened was we were holding funds in separate accounts, for different
escrow deposits - mostly it was escrow deposits. Some of it was some reserve
funds, and because ofthe new accounting system, it had to throw it all in the cash
and so the off-set is a liability and budgets don't show liabilities. They only show
revenues and expenses, and so we had to show the cash, but we have to show it as
restrictive or designated, even though it can't be spent on general operations.
Atkins/ The important.. .go ahead, Kevin.
O'Malley/ Essentially, those funds were always around, but we didn't include them in the
General Fund balance prior to going to our double-entry accounting system.
Bailey/ Because we weren't necessarily required to because of the accounting procedures
or the...
O'Malley/ Essentially, that's it. It's a matter of a single-entry accounting system didn't
require us to post liabilities, and once we went to a double-entry accounting
system, we recognized that this money in our cash account was somebody else's
money, but according to our generally accepted accounting principles, we had to
show the funds there and the terminology "designated" and "reserved" are actual
terms used in the accounting system.
Wilburn! So, prior to those liabilities would show up on the Balance Sheet then, correct?
O'Malley/ Right, they'd show up as escrow accounts, not in the General Fund.
Correia! So it's actual...I'm going to be dense for a minute since I'm not...
O'Malley/ That's fine. It's kind of technical!
Correia! So.. . right. . .so, when you say escrow account, it's actual cash?
O'Malley/ Yeah, we're holding somebody's money, for them to complete some
subdivision requirement or some excavation deposit, and if they don't fulfill those
requirements, then we have to do it at some point in time. We have some money
on our books that's over 25 years old, waiting for somebody to do something.
Correia! So. . . but, in the budget book, it talks about. . . that there's funds in the designated
and the reserved for transit.
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O'Malley/ Those are reserves. Those are actual.. . reserves are...is our money that we're
setting aside based on policy...
Correia! Okay, so I guess that's my question, is... when you say "our money," is that
General Fund money that's going into that reserve?
O'Malley/ That's correct. We're setting aside money every year in the General Fund to
fund reserves.
Correia! And I guess that's where I'm wondering how much is that? What's our policy?
Because...it doesn't jump out at me when I'm reading this.
Bailey/ What policies drive the amount that we're setting aside, I guess, is what I'm
interested in.
Atkins/ Go ahead, Kevin.
O'Malley/ Okay. Well, the policies are that two of the reserves, I think there's five or six
reserves, but two of the major reserves are Library reserves, and according to City
ordinances, when we give the Library funds, they get to keep it. Whereas, if we
give funds to the Police Department, at the end of the year, if they don't spend
them, it goes back into the General Fund. If the Library receives a fund, they get
to keep it in reserves. So, that's how their reserves build up.
Correia! But, I guess...
O'Malley/ That's one aspect. The other aspect is the Transit reserve. We get extra
money according to the 95-cent tax levy. So that has to be spent on Transit. We
can't put it to use for anything else. So we put it in the Transit Equipment
reserve, and that's actually the reserve that you see growing so large, at the
present moment. And I think the other reserve is a Fire Equipment Replacement
reserve, and that's part of our contract with the University. When they pay us for
their share of fire protection, we put some ofthat money to replace our vehicles,
our Fire Department vehicles. And the remaining reserves are parkland reserves,
which were funded by Council policy as to, I think, some old hotel/motel taxes.
So I think those are the five or six reserves.
Bailey/ So, the Library funds that we give them, are those from the Library levy or from
the...
O'Malley/ That's from the General Fund levy, the 8.10 levy.
Correia! So.. .how much is that this year?
O'Malley/ I have to look on the page.
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Correia! Okay.
O'Malley! I believe it's the same amount we gave them last year, but I can't remember
what the dollar of that is.
Bailey! Is it their replacement reserve?
O'Malley! Yes, it's their equipment and their computer replacement reserves.
Bailey! And then there was (several talking)...
Elliott! Is that what is shown as the reserved portion of the cash balance, in our budget?
Atkins! That's one of them, uh-huh.
Elliott! Okay. So, Kevin, my question was, those reserves, I think you indicated
something like three to five different kinds of reserves. Are those included in the
General Fund year-end cash reserves?
O'Malley! That's correct. That's the...ifyou look at the chart that Steve has, it's that
line, that $18 million on the other side of the.. . actually, yeah, they're included in
that number. That's them segregated right below it. And that's about a million in
escrows, liabilities that we owe other people, and about $700,000 in reserves for
that year, and as you see it growing to the right, most of the growth is in reserves
growth.
Elliott! And that's the portion that's identified as the reserved portion.
O'Malley! That's correct.
Elliott! Okay.
Bailey! And so... we don't have discretion about the amount that's in, that go into those
reserves, except if we give the Library less, for example.
O'Malley! That's correct.
Bailey! Okay. The Library, is that the only category, that we have discretion in? Transit
we don't.
O'Malley! The Transit you really don't either, because.. . you could lower the Transit levy
and thereby reduce the reserves.
Bailey! Okay. But... we could lower the Transit levy, but that doesn't get us money for
any other things.
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O'Malley/ That's correct. No discretionary funds.
Bailey/ Right. (several talking)
O'Malley/ Well, they're even considered discretionary.
Bailey/ Maybe I'm misusing the term, from their perspective...
Vanderhoef/ It's General Fund money.
O'Malley/ It's 8.10 money...
Bailey/ .. . and once we give it to them, they put it in a reserve. We could give them less
for their reserve account.
O'Malley/ That's correct.
Bailey/ That's the only one we could make a choice about.
O'Malley/ That's right. The fire.. .maybe that's right. The fire one actually doesn't come
from the General Fund. It comes from the University and that...
Atkins/ That goes through the... but it does go through the General Fund.
O'Malley/ Yes, but it's, the receipt comes...yes, we coul~ take that.
Atkins/ .. . calculate the fire.. .it's a contract formally with the University. Do we have a
separate operating and capital?
O'Malley/ Right.
Atkins/ Then it is restricted.
O'Malley/ We show them that calculation when we send the bill to them. The parkland
you have is discretion.
Vanderhoef/ Well, but not by Council policy.
O'Malley/ Right. You'd have to amend your policy.
Vanderhoef/ ... 7%...goes for parkland.
Atkins/ Wasn't the parkland fund originally financed with the sale of the old Central
Junior High, where we received the monies and then.. . (laughter and several
talking). Whether it was a mistake or not, I think that's how it was funded.
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O'Malley/ I think initially...
Atkins/ .. . hotel/motel tax.
O'Malley/ I think now those funds, as of one or two years ago, we quit putting money
into those funds.
Atkins/ Yes we did.
O'Malley/ So they are available, but you've got them designated as prior Council
indication that they be used for park acquisition and parkland development.
Vanderhoef/ Uh-huh, because when those 2% were added on by State Code, we had to
designate within the City what we did with them.
O'Malley/ That's correct.
Vanderhoef/ And that 2 % was reserved, particularly for a policy that came through Parks
and Rec at that time, was to be saved for creating parks and trails through the
older sections of town. (several talking)
Bailey/ .. .so it's the $42,000 and the $19,000 that we're providing to the Library, out
of. . . is that right?
O'Malley/ The 42 and the 19, that's correct.
Bailey/ Okay.
Vanderhoef/ On page 61 you said?
O'Malley/ 62, I have.
Bailey/ Oh.
Vanderhoef/ Say that again now, Regenia, while I'm...
Bailey/ If it transfers out, am I in the right place, Kevin?
O'Malley/ That's correct.
Bailey/ If it transfers out, the Library Replacement reserve and the Equipment
Replacement - those are the general money from the General Fund that we
provide to reserves for the Library.
O'Malley/ That's correct, and on the following page, it shows the two reserves receiving
the money.
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Vanderhoef/ So it wouldn't mean if, for instance, we cut 42...43,000 out, that they could
still do some different planning with their own budget within, and still provide
that amount into their reserve. It would just be...
Atkins/ They could... the Library could in fact reprioritize its own operating budget...
Vanderhoef/ Yeah, so we still give them their pot of money, and if we choose to keep
43,000, then...
Atkins/ The standard amount. . . I believe the best way to look at operating, the operating
budget for the Library, is you're virtually giving them a lump sum. And they
administer it.
Elliott! That's my understanding. The only thing we control about the Library is the
amount of funding we provide. We are not allowed to do anything further.
(several talking)
Atkins/ By agreement, we do like the bargaining for them. We provide, I mean, we do all
of those things.
Correia! So there's that, from the General Fund, and then you said 1% of the hotel/motel
tax is going to the parkland?
O'Malley/ It used to go in.
Atkins/ Used to.
Correia! Used to?
Wilburn! We stopped that about.. .three? Four years ago?
O'Malley/ Wasn't too long ago we decided to change that.
Vanderhoef/ When we redid the budget. (several talking) When we had to make up the
$1.3 million.
Atkins/ .. .in 04, when we had to make up that $1.3...
Vanderhoef/ Absolutely, and that's, and then we made a commitment to refund it later.
Uh-huh.
Atkins/ You also made a commitment that you would consider using General Obligation
Debt for other parkland acquisition.. .if some.. .an opportunity came along. This
is really an opportunity to count, that we have available to us.
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Correia! Well, and we have that in our on-going...is that the open space land acquisition?
Atkins/ Yes.
Vanderhoef/ Uh-huh.
Correia! (several talking) ..that says General Fund. But right now out of our General
Fund, $50,000 is going to open space land acquisition.
O'Malley/ That's in our CIP. That's to spend the money - that's an expectation of
spending $50,000 a year, which sometimes doesn't happen, so we roll it over to
the following year.
Correia! Out of the General Fund?
O'Malley/ Out of the General Fund to the CIP Fund to pay for the acquisition.
Elliott! But, Steve, you said when we got the Sand Road ponds, you had.. .you
had.. . (laughter) Michigan is a lake! You had funds squirreled, pardon the
expression, we didn't have to borrow that, that wasn't bonded.
Atkins/ How did we finance it? (several talking)
O'Malley/ We bonded... up to $700,000.
Atkins/ Only up to $700,000. And then the rest of it would be made up in cash.
Elliott! Okay.
Wilburn! We can't go over $700,000.
Atkins/ Virtually, any...fire station, you can build the fire station, but you can only use
$700,000 worth of General Obligation debt, and the rest has to be paid in cash.
Or some other source.
Mansfield! Would you like to hear the current allocation of hotel/motel tax?
Atkins/ That's probably not a bad idea. Thank you.
Mansfield! Police patrol gets 47 Yz%; Convention and Visitor's Bureau gets 25%; Parks
and Rec gets 27 Yz%. That should do it.. .yep.
Bailey/ And speaking of which, can Ijust point out that I did give you the CVB's annual
report at your. . . and on behalf of the CVB Board. . . and are not asking for an
increase this year.
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Correia! Deb, can you give me the breakdown again? Ofthe hotel/motel tax?
Mansfield! It's on page 17.
Correia! 17, okay.
Elliott/27 Y" 25, 27 Yz, wasn't it? (several talking) Oh, 47 Yz. Yeah, that's how fast I
add. (several talking)
Champion! Regenia, that money we gave them for that sports thing, that was just a one-
time thing?
Bailey! Was, yeah.
Wilburn! Page 17, number 2, other city taxes. (several talking) Can you continue on,
Steve?
Atkins! I'm done.
Correia! I had another question. So, in the, I saw in the Landfill budget that there was
a... what page is Landfill on?
Wilburn! Landfill is 111.
Correia! Okay, so, there's a...a transfer out of the Landfill to the reserve funding of
$500,000.
Atkins! Okay.
Correia! Is that a transfer to this General Fund reserve funding?
Atkins! No.
Correia! What's the reserve?
O'Malley! That transfers through the CIF, to fund the cells, the new Landfill cells.
Correia! Oh, okay. Okay.
Bailey! So, essentially what you're saying, if I understand this correctly, is that there are
no flows into "restricted or reserved funds" from the General Fund that we can get
a piece of. They're all pretty designated, is what your analysis is.
Atkins! Our analysis is that.
O'Malley! That's correct. Those.. .there's no real money in there.
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Bailey/ Okay. (several talking)
O'Malley/ No, we don't keep slush funds.
Correia! What 1 heard was that there's $50,000 annually allocated out of the General
Fund for open space...
Atkins/ Budgeted, expense side.
Correia! Yeah, budgeted... well, right, it's in there so it's... we have the, our budgeted
balance, so we have the ability. Sometimes we spend it, sometimes we don't, it
rolls in...
Bailey/ And $63,000 to the Library...
Correia! $63,000 to the Library for equipment, $113,000.
Atkins/ Sounds about right.
Correia! That's essentially in the General Fund that's going to those...
O'Donnell/ Parkland was 50 or 60?
Atkins/50....1. ..yep.
Elliott! Before you proceed, when you just started, 1 still haven't found the figure that you
said, net receipts above expenditures for the actual for 06. 1 think you said 2.8
and 1 couldn't find...1 see 3.9, but 1 don't...
Atkins/ 2.8% is the different between that and that.
Elliott! Between?
Atkins/ Total actual expenditures, total actual receipts, $800,000, 2.8% ofthe percent of
revenue.
Elliott! Oh, you went back to 98. 1 thought you were talking about the 06 year. 1 must
have misunderstood you. I'm sorry.
Atkins/ Okay.
Elliott/ No wonder 1 was looking for it.
Atkins/ These average 2.2. That's how 1 came up with that number.
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Elliott! Okay.
Correia! Based on what we received in hotel/motel tax... but if somebody has a calculator.
What's 1 % of our expected hotel/motel tax? (several talking)
Atkins/ 600,000.. . yeah. It would be 6,000, 1 %, isn't that what you're saying? 6,000,
yeah. (several talking)
O'Malley/ We get about $653,000 a year, so 1 % would be about $6,500.
Wilburn! Any questions about the reserve, status of the reserves?
Correia! I just had a question, that's really not related to the General Fund reserve, but
related to all the other reserve, or cash that we have in other funds, in terms of
wanting to know what are, what are our constraints, of... what policies that are in
place are City-imposed, that we impose, what are the date policies? For example,
the Landfill, what...
Atkins/ Let's start...we've only got seven or eight...parkland, parking fund, self-
supporting, does not have any tax support. We have to maintain...what do you
call the ratio?
O'Malley/ It's a bond covenant.
Atkins/ A bond covenant.
O'Malley/ It has to be 125% of revenues.
Correia! And that's a State. . .
Atkins/ No, that's a...
O'Malley/ That's a bond indenture.
Atkins/ It's not a State law, it's the bond...the borrowers have said, 'You must do this.'
So when the parking fund is audited, that calculation is made.
Correia! So we have two funds in parking. We have parking and we have parking debt.
So there's a total.. .do we add those up and then we do 125%...
O'Malley/ No, no the parking operations has to equal 125%. Parking debt is the sinking
funds which we pay the bonds out of. So what we do is, the money that's the
operational money that we make, every year we have to put enough money into
these parking debt funds, and then they pay the bonds. Now, the covenants also
say that you have to have a one-year bond reserve, so that in case everything fell
apart, you'd be able to pay that principle and interest for that year. So we have to
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keep that separate. The bond covenants also say we have to have an improvement
reserve that has to equal so much of our depreciation. I think it's a $500,000
account, and then we have what we call our sinking funds, when they actually
submit the bond and interest payments, we payout of. So those that Ijust
mentioned are all in the bond reserve account. The parking fund balance has to
have a minimum of 125% of its revenues.
Atkins/ Remember when we were approached about possibly buying the church site? We
said we couldn't afford it. The fund itself is very healthy. Our debt level is
healthy, but we're just not in a position to borrow the monies to buy the property
and meet covenant, without a dramatic increase in rates. Okay?
Bailey/ That's why we don't give away parking.
Atkins/ How 'bout waste water?
Correia! So...I'm sorry. What's 125% of, I mean, what's the required amount that we
have to have in there?
O'Malley/ I don't have that number handy, but I think.. . (several talking).. .it's in our
CAFR but I don't have... Comprehensive Annual Financial Report. It shows it in
there, but I'm not familiar with the dollar amount.
Correia! Oh, okay.
Atkins/ We evidently meet the requirement.
O'Malley/ We can get it.
Correia! Oh, I know we do. I'm just wondering how much over we might be or
whatever.
Atkins/ No, it was a couple years ago, in fact, just below it, and had to get it back up
again. Yeah, I mean, it was an unusual year for certain expenses. It can happen,
but the auditor will pick it out, note it, and we have it corrected by the next year.
It's not a matter of right or wrong, it's...
Elliott! Steve, I think it was Regenia who asked the question, and I'm not sure I
understood the answer, is it the reserved funds, the cash reserve, the reserved
funds either by policy, by law - whatever - we can't touch those. The rest we
can? In other words, at the conclusion of 06, the cash balance is 19, but there is
reserved or constrained, was $2 million, so we end up with 17. It's the $2 million
that we can't touch, either by our policy or by some regulation, is that correct?
Atkins/ Or series of policies. That's an easy way to look at it. Our cash, the number
you're talking about, that's our operating capital. One ofthe things that we don't
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do, we get paid twice a year, and we have 26 payrolls to meet. We operate on our
own cash. We don't go out and borrow, or like a business would have a line of
credit. We don't, we choose not to do that, and that saves us money.
Elliott! But the other $17 mill is not so restricted?
Atkins/ That's correct.
Elliott! Okay, good.
Atkins/ If you wanted to make a one-time expense, expense an item out of there, you
could. Now, that's the 12th payroll, or the 27th payroll, in the year 2012. About
$1.5 million. To be paid from that.
Vanderhoef/ And the rest of that, or a lot of that, is for cash flow.
Atkins/ We call it working capital, same thing.
Vanderhoef/ Because we've got, monthly when you look at what we payout, we can pay
$10 to $13 million...
Atkins/ .. .you look at disbursements, in the summer time they spike.
Vanderhoeti' Because of capital.
Atkins/ Capital projects. We got a road project we have to pay for, um...bonds may not
have been sold. Again, we operate off of our own money. And then that saves the
borrowing costs.
Elliott/ I think I recall in the, in the budget, there was a graph that showed something in
excess of $6 million is the highest we've gone, as far as the short-flow, where we
would need that cash. Is that correct? Am I remembering correctly?
Atkins/ Oh, yeah, that...
O'Malley/ That's correct, Bob.
Atkins/ ...r don't remember the number, but there's a chart...that sounds about right.
Elliott! That's what I thought.
Atkins/ Yep.
Bailey/ And so is it unusual for cities to operate off oftheir own cash, I mean, is this a
typical.. .
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Atkins/ Oh...I think those cities with credit ratings that we have...
Bailey/ There are few in Iowa.
Atkins/ Three of them, yeah, in Iowa.
Bailey/ Operate like...
Atkins/ It's not...a lot of cities, particularly on the east coast, the older urban centers,
they use something called tax anticipation notes, which is in effect a line of credit.
I'm going to get a whole bunch of tax money in a couple of months, but I need
money to operate now. So I sell something called a tax anticipation note that I
have to pay you for the use of your money, as I await the arrival of the tax.
Without a lot ofresearch...what's that? (several talking) Yeah! (laughter)
Whatever. You know, I'd like to think, Regenia, that we're a little unusual in
that, but I think you'll find most healthy cities in Iowa would operate off their
own cash.
Bailey/ I was just trying to get an idea of the, you know, the practice, because you know,
it's not something you think about much. (several talking)
Vanderhoef/ ...invested, so we'll have some income coming off of that as we're (several
talking).
Atkins/ In the year 12 when you draw that down, one of the things that.. . making that
budget decision in the Fiscal Year 12, you're going to have to decide that, because
you will- because it's going to take a big hit with the 27th pay period - your
available monies for investment are going to drop, and you have to anticipate that.
(several talking) Yes.
Wilburn! Another strategy might be to take a few years before and build cash up to it.
Atkins/ You could.
Elliott/ I think that's what you indicated earlier.
Atkins/ We had done that before. And I'm saying that I think our reserves are at a point,
if they stay up in that general area, then I think we're going to be okay, and you
can take the $1.5 million hit.
Correia! I have a question about, back to the reserve, restricted (unable to understand) and
the General Fund, in terms of, well- even just looking at the proposed budget,
just look at the current budget, at the level of that $1. 7 million...
Vanderhoeti' The designated.
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Correia! The designated, and our current budget. . . and so from what I understand in terms
of the current year budget being at $2.3 million, the only General Fund
monies.. .oh, please don't turn off the lights, sorry, because I'm not looking at that
so much. ..the only General Fund money that's going in there is the 63,000
Library reserve, and the 39,000 Fire Equipment Replacement reserve is shown
there.
Atkins/ Sounds about right.
Correia! So what, where in.. .that doesn't give you a 1.7, plus that doesn't equal 2.3, so
what are the other, what are the other. . . (several talking)
Bailey/ ... projected to grow, so what accounts for that? Is that what...
Correia! Yeah, what accounts for that? What...
Atkins/ ... percent adjustment. . . and then I was going to say. .. can I digress just a second
on the Transit because it's real important to you. Our Transit reserve position is
probably healthier than we've ever seen it, because of the Federal monies. We
added the two new routes. We chose in preparing this budget to ldave the tax rate
the way it was, with a healthy amount of money being put into Transit. I'm
expecting that we're going to be back to you, probably in the next two, three,
four, five months. We're going to have to talk about that because those monies
must be expended for Transit purposes. You may want to set aside a reserve, for
example, like bus replacement, which would be good for us because we don't
have to do any borrowing then to pay our share, or you may want to consider
other routes, all kinds of... Sunday service. Yeah.
Bailey/ Sunday service, I keep getting calls about that.
Atkins/ And you'll have an opportunity. Is that a safe description of Transit? I mean, it's
really quite healthy.
Vanderhoef/ But if we were looking at lowering taxes...
Atkins/ Yeah, you'd lower...
V anderhoef/ You would lower the levy, the 95 cents, say we only levied with our budget
at 90 cents, instead of 95 cents.
Bailey/ Right.
Vanderhoef/ So that would be an across the board to all of the taxpayers. (several
talking)
Atkins/ You don't have to decide that now. I'm simply saying that (several talking)
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Vanderhoef/ I'm just saying could.
O'Malley/ That amounts to $495,000 for FY08, so that's the largest one. (several
talking)
Elliott/ Kevin? You said that amounts to $495,000. That being in reference to...
O'Malley/ The Transit reserve that we're taking out of the General Fund and putting it
into the reserve, the Transit reserve fund.
Correia! It's taken out of the Transit levy. (several talking)
Atkins/ Remember, at one time, a number of years ago, the 8.10 levy was subsidizing the
Transit operation. That's no longer the case. Yep. So that improved our 8.10
position, when we brought that over, and when we transferred... when we made
Transit, it used to be an Enterprise Fund and we made it a GeneralFund. With it
came its reserve, which was almost $600,000 and that went into our reserves.
O'Malley/ That was the spike in 2003.
Atkins/ I think from the expense side, Kevin, I want to spend a couple minutes on some
accounting issues. You guys want to help me out? Sometimes these numbers,
they look like why do we go from 800 to lA, and... we practice a policy in our
accounting of allowing carry-overs. A department may (TAPE ENDS) .. .you
heard us talk about that, and so that's why you'll see some bumping around. One
year may look real good, the next year - well, what happened here? Well, we had
several carry-overs, and what we try to do, is I don't want m~ ope~ating
departments to figure, 'Oh my God, it's going to be June 30t. We've got to get it
spent.' No, we don't do that. This allows some discretion, particularly near the
end ofthe fiscal year, and particularly in the summer time when we have our
expenses are up a tad bit any way. It allows that latitude. So you'll see some of
these expense numbers. They have some variations in them. A good bit of it
could be a carry-over.
Wilburn! So are we on a modified cash...
Atkins/ Yes.
Wilburn! .. . accounting basis then.
Atkins/ Yes. (noise)
Elliott/ Most of the departments do conclude the year with a balance.
Atkins/ Yes.
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Elliott! That's correct. And then you folks combined, look at that and determine if that's
appropriate for them to keep it and build on it, or.. . okay.
Atkins! That's correct.
O'Malley! Well, let me modify that. We don't give them a balance. The only one that
has balances is the Library.
Atkins! Yeah.
O'Malley! And the Airport.
Elliott! So all of the year-end...
Atkins! Departments don't, yeah, when we conclude the end ofthe Fiscal Year, a
department that has not expended it all doesn't get to keep it. It ends. Unless you
have a carry-over, like I've got this....
Elliott! But unless they have an expenditure that is due and will be paid, then that goes
back into the General Fund.
Atkins! Back to the General Fund.
Elliott! Any, any balance that a department has? Okay.
Correia! Do we have a sense of at the end of last year - I'm sure it's in the paper - what
our position was on percent of balance expended, on June 30'\ of budget, of
budgeted expenditures, that weren't expended?
Atkins! June 30, 06?
O'Malley! We had several items at the end of June 30'\ because of the storm. One of the
larger ones, unfortunately, didn't relate to the storm, but we had $460,000 that we .
transferred from our bond proceeds into the General Fund and we didn't send a
check to the School District until some time in August, oops, for the $460,000.
Correia! .. .my question.
Wilburn! You want to know the difference between budget and actual, is that what you're
asking for?
Correia! Yeah! Yes, for the end ofthe year. So in terms of...yeah, how accurately we
were projecting that budget so if in, you know, a certain, in a certain number of
budgets there was a projection of so much in services, and they didn't expend
that, and it's not like they spent it in June or allocated it in June and then it was
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paid for in July, but you know, they only expended 80% of what they're budgeted
for. I'mjust wondering how accurate we are.
Atkins! Well, I'm looking at 05. Revenues over were down 1%, expenses budget were
down by 3.5%. So we're spending at the rate of96 Y2%. Now we usually budget,
particularly for personnel costs, at 98 Y2, because we assume during the course of
the year, there's going to be turnover. Our turnover runs, oh, anywhere between 5
and 7% of our employment. Let's put it this way, there's nothing dramatic in
here. I mean, we could...
Mansfield! I actually have that number. I did that, right. Original budget to actual
comparison. Full time salaries, we're usually like right on the money. I mean,
like with a percent, and overall, at the end of the Fiscal Year, I'm thinking we
were - in all categories - I think it was maybe 96 Y2 or 97%, but keep in mind that
your departments weren't doing a lot of their own activities because they were
doing a lot of storm activities from April through August.
Correia! Are you saying that's what we usually run?
Mansfield! No, I'm saying that's what we ran last year.
Correia! Okay. So what's, and then average...
Mansfield/ I haven't calculated the average. I'd say usually we're close to 98%.
Atkins/ We're in the high 90's. I can almost assure you of that, yeah.
Mansfield/ Definitely. I'm pretty sure we're around 97 Y2, 98%.
Atkins/ Remember, personnel is usually the largest portion of our budget, and I've only
got a 2% margin to begin with.
Mansfield! Right.
Correia! In the Transit budget, there's something that's called.. .I'm on 58.. . revenue
that's called "library charges for services." What is that?
Mansfield! What page are you on?
Correia! 58.
Mansfield/ Thank you. I didn't hear you. 58...
Elliott! I noticed that when I went through there, too.
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Mansfield! Urn, that actually has to do with the account number that they chose. Yeah,
it's basically a misquoting; they used a wrong account number. They used an
account number that generally the Library would use.
Correia! Okay.
Mansfield! It wasn't in their department.
Atkins! It's a mistake.
Correia! So, but I mean, it's a lot. What is, what is that revenue?
Elliott! (several talking) It shows $2.00! (laughter)
Correia! (several talking) Okay. I was looking up (several talking)
Wilburn! Other questions about the reserve, or I guess, policies.
Correia! I have one more question on the Transit then. There's 40,000 of "other city
taxes."
Mansfield! With (noise on mic), sorry... that is the gas and electric tax. The way our tax
system is organized with the State, we receive evaluation that has, includes gas
and electric, and we calculate our property tax rate based on all valuation,
including gas and electric, and then they make us carve it out of property taxes
and show it separately. So, it's basically part of your tax rate.
Atkins! Who's they?
Mansfield! They. . .
Correia! Part ofthe 8-1O?
O'Malley! No. The short answer is about six years ago, the State decided to take all gas
and electric valuations out of our valuations and call it an "excise tax" and so
that's what that is - is an excise tax instead of a property tax.
Correia! Okay. But it comes into the General Fund?
O'Malley! Yes. It actually goes into all tax funds. Every fund that has property, debt
service, employee benefits - all the levies - are part property tax and about 1.5%
excise tax.
Correia! So, but I mean, that is something that isn't required to be spent in Transit
budget?
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Mansfield! It goes according to wherever you have the levy. So, that's proportionate
according to what your Transit levy is.
Atkins! Is that calculated out of the 95-cent? Is that how you... then it has to go to
Transit. Or at least that little piece of it does, yeah.
Correia! So, every budget that gets property taxes, has other City taxes in it?
Mansfield! Yes, you'll see that in the Library. You'll see it in Transit. You'll see it in
the Employee Benefits fund, the Debt Service fund, the Tort Liability Cost
Center.
Atkins! Hope we're making a case for property tax reform.
V anderhoef! Yes!
Wilburn! That's one of the recommendations. (several talking)
Atkins! We can come back...
Elliott! I think this has been helpful, Steve. (several talking)
Bailey! This has been the most illuminating conversation we've ever had about the
budget since I got on Council.
Elliott! Illuminating.
Bailey! Illuminating!
Elliott! I like that!
Bailey! I use big words. I can handle them.
Vanderhoef! She's a real light bulb! (laughter)
Wilburn! Urn... should I move on to the Senior Center!Parks and Rec, or do you want
to.. . (several talking). Okay.
SENIOR CENTERlPARKS AND REC:
Wilburn! Steve and I met this morning, and this is our recommendation to Council. My
hope is that there is consensus to proceed this way. There were some statements
made about this perhaps not being helpful in any final decisions that some of you
may have to make about the budget, but at least it's proceeding along with the
original intent of the request, I believe. That we would ask the department head,
the chair of both the Senior Center Commission and Parks and Rec Commission,
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and one additional commissioner from each commission - so it's not waiting for
everybody to get together - to start meeting within two to three weeks. I don't
know, vacation times and things like that and that's going on, but to begin
conversation and outlining potential areas where they can share resources, find
savings, make some...find where they could make those projections related to
both services, staff, and if they can, dollars. And, to.. . essentially to begin that
work to put something together that Council can take a look at to, I would think,
you know, to give us progress reports as they go along, but at a minimum to give
something back to the Council each quarter, in terms of a recommendation, and
then, I mean, I guess I would look, you know, by summer to give us a, here's
what some potential areas of shared resources, what it might look dollar-wise, and
look at staff. That's what we came up with. Again, I don't think looking at the
timetable for the budget in terms of public hearing and that type ofthing, that a
detailed analysis of some type of conversion or merging or incorporation into any
one, into the Parks and Rec department, can happen at this point, but again, it's
moving in that direction, at least the recommendation or some ideas for the
Council.
Champion! I think that's a good way to handle it, and they wont' feel threatened, and they
might come up with some really good ideas.
Bailey/ Did you talk about, because when I think of Senior programming, I was thinking
about this last night after our conversation, did you talk about also maybe adding
the Library into the mix? The Senior Center has fitness and wellness type
programming, which could dovetail with Parks and Rec, obviously, but it also has
cultural and literary type programs. I mean, I don't know if that complicates the
matter, but if we're looking at opportunities to share resources, it just makes sense
that all of these departments within this sort of category are talking.
Wilburn! Urn, that wasn't part of the conversation. That wasn't... I can see how you're
going that direction. My gut tells me, again, given some of the potential, volatile
reaction from some of the public about this, that maybe we could start with this
and let that group of six people know too as they're looking at potential shared
resources, that they be allowed to broaden their scope to possibly include the
Library or any other. . .
O'Donnell/ I think it's a good idea.
Elliott! I'm disappointed that we aren't able to do something, but I think at this point,
that's simply looking reality in the eye and I think what was just suggested, I
know for instance, when a key person leaves, a key personnel leaves a
department, I think wise management takes a look at that position and the
respective positions within the department, and I think it is only reasonable that
we take a look at how our government is configured and how our departments are
configured periodically. I think we should be doing this on a periodic basis. So,
while I'm disappointed in this particular situation, I think looking at it, starting
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with those two, with the Rec Center and the Senior Center, but understanding that
comprehensively, I think we need to look at, are there any other reconfigurations
that we can look at that would increase productivity and provide cost-effective
management, so I'm happy about that aspect of it, Ross.
Wilbum/ I guess my only reaction would be, or just another tidbit of information, would
be that one - my past conversation with Steve has been that's something that
department heads look at in general, maybe not the cross pollination, but two -
did have the over million dollar reduction - that was something that was done.
Elliott! Right.
Wilbum/ Three years ago? Three years ago. Okay. All right, Steve, can you go ahead
and...
Correia! Some things that I wonder about, and this is just, I'm just...I think that without a
directive, some sort of idea of direction from the Council on what...I mean, I
understand that the, you know, looking for ways of saving cost and that type of
thing, but I guess I was wanting to look at an analysis ofifthe Senior Center
becomes a program of Parks and Rec, what would that look like? What would the
budgetary implications be? I mean, if you look at our table of organization, we
have, you know, department head directors with all sorts of, you know, activities,
responsibilities under them, and we have a Senior Center coordinator and then
that, it's the Senior Center, and I think, you know, we are moving culturally to
inter-generational types of programming and I mean, the Parks and Recreation is
already has very active senior participation and things like the water aerobics and
the pool and laps and things like that, and I'm sure other things that I'm not as
familiar with, but of course, you know, Parks and Rec Commission, they are
Parks and Rec, and Senior Center Commission are Senior Center, and I know
from being on a commission, I would want to protect the current programming in
place, unless I was told, you know, the Council wants to see it done this way.
What would it look like, what would implications be, what would, you know, that
sort of thing, so unless we're saying we're going to have an unbiased, mean not
involved at all, emotionally or invested with time to do this analysis for us, I'm
just wondering if... what we're going to get and people are going to spend a lot of
time, it's working great the way it is.. . and then people have spent a lot of time to
give us that sort of feedback...
Bailey/ And a lot of emotion, I mean, your point is well taken. I think that there will be a
lot of response. I mean, if we can't give them some idea of what we want to get
from this.
Wilbum/ Well, I think clearly Steve will communicate to them that that's where this is
coming from.
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Atkins! 1 was going to say, 1 think that's a question they would have to answer. That's an
expectation on the part of the Council. Just pose the question to them and let
them answer it.
Wilburn! And because it's not just the commission members. There are populations
within both that aren't part of the, you know, so...1 interrupted you, Bob, go
ahead.
Elliott! No. 1 was just going to say keeping in mind, 1 think Amy was just saying turf
protection is just, it's kind of basic instincts. 1 mean, we have to be aware of that.
Correia! And it's understandable, and so I'm just wondering if we, aren't as directive as
we want to see this, give us, you know, versus can you talk about this and see ifit
would work, or...maybe I'm not...
Bailey! Yeah, 1 mean...
Champion! Oh, 1 think we've made that clear. 1 think Steve will make that clear.
Atkins! I'm fine with it. 1 understand what you're saying.
Bailey! 1 mean, 1 don't want to upset a bunch of people and get the answer that, 1 mean,
the same answer that we've got now. 1 want something that's innovative and
people are going to spend some time doing something, 1 think it should be well
worth their while.
O'Donnell! Well, the answer could very well be that it's working fine. And we've got to
be prepared for that answer, you know, and 1 really don't think there's a turf issue
here. 1 really don't. 1 watched the Senior Center. They went to the Englert last
night and bunch of dedicated people and 1 think they'll work together. We're
simply asking them if there' s any benefit to merging, and that's the only answer 1
want.
Bailey! But, this came out of an idea of cost saving. It really did. To try to fund, to try to
fund the fourth fire station. 1 mean, let's just not mince, 1 mean, that was the
primary interest and driver.
Correia! Because I'm wanting to say, we want, we're trying to find $75,000.
Bailey! $250,000.
Correia! Fine, $250,000.
Bailey! Talk some real money!
Correia! And so...
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Bailey! Right, what would that look like.
Correia! What would that look like, give us what that would look like, you know.
Wilburn! So, you're looking at the bottom line dollar, not necessarily the services
provided and the efficiency of services.
Correia! Well, but what I'm...! guess what I'm wanting to see is, ifthere is a merger or
whatever, however... whatever you would call it, right... what would we gain, than
just saying Senior Center or Parks and Rec, cut your separate budgets or whoever
we would say that to, because we could see there could be efficiencies gained that
wouldn't negatively impact, greatly, significantly or whatever services.
Wilburn! I guess I would ask you to keep this in mind too. I think in our conversation we
were trying, and I believe, trying to approach it in terms of sharing resources and
getting them thinking along those lines, to spur some of those natural pairings,
looking at that in a way to frame it in a positive way to go about looking it to
benefit all, as opposed to "we want to make it clear to you that this is
what"...we're looking for $100,000 worth of...
Correia! But I guess, I mean, I think that one of the purposes of this even coming forward
is that it seems like there would be natural reasons for this type of merger,
whatever you call it, because we need to try and look at ways to move resources
into another area of service to the community that is a need, and that we don't see
there, any money falling from anywhere else. We have to work from the pie that
we have. We have this identified need...Council that we want to try and figure
out how to not dramatically decrease the current level of service that we're able to
provide in other areas of the City, but wanting to respond to this deficit. So, we
want to see if they can share resources so it frees up resources that we can move
somewhere where there's a great need. Not we just want to save money to put
into a savings account or do some other thing - there's a...
Wilburn! And Steve will pass that on to the...
O'Donnell! This same conversation's been going on for five or six years.
Correia! Well, so, then let's have it. (several talking)
O'Donnell! We'll have an opportunity I hope later to find out how committed we are to
raising resources for this.
Correia! How else would we raise resources? We can't raise taxes...
Bailey! Well, I mean, it seemed really clear where we thought it could happen. It can't
happen. Or it doesn't look like it can happen.
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Wilburn! What is it that you would like to have happen that is different than what I had
just put out to you to go forward with?
O'Donnell/ I'm fine with it, Ross. I think you did a good job.
Champion! Yeah, I think it'll be fine. I think you're going to make it clear that we're
trying to find money. The other thing that I think will happen from this, whether
we end up saving money or not, is I think you could see improved services on
both ends.
Bailey! Well, or some...I think we should be looking at, but I would like to find some
money.
Champion! Yeah, of course.
Bailey! And I think you will communicate that in whatever way you choose, but it's not
just an opportunity to see where we can all work together. It's an opportunity to
say, to save some money.
Vanderhoef! Well, when I look at it, it's, it's...Senior Center is a small budget, as far as
some of our department budgets, and if we're looking to add even one or two new
firefighters this year, all the budgets are going to have to take some sort of a cut.
Every department down the line.
Bailey! We can't say that now, because we haven't...I mean, I can't say that now,
because this is, we haven't explored...
Vanderhoef! Realistically.
Bailey! Your realism.
Vanderhoef! My realism is that we have exactly one General Fund and all the
departments are being funded out of that. True they get some grant monies, but
that's restrictive, so that doesn't help us a bit. So, we are looking at all the
services that are provided within the City, whether it be a class at the Rec Center,
whether it be buying new materials at the Library, whether it's the reserve,
whether it is the number of planners we have, the number of projects that we ask
them to complete, whether they're going to get the whole Central District Plan
done and how many hours, work hours, that takes. Those are all services that are
being provided by the departments. So if we choose to continue to give direction
for what we want to see happen out of the various departments, just in policy, we
have to cut services somewhere to increase services elsewhere, because we don't
have new monies to do something different.
Elliott! We do have spending patterns, however, that we can address.
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V anderhoefl Yes!
Elliott! And the spending patterns have to do with a number ofthings which I
periodically have brought up and not many people agree with me, but I'm looking
at $35,000 for a sign, $16,000 for signs in front of homes, half million for a deer
kill, travel expenses. My understanding is that the Council spends money on
travel expenses, and we need to look at those sort of things. I think we need to
look at the spending that we do. And I think we need to look at all of that.
Champion! ...but you can't look at things that aren't wages. I mean, for instance, signs
are not wage money. I mean, you know, those are capital improvements or...
Elliott! It's all tax money.
Champion! But it's not, we can't use it to hire firemen.
Elliott! No, but whenever you spend, if you have to have a bond to spend $35,000, that
means you are spending more than $35,000.
Champion! But you can't use it to hire somebody.
Correia! Okay, I have...
Baileyl How about if we just take this one step first?
Elliott! All I'm saying is I just wanted to add that there are spending patterns that we can
address also.
FIRE STATION #4:
Correia! From what I've heard, and then looking at some other General Fund, is so we've
heard that we have $113,000 just from what we've talked about tonight of
General Fund allocation to things, to the Library reserve, to designated that we
could re-designate, reposition without major service loss anywhere. Okay? And
then, we have in the budget $369,000 in a contingency, that's not designated to
anything, it's sort of in case something comes up. While we also have, so I'm
wondering, and I would propose, looking at this $413,000 in this year's budget as
potential personnel money in terms of thinking about, and the reason for not
having a contingency in the General Fund in the way that we've had in the past,
although there have been years when we haven't had that contingency, hold on, is
because we have a 31 % unreserved balance. We have access to money if we need
to, and since that is really at a healthy level in that the national governor
financing, finance organization, recommends an 8 to 17%, so not thinking about
that as funding for ongoing available, but when we need a contingency-type thing,
we know we have money to be able to address up to $300,000 without a lot of
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pain. So there's $400,000 that I see open in the General Fund that is there next
year and the year after, that could be used on personnel, and I'm wondering if our
projected revenue next year is low based on it being a reassessment year. I'm just
wondering if that is an underestimate of, in terms of thinking about.
Atkins! Every other year.
Correia! Right. Next year's it. Right.
Mansfield! I've estimated 3%, I believe on re-valuation, and the year before, last year, we
took a 16% increase in residential and that is unprecedented. Urn, 3% is probably
on the low side for re-valuation, but you're talking 3 to 5 tops usually.
Champion! That contingency fund that you're talking about, is that a new line item every
year? No...
Atkins! Every year, you have a policy. Three-quarters of I % is set aside as contingency.
If you don't spend it, you can carry it over.
Champion! It doesn't grow.
Bailey! So we budget (several talking) yeah, it's a stream that we direct from General
Fund. We could choose to say our contingency comes out of our reserve. Yeah,
our working capital.
Atkins! Then you're reducing your investments.
Bailey! Ifwe spend our contingency. How often do we spend our contingency?
Atkins! Virtually every year something goes wrong.
Correia! We could spend out of our unreserved.
Atkins! You could do that.
Vanderhoef! You're estimating that we're going to end up with 196 on 07. (unable to
hear other person talking) Or, no, this is an estimate. (several talking)
Atkins! The expense side.
Vanderhoef! Uh-huh. Right now the estimates of where we're going to end up on 07 is at
196.
Atkins! Spend the contingency, then what do you do the next year?
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Champion! To replace that. If you spend it on payroll, where do you get that money the
next year for the payroll?
Bailey/ It doesn't go into the contingency line item as $369,000 or $374,000...
Atkins/ .. . continue to reduce your cash balance, that's how it ends up ultimately.
Vanderhoef/ At three-quarters of I % is all that goes in there.
Atkins/ Remember, it's a budget estimate.
Champion! And payroll is a yearly thing.
Correia! Could you cut it in half?
Atkins/ Oh, sure, you can make those kind of decisions if you like. (several talking)
Bailey/ So how many years, really, have you used the contingency? I mean, obviously,
tornado. How many years have we used the contingency?
O'Malley/ We use it every year. Yeah. Budgeting's not an exact science.
Wilburn! I'm going to throw something out there. I was thinking of bringing this up a
little later when we got to CIP because I thought this conversation might come up
later, but you know, the conversation about the reserves and the Senior Center,
Parks and Rec.. . along this line, and you know, we're talking about staffing. That
percentage that's recommended from that group about reserves and how much to
have in reserves, I presume that range is based on a national average of cities, and
you know, it's ajudgment call. There's no answer here, but I think part of it
looking at, you know, the standard or expectation that as a group we have for our
community, this Council and Councils past and Councils future, and urn, you
know, I mean, we hear it each year. We're one of three cities in Iowa that has
triple-A bond rating, and so my opinion is that part of that strength and that
importance is being on the higher level and perhaps even higher of what that
recommendation since that is probably a national average. What I'm getting at, if
I could finish just so I don't lose my train ofthought, which is very easy to do
these days, urn, you know, I know or I guess I have a hunch what Chief Rocca
might say about this, but you know, we were hit with a difficult situation with the
million every year loss, and you know, I get tired of hearing it too, but it is what it
is - it's real money and so trying to look at how to balance our stability, safety-
wise, but also our financial stability, which our CEO is recommending not making
a personnel expenditure out of those reserves and end of year cash balance. In an
effort to try and address both of those, I guess I would bring up and see what
Council's reaction to the possibility of, as a transition, to getting us, or at least
taking another, you know, we purchased the land a couple years ago, but to try
and get us even further towards the idea of that station with a professionally
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staffed firefighters, would be to consider in the transition period to come up, to
ask Chief Rocca to come up with some type of plan for incorporating the use of
para-professional, or volunteer, firefighters to help get us there. Again, that's not
the ideal, you know, 1 come from a background...
O'Donnelll Ross, 1 didn't hear that. Would you say that again?
Wilburn! Using volunteers, in the transition, until some other source of funding is
identified, finding out, you know, where things are going to end up with property
tax reform, in the transition it gives us, it gives us the station. I'm not saying, you
know, that that particular station would have to be totally para-professional,
volunteer staff. You know, maybe Andy could figure out some way so that
there's some rotation so that throughout all the stations, you know, there's some
use of volunteer to get us there, but urn...1 guess I'm just curious as to what
Council's reaction to that might be. It gets us, it gets us there. It helps us
increase, you know, our fire protection, you know, the country makes use of
guard reserve, I used to be a former Guardsman. We make use of the Guards in
the current war that we have now, but again, just trying to do it with the intention
of eventually ending up with the professional staff out there.
Champion! 1 did give Steve a, I'm sure he passed it on, Bettendorf does that. They have a
para-professionals in their... was it Bettendorf or Davenport, Steve?
Elliott! You gave me a copy of that news item.
Champion! Must have been Bettendorf, because Davenport must have a lot of money
with their 1 % sales tax. (several talking)
Atkins! It's not uncommon.
Champion! ...in order to staff their fire stations, because of the same reason, dilemma
we're having, they use what they call para-professionals? What do you want to
call them?
Wilburn! 1 guess the common term is volunteer, but 1 think it's important to...
Champion! ... but they actually stay at the fire station.
Wilburn! You mean they live there?
Champion! Yeah, 1 think maybe some of them do live there. It was kind of a, but I don't
know if you could retrieve that or not. 1 can certainly get. . .
Atkins! Well, I can pick up the phone and call Bettendorf.
Champion! But, 1 mean, I'm willing to look at any way to get that fire station.
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Elliott! A couple of us, Connie, before you gave that to me, a couple of us had talked
about that possibility. I think, I said this afternoon when I was talking to
somebody, I'm not sure I've ever had an original thought in my life. That's not,
I'm not sure what my thing is, but I don't think that's it, but I really, I really prize
people who can think innovatively and originally, and I would like to take some
original looks. My fear is that we're going to have as much luck incorporating
volunteers into our Fire Department as we're going to have as much luck as our
Council approving a significant cut in those kinds of expenditures that I just
identified, but I'd love to see us look into different things.
Champion! Bettendorfs a lot like Iowa City, don't you think?
Elliott! Yeah, we both have rivers. (laughter)
Correia! So. . . (several talking)
Champion! .. . fairly high property values.
Wilburn! It temporarily, at least another line item or series of future...
Bailey! We'd have to identify though what, what we were looking for. Otherwise, it
wouldn't be a stopgap. It would be a policy. And that would be my concern. We
would have to identify what else we were willing to do to get to professional.
Wilburn! I'm willing to. ..
Bailey! Because that's what happens when you, you know...
Wilburn! I'm willing, and I've said I'm willing to try and begin work, should I get re-
elected to Council, to try and work with the community, like the School District
worked with the community, about the local option sales tax. I know that you
have a disagreement about that, but that's something that I would be willing to
begin working towards in order to get us there so it's not a stagnant, because I do
think the professional staff is the ideal way to go.
Bailey! Well, I'm willing to look, honestly, am I willing to look at anything. I think I'm
willing at this point to look at anything, but we have to start looking at things
instead of...I mean, it seems to come up every year around budget time and then
we set it aside, and then oh my gosh, here we go again. We have to start looking
at the option, or I think that we have to make a decision that we're not going to
build it and we're not going to staff it, and that's what we have to tell the
community. I mean, I think it's, we have to move on this one way or the other.
Champion! It's not just the Fire Department. We are short policemen.
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Bailey/ Yes we are. (several talking) Absolutely!
Champion! It's not in good shape.
Bailey/ Yes.
Champion! We have a fantastic Library, a fantastic Senior Center, we have lots of
fantastic things, but we do not have a fantastic police department and fire
department, and 1 don't mean individuals that are working there.
O'Donnell/ We have our fantastic!
Wilburn! You mean coverage is what you're...
Champion! 1 meant coverage.
Bailey/ We've grown out, we've outpaced, yeah, we've outgrown our departments.
(several talking)
Wilburn! Oh, I'm sorry, 1 was going to add the comment that and we also don't get...I
think Andy had a comment in the paper that fire protection hasn't kept pace with
our growth and neither have our finances. (several talking)
Champion! But you know, somebody called me the other day about the fire station, and 1
think we have to set some goals for it and get it done, and it really kind of struck
me odd because they said, you know, you've got an equity issue and you really
do. We have people who are not getting proper police and fire coverage. 1 think
we've got a big problem.
Bailey/ Well, and have we looked at our staffing. 1 mean, 1 know that we have mutual
aid agreements, but what if we began to look at staffing fire stations in a regional
manner. 1 mean, on the west side...1 don't know, but 1 think it's worth exploring
because we have, you know, people respond to emergencies from different. . .
Elliott! One of the things that Eric said the other night, and Andy has said it before, not
only do we have an inequity now, but it is growing, and the longer we put it off,
the more out of balance it's going to become.
Wilburn! Well, perhaps, and I'll make this statement, and then 1 had interrupted you
earlier, Amy, so you should probably go, but you know, your talk about regional,
1 mean, if we continue to have success and progress and pull off the Joint
Communication Center, knock on wood, then hopefully, you know, maybe that
might lend itself to another. ..
Bailey/ But that should be on our list of ways to explore, 1 think.
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Correia! Well, I like to put, start putting in this incremental building, in responding to our
fire protection needs, by putting in this year's, or 08, building the station, and I
think we can fund, because that's going to take time to get built.
Bailey/ Where are we with that?
Champion! Oh, we just have land.
Bailey/ Yeah, we just have land. We don't have schematic designs?
Atkins/ We have renderings.
Bailey/ Oh.
Atkins/ We don't have construction documents.. .no.
Bailey/ Oh, okay. (several talking)
Correia! ... be putting it off again and all of that, and you know, if we looked at...
Champion! Put apartments above it to rent, to pay for it. (laughter)
Vanderhoef/ Oh, they'd love to hear that siren go off! (laughter)
Bailey/Oh, some people can sleep through anything.
Correia! And if we look at the requests this year for positions of three firefighters and one
fire lieutenant, the total $283,352. So, again, if we go back and look at that
$113,000 of, and then the balance of that $283 is $170,352, if that, you know,
could be a...
Champion! What balance are we talking about?
Correia! No, no, so if it's $283,000, $352...
Elliott! The contingency.
Correia! No, no. (several talking)
Vanderhoef/ Tell me what your number's going to be.
Correia! Okay, for three fire.. .my, from page 36, from the positions requested for three
firefighters, right? And one fire lieutenant cost $283,000, $283,352, okay? And
so if we have $113, we said earlier there's $113,000 in the General Fund that we
could redirect without pain anywhere, um, so you subtract that from $283,000,
$113,000, then you need an additional $170,000, $352,000, to make up the
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difference to get those four positions. So, with a contingency of$396,000, if we
decrease that.. .
Champion! You can't use that for employees. Because it's not a line item.
Correia! But it's money in the General Fund that we put in contingency.
Champion! But it won't be there again the next year. It won't be there next year. You
have to use money for payroll that's going to be there next year.
Atkins/ That'd be recurring revenue.
Bailey/ She doesn't want to use the entire thing.
Correia! But right now (severa] talking) it comes from our General Fund.
Atkins/ Correct.
Bailey/ Put it aside.
Correia! It's in our Genera] Fund right now.
Atkins/ Right, and if you spend it all, what do you do next year?
Correia! It will be... won't it be there next year?
Atkins/ No, you spent it.
Bai]ey/ Well, we have a General Fund line item that is for contingency.
Correia! No, no, but I mean...
Atkins/ ... but you'll have to reduce your working capital to pay for the...
Bai]ey/ It would decrease it by $369,000.
Atkins/ And at the end of the third year you would have spent $] million out of your
reserves.
Correia! Right, right.
Bailey/ But she's not suggesting using all of it, just cutting it this year, and in the
meantime, we're finding, potentially finding, additional funds.
Correia! And finding additional savings, in other departments.
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Atkins! We have to be careful with this Library business. I mean, that's money set aside
to purchase computers. You take the money away from them, they got to have
the computers some day. (several talking)
Vanderhoef! It might lengthen the cycle between replacements.
Atkins! Yeah. (TAPE ENDS) (several talking)
O'Donnell! You know, Bob...Bob brought up a couple things that I had written down. I
had $500,000 we've spent on our deer control. What's that?
Bailey! Let them live?
O'Donnell! What's that?
Bailey! Let them live?
O'Donnell! No. Coralville hunts them with a bow. Well, see, there. We've got to make
concessions.. . fire department (person coughing, hard to hear) I think (several
talking) Right, and I wish you wouldn't. I'm fine with it. People have been
hunting deer forever, and what's...well, dead's dead. You give it up. We also
have public art, which is $60,000...
Champion! But it's not.. . employee money.
O'Donnell! Well, but we designate it there. And we can (several talking).
Correia! I think what we're saying is that, you know, I've only been on, this is only my
second budget cycle, but my understanding is that this type of thing, conversation,
each year is happening and then it's hard to think where we going to cut? Where
we going to cut? And then it, we keep having this conversation. Meanwhile, we
keep growing in both geography and population.
O'Donnell! .. . (unable to understand) to give, Amy.
Correia! But what I'm saying is, is that, well, yes...
Bailey! I thought we agreed that this is what we want to do, and our CEO can make some
suggestions.
Wilburn! Well, before we, before we get there, urn...
Correia! Can I make one more (person coughing)...
Wilburn! Sure.
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Correia! Can (person coughing) transfer money from the Landfill to fund a portion - it's
not a lot of money - but a portion of the economic, $34,000, well, from water and
from landfill, to fund part of our economic development?
Atkins/ The water/sewer and Airport. We don't use the Landfill.
Correia! Wherever it's coming from. It's coming from some business enterprise.
Atkins/ Yeah, water and sewer.
Correia! Okay. In the meantime, while we're trying to figure out can we create savings
with the Senior Center and the Parks and Rec; can we look at our deer control,
can we create savings there; can we do this comprehensive look; can we start to
actively respond to this need by incrementally increasing service, build the fire
station, you know, fund four firefighters, look at para-professionals, you know,
and then ask departments next year where they can create efficiencies, cost
savings of certain percent over. . .
Atkins/ If you were to spend any of the Landfill money on that outline, I think we'd get a
finding real quick. Yeah, the State wouldn't stand still for that. Else we borrow
internally if we pay ourselves back, but that doesn't get to where you want to go.
Champion! But we have $113,000, and we can start out with whatever that buys.
Without spending a line item that's not going to be there next year. I have real
objections to spending money that's not going to be there next year.
Correia! Well, but some of that contingency is General Fund.
Champion! It's all General Fund.
Correia! No, no, I know, but I mean, our General Fund revenue the last... total actual
receipts, hasn't gone down. In fact, it keeps increasing. So the likelihood ofthat
contingency amount being in our, in our receipts is pretty secure. It looks like to
me. So to say we're going to take $170,000 here...
Atkins/ And then next year and the next year. . .
Correia! ...and then next year, because if we...
Atkins/ Remember, when you take the 170.. .you take something out of here. It's not
going to be there next year. So it doubles. It'll double up, because you still got to
make the payroll the second time. Then you make it a third time. Your cash
balance is going to go in the tank real quick.
Correia! I don't know...
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Wilbum/ You have a, r talked about the range of reserve being an opinion and a judgment
about the level of comfort to have available, and you have, you are more
comfortable than I am, for example, in terms of wanting to dip into that, which
was why r was putting forward, it's a transition time. r know since you've been
on Council, you don't like hearing this conversation and r know some folks are
tired of hearing this, but... but, just the fact that the million dollars came away
three years ago, it's every year. r mean, that's the effect. That's the cumulative
effect of what you're talking about.
Correia! No, r understand...
Bailey! We don't have to figure out where the money comes from for staffing tonight.
We can agree that we want to move on... where are we with design? I'm sorry,
because this was before my time on Council. We've got...
Atkins! I'm sorry. I didn't get the question.
Bailey! Where are we on design? You've done the first two phases of design and just
don't have final designs for bid?
Wilburn! There was a.. .
Atkins! Oh, we don't have construction documents to bid the fourth station. We've got
the land and we have the renderings. We will engage an architect to put together
the...
Wilburn! We didn't have conceptual plans? (several talking) Before you continue, r
wanted to, r mean, I'm presuming.. .I'm thinking back a few years...that first year
after we lost the million State aid, Andy had an opinion about volunteer staff then
and r think I remember what that was, but can you refresh my memory on what
you...
Atkins! 1...r feel I can probably speak for Andy. Andy feels very strongly about the full
time professional fire department. Period.
O'Donnell! .. .issues, Steve, or...
Atkins! No, I think that's a level of service the community has chosen. Community like
Coralville chooses not to do that.
Wilburn! Well, and the, probably the size of our community over...
Atkins! .. .has some bearing on it, yeah.
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Wilburn! But 00, and I acknowledge that and...I acknowledge that and I recognize that
before!, you know, kind of threw that out there, but again, we're trying to balance
several difficult situations and...
Vanderhoef/ And this is where the regional conversation could be a positive in that we
have other communities growing faster than what their volunteer situation may be
able to handle, and how do we use the resources within our region is a real good
question, and I have no objections to asking Andy to take a look at number one,
what we could do with para-professionals in our own situation, so we have that
piece of information already available to us, and then coming out ofthat there
might be recommendations that say and we could do thus and so if we were into a
bigger district, that we could do the planning via the district, rather than always
relying on mutual aid.
Bailey/ The other question that I have had, because I came onto Council when this site
had been determined, does this continue to be the best site for the northeast
quadrant?
Atkins/ I think I can speak for Andy.
Bailey/ It continues to be? Okay.
Atkins/ It's an excellent site. We were very fortunate.
Bailey/ It has good transportation, I understand, but we have grown so far to the east and
I'm not sure, along Rochester and we've grown quite a bit.
Vanderhoef/ Well, the next station that I personally think will come in is in that
southeast.. .no, I'm serious (several talking) because we are, we are looking at the
potential of new industrial park expansion to the southeast, east-southeast, and the
residential that is going out there and further south. And we're already talking
about the transportation system that (several talking).
Bailey/ We have got to start looking regionally!
O'Donnell/ You know, I guess, I don't know where we're going with this, but the bottom
line is we all want it but we're not willing to cut anything. That's the bottom line.
We need to...
Bailey/ ...don't have to make any of those decisions tonight. We can move on design.
O'Donnell/ Well, we've been talking about it for an hour and a half. I think we've come
up with an inkling of an idea. We've insulted every deer hunter in the civilized
world (laughter and several talking).
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Vanderhoef! Let's get a head count of how many people would like Andy to take a look
at para-professionals?
Champion! I would.
Elliott! Oh, I'd love to have him take a look at it. I just...
Bailey! I'm not sure how I feel about it yet...
Elliott! ... that's not reality, I think, but ifhe has some ideas, I'm willing to listen to any
idea. I still think we're going to have to cut down on our spending to afford it,
and the Council is not willing to cut down on spending and that's it.
Champion! I am willing to cut down on spending, so give me something that can be used
on employees.
Elliott! We've spent money hiring consultants to design Benton Hill Park. We have
people on staff who could do that. It would take longer, but we can do it. We
keep spending money on things, and $10,000 here, $30,000 there, $120,000 here,
it counts up. And until we take a hard look at everything that we spend that is not
necessary, we ain't gonna have a fire station!
Champion! Fireman, we can have a fire station, it's firemen (several talking and
laughter).
O'Donnelll We can have a fire station, but it'll be rented out as a Burger King or
something.
Bailey! What would it take to move on design? Is that, would that be in our CIP?
Atkins! I can get you an estimate of what it would cost. That's easy.
Bailey! Is that what we're looking at tonight? We're not looking at staffing anything.
We don't have anything there. We have a pile of dirt, or a flat. I don't know
where it is now.
Atkins! Construction design, yeah. I can get you that number.
Correia! I mean, I'd like to see in the CIP for 08 the fire station programmed in, and I
mean, I think that there's room to...
Bailey! Design and construction?
Correia! ... well, I'd like to see what the numbers would be.
Bailey! Just want to know what we're talking about.
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Correia! And 1'd like to see two firefighters added this year.
Wilburn! Using what source of funds? You're talking about...
Bailey/ Oh gosh! Here we go again!
Correia! No, I'm talking about re-directing some, yes, some designated, because I believe
we, in the event that we need funds, we have them in our unreserved cash balance,
in other cash balances, around the City. That would be two firefighters, if! have
the map right. We added two police officers last year. That would be $133,784.
O'Donnell/ With benefits on there?
Champion! Benefits are tax (several talking).
Correia! Yes, I mean, if we need to raise, I mean, I don't want to raise taxes. I mean, we
have in our, we have...in our employee benefits a million dollars already we're
levying for that. I don't know what the health insurance reserve, ifthat's...part of
employee benefits.
Atkins/ We maintain a year's balance in our health insurance, because we're self-funded.
You don't want to fool with that.
Correia! No, no, I'm just...
Champion! ... wanted to hire two firemen. Could we do it?
Bailey/ Fighters.
Champion! What. . . sorry. (several talking)
Atkins/ I suspect you can do anything you want, but I'm sorry that, I truly believe it
opens the door that you're simply going to find yourself into a spending pattern
you can't support over the long term.
Correia! But what I think it does...
Bailey/ Wait! I want him to finish that thought, because I think that's important for us to
hear. What, you know, the decision we're making.
Atkins/ It sets in motion, and I'm just, and I still remain convinced that we cannot afford
to staff the fourth fire station.
Elliott! And the.. . excuse me.
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Atkins! Keeping in mind, a couple of you have already lobed on the table, other things
that.. .let's go back to police. Police are still short, from when we reduced them.
The naturalist continues to come up, I mean, there's just so many other issues that
are out there. You have a 2% margin. Could we squeeze $80,000 from there?
Yeah, but that's going to bring that down to something...that's really snug. And
remember, what you have in, I tried to jot down some of the things we have
pending. CDBG has been reduced by a third. What are you going to do when it
goes away? And it will go away. Home Builder's Association are already after
us, everybody on the Building Inspection - you saw the letter; Cable TV wants
their $100,000 back; University of Iowa bought a big piece of Old Capitol. That
was $130,000 a year in lost revenue, just that decision. Are they going to buy the
rest of Old Cap?
Champion! They are.
Atkins! Let's not kid ourselves. Of course they are. (several talking) Yeah, yeah, and, it
will have some impact.
Bailey! Do we have a sense of what that is?
Atkins! No, I can... would you make a note to find out what that is. I'll get that for you,
Regenia. That's a good question.
Bailey! The County bought a block of commercial.
Mansfield! That came off the tax rolls just last week.
Bailey! Do you have the number?
Mansfield! Yep, urn, 300 and some thousand.
O'Donnelll What percent of property is non-taxable right now, Steve? Do we...
Atkins! Oh, boy. You know, 1...
O'Donnell! It's in the mid-30's, isn't it?
Atkins! I'd say it's at least a third. I'mjust afraid you'll dig such a hole for yourself, the
next Council's going to have nothing to work with.
Correia! Why...I just want to put this.. . what I think this does is it puts pressure... when
we don't fund based on what our need is because we say we don't have the
money, we don't want to look at cutting anything else because at this point we
don't have to and because we're not trying to maintain what we currently have,
but I think it puts the pressure on then to be looking for ways to be able to
maintain the public services that every person when they pay their property taxes
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is expecting my property taxes are going to pay for police and fire based on what
the need it, and you know...
Wilburn! Well, and as you've seen around the table here, and from the letters that we get,
and that we got the last couple days, there are as diverse around the table here,
there are diverse opinions about what an individual wants their tax money to go
for. We got letters from some that want their tax money to go for a bridge over
the river.
Correia! I think there may be some bit offatigue on the part of the public, feeling like this
Council's not going to do anything about this. They haven't done anything about
it...
Champion! Then you can't expect a future Council to do it. If you want to do it, then
you've got to make the cuts now.
Correia! That's what I'm saying, is if we can get it in there, programmed, it's going to
force us to not dig a hole over the next few years by looking at where we need to
make cuts, or where cuts can be made, and not dramatically affect service. Or
look for other sources of funding that can go to these other services that can't,
isn't accessible for this public safety. That's my...
Vanderhoej} I would request then from you for this budget that we're working on, is
where would you make the cuts, without using reserves and contingency?
Correia! That's what I'm proposing.
O'Donnelll That's what she's asking.
Correia! That's what I'm proposing we do. (several talking)
Bailey! ...if we're going to have a discussion about this, we each have to put, I mean...
Correia! This is my idea.
Bailey! Yeah.
Correia! And so (several talking) don't like the idea and that's fine, and you can say I
don't like the idea and so I'm not going to support that idea, but I think it's a
viable idea, in the short-term, and that then it's going to put our feet to the fire to
not, you know, get in the dire financial situation, but it certainly, we're certainly
not going to be, you know, down the toilet in two years by doing this two
firefighters and starting to build a fire station, and if we're not willing to do that,
then I think we sell the land, we say we can't do this, and hope for the best, which
1...
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Champion! I think you can build the fire station. I don't have any problems with that,
and then you can try to plan in the next few years how you're going to staff it, or
four years, however long it's going to take to get it built. But you can't expect a
Council three years from now to make the budget cuts that you know are going to
have to be made. You've got to make them now.
Elliott! Until the, until... we just heard that we financially we cannot afford to staff a new
fire station. Until the Council decides we cannot afford not to have a fire station
fully staffed, it's not going to happen. We're going to have to do whatever it
takes, and until we're willing to do whatever it takes, it's not going to get done.
O'Donnell! But look at what we are doing. You know, and I agree with Amy. You have
to start planning now. We're looking at hiring, is it two or two and a half people
for inclusionary zoning. We'll probably do that. I mean, we'll hire those people.
(several talking) Well, that's what they say they need to do this inclusionary
zoning. We're looking at adding people to the Senior Center. We're looking
at...I mean, maybe we don't (several talking). But, I mean, that's what's being
proposed to us.
Champion! But it's not even in the budget, and we're certainly not going to support it.
O'Donnelll We're not going to support it? We're not going to support anybody for the
Library?
Champion! No.
Wilburn! There are two ideas on the table, there are two ideas on the table right now.
Amy suggested putting into the Capital Improvement Program the funding for the
fire station and using the reserve end of year balance for funding, and how many
are...I also had put out, urn, the concept of not using, of keeping, of using the
recommendation from Steve about not tapping into those for the ongoing staffing,
but exploring what it would look like with incorporating the para-professionals
into it. Is there another idea, or do folks want to give a direction? (several
talking)
Correia! Can I just be clear about one thing, though? When I'm talking, when we're
talking about that, when I was saying this $113,000 that's money in the General
Fund that right now is for other purposes, only $63,000 of that is going into the
reserve. $50,000 ofthat is sitting in the General Fund for open space acquisition.
It's not going to any reserve fund.
Champion! But that's also not renewed unless it's used.
Correia! No, but it's.. .it's a placeholder, it's there. Ifwe're talking about we want to cut
something, here's money that, instead of placing it there, it's...we keep having it
in there every year, in the General Fund, in a budget, a Parks and Rec budget, so
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I'm proposing I want to cut that $50,000 out of Parks and Rec that has been in
there every single year. It's not going into our reserve. We use it if we, ifthere's
cause to use it. So, it's, you know, 1.. .so that's $50,000 that I'm proposing to
move from the General Fund into firefighters.
Mansfield! The parkland acquisition reserve, at June 30th, ended with $179,555, and each
year we budget that $50,000, which again, we said that they have...right, if they
were to spend that, that gives them three years basically, to FY07, 8, and 9, at
$50,000. By the end of2010, it's $47, so you've got that $50,000. You've got
about three years worth of funding there. And it is a reserve, and it was
hotel/motel tax that put it in there, with Council policy at that time...
Correia! I'm not talking about what's currently in there. In our ongoing, in the back, in
the ongoing, it says $50,000 from the General Fund.
Vanderhoef! Hotel/motel tax.
Correia! General Fund, FY07 - you're saying...
Vanderhoef! .. .comes into the General Fund, and we have earmarked it for, and State, the
State law says a certain percent has to be used in certain ways.
Bailey! We use some for public safety.
Vanderhoef! And for Visitor and Convention.
Bailey! Well, and recreation.
Correia! But by 2010, we may have a, or 11 or whatever, we may have more ofa plan in
place on where our General Fund or other revenues are going to support services.
Well, anyway, Ijust wanted to...
Wilburn! Is there a majority behind either of these directions to go, or does someone have
another. . .
Elliott! I don't see why, Ross, no matter what we decide otherwise, your thoughts about
talking with Andy about para-professionals I think should go. I don't have, I
don't have a great deal of optimism about it, but I, I mean, we can do that. I
would love to see him, you know, react. Is there, I like innovation. Maybe there
is, maybe somebody there would be receptive to it.
Champion! .. . could certainly agree to putting the fire station itself into the CIP, and at
least getting construction drawings done. Is there any other way to raise revenue?
We have.. . sales tax.
Wilburn! Can't do a franchise fee for it.
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Bailey/ Can we get a boat? Oh, sorry! (laughter)
Wilburn! There's no boat!
Bailey/ No, we need a boat.
Champion! Let me ask something. Oh, it's dumb. Never mind. (several talking) Well, I
don't know, I'm even thinking of. ..what if we raised parking fees? Can we put
that so (several talking).
Bailey/ Parking goes to parking.
Atkins/ Parking goes to parking, unless the bonds are paid off. Then I suspect you could
do something.
Champion! Like, is one of the bonds paid off on one ofthe parking ramps?
Atkins/ Not for a long time. You just opened a new one, remember?
Champion! What about the old ones?
Atkins/ Some of those are paid off.
Champion! Why couldn't we charge more for them.. .I'm serious! Our parking rates are
really cheap.
Vanderhoef/ That's what pays off the newer ones. You float the bonds down the steps so
they pay for it.
Elliott/ Connie, you were kind of a, at least agreeing with part of what Amy suggested in
let's put the fire station on the CIP. One thing that would do, at least as a
compromise, is it would shame future Councils into doing something. Once
there's a vacant fire station out there sitting and the public would start saying and
then maybe we'd have to take a harder look at some of the things we are not now
willing to give up.
Bailey/ But we do have the, there might not be anything there, but if, I mean, if we can
get some cost savings from the Senior Center, Parks and Rec discussion, I mean,
that could move us forward, as well.
Champion! And I think we have a no new hires until we hire firemen.
Correia! And Landfill fees, can any percent be diverted to the fire department?
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Atkins/ Landfill fees, the tipping fee, which we administer, I suspect you could do
anything you want with it, because we run it. Now, our neighbors, we have
traditionally had a long-standing agreement with the rest of Jolmson County that
we.. .city residents get a break anyway, but those fees simply will support the
landfill. But that doesn't mean you can't do it.
Correia! Right, because, right now. . .
Atkins/ You could raise water rates. Do not write that down! (several talking and
laughter)
Correia! We have. . . (several talking)
O'Donnell/ This is the same way every conversation has ended, since I've been on the
Council, that we've ever spoken about the fire station. Everybody...boy, there's a
good idea.
Bailey/ I think if we program it. I think Bob's right. It puts it in motion. I think we have
to start looking at these things, maybe we can't decide all these things tonight, but
this is going to be a long and painful year of these kinds of discussions, and long
meetings, sorry, Mike, but I think that we need to make some decisions.
O'Donnell/ Oh, I love meetings!
Bailey/ Yeah, I know.
Wilburn! Program it in the CIP, but not the positions yet.
Bailey/ I don't know. I'm absolutely willing to program it in the CIP and I'm absolutely
willing to schedule on work sessions this year something that will get us to having
positions filled next year. Is that, I mean, is that... because we can't...
Elliott! I'd go with that.
Champion! Is there any hope I % sales tax for public safety, a half a percent.. .25, I don't
know how you do it. (several talking)
Atkins/ Yeah, no one's done that. There you go! But remember (several talking) in 99
was the cultural center, but if I recall, we also put on firefighters, police, library.
And we got creamed.
Bailey/ I am willing to have a long discussion about that. I would be willing to even
consider moving on that.
Atkins/ I have two questions on the table. You want a report on para-professionals from
the Fire Department. Is that a go? Okay, we'll prepare that and get that to you.
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And secondly was the cost of construction design process for station #4 - give
you that number and consider putting it in the CIP.
Bailey/ And then can we plan...
Vanderhoef/ But are you saying CIP for 08?
Bailey/ Yes.
Atkins/ In other words, design it sooner than later.
Bailey/ And then can we plan, and.. . are we all in agreement this year that these aren't
discussions that we put off, that it's on work sessions that we continue to look at,
and look at ideas, and 1 don't know how that might look exactly, but it seems to
me...
Wilburn! I'm willing to put it on, you know, on work sessions, and 1 give the School
Board credit. You know, they...I believe they will pull off getting their penny
sales tax, but they were a unanimous force. Ifwe proceed with discussions about,
I mean, the greater unanimity behind it, I believe, the greater possibility of trying
to...public (several talking).
Bailey/I want to know what we can do; if we can do it incrementally, and let's look at it.
Don't you, 1 mean (several talking). Well, Connie's question was it wouldn't
have to be a full penny, it could be, you know (several talking)
Champion! The other thing is, one reason that 1 % is going to pass for the schools is
because North Liberty and Coralville will support it because they're going to get a
high school and junior high out of it. They made it quite clear they would not
support it if those two things were not in there. So, a 1 % sales tax is also a
County thing, so Coralville would have to want it and North Liberty would have
to want it, in order to have any dream of passing it. And I don't know what their
economic situation is now.
Correia! Well, and I also think that. . .
Champion! But maybe everybody could do it for public safety. 1 don't know.
Correia / ...1 also think there's a special situation with this, this penny for the school, in
that the State basically has said, if you don't do this, we're going to do it anyway,
and so there's that incentive to keep it local. I mean, I think that...
Champion! But it still won't be local because half of it's going to go to the State anyway.
(several talking)
Bailey/ But it's a conversation we can have. It doesn't have to...
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Atkins! State wanted the sales tax revenue from Linn and Johnson County. Figured out
how they were going to do it.. . (several talking). I mean, two most prosperous
counties in the State, they wanted that money. We'll make you a deal.
Wilburn! There's no question that, that's helped persuade some of the opponents to it in
the past. I'm just saying let's just begin conversation to try and make a case to the
citizens of Iowa City to support it for police and fire.
Vanderhoef! We can certainly, rather than go with incremental, you can go a whole
penny and designate a percent for property tax relief, which is what we need...
Champion! You can do a half penny for public safety, a half penny for property tax relief.
Vanderhoef! That's right! Yeah.
Elliott! I think we've been talking about realities, financial reality and a reality of where
is, where are our priorities. There's also a political reality, and I think talking
about a local option sales tax right now is not very realistic.
O'Donnell! On the heels of the tax.. . yeah.
Elliott! But I think we do have to give some time for that to take hold. But we need to
start talking about things and at least tonight, you and Steve are going to talk with
Andy about para-professionals. We have, I think, decided we at least want some
financial figures for the station. That's at least we're kind of inching toward the
door, at least.
Bailey! Let's also add regionalism to the list. I mean, it might be as farfetched as a local
option sales tax, but I don't think we can overlook the possibility if we're talking
about para-professionals, how that configuration could look...
Wilburn! And I'm not kidding myself that it wouldn't be challenging to try and discuss a
local option sales tax, a penny or a fraction of a penny, you know, I understand
the political realities, but I started this conversation with trying to look for ways to
go about a difficult situation, which is both the fire protection, police!fire
protection, and the importance of keeping fiscal stability. So, I...I don't think the
public can ask for any more than that out of us. Here's an idea, I mean, the worst
thing that can happen is.. .and now you're back to the drawing board, but at least
you, we, made some attempt to start the conversation.
Bailey! So, do we have time to make sure that we have the numbers and it potentially is
in our CIP programming, or designing it and...
Vanderhoef! What we have in the CIP book is $1.5, and that's (several talking).
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Atkins/ It'll take a little time to get some estimates done and do those kind of things, but
we can get that incorporated. Yeah.
Wilburn! Why don't we take a break. Take ten and then regroup. (TAPE OFF)
(TAPE RESUMES)
COMMUNITY EVENTS:
Wilburn! Okay. This is community events. (several talking)
Bailey/99.
Wilburn! 99, yep.
V anderhoef/ Well, I knew towards the back.
Bailey/ Okay, I would like to continue to fund Summer of the Arts at $50,000.
Correia! Me too.
Champion! So would I.
Bailey/ Well, I think that was informal, but Ijust want to reaffirm that.
Champion! That was easy! We can get that one off the table!
Elliott! Oh, that's 100. 99.
Wilburn! We have 92,391 proposed, and request of91,522.
Champion! Well, I'm not willing to fund all of them.
Wilburn! I just wanted to start with that, just to see.
Correia! We didn't have a presentation last night, but I'd like to fund the, continue to
fund the Ralston Creek Fair.
Champion! Oh, yeah, that's a good one. Why don't we start at the top and work down?
Wilburn! Yeah, that's a good idea. Uh, New Horizon's Band extravaganza.
Bailey/ They have a budget line item, and I want to know the difference between...
Elliott! I have 10,000 hours show at the top. (several talking) Oh, I see.
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Bailey/ Doesn't the.. . okay, the New Horizon Band, isn't that in the Senior Center? They
have a line, a budget line.
Vanderhoeti' They pay the membership fees to belong to the band. Charge double for
those fees for out of county.
Wilburn! And this, I believe this, this line is the event where they bring the senior bands
from all over the state.
Bailey/ Right, it's their little extravaganza.
Champion! Festival. I think that's worth $250.
O'Donnell/ I do too. It's $250.
Vanderhoef/ Well, it's definitely one that brings in outside people.
Wilburn! Oh, yeah, yep. So there's a majority for New Horizons. Did bike-to-work
week.. . (several talking)...
Elliott/ We didn't get a request from them.
Bailey/ Let's give them money even though they didn't ask for it.
Champion! I had some problems with.. . (several talking)
Atkins/ Hold on. The bike to work, we've sort of taken that on as a employee, health
benefit. I think, yeah, and I suspect that's why we didn't hear from them.
Because we like the program, and we just built it into our...
Wilburn! That's great!
Atkins/ .. .don't worry about it and we'll deal with it.
Wilburn! Child Appreciation Day.
Champion! I had some real problems with that one.
Bailey/ I think we should tend to fund organizations that are recognized non-profits or, I
don't have problems funding a grassroots organization, but she didn't have a
planning group at all. It was just a single individual, and I have some concerns
about that.
Wilburn! I think my concern was it was one person, not.. .ifit, if there had been some
type of more formalized advisory committee for that grassroots effort, then I
would have been more.. . (several talking).
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Bailey/ But I'm having problems funding grassroots effort, but it's hard to count on
something coming offifit'sjust reliant upon one person. People's lives change.
Vanderhoef/ Her email to us, I think it's in tonight's handout, was that she heard
collaborating with other similar programming, and I think that might be a place
for her to go. (several talking)
Wilburn! So no to Child Appreciation Day.
Vanderhoef/ Uh-huh.
Bailey/ I'd like to continue to fund the Connor Center ADA Celebration. (several
talking)
Wilburn! So yes to Connor Center. (several talking)
Vanderhoef/ That's a Karen Kubby percentage increase over the years. (several talking)
Oh, uh, that's the way all her stuff comes through is by percent increase.
Correia! It's actually the same as last year, so...
Vanderhoef/ Dh-huh.
Wilburn! Earth Expo, $2,000 request.
Champion! I had some problems with that too.
Bailey/ I don't think it's far enough in the planning. I'm not sure that it will actually...
Elliott/ ljust thought several of those people, if they would get together and come to us.
They had some overlapping, they all had good intentions, but they seem to look at
the same group of people, I thought. If you'd just get together, folks.
Bailey/ Well, yeah, and maybe we can indicate next year when we do a call for proposals
that we look at collaborative efforts, or we like to see collaborative efforts, or
something. I don't know.
Wilburn! Good idea.
Vanderhoef/ And maybe we should put that out with our applications. (several talking)
Correia! Well, and I think.. .you put out, you know, eligible - and like individuals are not
eligible, 50IC-3, or fiscal agent or some kind, I mean. Because (several talking)
individual application essentially for an event.
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Wilburn! Or a grassroot with a fiscal.. . (several talking)
Bailey/ ... that they bring the fiscal agent in, that we don't award and have to find one.
Elliott! Quick question. How do these people get informed?
Atkins/ Oh, web site, phone calls, there's a network of...
Elliott! How do we tell these people, you aren't getting the money? (several talking)
You, okay. Just, I'd like to...okay, good, good.
Atkins/ .. .nice letter, Bob.
Bailey/ Well, doesn't Kathi, Kathi interacts with most of these people.
Elliott! Because, we like their ideas, we think it needs to move forward and become a
little more organized and with greater support, and then let's look at it again.
Bailey/ But that's also contingent upon us to be a little bit clear about what we're
interested in seeing, and I think we could outline that. . .
Elliott! Good, thanks, Steve.
Wilburn! So no to Earth Expo. Urn, the Ralston Creek Fair, Flea Market, $1,000. Yes?
Yes, okay. I think there were yes's all the way around, Connie. We all heard
you.
Bailey/ It's a nice Labor Day event. Now, if we could get one restaurant to stay open for
breakfast that day, I think we'd have a good holiday in Iowa City!
Wilburn! Fuel to Family, $500.
Champion! You know, I had a problem with that too. I like the idea, but I think its main
sponsor is Pioneer Co-Op, which sponsors a lot of great things, don't
misunderstand me, but I hate to get into giving money to businesses that are
sponsoring things. Does that sound strange?
Bailey/ Well, it wouldn't go to the business. It would go to Practical Farmers ofIowa,
their current fiscal agent. I'm not...ifwe would support it, I want to only support
something that occurs in Iowa City, and that would be the culinary walk or the
activity that they do at the Farmer's Marker, which seems to be already supported,
so I'm not sure if we have, if that makes any sense.
O'Donnell! I like the culinary walk idea.
Wilburn! I agree with the culinary walk.
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Bailey/ So, can we direct it then?
Atkins/ $500, culinary walk and, I heard something about (several talking).
Bailey/ Because that's one of the events that occurs in Iowa City.
Champion! They're asking for $500, is that right?
Atkins/ That's what they want. That's okay? And culinary walk, okay.
Wilburn! Hancher 35th Anniversary. (several talking)
Bailey/ And I knew it was free. I mean, I knew that part.
Champion! I love that, but I think it sounds fantastic. (several talking) I'm glad he's not
a car salesman.
Bailey/ And you know, it wasn't persuasive. He just presented it. I want to go intern
with him. He was great.
Vanderhoef/ Well, he's so positive.
Elliott! That's called the soft sell.
Champion! Well, he's good at it.
Vanderhoef/ Okay, I just have one, one question about that. What do we truly pay for
the, the extra things that we'll be asked for from the City in the way of traffic
control?
Atkins/ We'll have to police it for them. I'm sure the University security will be
involved. Port-a-potties, I suspect, that's in their own best interest to take care of
those. I think most of the things, Dee, that we'll be doing would be peripheral. I
suspect if it's successful, City Park's going to be packed, and we're going to have
some parking issues. Often you can get volunteers for that. I'm not, I'm not...I
mean, our people do that on a regular basis. (several talking)
Vanderhoef/ EMR?
Bailey/ I know that you downplay, I mean, Summer for the Arts. We do a lot for that. I
would like to recognize the, our in-kind, or our support, combined with the cash
gift. He was really clear that they would be open to recognizing the in-kind and I
would like to estimate that dollar amount so we do get fully recognized. (several
talking)
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Vanderhoef/ And, and likewise, for Summer of the Arts.
Correia! Oh, they did!
Bailey/ They did last year at $75,000. (several talking)
Wilburn! It was named City ofIowa City's.
Vanderhoef/ Yeah, but the in-kind stuff that we did.
Bailey/ We gave them $50,000 in cash and they recognized us at the $75,000 level.
Vanderhoef/ Okay.
Atkins/ Because of all the things we do.
Vanderhoef/ I missed that.
Champion! (someone coughing, unable to hear) ...parking situation. Well, I think a
shuttle bus, if we could get Transit to do a shuttle bus.
Bailey/ Especially from some of our neighborhoods. I think the point that Chuck made
about exposing, you know, I used to be a music teacher, exposing kids to the arts,
who won't ever get into a theater, is that...
Champion! Do like the free shuttle busses?
Correia! Could do like a shuttle from Pepperwood?
Atkins/ .. . across town. (several talking) Yeah, we'll find out.
Vanderhoef! The busses though, they could use Cambus and para-transit, so they
have. . . (several talking) We could do free parking in one of the ramps.
Bailey/ We can't give away parking.
Atkins/ Can't give away parking.
Champion! Somebody has to pay for it.
Bailey/ You'd have to pay for it.
Atkins/ Yeah, you have to pay for it. The idea's good, it's just going to cost you.
Champion! But I think a shuttle of some kind from like the southeast part of town and
you know, from the neighborhood centers. That kind of thing.
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Bailey! If we could sit down with our planning team and I'm sure they have University
transit involved and see what parts we could (several talking)
Wilburn! It's a go with pursuing the...
Atkins! ...a go, recognizing the in-kind, shuttle bus.. . (several talking). When I talk to
Chuck, I'll say can we get somebody on your planning committee.
Champion! Oh, great idea!
Atkins! Just somebody who's there to listen to what's going on.
Elliott! Good, good.
Wilburn! Iowa City Community String Orchestra...
O'Donnell/ I really liked her! I thought she was just a sweetheart. (laughter)
Correia! I kind of wondered though, in...(several talking and laughing)
Wilburn! In lieu of the $300? (laughter and several talking)
Correia! It seemed to me on the budget, that they had, they have the money for the things
that are directed, and then they have other expenses, $1,600, which wasn't
really...I mean, because of their member fees and what... where's that budget?
Urn...
Vanderhoef! What I heard really was that they've been running (TAPE ENDS)
Bailey! .. .notes that I made is they indicated that they had trouble with rehearsal space
and one of the things I'd like us to do is consider what opportunities we have, as a
City, to leverage our resources, rather than writing checks all the time - leverage
our resources to support some of these groups.
Champion! Like they could use the Senior Center dining room?
Bailey! Yeah, could we help them out with rehearsals?
Champion! Center assembly room?
Bailey! Yeah.
Vanderhoeti' I thought the Water Plant room, could they use that in an evening for
rehearsal space?
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Atkins! It's an unusual shape. (several talking)
Correia! The Community Band uses the schools. Does that cost the Community Band?
Champion! They pay janitorial fees.
Wilburn! I think they pay something.
Champion! You have to pay for janitorial services.
Wilburn! Yeah, yeah.
Champion! The space is free, but you have to pay for janitorial.
Elliott! But, I would like...
Champion! Somebody has to be there.
Elliott! ...it would be nice if the City could do, put together a list oflocations like that
that would be appropriate for community use.
Atkins! .. .local music teacher, isn't she?
Vanderhoef! No, she's not music. She teaches out at Northwest. Her husband is the ex-
principal of Hills. John Marshall. Yeah.
Bailey! .. . rehearsal space was becoming something that was occasionally costing them,
and that's what I'm saying. We don't always have to, I mean, Chuck was very
clear. He wanted a check, but maybe, and I know that they want to use our $300
to support a soloist. I mean, that's what they want it for. (several talking) A
soloist honorarium.
Elliott! Anyway, 300 bucks, yes, right? Okay. (several talking)
Wilburn! Irving Weber Day.
O'Donnelll Of course.
Wilburn! Yes? (several talking)
Champion! Yeah, they moved it. I don't know.
Bailey! It's not in August anymore, is it?
Atkins! No.
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Champion! I can't remember.
Bailey/ That's not good.
Vanderhoef/ It has not (several talking) uh-huh.
Bailey/ I don't see an application. Is it something we, doesn't the Library spearheaded or
something?
Atkins/ Barb Coffey in the library, our Barb from our staff - finance staff. Just pretty
much Barb, yeah, Leigh's nodding her head.
Correia! I would like to see more visibility if we're supporting it.
Atkins/ Well, just tell them that.
Correia! Well, I guess I'd like to know when it's going to be.
Elliott! Yeah, $3,000 is a lot of money compared to what we're providing to some of the
other events.
Correia! It felt to me that it was scaled back, I mean, I really.. . (several talking) ice cream
social and then...
Champion! Let's put it in our contingency fund and then they have to come and tell us
what they're going to use it for.
Bailey/Oh, but we should get reports on all of these. We really should. We should get
reports on all of these.
Vanderhoef/ The $3,000 is actually a reduction that they've done on their own.
Bailey/ Well, they are scaling back, and that's what I wonder what's happening with the
festival.
Atkins/ Skip over it and let me make some calls tomorrow and find out what's going on.
Elliott! Okay.
Atkins/ Or maybe just scale down and just have a small recognition of some kind.
(several talking and laughter)
Elliott! I like Steve's suggestion that he check with them.
Wilburn! Johnson County Historical Society, $4,500.
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Champion! I would like to scale them back to the $4,000.
Bailey/ I would too.
O'Donnell/ I'm okay with that.
Wilburn! $4,000. (several talking) [Jaycees' 4th ofJulyFireworks]
O'Donnell/ These guys had a deficit at the end of this, didn't they say $4,000 or $5,0007
Champion! All the stuff they do for the community, I mean, they do a lot for a little small
organization.
Bailey/ I think this is an important community event. I would like to give them more
money.
O'Donnell/ Give them $6,000. (several talking) $7,5007
Vanderhoef/ But, no, they've already asked for $1,500 increase.
Correia! To $7,500.
Vanderhoef/ No, they went from $4,500 and they're asking for $6,000, and 1...
O'Donnell/ We want to give them more.
Bailey/ I want to give them $7,500.
O'Donnell/ $7,500.
Vanderhoef/ Well, let's hold that one off until we get to the bottom and get our total.
Correia! Well, we already know we've got $2,500 and $2,000 gone...
Karr/ .. .83,522 taking out Irving Weber. 83,522. (several talking) It's a placeholder.
83,522 from your total. I'm just deducting from your 91,000.
Wilburn! $5007
Correia! And then we can revisit our. . .
Champion! Is everybody else in favor ofthat7
Atkins/ Would you like me to write to the letter to punch it up and...
Karr/ What they handed to you last night had 7,500 on it. (several talking)
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Champion! Oh, did it?
Bailey! They really want 7,500.
Champion! They need it.
Wilburn! Nachte Raho. (several talking)
Bailey! No, it also has a ticket...1.. .no. (several talking)
Wilburn! I'm sorry, what are we.. . (several talking)
Elliott! What is it?
Bailey! It's the Indian festival at Hancher.
O'Donnelll Oh, I love that though. Their fried bread is wonderful!
Bailey! Okay, we'll write them a check for $8,000.
Elliott! So, is that one of our guidelines, is it must be free?
Bailey! No, we don't have guidelines.
Elliott! But you said, I heard, no because they charge for it.
Bailey! That was one of my considerations.
Correia! ...a lot of money and they didn't come and talk to us about it. It's new.
Champion! They just said, oh, I'll just apply to the City for $8,000.
Wilburn! Did we hear anything from them, or they just sent the...
Atkins! Anybody?
Karr! No.
Elliott! What did their application say it was for?
Bailey! It's a, it's a...general event in March, 7th annual dance competition...pronounce
it. It's popular styles ofIndian dance.
Elliott! Now, they used to have simply a diversity fair. (several talking) I like that.
Atkins! So what'd you decide on Nachte Raho? (several talking)
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Champion! Nacho, no nacho.
Bailey/ How do you pronounce that? (several talking) I mean, it looks like nachtze, it
looks German.
Wilburn! Riverside...
Champion! What is that?
Atkins/ Oh by the way, what's the double asterisk for?
Elliott/ Yes.
Atkins/ No one knows? (laughter and several talking)
Elliott! I just.. . that always irritates, every so often I see an asterisk and there's nothing it
refers to.
Atkins/ I'm sorry.
Bailey/ They just do it to bug ya!
Elliott! It drives...I know, that's it!
Champion! What's the $5,000 they want for?
Bailey/ Shakespeare Festival, to help cover artists' fees, I think.
Atkins/ Artists' fees, I understood it to be...
Elliott! Is that copyrights?
Bailey/ No, artists' expenses, because they're a professional theater company, yeah. It
does...it is Shakespeare and it does happen in our park, so...
O'Donnell/ I'm okay with that.
Champion! How about $3,000?
Wilburn! They're pretty well funded.
Champion! $3,000.
Correia! Same level as last year. We're building them restrooms.
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Champion! We're building them restrooms, sidewalks, a liquor license.
Bailey/ I don't think we "gave" them the liquor license, nor the dram insurance.
O'Donnell/ We're going to cut it to $3,000 (several talking).
Wilburn! Maintain it.
Bailey/ Okay, I have a question, couple questions actually. One of, I talked about this
last year, but can we ask the festivals that we fund, especially the ones outside, to
work with our recycle coordinator, Jen, to do recycling at all their events?
Atkins/ I'd make it an official, I'm inclined that...I've talked to Jen about doing that.
Yeah, I know (several talking)
Bailey/ We have those, whatever they are.
Atkins/ I met with Katie and they're thinking about doing...
Elliott/ I would think asking them to designate a volunteer who will work at it and
circulate and remind people to. . .
Bailey/ That we have the expectation with this money comes a recycling plan for their
event. Okay.
Vanderhoef/ I thought about the recycling also on the Hancher thing.
Bailey/ Yes, I did too.
Atkins/ Fine, we'll put it in the body of the letter.
Vanderhoef/ And, it also popped up in my mind that this might be a student project
coming out of the Youth Council, with one of their many grants.
Bailey/ Yeah, but there, I mean, there are also students on UI campus who are very
interested in getting (several talking) recycling, so...
Vanderhoef/ So that takes it up through the 21 age group.
Correia! There's the Chamber Youth Leadership program, their class this year is tackling
recycling and what I heard from Jane at UI is they're going to be working on a
DVD about recycling, so...
Bailey/ I just want to make sure that there's an expectation that we will work with them,
but that we expect that to happen, because especially...
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Atkins/ I'll just routinely put it in the body of the letter.
Bailey/ Yes, please. (several talking)
Elliott/ Is .there a group on campus that is functioning and organized to address this?
Volland! I don't know off-hand. I'm sure that there are definitely groups that are
interested in recycling, and...
Elliott! Ijust thought if the campus, if the University did, students did have a group, this
would be something we ought to say "hey" here's an event coming up.
Bailey/ Additionally, can we ask... well, I would like to ask everybody at the conclusion
of their event for a report, you know, number of.. .how many attended, that sort of
thing. Instead of just seeing people when they want money.
O'Donnell! So you're going to judge what you give me next year by how many people
showed up this year?
Bailey/ And accountability. We're spending public dollars. We should be able to say, oh
that was a great event, you know, 10,000 people were on the Hancher lawn and,
you know, we helped them out in these ways.
Atkins/ I don't think there's anything wrong with asking. If they don't respond, that'll
tell you something.
Bailey/ Well, ifthey don't... well, okay. ... perspective and people who...
Wilburn! I think it's fair to say just send us a.. .send us a letter.
Bailey/ You know,just tell us how it went. (several talking)
Elliott/ A lot of cities, the police tend to be longitudinally a good judge of how many
people are there, and I think it's not a bad idea, we get the reports, and Mike, you
mentioned something. That wouldn't be bad to check with the police and say,
you know, we're thinking they said 5,000, what do you think? (laughter and
several talking)
Atkins/ Riverside Theater, $3,000, recycle plan, and some sort of a concluding report.
Elliott! Yes.
Atkins/ Okay, got it.
Wilburn! It's hard to make it to all of them.
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Bailey/ Well, right, and then when somebody asks us also about them we are better
informed to talk about (several talking) success.
Correia! This is something though, what I would like is a list of all the events, just like on
one sheet of paper, and once we know the final dates, because I would like and
try, I mean, some of them I already have on my calendar, but...
Wilburn! No, you can't make all of them.
Correia! It would be nice to (several talking at once).
Vanderhoef/ ... put on the web site. 1 said, these are the kinds of things that go on the
CVB listing of events.
Atkins/ We'll see what we can do about...
Vanderhoef/ .. .because that's where we get out-of-towners.
Champion! Now, the other, now we have some money left over, right?
Bailey/ How much do we have left over, Marian?
Karr/ I think you spent 76,022, I think.
Champion! Great! That's exactly what I was going to say! Why couldn't we take a
$1,000 ofthis and fund their...
Correia! $3,000 of it?
Champion! No, I wouldn't give them $3,000. I think they need to have a little bit of...
Bailey/ We need to fund the Global Village project. I think we should, definitely need to
fund their Global Village that they're doing for Summer of the Arts. That's $500.
Champion! Yes. And then I would like to give them some money for their...
Bailey/ Mini-grant program?
Champion! Yeah.
Bailey/ I would too.
Vanderhoef/ The total (several talking) that's what I'm thinking, is I think $3,000 first
year out is a little much.
Bailey/ And then what about the web site fund?
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Champion! I'm going to give them 1,500. They can decide what to do with it.
Bailey! Dh, I would give them $2,000 because 1,500 could be for the mini-grant program,
and then the Global Village project, which is outreach for Summer of the Arts.
Remember, they're taking on Ghana?
Wilburn! Yeah, and I've had people from other cities, emailing and calling me, asking me
about a web page for the Youth Advisory.. .I've had people from Ames and Des
Moines and western Iowa, calling and asking about it.
Champion! Well, how much are we going to give them?
O'Donnell! 2,500.
Correia! Yep.
Champion! What'd they ask for? Dh, okay. Ijust don't want to give (several talking and
laughing) I want to see some results for what they do.
Wilburn! How many for 2,500?
Champion! That's what I thought, because we could find that money...
Atkins! Global, mini-grant, web page, 2,500.
Champion! 2,500, period.
Bailey! 2,500 total.
Vanderhoef! No. I want it designated for sure Global Village...
Bailey! 1 ,500 you said for mini-grants, 500 for the Global Village project, and the rest for
their web site upgrade. (several talking)
Elliott! Okay.
Vanderhoef! That's 2,200 you're talking? (several talking)
Champion! What does that leave us now?
Atkins! So, ifI...arithmetic? (several talking)
Karr! You're up to 78,522, so...
Vanderhoef! That's okay.
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Bailey! Let's buy part of a firefighter.
Champion! Yeah.
AID TO AGENCIES:
Wilburn! Aid to Agencies.
Elliott! Which part?
Champion! The back part. (laughter)
Vanderhoef! Define.
Wilburn! Aid to Agencies. I have a conflict of interest and will not be participating in
this discussion.
Bailey! I handed out, or Marian handed you the most recent memo regarding our
discussion with Shelter House and the STAR program. Wernet with Chrissy
Cagnelli last Wednesday, and basically her concern was zeroing out the line item
for Shelter House, wasn't the amount or anything, and so what we are
recommending is one line item. It says "Shelter House." The amount that we are
providing, $35,000, to be used for case management, such as the STAR program,
and then we're talking about whatever case management level will be the
outcome. We indicated that we wouldn't, this did not guarantee continued
funding level, funding at this level, nor did it necessarily indicate that we would
give a percentage increase on this particular level next year, and that that
shouldn't be counted on.
Elliott! Thanks. Goodjob. Good job.
Bailey! Any questions?
Champion! I thought the interesting thing was, and urn, I mean, they do a lot of case
management on their own, but that STAR is not a federal program. It's their own
little program, and I (several talking) funded with federal dollars, so they can
continue the STAR program (several talking).
Bailey! ... use federal dollars for a long time. There seems to continue to be concern
about losing them, not because of inability to match, but you know, the vagaries
of the federal funding system. So, are there any additional questions about the
Aid to Agencies' recommendation?
O'Donne11l Did Pathways not apply?
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Bailey/ No, they did not.
O'Donnell! Pathways. Because that's really a neat place. (several talking) Adult
daycare. Ijust really think that is a neat program. (several talking) That's the
only question I had. I'm fine with the rest of this.
Bailey/ Okay. Dee, did you have any questions?
Vanderhoef/ I was looking for it and I wasn't listening well, I apologize.
Bailey/ Okay.
Atkins/ So, Aid to Agencies, other than that adjustment is...
Bailey/ .. . recommended with just a single line for Shelter House, and I think Linda has
this although.. .
Atkins/ .. .she called me right before 5:00 and said I think it's all settled and mentioned
something about that.
Bailey/ And I did communicate with another.. .oh, I'm sorry, Ross, I always do that to
you. (laughter)
Elliott! She did it intentionally! (several talking)
Bailey/ I did communicate with another organization. There continues to be discussion
about (unable to hear) outcomes, but I think that that will be an ongoing
discussion, and I think will continue to refine the process. Okay, Ross.
Wilburn! Urn, the other things were CIP and then looking at the setting ofthe public
hearing and the actual public hearing. Urn, if we don't get into CIP tonight, we're
kind of crunching ourself down to make publication dates.
Champion! I bet we can go through it pretty quickly.
Wilburn! Want to go ahead and give it a stab, see how we're.. . all right.
Elliott! Which page is that?
Atkins/ What are we going to do?
CIP (0 C-l):
Wilburn! CIP (several talking)
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Bailey/ Can Ijust kick off with a question? (several talking) Where, I would like to see a
line item, and I don't know ifit's a CIP line item, but Joint Communication
Center fOr our share of that. Is that a CIP line item?
Champion! We have it. Uh-huh. Yeah.
Correia! It's not something that says emergency communication...
Champion! But it's preparing for it. (several talking)
Bailey/ We need to cull it out, because I've asked other...
Atkins/ I'll plan to make that adjustment.
Bailey/ And you have the numbers, right?
Atkins/ Yes.
Elliott! And, what page is that? That it's...(several talking). You said it's there, it's just
not identified.
Correia! ...in our CIP.. .14, where we have the emergency communication radio system
upgrade, that amount, was what they were saying...
Champion! Public safety.
Vanderhoef/ Which page are you on?
Correia! C-14.
Bailey/ That's our placeholder.
Correia! . ..placeholder. That was, I asked that question too, where's joint
communications.
Atkins/ It needs to be culled out.
Bailey/ But I also think that our amount should be more reflective of the amount of our
share of the programming, rather...! mean, because if we put $600,000,
everybody else is going to say 'oh, they've got it handled; that's pretty much it.'
(laughter)
Wilburn! I think that would be important to do, as well.
Atkins/ Okay, that'll be taken care of.
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Bailey/ And you have the dollar amounts, right?
Atkins/ Yes.
Champion! Are we going to start on C-2 and just go through them?
Wilburn! Sure. Elevator upgrades in 09.
Champion! No problem. (several talking)
Wilburn! Okay. Landfill.
Champion! I love it. I love the Landfill, but I love the new recycling project. (unable to
hear others talking)
Bailey/ .. . for people to drop off hazardous waste, but I think that would be (unable to
hear) discussion.
Wilburn! And Landfill cell?
Champion! But we don't have any choice on that.
Wilburn! .. .no choice there. Airport?
Bailey/ Landfill cells, the sexiest thing we do. (laughter)
Wilburn! Airport? (laughter) No, it's not late, I'm fine. Airport? (several talking)
Vanderhoef/ They didn't actually say anything to us last night about their loss of revenue,
if there's a sale.
Bailey/ .. .said maintain our General Funds. Janelle seemed pretty clear that that seemed,
I mean, she didn't ask to increase it, and she would have if she were concerned.
Atkins/ I think they know that... (several talking).
Wilburn! I think their concern was don't decrease it because of...
Bailey/ Right, right.
Elliott/ The only question is, what is planned, very basically, with the 750,000?
Bailey/ Placeholder for fill if the opportunity becomes available (unable to hear).
Elliott! So, that's... okay, good. (several talking)
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Vanderhoef! No, an interested seller.
Bailey! Well, we have a big pile of dirt, too, right?
Vanderhoef! We're an interested buyer. We want to buy fill.
Bailey! But that's for fill.
Atkins! Yeah.
Correia! And then we own the land. Ifwe have somebody that wants to buy the land,
then we would fill.
Atkins! Uh-huh.
Vanderhoef! No, no.
Bailey! ...Karin seemed to indicate if we had a big pile of dirt became available...
Atkins! Property needs to be filled. There are two ways to do that. We can do it and
market it that way, or someone could some in and say I'll buy the ground and I'll
assume the responsibility for the fill.
Elliott! I just didn't want us to be putting in sidewalks or streets or curbs or anything like
that. Good, good, okay.
Vanderhoef! No, it's just the, we buy the fill and we'll sell it for more, if we've added
that amenity.
STREETS, BRIDGES, TRAFFIC ENGINEERING & PUBLIC UTILITIES:
Wilburn! Okay, Streets, Bridges, Traffic Engineering and Public Utilities, pages C-6
through C-lO.
Champion! ...FYlO.
Bailey! I do want, I mean, I know that we.. . could be a moot point because this might be
my last say on the Burlington Street. I continue to have concerns about this
project without addressing the broader transportation needs for downtown for
bicycles, specifically. I mean, I just want to make sure that that's heard because I
know it's a problem when you get down to it and people don't like a project
because other things weren't addressed along the way.
Champion! Some of these narrow streets, where was I at just recently... where the streets
were narrow, and cars parked on both sides, they didn't have bicycle lanes - I
know it probably costs a fortune, but they had just. ..a bicycle, pictures of
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bicycles, clear on both, on the right hand side of both lanes. So you were.. .like a
bicycle done in street paint so people were aware that there were bicyclists
around, which is a great safety feature, I think. (several talking & laughter)
Bailey! You mean, not just an outline of a bicycle, like this share the road, but like...
Champion! A bicycle.
Elliott! Painted on the street? On the street surface.
Champion! Yeah.
Correia! Like you see on some...
Champion! Not here! Are you kidding? We're not that innovative!
Elliott! Were you lying in the gutter at the time, Connie?
Bailey! Where were you?
Champion! I gotta remember where I was at. (several talking) Okay, I will.
Elliott! No, I... I agree, we need to keep looking at Burlington Street. I guess I hadn't
thought of it until the other day, I thought, we are spending hundreds ofthousands
of dollars for bicycle trails. We also at the same time are saying, if our downtown
is not viable, our city is less. So we have to find a way to integrate bicycle traffic
into downtown.
Bailey! Yeah, yeah.
Champion! Well, anyway, that's not until...
Elliott! Yeah, yeah.
Bailey! Ijust want to keep saying, you know, you don't get down to it and say "ick" on
the project.
Vanderhoeti' You know, we do designated truck routes to move traffic around, and we
know we have this safety problem, space problem - everything else - on
Burlington. Is there the potential of when you croSS the bridge at Ralston Creek
on the east, and Iowa River on the west, that you say bicycle route is on Court
Street, through the downtown area?
O'Donnell! ... the last time we talked about that.
Bailey! Well, they've talked about College Street, for exactly that.
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Vanderhoef/ Well.. .on one side, and Court on the other side.
Bailey/ Well, I think we have to look at something...
Champion! Well, then College Street hits the Pedestrian Mall. . .
Bailey/ I don't want to solve this tonight.
Wilburn! Okay (laughter & several talking)
Bailey! I just said I wanted to put it out there.
Wilburn! You read my mind!
Vanderhoef/ College Street is the...
Bailey/ I just wanted to put it out there so as we approach it, we're still...talking about
the project.
Elliott! Yes.
Wilburn! Page C-7, Streets, Bridge, Traffic Engineering and Public Utilities.
Champion! College Street streetscape, okay, right?
Vanderhoef/ Only if we take out the gas station.
Champion! We aren't going that far.
O'Donnell! I had no...
Vanderhoef! Then I see no point in cleaning up College Street.
O'Donnell! ...I don't think we need enlargements.
Vanderhoef/ That's all one big project.
O'Donnell/ It's a huge street.
Champion! I agree.
Bailey! I just want turn lights.
O'Donnell/ Just turn lights.
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Bailey/ We're talking about Dubuque and Church Street.
Champion! Well, I'm okay with College Street. Is everybody else okay with it? (several
talking)
Bailey! ...is a mud pit.
Atkins/ If for example you land on a project where the majority of you are not interested,
I would pull it and bring it back to a work session and I can bring staff in and you
can rethink it.
Wilburn! But there is...
Atkins! For example, on this one, you have (several talking) Dubuque (several talking).
Elliott! All but one of us.
Champion! I think the University's also wanting these turn lanes for the Cambuses, is that
true? Are they going to help pay for it?
Atkins/ Probably not.
Champion! Well, then, I say...
Bailey/ I'm interested in pulling this and re...talking about it a little bit more, but...
Vanderhoef! Pull which one?
Wilburn! Dubuque and Church, to pull and talk about it a little more. Good suggestion.
Vanderhoef/ I'll pull it if you want to pull College (laughter).
Bailey/ I could pull College and you'd still have a majority going for College, so it
doesn't matter. I can trade you that, if you want.
VanderhoefJ But it still goes forward!
Wilburn! I'll pull Dubuque and Church.
Atkins/ So Dubuque and Church is (several talking)
Elliott/ By pull, meaning just for more discussion? Okay, okay.
Atkins/ Yeah.
Bailey/ But it won't be on this...
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Atkins! No, not this upcoming one.
Mansfield! Can I ask a question here? So do, that means I'm pulling it and it's not going
to be included in the numbers on the public hearing notice?
Atkins! No, I think you need to leave it on the numbers on the public hearing notice,
because it's a scale of the project and it's still an estimate.. .leave it on for that.
(several talking)
Vanderhoef! The problem is, if you put it on there, by that name, even though we know
that it may be a holding space, it gets published and the public sees that and says
'yeah, they're going to do this project.'
Champion! I just tell them we don't have to spend every penny we said we were going to
and they'll be happy to hear that.
Elliott! I'd be interested in feedback on that.
Champion! Might be a good way to do it.
Wilburn! By leaving it on, leaving it in there for the hearing, that's how we'll get that.
Atkins! It's just easier that way, yeah. I mean, you could (several talking) you could shut
them down.
Wilburnll st Avenue, Iowa Railroad.
Correia! We had a great letter (several talking).
Elliott! Steve, a question. By leaving this on here...
Atkins! Which one? I st Avenue?
Elliott! 1st Avenue. Urn, this doesn't mean we are now committed, we can't pull back?
This means that we're looking to the future; we intend to address it.
Atkins! As you describe the project, you have to secure a federal grant of$5 million
(unable to hear).
Elliott! Because at this point, with our money situation...
Atkins! Oh, I understand.
Bailey! So we're looking for fed dollars with this?
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Atkins/ During the course of the year, when we amend the budget, if you say we don't
want to do this anymore, we amend it out.
Wilburn! No grant, no project.
Atkins/ No grant, no project.
Elliott! Good, good.
Vanderhoef/ And we're also looking, remember, at the Iowa Clean Air funds.
Atkins/Oh, I'm sensing we have general Council support for the thing.
Bailey/ Oh, yeah! This is a public safety project.
Wilburn! Gilbert Street, and Bowery and Prentiss. We're...
Elliott! Yes.
Bailey/ Sure.
Champion! I don't know. I use that intersection all the time. That's a lot of money to do
nothing.
Atkins/ There's water and sewer in there, as well, it's an older neighborhood. (unable to
hear)
Champion! So what's this 665,000?
Atkins/ That will reconstruct the intersection.
Champion! What are they going to do?
Vanderhoef/ So there's 300.. . (several talking)..there's 360,000 of that is just for storm
water and water.
Champion! But 665,000 is GO Bonds. (several talking)
Wilburn! Widening, and going into.. . yeah, land purchased, putting in the retaining wall
across over on the Mansion side and...
Atkins/ We'll make a note of that. (several talking)
Vanderhoef/ Well, remember we want to start bringing some of the. . . (several talking).
Correia! .. .has to be done, and so while you're doing it, then it really doesn't work.
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Bailey! Oh, yeah, let's tear it up twice.
Correia! Right, exactly, you might as well...
Vanderhoef! Might as well, we get accused of it all the time. (laughter)
Wilburn! Page C8... Gilbert Street, Highway 6.
Bailey! Yes.
. O'Donnell! No.
Vanderhoef! Yes.
Wilburn! Yes. (several talking & laughter)
Correia! I'm partly feeling... we have that letter from the gas station. 1 feel perfectly fine
at this point about the south Gilbert part. (unable to hear) .. .people on frontage
road. 1 feel concerned about the access to the businesses on Gilbert.
Atkins! We're moving along on this one, so...
Elliott! 1 was driving...Ross, as a matter of fact you mentioned the Hispanic place on 6,
and we did make a cut in the median there so that the west bound traffic can get
directly to it, and there is...
Atkins! El Ranchero?
Elliott! Yes.. . no, El Ranchero, 1 thought you meant the place. . .
Bailey! Los Portales?
Elliott! Taco Bell.
Atkins! Taco Bell's up at K-Mart.
Elliott! And, we did...1 cannot imagine us, well, 1 shouldn't say that. 1 would prefer not
to put a number of businesses at risk by doing this.
Wilburn! Actually, my comment wasn't that you couldn't cross the Highway 6 median,
it's just pulling...there's no direct access into their parking lot. You still have to
go in, turn left, come back around (several talking), which is exactly what's going
to happen over there.
Elliott! No, no. You're going to have to go way down past, and pull in.
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Wilburn! It's about four car lengths from, for example, Gilbert Street's first entrance to
the second one.
Correia! I don't have a problem with that part of the design at all, and I'm not a traffic
designer or anything, but what I'm.. .the letter that we got today, was really the
first direct contact that I've had with any businesses on that north part of Gilbert,
after you go over Highway 6. So if you're driving, I'm on Kirkwood, and now I
can't remember.. .I'm on Kirkwood, I'm driving towards Highway 6, I want to go
to the gas station. There's a median and there's no way I can get there.
Wilburn! Actually, there's a...
Correia! I'll be able to get there? Okay.
Wilburn! There also was a property owner on the north side of the, ofthat intersection
here, the other night.
Correia! I mean, I haven't heard any...
Wilburn! Okay, all right.
Atkins! Couple issues, one it's obviously a major traffic improvement, needed fixed or
whatever, and secondly, if you were to turn it down, and I know you're close on
your vote, I don't, I think Hills and Pleasant Valley are going to come back in
here and say 'wait, we didn't mean to do away with it', we just want it our way.
(several talking)
Elliott! I think there's a great deal more, there are different tinkerings that can be done
with the extent ofthe median, both south and north, access to the businesses
therein, and I'd just like to look at this.
Bailey! I think staff heard that.
Atkins! I got the impression...
Vanderhoef! This is truly a major, major transportation amenity that we have to have for
the growth that we've got. We've got four new lots that we just approved for
commercial south of this intersection. We...
Correia! I'm fine with...
O'Donnell! I'm not. I think it's terrible!
Vanderhoef! And, really, when you think about it, the bridge across the river, we're going
to start bringing Mormon Trek folks across the river in the next couple or three
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years, and then they're going to want to enter downtown. We've planned this as a
way to take some of the traffic off of Highway 1 and Riverside Drive. We have
got to be able to move it at that intersection. (several talking)
Wilburn! I guess I would ask...
Champion! ... for three new businesses further south.
Wilburn! Amy, I guess I would ask you to consider this representation in the Capital
Improvement Plan, similar to your vote the other night, as an intention to the
public. We're looking at this, and so I guess I would ask you to look at it in that
same fashion, as the vote the other night. So, is that a yes? Okay. All right.
Atkins/ So it stays in?
Wilburn! Stays in. Park road bridge. Did I skip a.. . Lower Muscatine to Kirkwood?
(several talking) Yes? Yes?
Elliott! Oh, yeah.
Wilburn! McCollister?
Elliott! If we could just quit calling it McCollister.
Bailey/ You can call it anything you want.
Elliott/ Yeah, but the sign is still going to be weird.
Bailey/ It confuses him when streets change names.
Elliott! It's Mormon Trek! (several talking)
Vanderhoef! We could have McCollister Park, or McCollister Lake.
Wilburn! Mormon, Mormon Trek (laughter and several talking) Mormon Trek left turn
lanes. Okay, all right? Park Road Bridge? Rochester? Salt? (several talking)
Scott Boulevard overlay? Sycamore-Bums to city limits? (several talking) 420th
Street to Highway 6?
Vanderhoef/ You missed! You didn't say four lanes.
Elliott! For what? For Sycamore?
Bailey/ Four lanes, 25 miles an hour though.
Vanderhoef/ So I can say I agree!
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PARKS. REC & TRAILS fC-II - C-13):
Wilburn! Okay, Parks, Rec and Trails. This is C-lI through C-13, starting with C-II,
Butler? (several talking) Cemetery? (several talking)
Elliott! I can just see them resurfacing the entire cemetery.
Bailey/ I want them to do it in brick, though.
Wilburn! Well, if they don't move anybody. (laughter and several talking) Court Hill?
Mercer Park ball diamond upgrade? (several talking) Aquatic Center lobby roof
replacement? Pedestrian Bridge? (several talking)
Bailey/ You know, I think that's disingenuous of me to move it to 09, I'm not sure, I
mean, ifI'm around, I'm not sure I'd support that.
Champion! Well, I don't know, it might depend. We might have a big windfall. We
could move it to 10. I mean, it's not going to happen...
Bailey/ I would like to do a, well...
Wilburn! How many people would like.. . currently it's in 09.
Elliott! Not me.
Bailey/ I'm just trying to be honest. I'm not sure I'd support it. No, we moved it the
other day (several talking).
O'Donnell/ I'd move it to I I, just take it as far out as you can.
Champion! We could put it on the (unable to hear).
Wilburn! How many want to move it to II? How many want to move it to 9?
Champion! It's fine, I don't care. Just move it to the next year.
Wilburn! That's three.
Vanderhoef/ We've got to move it for sure, urn...
Bailey/ My thing is, moving it to 09, I'm not sure that my.. .I'm going to be any more
supportive. It just seems like a big...I mean, it seems disingenuous to say that.
Champion! You're right. Move it to 11, or Unfunded.
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Wilburn! Which one are you suggesting?
O'Donnell! I!.
Champion! I!.
Bailey! I!.
Wilburn! II, yep.
Atkins! I!. (several talking)
Wilburn! Peninsula Park? Peninsula Park? (several talking) Sand Lake rec?
Elliott! No.
Champion! You know, I have problems with that. That's a lot of money. (several
talking)
Elliott! I'm in favor. ..(several talking)
Champion! I'm in favor of buying it, but I don't think it has to be made perfect already, I
mean it's a lot of money.
Vanderhoef! Well, this is planned out to I!.
Atkins! This is a go-slow approach, yeah! (several talking)
Wilburn! We're applying for a grant. We're going to D.C. with three projects. This is
one of the three.
Elliott! But we're talking about.. .let's see, a million dollars. No.
Bailey! But the line item that isn't here, would be the grants. I mean, I think that many of
us believe that we can get some grants in and would be more interested in funding
it in that way, and we got a CAT grant. We also have to do private donations, of
some sort. I mean, that's just required, and we'd also have to get some County
money, and none of that is in this plan. (several talking)
Champion! If you're going after grant money, I can support the project. (several talking)
Atkins! Yeah, we've already...we're getting it together at the Aprill"...and (several
talking)
Elliott! I would not be in favor of spending more than a few thousand dollars, just grade it
up, grass it down, let it sit for a few years.
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Wilbum/ How many are in favor of this with our ongoing intention of pursuing grant
funding?
Championll am in favor if you're going after grant money.
Wilbum/ Okay. Foiled again?
O'Donnell! .. . amazing the Peninsula Park right before we're going natural with prairies,
wildflowers, grass, and this park we're going to develop. That's amazing.
Wilbum/ Peninsula Park improvements? (several talking)
Correia! And then we had, in the Napoleon.. ..(several talking) had moved out the (unable
to hear).
Vanderhoef! Well, I sent out the memo that included...the memo was in the packet.
(several talking)
Atkins! That's what I understood you wanted.
Correia! ...primarily.. . (unable to hear).. . had a lot of improvements from Parks that are
primarily boys' sports. ..equity issue (several talking).
Vanderhoef! .. . improved this piece tomorrow, and that's why I listed it as number one
on...
Atkins! .. .restrooms 08, like as soon as we can. (several talking)
Elliott! Is that on here?
Atkins! No.
Bailey! No, it's on Unfunded, 65.
Elliott! I thought we'd already decided that. (several talking)
Wilbum/ Dee had...
Bailey! Are we going to look at that now?
Wilbum/ Well, it's related to Parks and Rec so we might as well. That was the last one,
wasn't it?
Atkins! (several talking) tell me that.
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Wilburn! Urn, Dee had put forward a proposal in lieu of the bridge project alternative,
with some optional other Parks and Rec.
Elliott! Was that in one of these? Didn't I see (several talking). Which one? 25th?
Bailey/ One of the things that I thought about doing in regard to trails, and it's somewhat
in response to this, I mean, if you look at our trail map, we have a lot of gaps.
And admittedly, it's better than...we've made a lot of progress too. I'm not
criticizing that, and many of these are programmed in, but I think it would be
helpful if we would talk with our trails people (TAPE ENDS)
Elliott! I have not heard anybody talk about what are our priorities for the hikinglbiking
trails? Is the priority to have a trail that goes from east to west and north/south?
Or is the priority to fill in as the developments occur and the developers, because
everything we've done in the past three years that I've voted on has been very
piecemeal. We do this, and we do this, and we do this, and nothing is in front of
me to show our priorities to get from here to here, okay?
Vanderhoef/ Okay.
Elliott/ Okay, let's do it. And I haven't seen that. (several talking)
Vanderhoef/ May I help you out with that? The neighborhood open space plan is our
plan, and the plan has priorities that say we are connecting our schools and our
parks with linear parks, which means. . .
Elliott! I've never heard that discussed.
Vanderhoef/ Okay. It's been there forever in the...
Elliott! And see, I don't agree with that.
Vanderhoef/ Well, this is where it was and what size those neighborhood parks would be,
and one of the biggest problems that, if you would recall, the last three years that
you've sat here in budget meetings, I have sat here and said we've got to finish
the trail on the east side to get us to Creekside Park, that we have spent all these
dollars on the big trails out and around, and we've got to get these connected, and
that we really have to take into consideration the older sections of town that
haven't had development. They don't have routes. They don't have complete
sidewalk systems, and this is what we saved those $50,000, the hotel/motel tax, so
that we could buy right-of-way through this expensive area and work on them,
and these things do come in small pieces and it takes a lot of work on staff s part
to get the land dedication. When you see the, for instance, the Rochester one, if
you drive Rochester regularly, you know, there's about three blocks there's no
sidewalk, which is, puts people running and walking in the street, because it gets
all muddy through there and that's the only way they can get to Scott Boulevard.
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Elliott! I don't know how others feel, but I don't share that as my priority. My priority
would be, how do you get from one side of town to the other. Let's make sure
there's a through track. I haven't seen it, and I don't even know if you all agree
with that, but if you ask me, that would be... before we say, well we need to get to
this school, we need to go through this alley, I say, okay, what's the trail that gets
us from the east side to the west side, the north side to the south side, and do that
first. That's my priority.
Vanderhoef! Well, but...the east side and west side thing, we've been talking about that
one, you know, that once we're at Creekside we've got Rochester and we've got
the Creekside, and how are we designating on down to the river, to the major
trail? So...
Wilburn! Would you all be.. . excuse me, Dee... would you all be interested in having
John Yapp come...give us a...
Elliott! You bet! You bet!
Wilburn! .. . and some history on.. . and philosophy (several talking)
Bailey! If people don't know where to go when the trail ends, I mean, if they're new to
town...
Correia! ... and the sidewalk ends.
Bailey! Right, but it's also the map.
Vanderhoef! ...when it's complete.
Bailey! And I understand that all the Unfundeds are here, but once again, we can't do
them all. I think we have to figure out how to, I don't know.
Elliott! And, Dee, as far as I know, we may end up doing exactly what you're saying. I
just want to see it laid out in front of me.
Vanderhoef! Pine!
Wilburn! Let's.. .
Vanderhoef! Is there any interest at all in that number 5?
Champion! What was number 5?
Vanderhoef! This is a project that I think we ought to move forward on while we're down
there working on all of that.
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Wilburn! She's talking about the Sand Lake trail, behind Hills.
Bailey! If we're starting to develop Sand Lake.
Vanderhoef! This is one that I really think needs to be finished up, and...
Bailey! There is a trail along there, behind the... by the river, right? And runs down...
Vanderhoef! Yeah.
Bailey! But, so.. .how is this, I mean, how is...
Correia! Current trail ends at Napoleon, that's what you're talking about?
Vanderhoef! Dh-huh. The.. . (several talking).. .uh-huh.
Bailey! I mean, I think that should, should fold into our Sand Lake project.
Vanderhoef! This is little Sand Lake.
Correia! Oh, where's little Sand Lake?
Elliott! In back of Hills Bank.
Correia! There is a trail back there.
Vanderhoef! And see, that's exactly where the tunnel comes under Highway 6 (several
talking). There isn't (several talking) around the lake there, and the complete
circle, which is, is a small loop to do around there, and there's some potential for
some road, drive back in there that we saw on the Gilbert Street plan, but it was
not part of the original cost. It was a secondary project.
Correia! So, but this project, that Sand Lake, small Sand Lake project, isn't a trail
connector project then. It's just a...
Vanderhoef! It's a loop, and it is to develop the open area there with what this number
includes is a gazebo and some benches and so forth right there by the...
Correia! I would probably be more willing to do a trail that's connecting to something
that's...I need...
Elliott! Around the pond, you mean?
Vanderhoef! Uh-huh.
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Bailey/ Not the, not the big...
Elliott! No, the one behind Hills Bank. (several talking)
Vanderhoef/ ... and clean it up and stabilize the bank and a gazebo or some sort of mini-
park. I think that's good for that business area to have a place to go sit and have
their lunch or their break times or whatever.
Correia! I'd be more likely to fund something else, than that one.
O'Donnell/ Agree.
Wilburn! Steve, what we are looking for is a, for John Yapp to come and...
Atkins/ Bring the Yapp map?
Wilburn! Yeah, the Yapp map, but also some history and philosophy, proj ection, that
type of thing, in terms of helping sequence the trail.
Atkins/ Sure. Like at a work session, you mean?
Bailey/ Not only, yeah, look at these connectors that Dee has brought forward, so we can
all understand them. (several talking)
Vanderhoef/ We're in the process of completing one and it took me four years, or five
years, to get that one done, so.. .
Bailey/ I would also like to not only see the map and the connectors, but what plans we
have for signage, because once you move onto the streets, that's really critical and
maps on the routes and other, I've talked to other people who are also interested
in maps that include...
Elliott/ Can we say signs?
Atkins/ Signage.
Bailey/ Signage.
Atkins/ No, it's the proper term.
Elliott! Signs is plural.
Atkins/ It's recognized as a process.
Vanderhoef/ The process is signage.
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Elliott! Signage seems like...
Vanderhoef! And, truly we should take a good strong look at that little piece down by
City Carton, while we have an opportunity. I think that one should be "go." The
little piece along the river by City Carton. That's not a good place to mix cars and
trucks and bicycles down there, and if we have an opportunity to buy that little
strip in there right now...
Karr! Number 36? Are you at number 36, Dee, on the Unfunded? Is that what you're
talking about?
Atkins! 36 on the Unfunded?
Vanderhoef! Urn...
Bailey! Relocate a portion of Iowa River Corridor Trail?
Vanderhoef! That's the one. I think we've got to do that one.
Elliott! Has the bicycle club contacted us? We talk a lot and...
Atkins! Craig works at the Library and he's always been very active.
Elliott! I'd like to hear from the bicycle club about how they feel, what are... they're the
people, or at least they have a representative group that use this. I'd like to...
Vanderhoef! I'll tell you what. You get that from John Yapp because he meets. . . there's a
Biking Trails Advisory Committee (several talking)
Elliott! I'd also like to explore the fact, is there a way we can get bicyclists to help pay for
these things.
Wilburn! Before we get into...
Elliott! Let's go forward.
Wilburn! ...there's, I know, some of you are getting tired. There's two pages here where
I suspect there is probably going to be...we've already discussed one, the fire
apparatus, but I suspect the rest of them will probably be okay, but we could do
those.. .
Champion! We're not going to do the land acquisition for the bus, right? Not going to
switch those funds yet?
Elliott! No.
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Atkins/ No.
Vanderhoef/ Which one are you on there?
Atkins/ We're doing some work on that (several talking)
O'Donnell/ So where are we?
Champion! We're done. (several talking)
Bailey/ I think we should do something with it when we know what we're going to do.
Atkins/ Well, I'm going to be giving you a report shortly, and we've got asbestos and
we've got that and.. . (several talking & laughter) Well...
Wilburn! Otherwise, otherwise we've already had a conversation about the fire apparatus.
Are we okay with the other C-14, C-15...(several talking)
Atkins/ Now, did you want Station 4 construction drawings, things added? That's it.
Wilburn! As of right now, that was...we plugged through that, so we're still looking at
setting the public hearing on the 6th. Let me just finish my thought here. Urn,
setting it for the 20th - if we get into, if we get into, if we don't go with that.. .one
option if there's further budget discussion, we could add, we could meet an hour
earlier on the 5th work session to talk about budget. Ifwe...yes, that's correct. If
we don't do that, if you, if we try to get into setting a special day, then we're
going to bump into people being gone and not having an opportunity to be here
for setting the. . .
Correia! It'll be harder for me next week to come in earlier on Monday. I mean, I'd be,
you know (unable to hear).
Wilburn! I'm just saying if there are other budget items that we have to...
Correia! ... possibility to stay later.
Wilburn! That's true.
Bailey/ Unrecurring capital improvements, you're not going to like this, Connie, so just
get ready. On our traffic signals, we budget $120,000 and wejust add the
$17,000 for countdown timers, and just as soon as it will need them. Ifwe don't
need them, great, we go with the $120,000. Can we budget all to provide
countdown timers in our traffic signals? I think they've been very popular for
drivers and pedestrians. It's just, it's a placeholder...
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Atkins/ How about if! talk to Jeff and (unable to understand) I mean, we hear the same
thing about the countdown timers.
Bailey/ And I'm not saying to put them, I'm not saying to put them everywhere. I'mjust
saying let's just hold a place for them so we can afford them, if the, the
intersection would warrant it.
Champion! Well, I think if you're going to insist on doing that Bowery/Prentiss
intersection, that certainly should have some countdown, what do you call them?
Atkins/ Timers.
Champion! Right.
Vanderhoef/ In the downtown area, when you talk about a placeholder, urn, it's almost
like retrofitting a few places right now that people might need the countdown
timers.
Bailey/ Well, and all I was saying is, you know, $17,000 was the amount given. So just
hold it at $137,000, instead of$120,000.
Elliott! It's there if needed.
Bailey/ Yeah. And then, you mentioned bus, looking at bus routes again. Will we have
an opportunity to talk about Sunday bus service again, because I'm getting
(unable to hear).
Atkins/ What I'd like to do is get the budget pretty well wrapped up and bring it back for
a work session and point out to you, we... we're very well funded there, and as far
as I'm concerned, service changes are really very much up to you, whether it's
Sunday service or another route. I mean, that's, put whatever you want on the
table.
Correia! I'm also interested...
Vanderhoef/ With the Sunday piece, we, it's how much?
Bailey/ I had notes that said $170,000. Could that possibly be right? That seems real
low. Sunday costs.. . (several talking) Seems really low though, to me. But, I'm
getting calls and I just wanted to pass that on. I told people I would pass it on.
Atkins/ The discussion should occur fairly shortly.
Wilburn! Okay.
Bailey/ So I'll just let people know that we're going to have a Transit discussion.
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Correia! I'm also interested in the possibility of expanding all of the Monday through
Friday nights through midnight for the work force.
Atkins! And that's clearly something you could put on the table. Okay.
Vanderhoef! Dh, until we get the report on the JARC...
Bailey! We've been waiting for that JARC report for a long time.
Vanderhoef! No, we had to wait for the funding.
Bailey! I know, but it'sjust...we have some money. You know, we could...(several
talking).. . get some numbers. But, and do we ever have the possibility of doing
excursion type bus service like for Summer of the Arts to some of our outlying
neighborhoods?
Atkins! That I'd have to... there's some very strict...
Bailey! Could you just ask about that and what it would take, and if somebody has to, just
what it would be, because that Hancher thing...
Atkins! .. . cracked down on that recently.
Bailey! What?
Atkins! The feds really cracked down on that.
Wilburn! Otherwise, I think we're good. It's a long evening, but we had some good
discussion.
Karr! Schedule. It really does have some impact. Ifwe're agreed we're going to set the
public hearing on the 6th, hold it the 20th, that's great, but we've had some interest
and some expressions about changing to March and/or April schedule, and I put
that, handed that out in your packet, and if we're going to do it, I've got some
staff who are looking at projects long term, and I love doing it at 10 after 10,
but...is there any interest to switch March, April...if anyone knows.. .I've got
some more dates and I know Connie has a conflict. ..
Wilburn! You've got the March issue...
Correia! I looked at it and I forgot to bring it.
Elliott! Oh, here it is. Here it is.
Wilburn! And were you hoping to move March. . .
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Karrl It didn't matter to me.
Wilbuni! I'm talking to Connie, I'm not talking to you, not that I'm not talking to
you.. . (laughter).
Champion! I'm gone. ..oh, this doesn't have dates on it. Oh... where's the dates? I can't
read them. I'm gone the 16th, the 16th, 17th, 18th, 19t\ and 20th.
Correia! And Ross and Dee are gone a week ahead of that.
Baileyl And I can't meet on the 27th.
Vanderhoefl Connie, you leave on the 16th? Is that it?
Champion! Pardon?
v anderhoefl You leave on the 16th?
Champion! Uh-huh.
Vanderhoef I Okay.
Karrl So leave it?
Wilburn! Yeah, leave it.
Karrl How about April?
Wilburn! April... April is National Volunteer Appreciation Week and the Crisis Center is
having their banquet on the 17th. They can...I missed a couple of activities at
work last year because of Council extra meetings.
Champion! I'm very flexible. So if they want to change that...(unable to hear).
Wilbuni! Okay, do you want to just take the meeting on the 17th then?
Elliott! We have a meeting on March 17th? Oh, April. (several talking)
Wilburn! Okay.
Karrl You want to start the 16th earlier? So you...okay, so, for instance, 5:30? (several
talking) And then 7:00 and we reschedule then, cancel the lih to the 16th
Wilburn! Everybody okay with that? Okay.
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Elliott! That's the only change we've had so far.
Karr/ So far, and I'll send a revised schedule. Is there any interest, or do you just want to
stop now? Any interest in June, July, August?
O'Donnell/ That's a little far ahead.
Bailey/ I would like to get it scheduled so I can work clients in, or vacation.
Correia! Are we meeting on April 30th?
Karr/ We meet ApriI30th...it's your work session.
Bailey/ Last summer we basically stuck to our regular schedule.
Karr/ And we certainly can. Ijust wanted to, and we can do that...(several talking)
Champion! .. .on the 6th and 7th of August. (several talking) I'm always gone the first
Sunday in August.
Karr/ Well, in August you have the ability if you want to go to 13 and 14 and 27, 28,
because you hit your September Labor Day.
Bailey/ Can't we just have one meeting in August?
Champion! Yeah.
Karr/ Yes. Too bad, but sure, I can live with that. (laughter)
Bailey/ Can we just, would everybody be okay if we just went on the 20t\ 21st?
Karr/ Okay, so we just cancel the 6th and 7th?
Elliott! Okay, and the August meeting is when?
Karr/ August meeting is 20 and 21 only, and I'll send you a revised schedule Thursday.
How about one final thing real quick since you're doing so great (laughter), July?
Just wanted to point out, your July schedule around the 4th is 2nd and 3rd - that's
your Monday and Tuesday, 4th is the holiday.
Champion! Oh, that will not work, will it?
Elliott! Why not?
Bailey/ Does it work for staff?
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Karr! It works for staff just fine. I didn't know the implications of Jazz Fest. (several
talking) Just the weekend? So it would be okay. (several talking)
Vanderhoefi' I think we should move it away from the 4th ofJuly, because if you want to
travel at all. (several talking)
Karr! What about 9, 10 and 23, 24?
Wilburn! That's what I was going to suggest, because there's (several talking)
Karr!9,lO, 23, 24. (several talking) Okay, I'll send the schedule.
Wilburn! Okay, thanks a lot. Thanks a lot, folks. (TAPE ENDS)
This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City
Council Budget Work Session meeting of January 30, 2007.