HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003-05-06 Correspondence Office of the
Johnson County Attorney
Johnson County Courthouse · 417 South Clinton Street · P.O. Box 2450 · Iowa City, IA 52244
Phone (319) 339-6100 · Fax (319) 339-6149 Criminal
J. Patrick White David V. Tiffany
RE: Kennedy Investments, Inc., d/b/a The Vine Tavern & Eatery PatdciaA. Weir
FROM: J. Patrick White
City City Council approve the above liquor license renewal application.
AS indicated in the Addendum to the renewal application, this applicant
has had three civil penalties assessed against it within the last year
and a half, including two $500 civil penalties, and one $1500 civil
penalty and thirty (30) day suspension. The violations underlying the
civil penalties include selling alcohol after hours and selling alcohol
to a minor (twice). Obviously, these violations are cause for concern.
A representative of my office spoke with the general manager of The
Vine Tavern and Eatery, Andrew Black, about these violations. Mr.
Black showed genuine concern for these past violations and acknowledged
both their severity and his responsibility for making sure no more
violations occur. Since Mr. Black has been general manager of The Vine
they have passed several compliance checks and he has taken efforts to
ensure those serving alcohol do a better job verifying patrons' age,
including using positive reinforcement when employees are checked and
found to be compliant. None of the individuals whose actions led to
the violations are still employees of the company. Mr. Black also
acknowledges that another violation in which an employee sells alcohol
to a minor will result in a sixty (60) day suspension of the license.
In conclusion, despite the violations referenced above, because I
believe the applicant has taken reasonable steps to ensure the laws of
the State of Iowa pertaining to the sale of alcohol will be followed, I
recommend the application be granted.
cy: Andrew Black
Marian Karr
From: klueken [kJueken@blue.weeg.uiowa.edu]
Sent: Sunday, April 20, 2003 9:13 PM
To: cou ncil@iowa-city.org
Subject: Thank you from a bike-riding citizen
Dear Iowa City City Council,
Helle. Hy name is Kristen Lueken and I am a senior studying physics and
science education at the University of Iowa. I am writing this letter te thank
you for your cent±nued work adding and improving bike trails in Iowa City.
As you may know, there are many valuable reasons to get people to ride their
bikes. First, at an individual level, it improves cardiovascular and muscular
fitness, and helps reduce the costs of owning and operating a vehicle. Second,
biking reduces the amount of noise and air pollution, and also reduces fossil
fuel consumption and pollution that cars produce. Finally, encouraging people
te ride their bikes helps te reduce the ever-increasing traffic and parking
problems downtown.
As such, I would like te commend your efforts maintaining and adding bike
trails in Iowa City. It pleases me to see that you are still opening new bike
trails, like the S. Sycamore TPail en June 7. I urge you to continue your
efforts te support hikers and bike trails, and make it a cleaner, healthier,
safer city for everyone.
Sincerely,
Kristen Lueken
if ignorance is bliss, why aren't you all a little happier?
City Councilperson:
I am a student at the University of Iowa and I am writing this letter as
an assignment for one of my classes. We are to choose an issue and write a
letter about it to someone that has say in the matter. I am writing in concern
of the smoking ban in Iowa City restaurants and bars. This issue does not
concern me as a smoker because I am not. This issue concerns me simply as
an Iowa City citizen. I am of the opinion that whether or not a restaurant or
bar wants to allow smoking in their establishments should be entirely up to
the owner. It should be the discretion of the owner whether or not they want
no smoking entirely or no smoking sections or whatever they feel
appropriate. It is not something that should be regulated by the city or state.
The simple fact is that smoking is a legal activity and the city should not
have the authority to ban a legal activity in privately owned establishments.
This takes rights away from the owners and the citizens of Iowa City. I have
no problem whatsoever with a no smoking restaurant as long as it's the
owners decision. What I worry about is where this type of legislation could
lead. When personal freedoms start to be taken away, it is that much easier
to take away more of them. I have already heard rumors about cities
banning smoking in houses. I don't know if that is true or just a rumor, but
that sounds ridiculous to me. As absurd as that may sound, that is the
direction the smoking ban is taking us. Thank you for taking time to read
my letter.
John A Robinson IX,'
John A Robinson JV
218 1/2 E Market St Apt 1
Iowa City, IA 52245-2165
Sarah Bappe
720 East Jefferson Street
Iowa Ci~,, Iowa 52245
Home Phone (319) 358-6514
08, .0w
April 9~ n~
City of Iowa City
City Council
410 E. Washington St.
Iowa City, lA 52240
To Whom it May Concern,
I am a senior nursing student here at the University of Iowa. My health and the health of others is a very important
issue to me. Through study and clinical experiences, I have seen the negative effects that continuous exposure-to the
toxins in cigarette smoke can produce. 1 am writing today to propose a new ordiance for the city of Iowa City. One
that is realistic and aRainable.
I have had the prlviledge ofcalllng Iowa City home for the past four years. I grew up in Ames, lowajust two hours
northwest of here, where they passed a no smoking ordinance in all restaurants until 8:30pm, 7 days a week. The
ordinance allows for those of us who make a conscious effort not to expose our body and lungs to cigarette smoke,
an opportunity to go out tbr dinner and not be subjected to second-hand smoke In addition, the wait staff, hosts, and
restam'ant managers would have less exposure to second-hand smoke.
In Ames, the ordinance has worked very well and has had no effect on business or sales. Those who smoke are
encouraged to go outside to the designaterl smoking areas, a practice no different than those rules imposed at most
workplaces
I encourage the city council to discuss this issue at your ae~ meeting aM assess all the positive effects this might
have on Iowa City restaurants Thank you tbr your time.
~jazerely,
Sarah C~ Bappe
Toc Ten Reasons to Keeo MidAmerican as Iowa Citv's Electric P, ~
10. Lower, stable energy prices for the last twelve years.
9. Ability to move student body in and out annually.., sometimes more than once. ~
8. Your power comes on 99.988% of the time. 0Ne're still working on the other .012%)
7. Total property taxes paid in 2002, $1,604,090. Need we say more?
6. Rates frozen at current levels through at least 2006.
5. We built the system over the last 145 years.
4. $2,300,000 spent over last five years for iowa City Energy Efficiency.
3. Free home energy audits.
2. Remember June of 19987 More than 140 MEC employees got the power back on.
1. Mom than 70 friendly MEC employees serving the energy needs of the citizens of Iowa City.
MidAlnerican
Date: April 16, 2003
Dear City Clerk,
Would you please forward the following letter to city council members:
I am writing in reference to the proposed building of a new homeless shelter. I recently graduated from
the University of Iowa College of Nursing and spent my last semester working with the homeless
population of Iowa City. Much of this time was spent at the current homeless shelter and at the free lunch
program. I would like to share some of my observations at the homeless shelter.
-Families utilize a large amount of space at the sbelter. None of the families I met were from the Iowa
City or Johnson County area. Most were from Chicago and were in the process of obtaining housing
assistance in Iowa City. There were also many single men or women who occupied shelter space and
were not from Johnson County.
- It is well known among the homeless population that families who have found an apartment in Iowa
City, notify friends and relatives in the Chicago area that a space will be opening up at the shelter. This
allows another family to move in almost immediately but leaves no room for local homeless persons.
Families waiting for vouchers in order to obtain housing in Iowa City will normally stay at the shelter for
several months due to the time necessary to process paperwork, attend the informational meeting and
receive the voucher, and search for an available apartment.
While providing health care for the homeless persons at the f~e lunch program, I encountered many
homeless men in the Iowa City area, many of whom are elderly, handicapped, or veterans. These men are
sleeping outside in the winter because there is not room in the shelter. Building a larger shelter is not the
answer. If we continue to utilize the shelter as transitional living for people moving to Iowa City from
other cities, we could likely fill ten shelters and still not have space for our local homeless population. It
is wonderful that families are able to move to Iowa City and utilize our vast number of resources available
but I feel we have a responsibility to care for our local homeless population first.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Robin L. Behr
DEVONIAN FOSSIL GORGE
and the
CORPS OF ENGINEERS
April 21, 2003
To: Iowa City Mayor, Council &City Manager
From: Tom A.Woodruff,
Past-President, Devonian Fossil Gorge, Inc.(DFG)
Re: DFG Design Award Presentation
We invite you to attend a brief but professional ceremony to recognize three
local firms for Designs associated with this project. They are:
Shoemaker & Haaland Professional Engineers
McComas-Lacina Construction
Armadilla Arts
This haft-hour informal, but professional, Award Presentation will be held
Friday, May 30th at 10:00am at the new DFG visitor site just below the
Coralville dam spillway. Come a few minutes early for refreshments. A news
release and invitation will be sent to the news media.
If the weather is inclement we will go to the east inside visitor center. A tour
oft he facilities will be available following the presentation.
Please try to attend with a guest or send someone from your fro,a/office. It is a
complement to our local business's to receive these professional honors.
Thanks, we look forward to seeing you on Friday, May 30th at 10:00am.
Tom A Woodruff
City of Iowa City
MEMORANDUM
Date: April 18, 2003
To: City Clerk
From: Beth Pfohl, JCCOG Traffic Engineering Planner/~
Re: Item for May 6, 2003 City Council Meeting: Removal of a sign indicating NO PARKING 2
AM - 6 AM TOW-AWAY ZONE on the south side of the 500 block of Iowa Avenue
As directed by Title 9, Chapter 1, Section 3B of the City Code, this is to advise the City Council
of the following action.
Action:
Pursuant to Section 9-1-3A(10), a sign indicating NO PARKING 2 AM - 6 AM TOW-AWAY
ZONE on the south side of the 500 block of Iowa Avenue will be removed.
Comments:
This action is being taken to eliminate signage which is inconsistent with the rest of the block.
Jccogtp\memos\5OOblkiaave doc
City of Iowa City
MEMORANDUM
Date: April 18, 2003
To: City Clerk
From: Beth Pfohl, JCCOG Traffic Engineering Planner ~
Re: Item for May 6, 2003 City Council Meeting: Removal of signs indicating AMBULANCE
PARKING ONLY BETWEEN SIGNS and TOW-AWAY ZONE from the north side of the
400 block of Bloomington Street; installation of two on-street parking meters
As directed by Title 9, Chapter 1, Section 3B of the City Code, this is to advise the City Council
of the following action,
Action:
Pursuant to Section 9-1-3A(10), two R7-1 style signs indicating AMBULANCE PARKING ONLY
BETWEEN SIGNS and two R7-201 signs indicating TOW-AWAY ZONE will be removed from
the north side of Bloomington street in the 400 block. Tow on-street parking meters will be
installed with a 5-hour meter term.
Comment:
These spaces were installed for Mercy Hospital to be used by ambulances during their
emergency room construction project. Because the construction has ended, these spaces are
no longer needed. Two on-street parking meters will be installed consistent with the rest of the
block.
Jccogtp\memos\40Oblkbfoom.doc
THOMAS J. VI L SACK OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR SALLY J. P EDER$ON
April 30, 2003
Dear Local Elected Official,
Let me start this letter with general acknowledgments. First, local govemment provides
valuable services to the people of our state. Second, as a former Mayor, I have a sense of how
hard you and other local government officials are working to provide quality services. Third,
these are tough times and you face very difficult choices that under any process will be difficult.
Finally, all local government officials have concerns about SF 453, and I want to explain why the
state approached budget reductions in the manner called for under SF 453.
Work on the fiscal year 2004 budget started with a simple fact - ongoing expenditures
still exceeded revenues. With a national recession still gripping the Iowa economy, broad tax
increases would be extremely counterproductive and difficult to achieve. I proposed several
revenue enhancements in my budget, but the legislature chose not to adopt several of them.
While this made the challenge difficult, reinvention would still have been required even if all of
our proposals had been enacted. Simply put - the State must reduce spending to balance the
budget. Frankly, no realistic scenario would hold local governments harmless from further
reductions.
We in state government have had to work with deep cuts over the last two years and
understand the difficulties of delivering services with decreasing revenues. Because of the
national recession, Iowa state government has significantly cut its general fund budget in each of
the past two fiscal years. The National Conference of State Legislatures reported that Iowa's FY
2002 general fund cut, on a percentage basis, was the largest among the 50 states. On top 0fthat,
the FY 2003 budget was also cut, for a total reduction of 7.4%. As a result, nearly 10% of the
state government workforce has been eliminated and critical services to children and families
have been reduced or eliminated.
By contrast, state assistance to city and county governments has been reduced by only
3.4% -- less than half the percentage reduction for state spending over the over the same period
of time.
In the past two years, we have implemented both targeted and across-the-board budget
reductions at the state level. While targeted ieductions make sense, the logical targets for further
cuts have been mostly eliminated. We could again implement across-the board cuts, but these
further limit the ability of government to deliver services. As a new approach, I sought
opportunities to save money and improve performance simultaneously. I chose to reform
STATE CAPITOL DES MOINES, IOWA 50319 515281-5211 FAX 515-281-661 !
April 3O, 20O3
Page 2
rather than simply subject county and local governments to across-the-board cuts for FY 2004 -
in doing so we are able to provide important tools that may make management of cuts a little less
difficult.
As I have said, Iowa's economy does not support Iowa values, and our first priority must
be to transform Iowa's economy. Part of transforming the economy is transforming government.
The local government reductions - and other reductions in the Reinventing Government Bill -
are intended to spur better ways of delivering local public service. Our challenge is to keep the
price of government down while growing the economy.
The Reinventing Government Bill includes three major reforms to help you manage the
reductions in state aid. First, we have eliminated some mandates and red tape. This action
represents a significant change in the relationship between state and local government. We will
work with you and the League of Cities and the Association of Counties to continue to change
and improve state and local relationships.
Second, Public Strategies Group, which is working with our state government department
directors, will be at your service through the aforementioned associations to help you deliver
better service in tough fiscal times. Workshops will promote a results-based approach to
budgeting and strategies for improving services with fewer dollars, and we strongly encourage
you to take advantage of this resource.
Third, ten million dollars was appropriated for a local-government Innovation Loan Fund
for cities and counties to tap for seed money for projects whose investments in biotechnology
will lead to long-term savings and performance improvements.
I realize you have concerns about the Reinventing Government Bill and urge you to
embrace it as an effective alternative to across-the-board cuts. I am optimistic you will-make the
necessary process improvements to mitigate difficult fiscal circumstances facing government
today.
Sincerely,
o~ J. Vilsack
Governor