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Home My WebLink About2024-10-01 Transcription Page 1 Council Present: Alter(via Zoom), Harmsen,Moe, Salih, Teague Staff Present: Fruin, Lehmann, Goers, Grace, Knoche, Havel, Sovers, Dumachi, Seydell- Johnson, Hightshoe, Sitzman, Trumbull Others Present: Monsivais, USG, Martinez, Alternate 1. Roll Call Teague: I'm going to call this meeting to order for the City of Iowa City on October 1st,2024. Roll call, please. [Roll Call] Welcome to everyone in your city hall and to anyone that is attending virtually. 2. Proclamation 2.a Community Planning Month Teague: We have for proclamations today, so we're going to move on to Item Number 2, 2A is Community Planning Month, and this is going to be read by Councilor Moe. Moe: (reads proclamation). And receiving the Award as Daniel Sitzman,the Development Services coordinator for our City. Sitzman: Good evening mayor and council,Daniel Sitzman. I just want say,thank you so much for this recognition during Community Planning Month. It is an honor to accept this on behalf of the dedicated planners, community members and leaders who come together every day to shape the future of our neighborhoods. Planning is about more than maps and zoning,even though it doesn't always feel that way when we gather here. It's about building communities,fostering sustainability and ensuring that our city remains a vibrant,inclusive place for all. This month is a reminder of the impact that thoughtful,inclusive planning can have on the well-being of our communities. Thank you to the city council and everyone involved for supporting this vital work. Planning turns vision into action,leading us toward a just and inclusive future. Teague: Okay. Thank you. 2.b Domestic Violence Awareness Month Teague: 2.b Domestic Violence Awareness Month will be read by Councilor Harmsen. Harmsen: (reads proclamation). And accepting the award is Alison Tippi and Alta Media from the Domestic Violence Intervention Program. Tippi: Thank you,Mayor and Council. My name's Alison Tippi, and I'm here tonight,um,representing the Domestic Violence Intervention Program and the Rape Victim Advocacy Program. As of today, actually,we are officially merged. As two programs. We are now doing sexual assault services in addition to domestic violence services. We are in a time of great change for our agency. Uh,we are opening the doors to our new emergency shelter in the next few weeks here, which is extremely exciting. We will be doubling our capacity to house victim survivors in emergency shelter and,um, also be able to expand what we're doing with emergency sheltering This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 2 to,um,allow victims of sexual assault to be a part of our sheltering program. And as we do,um, our eight County service region,we will be bringing more people in from our southern counties. We serve all the way down to Missouri and all the way over to Illinois in this corner of Southeast Iowa. So this is going to be really incredible for victim survivors. This past year in Johnson County,we served 1,919 victim survivors of domestic violence, stalking,dating violence, and human trafficking. Within that population, 1,091 of those individuals were from Iowa City. So we are continually grateful for your support of our program, and we are just so glad to have you on our side. We,um,we wouldn't be able to do this without your support. So thank you. Teague: Thank you. Congrats on the new shelter it's beautiful. Yes. 2.c Indigenous People's Day Teague: We are moving on to 2.c Indigenous Peoples Day. (reads proclamation) And receiving this proclamation will be Marie Krebs from Great Plans Action Society. Krebs: All right.First,I just want to say thank you to Iowa City. Um,it feels really good to live in a city that does try very hard to be inclusive,um,you know, and recognize all of its populations.Um, so thank you for that.Um,this gesture today is very important,um,because generally when we see indigenous representation and dominant society,um,unfortunately, it's generally one of three things,um,erasure is if we don't exist anymore, like you know something in history.And erasure so deep,um,that sadly, some of our ancestors learn to erase themselves. We also see the romanticized version,um, of us as,you know,the,uh, sacred Shaman, or,of course,the tokenized mascot. So generally,we're seeing those things,uh,in dominant society. I'm here accepting this,um,to represent that we are still here. Uh,we're not mystical creatures or human beings, and we're definitely not a mascot. Again,we're human beings. Um,yesterday was orange Shirt Day. That's a day to honor the many children who were murdered and died at the boarding schools,um, during the boarding school era in United States history. At one point up to 85%of our children were stolen away.Uh,many did not make it home. Uh,the ones that did,a lot of them,unfortunately,were pretty traumatized.Um,yesterday, I saw a woman share her relatives boarding school record, and by the name of her relative, it said ran. The relative had ran.Um, and it was in that successful act of defiance that allowed her to come onto this earth. So I want to honor our ancestors who literally risked their lives to allow us ours.Um,the ones that risk their lives to keep our traditions and our teachings alive,because those were illegal,too until 1978,the year that I was born. Um,I want to honor the people who are currently working to revitalize our cultures,who are learning our languages,things that were lost through that boarding school era. Um, and it's because of all of these countless sacrifices that we're here today, able to celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day.Um,I'm so honored to accept this proclamation. I'm honored to be here. Um, again, I just want to thank the city. I want to thank the city of Iowa City, our allies, our community supporters,um, and all the amazing people who showed up today. Um, and just one last note, I learned today that Joe Colter passed away.He's a prominent member of the indigenous community here in Iowa City. He started the Iowa First Nations Program many-many years ago. He was one of my professors. When I came here as a baby at 18,uh, one of my only indigenous professors. So I just wanted to honor his name today.And again,thank you. Teague: Thank you,Thank you for your words, and let's take a moment of silence for Joe Colter. We do know him.Yes. Thank you. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 3 2.d National Disabilities Employment Awareness Month Teague: 2d is National Disabilities Employment Awareness Month, and this is going to be read by Mayor Pro Tem Salih. Salih: (reads proclamation). And here to accept is Dr. James Williams and Monica Brockway from Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services. Williams: Thank you so much,uh,City Council and Mayor, on behalf of Iowa Workforce Developments VR Division, and my colleague, Director Beth Townsend. I want to thank all of you for this proclamation and for recognizing that people with disabilities are not just valuable members of our community that can contribute,but they're also valuable workers in Iowans that bring something to the table every day, ah, in their lives. Um,I have the amazing privilege of representing an agency that has 250 staff across 13 offices,uh,that serves individuals with disabilities every day and helps them obtain competitive integrated employment.Uh,it's a dream job. I tell people that all the time. I couldn't do anything else if I couldn't imagine it. I couldn't imagine doing anything more valuable. So I just want to thank you for that work.Um, obviously, I believe that every day and every month is disability employment Awareness Month. Um,but certainly this month is when we recognize it, and really want to push it forward. Um,my colleague,Monica Brockway is our supervisor for Iowa City Office is now,um, going to read a poem that she created,um,to close us out. Thank you. Teague: Thank you. Brockway: Thank you, James. Teague: Yes. Brockway: Thank you,Council. It's not the fact that we care that sets Iowa City apart. It's the action we take. Collaboration is an art. Disability inclusion and employment allows us all to agree that all have the right to explore what our dream job could be. Let's allow competitive integrated employment to take center stage. Let's acknowledge that accessible employment is more than its wage. In addition to the UNESCO status and great basketball,we're a community that prides itself on accessibility and inclusion for all. Innovative solutions,when there's a will,there's a way. Thank you,Iowa City for the proclamation today. Teague: All right. Thank you both. And thanks to everybody that came for the proclamations. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 4 8. Community Comment Teague: We're moving on to our Item number 8,which is community comment. This is an opportunity for the public to come and comment on things that are not on our agenda.And if you are here and you want to speak,please raise your hand. Great. We have two in-present. All right. Welcome. Ross: Hey, folks. It's Indigenous people's Day. Palestinians are indigenous people.And they're being bombed into Oblivion in Gaza with US,ah,arms.And I do believe that in respect for our own Indigenous people's Day,that we should be on the phones, in the streets,on the typers,we should be protesting as good Iowa Citians,if we want to really celebrate Indigenous people's Day,I have a quote here from Kurt Vonnegut's book, Slaughterhouse-Five,Kurt Vonnegut used to live here, and he taught here. He went to school here.And he wrote this book while he was in Iowa City. And he said in his book,this is just taken out of the context of the book. I have told my sons that they are not-that they are not under any circumstance to take part in massacres. And that the news of massacres of enemies is not to fill them with any satisfaction. I have also told them not to work for companies,which manufacture the machines of massacre. And I have told them to express contempt for people who think we need the making of those weapons. Slaughterhouse- Five,Kurt Vonnegut.Martin Luther King,Christmas Sermon, December 24th, 1967. Wisdom born of experience should tell us that war is obsolete. There may have been a time when war served as a negative good by preventing an evil force,but the very destructive power of modern weapons of warfare eliminates even the possibility that war may any longer serve any good.And so if we assume that life is worth living, if we assume that mankind has a right to survive,then we must find an alternative to war. Right now,we're on-we're on the brink of nuclear confrontation with Russia. We have demonized Russia through propaganda for the past It's probably been ten years now. And right now,people think that the good thing is to basically bomb. The other day Zelensky,now a lapse president,his term ran out. Was in Scranton,Pennsylvania with,ah, Governor Shapiro signing bombs. It was an autograph session. That's perverse. What we need to do is stop the escalation. We need to call. We need to write. We need to be in the streets. We need to stand up now. Teague: Please state your name and city you're from for the record, please. Ross: Mayor. That's a good outfit,by the way. Teague: Thank you. Ross: Brandon Ross. Uh, and where I'm from,by the way,Mr.Harmsen,you have a good radio voice. Harmsen: Thank you. Ross: Iowa City,Iowa, 1822 Rochester Avenue. Teague: Thank you-thank you. Ross: All right. Take care folks. Teague: Welcome. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 5 Norbeck: Good evening.Martha Norbeck. Iowa City Iowa. Um,I am here tonight to follow up on some conversations we had earlier this summer. Um,I came before you several times,ah,regarding the TIF language. There's some updates to the TIF,uh,climate action section of that text of the TIF policy.And,uh, and that was passed on September 3rd.Um,I was heading off to vacation and managed to read the-the draft text, and I was like, Oh,that looks good. And so I was able to enjoy my vacation,knowing that the updates were-were solid. And,um,what I really like about the change is,uh, it clearly states your intent. Um, and your goals and your ambitions,but also allows flexibility within that text, and the way it was phrased, and- and thank you,Councilor Moe, for making that-that flexibility integral into those words that was well done.Um, and this leads me to my favorite LEAD credit. So when they updated LEAD to what's called LEAD V4, which is the version that's currently in force,they added a new credit called the Integrative Process credit. And this is the credit that if you want to earn it,you have to start at the very beginning of your project.At the very beginning,you set goals, and you communicate your intent. What do we want to accomplish here? What are we excited about?Is daylight really important to us?Is energy efficiency important? Is it important to reduce the embodied carbon of the materials we're using to build the building?Do we care about accessibility to transit?These are our goals, and these are the things that we're going to use to guide our design process?That is the integrated process credit. It is the most powerful tool I have in executing lead on every single project,because ex stating those intent up front,help communicate that to the entire team and your staff and everyone involved in the project. And that's what you've done with this TIF policy. You've communicated your intent,but allowed flexibility. That is good language. So thank you for doing that. I really appreciate you taking the time. I know you wanted to get that RFP out,but I- I am very glad you slowed down so that you could take that opportunity to be really clear in communicating your climate action goals.And I am excited to see what comes out of that,uh, RFP process. So thank you. Teague: Thank you. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 6 9. Planning&Zoning Matters 9.a Zoning Code Amendment—Tobacco Sales Oriented Retail Uses-Ordinance amending Title 14, entitled "Zoning Code",to address tobacco sales oriented retail uses. (REZ24-0006) Teague: All right. We're going to move on to Planning and Zoning matters, 9 A Zoning is Code Amendment,tobacco sales oriented retail uses. This is the ordinance amending Title 14 entitle zoning code to address tobacco sales oriented retail uses. I'm going to open the public hearing. And I'm going to invite our city attorney to start us off. 1. Public Hearing Goers: Thank you,Mayor. Against my better judgment. I'm going to go to the podium and present a very short power point present. All right. All right. Well,of course,normally,you would have a representative of the planning department before you to offer such things,but because this was a counsel driven initiative,uh,it falls to me. Of course,council was well aware of the history of how we got here,but I thought I would summarize briefly for the benefit of the public both online and physically present. This was a matter that counci considered over the course of several work sessions and ultimately decided to pursue a zoning ordinance that would allow,or I should say, would require the separation of,uh,tobacco retail uses by at lease 500 feet, also to require separation by at least 500 feet between tobacco retailers and school property and university owned property. And so that was the,uh, draft ordinance that I created, and,uh,with the heavy assistance of our planning department, I should note, and presented that to,uh,planning and zoning for their consideration. They,uh,considered that,uh,Well, shoot. Let me get ahead. They considered it,uh,at their I want to say September 3rd meeting. I hope I have that date correctly. Uh,but they,uh,ah,ultimately recommended approval,uh, for Council on a vote of five to one. Uh,the concerns that were raised were,uh,twofold. One,the absence of a special exception availability. That is,it's a pretty strict ordinance, either you meet the requirements,or you do not. Um, and that's kind of the end of the discussion.Uh, and two,there was a question about whether, uh,nicotine retail,uh,uh,replacement therapy, such as nicotine patches,nicotine gum,nicotine lozenges,uh,would be affected by this ordinance. Ultimately, I concluded they would not, and because I was able to confirm with the state that those products do not require a tobacco permit, and thus this ordinance would not apply,uh,to them.An example of that is already present in Iowa City,the downtown Target store sells those products,but does not have a tobacco,uh, permit. So the next slide before you,um,well, shoot, let me see if I can go back one. So here is kind of an overview,kind of a wide shot of the City of Iowa City. You will see on it the-the various buffers that are present both in blue for the presence of current tobacco retailers and in yellow and orange for the presence of schools and university owned property. So you get some sense as to areas that would be forbidden under this ordinance to locate in the future in areas that would be available.Ali, on the next slide,I'm zeroing in a little bit in the downtown area. So you have some sense as to the density there.As you can see,there is very little area of downtown that would be available for subsequent retailers. Likewise,this is the Highway 1 and Highway 6 corridor. As you can see, as well,there are some areas where they could be located in the future, but not as many because of present retail uses.Um, as I mentioned,uh,planning and zoning at their, ah,meeting did recommend approval by five-one.Uh,I should also note that we made one technical change, ah,that is change number eight in the ordinance to make sure that the grandfather rights that were discussed elsewhere in the ordinance did not fall under the default provisions of the zoning code that would call for grandfather rights to,uh,elapse after one year. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 7 And so I just want to point out that that was a change that was made after planning and zoning consideration of this.Uh,I believe that's all. I'd be happy to answer any questions. I see that I got the date wrong. It was September 4th,not September 3rd. Teague: Will you talk about the lapse after one year because the council talked about a 60-day? Goers: You right. So the draft ordinance before you tonight has grandfather rights that have two components. One is that if the tobacco permit lapses for a period of 60 days or more,then the grandfather rights would be extinguished. The other is whether or if the tobacco sales oriented use ceases, for example, for remodeling work or a change in ownership, something like that,that's 90 days. I should note there are a couple of other reasons for which grandfather rights would be extinguished. The first is if the tobacco permit is revoked. The last is if there has been a change of use,that is a current tobacco retailer you know,it becomes a clothing store. Well, as soon as that happens,that grandfather right would be extinguished. Teague: Okay. Thanks. Goers: Sure. Are there any other questions for me? Teague: No. Thank you. Goers: Thank you. Teague: Anyone from the public would like to address this topic?If you're online,please raise your virtual hand, and I'll call upon you. If you're in the audience,please raise your hand, so no,please welcome. Villeta: Hello. Do I need to sign in? Teague: Yes. Please. Villeta: Okay.Uh,I am Susan Villeta, and I work for Johnson County Public Health. Teague: And what city do you live in? Villeta: I actually live in Swisher. Teague: Welcome. Villeta: Yeah. Thanks. I want to commend local business owners and the council for recognizing the abundance of tobacco retailers, in Iowa City,as was pointed out on the map, and issuing a moratorium on new licenses to sort of collect,you know,what can we do about this issue with always keeping public health as a main concern. Um,the amount of retailers and accompanying and advertising makes tobacco and nicotine use seem really normal and socially acceptable. So this ordinance, limiting retailer density and proximity to youth and young adult oriented places, is definitely aligned with public health guidance to reduce density.Because when more tobacco retailers in a given area,residents health suffers. Youth are more likely to start using tobacco and nicotine products. Those that are trying to quit have a harder time quitting.And this also helps ensure retailers who aren't clustered in neighborhoods with a high percentage of lower income This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 8 residents or residents of color, something the tobacco industry has sort of been known for doing. I do want to add that increasing the distance from 500-750 or a 1,000 feet and beyond and instituting a set number or a cap of tobacco retailers could produce even greater results. In 2016, there were 55 tobacco retailers in Iowa City. Currently,there are 62 with the unfortunate popularity of all these newer vaping products and brands and flavors and the pouches. This number could grow without some sort of a cap.But thanks again for helping reduce the influence of tobacco and nicotine in our community. Teague: Great. Thank you. Anyone else like to address this topic? See no one in person or online. I'm going to close the public-before I close the public hearing.Now, I can't see you,Councilor Alter, uh,but are folks inclined to agree with P&Z?And Councilor Alter,I'm going to need your,um, verbal. Alter: I [INAUDIABLE]. Yes, I- I agree with P&Z. 2. Consider an Ordinanance (First Consideration) Teague: Great. All right. I'm going to close the public hearing. Could I- could I get a motion to give first consideration? Salih: Move. Salih. Moe: Second,Moe. Teague: All right. Council discussion. Moe: Um,what are our requirements with a zoning issue with a less than full council? Goers: A good question. So because it's an ordinance,uh, and this is the same as true of resolutions,a majority of all council members are required. So four,uh,if it is a motion,which is not this,but later tonight,if you encounter a motion, only a majority of those present would be required,three. Moe: Thank you. Okay. Well, from my point of view,this is what we asked for and what we've been talking about for the better part of the year, and I know that the public health experts want more, but I think we've struck a reasonable balance here. We're all aware that there's clustering, and they're clustering near youth.And so this is at least one tool we have to help that. So I will vote for this. Salih: Yeah, I-I agree,too,because this is initiated by us, I think, and we talked about it a lot, s,um, going to vote yes for it. Harmsen: Yeah. Everything that's just been said, I echo that, and it's a public health concern, and I think it's reasonable to keep the clustering from becoming even more concentrated and to keep away from schools. Alter: I agree. Teague: All right. Um, so I think it is absolutely a public health, as we heard from Susan concern in our community. Vaping is something that we're seeing everywhere. Uh,people do it inside buildings This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 9 when they're not supposed to. Um,it is a huge concern. I still have the one concern about the ceasing of sales if a business is closed or not selling tobacco for 90 days.Um,we see right now there's a grocery it used to be Kum& Go right there by Mormon Track and Benton.Um, and I have concerns because if a business goes to renovate their,you know,property,we hear from our engineers today. Things are delayed.Ninety days is not enough time. If there is a way for us to do some type of a optional waiver,I would not really re-like a waiver. I would suggest that we do what we do with downtown for alcohol,which is one year, is what we do for alcohol. If a person has not,you know, started selling alcohol or taken over that business within one year,then has ceased. I don't think that it is the right thing for council to do when someone maybe renovating their space,trying to figure out financial concerns. We have some individuals that are minorities that own some of these properties, and sometimes getting loans, as we know for minorities are a challenge. Um,that is the only thing that I'm requesting is that the council would consider not 90 days,but one year if the sales cease. Salih: And how did we come up with the 90 days?I really don't remember that. Like,we are the one who decided on the 90 days? Teague: Yes. Moe: Is that substantial. Is that change substantial enough that we would need to send this back to planning and zoning? Goers: That's close.Um,with the while I'm thinking about that for a moment,their question is as how we came to 90 days. I originally drafted it at 60 days,which was arbitrary, on my part.Um, and then council discussed it about what they wanted to do and settled on 90.And so I made that change before presenting it to planning and zoning. Um, I think that that is probably a small enough change that I would consider that non substantial. Sahli: Ca- can we just,like, change the vote with the amendment of the one year and vote for it today? Goers: If a council member were to offer a motion, and it'd be accompanied by a second to amend the section that we're discussing,which is from Section 7 of the ordinance am amending Title 14 Chapter 4,Article E, Section 5, subsection H to for the portion that speaks to the tobacco sales oriented use ceasing for a period of 90 days,then that is something that council could amend tonight,if it so chose. Salih: I think this,yeah.Now I guess know about this. I think this is make sense to change it and making the same thing like alcoholic like one year. That's what will be my amendment. Alter: I just have a-a point of I guess a point for discussion. If someone is a small business owner and this is a significant portion of how they're garnering their sales,would this not be a top priority?I guess that's one of the sticking points for me is certainly, I do not want to penalize or-or punish small business owners.But the flip side is, I mean,this is a foundational part of their businesses making sure that they have their permits. So I guess I'm just wondering to-to give them so much time. Teague: I think you make a good point as far as, like,wouldn't this be a priority for people? I can tell you, countless times I have spoke to people in our community, and I know Mayor Pro Tem.And I just had a conversation with the lady that owns a restaurant. She- she opened it, and all the regulations This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 10 that went with it,it-it took her forever to figure it out.And so when we're talking about whatever the reason they closed, for there are so many reasons that a business might cease sales, 90 days, for so many reasons,may not be the right length of time for that,you know,business. We see from downtown where we have the 500 foot rule for alcohol, and that has worked. People,you know, get in gear to get it reopened within that one year's time,or else they'll lose,you know,that opportunity. And so I- I-I just know I can tell my own personal stories,but 90 days is not enough time for some individuals that really do,um,you know,want to operate. It-it may not even be, you know,total sale of,you know,tobacco as other things that they may be selling in their establishment. And for whatever reasons,they may not be able to move as quickly as you know, as we would like them to. So I'm just asking that we consider it to be the same as the alcohol use that is already in place in the Downtown district. Salih: I would like to put a motion to amend this the same description that our city attorney describe it. All the reading that you read to make it one year. Teague: Okay. Motion by Salih. Salih: Second,we need second. Teague: I guess I'll second. That's not typical. Seconded by Teague. Harmsen: I have a question for the city attorney.Um,when it says,I'm just trying to there's just a lot here, and I can't remember specifically. Does this-we're looking at 7H1C, does that include a change of ownership?Does-does basically the grandfather right attached to the property or to the owner of the- Goers: To the property. Harmsen: Yeah. So if somebody was like,wanted to put it up for sale and it was 11 months later,they could still sell it, and the new owner of that property could still maintain the- Goers: Under the proposed amendment,that would be true. Yes. Otherwise, it would be 90 days. Although I would note,it has been typically my experience that businesses that are for sale remain in business and continuing to sell.For example,there's the shoot,I forget the current business name,but it's under contract to be a Casey's on the Northeast side of town. That business remains open and continuing to sell tobacco, and I presume,we'll seamlessly continue to do so upon the closure of that sale. Harmsen: Hypothetical. I-I sell or I'm a clothing store. I buy a former tobacco shop. I set up clothing. Eleven months later,I decide I want to start selling cigarettes along with my dresses and jeans and shirts, is that?Correct. Allowable? Goers: Well,if you- Harmsen: See what I'm going with? Goers: I-I think so.But if-if you were not a tobacco retail licensee or permitee to begin with, then there would be no grandfather rights to protect.. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 11 Salih: But yeah,if you have it already,Yes,you want to wait one year until you open it for some reason. Goers: Right. If I can change your hypothetical just a little bit,if-if it is currently a tobacco primity, and then they change to sell t shirts to use your example. That would be a change of use under 7H1D, and then the grandfather rights would be immediately eliminated. Harmsen: Perfect. Thank you for that clarification. Moe: I guess the goal of this is to not take away license from people,but through attrition,hopefully reduce the clustering and reduce the quantity near schools. I don't think we should be making it easier to maintain cluster and easier to be close to schools.And it's also hard for me to imagine, um,the analogy or the similar situation you use was a kitchen or a restaurant. That's very complicated. Public health has to come. They have to inspect your kitchen-kitchen equipment's expensive,but long lead times is very expensive. Tobacco retailing is just a space. Like, I mean, it's not-it's not as complicated as a kitchen. It's hard for me to imagine it taking more than 90 days to change the carpet and ceiling tiles. I just-I don't- I don't-I don't see this as it's written being problematic. Salih: But if-if it's not problematic, and also it will be good just in case, if somebody need it-needed it. Why not,we go ahead and do it? Moe: Because it would-it would I think reduce the goals that we are trying to achieve. Our goal is to say, sorry to say,we have a problem right now. We identified this problem of we have clustering, which encourages smoking and youth tobacco use. We have them close to schools,or targeting children. We wanted to move them away. That's our stated goal is to-is to like,have less clustering and further away from schools,but still allow it because it's legal, and is-that's fine? We're not saying no.But 90 days is-we is could say zero days,but 90 days is the grace period. So I'm-I'm inclined- Salih: You mean- Moe: I'm inclined to say that this is-this is right, as it's written. Salih: You mean we need-we really doing this, so we're waiting for that business to fail on renewing in 30 days, so we can-in 90 days so they are no longer in business, and this way,we reduce the amount of business that we have. Moe: Well,I think if- if a business goes out of business. Salih:Not go out of buses. Moe: And then we would-we would hope that eventually it would become something other than tobacco resale,right?Like,that would be our goal is that if-if a business, or retailer were to go out of business,that something not tobacco store would move into that space, especially close to schools and close to other retailers. I think extending it to a year reduces the potency of-of- Teague: I- I think in that example,you're exactly right.We're-we're trying to reduce somehow.But the example that I'm giving is,if there is an existing owner because I've talked to lots of owners different businesses,myself included,where you think you're going to do something in 90 days, This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 12 and it doesn't happen and- and that's the issue that I have with this. I don't believe that 90 days is an appropriate amount of time for an existing owner. Yes, if they know it,then maybe they'll figure it out.But if-if someone is renovating their space,Kum&Go on, for instance,they-they have a small building,now they want to renovate it. It will would not take-it could take more than 90 days, and I don't think that that's the right thing for us to-with an existing-because things need updated. Moe: True. Teague: The county just got renovated, and not I mean,those are-these are different,you know, sizes,but even still, even if it's a small parcel, 90 days may not be the right amount of time,but that's-that's all I'm,you know, suggesting is,if you want to do more stipulations,where it's only current owner for one,you know, one year,that's what I'm trying to just,you know,push out there that- that one year for a current owner.Any other options,yes,it would be,you know,probably not an issue.But- Salih: We have a motion on the floor anyway, and [inaudible ] Teague: So- so as motion and I second it, any other discussions? Goers: Just one thing I would add,I'm agnostic on the motion,but,um,remember that council,uh,you know,has imposed previously the one year for alcohol that's been in effect for years and years and there was a good reason to make an exception,uh,downtown in the Tailwinds project that was located there, and so there was amendment that was made to accommodate that. The same thing could be true.Now, of course,that would be future council- Teague: And how many people were pissed off about that and continue to come to us about that? Goers: Okay. Fair enough. Alter: So before we go to vote,um,I just-is this appropriate for me to-we're not done with discussion, correct? Moe: No. We're not. Discussing the amendment. Alter: Okay. I guess I was going to say, I-I,you know,I-I asked the question about wouldn't this- therefore doing what you knowing the time limit,would that not become a priority? I recognize that I asked that.Um,however, I do understand, I am all in favor of making things,um,as not just transparent,but,kind of, clear as possible in terms of logic.And well,my heart still says,I think that if your business depends on having a tobacco license and you have been in business as someone who can sell tobacco,you would make it a priority so in my heart, I say three months is fine,but I am willing to say,based on the fact that there is a one year provision for liquor licenses. I can certainly see that. If there were not that,I would not be in favor of this at all because I still feel that some-the-the people if-if their livelihood depends on them being able to sell tobacco,then that becomes top of the list, as the same thing as renovating their HVAC.Um, but I just want to say I understand the logic of having it be clear across the board as far as what the grace periods are, so I just wanted to throw that out there. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 13 Teague: Any other discussion?Roll call,please. Moe: We are voting. Goers: Just so we're clear. Teague: This is,uh,voting on the amendment of Number 7 from 90 days to one year. Goers: Correct. Teague: Item Number C. Goers: Right. [Roll Call] Teague: Motion fails. Goers: Actually,I think the motion. It passes. Salih: It passes. Goers: With three. Salih: It passes with three. Yes.with the current council,the majority of the current council. Goers: Yes. Right.Because it's-that's a motion to amend, and motions require a majority of council members present so that pass. Teague: Got it. Goers: Now,having amended it to one year,you are returning to the original motion to pass the ordinance that requires four votes to pass. Teague: Got it. Understood.All right. I stand corrected. Motion passes 3 -2. So we're back to the original motion with the amendment and council discussion. Moe: Let's vote. Salih: Yeah. We finish. Moe: I don't have anything more,Mr. Mayor. Teague: All right. Roll call,please. [Roll Call] Motion passes 5-0. We are- can I get a motion to accept correspondence? Moe: So moved. Salih: I second. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 14 Teague: Moved by Moe, seconded by Salih. All in favor say aye. [Voice Vote]Aye. Any oppose'? Motion passes 5-0. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 15 10. Regular Formal Agenda 10.a I2024 Iowa City Parks Improvements Project—Resolution approving project manual an estimate of the cost for the construction of the 2024 Iowa City Parks Improvement Project, establishing an amount of bid, security to accompany each bid, directing city clerk to post notice to bidders, and fixing time and place for receipt of bids. Teague: All right we're going to go to regular formal agenda items. We're at 10.a,2024 Iowa City Park's Improvement Project,resolution improvement project manual, an estimate of the cost for the construction of the 2024 Iowa City Parks Improvement Project, establishing an amount of bid, security to accompany each bid, directing city clerk to post notice to bidders, and fixing time and place for receipt of bids. I'm going to open the public hearing and welcome. 1. Public Hearing Seydell Johnson: Hey,Juli Seydell Johnson,Director of parks and recreation. Here tonight to talk to you about four locations for this project. Um,four more steps towards the completion of our 2017 Park Master Plan. We're-we're getting towards the end. This is pretty exciting.Uh,these four projects had their public input meetings,uh,back on May seventh or eighth. They were held at the Robert A. Lee Rec Center. We had a good showing for-we did not do one for Calder Park, that's the trail project.But the other three parks had a nice turnout. We had,um,opportunities for kids and families and adults to come in and give their input into playground choices and priorities for their park projects. We also did an online survey for 10 days after that and I don't have the statistics with me tonight,but we had a very nice showing from all three locations, a nice cross section of the community around each one. So the plans that we're showing to you tonight are based largely on that public input. The first location is the new park area, and that's on Shannon Drive in the very far west side of the community,um,butts up next to City High,I'm sorry,West High[LAUGHTER] my directions is right here,uh,West High. This is a new park land that was recently came to us through neighborhood open space park dedication. Um,it had been-the land had been developing for some time,but it took quite a while for us to actually get the dedication. Um,it is one of the areas called out in the park master plan is needing more active use recreation space so this does this quite nicely.And then later on,tonight,there's another agenda item for you to actually name this park. Other than just the new park on Shannon Drive. Uh,the park will have a very small,uh, circular trail along with a playground and a small shelter so no restrooms. Uh, we did at one point show a fire ring in this area,the neighborhood did not want that, so it's taken out. We did have some neighbors to the north that were a little concerned about the park development. We were actually able earlier this summer to go in and plant a nice row of trees between the park land and their properties to get prepared,um, for the new active uses in this area. And this is the playground, small playground and swing that will be at this location. Okay. The next park on the west side is Brooklyn Park. Uh,this park was ready to celebrate its 100th anniversary,uh,this summer. We're going to hold off until we- and do the actual celebration once the new park equipment is in place. Had older playground equipment, some of the older playground equipment that we had in the city so what we're recommending, and it also had some very-um,we felt serious accessibility concerns for having paved paths to get to the playground equipment. So the-the layout of the park does not really change. We're getting a new playground equipment in a basically the same location,but we're adding an accessible path to the area. The rest of the park has kind of a natural trail around it,that will stay the same as a nice connection through the south end,that will stay. Uh, and this is the playground equipment that's been chosen for Brooklyn Park.Uh this is being paid for through neighborhood open space funds from some This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 16 of the larger developments that have happened surrounding it so we had enough in that district to pay for these park renovations. The next one is College Green Park. Uh,this is not a full renovation of the park. This is simply a renovation of the playground and the basketball court area. One of the most heavily used basketball courts that we know of in all of our park system. Uh, so what this will do is, it does change the shape, somewhat of the playground,kind of keeping it within that same quadrant of the park.But it rebuilds the basketball court,resurfaces, rebuilds it.You can see we've added a little circle up in the top left corner of the basketball all. Anybody want to guess? Teague: Caitlyn Clarks. Seydell Johnson: Caitlyn Clark's,uh,place of shooting will be up there. Her sweet spot and this will be the playground equipment that goes in at College Green Park.And the last site is at Calder Park. Uh,this used to be Hickory Trail Park was renamed a few years ago,just east of Hickory Hill Park,um,along Hickory Trail. Great little park.But as you can see,the distance of the playground and the shelter and the fire ring are quite a ways from Hickory Trail, and it has never had an accessible path to it. It's been a park for longer than I've been here. Uh,but that's a hillside coming down from Hickory Trail so it was very expensive and kind of a little engineering to figure out how to get this to have an accessible path. With the addition of the Monument Hills subdivision,uh,there was an opportunity for them to build the trail to the east and cross the creek that's at the east side of this park so this trail will then connect the Monument Hills subdivision all the way up into the rest of our trail system in Hickory Hill. So you can see it has a switchback brings the trail down. We have actually changed it since this particular drawing. Um,the drawing on the top left shows it going through the middle of the playground. We had some concerns from the neighbors when they saw that, and so it's been shifted a little bit to the right in the final plan, so it doesn't go right through the middle of the playground. Schedule a public hearing tonight. With your approval,we'll go out to bid. Construction will happen most likely in the early spring. The playground equipment has already all been purchased. Two of the pieces are already in our yard at the parks maintenance shop.Uh, so it'll be ready to go in the spring when we hit construction again.Any questions? Teague: Any questions?None at all. Thank you.All right. Anyone from the public like to address this topic. If you are online,please raise your virtual hand. I see no one in person or online. I'm going to close the public hearing. 2. Consider a Resolution Teague: Can I get a motion to approve,please? Moe: So moved,Moe. Alter: Second Alter. Teague: All right. Council discussion. Very nice editions.Beautiful. Moe: I appreciate. Alter: Yes. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 17 Moe: I-I very much appreciate the focus on making all these parks accessible. I know sometimes people complain and they're like,why are we updating this park? Then when we explain it's to improve accessibility,people say,well,that makes sense. That's the right thing to do so I appreciate the focus on that, and we're almost done. Seydell Johnson:No,we just started it. Teague: [Roll Call] Yes. Motion passes,uh, 5-0. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 18 10.b Normandy Drive Storm Sewer Porject—Resolution approving project manual, an estimate of costs for the construction of the normandy drive storm sewer project. Establish an amount of bids security to accompany each bid, director and city clerk to post notice to bidders and fixing time and place for receipt of bids. Teague: We're at item number 10.b,Normandy Drive Storm Sewer Project,resolution approving project manual, an estimate of costs for the construction of the normandy drive storm sewer project. Establish an amount of bids security to accompany each bid, director and city clerk to post notice to bidders and fixing time and place for receipt of bids. I'm going to open the public hearing and welcome, Scott. 1. Public Hearing Sovers: Good evening,Mayor and Council, Scott Sovers, assistant city engineer. So this project is,uh, located on-along Normandy Drive,just to the-on the west side of Normandy Drive, approximately 500 feet north of the Ashton House. The improvements generally include replacement of a 54-inch by 36-inch corrugated,uh,metal,uh storm sewer pipe that's in poor condition, and we'll be replacing it with two-excuse me,two, 36-inch reinforced concrete pipes. Uh,we also be installing a gate structure that allows us to close off the storm sewer when the river is up, so we can prevent flooding of Normandy Drive during high river flows.Uh, replacement of pavement that's in poor condition.And then as well as replacement of sidewalks that need to be removed and replaced to be able to install the new storm sewer. And then there are a number of smaller trees that were planted as a part of another project, and so we are going to relocate those to protect them. The estimated construction cost for the project is 395,000.As far as schedule goes,we're having the public hearing tonight. The bid opening is planned for October 23rd, award at your November 4th meeting, and then completion is scheduled for May 31 st of next year with construction starting early spring. That's what I have for my presentation. I'd be happy to answer any questions you guys may have. Harmsen: Real quick. I was just talking with a friend of mine the other day about my being happy to living in a place where we can actually say out loud,we plan for things like climate change and big weather events, and I noticed this is a doubling of the capacity. Sovers: Yep. Harmsen: Is that part of-is melded in with our ongoing efforts to make our community more resilient? Sovers: Absolutely.Yep.Absolutely,especially since we're adding that gate structure that allows us to-to shut off the storm sewer. Should the water raise enough where we start getting surcharging of the storm sewer. Harmsen: Okay,thank you. Moe: So this is a pipe that takes water from the street and discharges it into the river? Sovers: Correct. Moe: Is there a way to not discharge it into the river to use storm water management that would allow it to go move to the soils on site?Is that possible in this low laying area? This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 19 Sovers: It's probably possible. I mean, I think you'd have to create maybe a detention area some sort. Moe: The city owns that property,right? Sovers: Right. I think there's,you know, as far as the buyouts go,I think there's limited things that we can do with those properties,if I'm right. Moe: Okay. Can we go back a slide? Sovers: Sure. Moe: Just getting water to the river quickly used to be the way-the right way to do everything, and now there's a second way of thinking about it is how do we slow it down and clean it up before it gets to the river?And I know that that's existing.But it's in-we're increasing the capacity to do that,as I understand. Sovers: We are increasing the capacity to be able to handle the existing drainage that's there. So drainage is going to be getting there. It's just how quickly to get there? Harmsen: And less flooding of the street,waiting for it to drain? Sovers: Correct. Absolutely. So the same amount of flow, it's just how quickly is it going to get to the river? Moe: Right. I guess.Yeah. I guess I-would be I know that we're at the very end of this process,but it would be nice to know that we're moving in a different direction on storm water management. Teague: Any other comments or questions, actually.All right. Thank you. Sovers: Thank you. Teague: Anyone from the public like to address this topic? If you're in here,just come on up. If you're online,please raise your virtual hand. Seeing no one. I'm going to close the public hearing. 2. Consider a Resolution Teague: Can I get a motion to approve,please? Salih: So move Salih. Alter: Second Alter. Teague: All right. Council discussion. Moe: Kind of started my comments. During that conversation I guess I'm concerned,um,that I guess that we're just replacing in kind. Maybe that's not that big of a deal,but if it's an opportunity to make things better and bring a public works project into alignment with our climate action plan and or our strategic plan,we should be doing that, and I don't know if this does that. I mean,our This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 20 strategic plan specifically talks about the Iowa River improving it.Um, so I guess I'm not particularly supportive of this,but I also understand that it's a replacement in kind. Teague: What I would say is,I think it's a great opportunity for staff to hear that. And,you know,just think about this in future projects. Salih: I agree,too,because this is really good to start thinking that way. It is-will, I guess,boost our goal for Climate Action and everything.But just because this is toward the end of the project. So we can maybe just do it this time,but this is a good opportunity for any future project to be added before we-yeah like because I know it needs to be a budgeted,too, so need more money,right. So this is already done,but I agree with you totally for that. Yeah. Alter: Mayor Pro Tem,I was just going to add on to that to say that,yes,I think that one of the things we- I think we need to be front facing in the way that you just suggested for future.Um, and we need to think about what are the costs? Quite literally. I mean,there's costs to our future generations, but also dollar amounts, and how do we account for that? So I heartily agree with both you and Councilor Moe that these are things that we need to surface. And then we actually need to have those dollar discussions,too. Salih: And I'm glad you're bringing that to my attention I like. Fruin: I'll just add a couple of quick thoughts as you guys discussed this. I think the City's purchased over 100 homes in this neighborhood. So, if you just rewind from pre 2008 flood to today,the amount of impervious surfacing in this neighborhood has drastically decreased,right?We've removed rooftops,we've removed driveways, sidewalks to front doors, and those sorts of things,which all contributed to runoff,which all contributed to flooding,water quality issues, etc. So we've-we've invested along with our state and federal partners 10s of millions of dollars to create more resiliency in this neighborhood,more green space in this neighborhood. We chose at that time to do voluntary buyouts.Ultimately,this area,you know,this is still a neighborhood. We still have to anticipate those flooding situations. So getting those floodwaters out of the street are still important when that river comes up.But ultimately,our goal for this neighborhood is to have it all be parkland,which means the roads come up, and there's no road flooding issues to worry about. That's the long term strategy we're working towards. Your point's well taken. I'm not dismissing it. I just don't want us to lose the bigger picture that the city's already established a goal of creating a 100%green space. It's going to take decades to achieve because of the path that we chose at that time. And I think there is going to-probably there's going to be interim challenges like this to keep that neighborhood safe as well and getting floodwaters off the street. Teauge: All right. [Roll Call]Motion passes 4-1. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 21 10.c Riverside Dr. Pedestrian ridge at Iowa Ave.Project-Resolution Approving Project Manual, an estimate of cost for the construction of the Riverside Drive Pedestrian Bridge at Iowa Avenue Rehabilitation Project. Establishing an amount of bids, security to accompany each bid, directing city clerk to post notice to bidders, and fixing time and place for receipt of bids. Teague: We are moving on to item 10.c,Riverside Drive Pedestrian Bridge at Iowa Avenue Project, Resolution Approving Project Manual, an estimate of cost for the construction of the Riverside Drive Pedestrian Bridge at Iowa Avenue Rehabilitation Project. Establishing an amount of bids, security to accompany each bid, directing city clerk to post notice to bidders, and fixing time and place for receipt of bids. I'm going to open the public hearing and welcome. 1. Public Hearing Dumachi: Good evening,Mayor and council,Alin Dumachi, senior engineer in the Public Works Department. This evening,I'll show you a brief presentation regarding Riverside Drive Pedestrian Bridge at Iowa Avenue Rehabilitation Project. It's a really long title. Most of you are already very familiar with the project location. This bridge is situated on Riverside Drive just south of Iowa Avenue intersection.Built in the early 1960s and similar to the Burlington Street Pedestrian bridge. This pedestrian bridge has facilitated safe and efficient foot traffic for thousands of residents, students, faculty, and staff between downtown Iowa City and the University of Iowa Medical Campus. Twenty nineteen bridge inspection report revealed the need for significant rehabilitation to ensure its continued safety and functionality.As you will be able to see in the following slides,this bridge exhibits significant cracking, spalling, expose reinforcement, and general degradation of the structure.Furthermore,the outdated railings, combined with inadequate lighting and worn surfaces contribute to a visually impaired and unappealing appearance. In the next couple of slides, I will also show you the current conditions and the extent of the deterioration.You can see here clearly the concrete is falling and the reinforcement is exposed and corroded. Similarly in this photo,you can see the extent of the deterioration around the spiral ramp and under the bridge deck. This project generally include the structural concrete rehabilitation of the existing bridge, spaler ramp and stairs, structural concrete coating,expansion, joint repair, aesthetic improvements such as new hand rail,new electrical lighting, and bridge deck coating. As well as ADA improvements to the sidewalk connecting the Iowa river-river trail to the Riverside Drive sidewalk. Worth mentioning is that the new hand rail will be in the same style as the one on the Burlington Street Bridge,First Avenue,underpass, and other locations throughout the city. This project will have minimal community impact. Despite the fact that the bridge will be closed for the entire duration of the project,Pedestrian detours will be posted for the public. The contractor is allowed to work seven days a week, daytime or nighttime, and any lane closures on Riverside Drive will be limited to between the hours of 9:00 PM and 6:00 AM. Um,in this slide, is basically a typical lane closure. On the left,you can see the hashed out area showing the inside lane closure and on the right side,the outside lane closure,which is very typical for this type of work under-under bridges.As for the construction timeline and cost,the anticipated construction start date is May 19th after the commencement ceremonies are completed, and the construction completion expected to be August 15th,a week before students come back to class. The estimated cost of construction is 1.3 million and this cost is shared three ways due to the joint ownership of the bridge between Iowa DOT,University of Iowa, and City of Iowa City. The portion that the City of Iowa City will be responsible for is 25%, and that translates to roughly 325,000. The bid letting is expected to take place October 24th of this year, This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 22 and with award hopefully November 4th.And with that, I'm very more than happy to take any questions you might have. Moe: Is this-were these corkscrew bridges,were they designed by Ned Ashton, are they historic in their nature? Dumachi: They are historic,yes. This one, I believe,was built before Burlington Street Bridge. Even though it's similar, it's a slightly different-different structure. This one is cast in place slab,while the Burlington Street bridge is composite steel beam with a concrete deck on top.But as you could probably see from the first slide,the design plans were actually from 1960- 1960, and this bridge was built shortly- shortly after. So I would assume probably 1963 or'64. And Burlington Bridge was after that. Moe: And then what will it look like when it's done with these repairs?You know, I'm curious,a new concrete old concrete. It looks like it maybe had been painted once. Like what's the-it's kind of a very visible part of Iowa City. I'm curious,like what's it going to look like? Dumachi: I'm glad you asked. So currently there are no lights on the bridge at all.And with this project, we will attempt to restore some of its original appearance. For example, I don't know if you can see my cursor.But we probably will have-have we will have pole lighting on the bridge just as before. Right now,we don't have any.And we'll also have under bridge lighting. I can show you some typical lights that we'll be using. The top images,the flood lighting to be used in the spiral- in the spiral section of the bridge, and the bottom image pole luiminaire that will go on the bridge deck itself. Teague: Razzle dazzle. Sovers: Scotts Sovers assistant city engineer,just also want to add that there is a coating that they're going to be applying on the bridge deck, so any areas that we're going to patch will all match in the end because that coat. Moe: I was worried it was going to have a Frankenstein look at the end. Sovers: No. Dumachi: As for the gaurd rail or hand rail.You look something similar to this one. The top one is from First Avenue underpass, and the bottom image is actually from the Burlington Street pedestrian bridge. Teague: Any other questions? Dumachi: Thank you. Teague: Thank you.Anyone from the public like to address this topic? If you're online,please raise your virtual hand. See no one in person or online. I'm going to close the public hearing. 2. Consider a Resolution This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 23 Teague: Could I get a motion to approve,please? Salih: Move by Salih. Teague: Move by-move by Alter seconded by Salih. Council discussion. [Roll Call].Motion passes is 5- 0. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 24 10.d Approval of the FY24 PRO Housing Grant Application -.Resolution approving Iowa City is Fiscal 24,Pathways to removing obstacles to housing. The PRO Housing grant. Application to help address barriers leading to the acute scarcity of affordable housing in Iowa City. Teague: Item 10.d, approval of the fiscal year 2024,PRO Housing Grant Application. Resolution approving Iowa City is Fiscal 24,Pathways to removing obstacles to housing. The PRO Housing grant. Application to help address barriers leading to the acute scarcity of affordable housing in Iowa City. I'm going to open with staff present, so welcome. 1. Public Comment Turnbull: Hello.Uh, Sam Turnbull,the grant specialist.Um,as you know,we recently received the FY23 PRO Housing grant funds and the amount of 3.75 million. Had introduced the second round of those funds shortly after. We received that allocation, so this is an application for the FY24 PRO Housing funds in the amount of 2 million in grant funds, and then 1 million in Iowa City funds as leverage with the application. Um,the projects contemplated in this grant application build on the ones that um,we plan to fund with the FY23 PRO Housing funds and include a comprehensive update to the zoning and subdivision codes.Um, funds for building capacity of affordable housing non-profits,a land banking project for future Affordable Housing Development, and then Project Administration Funds.Um we released this draft application on September 16th.Um,it needed a 15 day public comment period. To date,we haven't received any comments, and then after the public hearing today um,we would submit the application to HUD. It's due by October 15, and I can take any questions. Alter: If I may. I didn't want to hop on anyone at else's words, so I have a question about uh,it sounds like the-the main focus is going to be on continued work for those who are unhoused, and then additionally for land banking. Is-is that correct? Turnbull: The-I wouldn't say for folks who are unhoused necessarily,the- the focus is to increase our production of affordable housing by changing the zoning and subdivision codes, and then also um,through building the capacity of non-profits to build more affordable housing. Alter: Wonderful. Actually and, so with that, I urge non-profits are plural given the we have a lot of different entities who are working with creating affordable housing and rapid rehousing, so we really are trying to cover the gamut through this ask for funding. Turnbull: Yeah,our budget has 450,000 in capacity building for affordable housing non-profits, and we would um,we didn't go into a lot of specifics because that would be determined if we received the grant,but we said that we'd issue an RFP um,that non-profits would be able to apply for. Alter: Thank you. Teague: Can you agree with that. Moe: Yes. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 25 Teague: Well, I know we were waiting to have a discussion with HUD. Can you just talk a little bit about that discussion because we weren't clear what requirements we would have to maintain within our original application versus where we are today. Turnbull: I can give you a little update on where we are with round one,which is still in process. We've had our initial meeting with HUD,where we talked to them about what we would contemplate doing with the revised amount we were given, and then we are still awaiting access to the DRGR system in which we need to put our action plan for HUD approval, so we're a little bit still in process on the first round plan. Salih: And how much flexibility did you have to amend part of your original proposal? Turnbull: The original proposal? Salih: Uh ah. Turnbull: We would have to do a substantial amendment um,in order to amend our original proposal, and HUD let us know that if we were to change anything that would have changed the score of the application,um,that would not be allowable. Moe: Does-does this grant support er, any,I guess, community education or outreach about the proposed zoning changes?Because I think that's always the catch, it's like planners can tell us,these are the things you ought to do to make zoning that allows more housing variety and option.But then when if the public is not properly prepared for it,we get a lot of knee jerk reaction sometimes,Is that part of this? Turnbull: Yeah,that was a significant portion,I would say, and Kirk wrote the round one application,but there was a significant focus on community outreach around the zoning changes as they were made um,in round one, and we haven't gotten around to-to doing that part yet,because we are still in the process of getting our action plan approved. Moe: The sooner we can get to.Yes,in my backyard instead of not in my backyard,the better. Salih: You know, and also,my question is-is this also going to be appropriate time to bring because you know if we-if we want more affordable housing to be built,we should make it easier for some developer to do so- so we have a very restricted parking minimum, and now there is a trend in many cities, especially like cities like our size. They-they have that,they can their parking minimum requirement. Do you think this is appropriate time for us to talk about that? Turnbull: That's part of our round one application that was approved, and that's a line item that we intend to maintain in our action plan as a parking study um,to propose changes just for that purpose. Salih: That's good. Thank you. Teague: Hearing no more questions. Thank you. Turnbull: Thank you. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 26 Teague: I'm going to open the public comment,period.Is there anyone from the public that would like to address this topic?If you're online,please raise your virtual hand. Seeing no one in person or online. 2. Consider a Resolution Teague: I'm going to close the public comment period, and can I get a motion to approve,please? Moe: So moved. Salih: Second. Teague: Move by Moe, seconded by Salih. Council discussion. I'm happy we're applying. Harmsen: Keep up the good work. Alter: And that we were invited to. Teague: Yes. Alter: Encouraged too. Encouraged. Teague: Everybody was,right but uh. Alter: Yes,but we were successful, so hopefully, success be gets success. Teague: Yes. I do specifically like the opportunity for us to extend, should this be granted to some of our housing champions out there that have been doing some great work in our community, so thanks for including them, and we heard a little bit of that uh,when we received our Pro Housing,our first grant,where there was some entities out there that would love to be a part of removing some of these obstacles for folks, so I fingers cross,toes cross. We're going to get this. Salih: And also, I-I-I think I forget to ask this question,but we-we've been seeing like when this start happening, like, some- some people will reach out to us and some immigrant reach out to us and say,hey,how can we benefit out of that? So do you think,you know,like you said there's a portion of the grant,maybe you're going to open it for-for grant for organizations?Is that going to be something we can consider,or this is no,no,no. Hightshoe: So Tracy Hightshoe,Director of Neighborhood Development services,part of the grant was technical capacity to our non profits. Developing affordable housing is not easy to do if you want to be an organization that gets to the point that they have the capacity to apply for federal funds, state funds,manage housing.You need the technical capacity to do so, so we have about,It's 450,000,right?450,000 in that budget, and then we take out for RFP for non profits,who focus or who have a part of their mission is affordable housing to apply, and we get the technical capacity for them or the consultant to help them build up their capacity to do it. Then we have 1.7 million, 1.75. Turnbull: And land banking. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 27 Hightshoe: And land banking, so that way,we'd have those funds. We can buy land kind of like we had land former opportunity funds bought the lot that DVIP later got the home art funds for, so we would have this so that non profits might have access to land, so as they're developing that capacity, and opportunities come along,whether it's local, state or federal funds. They'd be able to obtain the land because it's really hard to parcel land together for affordable housing, and so we're hoping with this land banking fund that that's there, either for a city project or for one of the non- profits to apply. Salih: And when you're talking about,like,building capacity. I know there is some organization who already have that capacity and nobody like don't need more building capacity to apply for Federal grant,but there is some organization already there. They have that capacity. They've been proven themselves.But on the other hand,there is also another number of organization,at least like the people who reach out to us. They are not, for example,apply to these kind of things before. Do you think this is opportunity for them to apply for that grant to build capacity? Hightshoe: Yeah. Salih: Instead of to be ready to apply for federal grant to do affordable housing? Hightshoe: To develop capacity for those organizations who focus or want to focus on affordable housing. Salih: If they want to focus from now and on,not like they have done it before or they don't have to have. Hightshoe: They would just have some experience in affordable housing.Most non profits will say in their mission about what their mission is or usually a housing component will be in that mission. Salih: Yeah, sure. Thanks. Hightshoe: And then the other last part is that,to really build. We're doing the first the PRO Housing grant. One,pays for the parking study. It pays for the comprehensive land use plan. The Part two would pay for the zoning code,which is your mechanism to get you to that land use plan, so hopefully we get that portion as well. And we did score highly in the first round, and that's what Sam was talking about when they said that um,we scored so highly, so if we change anything in the component and got that score,then they would say no. Salih: That's true. They like it like that. That's why they score very high. Teague: Great. Thank you. Any other discussion? [Roll Call]Motion passes 5-0. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 28 10.e Kratom Ban - ordinance amending Title six entitled Public Health and Safety to create a new Chapter 11 entitled Kratom, to prohibit it's sell and distribution. Teague: We're on item 10.e,Kratom Ban. This is an ordinance amending Title six entitled Public Health and Safety to create a new Chapter 11 entitled Kratom,to prohibit it's sell and distribution. This is the first consideration. Could I get a motion,please? Moe: So moved. Salih: Second Teague: Moved by Moe, second by Salih, and we're going to ask our city attorney to get us started. Goers: Thank you,Mr.Mayor. Unlike the last item for which I presented,there are no maps uh,for this one, and so I-I didn't see the need for a PowerPoint presentation and slides. Again,more for the benefit of the public than for council, as council is aware,this was a council driven initiative, and so I drafted this ordinance consistent with the work sessions that we've had together uh,with council. In the past,this one has received no changes. That is no changes have been made uh,to this draft ordinance uh, since it was first put forth for your consideration. Teague: Great. Anyone from the public like to address this topic?Well,first,are there questions for Eric before I go there. Hearing no questions.Anyone from the public like to address this topic if you're online. Alter: I am so sorry mayor,I couldn't get off mute. I just want to confirm from the city attorney,if I may. Currently,there are no um,regulations or what have you about who and what age can buy Kratom, is that correct? It's not 18 and over. It's anyone can. It can walk into a smoke shop even if you're 12-years-old buy this,is that correct? Goers: That is my understanding that there is neither local ordinances that would affect that nor state regulations at present. Alter: And you know nothing of any state upcoming?Or any discussions?Is this on anyone's radar? I know that Councilor Moe has also been diving into this,but I'm just putting this public. Goers: I have heard from Councilor Moe that there has been some consideration at the state legislative level. I have no independent information beyond that. Alter: Thank you. Teague: Great. If no other questions for the Attorney,we're going to go to the public. If you're online, please raise your virtual hand, and if you're are present, if you can raise your hand. See no one in in the room,we're going to go to Mack followed by Kevin. Welcome. Haddow: Thank you very much. Ali,my name is Mack Haddow. I'm the senior fellow in public policy with the American Kratom Association. We represent consumers,the almost 20 million American consumers,uh,that consume Kratom regularly. Uh,we support regulations,uh,we do not support This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 29 bans because that would prevent people from having access to Kratom that is responsibly and safely manufactured and properly labeled. The kinds of regulations that we promote have now been passed in 13 states. It is clear that the FDA does not like Kratom.Uh,they don't like any dietary supplement for that matter, and that's been evidenced in the legislative,ah,history of the FDA's tension with the dietary and botanical supplement industry.But we know that even the FDA's own studies that were recently completed and announced in February of this year,that Kratom is well tolerated at all dose levels. So the challenge for local governments and state governments is to do what the 13 states have already done, and Iowa will be on our target list for 2025 to make sure that Kratom is manufactured properly,that it's labeled properly,that it is not super enhanced,that it's not adulterated, and that it is age limited.And labeling is critically important.At the local level,we support efforts that would restrict the access of minors obviously to Kratom products. That could include putting them behind the counter. We also obviously support the-the strict age limitation verification to make sure that the individuals who purchase Kratom products are,in fact, 18 and over or 21 and over depending on the jurisdiction's choice about the age limitation.But most important is that there are people whose finding that Kratom helps them with acute and chronic pain issues. Uh,we have veterans who swear that it's saved their lives,uh, and we have documented evidence and good research that's been done that documents that Kratom can be a lifeline for people that are struggling with opioid addictions.And that's the critical part and support that we received from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Uh,the FDA is the outlier.And I can tell you that the evidence and the science is clear that Kratom can help people as long as it's properly regulated. We hope that Iowa City will follow that pathway, and we're glad to cooperate and help with the development of those regulations. So thank you very much for this opportunity. Teague: Thank you.And will you state again your name and city you're from for our records? Haddo: Thank you. It's Mack Haddo H-A-D-D-O-W with the American Kratom Association and our,uh, national office is based in Gainesville,Virginia. Teague: : Thank you. We're going to welcome Kevin.Please state your name and city you're from, and you'll be allowed up to three minutes to speak. Mum: Yes.My name is Kevin Mum. I'm from the Konnection. I support the Consumer Kratom Protection Act,which is-allows for age restrictions. I think that's what the city should move towards. I think an age of 18 would be appropriate. Um,people this age are legal adults, and they'd be able to use Kratom to with-use with-using their withdrawal sys-symptoms,reduce cravings and off of street drugs and reduce alcohol use. Also,college athletes they get injured. They can use Kratom to relieve their pain and protect and live a productive life after their injury. Don't deny responsible adults,Kratom. Thank you. Teague: And what city are you from Kevin? Mum: Iowa City. Teague: Thank you. We're going to welcome Lora. Please state your name and city. Lora: Yes. My name is Lora L-O-R-A.Am I from Layton,Utah. And uh, I am calling in support of the ability to keep Kratom legal,especially for patients like myself. I am a chronic pain patient of 13 years. I have a rare condition called trigeminal neuralgia. And this is especially important to me This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 30 because I actually have a close friend who actually introduced Kratom to me that lives in Iowa, and he's been extremely vocal in the support of keeping Kratom legal. And also,you know,we want to regulate it as well. We want to be able to access this to control pain. I am a responsible user. I am excited to tell you that I am basically off opiates completely and able to use Kratom as an alternative. Whereas before I was on multiple opioids doses per day,it has given me the ability to control my pain and not make myself altered in in any way so that I can regain life again. And like Mack Haddow said,which,by the way,I helped volunteer for their organization and advocate for them as well. Um,it-it's true. It has really saved the lives of many,including myself. And I know that I speak for thousands and thousands of patients out there,just like myself who rely on Kratom to be able to control their pain, especially in um, an atmosphere where opi-the opioid epidemic is a real concern to many.Uh,if a substance like subst-you know,a substance like Kratom were to be banned,this would affect patients like me.And again,many in Iowa City and such around that really do rely on this plant supplement. Teague: Thank you.Anyone else like to address this topic?Please,welcome.And there's a sign in sheet there. And please state your name and city you're from? Russ: Hi,I'm Gypsy Russ. I'm a graduate student here in Iowa City, and I am for the ban. The reason why I say this is because I have witnessed more than one person who was of legal age of 18 become a completely different person.Um, and maybe I would say they were just completely into outer space within a matter of a couple of seconds, and they were not the same person for at least 24 hours afterwards. I think there are some legitimate uses for pain,but you just never know. I just think the ban is- is a good thing.And I've seen it firsthand. Just witnessed it,you know,not lately, but you just never know. It's very hard to regulate the manufacture of it. So I'm-I'm strongly,um, for the ban. Thanks. Teague: Thank you.Anyone else like to address this topic. Seeing no one in person or online,we're going to close the public discussion and move on to council discussion. Harmsen: Yeah, I think,you know,I want to,uh,thank Councilor Dunn for bringing this to our attention. It wasn't something that was on my radar in any big way other than seeing the signs around.But that did lead to a lot of research, looking at the FDA reports,looking at some of the medical public health concerns with this. And- and that's,you know, I guess it's good to know. That said there's for a variety of reasons. I think I'm satisfied that a ban on the sale of this substance in our community actually does make sense, and is in the interest of public health. Um, a couple of them,uh, and kind of addressing some of the-the various arguments or positions that we've had taken through emails and other things. One is that currently there is no regulation on the content of- of this,uh,product.And,you know,if it does the things that people have told us it does can, you know, cure or mitigate alcoholism,opioid addiction,pain,then that by-if that's true,then by its nature,it has to have some kind of potent or significant effect on human physiology. Otherwise,you know,we'd be talking about a placebo,which would be a whole different conversation. But if those effects are true, and it has a significant effect on the human body, and we don't have,you know,really good research on that effect. We don't have physicians prescribing this,uh,for people.You know, and- and we don't have any sort of regulation of what goes into it currently. Those are all sort of,you know,pretty significant red flags for me.Now another red flag for me,uh,for having this for sale really involves something actually came up earlier in our discussion about tobacco, and I've talked about this before, is the prevalence of the advertising for this substance. So we see it,you know, and of course,it's one of those things where you kind of notice it in the background,but since one of our colleagues brought it to my This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 31 attention,I start seeing those signs,you know,noticing them everywhere,right?If I'm noticing them,that means every kid that walks by is noticing them,if they're walking into stores,they're seeing it for sale.And- and just very similarly with the concerns we heard earlier from a member of our public health department,when you have that kind of exposure,it normalizes the substance. And reality,you know,we have reason to believe that this substance has a profound effect on the human body,but we don't have a good reason to believe that it's what the safe dosages are. There's just so many things about it,again,I think just from a public health perspective and from a wanting to not have it be promoted in front of kids.Um, and,you know, for those reasons,I'm comfortable with supporting this ban, and I think it is in the public health interests of our city. Moe: Thanks.Also had not heard about Kratom or thought much about it until Councilor Dunn brought it to our attention. And then after I started to learn more, I- I realized many of the same things you did.Um,I also had the benefit of attending a- a community mental health session on Kratom. And I-as I was hearing about this-this substance that-that does seem to benefit people,certainly does,uh,but it sounds a lot like other pain relievers we have a recent history with specifically opioids,where it might help you with pain.But then you might need more, and then you might need more, and then you might need more. Um, and,uh, seems real problematic to have it completely unregulated,as you say it.Um, also,in the last month,we had somebody in our community die.Um, and the obituary says, in lieu of flowers, consider donating some time to write your state and federal congressional representatives to raise awareness of Kratom the legal yet unregulated drug which took this person's life and made two orphans. I mean,that was in the last month.And we just heard the Kratom,uh,lobby tell us,we need state regulation. And I agree. We need state regulation. So I guess the question for me is,what do we do until we get state regulation?What do we do until we have actual requirements for it being only sold to adults and actually having the materials that are advertised in it.And so,uh,I'm with you,I am supportive of saying yes to this ban.Alternatively,uh,we-we can wait and see if our state legislators do something. If our state legislators do something,I'd be more than happy to say we could lift Iowa City's ban once the state does something. Uh,but until then,I think it's the responsible thing to do. Salih: They will pass a bill to lift it automatically if we-if they did regulation. Moe: I actually-I think that this is a-a bipartisan issue. I really think so many people see this as-as analogous to the opioid crisis. Is that-that is a thing that could, in this current composition of the state legislator could actually happen.And so I'd encourage any of the Kratom lobby who's currently still listening to do your work and get the state to regulate. Salih: I really agree of,like,everything said I don't want to repeat it,but I really-I even wasn't aware about this substance at all until it brought to the council, and after that, I have to go and look for it.And after that I start seeing the sign,like Kratom like sold here, and it is really everywhere,but I did not pay attention to it. So the thing that's really concerning me. After that,I will start like looking online and try to figure out what it is and what the effect on the human body, and I just feel like it does have effect. And the-also the thing that really scare me,it is not like for children like there's no age requirement for this. This is-this is also,like,really dangerous. If we are doing all this for tobacco,we want to like ban tobacco, like,we want to reduce at least shop for tobacco and close to school, and everything that we said, I think this is falling the same thing that if we want to do it for tobacco, definitely we do it for this too. So I will be in favor of banning yes. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 32 Teague: Councilor Alter? Alter: Thank you. Sorry. I got kicked out.Now I'm back. You can hear me,correct? Salih: Yes. Teague: Yes. Alter: Okay. Um, so thank you for everyone weighing in. I- I appreciate it. And it makes so much sense. Um that said. I actually am voting against the ban because that's what is before us. Um,at the same time,that I fully recognize and am troubled by everything that councilors have said.Um, the bottom line is that it is not illegal and that there have been people who have said,this is working for me in medicinal terms. Doesn't mean that everyone is using it for medicinal terms? No,not at all. I'm sure that there's a lot of recreational use, and those are things that frankly are known of our business,um, and they can be troubling in the same way that cigarettes are known to kill,in the same way that alcohol is also known to be highly detrimental to people's health, if over used.But we don't have a ban on those. Thus far,there is nothing from the FDA.However, concerning it,they-we are- sorry,Kratom is on a watch list,but it has not been studied and banned or-or had a warning label put on it. Therefore,we are not a medical body,even though we have done due diligence. I don't think that we are in a position to say we will ban Kratom when we are also allowing cigarettes and tobacco. Oh sorry, cigarettes tobacco and alcohol. I share concerns. I-I would love nothing more than to see regulation so that we could model the path for us to say,it should not be sold to minors.Uh, and if there is a way for us to do that forward, I would love it. What's in front of us is a ban. I'm not in favor of that.Um,more broadly, and I'm sorry that Councilor Dunn is not here to-to be able to participate in this. I guess I-I'm frustrated that we have a path of good intentions without thinking about this downstream.Uh, and that I don't think that putting a mark on how we should take a stand, so to speak, is the right move. As you all may know,Councilor Dunn has, sort of,had a moment of-or some time to think about this and has,um,revised his opinion about the ban,which he actually introduced. And we were okay with that because it was part and parcel of our discussions about tobacco and it has led to a very fruitful conversation. To the extent that it-probably the ban will pass tonight, and- so be it.Um,but I think what I want to put forward is for us to be able to have these conversations before they are at a place of do we do this or do we do that? Let us have a robust conversation and allow a little bit of time, even though we want to be action oriented about being able to think about what the actual implications are. This is certainly within the context of Kratom and it is not leveled at any person in particular. It's just as a council. I'm frustrated because we are once again,we're at a policy decision, and there's a lot of things to talk about,right? So anyway, that's-that is where I'm at. I will be voting against it. I realize I'm in the minority.Um,but there are two things. One is, I-I just don't think that we have the business of getting involved in this when we also are fine with putting forward permits for other things that we know are dangerous to public health.And I hope that in future,our conversations are not framed by a vote or not,that we can actually pause to talk a little bit about things before they get to us for a vote. So that's it. Thank you. Harmsen: Bring it first.. Salih: I-I guess because I think I-I saw I hear maybe I hear wrong. Like Council Alter said,if,like, Councilor Dunn is here. I think this is- isn't this brought by Councilor Dunn to bring?You know, This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 33 I-I wasn't even aware about this until he brought it up and said,we need to ban this.But I think you mentioned that he will be, like,talking against this or something like that. Maybe,um. Alter: He has actually-I've spoken with him, and he has actually gone to the press.He has changed his opinion. He no longer is in favor of a ban. Salih: I was,know that.But because I guess I was surprised because he's the one who brought it up to begin with. Yes. Thank you.He brought it to. Harmsen: I think,um, I think your comments-the question,I think it is a very fair one. How is this different from alcohol and tobacco? I think that is a fair question. It's one I've actually thought about. And I think one of the big things for me anyway,um, is that those are substances which do have quite a bit of regulation by entities that have the ability to do so. So if I go in and I buy a-a can of beer or bottle of wine or whatever,there's all kinds of stuff on that label telling me the percentage of alcohol that's in there by volume, any other,you know-you know,those kinds of things,there's labeling. Laws. There's also,you know, laws already in place,you know, at levels of government well above us. So there's, like,widespread enforcement of things like age and things to that effect. And so,um,you know, same thing with tobacco. I mean,these things are all, you know,they're regulated. There are,you know-I walked, I stopped and got a soda on the way home this afternoon. Sorry,I've been talking all day and my throats going out on me. Um,but, you know,there's a big sign right above the tobacco display in the gas station where I stopped saying,these-these products will cause cancer and on and on.And I mean,like,you know,we have that for tobacco.And so you could argue that because of that,you know-because of all of those things,the thing that makes them different is there are other levels of- of oversight,of regulation, and also public awareness of what these substances are. And so,you know, I think, kind of- and I think to Councilor Moe's point from earlier,you're,kind of,like,you know,which thing do we sit around and wait for an ord- or somebody else to do something and just, sort of, just ignore it until then,or do we be proactive and say,well, I don't think this should be ban-ban on the sale. It shouldn't be for sale in our city limits in the meantime.But,you know,if,you know,FDA gives it something, or they come up with that, and they preempt us,that's-that'll pen in the course of thing. So what in the meantime, I think is really what this boils down to for me, of the two choices, either leaving it for sale or removing it for sale until we have a better idea of whether it really is safe,if it actually does all of these things,what regulation should look like and also support for regulation enforcement,which I believe we do get from the state with things like tobacco,um,you know,we have different mechanisms for-for doing that,kind of, stuff. Since those aren't in place, I would feel I still think it'd be a public health benefit to ban the sale of the substance,not the possession or use,but the sale.Um, in the meantime,while we wait for people that do have the laboratories and all of those things,the expertise to figure it out on a grander scale. You know, I can appreciate that people have different opinions on that,but that's where I fall. Alter: If I can hop in real quick and it's not a-a direct response. One of the things that I did not mention. And take it for what it is worth.Um, as I said earlier,there are definitely people who are not and they're taking it because it has an enjoyment factor. It is something they want to take,um,in lieu of other things.Um,but there are people who have come out specifically talking about pain management and about addiction-mitigation.Not cures,by no stretch.But what I will say is this. We know all too well that our healthcare system is crap as far and expensive.And so there is an equity issue here. Just a tiny bit.And I'm not saying it,carte blanche. But I am saying that it is not-we can do a lot of good intentions. And yet,who are we actually impacting?And if there is a This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 34 small amount of people who are saying,I don't have a doctor, I don't have a rehab to go to,but this is something that's keeping me off of worse things. I'm good with that. So I just wanted to put my final, like, foot in the sand, and it wasn't directed at you,Councilor Harmsen. Harmsen: That's okay. Alter: I just wanted to get that final bit in. So thank you for indulging me. Harmsen: It would be okay if it was. We're just having a friendly discussion. So about things we care about deeply. It's all good. I would just,kind of-just,kind of,riffing off of that,too,thinking of, like,the people that are,you know,the lobbyists and things like that. You know,kind of, on the flip side of that, exactly. I mean, again,you raise very-very good points. The flip side of that is, do we really think that the marketing association or whatever is really doing this and they're providing this as a free service?No,they might be exploiting the same people that they might have access. I mean, I mean,you know,they're making a buck on this,too. I mean,you know,to me,that, sort of,balances in the grand scheme of things. Alter: A hundred percent. I just think if a person's in pain,then they can get the stuff down the street as opposed to ordering it online or having to figure out Coralville? It's not illegal right now. So I'll be hushed now. Teague: All right. Well,I wanted to first acknowledge there is a hand raised online. I want them to be aware that I did close the public comment, so there was an opportunity,but I have closed that and we will not be going back to public comment on this item. This is a big thing on our agenda we are talking about a ban. There's so much to this that I don't know about. I've heard contradictory information on this.But what's really interesting, especially since we just stopped on ex- exploitation,right?Comments about exploitation. What is interesting to me is that we have received hundreds of a-mails from people on Kratom that are from our community,the same e- mails,you know, same write up on Saturday, a good friend of mine sent an e-mail. It was not him. When we first talked about this at a work session, another friend of mine had just called me and said she was living in Des Moines. So when I read the e-mail,at the end,it gave her Iowa City address and so I text her,um,the-I forwarded her the e-mail and a text and said, did you send this? She said,absolutely not. So I don't understand how we have so many e-mails, do not ban Kratom from people that are in our community.And we-when we know any of these individuals,they have no idea that this has been sent. Moe: I'll concur. I decided to knock on the door of a neighbor who supposedly sent am do not ban Kratom e-mail and it was not that person at all. So we are getting almost 100 a-mails now and I don't know how many of them are real. Harmsen: A hundred copies of the same e-mail. Moe: A hundred copies of the same e-mail from people who- Sorry, I interrupt you. Teague: No-n-no. Moe: I'm just concurring. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 35 Teague: So- so this is troubling. This to me is red flag of something that we're used to getting e-mails- we're used to getting copy and paste e-mails.But those e-mails,you can call up those people and they actually sent that.But this is not the case here. I am very,you know-of course,I'm very concerned with there being no labels,no age restrictions. Um,absolutely. You know,this is something that the FDA,you know,has,you know,talked about. I've talked to various people in the medical profession. Many of them don't know anything about it. They just-they had nothing to offer. And specifically in the mental health world,psychiatrists,that type of stuff. I've talked to them about this and they just have no knowledge-no information,which was a little surprising because then most individuals,if they're talking to their physician,they would include in discussion, some of the things that they're using.But I don't know, I didn't,you know,fully scan just a couple of close friends that I talked to.Nevertheless, I'm going to agree to the ban tonight to keep the conversation going.Um, I don't-there's a lot of weird stuff happening with this. There's only one person that spoke to us in favor of the ban that was present tonight. The other individuals, except for one that spoke,are not from Iowa City,no disrespect. But if we have all these individuals that,you know,are saying,do not ban Kratom.And I understand maybe they don't want to be coming forth and being present.But all of their a-mails are public documents. This is something that I'm going to support the ban on tonight to keep the conversation going. And I just don't know where I'll eventually land,but very troubled by some of the things that are happening that I don't know where it's being initiated from. So- and these are real names from people in our community. So I don't even know where this list-how this list was obtained.But I will support the ban tonight. Harmsen: I did not know that. Thank you,Mr.Mayor for letting us know that. Teague: [Roll Call] This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 36 10.f Naming new park at 1001 Shannon Drive "Adelaide Joy Rogers Park"-Resolution naming the New Park at 1001, Shannon Drive as Adelaide Joy Rogers Park. Teague: Motion passes 4-1. We're going to move on to item Number 10.f.Naming New Park at 10- 1001, Shannon Drive,Adelaide Joy Rogers Park. Resolution naming the New Park at 1001, Shannon Drive as Adelaide Joy Rogers Park. And could I get a motion to approve,please? Moe: So moved,Moe. Salih: Second Salih. Teague: All right, and welcome,Julie. Seydell Johnson: And just real briefly. You saw the development plans for this park earlier tonight. As part of that public input process,we did ask for name suggestions. You had that in your packet. There was about 40 different name suggestions. This one really rose to the top for the park's commission.And instead of me explaining who it is,Kevin Boyd,who actually recommended it is here, and I'd like to have him give you the background. Teague: Great. Welcome,Kevin. Boyd: Hello,everybody good to see you. Um,just-I love when we honor past civic leaders in our current civic spaces. We're here in Harvart Hall, Wetherby Park, Lemme Elementary,Blackhawk Mini Park. And you know,when I moved back to Iowa City,after 12 years away, about a decade ago, now, I started kind of digging back into our local history and noticed that much of what we honor doesn't always reflect the diversity of our city, as it is today,but that doesn't mean we should stop honoring our local civic leaders. It just needs to be work a little harder to tell a more inclusive picture of Iowa City. We have to dig a little deeper in our history and take active steps to make sure that when we consider naming things,we start to telling a more full picture. So tonight's an opportunity to bring us one step closer to telling that full history through our civic spaces to celebrate someone history nearly forgot. Adelaide Joy Rogers,her full name, including her maiden name Joy,was on the ballot in 1921,right after women earned the right to vote.And that itself was radical that,you know, she ran, and even more so that she ran-had the courage to run and the courage to use the name she preferred,um,you know,including her maiden name.And that very well may have been the reason why she was 57 votes short of,um becoming-of winning.Um,you know, she also had a long history of advocacy for women and girls throughout her public life. She was largely quiet about a lot of other issues,but on this issue, she was kept kind of over her life here,kept kind of showing up. In 1886, as a student at the University of Iowa,there were no recreation opportunities for women students that there were for men, and so she helped start the YWCA that hired a women's athletic director in Close Hall,that was a facility not too far from here where that recreation opportunities existed for women and girls. Um, in1906, she and some neighbors advocated for equal opportunity in education in schools in kind of a 1906,very gendered way of thinking about it,but was very strong in her language about it being disrespectful to-to young women and girls that there weren't opportunities in education, like there were for traditional male roles. And again, she advocated for opportunities for,um, women who were trying to teach recreation opportunities at the children's hospital,the kind of the predecessor to our children's hospital we have today.Um, I had Adelaide mind for a future park name since 2020. Um, I was excited.However,when this part came up, and particularly because it was a West side park,Adelaide and her husband were kind of early west siders. They lived on This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 37 Melrose Avenue and Park Road.Um,I also love that she really loved kind of native plants and particularly native wildflowers. There she was part of a garden club and was really kind of an advocate for kind of planting things that were from our-kind of that were native to Iowa. So honoring Adelaide brings us one step closer kind of,um,having our civic spaces tell a more inclusive story. There's still more work to do when we do that,but we have an opportunity tonight to find ways to honor our past. And I'm happy to answer any questions about her,um,that you might have, if that's appropriate. I don't really. Moe: Thank you. Boyd: Great. Teague: The only question I have is, are there any pictures of her? Boyd: You know, I have been hunting down those photos. I have found on ancestry,like the great granddaughter of her-um, she adopted two sons. It's like their stepdaughter and have messaged her a few weeks ago. She was a member of a local organization that still exists today,the Pioneer Club of the Daughters of American Revolution. I've messaged them. I have worked with the women's archives, I'm sending them kind of a full list of all the different clubs. I've been in a couple of times to try to track down photos. I have photos of her sons,I have photos of course of her husband. You know,he was University of Iowa professor, so there's photos of him,but I-we- I can't find one yet,but I kind of keep hoping that the energy in the world,Adelaide from wherever she's at is helping us kind of guide us to finding a photo of her,but I don't have one. I really wish I did,Mr. Mayor. Teague: And any conversations with anyone that have any knowledge or history that have come down through the generations? Boyd: Yeah,the closest I have to-I mean, she passed away in the 19-like,well, 1950,maybe or early 50s. So I don't know anyone who knows her personally. I've reached out,like I said,to some dist- distant family,trying-to hoping that they had a photo or maybe some stories,um,or some family documents of some kind,but I've not her back. It's been over a month. So-. Teague: Okay. Thank you. Boyd: Yeah,welcome. Thank you. Teague: All right.No other questions for him.Anyone from the public like to address this topic?If you're online,please raise your virtual hand. Seeing no one in person or online. Council discussion. Moe: I'm excited for it. Teague: Yeah. The only-the reason I asked the questions is because,um, I think the bio is really great, um,but sometimes you need to talk to somebody to just,you know, fully know. Moe: Yeah. Teague: But yeah.All right. [Roll Call]Motion passes 5-0. Thank you.All right. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 38 13. Council Information Teague: Item number 13 is City Council Information. Salih: Yes. I have two thing to report. Yeah. I have the honor to meet the Acting Assistant Administration of Water,Bruno Pigott. And also Katherine Stock,director of the EPA Office of Water,when we went to,like,the-you know,they came to tour the Waste Water plant. So they were very excited to learn about our upcoming digestor rehab and the renewable natural gas project, and about the research partnership we have with the University of Iowa. I think after the tour and the way that the staff of the Water-the Waste Water Division explained everything,you can see the excitement that like,you know,even he was really excited by,you know,I'm moved by the project. And after that,we went and toured the-the-the plant.You know,for me, I was excited, too,because this is my first time to go there by-by the way. And I was just,like, amazed by everything that going on over there. Like,very,very clean place and well maintained, and also the project like going ahead. I think they have very good impressions.And also,like,it was very- like,happy to learn that he was one of the city council member in Iowa City back on 1990 so. And also [inaudible 02:15:42] was with him.Yeah. He has been like a really good time. I was very excited that I see them excited about our project, and what we do in Iowa City. So also,we- I have reporting on commission. Council Dunn and 1,we had a meeting for the road committee, and we just approved small part on,like key of nomination. When somebody being nominating, but the person is not present. So they have to send an acceptance to say,yes,I accepted, or if they denied it,they have to say that. It's not something big,meeting last only like less than four minute. Harmsen: That's good. Salih: Yeah. Moe: Um, I just want to say thanks to the organizers of the African Festival, as well as North Side Octoberfest. I eat way too much on Saturday. I love living in Iowa City. Samosas, and beignets and saur kraut and sausage. So all the short time and that makes me love Iowa City. Salih: Yeah. Very nice event.And as the first event, I guess, like behind the scenes,there is a lot of people like African members who really work hard on making this event,you know, come the way that it came. Really very exciting.And hopefully like looking forward for it next year,but I want to get like shout really sang to every single person who participated there, like from music to selling food to everything because those people,they created a WhatsApp group by being seeing them how hard they work to make this happen.Yeah. It was an amazing event. Teague: And for them to pull that off in such a short amount of time with such great participation from the performers to the vendors to the public. It was great. Salih: Exactly. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 39 14. Report on Items from City Staff Teague: Very good. All right. We're going to move on to item Number 14,reports on items from our city staff, City manager's office. Fruin: Nothing tonight. Thank you. Teague: City Attorney. Goers: Oh,just mentioned that I just returned from the International Municipal Lawyers Association Conference,which was in Florida. It was not perfectly timed in that regard. It was quite windy, but the-both the conference-the conference was in the same building as the hotel, so I actually did not leave the building for more than two days. And that was okay with me. It was quite windy,but because of the inland location,it was not as bad as it could have been. Travel, thankfully was safe both ways. And I appreciated the opportunity to reconnect with colleagues both from Iowa and from around the country. Teague: Great. City Clerk Office. Grace: Just noting the upcoming CPRB Community Forum on October 16th,at 5:30 at the library. Teague: Awesome. Great. Salih: And can you remind me we have a meeting in this October, right? Teague: Yes. Salih: We have a meeting like participation. Teague: Oh,yes,we have.Yes so- Salih: Come remind us. Teague: Yes. So you're referring to our strategic plan meeting? Salih: Yes. Teague: Yes. Salih: When is that? I just want to make sure I still have it on the calendar. Teague: On October 22nd, and it's going to be here in council chambers. Salih: October 22nd. Teague: And it's 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Salih: Okay. October 22nd. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 40 Harmsen: Got it. Teague: All right. Salih: Thank you. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024 Page 41 15. Adjourn Teague: All right. We're going to move on to item Number 15. Can I get a motion to adjourn? Moe: So move. Moe. Salih: Salih second. Teague: Move by Moe, seconded by Salih. All in favor, say aye. Group: Aye. Teague: Any opposed? Motion passes 7-0, 5-0. Enjoy the rest of the night[MUSIC]. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council regular formal meeting of October 1, 2024