HomeMy WebLinkAbout2003-08-04 Correspondence Low Prices & Quality Foods
Eagle Food Centers, Inc.
P.O. Box 6700, Rock Island, Illinois 61204-6700
Executive Offices & Distribution Center: Rt. 67 & Knoxville Road,
Milan, Illinois 61264 · 309 787-7700 · Fax: 309 787-7895 ~
July 23, 2003 ¢- --q r"' "T'[
Mayor or Highest Elected Official ~
City of Iowa City ~' ~
410 E. Washington Street
Iowa City, IA 52240
Re: Notification Pursuant to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining
Notification Act, 29 U.S.C.§ 2101 et seq. and Applicable State Law
Dear Mayor or Highest Elected Official:
Eagle Food Centers, Inc. ("Eagle" or the "Company"), filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
protection in the United State Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois,
Eastern Division (the "Bankruptcy Court"). The Company, together with its creditors,
has been reviewing Eagle's financial situation and the Company's various options,
including the sale of all or some of Eagle's operations.
The Bankruptcy Court has approved procedures for the Company to evaluate offers for
all or some of Eagle's operations. To the extent the Company determines one or more
offers are acceptable, it anticipates seeking approval from the Bankruptcy Court on or
before September 5, 2003. Assuming that a sale or multiple sales are approved at that
time, it is expected that such transactions would begin to close as early as September
2003. In connection with the sale process, the Company anticipates that it will be
terminating all of its administrative office employees and permanently closing the office.
The Company expects that such terminations will occur on September 23, 2003 or within
14 days thereafter. Eagle will continue to employ a limited number of employees who
will be notified of their retention in advance of such date.
Alternatively, ifa sale does not take place, the Company anticipates that it will need to
restructure its operations, which will include significantly reducing the Company's
current staff at its administrative office. Under such circumstances, the Company expects
that employee terminations will occur on September 23, 2003 or within 14 days
thereafter. Eagle will continue to employ a limited number of employees who will be
notified of their retention in advance of such date.
Page Two
July 23, 2003
These terminations will be permanent and will affect employees in all job titles. No
bumping rights will be applicable to these terminations.
While this notice may not be required under applicable law, it is being provided to you at
this time in order to give as much advance notice as possible to everyone affected by this
development and to fulfill any obligation that Eagle might have pursuant to the federal
Workers Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act and any similar state statute that
may apply. Due to the potential impact of these developments, we felt it necessary to
inform those affected by these developments as soon as possible.
As this situation develops we will keep you informed. If you have any questions please
contact me (309) 787-8077. We appreciate your patience and continued efforts during
this challenging period.
Sincerely,
Jill Cirivello ~-< r-- t-l"l
Vice President Human Resources
=
General Counsel
.J~
Marian Karr
From: Roxann Bennett
Sent: Thursday, July 31, 2003 10:06 AM
To: 'adamsck@mchsi.com'
Cc: Rick Fosse; Andy Matthews; Lisa Mollenhauer; *City Council; Nell Voeller (E-mail)
Subject: RE: Problems with Qwest
Clark,
I apologize for the delayed response, but I have been on vacation. Thank you for bringing this issue to our attention.
incidents like this often go unnoticed by the City, and can be burdensome to property owners and property managers. We
appreciate your input and concerns.
Upon visiting this site on July 29, I am in agreement with you regarding the condition of this work area. The littering of any
type should not occur at any phone sac or pedestal site, much less any other area. After talking with Nell Voeller and
Scott Clemens of Qwest this morning, they were also in agreement that this should not happen. Qwest has assured me
that this area will be cleaned up and that this will not occur again. If this incident does by some chance happen again,
please contact Nell Voeller with Qwest immediately. Nell can be reached at 319-356-5356 or 319-330-1873 or
nvoelle@qwest.com. If Nell is not available, you may reach Scoff Clemens at 319-356-5332.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any further questions or concerns.
Roxann Bennett
ROW/Utility Technician
City of Iowa City
319-356-5438
roxan n-bennett@iowa-city.org
..... Original Message ....
From: Clark Adams [mailto:
Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2003 3:44 PM
To: council@iowa-city.org
Subject: Problems with Qwest
I manage Cambridge Place Apartments on Melrose Ave in western Iowa
City. For 6 years now I have been getting the runaround from Qwest
Communications about this problem. Qwest has a phone demark on the
right-of-way property on westgate st between our apartment complex
and Golf View Apartments. Qwest workers who work on that demark are
CONSTANTLY leaving wires lying on the ground around this demark. It
is disgusting to me to have to clean up after their workers and also
really upsets me when I have to dismantle our lawn mower to remove
wires that have become tangled up in it. I have called Qwest on
numerous occasions, and their customer service always gives me the
same EXACT answer. "You are not a Qwest customer, so it is not our
problem, you need to call your phone company (McLeod USA) and have
them take care of it. I tell them that it is Qwest's workers making
the mess. They say they will take care of it, but nothing ever
happens. I trust that you will forward this to the proper city
authority that can handle this problem. Thanks.
Clark K. Adams, manager, Cambridge Place Apartments, Iowa City
319-430-2868
Marian Karr
From: Clark Adams [adamsck@mchsi,com]
Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2003 3:44 PM
To: cou ncil@iowa-city,org
Subject: Problems with Qwest
I manage Cambridge ace Apartments on Melrose Ave in western Io
City. For 6 years I have been getting the runaround from
Communications about problem. Qwest has a phone demark o~
right-of-way property ate st between our apartment
and Golf View Apartments workers who work on that are
CONSTANTLY leaving wires ~g on the ground around this It
is disgusting to me to have clean up after their worker! also
really upsets me when I have dismantle our lawn mower remove
wires that have become tangled in it. I have called on
numerous occasions, and their omer service always me the
same EXACT answer. "You are not ,west customer, so is not our
problem, you need to call your company (McLeod and have
them take care of it. I tell them t it is Qwest' workers making
the mess. They say they will take of it, but thing ever
happens. I trust that you will to the city
authority that can handle this problem. ?hanks.
Clark K. Adams, manager, Cambridge Place Iowa City
319-430-2868
pi~ e.?s 4tn oj
remorks Festiva
On behalf of the Iowa CJty/Coralville Jaycees we would like lo
personally thank you for your support of our 2003 F~eworks Festival
This 40+ year tracftion is an important symbol of pride in our country
and commu~rty.
The ,laycoes is a non.proFit orga~ation, which relies on the volunteer
time of members and donations of local bushesses and citizens to
continue its community activities. Thank you again for your support,
and we look forward your support on our future projects.
The ~.ooj IC/Coralville Jaycees' ~treworks Committee
Dan Arthur ' Ra!l ~ovick
Co-Chair Co-Chair
Marian Karr
From: Lisa Mollenhauer
Sent: Thursday, July 17, 2003 2:07 PM
To: 'Morgan Hoosman'
Cc: Marian Kart
Subject: RE: Community Forum: Creating a Safe Community
Ms, Hoosman,
The City Council receives correspondence on their Formal Agenda Consent Calendar - the next distribution date is
August 14. Because your event is prior to that date, I suggest you contact Council Member via telephone if you are
interested in their attendance, You can access contact information at:
http://www.icgov.org/citycouncil.htm
Lisa
Lisa Mollenhauer
Administrative Assistant to the City Manager
City of Iowa City
410 E Washington Street
Iowa City, IA 52240
(319) 356-5010
..... Original Message .....
From: Morgan Hoosman [mailto:uaysafeplace~yahoo.com]
Sent: Thursday, July 17, 2003 1:52 PM
To: council~iowa-city.org
Subject: Community Forum: Creating a Safe Community
Dear Iowa City Council Members:
My name is Morgan Hoosman, and I am an Americorps volunteer at United Action for Youth in
Iowa City. One of my goals this year is to bring more community awareness and involvement to
the Safe Place program. Safe Place, a project of United Action for Youth and Youth Homes, is
sponsoring a community forum on safe community. The forum will take place on Thursday, July
24. Our panel of speakers will include representatives from the Iowa City Police Department,
Mercy Hospital, Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County, Youth Homes, and Domestic Violence
Intervention Program. We are hopeful that this broad panel will help us become more informed
about community safety, homelessness, runaways, discrimination, and abuse and what steps we as
a community should take in approaching the issues.
Please join us to discuss and learn more about the Safe Place program, and how we can work to
make the Iowa City/Coralville area a safer community for youth and families. We also hope that
you will be present to respond to questions from the community. Will you please consider
attending, and will you encourage other members of the City Council to do so, as well?
Here are the details:
Community Forum Creating a Safe
Community
7/17/03
Page 2 of 2
Thursday, July 24, 2003
7:00-9:00 p.m.
Iowa City Public Library
Meeting Room A
Iowa City
Thank you for taking time to consider my request. I look forward to hearing from you about
whether you will be able to attend.
Do you Yahoo! ?
SBC Yahoo! DSL - Now only $29.95 per month!
7/17/03
Marian Karr
From: Veronica. Lotkowski@act.org
Sent: Thursday, July 17, 2003 12:11 PM
To: council@iowa-city.org
Subject: public transportaion
Dear Iowa City Council:
I recently moved to ICIA from Toronto, Ontario (I arrived June 24, 2003) to
work as a senior research associate at A~T. I do not own a car nor do I
plan to purchase one. I have always relied on public transportation. I have
been quite pleased with the service here in IC but I sincerely think that
the service could be improved and that such an improvement would attract
ridership and bring more people downtown to spend their money and help keep
the core alive.
I think it is a great dis-service to this city that the buses stop running
so early on Friday and Saturday and offer no Sunday service. The weekends
are when people like myself want to go out to the theater, to movies, to a
concert, a book or poetry reading and /or out for dinner. But because the
buses stop running so early we cannot attend these functions. Therefore, we
are not downtown spending our money in restaurants and cafes and supporting
businesses. If you want the core to survive and for more up-scale shops and
cafes,and restaurants, otc to move into the core you have to make public
transportation available and user friendly.
I live out at Schrader and Washington and I walk to work in the morning but
I take the bus home in the evening because after work I like to go into
town, visit the university, the shops and cafes. I then take the bus home.
This does work well for me. Except if I want to stay downtown later in the
evening, then I cannot get home unless I take a taxi.
Furthermore, now that First Ave. extends up to ACT and more and more people
are living in that area, it would make sense for a bus line to go up First
Ave. to ACTand to serve the area.
Public transportation makes good sense. It keeps the roads free of
congestion, cuts down on accidents and deaths, reduces pollution and time
spent commuting in heavy traffic. I would HATE to see this beautiful city
go the way Toronto is going - cuts to public transport, smog due to heavy
commuter traffic into the city and endless congestion and unhappy drivers.
You are in the enviable position to make improvements and to increase your
ridership, attract more people and more upscale businesses into the core
and keep this city alive and healthy. Don't cut back on service, expand
service!!! Provide transportation and the public will use it. A healthy
public transportation system will support a healthy downtown business and
cultural life and vice versa. The two can work harmoniously together and
that should be your aim.
I sincerely hope that Council will act postively and with conviction on
this issue. I would appreciate hearing from members as to how I can be of
help in supporting better public transport.
Sincerely,
Veronica A. Lotkowski, Ph.D.
Senior Research Associate
ACT, Inc.
{319) 337-1451
Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship
opening the doors of Iowa City
1700 South First Avenue
Suite 25B
Iowa City, IA 52240
(319) 358-9212
July 16, 2003
Mayor Emie Lehman
City Council
City of Iowa City
410 East Washington Street
Iowa City, IA 52240
RE: Housing Discrimination Complaint filed by Wanda and Phillip Daniel
against Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship
Dear Mayor Lehman and Members of the Council:
The Board of Trustees of Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship asked me
to send you the attached letter from the HUD determining no reasonable
cause and dismissing the complaint of discrimination filed by Wanda and
Phillip Daniel of 2519 Clearwater Court. As you may recall, the Daniel's
appeared before council last fall regarding flood damage to their basement.
We are pleased with this determination. We are also pleased that HUD
administers the Fair Housing Act in a diligent manner in order to address
discriminatory practices in housing.
Sincerely,
Maryaun Dennis
Executive Director
Cc: Chair, HCDC
~ * U~L]~. ~ U.s. DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
1111111o2 ~NS~MISSOURI STATE OFFICE
OFFICE OF FAIR HOUSING & EQUAL OPPORTUNI~
~4N 0~v Gateway Tower II, Room 2~
4~ State Avenue
Kans~ CiW, KS 66101-2406
HUD Home Page:
dUN 0
M~ ~ De~s, Executive D~recto~ ~_.
~eate~ ~owa Ct~ ~o~ing F~llows~p
IT00 ~ 1~ S~eet, ~to 25B
De~ Ms. De~s:
Complainant(s): DANIEL
V.
Respondent(s): SARATOGA SPRINGS LP, ET AL
Case Number: 07-03-0239-8/4/D & 07-03-240-8/4/D
DETERMINATION OF NO REASONABLE CAUSE
The DepatUnent of Homing and Urban Development (HUD) administers the Fair
Housing Act (the Act). The Department has completed its investigation of the subject
complaint which was filed under the Act. Informal efforts to resolve the case during the
investigation were unsuccessful.
Based on the evidence obtained during the investigation, the Department has
determined that reasonable cause does not exist to believe that a discriminatory housing
practice has occurred. Accordingly, the aboVe-referenced complaint is hereby dismissed.
A summary of the evidence on which this determination is based is enclosed with this
letter.
Notwithstanding this dismissal by HUD, the Fair Housing Act provides that the
complainant may file a civil action inan appropriate federal district court or state court
within two years after the occurrence or termination of the alleged discriminatory housing
practice. The computation of this two-year period does not include the time during which
this administrative proceeding was pending. In addition, upon the application of either
party to such civil action, the court may appoint an attorney, or may authorize the
commencement of or continuation of the civil action without the payment of fees, costs,
or security, if the court determines that such party is financially unable to bear the costs
of the lawsuit.
The Department's regulations implementing the Act require that this dismissal be
publicly disclosed, unless the respondent requests that no such release be made. Such
request must be made by the respondent within thirty (30) days of receipt of this
determination to the Regional Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity at the
address given below. Notwithstanding such request by the respondent, the fact of this
dismissal, including the names of all parties, is public information and is available upon
request.
The Final Investigative Report on this case is available by writing to me at the U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban Development, Kansas/Missouri State Office, Kansas
City Fair Housing HUB, 400 State Avenue, Kansas City, Kansas 66101-2406.
On behalf of the Department of
Housing and Urban Development
Region VII Office of Fair Housing
and Equal Opportunity
Enclosure
Marian Karr ~
From: Bob Thompson [thompbobson@mchsi,com]
Sent: Tuesday, July 15, 2003 10:13 AM
To: City Council
Subject: Historic Preservation Guidelines
Dear Councillors,
I'm glad to hear that a review of the Historic Preservation Guidelines is currently underway. This issue has been
a concern of mine since the Svensen-Tyler survey came out in 2000. I attended a neighborhood meeting at
Preucil School shortly thereafter, where a map was shown of the Goosetown-Northside conservation districts
that were recommended. I was struck by the massive amount of real estate they wanted to take charge of, and
this concerned me enough to spend some time analyzing the Guidelines. As a contractor who does a lot of
restoration work, this would impact me, my customers, and neighbors in Goosetown.
As a side note: It's not too difficult to find the Guidelines on the web, but I still don't see a copy of the map
generated by the survey on the City's website. With the HPC currently talking about the rather massive
Goosetown and Northside conservation districts, wouldn't this be a good thing to place on the web?
Upon analyzing the Guidelines insofar as how they would affect conservation districts, I became even more
concerned; so concerned that I wrote a small analysis of how this would impact various old-house
repair/renovation projects in conservation districts. This I sent to the HPC, and indicated my intent to make this
little paper available to all my Goosetown neighbors, should the HPC ever seek to bite offa chunk of this
neighborhood. They were concerned enough about my concerns that they invited me to a meeting, and it
seemed a fruitful discussion.
My primary concern is the additional cost burden this might impose on homeowners, if implemented in my
neighborhood. It's one thing to impose these restrictions on places like Woodlawn or Summit St., it's quite
another to impose them on working class families and the elderly in a neighborhood like Goosetown. Another
concern of mine (as many have since discovered), was that most people seem in favor of historic preservation,
but until they have to apply for a "certificate of appropriateness," they have no idea of how the Guidelines
would limit their options and increase costs.
At the time, some Commissioners indicated their willingness to be flexible with some of the Guidelines, and
also acknowledged that that the guidelines were new, and hence some anomalies had not yet been ironed out.
For example, it appeared that some aspects of how the Guidelines jibed with building code had not been
adequately considered (this is a good area for input from the building inspectors). They also expressed
willingness to make the Guidelines flexible enough to adapt to the different needs of different neighborhoods.
For example, one Commissioner suggested that for lower income homeowners, the addition of a "hardship
clause" might alleviate concerns about the high cost of historically appropriate renovation.
Generally, I favor education and furthering appreciation for the artful manner in which many of these old
houses were put together, rather than regulation. However, regulation being the rule of the day, historical
appropriateness at least needs to be regulated with an eye towards pragmatic and financial realities.
Below, I've pasted my analysis of the Guidelines, a slightly revised version of what I sent to the HPC in 2000. I
haven't spent much time to get back up to speed on the issue, so this may contain some errors and out-of-date
information. It's my hope that it might be helpful to the HPC and the Council as they decide how to change
things. And I still intend to inform my neighbors of what to expect if Goosetown is rezoned as a conservation
district.
Bob Thompson
7/15/03
Page 2 of 8
thompbobson~mchsi.com
337-3543
1004 Church St
Iowa City IA 52245
Issues Concerning the Iowa City Historic Preservation
Guidelines and the Proposed Goosetown and Northside
Conservation Districts
I'm a contractor; I do primarily restoration work. I live in Goosetown, within the boundaries of the
proposed conservation district. A lot of my business is done in this neighborhood. Over the years, I
have become intimately acquainted with Goosetown's historic construction methods and typical
maintenance concerns. I've seen the guts of a lot of these old houses, and dealt with their problems
for years.
Business-wise, I have nothing to lose and everything to gain if Svensen-Tyler's recommendations are
ultimately approved by the City Council. Adoption of the stringent standards of the Historic
Preservation Commission would likely be a boon for business. I work primarily with wood; I don't do
vinyl or aluminum siding. I usually counsel people to repair rather than replace components whenever
feasible.
I have nothing to lose personally by the adoption of these recommendations. We're not planning on
making any significant alterations to our property, other than what has already been done (or at least
started).
It may seem strange to some that I'm compiling a large list of seemingly discouraging words
concerning historic preservation; I have no self-interests at stake in doing so. I'm doing this because I
feel that most people are not taking all the pertinent concerns into account in their assessment of this
issue. At first glance, the issue seems a no-brainer; of course we should preserve our historic homes!
It is my contention that it's not that simple. I am well aware of a large number of pragmatic concerns
that are almost certainly not being taken into account by the majority of people who will be affected by
this decision. My main concern here is not, "Should we preserve historic homes"; but rather, "What
are we getting into here? What is actually going to happen if this goes into effect?" I feel that my
neighbors need to be informed about the nuts-and-bolts issues that most are not technically
knowledgeable enough to discern themselves. I feel that those concerned need to make an informed
decision as to where they stand on this issue, rather than a hasty one. Those who might have long-
range plans for renovation of their property need to know precisely what they can and cannot do
under the Commission's guidelines (this paper only deals with isolated aspects of this topic). Even
those who have no intention of making major changes to their property need to know how this is
going to affect their budgets in the long run. I hope that my motives are clear; I am not writing this to
squash an admirable civic accomplishment, but to inform others of the long-term consequences of
this proposal. Goosetown is a hodge-podge of architecture; there are some very nicely built homes,
some not-so-nice, and everything in between. Most of the houses in this area probably fall into what
realtors call "starter homes": lower-priced houses that are within the budget limitations of first-time
buyers. This is not an area that is comparable to Summit St. or other previously defined historic
districts, where 6-figure incomes are common, and money is no object. Though it has been
increasingly populated by folks in a higher income bracket, it is still largely an affordable
neighborhood, by Iowa City standards. There are a lot of rentals, a lot of older, long-time residents,
and a lot of working-class homeowners. If Svensen-Tyler's recommendations are approved, it seems
7/15/03
Page 3 of 8
likely that some people in the neighborhood will be affected adversely; both by the limitations the
Guidelines might impose upon their ability to adapt their property to their needs, and the high cost of
restoration. Though the City has done a remarkable job of providing financial assistance for
residential repairs, it would be nice to have some solid statistical assurance that there will be enough
money to defray any hardships imposed by implementation of the recommendations. It would
certainly create an additional need for financial assistance. I'm no stranger to the historic preservation
movement; I'd feel less uneasy about all this if the preservationists were talking as fervently about the
needs of people as the houses they occupy.
Issues
In order to keep this paper at a reasonable length, I am only going to deal with some of the issues
that might affect "contributing" properties within the boundaries of conservation districts. I am
basically going down the list in the Iowa City Historic Preservation Handbook, which can be viewed at
http:llwww.icgov.orgldocumentslHPChandbook,pdf. This page contains the guidelines approved by
the City Council in June 2000 that will affect the designated areas if approved. The last time I
checked, the official maps of the areas were not available, though that is of critical interest to anyone
who might be affected by this issue. I saw them from an overhead projector at a meeting at Preucil.
I'm assuming that the reader of this paper has read the Handbook, and has a copy on hand for
reference. Again, this is because I'm trying to keep this at something less than the length of War and
Peace.
Mtg note; met with commission on Oct 12, 2000 and discussed my points. Some of my fears were
alleviated, others were not. Generally the commission expressed a willingness to be flexible with
many areas of the guidelines, and some of the points here will not be enforceable; the commission
only has authority over jobs requiring a permit. Acknowledged that many of my points were valid,
changed my viewpoint on others somewhat. Since the proposed districts are considered individually,
the possibility exists to "customize" them to meet the needs of specific districts. This is an important
negotiating point, though I'm not sure how it works; not sure they know either.
Foundations
Covering exposed brick, stone and rusticated masonry foundations with a cement
plaster or stucco is disallowed.
This is probably only a potential problem for owners of "contributing" structures (old houses in a
close-to-original state) with a brick foundation. Almost all of the "historic" brick foundations/exteriors
on the north end of town were manufactured (if that's an appropriate term) in the old brickyard that
was located at Happy Hollow Park; these are soft bricks, with a very thin outer crust protecting the
vulnerable inner core. After a century or so, these bricks are starting to show their age; spalling (when
the outer crust falls off, exposing the soft, vulnerable core) is a common problem. Spalling will
typically occur in areas most susceptible to frost damage; i.e., above and slightly below grade, or
where exposed to excessive moisture (i.e., below a leaky gutter). Below that, you don't know what's
going on with the foundation, and unless your house is falling down, you probably don't want to know.
These old bricks are extremely absorbent: they soak up water like a sponge. When the water freezes,
the brick starts to fall apart. Prevention (as the Commission so astutely notes) is the best remedy;
make sure your gutters aren't clogged, make sure that soil slopes away from the foundation, etc.
Unfortunately, prevention wasn't always necessarily deployed when it would have been wise to do so;
maybe 70 or 80 years ago. Consequently, some of these brick foundations have spalled. Once this
happens, the brick starts to crumble. Replacement of spalled bricks is very difficult and time
consuming. The cheapest solution by far is the forbidden one, to "apply a cement plaster or stucco".
This stops the damage, assuming that the initial cause of the problem (water) is remedied, and that
7/15/03
Page 4 of 8
the prep job was done competently. I don't do masonry work, unless it's a very small part of a larger
job; I am not an expert on this particular topic. It's impossible to give any sort of estimate as to the
difference in cost that the proposed City requirements would impose. This will depend on the extent
of the problem, on a brick-by-brick basis. I have seen horrifying techniques, such as sandblasting and
repointing with a modern masonry mix, deployed by some "experts" in the field. The Commission
wisely forbids such practices. There may be economical remedies that I'm not aware of; new
restoration techniques are being invented all the time. But coating the entire surface of the exposed
foundation to maybe a foot below grade provides a very economical solution to a potentially fatal
problem. It certainly doesn't look bad on the foundation of a wood-frame home. The alternatives are
to do nothing, or to replace the individual bricks, a very time-consuming and costly measure. And
where do you find matching bricks? Matching the color of the mortar is another problem, which is
seldom done correctly, which you've probably noticed if you've ever driven around town looking at
masonry repairs.
To my knowledge, they're not making handpacked, soft, red Iowa clay brick anymore. There might
actually be historic-looking brick available commercially.
Mtg note: The hardness of brick doesn't need to be matched, according to comm., check code; this
repair may not require permit-not enforceable. Mortar removal by electric grinders will not be
disallowed, contrary to the guidelines at the time I read them.
Siding
Vinyl and aluminum siding is disallowed.
The cost of a decent exterior paint job in this town has really skyrocketed in the last several years. It's
typical to get bids from competent painters of $7,000 or higher for a moderately sized house. If
exterior wood is in need of paint removal, repair or replacement, expect the figure to be much higher.
A lot of these old houses are approaching the age when just painting will no longer do: much of the
siding is cooked to the point where it won't hold paint for more than a couple of years. Cracked siding
allows water to get underneath, and needs to be replaced. Old paint is continuously flaking loose.
Paint doesn't bond to weathered wood. Prices for clear, radially-sawn redwood clapboards are out of
this world; I can't keep track of the increases (smooth Hardiplank siding is an excellent material, but
doesn't look right when used for patching wood siding). Nails rust out and need to be replaced; on a
100 year-old chunk of siding, renailing requires a good "feel" for what kind of abuse the board will
take without splitting. It's probably best to avoid heavy-handed scraping, as that can damage the
wood. One can expect a paint job on an old house to last 5-7 years; if more drastic prep methods are
deployed (such as grinding or heat stripping) the paint might last 10-15 years; but these methods are
dangerous, releasing lots of lead into the atmosphere, and heat guns can easily cause a fire. Paint
removal is also quite expensive.
Larger structures can be amazingly costly to maintain. On one such job, I spent considerable time
making repairs to the exterior in preparation for the painters; I don't remember what my bill was, but it
was well over $3,000 (and I was working cheap!). That was just random replacement and renailing of
damaged soffit, siding, window trim, etc. The painter's bid came in at something like $14,000. The
painting bill for one prominent old Iowa City house recently came to $30,000.
New Iowa laws concerning lead-based paint removal have recently gone into effect. I haven't had a
chance to check this out yet; I don't know how it will affect the cost of a paint job. I have heard that it
is expected to put a crimp in the City's Rehab budget, as all paint jobs done with this money must
conform to a stringent set of guidelines. Fake siding easily encapsulates the lead problem, rather than
spreading it all over the neighborhood. If you've ever seen footage of lead abatement techniques on
7/15/03
Page 5 of 8
the east coast, you were probably appalled by the scene; the entire yard is tarped, and dozens of
guys in space suits laboriously scrape the house down to bare wood. Years ago, the average cost of
lead abatement for a residence on the east coast was $25,000.
The truth is, a house that costs $4,000-5,000 to paint will likely cost $7-8,000 to reside with vinyl.
Even if the vinyl could only be expected to last 20 years, as opposed to 7 for the paint, it is clear that
vinyl is by far more economical: if the paint lasts 7 years, the average cost/year (for a $4,000 job) is
about $570 (assuming that paint is all that's needed!); if the vinyl lasts twenty years, the cost/year is
$350 (@ $7,000). That's not factoring in savings in exterior repairs and increased energy efficiency.
This informal cost comparison is quite generously biased toward painting; vinyl will probably last
longer, and paint might not.
I don't like fake siding: I don't like the way it looks and feels; I don't like its vulnerability to hail, high
winds and snowballs; I don't like the fact that the underlying foamboard can trap moisture from humid
interiors blown into stud bays by forced-air furnaces; I don't like the fact that it can conceal serious
structural problems; I don't like the fact that it's impossible to match when making repairs or
renovations. But it's clearly the winner in terms of affordability, and to the best of my knowledge, it
hasn't actually destroyed any old houses. It's also covered by most insurance policies. Anyone who
wants to go to the trouble can remove fake siding, and restore an old house to its original state. Many
people have done this, and I commend them for it. It is not a job to be undertaken by anyone who is
short on time or money, however; and it should not be done if there are small children in the
household, because of the lead hazard.
Mtg note: fears not alleviated. No sign of any flexibility here, except possibility of a "hardship clause".
Commissioners suggested that hardiplank might not look so bad, "fingerjointed" in. need to look into
Iowa lead law, and how it will affect rehab money; talk to rehab people. Discussed the issue of vinyl
siding as lead abatement; it is considered lead abatement by HUD. Need to assemble questions on
avail of rehab money, and lead laws, and interview rehab people. Need to get up to speed on code,
and how it affects the validity of these guidelines in certain situations.
Windows
Installing modern types of windows including sliding, awning, casement, and bay
windows when they were not original to the building is disallowed. Installing metal
or vinyl storm windows is disallowed.
When we moved some walls around in our upstairs, the city required us to install egress windows.
The building inspection people view any bedroom remodeling as a good time to upgrade fire safety
features. An egress window is a window that provides a minimum openable area of 5.7 sq. ft.; a
single pane window, such as a casement, must have a minimum of 20" of width clearance and 41" of
height clearance; while a double hung must have a minimum 34" width clearance and 24" minimum
height clearance (the minimum dimensions multiplied do not satisfy the 5.7 foot area requirement).
For us this became a choice of whether to maintain the overall proportion by installing casements, or
maintaining the original style of window by installing wildly disproportionate double-hungs. The option
of installing huge double hung windows is not recommended, but nevertheless allowed by the
guidelines; however, to my eye, it would be better to go with a casement window that maintains the
general proportions of the existing windows. This is disallowed by the guidelines. This seems to be
somewhat of an aesthetic conflict when viewed with the building inspection department's policy on fire
safety upgrades. If we had been subject to the Guidelines when we remodeled, we would have had
no choice but to install gigantic windows that would have looked ridiculous, rather than merely
historically inappropriate. Our only other option would have been to leave the upstairs as is; it was
standard-issue Goosetown configuration, with three adjoining rooms and no hallway. You had to walk
7/15/03
Page 6 of 8
through the first two bedrooms to get to tho third; in realtor's terms, this means that a three-room
space can only be legally considered one bedroom.. We were able to turn it into a useful space, with
three separate bedrooms, a bathroom, and a laundry area. The use of egress casements was an
architectural compromise, but seemed a reasonable alternative to wildly exaggerated window sizes.
This part of the Guidelines seems to have the unintended effect of discouraging some homeowners
from making an important fire safety upgrade.
Aluminum storm combination windows (prohibited under the Guidelines) start at around 20 bucks,
and last indefinitely; wooden combos start at around twice that, and the frames are finger-jointed
white pine, which isn't exactly known for its weather resistance. You can have the old fashioned kind
custom made, starting at around 90 bucks per window. Obviously, you don't have to paint the
aluminum ones. While the folks on Summit street probably have no problem with that kind of cost
difference, it's going to be a budget concern for some 'of my neighbors. Fortunately, most of these old
houses already have aluminum combos installed, and this requirement will only become an issue
when windows are replaced.
Mtg note; comm. Has no jurisdiction over storm windows. Comm. Assured me that they are flexible
on this issue. Suggested that casements, though disallowed on paper, might be acceptable with
addition of a fake center muntin.
Doors
Installing flush entrance doors or other modern door styles is disallowed. Blocking
down door openings to accommodate standard door sizes is disallowed. Installing
a double garage door where two single doors are possible is disallowed.
Entrance doors come in a vast range of styles and prices. When most of us poor folks need a door,
we're probably going to go with a standard prehung steel entry door; they can be had for $125.00 -
$250.00. I'm a little confused by what is meant by "other modern door styles" here. Perhaps the
commission would allow molded steel doors with fake panels. Or is this a prohibition of all steel-clad
doors? If so, the most economical choice by far has been eliminated. They are more energy efficient,
and more resistant to weather damage (aside from the cheesy finger-jointed brick mold casing, which
I usually replace prior to installation).
The prohibition against blocking down will greatly increase the cost of replacing a 7' or 7' 6" door:
these are no longer standard sizes. These can be special ordered; I don't have figures as to the
difference in cost. I'm not at odds with the aesthetic principles behind this rule; shortening a door
might sometimes interrupt the continuity of lines. It should be noted, however, that this is bound to
affect the cost of maintenance for some people.
Incidently, most people who go to the salvage barn to buy an old entry door probably don't realize
this, but it is illegal to install an entry door that has conventional glass; the UBC requires that an entry
door have either safety glass or plexiglass.
From a strict preservationist's view, the Commission is probably already making a concession in
allowing two-car garages at all; most ancient garages were single stall, cheaply built, structurally
questionable shacks. Their stated preference is that accessory structures match the predominant
styles of similar "historic" structures found in the neighborhood. Nevertheless, they do allow two-stall
garages, but not double doors. Here I'm not sure how much latitude they're allowing themselves;
three-stall garages are not specifically prohibited; but would plans for one be approved? They are to
be commended for recognizing modern human needs by allowing two and three-stall garages at all;
however, I don't see a big difference in ugliness between two single garage doors and one single.
7/15/03
Page 7 of 8
Standard garage doors are inherently ugly, but they've become an inexorable feature of the American
standard of living. Double doors are certainly more convenient; and when Dad slides into the flimsy
center post between the single doors in January, it's going to get really ugly.
Mtg note: Commission has allowed double garage doors when singles were impracticable. Forgot to
discuss safety issue of two single doors.
Gutters and Downspouts
Altering roof slope near gutter is disallowed when covering old built in gutters.
The Commission's stated preference is to use EPDM rubber roofing to restore the original built in
gutter. This will work if the gutter is in good enough shape for the glue to adhere. It usually isn't. Built
in gutters are no longer a good idea. Maybe they were way back in the days when labor was cheap,
and when there were people who could solder the tin without burning the house down. The best
solution, pragmatically speaking, is to eliminate them.
This rule makes this option difficult on a Iow pitch porch roof. The roof slope is usually sloped
backward into the gutter at the edge of the roof. The only two options (when eliminating the built-in
gutter) are to: change the pitch of the lower part of the roof (or preferably, the entire roo0 slightly by
spanning the old gutter with new sheathing from the roof edge to a line somewhere above the gutter;
or to cut back and lower the roof edge, maintaining the pitch of the larger area of the roof. This will
involve narrowing the fascia considerably, which might end up looking stupider, unless the soffit and
fascia can be rebuilt. The most economical option is eliminated by the Guidelines.
Mtg note: no flexibility here. Built-ins may be elim'd, but roof stays same. Only solution allowed is to
keep pitch as is, repair with metal or rubber.
Chimneys
Removal of prominent chimneys is disallowed.
With the advent of power vented furnaces and water heaters, the need for chimneys is rapidly
disappearing. Most houses in this neighborhood never had fireplaces; they were originally heated by
gigantic coal furnaces. Most people now opt for power venting when installing a new furnace. It is a
much more practical option; the whole run of the vent is easily accessible, run out the side of the
house. Anyone who's run a new vent stack down an old chimney can really appreciate this. If the vent
stack is allowed to deteriorate, acids in the exhaust will destroy the brick. This is a big problem,
because you usually can't inspect the condition of the stack inside the chimney.
Power vented water heaters are becoming more popular now as well. As more homeowners switch to
these, chimneys will rapidly become useless appendages. The vast majority of these old chimneys
cannot be used for fireplaces; they don't have flues. Conventional chimneys are tremendous sources
of heat loss. They are also a frequent source of roof leaks, as many roofers don't bother to flash them
properly.
Many of these old chimneys are in very poor condition; they take a tremendous beating from the
weather. They are expensive to repoint, reflash or rebuild, and dangerous if they are not attended to; I
know a guy who once leaned on a chimney during a roofing job, and knocked it over. It's much easier
and cheaper to eliminate a chimney that's not in use than it is to repair it.
7/15/03
Page 8 of 8
Chimneys are also frequently in the way in the living spaces of these old houses; the chimney in at
least one old house here in Goosetown sits in the middle of a stairwell, leaving only about sixteen
inches of space to get around it. When we remodeled our upstairs, moving all the interior walls
around, we had no choice but to remove both chimneys; they were the only thing standing in the way
of turning the second floor into a useable space, with three bedrooms and a bath. The old standard-
issue Goosetown configuration necessitated walking through the first two bedrooms to get to the
third. The chimneys were smack-dab in the middle of everything.
Mtg note: comm. Expressed flexibility with chimneys; if can show that chimney is relatively
insignificant or removal is unavoidable to accomplish objective. Cited example of Moffat houses with
prominent chimneys. Comm. Has power to decide what "prominent" means.
Concluding Thoughts
Thus far, historic districts in Iowa City have been limited to areas in which the residents are generally
in a higher income bracket than is the case in these proposed districts. It's one thing to impose these
stringent requirements on a doctor or tenured professor; it's quite another to impose them on young
families, the elderly, and rental properties. Iowa City seems to have an excellent rehab program for
homeowners who aren't financially prepared to deal with costly repairs and maintenance; but if these
new, lower-income districts are approved, a lot more people are likely going to be falling through the
cracks. Can the system handle the additional burden imposed by compulsory historic restoration of
this much real estate in lower income neighborhoods?
In a more philosophical sense, it seems unfair to impose a financial burden on a minority of property
owners, when the stated motivation for doing so is that it is for the good of the community as a whole.
If it is really in the best interests of the taxpayer to preserve old houses in their original state, then the
taxpayer theoretically shouldn't have a problem with subsidizing the additional costs imposed on
owners of old homes, rich or poor (to an extent, this is already being done, through tax abatements,
etc.; but I'm not sure how much difference it would make to the average owner of a "contributing"
structure). If that were presented as part of the package, I think we'd get a much better idea of just
how strongly John Q. Taxpayer feels about historic preservation. It's easy to support the preservation
movement when it doesn't really affect you (or even if you really aren't aware of how it's going to
affect you). To impose a substantial increase in the cost of living for a minority of citizens for the
alleged benefit of all citizens seems to run counter to the principles of most people in this community.
If historic preservation is for the good of all, it should be subsidized by all. Ultimately, that's the only
way that I could truly reconcile myself to imposing these standards in a working-class neighborhood.
I'm happy to engage anyone in conversation in any form (except shouting matches or hate mail)
pertaining to these issues. I can be reached at:
thompbobson(~mchsi.com
337-3543 (ask for Bob)
Bob Thompson
1004 E. Church St.
Iowa City IA 52245
7/15/03
Marian Karr
From: charlottewalker@webtv, net
Sent: Monday, July 14, 2003 6:43 AM
To: council@iowa-city.org; Steve-Atkins@iowa-city.org
Cc: Sen[orsOnGuard@webtv.net; charlottewalker@webtv, net
Subject: Johnson County Task Force on Aging - second try
(I forgot to add my telephone number and address on my first try at
sending this message that I sent yesterday. That information is included
this time.)
Greetings to all City Council Me~bers and City Manager:
This year, I am on the Membership committee of the Johnson County Task
Force on Aging. I would like to ask your help on suggesting possible new
minority and iow income persons for membership on the JC Task Force.
At this time, the 24 member Task Force {plus 24 non-voting ex-officio
members) has 0 minority members and until this month had only 1 iow
income members on the Task Force. The second iow income person will
begin at the July 14th meeting.
The 2004 Task Force membership committee will be making a more active
effort this year to try to ease the legitimate criticism that the Task
Force is mainly an upper income white only group.
If you know of any minority or iow income person who is concerned enough
to help on senior citizen issues, including the needs and problems of
lower income and minority seniors, please let us know the names and
contact information.
We are especially looking for people capable of independent thought and
the courage to express their opinion. Someone on the Task Force will
then call on them to give them more information. (The Task Force Members
do not all have to be of senior citizen age.)
Thank you for your time.
Charlotte Walker, member of the
Membership Committee
Johnson County Task Force on Aging
Home address: 320 S. Dubuque
Iowa City, IA 52240
Home phone: 354-2123
and Co-Director of Seniors On Guard
PO Box 1865
Iowa City, Iowa 52244
http://members.tripod.com/~seniorsonguard/index.html
Seniors On Guard
Mic~American
Energy
3500 104th Street
OBSaS$~VELy REL~NTLESSLYAT yOUR SERVlCE~* U bandale IA 50322
Honorable Emie Lehman ~ ?
Mayor, City of Iowa City <:'~ .~
902 Wylde Green Road .~
Iowa City, Iowa 52246 ~z>
Dear Mayor Lehman:
Enclosed please find a reprint of a letter from Mr. Brad Davis, General Manager, Gold-
Eagle Cooperative to the editor of the Eagle Grove Eagle. Mr. Davis is also Chairman of
the Board of Directors of Ag Processing Inc. (AGP) with operations in several different
communities throughout Iowa. I thought you would find it both interesting and
informative to read his perspective on municipalization and in particular the three
municipal electric utilities where AGP has operations.
IfI can be of further assistance to you or answer any questions you can contact me at
515-281-2790.
Thank you in advance for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
Chuck Conrad
CC: Marian K. Kart, City Clerk
Enclosure
Published in the Eagle Grove Eagle, June 25, 2003
Concerns over
City and each individual City CouncilI ~ r"-r"x City will be purchasing from MEC is
formation of municipal member, but to date, have not bel~'ff[L~L,J 15 years, so I have not included
electricutility tbeseSUCCeSSfUlelectricinincreases.getting any relief from depreciation expense as the
Letter to the EditOr: A~l oftbe communities c~a'~ [ ~4 AM, ,~l~S~5am)~izationyears°ftheand isl°anexpensedI calculatedyearly.iS
On behalf of Gold-Eagle budgetary restrictions, thus limitati0ns At the very least, payroll would
Cooperative, I would like to express in service or repairs. One comm~,r/ CLERKinclude a manager, 2 support staff
our concern over the Council's recent has voltage regulation probl~dClT~' lOWAmbers, meter reader/maintenance
decision to move forward with a we continually have clcctrid'~n'o't'oi's labor, and a fully equipped 2-man
feasibili~ study on the formation of a burn up. They have a substation maintenance crew. I believe payroll,
municipal electric utility. As a problem and no funds to repair the benefits, computer/software mature-
taxpayer and major employer in Eagle problem. Another community has nance, office supplies, postage, and
Grove, we believe an accurate' ~;afcty issues they are unable to operational costs for the support
feasibility study will clearly show that address that could have tragic vehicles would cost about $400,000
forming a municipal electric utility consequences someday. A third annually. Contracted or leased utility
wii!:have the opposiU~ effect of what community undercharges for sewer, crew backup to help on large projects,
the city is trying to obtain, but not all water and garbage services and and replacement supplies for yearly
abbreviated feasibility studies are subsidizations come from their repairs and maintenance willprobably
accurate and they often lead to more electricity charges, run an additional $250,000 per year
expensive studies to Clear up ihe gray Gold-Eagle Cooperative will not depending on the City maintenance
areas identified in the previous study, expand our services in these policies that are put in place and the
I understand the Council's communities because of high mood of Mother Nature. I have
fiduciary responsibility to the Eagle. operating costs and we have already always wondered if the Halloween icc
Grove residents they represent and I eliminated some of our services in storm we had several years ago hit 1
believe it is unreasonable to think the these communities, million dollars by the time everything
Council should be or can be Eagle Grnve will be no different for was repaired and back to normal in
knowledgeable about every subject several reasons, but the main issue Eagle Grove. In addition the city
brought before them. That is why will be debt incurred by the City. The will need to collect $120,000 annually
there are investigative processes and · following is what I believe will be the for property tax replacement.
that is why a consultant was hired for ou~ay of cash if the City proceeds: When you break these yearly
this investigation. My purpose for this Eagle Grove has a total volume of expenses into a coat p~r kWh and then
communication is to share my about 43 million kilowatt hours (kWh) add. them to the ,cost 'of wholesale
experience with municipal utilities, per year, Current wholesale costs ~ electricity, it'totals 8.57 'cents per
share what I have found in my limited about 5.25 cents per kWh. However, kWh. Currently, the average retail
investigation, and give you as much there are no ]pug term agreements cast'for electric power being supplied
insight as possible so the consultants (over 5 y~s) available and contracts to Ea~le Grove residen¢~
do not lure you into additional studies are very restrictive. Purchasers 'of busineSses is 5.90 cehts per kWik. The
that will never give the City any return power must guarantee and pay for difference does not appear to he big,
on the money they would spend for minimum usage if used or not and but this difference would force the
the additional studies, purchasers arc'severely pefialized for City to raise electric rates currently
Gold-Eagle Cooperative operates using more power than specified in the being charged in Eagle Grove
facilities in nine communities. We are contract. (Remember the problelils in $1,148,100 just to break even. Again,
supplied power in three of these California?) Thus, in a perfect world this 45 percent increase wo~ld be to
communities by municipal electric of steady usage 94 hours per day, 7 simply break even.
services. These three communities are days per week, total, wholesale power Certainly there are other costs to
where we e~perience our highest coat costs to the city would be $2,257,500 add that I have not mentioned 'like
of electricity. In fact, we experience per year and most certainly could be additional liability insurance costs,
outrageous rates in some of these higher since it is impossible to predict setting up a reserve for an act of God
communities. Municipal electric future usage. As you know, Eagle (.wind, ice, lightning, etc), employee
u(ilities are not regulated by the Iowa Grove electric usage will change trainings and certifications, and
Utilities Board, and the wholesale because ol~ current business volumes obviously the main point of this,
power the City utilities purchase is not growing or shrinking, new businesses adding a margin to the electricity for
regulated by thc Iowa Utilities Board. coming to town, business closings, economic development. Personally, I
The Cities can legally charge any growing populations, shrinking would set up an additional $100,000
amount they wish for their services populations, hot weather and air per year and place it in the City's
and in most cases, they have no choice conditioner usage, and cold weather savings account just for acts of Ged,
but to charge higher rates for their with the use. of furnace fans and thus with the other costs could easily
services because oftbe increasing cost electric blankets, total more than $250,000' per year. If
of the whole,ale power they purchase The expenses would first include my assumptions are correct, then the
and because of their dependence on debt repayment on the 6.6 million increase ~ould need to be 58.24
outside contractors for most utility dollar investment. I have assumed a percent.
maintenance work. In one of the 15-year amortization at 5.75 APR,
communities where we operate, we thus $657,685 per year for interest and
have had the City increase their principal payments. I am assuming
electric rates at our facilities over 400 the remaining life on the assets the
percent in a single year. We sued the
Obviously, I had to get a couple of
numbers from MEC to do all of these
calculations. I also had my numbers Fll
reviewed b.y others more familiar and
more knowledgeable in this subject
matter than me. The point-I want to
make is the process, the numbers, and
the concerns are very real. and
reasonably accurate and are believed OITY CLERK
to bo"best case scen. o." IoWA CIT'(, IOWA
Of additional concern lo me is the
consulting company. If I was a
consultant, for the few dollars being
spent on the initial study, why won't I
push for the next step in the
investigation process? I would admit
this was a very limited study and
without additional work, I could not
guarantee the accuracy or that all of · , " --
the gray areas have even been $400,000 .Cost for second feaSibility stud)'. This study must be completed in great detail
identified, and ~ll-be used to l~li~ the costs of:
I.. Wholesale power
I can'l criticize the Cit'y for this 2. Suggest retail prices
first step, but I hope I have. covered 3. Cost to purchase assets - poles~ lines, meters, transformers, etc.
this issue in enough detail that 4. Cost to purchase trucks and equipment to maintain assets
i regardless of what the findings, 5.. Cost for billing services, service order system, meter reading equipment,
estimates, or recommendations of the outage managemant systen~, ete~
consulting company are, you have 6. ConsU'uct an operatiag I~dget including debt structure and repayment
enough information to understand the s~hudule labor pool, pr°fitub lityanalysis, otc
risks and challenges if you go forward. ' 7. Conduct meetings with the public and prepare the City for voting on the
I believe we need a strong and propus~/I
active economic deyelopment group in ,
Eagle Grove to help existing business $ 100.000 Cost for next pha~e if vote pa~es. Consultants must review and update all
tha. t may b~ challenged and to provide information so it can be presented to the Iowa Utilities Board. If their numbers
incentive packages to companies that .. are not in line for the initial presentation, they will probably be turned down by
are looking for a community to locate the Iowa Utilities BOard. This fee is also assuming they have realistically valued
in.' . ~sets currently owned by MEC, thus additional funds have not been assigned
,defend proposed valuationS.
With no risk to the City or to the ·
residents of Eagle Grove, I would $100,00b . ' 'l assume the City will'be tumed down by the iowa Utilities Board the first time
recommend the City place an excise
because the sub-:,tatlon feeding Eagle Grove also feeds, many area farms and the -
tax on the electric bills currently beh~g City of Goldfield. '.1 believekarea farmers and certain y res dents and businesses ia
billed by MEC. With the huge base Ooldfield, ineludingGold-EagleCoonsrative, willaggresslvelyprotesttheCityof
volume of 43,000,000 'kilowatt hours Eagle Grove being in charge of their source ofpowe?. City utility manpower.
being billed per year in Eagle Grove, a equipment, and expertise to cover this large customer base will probably be the
very minuscule excise tax such as 1/8 weak link that will steer the Iowa Utility Board towards donving their request.
of a cent per kWh would provide ' , ' '
revenue of pearly $55,000 per year. $6,000,000 . 'If the pro~:e~s gets to this point, it gets extremely interesting. This astimated cost
This excise tax would amount to about is let the purchase of the MEC hard assets, $750,000 for a new substation to
a 2.0 percent increase. As I would eliminate Goldfield and Eagle Grove area farme~ from the Eagle Grove C ty
hope everyone knows, MEC has · utility, purchasing equipment and building the infrastructure to service the City
frozen their electric rates through the uti ty If th s number s erroneous, it is on the side of conservatism in my
ye.ar 2010, so the excise tax could opinion! It does not include any sunk ~enerations costs, h could also be several
expire in 2010 and then be revisited million higher depending on the negotiation skills of each pan?' involved.
after MEC communicates their
intentions on any rate changes at that
ffoine in .time.
' Cenain,ly food for thought!
"Thank you for taking the time to
read this and thank you in advance for
taking it under advisement prior to any
decisions you make down the road on
this issue.
Brad Davis
General Manager
Gold-Eagle Cooperative
Marian Karr
From: Caroline Dieterle [caroline-dieterle@uiowa.edu]
Sent: Friday, July 25, 2003 8:49 PM
To: cou ncil@iowa-city.org
Subject: USA Patriot Act
To the City Council:
I am hoping that the Council will finally screw UP the courage to join the other 142 communities and 3 states
who have passed pro-civil rights resolutions protesting the USA Patriot Act and calling for revision of it and/or
limits to be placed on it.. See below (bold emphasis mine).
Caroline Dieterle
Walnut St. Iowa City
............... Text of forwarded message ...............
From: American Civil Liberties Union <ACLUOnline~aclu.org>
Reply-to: ACLUOnline~aclu.org
To: caroline-dieterle~uiowa.edu
Date: Thu, 24 Jul 2003 21:02:28 GMT
Subject: ACLU Online: Congress Takes Aim at the USA Patriot Act and New ACLU TV Ads
Status:
July 24, 2003
[] lbaaOe5.jpg
MARK YOUR CALENDARS
On Thursday, July 31, the ACLU will be hosting a live online chat discussing the FBI's broad new surveillance
powers under the USA PATRIOT Act. Hear about the Fourth and First Amendment defects to a provision in the
law that allows the government to obtain records or personal belongings from any person or entity, including
public libraries, upon the mere showing of "relevance" to a terrorism investigation.
Ann Beeson, ACLU Associate Legal Director, will be answering questions about the USA PATRIOT Act from
1-2pm Eastern Thursday, July 31. Just visit www aclu,org to join this important discussion.
7/26/03
Page 2 of 4
i[] 1baal 2b.ipg
In a huge victory, the House voted on Tuesday evening -- by an extraordinary margin -- for an amendment to
this year's Commerce, Justice and State funding bill that would bar federal law enforcement agencies from
implementing "sneak and peek" search warrants. In one of its most controversial provisions, the USA
PATRIOT Act allowed government agents to execute so-called sneak and peek warrants and search homes,
confiscate certain types of propetty and essentially "bug" computers without notifying the subject of the search
that it is happening.
Conservative Rep. C.L. "Butch" Otter (R-ID) offered the amendment, which passed by a vote of 309 to 118,
with 113 Republicans voting in favor. The amendment still has to clear the Senate and the President before it
becomes law.
The Otter Amendment is the first unequivocal indication that lawmakers are taking seriously a broad, grassroots
backlash against excessive government powers, which has grown exponentially in the past several months. To
date, at least 142 communities and three states, encompassing more than 16 million people, have passed pro-
civil liberties resolutions that speak out against the PATRIOT Act, many of which call for specific fixes to the
bill
though we applaud Rep. Otter and h s fellow patr ots, there ~s now more to be done," said Timothy Edgar,
an ACLU Legislative Counsel. "The PATRIOT Act is replete with similar unnecessary and un-American
surveillance, detention and investigative powers that must be repealed before we can really begin to restore civil
liberties protections to where they need to be in America."
Learn more on the ACLU's campaign to keep America Safe and Free.
TAKE ACTION!
Click here to send a FREE "Thank or Spank" fax to your Representative!
Much more needs to be done to alleviate the worst provisions of the PATRIOT Act and we need to let our
Members of Congress know that we are watching}
lEVI lbaala3.jpg
School may be out, but lessons in civil liberties are continuing in the ACLU's new national television
advertising campaign featuring schoolchildren who question the government's restrictions on basic freedoms in
the name of national security.
In two new 30-second advertisements the ACLU depicts the shocked reactions of students who learn about new
restrictions on their rights.
7/26/03
Page 3 of 4
[] lbaaldf.jpg
"If the government has its way, our children will be growing up in a world where the lessons in their civics
classes will be about freedoms we have lost rather than the freedoms we hold dear," said ACLU Executive
Director Anthony D. Romero. "Who berter than children to deliver the message that we must act today, because,
as the ad says, freedom can't protect itself."
The advertisements focus on provisions of the now-notorious USA PATRIOT Act and other government
policies that go beyond fighting terrorism and stray into the suppression of basic constitutional rights.
The advertisements will air from July 16 to September 5 on cable networks as well as on some local television
networks in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington, DC.
The advertisements are part of "Keep America Safe and Free: The ACLU Campaign to Defend the
Constitution," which aims to promote public debate about proposals and measures that violate civil liberties
without increasing our security.
View the ads and learn more on the Safe and Free Campaign.
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Congress Takes Aim at the USA Patriot Act
New ACLU Television Ads Dramatize Post-9/11 "Lessons" in Civil Liberties
News:
Title IX Upheld
Voting Rights
YOU CAN HEL? PROTECT OUR BASIC FREEDOMS by joining wi~h nearly 300,000 card-carr~ing members of the
ACLU. Our rights as individuals -- the very fonodation of our great democracy -- depend on our willingness to defend
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7/26/03
Page 4 of 4
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ACLU HALLS REAFFIRMATION OF LANDMARK CIVIL RIGHTS LAW
The ACLU is hailing a Department of Education letter that clearly reaffirms the 31-year-old "Title IX" civil rights law,
the fate of which had been uncertain after the Bush Administration signaled it might seek to alter the measure.
Title IX is a key component of America's civil rights framework. Passed in 1972, it barred discrimination based on sex
in all federally funded educational activities, including athletics, which had historically excluded female participation.
And, although women remain underrepresented in high school and college athletics, Title IX has done more than any
other piece of legislation or federal policy to equalize athletics in America.
Learn more about Title IX and Women's Rights can on the ACLU web site.
FLORIDIANS TAKE ACTION TO RESTORE VOTING RIGHTS!
On Saturday, July 26th, the ACLU and other member organizations of the newly formed Florida Rights Restoration
Coalition will be working to correct Florida's unjust voting ban against people with past felony convictions. The
Coalition will host ten simultaneous workshops across the state to assist people with past felonies in completing the
application for restoration of their civil and voting rights.
The workshops are a wake-up call to all Floridians that Florida's voting ban -- which permanently strips the right to
vote from more than a half million people in the state -- constitutes a civil rights crisis, and that the time has come for it
to end.
If you live in Florida and would like to help make these workshops a success, please consider volunteering your time to
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Find the location of the workshop nearest you.
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7/26/03
Marian Karr
From: Lisa Mollenhauer
Sent: Monday, July 28, 2003 9:09 AM
To: 'crummelhart@yahoo.com'
Cc: Karin Franklin; Jann Ream; *City Council; Bob Miklo
Subject: FW: Please Allow the Englert Theater Sign to Operate as Historically Intended
Mr. Rummelhart,
It is true that our current sign ordinance would not allow for an "animated" sign; however, there is a provision for historical
signs. The Board of Adjustment has the authority to grant an exception from the provisions of the sign code for historical
signs. To our knowledge, no one from the Englert Theater has contacted the City regarding the Englert sign. When and if
they do, they will be directed to the Board of Adjustment.
Lisa
Lisa Mollenhauer
Administrative Assistant to the City Manager
City of iowa City
410 E Washii~gton Street
iowa City, IA 52240
(319) 356 5010
..... Original Message .....
From: Chad Rummelhart [mailto:crummelhart@yahoo.com]
Sent: Friday, July 25, 2003 8:15 AM
To: council@iowa-city.org
Subject: Please Allow the Englert Theater Sign to Operate as Historically Intended
Dear Members of the Iowa City City Council:
First, let me say, "Thank you" for your support both monetarily and in moral support to revive the Englert Theater as a
showplace and centerpiece of Iowa City's Downtown District. I'm sorry to say that I was not one of the grassroots
members who pushed for its refurbishment, but as the excitement grows for its successful rebirth, I'm looking forward to
having a venue to attend that is not a downtown bar.
I have heard my grandparents and parents in Iowa City often talk about going to the movies at the Englert when it was a
popular place to spend an evening or afternoon. Being in my early thirties, I never experienced seeing the Englert sign's
classic neon signage blinking in a syncupated rhythm, summoning people to the excitement of entering its doors for a nice
evening downtown. Many older residents of Iowa City have mentioned to me what a unique effect the old neon signs
created for businesses and theaters. The signs were as much a part of downtowns, as the traffic and assortment of
home-owned stores.
Whenever my family has attended Broadway shows in New York City or theaters in downtown Chicago, we always have
felt uplifted walking toward the theaters with the neon marques blinking. A special atmosphere is created when a theater
sign is intermittantly is creating a "rolling" effect with the neon lit tubes. The times I have seen the Englert's sign on, it
appeared sterile, as a result of the sign ordinance adopted in the 1970s.
I encourage you to fully show your support for the Englert's full transformation back to the way it was, by granting an
exception as a historical piece of Iowa City, and allowing it to have its marque sign operate as originally intended. (Did
you know that several cities in the United States have placed old signs on the historical lists?) Previous councils have
granted exceptions for other signs. For example, the sign ordinance, as implemented, has not allowed front lit signs
lighted by floodlights or spotlights. Signs were to be lit from the inside, using flourescent tube lighting. However, the
council did allow Wal-Mart on Highway 1 West to have its non-back-lit flat sign to be placed on the property, while the
council disapproved a classic neon sign expensive sign for the Red Lobster restaurant that would not have had the ugly
flat navy blue background with the glarish flood bulbs shining on it. So, exceptions have been approved previously as
precedents. I don't see why exceptions cannot be granted for the Englert now that we know it will be brought back to life
as a place Iowa Citians can point to as THE place to go for first-class entertainment, and a step back in history--the way it
7/28/03
Page 2 of 2
used to be. Even though I have not lived in Iowa City for some time, I do care. Iowa City is a unique city that everyone
seems to like for one reason for another.
If the Englert Theater is truly to be brought back to its historical appearance, may I highly encourage you to allow the
switch to be flipped that will allow the neon tubes to "roll" in the exciting, uplifting fashion they did for previous generations
of Iowa Citians and visitors. In doing so, you will be adding the "frosting on the cake" on the refurbishment of the Englert,
and honoring the long-time Englert family of Iowa City. I know Miss Edna Englert will be thrilled by your actions in
granting the sign marque to be lit as it was "back in the good o1' days".
Respectfully,
Chad Rummelhart
7/28/03
~%%% 3~3[' ,~ ~ la: ~q 07/23/03
Council Members ~0~ ~"
410 E. Washin~on S~eet
Iowa City, IA 52240
Council Members:
I am impressed with the idea of the Vision Iowa Funds. Iowa does need to find ways to
attract younger people to the state. Theproblem is Iowa does not have any large-scale
attractions that set it apart from other states. Iowa's beauty is not in its mountains, in its
lakes, in its world-class cities, in its beaches, in its wealth of old architecture, or its huge
corporate skyscrapers. Young adults are attracted to cities. The challenge is to make
Iowa's cities attractive places foryoung singles and families to live.
I have noticed that many worid-class cities have walking and biking paths that are
showcases for the attractions of that city and wonderful visual focal points. Chicago has
the boardwalk along Lake Michigan, New York has Central Park, and St. Louis has a
running and jogging path around the arch. I used to livein Philadelphia. Philadelphia has
a running and biking path that begins at the Philadelphia Art Museum and follows the
Schuylkill River past Boathouse Row where_you can watchpeople sculling in the river.
Philadelphia also has the Benjamin Franklin Parkway that leads from the Art Museum to
CRy Hall. The Parkway is lined with beautiful fountains and sculptures. These are
wonderful examples of old, public art that make the city a beautiful and interesting place
to live. I understand that Des Moines has received fundin~g to create The Principal
Riverwalk. I read about the proposed plan, and I think it's a great idea. The proposed
bridge will add some beautiful architecture to downtown Des Moines. Des Moines needs
something distinctive to set it apart from other cries. It needs something on the scale
Lake Michigan or the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, and The Principal Riverwalk is an
excellent step in the right direction.
Not every city in Iowa can afford something on the scale of The Principal Riverwalk.
What can we do to make these cities attractive? How can Iowa's cities compete with
other world-class cities throughout the United States? I think that people are attracted to
beauty. Jobs are important, but they are not the only deciding factor. People also want to
live in a place that is interesting and attractive. Where people congregate, jobs and
ammenities follow. The success of Minneapolis shows thatpeople will move to a colder
climate when an attractive city is located there; ..
How can we attract people to Iowa's cries? I think we can do this by making Iowa a
beautiful place to live. To find Iowa's beauty, we need to look to its past. Iowa's beauty
was in its wild flowers and native ornamental~grasses. Wildflowers once covered this
state. The word Iowa means beautiful land. This beauty stemmed from Iowa's prairies.
When the word prairie is mentioned, most people imagine acres ofB~g Bluestem and
Indian Grass, but this is an incomplete picture of what constitutes a prairie. Actually,
there are over 240 species of prairie wildflowers that were once found across the state of
Iowa. These flowers are our birthright as Iowans, but many of our citizens have never
seen them.
So how can Iowa's wildflowers help to attract people to the state? I would like to use Des
Moines as an example, because it is our capital3 and it is using a bikin~g and runnin_gpath
as a focal point for the city. However, there are many other cities across the state where
bike paths are under construction or have already been completed. Iowa City is agreat
example ora city with a biking and running path already in place. In Des Moines,
portions of the Principal Riverwalk could become showcases for Iowa's wildflowers. I am
sure, under the current plan, there are sections of the path that will be mowed. These
areas could be restored to their natural state. There m~ht actually be a variety of habitats
along the river. In some areas, prairie plants would be appropriate; and in other areas,
marsh plants, woodland plants, or savannaplants would be ap,propriate. For each one of
these habitats, there are many species of wildflowers. Using native plantings would be
distinctive. I do not know of another city in the United States that has a Prairie Walk
located in its downtown area. Iowa could be the first. Masses of wildflowers can compete
with the beauty of Lake Michigan or the~grandeur of the Philadelphia Art Museum. They
can definitely create a beautiful place to exercise, and an attractive focal point for the city
of Des Moines or any other city in Iowa.
There are several advantages to this proposal. Prairies are inexpensive to maintain. Lawns
are boring, and they have to be mowed on a re3ular basis. Ima~gine both sides of the path
along the Des Moines River planted with a natural prairie flower garden that is easy to
maintain and changes with the seasons. Butterflies flutter across thepath, and dra~gonflies
dart to and fro. Our state bird, the goldfinch, sings as people walk by and you might spot
a wild Rose, our state flower. Prairies remain interesting and enga~ging throughout the
seasons, because they change with the seasons. They have a constant succession of
wildflowers and colors throughout the s)rin~g, summer, and fall. These changes mean that
each time you walk the path, there are new things to discover. Prairies are an inexpensive
alternative to other options for revitalizing a city. Public art can be expensive. The bridge
that will be built along the waterfront is an architectural wonder, but it will cost an
incredible amount of money to build. Prairie could be.planted at a fraction of the cost of
the new bridge. Flower gardens are beautiful, but they require watering. Prairie
wildflowers are adapted to the environment. They do not require watering or re3,ular
mowing. This would also create an incredible educational tool for children and the
community right there in the downtown area. With the Botanical Center within walkin~g
distance and the Science Center relocated to the downtown area, a native prairie located
nearby on The Principal Riverwalk could serve as another educational resource. There
could be scheduled prairie tours that would teach people about our native Iowa pl~. and ,',,
how they were used by Native Americans and early settlers. I want to reemphasi _z~
Iowa could, to my knowledge, be the first in the country to have a bike path that ut~i~s
native plantings. This is important. If Iowa isgoing to compete with other states, it needs
to remain innovative.
This idea could actually be expanded to the rest of the state. Iowa could become known
as the Prairie State. Instead of being an indication of backwardness, this could become
our greatest asset. What we need to create is a regional association. Much as Tuscany is
known for its beautiful countryside, Iowa could become known for its abundant wild
flowers.
Most towns and cities have areas between the sidewalk and the street that are presently
mowed. Prairie could be planted along the street sides. If prairie was notplanted in these
areas, wildflower gardens and native ornamental grasses like the Drop Seeds and Little
Bluestem could be planted. They would not require watering. Weeding would be the only
issue, and weeds could be discouraged with wood chips or some other ground covering.
Pella .uses this area to plant their tulips during Tulip Time. It is always an enjoyable
experience to drive through Pella in the spring and see all the varieties of tulips. It also
attracts many tourists to Pella in the spring. Pella is one of the communities in Iowa that
is growing.
Many city parks have areas that are not used for recreation and are presently mowed.
These areas can be converted to prairie, and walking paths can be mowed through them.
This would lend beauty to our parks and cities and create another way for people to enjoy
our parks while simultaneously cutting down on maintenance costs. Some towns may
even have resources they have not discovered yet. Newton, for instance, has an original
prairie within it's city limits that after thousands of_years in existence is being lost to trees
because of neglect.
There has been a wonderful development recently in Iowa that lends itself to this
proposal. Iowa's highway and interstate roadsides are experiencing some limited prairie
restoration. Roadsides are another area that could be greatly enhanced by wildflowers,
and it's beginning to happen. More needs to be done though. Many wildflower species
need to be reintroduced and in the areas where prairie plants have been reintroduced
burning needs to occur on a regular basis to encourage theprairie plants and discourage
the normative species that presently dominate our roadsides.
Some things to remember. Prairies take about tenyears to establish. This is a long-term
project, and it needs to be approached that way. The first several years, the prairie looks
like a weed patch, but in the third or fourthyearprairieplants really begin to appear.
Prairies need to be burned regularly. Once they are established, burning once every five
years is sufficient. However, until th~ are established prairies need to be burned once
every year. We have a large number of normative, invasive species that dominate the
landscape in Iowa. Prairies require agreat deal of labor intensive weeding because of
these normative species until they become established. Once prairie is establish~ it is
able to crowd out most of these nonnatives because of its deep root system I wi~ld~
suggest planting Little Bluestem, the Prairie Drop Seeds, and some o~r the ~ther~
prairie grasses; because they allow for more wildflowers. B~g Bluestem and In~3ra~
tend to crowd out the majority of prairie wildflowers. I would also suggest getting some
help. There are prairie experts in the state who could be a~pproached about consultin~g.
Tom Rosburg at Drake University, Daryl Smith at The University of Northern Iowa, Paul
Christiansen at Mt. Vernon College, Karl Kurtz at St. Anthony, IA and Dean Roosa
former State Ecologist are some of the top experts in the state on prairie restoration.
Arnold van der Valk at Iowa State University is an expert on wetland restoration. If you
do any savanna restoration, Carl Delong from Grinnell, IA is an expert in this area.
Economic development is so often based on attracting businesses to our state. While that
can work, it is a difficult process, and businesses often like to play states offagainst each
other to see who will offer them the best economic incentives. What we really need is for
young people to stay in and move to our state, and a regional identity can provide the
catalyst. If we can accomplish this, businesses will be attracted to the bright, young labor
pool in Iowa. I hope that someday Iowa will be a beautiful land again.
Sincerely,
J. Paul Kessler
J. Paul Kessler
4224 20th St.
Grinnell, IA 50112
1801 South Rivemide Drive Iowa City, Iowa 52246
Office Phone (319) 356-5045
Memorandum
To: Emie Lehman, Mayor, City of Iowa City
From: Alan Ellis, Chair, Iowa City Airport Commission ~-~
Date: July 11, 2003
Re: Airport Budget
The Airport Commission is committed to providing Iowa City with a prudently operated
and fiscally viable asset that serves the entire community.
The Iowa City Airport Commission, at the June 12, 2003 meeting, voted to offer two
items to reduce the FY 2004 Airport budget, in addition to those budget reductions asked
of all enterprise funds.
The Airport Commission would defer the improvements planned to make the Terminal
Building conference room a more valuable commercial use space and return those
funds. The Commission is also asking to reduce the vehicle replacement fund by half, if
that is a viable option, and extend the times scheduled to replace airport equipment.
The Commission would like to thank the Council for their support of the airport and we
look forward to working with the Council in the future.
Cc: Steve Atkins, City Manager
Ron O'Neil, Airport Manager
Airport Commission
07/29/2003 11:09 FAX 212 255 $450 Tiff:; ROSEN GROUP
Organic S yle
July 29. 2003
Honorable Mayor Led'nnan
Attention: Marianne Cart
City of Iowa
410 East Washington St.
Iowa City, IA $2240
Dear Mayor Lehman,
On behalf of Organic Style magaz/ne, it is lny pleasure to share some exciting news with
you. The September/October issue of Organic Style features "America's Healthiest
Cities" and Iowa City topped our Midwestem division and ranked 25th overall. The
magazine considered 5,500 pieces of data mad a battery o£highly subjective culture.and-
style tests to find the health/est cities in tho country.
According to our research, Residents of Iowa City are an environmentally aware healthy
bunch, and the hospital is one of the country's best. We heard that people may have
come to Iowa City for the free dance lessons, but they stay for thc quiet, open spaces and
the do-it-yourself spirit of thc countryside.
We are proud to name Iowa City one of Organic Style',* Health/est Cities. We would be
grateful for a Mayor's Proclamation to reco~i~e Organic Style magazine and the status
earned by Iowa City. We hope you will consider tiffs request and we would be honored
for your designation.
S_'mcerely, ~
Arlyn Davich
212-2554455
arlyn~rosengrouppr, com
Marian Karr ~
From: Tom Aunan [twa42@mchsi.com]
Sent: Monday, July 28, 2003 7:17 PM
To: ecu nell@iowa-city.crc
Subject: Please add a left turn lane ASAP!
Dear Council,
One more thing to add to your list of high priority items.....please consider!
I wrote first to Karen ........ she directed me to Jeff Davidson ......... He directed me to you ......... so here you go! Thanks for
your consideration!
Tom Aunan
2235 Cae Drive
Iowa City, IA
351-8997
My First Person I addressed with my concern
Karen,
1 am going to U3.' and call someone also about this concern but xvill start
with you to see if I'm starting with the right person'??
l live by Mormon Trek (2235 Cae Drive) and have an increasing concern about
Mormon Trek needing a left turn lane added from Cae/Rohret light to the
north entrance exit to the mini mall north of U of I Credit Union.
I drive it daily and I see almost an accident a day ....... one for sure
yesterday, and now one more today! As one heads south and tries to turn
left onto Cae from Mormon Trek at the light(headed south) the far lane is a
blind lane lFa car is facing you and also turning left(they are headed
north) onto Rohmt Road!
I see this as a much more immediate need than the Dane extension.....it is
highly dangerous, and seems to becoming much more so; and needs some
immediate, serious fixes. It should be a city priority' in my
mind ......... In fact the street would have been better designed given the
volume of traffic to be 3 lane(with the third able to be used as a left turn
lane in this area) But what do I know?
Tom
Karen thought I should write Jeff ....... so ....
TOlII: I am going to forwm:d your note ltd Jeff Davidson who heads up
Transportation Plamring for reply. We have done some work on this and Jeff'
can tell you all the detail.
Karin
Then Jeffs reply .........
Hello Tom Aunan. Yon are correct that there is an existing capacity
deficiency on Mormon Trek Blvd that would be alleviated by the addition ora
center lef~t turn lane in the corridor between Abbey Lane and Melrose Ave.
7/29/03
Page 2 of 2
Or you could add left turn lanes at the major intersections. We would
expect such an improvement to reduce rear end collisions in the corridor,
and improve overall traffic service. Such a project is estimated to cost $4
million, and is on the City Council's unfunded list of capital projects.
Eve~ year at budget time they determine what projects are to receive
funding for the next few' years, and this project has not been judged a h~
enough priority yet. I encourage you to contact the mayor and City Council
and voice your opinion on the importance if this project.
A tbur lane to three lane conversion can xvork in certain instances if the
overall traffic volume is not too high, say, 12,000 vehicles per day or
less, m~d you have a lot of left turning movemenls. The volume on this
section of Mormon Trek is already at 16,000 vehicles per day, so I'm not
sure that is the best solution for us. I think the addition of turn lanes
to the existing four lanes is ottr best overall strategy in this corridor,
7/29/03
Marian Karr
From: Eve Casserly [casserly@ia.net]
Sent: Wednesday, July 30, 2003 5:57 PM
To: cou ncil@iowa-city.org
Subject: Senator Grassley coming to Iowa City
Hello ...
We wanted to let you know that Senator Charles Grassley, chairman
of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee, has accepted the
invitation of the Johnson County Task Force on Aging
to address the topic of MEDICARE AND PRESCRIPTION DRUGS
at a Town Meeting on Friday, August 29th. This will be at
3:30 PM.
The Town Meeting will be held at 3:30 at the Iowa City/Johnson County Senior
Center at 28 S. Linn in Iowa City. There will be an opportunity for persons/groups
to ask questions and present concerns relating to the proposed legislation and to
offer suggestions for change. This will be the last opportunity prior to the Senate
reconvening. For further information, please feel free to call Task Force chair,
Bob Welsh, at 354-4618.
We hope that you will be able to attend.
Eve Casserly
Budget, Program and Planning Committee
the Heritage Johnson County Task Force on Aging
7/31/03