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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1998-05-26 (B) Transcription#2a page ITEM NO. 2a MAYOR'S PROCLAMATIONS -- Cancer Survivor's Day - May 30 Thomberry/ Mr. Mayor, if it pleases you, I would like to read the proclamation for Cancer Survivor's Day. Lehman/ Please do. Thomberry/ (Reads proclamation). Marian Karr/ Here to accept is Bob Henderson. Bob Henderson/ On behalf of Mercy Hospital and Staff, and all of us cancer survivors, I'd like to thank the City of Iowa City for this proclamation. Thank you. Lehman/ Thank you. Thomberry/ Thank you. Lehman/ Thank you, Dean. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #2b page 2 ITEM NO. 2b MAYOR'S PROCLAMATIONS -- Small Business Week - May 31 - June 6 Lehman/ (Reads proclamation). Karr/ Here to accept is King Herr. King Herr/ I am the Secretary/Treasurer of the local SCORE chapter, counselors to America's Small Business. Iowa City should be very proud of some of its citizens, small business people. Next week, Lynette and Mike Richards will be in Washington DC receiving the national award for welfare-to-work small business persons f the year. Also, we have a regional award that Steven West of West Music is Successful Entrepreneur of the Year. Also, we have a Young Entrepreneur of the Year in William Stabe of Norell Applications. So we should be all proud of them. The last three will be, or the last two will be in Des Moines next Tuesday receiving an award from the Governor. We also have a nomination of Leah Cohen of Bo James has been nominated Small Business Person of the Year. So we all should be very proud to have this many people in Iowa City receive these awards. Lehman/ Thank you. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #3 page 3 ITEM NO. 3 SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS Lehman/ Item #3 is a special presentation of a Governor's Traffic Safety Award. Karr/ Here for that presentation is Jan Goldsmith. Jan Goldsmith/ Good evening. It's my privilege to be here and to present you an award. In 1991, an award was given to Iowa City and to your residents for 70% seatbelt use. And I know a lot of the people that live here as well as the law enforcement community have been working very, very hard to get this up to 80%. And the two surveys that were given to me were 86% and 87% which is very, very close to 90. And we have very, very few communities that have 90% seatbelt use here. And actually, not that many 80's. So I really, you should be very, very proud of your people. By wearing seatbelts and buckling up your kids, it definitely makes a difference in collisions. It reduces the injury. I can't always say it's going to save a life, because there are some crashes that are so severe, people can't live through them. But we do know it definitely makes a difference in most of them. I'm very, very pleased to be here and to present this. you have a very efficient, progressive law enforcement agency, agencies here, that have worked very, very hard for this, in educating the public as well as giving them a little boost once in a while, maybe with a ticket or two. For those that are just a little harder to convince. Anyway, Mr., Mayor Lehman? Lehman/ Thank you very much. I suppose -- take your time, I like holding her hand. No flash that time. We could make this last all night. Kubby/ Now they'll turn red. Audience/ (Can't hear). Lehman/ Thank you. Goldsmith/ I would like to add one thing, though. I believe your Mayor told me before we came in here that he always wears his belt. And it was thanks to his kids. So the more we get to the kids, I think, in the community, why the better off I think we'll be. Lehman/ If I used the word "always", I try to always do that. I was telling her that when my kids were younger, and long before there was a law that you had to use your seatbelt, we made the kids fasten their belts. And I think they pointed out that if they had to, we certainly should. So we've used seatbelts for a long time. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #5 page 4 ITEM NO. 5 PUBLIC DISCUSSION (ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA). Lehman/ Item #5 is Public Discussion of any items not on the agenda. Anyone wishing to address Council should sign in with their name and address and limit their comments to five minutes or less. Jay Shaw/ I thought this wouldn't be necessary. I thought that I could get by without coming back to address you one last time, but it seems, for my own psychological benefit, I have to tell you the truth about the killing of my son. It's going to take more than five minutes. If you want, I'll come back next week. I can take five minutes of my wife's time, and I think I can be done with it, though. It was one employee of this city, Officer Gillaspie, who fired the hollow-point bullet that killed our son. The gross recklessness and malfeasance on the part of two other officers, Officer Kelsey and Chief Winkelhake proceeded and were an integral part of his killing. Winkelhake set this killing in motion with is failure to consider the safety of citizens in his policy and his procedures and in the training of his men. Kelsey and Gillaspie became each other's accomplices in the reckless and illegal actions that made the killing happen. Elemental decency dictated that the City's first obligation was to the family of the person their employees had killed, not to the men who had done the killing. But Council members and Atkins, in their zeal to protect their City's image, and to protect the Police from the consequences of their actions and other reasons I know not of, put closure ahead of accountability. City Manager Atkins and Council members, you overreacted to this killing at every critical juncture from the point of view of the killers, not from the point of view of the victim and his family. There is no other explanation I can think of for your instant identification with these men and your instant willingness to excuse their malfeasance and recklessness and their illegal acts that preceded this killing, as well as your willingness to excuse the interconnected lies from Kelsey and Gillaspie and Winkelhake and Jackson to involve themselves in the cover-up of the truth. This killing and the injustice that followed are still being investigated by the US Justice Department and the FBI Many of you may think that White and his cronies in the Attorney General's Office have been able to block justice, but that is not true. The case is not closed. White and the Attorney General have taken the point of view of the police from day one. They have refused to apply Iowa's law, and they are men hired to uphold the law. But our country has a Constitution which rules over all, and from the point of view of the Constitution, laws were broken. (Can't understand). The two cannot co-exist. You cannot tell the police that they can enter a building because a door's open and tell a citizen that he has a right to be free in his place of business, in his home, free of intrusion from the police. The two are mutually destructive of each other. Point of view is everything. If you do not take the correct point of view, it will be This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #5 page 5 impossible for you to do the right thing. Sometimes deciding which is the correct point of view is the most difficult decision which public officials must make. But when a police officer has intentionally killed without the slightest justification, and as a result of illegal and grossly reckless actions, and when the killers and their superiors involve themselves in lies that cover up the truth about that killing, then public officials have no choice. If they want to remain honest and moral, they must take the point of view of the victim and the victim's family. Each Council member should have put themselves in front of the muzzle of Gillaspie's gun and tried to feel that bullet tearing up their chests. And then they should have put themselves as parents, in our minds, and ask if they wanted the men who had responsibility for their son's death to continue to carry guns in their son's city. And finally, each Council member should have looked at this killing from the point of view of citizens who have fear that without accountability, the "blue wall" will only get stronger. Each Council member should have asked if it is in the interest of the City to have such men on their police force. The police live and work in something approaching a closed society. Society at large must be diligent in protecting itself from self-serving and self-interested groups. If that sounds a little harsh, I'm sorry. The police do have a perfect right to protect their own, to, as every group does, but they've gone too far. The fact that not one police officer in this country was willing to speak out against the grossly reckless police policy and police procedures which set up this totally unjustified killing is proof that police look out for each other, first and foremost. We did hear from a few former police officers who are outraged by the killing and the lack of prosecution. But silence from active-duty police officers has been complete. One officer on duty in this community did voice his disgust with the crime and the cover-up, but he was unwilling to speak publicly, because he said it would end his career. And he feared even that it would put him in actual physical danger. I mean, I can't believe that. I heard this man say that. He said "It will end my career". And he feared it would put him in actual physical danger. He may have been exaggerating. The "blue wall" is real, and its main function is to protect police from the consequences of their own misdeeds. One of the most critical roles of civilian government is to protect citizens from police, because police have guns and without strict civilian control, will always move toward over-reliance on them. If allowed to operate without oversight, behind the protections of the "blue wall", police chiefs and their officials and their officers will always put their needs, their goals, tend to put their goals, their needs, and their self-protection, ahead of the needs and protections of the citizens they are hired to serve. In Iowa City, Chief Winkelhake and his officers found that entering an unlocked business or home with guns drawn served their purposes better than following safety procedures taught at the police academy, obeying the dictates of our Constitution, and seeking a search warrant. It is the job of Council and the City Manger to This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #5 page 6 overview the performance of City employees, to make sure that they are not engaging in dangerous practices. Council members and the City Manager did not exercise this vital protective role in the years preceding our son's killing. To date, Council members and Atkins are still not performing this role adequately. Lies. I hereby make a formal complaint against Chief Winkelhake and Officer Kelsey for lying and attempting to cover up their responsibility in the death of my son. Kelsey's lies. Kelsey says that he did not see Gillaspie's actions at the moment he fired his gun. Truth. Kelsey was standing two feet from Gillaspie with his gun drawn, and had just motioned for Gillaspie to go on in. Kelsey did see Gillaspie's actions, but he does not want to risk contradicting a fellow police officer. This lie had very serious consequences, because it was passed on to Gillaspie by Officer Jackson. This was outrageous. Jackson told Gillaspie what Kelsey had said. When Jackson told Gillaspie that Kelsey had stated that he did not see Gillaspie's actions, it left Gillaspie free to later tell his own lie that he had flinched, without fear of contradiction from Kelsey. Fortunately, Zacharias, the rookie officer present, did describe Gillaspie's actions, and that description completely contradicts Gillaspie's flinch. Lie. Kelsey says that there were scratch marks on the door, and later said he saw pry marks. Truth. There were no marks on that door. Media footage and photographs of that door, and County Attorney White's examination of that door DCI's failure to note scratch marks attest to that fact. This was a bald-faced lie which Kelsey told as a belated attempt to present to the media some false justification for their illegal entry. These two lies alone should have gotten to the result of Kelsey being fired, because Kelsey has involved himself in a serious crime, obstruction of justice. Why would the City want to keep a man on its police force who has demonstrated such a total disregard for law and honesty? Winkelhake's lies: Lie. Winkelhake said over and over that his officers did nothing wrong except pull the trigger. Truth. It is not plausible that this man did not know that his officers failed to obtain the necessary search warrant. That his officers failed to take even one of the many precautions spelled out in police training manuals. His officers actions and inactions in the minutes before the killing scream of illegality and recklessness. His statement is so preposterous that it brands Winkelhake as either dishonest or incompetent to a degree that disqualifies him totally for his job. Lie. When his officers began to take some heat about entering without a warrant, Winkelhake said that his officers had not intended to enter, only to look in. The fact that Zacharias testified that Gillaspie was standing in the doorway of our son's shop when he killed him, and the fact that these men entered in the most violent way possible, put a bullet into our son's shop and into his heart, makes his lie despicable. Winkelhake assumed that this was a safe lie because intentions do not leave fingerprints. But Kelsey and Gillaspie's actions and statements that night, and in the months prior, as well as other officers' actions, give a lie to Winkelhake's statement. Winkelhake's This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #5 page 7 officers had, just a week before, entered a business across the street through an unlocked door, and forced the manager to the floor at gunpoint. Gillaspie even entered a private home with gun drawn when he found a door open. You see, people of Iowa City, it really could have been any one of you that the police killed. With a little bit of luck, for Eric, a little bit of bad luck for the manager of Dodge Cleaners, with a little bit of bad luck for the resident of the house on Sunset, it could be somebody else standing here before you, agonizing how his loved one had been killed. How the County Attorney failed to file charges, how the police had lied to cover up the truth. Lie. Before I shoved Chief Winkelhake, he told me, to my face, that the building entry policy had not changed. Truth. Winkelhake knew that I had left the door open in that same building. I woke up in a nightmare one morning and remembered that incident. I didn't remember it right away. I woke up, in a nightmare, and I remembered that incident where the police had called me, asked me if anybody could be in my building. They took precautions, very many precautions. Maybe they didn't take enough. You know, in hindsight, I think, why did they have to enter at all? But they took all the precautions that are outlined in the police training academy manuals, including calling me, including checking, including announcing their entry. And more. Anyway, sorry, that's off-schedule there. Winkelhake knew that I had left a door open in that same building some years earlier, and that Iowa City cops, under a former Police Chief had taken rational, safe, sane, and legal inspections that were completely different, and which greatly reduced the risk of killing someone. And he knew that Eric and I and every other person in the City had no way of knowing that leaving a door open, unlocked, could become an invitation for the police to come in with guns drawn. Many in the City condemned me for shoving the Chief, as well they should have. What the City does not know is the horrible joke that the police department played on me which led to the shove. Some months before the shove, the Iowa City Police Department sent out questionnaires to all Iowa City businesses. One came to me asking if the police had my permission to enter my business if my door was found open. Did Winkelhake not see the horror in asking me a question, after his cops had killed my son, that if he had asked before, would have saved my son's life. He could have asked my brother about this. He could have even talked to my lawyer. Common sense and common decency dictated that he not send the questionnaire directly to me. But I got it, and I finally resolved to respond to Chief Winkelhake's joke in person. I had to do it in a public place with plenty of witnesses. At that time, I was afraid that Winkelhake would lie and have me arrested. I think that was unfounded, and I apologize to him. It's not that bad, but I have been subjected to too many lies. Anyway, I saw the need to do it in a public place. I memorized my statement, and I waited for an opportunity. I'd just about given up on the idea when I saw Winkelhake standing between two men in the crowded lobby of the Coralville This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #5 page 8 Civic Center. Unfortunately, I did not stop to think if I could handle being lied directly to my face from the man I hold responsible for my son's death. I approached Winkelhake and told him that his officers did not have, and never would have my permission to enter my building. That if he had informed me what his policy was, I would have taken steps that would have saved my son's life. I had intended to finish my statement by telling him that his officers actions were obscenely reckless because they put anyone in sight at risk, and illegal, as a search warrant was required, and that I held him responsible along with Kelsey and Gillaspie, for my son's death. But Winkelhake interrupted me that the police did not change. I don't know what the basis of that statement is. He may have reason for saying that. But to me, it was a lie. It was a direct lie, because I had had experience of a different policy. And I knew that he knew that my experience of that policy was different. So to me, it smacked of a lie. It smacked of a lie, like a slap in the face. Whether it was that or not, I don't know. But surely he knew. He knew of that, because I told the Council several times, and I made much, I made it very public, my experience with leaving a door open many years earlier. I remembered his admission that the policy had never been written down, and I knew in that instant that Winkelhake had turned his officer loose and felt safe in lying because there was no documentable proof that the policy had changed. A complete disregard for human decency in the face of tragedy and his flagrant lie and his cruelty in speaking to me overwhelmed me with revulsion, and I pushed him, out of instinctive disgust. I won't go near him again. The only thing this man -has to fear from me is my continued insistence on the truth. Winkelhake's so-called policy is not a policy at all, but an illegal authorization to enter buildings without warrants, and with guns drawn, and with an understanding that no matter what his officers did, he would support them. The fact that entry procedures have never been written down means that the only way it could be proved that the policy had been changed would be to get an officer to say that in times past, they did things different. We haven't been able to find any officer willing to say that. Even the officers who responded to my earlier open door at Iowa Vending, if they're still in town, have not come forward. Behavior unbecoming an officer in assessing their Police Chief, City Manager Atkins, and Council members, should also keep in mind Winkelhake's behavior after I shoved him. Over a half an hour after the shove, at the end of a lengthy and very civil conversation, the Coralville Chief of Police, Barry Bedford, I was informed, that Coralville Police had prepared a charge of simple assault against me, which would not require arrest and booking. Chief Bedford offered to help me avoid the waiting media. I signed the charge paper which obligated me to appear in the Coralville Municipal Court. Chief Bedford left the room with a paper. Five, perhaps ten minutes later, he came back in the room with two uniformed officers, and informed me that Winkelhake was alleging scratches on his arm which would require a charge of This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #5 page 9 aggravated assault. This meant that I would have to be arrested, handcuffed, and booked at the Johnson County Jail. There would be no way to avoid the media circus. I raised my hands and asked the three police officers to examine my tingemails and watch and look for signs that I had scratched Winkelhake. I didn't even bother to look. I insisted that Chief Bedford return to Winkelhake and ask him if he wanted it to happen this way. And by happen this way, I meant, does he want this publicity? Does he want this publicity? Barry Bedford knew exactly what I meant, and I think Chief Winkelhake knew exactly what I meant. Does he want this publicity? I took that to be a yes answer. Winkelhake's alleged, Winkelhake alleged these scratches at precisely the moment they were needed to increase the charges from simple assault to aggravated assault. This, in combination with the fact that Winkelhake had demonstrated his dishonesty many times should raise suspicions against him. I obviously have nothing but suspicion there. And I have accepted, I have accepted that the scratches were the result of the shove. But there are suspicions. But even if you accept those scratches as the result of the shove, you have to ask yourself, are you comfortable with the fact that Winkelhake's insistence that those scratches be considered injury turned what would have been an unpleasant incident of short duration into a public spectacle that lasted for months. Discretionary powers given to police officers would have allowed Winkelhake to overlook those scratches, allowed the charge to stand as signed. Councilman Atkins should also look at Chief Winkelhake's media rampage the day after the shove at which he falsely accused me of planning to assault him, at which he drug up incidents where our suffering or someone's cruel and false comments had resulted in a display of public emotion from me. Winkelhake's vindictive media performance was unbecoming of an officer. Within an hour of the shove, I very publicly expressed my shame and regret for pushing Chief Winkelhake, and in effect pled guilty in the media. And I would have pled guilty in court, to the original charge of simple assault in a weeks' time. The charges were now so out of proportion to the infraction that it was impossible for me to plead guilty. Winkelhake's scratches caused me to spend $19,000 of my son's blood-money and hundreds of hours preparing a defense. It caused my family months of torture. Torture which ended only days before Christmas visits from relatives and our daughter's arrival home from college. The day before the scheduled trial date, the prosecutor agreed to reduce the charge to the original charge of simple assault, and I pled guilty. What purpose did all this serve, other than the torture us? City Manager Atkins and Council members must hold these men accountable for both their derelictions of duty, and their lies, and their cruelties. Council Members and Atkins may think that they can get by without doing the right thing, because they are destroying only one family's home. And because there are only two or three people getting by without malfeasance and lies. But even one violation of the principle of fairness puts that principle in This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #5 page 10 danger of sending a message that malfeasance and lying will be tolerated is destructive and ways that City Council cannot even imagine. Thank you for letting me take the time. Lehman/ Thank you, Jay. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #7 page 11 ITEM NO. 7 CONSIDER A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR TO SIGN AND THE CITY CLERK TO ATTEST AN AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF IOWA CITY AND NEUMANN MONSON P.C. OF IOWA CITY, IOWA. Lehman/ (Reads item #7). This is a contract for the design and engineering of the parking ramp to be located on Iowa Avenue, next to the Senior Center. Thornberry/ Move adoption of the resolution. Lehman/ Moved by Thomberry. O'Donnell/Second. Lehman/ Seconded by O'Donnell. There will be a meeting, I believe, next week, in fact, a series of meetings to discuss the design of the facility and how it will work with the architects. And that will be between City Council folks, Senior Center folks, Staff people and whatever. So this is just authorizing the design and I think that will start to take place after these meetings. Any discussion? Kubby/ I'm going to be voting no, because I don't support the idea of a ramp at that location, and therefore I don't want to spend any money to design it. Thornberry/ Question to Karen. Where would you propose that the cars park if Iowa Avenue were to be redone? Kubby/ I think that there's more capacity to do some more angle parking on a few places, and on Dubuque Street, making those spaces permanent, and there's space in Chauncey Swann, and we can do other things with non-car transportation. And those things combined, I think, is a saner transportation policy in my mind. Thomberry/ If this were --? Kubby/ And I know I'm in a minority, but --. Thornberry/ If this were just a ramp for additional parking, I might think twice about it, but it is to replace the cars that, it needs to be built before anything can be done with Iowa Avenue, replacing all the parking in the center of Iowa Avenue. And that's why I intend to support it. Kubby/ Well, it doesn't have to be done that way, but that's the way this group has chosen to do it. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #7 page 12 Thornberry/ I just can't see anyplace else to put those cars. Norton/ You think we should have gone south first, Karen? Kubby/ Well, I'm not, I have not supported any parking ramps. But the one I may have supported was south of Burlington, in lieu of Chauncey Swann, and certainly this one. Norton/And what do you allude to, the usage, and we have a note in our memo about usage. Are you construing that Chauncey Swann is not as occupied as it should be? There's a hundred people waiting for permits. But Chauncey Swann, should we do something about that? Kubby/ There are spaces in the upper level of Chauncey Swann. Norton/ Yeah, well. Kubby/ Available for the general public. And they're not going to hold it. Norton/ Of course we're holding some of those back to support businesses that might need them. O'Donnell/ I think it's like 70% full, or so. Kubby/ Yeah, the ground floor is full, but there are still places on the second and third floor. Norton/ But the third floor he says are shared by hourly parking permits, and there are over 300 pennit-holders currently assigned, and a hundred on the waiting list. Kubby/ I just, I just don't place parking at such a deity level as other people. Norton/ But if we're going to tear up Iowa Avenue, I don't see any option. Thornberry/ Deity level, that's getting up there. Lehman/ Roll call- (yes, Kubby - no). Resolution is carded. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #8 page 13 ITEM NO. 8 CONSIDER A RESOLUTION APPROVING DISTRIBUTION OF THE "PROGRAM FOR IMPROVING NEIGHBORHOODS" (PIN) GRANT FUNDS. Lehman/ (Reads agenda item #8). This is a $25,000 allocation for fiscal year 1999, and I think in the packet we have the breakdown of where those monies go. Thornberry/ Move adoption of the resolution. O'Donnell/ Second. Lehman/Moved by Thornberry, seconded by O'Donnell. Discussion? Kubby/ Well, I really like the process of this. Are we going to hear from the - ? David Dawes/ Good evening. My name's David Dawes. I'm the coordinator for the Pepperwood Neighborhood Association on the southeast side of Iowa City, and at this time, what we'd like to do is just have a brief overview from each of the applicants. As you may know, the Neighborhood Council of Iowa City, otherwise known as NCIC, thanks you for the opportunity to speak here tonight. And we're pleased to present our grants. Each year, those interested Neighborhood Associations submit an application for review by the NCIC whereby we rate the grants and evaluate them, and they ask for more specific information including Council feedback. This year, we had $26,681 in requests, and as Mayor Lehman has already indicated, the exact amount of course that's been approved as part of the Council is $25,000. We're excited to present a variety of grants for fiscal year 1999, which neighborhoods have worked very hard, of course, to prepare. Our first presenter is Jeff Schabilion of the Longfellow Neighborhood Association, and he'll be describing and doing an overview of preserving our heritage of Longfellow trees. Jeff Schabilion/ I have here a picture of Washington Street as it looked in 1927 with its canopy of street trees. And it's that beautiful view that we're trying to re- establish in areas of Longfellow Neighborhood. As I'm sure you're all aware, there's beautiful areas in the Longfellow Neighborhood with trees, and then there are areas where the trees have grown old and been removed or died of Dutch Elm Disease and so forth, and so we have an ongoing project of replacing street trees. And this particular phase involves planting street trees along Burlington and Washington Streets. And these are the areas along the north side of the neighborhood. They're very public areas, and re-establishment of trees along those streets will certainly beautify and improve the environment of that part of town. So, I want to thank you for your support on this. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #8 page 14 Lehman/ Thank you. Pam Ehrhardt/ Longfellow Neighborhood also has a couple other grants. The Blood- Lead Testing grant will provide funds to test 250 at-risk children for lead poisoning. The children are between the ages of one and six, and they are from the Miller Orchard and from the Longfellow neighborhoods. Iowa has incidents of lead poisoning that is about three items the national average. Yet few of our local physicians do order blood-lead testing for at-risk children. And so the State Hygienic Lab estimates that about twelve percent of the children that we do test will be, their results will come back as positive for lead poisoning in some degree. Our hope is that this project will be a stimulus for future, more broad, more comprehensive testing in the children of Iowa City. The next grant -- do you have any questions? Champion/ Do you have any intentions to follow up on these children that have high lead counts? Pam/ Yes, part of the grant is, because those children that come back positive have to, the first test is a finger-prick. And then they have to come back and have a test of venous, and there is money for that. Norton/ Did you suggest that there were twelve percent was your estimate of the number? Pam/ That's what State Hygienic lab -- Norton/ In this particular situation that you might find? Pam/Right. At-risk children are those living in a home that's older than 1978. So that's most of the children in that Longfellow and Miller Orchard. And those figures come from the State Hygienic Lab of Iowa. Vanderhoef/ I read in your proposal that you're getting some support in the way of volunteer help. Pain/ Yes. Vanderhoef/ From the County Health Department. Pain/ Yes. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #8 page 15 Vanderhoef/ But if there's twelve percent, is there some reason why they're not helping pay for this in our County, if it's that big a concern in Iowa? Pam/ That's a question you should ask them. Vanderhoef/ It concerns me. Pam/ And me, and some physicians, too. It concerns them. Vanderhoef/ Yeah. Thank you. Pam/ The other grant is, it's fun, it's Backyard Conservation. And it will give residents in the Longfellow Neighborhood opportunities to learn how to apply conservation practices in their own back yard, practices that are being done in the Iowa farms will come to the backyard. And these are practices such as composting, mulching, water conservation, safe pest and nutrient management, and encouraging wildlife habitats. We've planned various educational opportunities including a fair and site demonstrations and having speakers come in. In addition, most of the funds will go to buy compost containers which we will offer at our cost, or cheap, I mean, not free, but at little cost to the residents, and also plants and trees we will be offering. And this is, the, well, the old Soil and Water Conservation, I think it's NCS now, they're sponsoring it, and this is what the book is from, and this is how I, we went to a conference and they were promoting this. So and it sounded good for Longfellow Neighborhood. Any questions? Lehman/ Thank you. Jeff Schabilion/ Jeff Schabilion again. And I'm reporting on a continuing project which is referred to as the Ralston Creek Trail. This is part of a unique neighborhood redevelopment project utilizing the old site of the ADS factory, now Longfellow Manor Housing. There is a designated area that has been set aside for development as a neighborhood park. And we feel very excited about trying a new sort of experimental approach on that park because it will be part nature preserve, part trail, pedestrian trail, and the grant monies will go towards purchase of native trees and shrubs and perennial herbaceous plants, so that we will be creating part of a natural habitat along the creek bank. And this will provide a place for adults and children to enjoy a natural site in the neighborhood. And so this money will go towards developing that site. And we are working closely with the Parks Department and so forth, and think of ourselves as sort of a pilot project for kind of a different approach to a park. Not mowed grass, but a natural habitat. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #8 page 16 Lorraine Bowans/ Hi, I'm Lorraine Bowans from Longfellow Neighborhood. We're a busy group. I have a PIN Grant application for alley resurfacing in our neighborhood. I've been real excited about this. We put out a flyer letting people know, and already I have five block leaders. And there's been tremendous response for this. There is one alley that people have requested not be resurfaced, and that's by the Longfellow School, because they want to keep traffic down. I guess that's about all I have to say is that we've got some pretty bad alleys out there, and we have a lot of low-income residents, and I feel it would benefit them greatly. Are there any questions? Norton/ What kind of surface, chipseal? Bowans/ Some have the recycled asphalt, the alley by my property, and it's really bad. Because it's been on there so long that with the freeze/thaw cycle, it's heaped up in certain spots, and so it kind of needs to be bladed down and a new surface put on. I know just in our alley alone, the City streets come out about seven times a year and blade it, which I feel if we just had some new rock down, it would save quite a bit of labor time for them. Any other questions? Thank you. Lehman/ Thank you. Mary Lewis/ Hi, Mary Lewis with the Grant Wood Neighborhood Association. And this year we applied for park equipment for the Fairmeadows Park at the comer of Lakeside and Miami Drive. We've added a few other pieces, from other PIN grants, but this year we felt that there was a few pieces that we felt we could add that would really enhance the area. As much as the area has grown, that park's getting a lot of use. And a lot of the equipment that was put in the park was put there in 1966, and now it's ready to be replaced and updated, and some pieces have been as time's gone by, but it's time to get a few more new pieces in there. This is the Four-wheeler that we've applied for, a play-structure for younger children. And this is the Jungle Gym, the Muscleman Jungle Gym. Norton/ Muscle-person. Lewis/ Muscle-person. We thought about that, too. Terry gave me the book and that was the name. This is the Balance Walk, and this, there are several pieces of exercise equipment that come with this kind of a setup, and it actually has something to balance on, but it also has as sign that gives you ideas on how to do an exercise routine on this piece of equipment. There are other pieces that could be purchased if the neighborhood decides to in the future, if they decide they like This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #8 page 17 this kind of thing. Also, one other thing that had been requested was that we look at a possibility of having a swinging bench in the park, and this is the one that we chose for this purpose. Are there any questions? Thornberry/ That four-wheeler -- Kubby/ Yeah, I didn't like that one. Thornberry/ How long is that going to be located at the park or where? Lewis/ It'll be in the park. Thornberry/ How long do you intend it to be there? Lewis/ Well, it'll be fairly well anchored down. Thornberry/ Oh, it's anchored, they can't just wheel it around all over the -- 9 Lewis/ No, it's just a climbing piece of equipment. Thornberry/ I see. Kubby/ Getting in the car and driving. Norton/ Glad you cleared that up. Thornberry/ Yeah, I was worded. Vanderhoef/ I know who'd have been there first. David Dawes/ I'm back again to basically highlight our remaining PIN grants. The next one is the Southside Sandusky Sidewalk Installation. It's actually a continuation of one that we applied for last year, and that we came very close to meeting our budget, and we have a lot of positive feedback of neighbors in the area. As you may have seen in your packet, we indicated where the sidewalk was going to be built. Presently, it's just an open lot. And of course if the lot were to be developed, the construction person would have to replace the sidewalk. Right now, with all the dots that you see in the packet, it represents our group homes that are in the neighborhood. We have the highest concentration of group homes in Iowa City, and also a high number of children and young residents to the neighborhood. So that's why we felt it was important to install the sidewalk, kind This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #8 page 18 of connecting our sidewalk chain, so to speak. Last year, we installed one very close to the intersection of Keokuk and Sandusky, and I can't tell you how many people approached me or other individuals on behalf of the Pepperwood Neighborhood Association saying how great it was to be able to walk safely through the neighborhood. Because there's like over 2,000 cars, I think, on a daily basis that go down Keokuk Street, which is really amazing. So, that's basically how we approached that project. So, are there any questions at this point? Okay. The final one is what we're referring to as the Upper-Sandusky CHANGE TAPE TO REEL 98-72, SIDE B Dawes/ Project, and basically it goes from the intersection of Keokuk Street, up the hill, to the last black dot there, which is the final group home. We're very fortunate in that there's a ten-foot easement, so it allows us to plant trees along the median there. Other areas within our neighborhood are not as wide. Therefore, we're not able to plant the trees, much like what Jeff had referred to earlier, without contacting individual neighborhood property owners to see if they would be willing to plant trees. So, basically, we're going to be busy this fall, planting trees and taking care of the sidewalk, but it's a group effort. And one that we're looking forward to. So, we're of course excited about this process and are there any other questions for myself or any of the others? Norton/ I notice you say this will complete your sidewalk project. Does that mean that everything in the neighborhood is now properly sidewalked, as it were? Dawes/ That's correct. That's right. Thank you very much. Lehman/ Well, I'm sure I speak for Council, we certainly applaud the efforts of the neighborhoods. Obviously these monies are being spent for projects that will really be appreciated in those neighborhoods. So, we thank you, and we think our money's well spent. Any further discussion? Roll call- (yes). Motion carded. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #9 page 19 ITEM NO. 9 CONSIDER A RESOLUTION AMENDING THE BUDGETED POSITIONS IN THE INFORMATION SERVICES DIVISION OF THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT AND AMENDING THE ADMINISTRATIVE PAY PLAN BY DELETING THE POSITION OF MANAGER/SYSTEMS ANALYST AND INCREASING THE HOURS OF PROGRAMMER/ANALYST. Lehman/ (Reads agenda item #9). Thomberry/ Move adoption of this resolution. Lehman/ Moved by Thomberry. Norton/ Second. Lehman/ Seconded by Norton. Discussion? Kubby/ It sounds like a really good idea. Instead of outsourcing, have it done in-house, and we have close at hand expertise. Vanderhoef/ And save money. Lehman/ A lot of money. Thornberry/ Save. Kubby/ All that at the same time. Lehman/ Now, this is associated with getting our computers to move into the next century, is that not correct? I mean, this is the same thing that we're talking about all over the country. Kevin O'Malley/ That's correct, Mayor. That's one of the major projects this, to get everything to the Year 2000 compliant. Thomberry/ And actually, we're only adding a half-time. We've already got a half-time person, we're just adding another half. O'Malley/Right. We're extending his hours from 20 hours a week to 40 hours a week. Norton/ And Kevin, it's no longer a mystery, that is, it's known how to get around the problem? You know, mostly, it's just been a problem, you know, and we keep, This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #9 page 20 but I mean, is there a solution, is what I'm interested in. I know there's a problem. O'Malley/ The Year 2000? Norton/ Yeah. O'Malley/ Oh, it's a very simple solution, it's just going to cost money. Kubby/ But does that mean that Council members' computers are on your long list of people to get to? O'Malley/ Yes, that's right. We're going around testing all the little laptops and the desktop units. Those are the easiest things to fix, actually. It's the, our major software programs, our financial systems, our parking ticket systems, our utility billing systems. And we made a recent large step, we just upgraded our computer, our hardware, and the new software version, to be Year 2000 compliant. So now we have go to through the programming lines of code to fix the rest. Thornberry/So maybe if the computers in the Year 2000 think that it's 1800 or 1900 rather, instead of the year 2000, maybe a parking ticket would only be what, a nickel? O'Malley/ It'd probably be gone, and that would not be good. Vanderhoef/You may have a huge interest on that. Thornberry/ And I understand it's not so much the year, but it's the fact that the first year of the year 2000 is also a leap year. O'Malley/ That's a component. The major component is that they tried to save money 50 years ago. Norton/ Save a digit, yeah. O'Malley/ And now they're paying for it. Thornberry/ Thank you. O'Malley/ Thank you. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #9 page 21 Lehman/ Roll call- (yes). Resolution passes. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #11 page 22 ITEM NO. 11 CONSIDER A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTION OF A CONSOLIDATED ANNUAL CONTRIBUTIONS CONTRACT, RENTAL CERTIFICATE AND RENTAL VOUCHER PROGRAM: PROJECT IA022V002! AND IA022CE6001. Lehman/ (Reads agenda item #11). That's a long project. Thornberry/ Move adoption of this resolution. O'Donnell/ Second. Lehman/ Thank you, Thornberry. Moved by Thornberry, seconded by O'Donnell. O'Donnell/ It is, it is a long project. Lehman/Does somebody want to explain. Any discussion? O'Donnell/ Yeah, I don't know what, what's that, this number is just a number given to it? Champion/ Tell us what this is. O'Donnell/ Maggie will tell us. Lehman/ Maggie will tell us. Maggie Grosvenor/ I will? Lehman/Not really, but -- Grosvenor/ Okay. The "IA" is Iowa. Lehman/ We got that. Grosvenor/ The "022" is the region. The "C" is the Certificate, and then the "6001" is the actual contract number. Thomberry/ What's the "V" in the above one? Grosvenor/That's a voucher. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #11 page 23 Kubby/Voucher. Thomberry/Okay. Lehman/ Wow, now we understand everything. Thomberry/ I know. Kubby/ Yes, we want to renew our vouchers and certificates. Thomberry/ Yes, we do. Lehman/ Okay. Roll call- (yes). Resolution carries. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #12 page 24 ITEM NO. 12 CONSIDER A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR TO SIGN AND THE CITY CLERK TO ATTEST A CONTRACT WITH SOUTHGATE DEVELOPMENT FOR CONSTRUCTION AND ACQUISITION OF NEW AFFORDABLE SINGLE-FAMILY UNITS. Lehman/ (Reads agenda item #12). If I'm not mistaken, this is the resolution authorizing the building of two or three single-family dwellings which will then be sold to first-time or to home-buyers. Which I think is a great program. Thornberry/ Move adoption of this resolution. Lehman/ Moved by Thomberry. Vanderhoef/ Second. Lehman/ Seconded by Vanderhoef. Discussion? Kubby/ Maggie, will you review for us very quickly where the money will come from, the up-front money for these three homes at $107,000 each? Grosvenor/ Right. Some of it will be from the first three tenant-ownership sales of properties, and then additional funding will come from the recent home-allotment. We received $77,000. Kubby/ Thanks. Grosvenor/ Okay. Lehman/ Further discussion? Roll call- (yes). This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #15 page 25 ITEM NO. 15 CITY COUNCIL INFORMATION. Lehman/ City Council Information. Who would like to be first? Thornberry/ Well, I'll start. Lehman/ Mr. Thomberry? Thornberry/ Just before the holiday weekend, there was a meeting at the hopefully new Broadway Neighborhood Association. I think they're going to be forming an association, and it was a hastily called meeting, based upon some activity that had been going on the week before regarding a shooting, a drive-by shooting and so on. And I would like to commend Chief Winkelhake, Captain Hamey, and Officer Kevin Berg for being there, along with a gentleman from Des Moines, I believe, he was, what, Karen, what was his title? Steve Atkins/ He was a corrections officer. Thornberry/ Corrections officer. Atkins/ Randy Day. Thornberry/ That was -- what was his name? Atkins/ I think it was Randy Day. Thornberry/ Randy Day? Atkins/ He's a corrections officer. Thornberry/ And he can do things that the police department really can't. He's got different jurisdictional things. It was very well received by myself, Karen Kubby, Mayor Lehman and I were there. And got some very, very good input from the people in the neighborhood. Listened to their concerns, and rightful legitimate concerns, I feel, and I appreciate the way in which the meeting was handled, was set up. It was done very quickly, but done appropriately prior to the long weekend in which information was received in Iowa City that a lot of people were going to be coming in here from out of town. And it was headed off, and hopefully this summer will be a very calm, collected, and happy summer for all of us in Iowa City. That's all I have. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #15 page 26 Lehman/Dean, I would just add one thing. I'd like, you know, Council's concurrence in this. Steve mentioned to the media after the difficulties on the first Sunday night which was a week ago Sunday night, that this sort of thing just wouldn't be tolerated in this community. And there were some concerns expressed at that neighborhood meeting about options or basically we talked about the cost of this sort of enforcement. And I would like the Council to indicate to the City Manager, to the Police Chief, and to the folks in this neighborhood that we are committed to seeing to it that this sort of behavior and this activity will not continue and that we will commit whatever resources necessary to see to it that this problem is corrected down there. Thornberry/ Well, not just this neighborhood, Ernie, but any neighborhood that they find that they have any kind of a problem, whether it be City Park or any parks or wherever it may be. We just won't tolerate that type of conduct in Iowa City, period. Lehman/ I just think we need to indicate to those folks that we have a commitment. Thornberry/ You bet. Lehman/ On the part of Council. I guess if anybody would disagree with that, they'd say so. Dee? Norton/ No. Lehman/ Dee Vanderhoef, you're up. Vanderhoef/ Oh, I'm up? Norton/ He thought we were going to disagree. No. Kubby/ I mean, I think we should talk about this during our budget times in terms of the possibility of going back to a foot patrol. Lehman/ Oh, I think that's on the agenda. Kubby/ I heard nothing but good things when we had the grant money for a foot patrol, knowing that things will revert back to previous days without it, and that that should be a budget item for some consistency. Thornberry/ And I think the bicycle patrol that was out there was pretty handy, too. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #15 page 27 Kubby/ But I do think, the residents at that meeting were asking for some permanent solution, not necessarily just police solution to it, and I know that there was enthusiasm for a citizen's suggestion to have a task force made up mostly of people who work and live in that area. But I think it's a good idea if we want permanent solutions to get people in the area involved on the ground floor of designing those solutions. And hope that they do it without the City having a task force. If we can't get four votes for us to instigate that and support that, that the Neighborhood Association, that the neighborhood form an association, and do it themselves and come to us during budget time. Thornberry/ Well, I don't think the Police Department can make neighborhoods safe without the activities of the neighbors themselves. They've got to be willing to do their part, also. Norton/But there may be other Thornberry/These people, definitely, are. That room was packed, and they are concerned for the safety of their community and their area. And we can't do it without them. Norton/But there are other things we can, we need to try to do, to not let the situation get into this condition. I think that's what some of them were talking about was finding ways to redress that if we have let things get concentrated in ways that perhaps they shouldn't have. Thornberry/ I think we're going to make it pretty uncomfortable for those that are causing the problem. Norton/ But that's only one side of it. The other side is to build it more positively. Thomberry/ You bet. Norton/ I've had some calls. I want to say, it's not just Broadway. Others in the neighborhood, (can't understand) other people who've called, and I think there may be more than one Neighborhood Association or Watch come out of this. But they need our help, too. Thornberry/Yeah. Vanderhoef/ Just one thing. We suggested, I think at the last meeting, that we look into the Landfill rates, and I wondered when that was going to come up on our work? This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #15 page 28 Atkins/ I would hope to have it for you in a couple weeks. That little change we made tonight, but the recycling, we've got to factor that in now. Vanderhoef/Okay. Thanks. Atkins/ We are working on that, yeah. Vanderhoef/ That's it. Lehman/ Dee? Norton/ Yeah, I want to mention a couple of events. First, last Wednesday, I and a number of people from City Staff, Steve and Karin, and Eleanor, maybe Eleanor, was Karin there at that meeting of the Forum on Open Meetings laws? I know Eleanor was. Atkins/ Sarah, Eleanor, and I were from Staff. Norton/And a number of other people from the State Legislature, from Coralville and the County and the School District. It was a forum sponsored by the Press- Citizen on the open meetings public meetings and open records, public records and open meetings, I guess I should say. And a very substantive discussion from 7:30 in the morning till 11:00. And I think everybody there really, you know, you're a little apprehensive about committing a whole morning, but it was very interesting. And Bill Sueppel and Art Bonfield and Herb Strentz and other people who are experts in this, and they'll draft the State laws, and some of them will object to certain aspects of those laws, discuss the pros and cons. But the, one of the key questions, one that we have to contemplate too is, when does a document become public? It's a really interesting question. If someone says right off your typewriter, does it become public? It wasn't resolved in that discussion. It needs to be clarified. And also, they reminded us that not every time that we have a gathering of four of us, is it a meeting. It depends on what you're deliberating, in other words, if you're just discussing a ball game, or something, that's not a problem. So, there are certainly ways to avoid any difficulties with the law. But I think the open records part was perhaps more complicated than the public meeting. But very interesting. There's a little booklet I guess they passed out. Did you pick up copies of those, Steve? Atkins/ I only have one. I need to get more. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 # 15 page 29 Norton/ Well they passed out, there's a little booklet that describes the relevant legislation, and I think we can probably round up copies for everybody. But I think it would be nice for everyone to have. The other thing I want to mention in the way of two meetings. Dee Vanderhoef and I went to Coralville for their, what was their celebration, was it their 125th celebration? Vanderhoef/ Well, it's kicking it off. Norton/ Well, it was the kickoff, and it was, we were, we had a recliner with wheels on it, and we had to have a race with young people from North Liberty and other places. We came in last, but we finished. But we would've finished better, but we got in a pothole in Coralville. Thornberry/ Oh. Norton/ And they gave us one with little itty-bitty wheels. We got down in there and we couldn't get out. Lehman/ Well, Dee, I hear they're kind of strapped for funds. Norton/ Well. I also went to the Veterans' Trail Ceremony yesterday at the Coralville Dam, and they had a very impressive ceremony as always. Six veterans from the regions, some from Iowa City, some from Coralville, Lone Tree, I think six or seven were added to the Veterans' Trail. A very impressive ceremony. That's it. Lehman/ Thank you. Mike? O'Donnell/ Well, there's some very important elections, or campaigning going on right now. I want to encourage everybody to vote on the 2nd of June. It's a very important election, as is every one. And I don't know if everybody's aware of it or not, but I'm not a friend of Public Access Television. Surprise, surprise. There's been some very questionable shows shown recently, and I'm in the process of working with TCI right now to see if there's something we can do about it. And I will keep you posted. Thank you. Lehman/ Connie? Champion/ I don't really have anything, except I don't think Mike, really, is anti-Public TV. O'Donnell/Well, anti- the shows that I saw. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #15 page 30 Champion/ Right. Okay, let's clarify that. Because I don't want you getting letters about how you're not for public TV. O'Donnell/ It's unavoidable. Lehman/ Karen? Kubby/ A couple of things. At the last Council meeting, I announced our Paint and Household Battery Cleanup Day for Saturday, June 6th, and that you need to make an appointment, and that I didn't have a phone number. But we have a phone number now where you can make an appointment. So, if you call between June 1 and June 5, between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., if you give a call to 341- 8540, you can make an appointment for June 6th, between 9:00 and noon to drop off your paint and household batteries. And, we only have spaces for 385 participants so one way that many neighborhoods do it is for one or two people to call and make appointments, and then everybody gather their paint and batteries into one car and one person drop off the stuff instead of everybody taking their time to do it. So, it's one way to make things more efficient. The other thing I have is a thing called Heartride, and it is a fund-raiser for the American Heart Association which is trying to do a lot of research and education about number one, America's number one killer which are different heart and blood pressure diseases. And the Heartride is kind of a, it's a bike ride, and you have three different choices for routes, so no matter how, what kind of shape you're in, you can do it. You can go on the Murmur ride, which is a five mile ride, which is an easy ride through City Park, or you can go the Bypass ride which is a thirty mile ride, a scenic ride with there are some hills, you go up Prairie du Chien and go up by Lake McBride and back. Or you can do the Mercy to Mercy ride, which is 56 miles, which goes through the bypass route, but then goes to Kirkwood Community College and then comes back. So you've got lots of choices there. There are places to stop and get refreshments and get light bike mechanic help on the routes, any of them. Thomberry/ Oxygen? Kubby/ I'm not sure if they're doing that or not. And afterwards, I'm sure it'll be a heart-healthy post-ride barbecue in Shelter 11 in Lower City Park. Thomberry/ Brats. Kubby/ So this is happening on June 14th from 7:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., starts and finishes This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #15 page 31 at Lower City Park. If you want more information, call Mercy Hospital in Iowa City. That's all I have. Norton/ Ernie, before you do yours -- Lehman/ Yes? Norton/ I want to remind people, this is our last chance, I realized, that the Council, or most of the Council is going to participate in the Ronald McDonald House event on the evening of June 13th, Saturday, and again on Sunday afternoon, June 14th, and we are going to do a song and dance routine, mostly song. Lehman/ Are we going to rehearse on the evening of the 12th? Norton/ Oh, we're going to rehearse tonight if you want, but I, we could rehearse before that. We'd like to rehearse on the 1 lth. She'd like to get whoever can come out on Thursday the 11 th. Lehman/ In the evening? Norton/ If you can. But it's not a big deal. You can come -- Lehman/ It is if you sing like I do. Thornberry/ Oh, you'd have to wing it. Champion/ It says our rehearsal is at 6:30, but we really don't have to be there until 8:00 because we're in the second act. Can you believe that, second act? Thornberry/ Second act? Vanderhoef/ They leave the best for last. Norton/ So we can show up at 8:00 on the 1 lth, Connie? Would that be a good time? Champion/ Yeah. Thornberry/ It's out of a one act play, is it? Champion/Right. Well, I think we could all go, so we don't have to sit around for the whole first act. We can be there for 8:00, and she can get us through our This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #15 page 32 rehearsal. Norton/ Yeah, it won't take very long, folks. Lehman/ I've got a couple things. We sent out survey cards with our Housing Inspection folks, and I think the Council has always been somewhat responsive to criticisms that we have received from individuals regarding the Housing Inspection Services. But if we look through the cards we got back, they gave a really glowing report, I think, for the most part, for the manner in which we conduct our Housing Services. I think that we should be every bit as quick to compliment these folks as we are to criticize them. And I think this, I mean, those are some very, very enthusiastic accolades that were given to the folks that work right downstairs in this building. So, I think we should certainly congratulate them. Kubby/ But they do not have an easy job. Lehman/ No, they certainly don't. And we are. We're quick to respond sometimes to negative comments, but I think these are very positive comments, and I think we should certainly respond to those, too. We also asked, I think a couple of weeks ago, regarding our subsidized housing. And I know we give preference to homeless, and that was part of the resolution. And we asked if it would be possible for us to give preference to the elderly, disabled, and families. And I thought we were supposed to get a response back. Would you have somebody check on that, Steve? Atkins/ Yeah. Because I don't remember it. Lehman/ I'm sorry, we asked Doug for that. Atkins/ Right, yeah. Lehman/ And Doug -- Atkins/ Elderly and disabled. Lehman/ And Doug said he couldn't have it earlier than this evening. Atkins/ Oh, okay. Norton/ They were going to talk with HUD. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #15 page 33 Atkins/ I'm sure that's -- Lehman/ Okay. But I wanted to just kind of keep that one alive. Atkins/ Yeah, we'll get that one back to you. Lehman/ That's really all I have, aside from what you reported, Dee. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #16a page 34 ITEM NO. 16a REPORT ON ITEMS FROM THE CITY MANAGER Lehman/ Steve? Atkins/ One item. Where's the camera? Happy 17th birthday, April. O'Donnell/ That's right. 17th. Atkins/ That's all I have. O'Donnell/ That's a good dad. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #16b page 35 ITEM NO. 16b REPORT ON ITEMS FROM THE CITY ATTORNEY Lehman/ Sarah? Sarah Holecek/ Regarding your question on preferences, the City Attorney's office is working on your question in conjunction with the HUD regulations, and so we should have an answer for you shortly. Lehman/ Okay. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698 #16c page 36 ITEM NO. 16c Lehman/Before we adjourn, Mike, I certainly would like to express to you the sympathy of the Council on the passing of your mother. O'Donnell/ Thank you. Lehman/ You certainly have our sympathy. Thomberry/ You can even move to adjoum. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City council meeting of May 26, 1998. F052698