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Home My WebLink About1995-10-10 CorrespondenceJoAnna Milder 800 Gilbert Court Iowa City, la. 52240 1995 September 28, Members of the Iowa City Council We are writing to ask you to expedite consideration for the alley adjacent to our property. We would like to build prior to the cold weather. Since there is no opposition to your selling us this property, could you do all three considerations at one city council meeting? Thank you, Bernard and Joanna Milder City Council of Iowa City Civic Center 410 E. Washington St. Iowa City, Iowa 52240-1826 Attention: Susan Horowitz, Mayor Dear Council: October 2, 1995 3733 Rohret Road Iowa City, Iowa 52246 We know that certain people spent unbelievably long hard hours on the Rohret Road improvement project, including Project Engineer Rob Winstead, Forester Terry Robinson, Steve Streb and Streb Construction, Maxwell Construction, American Landscape, and that there were other hard-working unsung heroes we never met. But we did meet and we did see Ed McGinness, and saw daily how his energy and expertise made things move, and how his humanity and common touch kept the frayed nerves of residents and contractor people from reaching critical mass and exploding. He was there sunrise to sunset, making things happen, even when the temperature was far too hot for normal existence, let alone back breaking construction work. He instructed, cajoled, scolded, pushed, praised, and taught. Anyone who works for or around Ed McGinness learns something, has to learn something, learns how to do his job better. He got his hands dirty using shovels, rakes, and post hole diggers. He had his eye on the project as a whole and yet paid attention to detail. He did these things in such a way that the residents and near residents suffered as little as possible. He was always accessible to our concerns. He was troubleshooter, ramrod and trail boss during Rohret's wild ride of mass destruction and reconstruction, and he was largely instrumental in the creation of one of Iowa City's most beautiful streets. We thank you, Ed McGinness. We all thank you. Sincerely, Charles and Doris Lisle C CO October 3, 1995 Honorable Mayor Hornritz City Council Members City of Iowa City Civic Center Iowa City, Iowa 52240 I recently read in the paper that a City review agency has disapproved the relocation of Midtown family restaurant from Iowa Ave to near the Scott BIrd. and Court Street intersection. The family owners ofthe business have several entrep~:eneur qualifications: A. Extensive background in restaurant business B. Highly successful on Iowa Ave when others have failed C. Developed a business following D. Prudent market research for the area..no nearby competition E. Planned for a structure that would support the sales volume to service a debt load if needed.. F. Excellent market population with condos, single family, commercial, soccer fields, and maybe a nearby church. There is not another restaurant in east Iowa City serving similar fare. The business would be an excellent resource for the tax base of the city, provide a excellent service for east Iowa City. It is not a HyVee Dell, or a national franchise or in combination with a service station but "good old family style county in a family style setting the kind of food that might not be healthy, but is sure good" I would urge you to reconsider the application before another business leaves for Coralville, the Clive of Iowa City. Thomas H. Summy 2505 Rochester Ave Iowa City, Iowa, 522245 September 26, 1995 City Council Members City of Iowa City Civic Center Iowa City, Iowa 52240 RE: Subsidized/Affordable Housing Acquisitions Dear Council Members: The Miller/Orchard Neighborhood Association is working at getting "back on its feet," with the assistance of Marcia Klingaman, the City Neighborhood Services Coordinator. Doing this had lead to the formation of a Douglass Street/Douglass Court Subcommittee, in order to open up lines of communication with the appropriate individuals to work towards resolving the issues and conflicts that have risen due to the presence of some of the affordable/subsidized housing units located in this direct neighborhood. We don't wish to give the impression that it has been a totally negative experience, as we do understand the need for affordable/subsidized housing. We have/had people who have been very good neighbors living in a couple of these homes, but this has unfortunately been overshadowed by the fact that there has been more negatives than positives in the past couple of years. The ultimate goal is for this area to once again be a safe and harmonious neighborhood. What the Miller/Orchard Neighborhood Association respectfully requests of the City Council, or any other organization and/or fellowship, is that the no more acquisitions and/or purchases of affordable/subsidized housing units be made in the Douglass Street and Douglass Court area. This request is based on the following: 1) The Douglass Street/Douglass Court area has experienced many problems with the subsidized housing units in their neighborhood for sometime now. (As previously stated, efforts are being made to resolve these issues and conflicts.) 2) There are 5 units, which comprises 10% of the housing in this specific area (50 units total). a) Three (3) of the units are owned by the Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship, but one (1) is being managed by HACAP; b) Two (2) houses are directly owned by the City of Iowa City. Thank you for your attention to this request. Sincerely, ~t/~ler/Orehard Neighborhood Association c/o Suzanne M.S. Erenberger, Contact Person 204 Douglass Court Iowa City, Iowa ee: Doug Boothroy, Director of Housing and Inspection Services Department Marcia Kllngaman, Neighboorhood Services Coordinator Steven Atkins, City Manager Tammi Fisher, Director, Johnson County HACAP Mary Ann Dennis, Greater Iowa City Housing Fellowship t Susan Craig, Director Information (319) 356-5200 Business (319) 356-5206 Fax {319) 356-5494 October 5, 1995 Councilor Naomi Novick 306 Mullin Iowa City, Iowa 52246 Dear Naomi: I know you are aware of the ongoing process the iowa City Public Library's Board of Directors has been engaged in to find a solution to the Library's space needs so that it can continue to provide community services consistent with the Library's mission. I believe this is an appropriate time to apprise you of the current status of the project. At a special Board meeting on September 19, 1995, the Board concluded that the best and most appropriate solution was to expand to the west of the current Library building. This necessitates the acquisition of the old Penney's building. Presently, the Board's Facility Planning Committee is working with the city attorney's office to engage in negotiations with the current owners of property and leasehold interests to see if an agreement can be reached to purchase the property. Obviously, any offer would be predicated upon several conditions precedent to finalizing the transaction. Not the least of these conditions would be approval of the Council to proceed with a bond issue and the successful passage of a bond issue to effect the acquisition of the property, remodeling of the existing building, and expansion to an addition to be placed west of the Library. Negotiations are at a preliminary stage and the Board shall keep you informed as matters progress. In the interim, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact either the undersigned, Susan Craig, or Steve Greenleaf, who have all been on the Facility Planning Committee since its inception in late 1992. Thank you for your consideration. Charles T. Traw ICPL Board of Directors, President CTT:jo cc: Steve Arkins Bev Ogren Karin Franklin oQC