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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012-10-02 TranscriptionPage 1 ITEM 4. COMMUNITY COMMENT (ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA). Hayek: This is the opportunity at each City Council meeting for members of the public to address the City Council, uh, on items that are not on the agenda. So if there's something that is not on the agenda that you'd like to bring to our attention, I invite you to step forward. We ask you to sign ... to sign in and also verbally give us your name, uh, and limit your comments to five minutes or less. Patton: Mayor and Council, uh, Mark Patton, Iowa Valley Habitat for Humanity. Just wanted to, uh, thank you for your efforts and uh, I sent a communication on April 16th, uh, indicating that when you got around to reviewing your priority of the City Steps, that homeownership for low- income people is ranked as a low priority and when that happens we get, um ... points subtracted when we go through the CDBG HOME process. I sent you out a memo earlier this week saying where we build and how we build and our success rate and, uh, would just ask you to be, uh, considerate when you review your City prio ... the City Steps that, uh, homeownership for low- income can be workable. It's not always easy. But, uh, we do have a success, uh, track record and, uh, appreciate any efforts you can do to support that. October 1St was World Habitat, uh, Day. Everyone should have a safe, decent, uh, place to live and we think Iowa City should be no different. Thank you for your efforts. Hayek: Thanks, Mark. Gravitt: My name's Mary Gravitt and I'm coming down here again to complain about Iowa City traffic, uh, Transit. The problem now is that they did a detour for the Broadway bus, which does not make any sense. They're retracing the route of another bus. Instead a ... that they...they're blocked off from the street that goes down by the Sycamore, which is the original route, and so they just go in a circle, one ... through one mall and out the other, and never come to Sycamore. All they have to do is to go further down Highway 6, I guess that's 6, to First Avenue, make a left on First Avenue and make a left... another left on Muscatine. I checked out the road myself. It's open, and then they could go up into Sycamore Mall, come back out, go back down by, uh, Kirkwood Community College and if they ... and keep down until they get to Gilbert. Because the detour they have, they're skipping the mall and they said they're going to be there... going to continue that detour until November. November's going to pass on to December, and I'm sure in that mall there's small businesses. So that means that ... you know, not only are the people inconvenient ... by this so- called detour, but you don't need it, and ... and the excuse can be, well, they're going to close off First Avenue. They can't! They won't be an egress to get to the highway, and one time they had to evacuate that community because Oral -B had some sort of chemical leak. So I don't think it's fair to ... uh, 47% as Mitch, uh, Romney calls it, to have to be treated this way. We ride the bus. Gasoline will soon be $5.00 a gallon, as soon as we go in and invade Iran. So you should prepare now, and think about the businesses and how they're losing money because their customers This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 2 can't get to them, and how the other bus, the mall bus, is overcrowded. So I haven't called Iowa City Transit. It doesn't do any good! The buses started runnin' at 6:00 and the supervisors get there sometime. So you get this answering machine that sends you around in a circle, and then finally you end up calling the City Manager's office, who sends you to somebody else. Now this isn't fair and I don't think that Iowa City Transit thought the detail ... the detour out and I'd like something to be done about it. Thank you. Hayek: Thank you for your comments. Ross: (mumbled) Hello. I'm Becky Ross and I'm here on behalf of a group of environmental activist grandmothers who call ourselves 100 Grannies for a Livable Future. We are concerned about what kind of environment we are leaving to our grandchildren. Almost everyone is concerned about the environment but because there are so many interconnecting issues, we just don't know where to start. We the 100 Grannies talked about what we could do to make a difference right here. Fossil fuels are causing most of our problems by releasing a huge amount of carbon into our atmosphere. Producing plastic from fossil fuels puts more carbon into the atmosphere. Many of us already use eco - friendly bags and thought the elimination of the single -use plastic bags would be a good place to start. We are asking the Iowa City City Council to consider banning single -use plastic bags. Uh, we ... the Grannies, we held a rally downtown in the ped mall on September 9th, which was also Grandparents' Day. We asked for donations of eco- friendly bags from local businesses and asked the public to bring their used bags because everybody has a stash of `em somewhere, that we would later recycle. We made a chain of bags to demonstrate how many are used once and then tossed. In return for their used bags, we gave them an eco - friendly bag from the local businesses. We had a lot of great response and got signatures from many people who agree with our request. And, our chain of bags was about 1,000 feet long. So ... and they were strung all over the ped mall. I know that we herein Iowa City do a pretty good job of recycling these bags. The fact remains that we use these bags once and then either throw them away or recycle them. By recycling them we put more carbon into our atmosphere. Again, if we didn't have them in the first place, we would be saving fossil fuels for more important things than bags that are used once. We will never get rid of all the plastic. Did you know that every piece of plastic ever made is still in existence, floating in our oceans or collecting in landfill sites, killing wildlife, and leaching toxic chemicals into our water and soil. Plastic bags can also, uh, clog storm sewers and drains. Um, this is not just a local issue. It's a worldwide issue. If we are doing so well about using eco- friendly bags, then it should be easy to eliminate single -use plastic bags. Iowa City could be a leader in the state by eliminating these single -use bags. Re ... by reducing plastic bags, the ... it can spur cities and their cities ... the citizens to become more waste - efficient and undertake other sustainable initiatives in the future. Programs that ban or implement fees for using plastic bags are one way to make communities more aware. Those urban tumbleweeds are city artifacts that people commonly see during the commute or This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 3 other daily activities. Through programs that encourage step -by -step solutions, communities can become more mindful about how they affect their immediate environment and how their choices have a cascading effect on both neighboring and distant communities. A couple of us grannies had a wonderful meeting with Jeri Jordan, the Iowa City Recycling Coor ... Coordinator last week and talked about how we could partner in this and other areas of recycling concerns. By the way we ... we just loved her. She was very... she's doing a great job, so ... urn ... I live north of Iowa City in a beautiful setting and I take a walk almost every day. And I pick up many plastic bags and bottles along the road that are invisible from the car. So just because you don't see `em doesn't mean they aren't there. It's time to stop making excuses. If large cities like Los Angeles; Homer, Alaska; the Outer Banks of North ... North Carolina; Westport, Connecticut; Corvallis, Oregon; and every county in Hawaii; Mexico City; and whole countries, like Bangladesh, Rwanda, India can do this, I think China's even ... done it now. So why can't we? Our goal is to build a higher quality of life for future generations — our grandchildren. We are asking Iowa City to ban single -use plastic bags. Please do what you can to help us in this important job of cleaning up the environment for our precious grandchildren, and yours. Thank you. Hayek: Thank you for your comments. Christensen: I'm Ann Christensen. I live in Iowa City. Urn ... as you can see, you're up against grandmothers! (laughter) We don't give up easily! Um, there's some things that have concerned me, uh, and I'm ... and I'm glad that, uh, Becky and Barbara Slockter met with Jeri last week. Um... some, and we have gone to the County also and next will be Coralville and North Liberty because you know Iowa City can't do this alone. It's going to have to be a regional effort. Somewhere along the line, we got... somebody got the impression this was about the Landfill. Well, it isn't about the Landfill. I don't think... it didn't ever enter my mind. I don't think anybody of the Grannies were thinking of the Landfill. We're thinking of the world. I hope that you saw the article in the Gazette Sunday. It was quite a large article, with a big picture of a river in Haiti. Haiti has just banned plastic because their rivers were ... are stopped up with plastic, and that means a lot of bags! And people are accepting it. It was a edict by the president that they would stop plastic bags coming into Haiti. Only recyclable bags are allowed now. Toronto is the latest big city that has banned the bag. We in Iowa need to get on this! The bags here enter... the... the creek, Ralston Creek. They flow down to the river, to the Iowa River. They flow on to the Mississippi and down the Mississippi to the deadzone in the gulf. The deadzone is enormous! There's also a deadzone in Pacific that's in the Pacific that's bigger than Texas! It's all plastic! And it's killing the whales, the dolphins, the fish. This isn't about Iowa City. This is about starting somewhere to change the world, and you can be leaders in Iowa. So please consider this seriously. I think Jeri is reconsidering what she was thinking. I think she was thinking locally. We gotta think beyond local. So let's do it, and we'll be back and back and back! Thank you. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 4 Hayek: Thank you for your comments. Would anyone else like to address us during community comment time? Okay, we'll move on to Item 5, Planning and Zoning Matters. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 5 ITEM 5b CONDITIONALLY REZONING 172 ACRES OF LAND FROM INTERIM DEVELOPMENT — RESEARCH PARK (ID -RP), PLANNED DEVELOPMENT — MIXED USE (OPD -MU), PLANNED DEVELOPMENT — RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT PARK (OPD -RDP), AND PLANNED DEVELOPMENT — OFFICE RESEARCH PARK (OPD -ORP) TO APPROXIMATELY 15.8 ACRES OF PLANNED DEVELOPMENT — HIGHWAY COMMERCIAL (OPD- CH -1), 27.97 ACRES OF RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT PARK(RDP), AND 129.12 ACRES TO INTERIM DEVELOPMENT — RESEARCH PARK (ID -RP) FOR PROPERTY LOCATED WEST OF HIGHWAY ONE AND NORTH OF INTERSTATE 80. (REZ12- 00005/REZ12- 00006) [Discussion only at formal meeting] (Moss Ridge Campus formerly known as Moss Green Urban Village and Moss Office Park) 1. PUBLIC HEARING Hayek: This is a public hearing. The public hearing is open. (bangs gavel) Any, uh, ex parte communications to ... communicate? (several responding) Mr. Davidson! Davidson: Good evening Mr. Mayor and Members of the City Council, I'm Jeff Davidson, the Director of Planning for the City. Uh, this item before you is, uh, an application from Steve Moss, uh, for rezoning from, uh, various, uh, zoning categories that represent the current development plan for the, uh, property formerly known as Moss, uh, Urban Village, and now known as Moss Ridge Campus, to the proposed zoning, and probably the easiest way to, um ... take a look at that is here is the existing zoning, uh, that was based on the former development plan, and you can see it's a mix of RDP, uh, ORP, which are research development park zones — the type of zoning you find at ACT and NCS, that type of thing. Uh, mixed use which was intended to be the commercial area portion of the development, and then some, uh, interim development, uh, that was possibly seen as future residential. This ... this zoning is in place currently. Just to orient you, here is the, uh, NCS facility, uh, Highway 1 and the Interstate 80, uh, interchange. What's proposed... there's about 38 pages of materials, and I'm going to just concise it down to very small number of pages here. Uh, we've had a number of discussions about this project and probably be just as easy for myself or the City Attorney or the City Manager to answer your questions, uh, rather than go through a big elaborate staff report. Here is the proposed, uh, zoning, uh, and the ... the total property is 172 acres and what you see here outlined in the red and green are ... is the first phase of the development. The red area here, which is up against the interstate and the most visible portion of the property would be planned development, highway commercial and ... and you all know that the planned development portion of this gives us some flexibility in applying zoning standards, but basically a highway commercial, uh, type of uses is what you would find, and the intention is for these commercial uses to be compatible with and complimentary to the remainder of what will be predominantly an office park This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 6 type development. Uh, Mr. Moss is partnering with R &R Realty of, uh, West Des Moines and they are very experienced commercial realtors in terms of this type of, um ... uh, this type of real estate development and they are present tonight if you have any questions. The other portion of the phase one development are the five lots that you see here, which would be zoned research development park, RDP, and again this would allow office park, uh, type development, uh... similar to other, uh, parks that have been developed by, uh, R &R Realty throughout the state. Uh, this... the... the green and the red that you see here total 44 acres and are intended to be the first phase of development. The remaining, um, 128 acres would be zoned interim development research park, IDRP. The interim development portion of this implies that the rest of the ground is not yet ready for development. It's not needed to get it ready for development until the first phase is built out or built out to some portion. And... and, uh, and at that point then a rezoning process would be needed to take off the, um, interim, uh, development, uh, tag from this. Uh, we've had, as I mentioned, we've had a lot of discussions about this project and if you have any questions, um, the intention is for ... there's a lot of information in your materials about the plat. We're not here to talk about the platting at all tonight. That would follow the third reading of the ordinance. Uh, and I believe the, uh, developer, if they haven't requested it already, does intend to request expedited consideration during the second, uh, reading in order to possibly... at the next Council meeting, uh, get everything wrapped up so that, uh, the preliminary grading of the site could occur, uh, yet this fall. Do you have any questions about, uh, what is proposed in terms of the zoning, uh, that you have before you this evening? Payne: Jeff, my ... my question is kind of more of a general question, and that is — is it typical in ... areas like this that are on the edge of town that are not... developed, that are being developed, to ... zone and then rezone and then rezone, you know, I mean, it's ... I don't want to say it's like the whim of the developer, but we already zoned this once and now they have a different idea and now they're asking us to rezone it. Is this typical? Davidson: Um ... typical, uh, you know these projects are not that common, like compared to a residential, uh, zoning for example, which are much more common. We don't have a lot of these. This is actually being put in place because Northgate Corporate Park right across the street, which is probably the most similar type of zoning that we have to this is just about built out. So we're very much in terms of the Comprehensive Plan for the City, very much in need of this type of zoning. We don't have any other park that's similar to this. So, it's difficult to say if it's ...if it's common or not. We all had great hopes and expectations about the initial development plan. Um, that development group was dissolved and a new one has been reconstituted, which you see before here, uh, you here. That development team has a slightly different vision. I mean, when I say slightly different, it ... it's obviously involving all of this rezoning of the property but it's still basically an office park, uh, type development and one that quite frankly we believe is a little more realistic in terms of its expectations. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 7 Payne: Thank you. Davidson: Any other questions for me? Hayek: Can ... can you, uh, describe generically what a conditional zoning agreement, um, does in terms of the opportunity it gives the City to have input over what goes on (both talking) Davidson: ...right, and thanks for bringing that up, Matt, cause I ... I meant to note that you ...you might have noticed that the conditional .... the conditions in the conditional zoning agreement are much more extensive than typically we have in CZAs and the reason for that is that it was basically negotiated between the City and the development team that we would take the conditions that have been used in their previous office park development, which we have seen examples of and are quite familiar with and are the kind of thing we're trying to encourage here, and basically that would be how we would control the style of the development would be through those conditions in the conditional zoning agreement. So what that does, to get to your question, Matt, is it really gives the City a higher level of control than we would otherwise, and ensures that this proceeds according to the vision that we have and that we've negotiated with the development team. Hayek: Thank you, Jeff. Davidson: Any other questions before you continue your hearing? Throgmorton: Yeah, I ... I have three or four, Jeff, and I don't know if you're the best person to answer them or not, but uh, you're there so ... uh, how accessible will this, um... um, development site be to public transit and to people on bicycles? Davidson: Uh, as an employment center, Jim, we would hope to have it accessible by both means of those transportations. We've just recently completed the pedestrian bridge, uh, across Interstate 80. Pedestrian/bicycle bridge across Interstate 80, which is a ... a great facility that was funded by the federal government that will enable the sidewalk system to tie into this area, and I think provide really good bicycle access. Now it's a little far out for pedestrian access, except for the fact that eventually it's intended to have some residential development out here. Um, that's not part of this proposal yet. Once there's residential development tied into this, then there could be walkability to the site and to the employment centers, but in the meantime, I think we're designing it to have excellent bicycle access to the rest of, uh, the community. Uh, we ... we already run transit service to Northgate Corporate Park and would hope, again, to, uh, have that route modified such that it would serve this as well. We always want to serve all of our employment centers with transit if we can. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 8 Throgmorton: Uh ... I ... I ask because if it's not accessible by public transit, then that automatically excludes a large number of people (both talking) who could conceivably work there. Davidson: That's absolutely right. Throgmorton: I wouldn't want to support something that excludes a significant proportion of the population. Uh, second question, uh, has anyone assessed the carbon footprint of this proposal? Davidson: Uh, that might be a better question for the developer. We haven't, Jim, in terms of you know obviously as an outlying development, some of the things that I just mentioned in terms of bicycle and transit accessibility hopefully get to that question, but I don't know that there's been a specific assessment done. The developer is here tonight and maybe that's a good question for them. Throgmorton: Uh -huh. Uh, let's see I think I had another question, but uh, gotta ... gotta shift my glasses. Hold on for just a second. Uh ... urn ... well I ... I guess a related question would have to do with, uh, how ... I've read various, uh, statements about how green the project will be, or the ... this development once it builds out, and I ... I'd really like to hear more about what precisely that means. Davidson: I think that'd be a good question for the developer. Throgmorton: Yeah, right. Davidson: You know, we're ... we're aware of ... of certain techniques that, you know, will hopefully be incorporated into the project site. You know, there... subtle things, um, some of the ... previous project strategies, I think, were determined to be challenging financially, and that's why some of the modifications have been made to the project. But, perhaps the developer can address those specifically when you continue your hearing. Throgmorton: Okay. Davidson: Anything else for me? Okay, thank you. Hayek: Thanks, Jeff! Bosworth: Brett Bosworth, R & R Realty Group, uh, developers for Steve Moss and the Moss family on Moss Ridge Campus. Mr. Mayor, City Council, uh, Members, thank you for your time. Uh, first of all we would, um, (coughing, unable to hear) agree with Jeff Davidson's comments, uh, regarding, uh, the approval of the project in front of you. I would make mention that, urn ... Tom Markus and Jeff and Karen have been terrific to work with. Again, this is a new community for us. We're very familiar with Iowa, but it's a new community for us and a project This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 9 of this size that will take the kind of time and investment dollars to develop, it's important to have people who, um, appreciate and understand I think the vision that we're trying to develop. So we ... we thank the staff for that, and thank you for your time. Um ... only thing I would, uh, I guess add is ... is what's already been kinda said and that is, um ... we've been working on this project for quite a while and, um, there's been a lot of things that we have to deal with, the things that the City has to deal with, and we ... we understand that and we'll just reiterate that to the extent we can condense the second and third readings, uh, at the October 23rd meeting, we'd greatly appreciate that cause there are a lot of things to, uh, get done, um, before spring of next year and we'd appreciate, uh, support to do that. Outside of that I'd answer any questions. Hayek: Jim, do you want to pose your questions to ... to Brett? Throgmorton: I could, uh, I ... the last question I asked, um, Jeff had to do with green, you know, I've heard this development proposal described as a very, uh, green kind of project. Uh, or at least I've ... I've seen that in writing. So, if that's true, I'd like to have ... have you elaborate on what that means, you know, what ... what do you understand that to mean? Bosworth: Well we've ... I've taken a couple different questions from P &Z, uh, regarding that and the two, uh, types of questions were natural green versus manmade green, and so I appreciate that ... those two perspectives. By default, Mr. Moss and the Moss family have chosen to basically leave somewhere between 45 and 50 acres of the total 170 acres untouched in a ... what I would then respond as a natural green, um, environment. Uh, because of the lay of the land and the creeks that are there, and the natural habitat. Those are going to be areas that are not going to be planned to be touched. So if...if you look at all the developments that we've done, 100% of the land that we buy, we touch. And manmade green environments, which we generally have a fairly high percentage of green, uh, areas but in listening to some of the questions from P &Z and looking at the natural lay of this land, I can't think of a development, an office park, class A development in Iowa that has ... that would have this much natural land set aside, um, to be that natural green, and again, if you look at the name that we've picked — Moss Ridge Campus at Rapid Creek Preserve. There is going to be a large amount of land set aside to be, I think, address that green question and we're strong supporters of it, but Mr. Moss and the Moss family are the ones giving up quite a bit of developable land to do that, and I guess I give them most of the credit. They're the ones that are going to forego a return that would come from that if you were to develop it. Uh, from the perspective of... urn ... our first prospect that we have that's actively engaged in the final processes of...of building a building there, um, they've in addition taken a look at the ... the development and it...it absolutely suggests green, and so that will be a LEED certified facility and the current designs are being done to have that a LEED certified facility, what level we're not sure yet, but also a geothermal facility. So we don't have any geothermal facilities in West Des Moines at this point, uh, so I think a lot of that lends itself from the lay of this project. People This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 10 are going to look at this and say, you know, you've got 50 acres set aside for natural environment. This would be the opportunity to complement that with that type of design. We feel very excited about that. Throgmorton: I ... I'm very pleased to hear about the LEED design that's, uh, I don't know, being considered or... or will take place with regard to that one building. Uh, could you elaborate a little bit about the carbon footprint of your development? Bosworth: I can't. That's probably out of my area of expertise. Um... so I will probably pass on trying to answer something I don't know the answer to (laughing) Throgmorton: Well, we just had a ... a, uh, 100 Grannies come before us asking us to look, uh, about the relation... look... think about the relationship between what we do within our city and affects on... on other parts of the world. I... I think we need to be doing that and, uh, so I ... I had that in mind as I think about this proposal. Bosworth: Okay. Hayek: Any other questions for Mr. Boswirth? Bosworth: Thank you. Hayek: Thanks! Appreciate it! This is a public hearing, so anyone else can, uh, address the Council on this item. Okay. If, uh, that appears to be the extent of it, I'll close the public hearing at this time. (bangs gavel) 2. CONSIDER AN ORDINANCE (FIRST CONSIDERATION) Mims: Move first consideration. Payne: Second. Hayek: Moved by Mims, seconded by Payne. Discussion? Mims: I'm excited to see us making some progress! So, look forward to more votes on this. Throgmorton: I think suburban, um ... uh, suburbanized office parks are an anachronistic and that we really need to be rethinking the ... the design of them. Um, that doesn't mean anything ... I don't mean anything and about any of the people involved about any of the buildings that are going up. I just mean the concept itself. Uh, and ... there have been other proposals that have been carried out in other parts of the country that result in something that you might call, uh, let me find the right language, uh, urban work place districts that are really much more mixed use than this proposal is, as best I understand it, and this is actually the first time we've had an opportunity to ... explicitly discuss it. It's just kind of, as far as I'm concerned This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 11 been kind of floating as a .... as a topic. Uh, I ... I think we ... what we need to be promoting is a mixed -use development that enables people who will be working at those ... at the site, many of them to be living at or near the site, uh, and to facilitate, um, a pedestrian walkability of the... of the development site so that it's not primarily auto - oriented, which I take from the design drawings that this will be, uh, and so on. I could elaborate but I'm just trying to sort of lay the ground why I'm going to be voting against this particular proposal. Hayek: I'll be, uh, supportive of it. 1, um, one of the reasons I asked Jeff Davidson about what a conditional zoning agreement means is cause I wanted to bring out a discussion of the, uh, fact that this kind of approach to development gives the City, um, far more ability, uh, to influence the product that we see. Um, and the way this develops and... and the way it's consistent with values we have. And... and a conditional rezoning agreement, you know, gives us that tool that we wouldn't otherwise have if it ... if it were purely a rezoning. Um, and ... and you know as you can see from the materials we have, um, there's a laundry list of criteria we're, um, requiring this developer to ... to satisfy. Um, and ... and those include compliance with our Comprehensive Plan, um, which identifies this kind of development as... as in the City's interest for this part of the, uh, the community, uh, and requires it to .... uh, comply with our sensitive areas' uh development plan, um, which was ... was created, uh, to ensure, uh, better harmony between development and the natural environment. Um, and ... and from my perspective, this has, um, this project has ... has involved ongoing collaboration between the ... the owner and the developer and City staff and other stakeholders for a long period of time, and the product I see that ... that we're going to be voting on reflects all of that, and um, has ... has been carefully vetted. Um, so I ... and I also think this reiteration is more reflective of ... of what the market supports. Um, and so for those ... I appreciate your ... your concern about it but I'm supportive of it. I think it's a ... it's a strong, uh, proposal, strong, uh, project, and is worthy of our support. Dickens: I'm in agreement with that as well. I think it'll be a big plus for the northeast side of Iowa City. I can see it spurring, uh, growth in housing and other commercial areas around that area. It's... it's... a lot of things haven't happened over the years. We now have a fire station up there, which ... which will, uh, make it much safer in that whole area, but I ... I see it as just a plus for all of Iowa City, especially the northeast section of Iowa City. Mims: Well, and I ... and I would just add one thing. I think ... you know, if you go back and look at some of the original ideas and designs that were there two or three years ago, um, you know, the economy was maybe a little bit different at the start of this, um, the ... the develop ... the owner had different ideas in terms of, you know, actually putting in Oakdale Boulevard and ... and a much quicker anticipated build -out of the whole thing with very mixed use, very green, uh, urban village I think was the name of it, um, and I think just the realities of what happened with the economy and the credit market, etc., um, have really, you This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 12 know, changed the way that this can be approached, and so to me, what we are seeing is really just the first stage of what is going to be, you know, a much bigger development, I think, with a lot of mixed use because I think the owner sees, and I'm sure the new developer see the ... the benefit of a lot of that mixed use that you're talking about in terms of not relying on one particular part of the market for, um, the whole thing, and so I feel ... I feel very positive about you know getting it started and what this whole thing is going to look at, and we've talked about before is the importance of wisely using, um, our interstate interchanges and the land around those, and those are a huge asset that up until this point we have not really utilized, and so I think this, or at least not fully utilized, and so this is a big, uh, boost to that, as well. Hayek: Further discussion? Roll call, please. Uh, first consideration passes 6 -1; Throgmorton in the negative. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 13 ITEM 5e CONSIDER AN ORDINANCE REZONING APPROXIMATELY .034 ACRES LOCATED AT 518 BOWERY STREET AS AN IOWA CITY HISTORIC LANDMARK. (REZ12- 00014) [Discussion only at formal meeting] (SECOND CONSIDERATION) Payne: Move second consideration. Dickens: Second. Throgmorton: Second. Hayek: Uh, moved by Payne, seconded by Dickens. Uh, discussion? Any ex parte communications to disclose? Dobyns: I did have a discussion with Mayor Hayek, uh, regarding this. I had a negative vote which I intend to do again today because of my concerns about this property perhaps getting in the way of future development. Hayek: Any ... anything else, uh, to disclose? Champion: I'm going to support it. I like the idea of the building being reused for a neighborhood function, such as a coffee house or a gathering place, and it is not in the middle of the block, and I... actually you could still develop around it. I mean, look at that little house in New York City that's built with a skyscraper above it! (laughing) I mean, I'm going to support it! Throgmorton: I briefly chatted with my wife Barbara as we drove past it. Said there it is! (laughter) So, uh, yeah, I'll support it. Hayek: Okay. Anyone from the public on this? Okay. Roll call, please. Second consideration passes 6 -1; Dobyns in the negative. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 14 ITEM 6. PLANS, SPECIFICATIONS, FORM OF CONTRACT, AND ESTIMATE OF COST FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE LOWER MUSCATINE ROAD RECONSTRUCTION PROJECT (KIRKWOOD AVE. TO 1ST AVE.) [STP -U- 3715(654)-- 70 -52], ESTABLISHING AMOUNT OF BID SECURITY TO ACCOMPANY EACH BID, DIRECTING CITY CLERK TO PUBLISH NOTICE TO BIDDERS, AND FIXING TIME AND PLACE FOR RECEIPT OF BIDS. a. PUBLIC HEARING Hayek: This is a public hearing. The public hearing is open. (bangs gavel) Uh, for the public's knowledge, this involves reconstruction, uh, from Kirkwood to First Avenue, new roadway, sidewalk, lighting, sewer, water, etc. It's about a $7.2 million, um, project and will be funded with federal, uh, surface transportation program proceeds, uh, and a number of local revenue sources, including a contribution from Kirkwood College. Payne: Can we just ... you said from Kirkwood to First Avenue. It's from Kirkwood Avenue, so people don't think it's from Kirkwood College. Just that little short piece (laughing) Hayek: Very good ... very good clarification! Uh, is there anyone to address us on this during the public hearing? Okay, I will close it. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 15 ITEM 8. CONSIDER A RESOLUTION OF SUPPORT FOR THE NOVEMBER 6, 2012, JOHNSON COUNTY BOND REFERENDUM TO BUILD A JUSTICE CENTER. Mims: Move the resolution. Champion: Second. Hayek: Moved by Mims, seconded by Champion. Discussion? I know we have at least one member of the public to address us, urn ... so, Amy, if you'd come forward. Correia: Good evening, I'm Amy Correia. I'm working with Yes for Justice and I am trying to find my PowerPoint, so let me... Karr: Amy, you can just close out of that one presentation. It's probably behind it. There you go! Correia: All right. Mayor Hayek, City Council, staff, members of the public, thank you for, um, having this item on your agenda this evening. I'm working for a group of, uh, called Yes for Justice, a group of local concerned Johnson County residents supporting the November 6th bond referendum to build the new Justice Center. Um, we ask that voters tur ... consider turning their ballots over, um, when they go to the polls, either early absentee or on election day, and vote `yes' on the public measure listed there. Um, why ... vote yes on November 6th? Um, insecure conditions at the courthouse threaten staff, visitors, and the public at large. Um, our current courthouse opened in 1901, so it's over 111 years old. It's a beautiful building and very important work happens there, but the truth is that our ... we have outgrown the current courthouse. When it opened in 1901, Johnson County had a population of 24,000. We currently have a population of 130,000 and we are one of the fastest growing counties in ... in Iowa. So we're simply bursting at the seams, and as a historic, beautiful historic building, it's simply not adaptable to modern courthouse screening procedures that you would find in locations such as Linn County or Scott County, for example. There's no separate entryway, um, accessible entryway for visitors, uh, and inmates. Um, creating sometimes an uncomfortable situation for visitors to the courthouse. Um, inadequate jail facilities cost taxpayers $1.3 million a year on average, which are paid to surrounding counties and I'll go into that in a little, um, bit. Uh, and better facilities will mean improved services and a safer community for everyone. Um, some would ask, isn't the Johnson County jail relatively new? It was built in 1981 to house, uh, 46 inmates. It was modified to house 92 in the late 90s. Um, but we, again, in 1981 we had a population of approximately 80,000 people. We have grown, like I said, to 130,000. So space shortage is critical, with average daily census reaching 160 to 200 inmates, and this is with multiple, uh, jail diversion and recidivism programs in place. Um, the County has been actively working since 2001 to address inmate overcrowding and to really look at what are This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 16 some of the support, direct service support programs that can be put ... put in place, um, in Johnson County. Um, an outcome study of one of the County's award - winning mental health and jail diversion programs found that persons that have been in the program longer in the year have reduced their recidivism, um, to the tune of saving 20,000 jail bed days, um ... with saving the County $2 million. Um, additionally, um, the Sheriff has ... has shared that within the last, looking from 2010 to 2011, the average jail bed days has decreased 8.5, um, inmates, uh, per ... average per day. So we are doing all that we can, um, and there are some other additional programs that are planned, but simply can't occur because there's lack of space at the courthouse and the jail, like a family drug court. So im ... an improved facility will allow those types of support programs and recidivism prevention programs to be instituted. Um, because we have a... a average daily census of 160 to 200, we cannot house `em all in Johnson County, which is the reason why we spend $1.3 million to house inmates in other counties, uh, surrounding ours. So what are the facts about our jail population? I think if any student (mumbled) today a guest opinion that had misinformation about who are being held in our Johnson County jail. Um, 85 to 90% of jail bed days /usage and inmates are being held, uh, longer than a week are individuals awaiting trial for serious offenses, and those who are on probation and parole violation. As we look at the data, the probability of a UI student will be held longer than week is .1 %. Um ... so any statements that we are building a jail to house students being arrested on alcohol violations or other violations is simply false. We do not ... the majority of inmates are being held ... these are folks that we want to have in our jail for safety reasons, as they're awaiting trial. Um, again, taxpayers, we are spending more than $1.3 million a year, um, transporting inmates to distant sites, and since 2002 over $7 million has been spent, taxpayer dollars, has gone to surrounding counties, allowing them to build improved jail facilities and employ their residents to work in those facilities. This should not happen. We should keep these dollars in Johnson County. And our inefficient and dangerous jail design requires one staff person to monitor every 2.3 inmates. And with the new proposed design, there will be efficiencies created in staffing, um, with the Sheriff stating that the, uh... um... inmate to, uh, staff ratio could be anywhere from 1 to 6 or 1 to 8, and he has stated that increasing the jail, um, popu ... the jail census will not result in increased operating costs because of the efficiency that we will have, the same operating costs. So what services would be located in the new facility? So here's a preschematic design. It would be a justice center attached to the current historic courthouse. It would be built on the hill currently behind the courthouse that the County owns, um, with a... a single secure entry for all visitors, and with, urn ... separate entry for jail inmates. It will be a five level, 153,000 gross square feet, um, including courtrooms, judges' chambers, meeting space, and court administration offices, as well as the Johnson County Clerk of Court, the Sheriffs office, plus a jail, housing up to 243 inmates, the single secure entrance, and inmates being escorted to court appearance will be separated from the public. A friend of mine shared a story of her daughter, who was a UI student getting ready for her student teaching who had to go to the courthouse for fingerprinting. And went home and shared with her mother that she had to get on This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 17 an elevator with an inmate being escorted between... between floors because there's only one elevator in the whole building, and so the public and inmates and their sheriff deputies who are transporting them, um, are all sharing the same small elevator, um, in our 111- year -old building. So what's it going to cost? So the public bond issue is not to exceed $46.8 million over 20 years. Um, that tax impact is $24.60 per year per $100,000 of assessed urban/rural residential property owner, um, value. So in my case if my home is worth, uh, around $200,000, that's about $4.50 roughly per month, which is about what I might spend for a cup of coffee at Starbuck's. So I think that I can afford this investment for safety and security in our community. So, Yes for Justice is actively working to support a yes vote. We have over 300 public supporters now listed on our web site, as well as organizations that have endorsed ranging... diverse organizations ranging from the Friends of Historic Preservation to the local Homeless Coordinating Board, League of Women Voters, among others. And please go to our web site jcjusticecenter.com, um, for more information about, um, how you can support the justice center, uh, bond referendum (coughing, unable to hear) information, um, to be an informed voter. And the risk is real. We have been accused of being fear mongering, um, that maybe we don't need a safe, secure entry into the courthouse because nothing has ever happened here ... here yet, and I'll knock on wood that the risk is real. There have been instances of courthouse violence around the country in other courthouses, and I do not want to say if only we had, um, in our community. Thank you! Hayek: Thank you, Amy. Champion: Thank you, Amy! Hayek: Would anyone else from the public like to ... add comments to the Council on this item? Okay. Seeing no, uh, no one out there in the audience I'll close it down for City Council. Dobyns: Well I'm very enthusiastic about this coming forward. Amy, thanks for your leadership on this. I'm so glad the County's putting this on the ballot and giving us another chance to take a look at this. Um, I'm not going to go into detail. I... I've heard my colleague Connie Champion in her leadership, uh, working with this group for ten years. Um... Champion: Fourteen! Dobyns: ...sounding all of these concerns, um. ... you know, that we need to pay a lot of attention to. We have no control over how we need to, uh, treat the prisoners. That is from, you know, the state code. And, so we can't save money, um, the export of Johnson County dollars, uh, that could go to so many other ventures that we have in our mission here, um, is a critical problem with this, and I think Amy This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 18 spoke to that, uh, very well, um, but Connie, thank you for, um, some of the information that you've given us, um, over the months and years on this issue. Champion: Thank you, and thank you for supporting it. Mims: I'll be supporting it. As I mentioned at the work session, I had an opportunity to take the tours, the ... the County folks were opening that up for people to go through and, um, we definitely need new facilities, uh, at the jail; we definitely need renovation at the courthouse; uh, we need more space, and uh, will very much be supporting it. Hayek: No ... no one, um, wants to spend money on something like this. It's, uh, but ... but by state law it...it is a requirement that the local community, uh, handle facilities like this, and make sure that they exist. Uh, this is ... this is critically important, um, and ... and you know in my paying job, I ... I have a lot of exposure to the courthouse, um, and ... and from ... based on my experience, I think the ratio of, um, the... the... the facility that we have now to the demand that is placed on it, every day of the week, um, is as bad as I've seen in the state, maybe Polk County, uh, beating us, uh, but this is ... this is a ... a severe problem and um, and we're on borrowed time in terms of avoiding, you know, a disaster over there in ... in my opinion. This is important ... an important vote. I hope the public will, um, will get educated on this issue. I think that you'll find that the groups that support this are, uh, of all stripes and all points along the ... the political and social spectrum. Um, this enjoys widespread support from many, many different groups, and... and people whose opinions I think the public, uh, would ... would trust and be impressed with. So, uh, appreciate your time here, Amy, and I'll be supportive. Champion: Well, thank you, Amy, for coming. That was a good presentation. I think it's really important for young people, Iowa students and young people who also go to Kirkwood, who live in this town, to understand that our jail is not full of you. That average stay for someone your age (mumbled) common college mischief is four hours, or even less if somebody sober can come and get you. So there's just one big room they throw you all into, unless you're violent. So don't be mislead by thinking that that's who's in our jail. Our jail is full of criminals, real criminals, and I think it's important that, uh, that people realize that, and we're missing actually a way to get more income into the county to help pay for the jail because we can't take federal prisons, and they pay a really good per diem, so (laughing) we really ... we do need this facility. It's something we've needed for 25 years, and um, and I ... and I totally support it. I think... there's not even a place for inmates to go get fresh air. There's not a library. There's not an exercise room. There's not a ... hardly any place for them to meet with their lawyers. This is not just for ... the justice center. This is actually for the people who are there and it prolongs how long they're in jail because we have too few courtrooms and people are held up for a long time, being pushed forward, being pushed forward, so it really is an important issue, and Johnson County residents really do need to address it and get the real facts about what's going on in that jail. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 19 Hayek: Further discussion? Roll call, please. Throgmorton: I ... I.. . Hayek: Oh, I'm sorry! Throgmorton: I should speak up I guess. I was thinking maybe Michelle or ... or Terry would say something. Uh, well, oddly enough I'm going to be the outlier on this. As you know from our work session discussion, um, I'm completely convinced that we need a new jail. I'm completely convinced the, uh, courthouse needs to be renovated. There are costs associated with doing both of those things. What I am not yet persuaded on is that we need 151 new beds at... at the, uh, at the expanded jail. Uh, and I'm not persuaded of that partly because, uh, I'm ... I haven't seen data yet that persuades me that people are being arrested in, uh, reasonable proportion to the offenses that they are alleged to have committed. And, uh, you know, may ... maybe they have been, maybe there's a lot I need to learn about that, but I ... I've not yet been persuaded that that's the case. Um, and moreover, uh, I suffer from an affliction. It's an affliction known as being a ... a, somebody who taught urban planning for a while, and when I look at the design of the building, uh, I ... I'm disappointed, and I've talked... talked to the architect who's involved in that. He's a good guy and I mean nothing disrespectful toward him. But I ... I'm concerned that the design of the building will not enhance the quality of the, uh, of the, uh, area south of downtown, which has been a major object of our, uh, planning initiatives on the City Council and by the City for the past year or more. So, with those factors and probably more in mind, uh, I ... I admit my ambivalence as a voter I feel like I'm not prepared to decide how I want to vote. Okay? But now we have to adopt a resolution. So I'm in that same position here, uh, on the Council and uh, therefore, uh, I'm going to chose to abstain and I understand that the legal rule up here is if you abstain it gets counted as a `yes' vote, okay? I don't understand that, but it's the rule. And I ... I live with the rule. But ... I've tried to explain why I'm going to be abstaining and that I know how it's going to get counted. So I abstain. Hayek: Any further discussion? Champion: I want to ask for a correction on that. If you abstain without a legitimate reason is a `yes' vote, but if you have legitimate reason, like you own the jail, I mean, I guess you actually do, but... Mims: If there's conflict. Dulek: Yeah, the distinction is a recusal versus an abstention. Champion: Okay. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 20 Throgmorton: Uh, right, so I'm in no position to recuse myself, so I ... thanks for clarifying that though. Hayek: (mumbled) Roll call, please. Uh, item passes ... I'm going to say 6 -0; Throgmorton abstaining. Is that the appropriate way to report it to you? Okay. All right. Thank you, uh, for the discussion. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 21 ITEM 9. CONSIDER A MOTION TO APPROVE A TENTATIVE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF IOWA CITY AND THE IOWA CITY ASSOCIATION OF PROFESSIONAL FIRE FIGHTERS, IAFF, LOCAL #610. Mims: Move approval. Payne: Second. Throgmorton: Second. Hayek: Moved by Mims, seconded by Payne. Tom, could you or Geoff weigh in briefly on the broad outlines of this. Markus: Uh, certainly. The first two years are the same, um, as the other agreements we have and the third year is a 2% settlement, uh, with some changes to the benefit structure for insurance. Hayek: And obviously you recommend it... since it got this far. Markus: Yes, we're recommending it. Hayek: Further discussion? All those in favor say aye. Opposed say nay. Motion carries 7 -0. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 22 ITEM 10. CONSIDER A MOTION GRANTING A 60 -DAY EXTENSION TO THE POLICE CITIZENS REVIEW BOARD FOR THE FILING OF THE PUBLIC REPORT WITH THE CITY COUNCIL ON COMPLAINT #12 -03. Champion: Move the motion. Dickens: Second. Hayek: Moved by Champion, seconded by Dickens. Discussion? Payne: I'm just going to reiterate... it seems like these come to us all the time, almost every single session that we have. Does that 60 days need to be changed to a different length of time? Karr: The board has ... the Police Citizens Review Board will be discussing it at their October meeting. Um ... and they will report back to you on that. We also wanted to note that this is built -in to the ordinance so it would require an ordinance change if that recommendation should come forth, and secondly, this also provides that if the applicant requests an interview, if the board requests additional action, all of that is built in to the 45 days. So, this situation there were several other additional steps that were needed and that's why the extension is being requested. Hayek: Further discussion? All those in favor say aye. Opposed say nay. Motion carries 7 -0. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 23 ITEM 12. COUNCIL APPOINTMENTS. Applicants MUST reside in Iowa City and be 18 years of age unless specific qualifications are stated. Hayek: Um ... we want to, uh, jump to the motion? Yeah, so there's a motion at the top of page 9 if somebody would be kind enough to entertain. Mims: Move to appoint Latasha Massey to the Ad Hoc Diversity Committee. Throgmorton: Second. Hayek: Moved by, uh, Mims, seconded by Throgmorton. Discussion? I believe she's already been to... Throgmorton: She's been at least to one meeting. Hayek: All those in favor say aye. Opposed say nay. Motion carries 7 -0. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 24 ITEM 14. CITY COUNCIL INFORMATION. Hayek: Uh, why don't we start with you, uh, Jim? Throgmorton: All right, uh, well (mumbled) what is the date here? Sorry! Can't read with those glasses. It's 7:30 on October 4th, uh, a woman named Hunter Levins is going to be speaking at W ... in W 10 Pappa John, over at the campus, and Hunter Levins is the, uh, co- author of many works with her former husband, Amery Levins, uh, and ... and together they've been enormously, um ... um, influential with regard to anything having to do with energy use and now with regard to climate change because of her arguments with regard to, uh, energy use, and this dates back to the mid- 1970s. They've just been incredibly productive. So that, and somebody else is going to mention the Human Rights breakfast, I guess I don't need to blather on about that. Or, I ... I could. Hayek: Go ahead! Throgmorton: Okay, so ... I got the date wrong earlier but um, the 29th annual Iowa City Human Rights Commission awards breakfast is going to be held on Tuesday, October 30t , at 7:30 in the morning at Amos Dean Ballroom in the Sheraton in downtown Iowa City, and a fellow named Chad Simmons, uh, who's the Executive Director of Diversity Focus is going to be the keynote speaker. He's a smart guy, and I expect that to be a really interesting presentation. So ... I highly recommend it! Champion: A couple things ... um, I can't remember we ... we talked about outlawing plastic single -use bags a couple years ago, but I can't remember what came out of that, but it's something I think we should talk about again, if everybody else wants to talk about it. Throgmorton: I agree. Champion: Um, the other thing I'd like to just mention, when Habitat for Humanity was up here, and saying we need homeownership for low- income people, we've actually worked pretty well to get that done, but everybody ever talks about low- income, um, condos for sale, which are a lot cheaper to build, than ... than a single - family house, even though they are a single - family condo. So, that's something I think we should try to explore. And then I ... I want to make a public apology. I got some information wrong with the Magic Bus moving to Coralville. I got them confused in my old age with the bus that was for - profit, and the Magic Bus is not for - profit, and they're great supporters of the rugby team, and I owe them an apology and I'm embarrassed by my faux po ... is that what you call it? Throgmorton: Faux pas. Champion: Faux pas! (laughing) No wonder I got confused! (laughter) This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 25 Mims: Um, I just have a couple of comments. We, during the work session tonight, um, we had a great update on our strategic plan for the City Council, and um, in this part of the meeting, while people at home can be, uh, listening in tonight, just a couple things I wanted to mention. Um, under our financial strategies, one of the things that we have continued to achieve is a Moody's triple -A rating, uh, for our bond indebtedness, and ... and what really struck me in looking at this was, we are one of only four cities in the state of Iowa to have this rating and according to the document, there are less than 200 cities in the entire country that have Moody's triple -A bond rating, and so I want to say thanks to the staff for continuing to, um, watch this carefully. Uh, Kevin O'Malley's not here tonight, our Finance Director, but um, everybody in the City staff that, you know, is keeping a good eye on this, I think it's really important as it keeps our interest costs down as we borrow money. And then secondly, um, a new fire protection rating will go into effect on November 1St, um, for Iowa City. We've gone from a Class 3 to a Class 2 rating, um, as of November 1St, and again, we're only the second community in the state of Iowa to get either a 2 or better rating, which may very well, um, impact in a positive way insurance premiums for fire protection. So ... um, just wanted to thank staff for their work on these things, as well. Dickens: Uh, I'd just like to thank the staff and the consultant for all the people that were here last night. There was a great meeting on the master plan for River Crossing. Uh, over 80 people. I think there was probably more, uh, people were standing in the hallway out there, some people left. I ran into people on the streets that couldn't get in or couldn't stay, and they were very excited about it, uh, Jim, Susan, Rick and myself were all here, in different areas of the room so we weren't talking to each other, but uh (laughter) we, uh, we got a great ... look at the future of Iowa City, and it's very exciting time for Iowa City. Payne: Uh, I just want to mention that last week I was at a Johnson County Emergency Services Commission meeting and it was mentioned that the Johnson County Emergency Services building received the ... a LEED rating of gold, um, certification, and they had a presentation on that last week. So I think that's exciting that we have another `green' building and a gold certification is not the best, but second to the best. So, good job! Thank you! Dobyns: I want to put a plug in for a program that's going to be rolling out in the Iowa City community called Respecting Choices. Um, it's, uh, based on a program out of Lacrosse, Wisconsin, which uh, trains people to go throughout the community and have very earnest discussions about end of life decisions that need to be made, um, I think that's, you know, critical in the life of a community in terms of, uh, how we use medical care and just basically making the end of our lives, um, better. Tomorrow at 6:00 in the large conference room in the medical school, and there's parking right across the road on Newton Avenue, uh, Dr. Hams from, uh, University of Wisconsin Lacrosse is going to be talking about, uh, respecting choices. If you have an opportunity to go to that meeting, please do so. It's open This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012. Page 26 to the public. Um, but if you hear about respecting choices and um, there's a lot of young people out there today, but um... for those of whom it's applicable, um, and your loved ones, please consider this program when you hear about it — called respecting choices. Hayek: Thanks, uh, thanks, Rick. Uh, three items, uh, Susan, you mentioned the strategic plan and ... and we got a ... we got a great update earlier this evening regarding, um, the ... the numerous initiatives and projects, um, that are underway presently or on the near horizon that are intended to, uh, pursue the strategic planning initiatives and ... and objectives that we, as a Council and as a staff, uh, identified a few months ago as important to the community, um, and I think all of us were struck by ... by the ... the variety, the depth, and the breadth of ... of what's going on presently, so many good things coming out of City Hall right now, and I think the energy level is really high, um, both here at City Hall and out in the private sector, and in the coming months, the City will be, um ... exploiting all of the avenues to communicate, uh, the ... this positive message to the public and so if you're a student of, uh, local government., uh, keep an eye out, because uh, that message is coming and it's a good one. Um, secondly, Octoberfest, second annual Octoberfest is this weekend on the near northside. It's just an incredible, uh, community event. Um, and if you didn't get a chance to check it out last year, I encourage you to ... to check it out this Saturday, and then, uh, lastly, uh, you, Rick, you mentioned students. If you're in the TV audience you don't see this, but, uh, about 40 or 50, uh, journalism students from the University of Iowa are here, um ... um, monitoring the meeting and ... and I, uh, I'm sure they all have assignments relating to what ... what we've discussed tonight, so I want to welcome all of you and thank you for being here, and I also want to ask my esteemed colleagues on the Council to stick around, just for a few minutes (laughter) and ... and answer questions, uh, before we go home. So ... with that I will turn it over to the City Manager. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council formal meeting of October 2, 2012.