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ITEM 2. PROCLAMATIONS
ITEM 2a Special Olympics Month — March
Karr: Mr. Mayor, I'd like to introduce some Special Olympians as you read your
proclamation. (several talking in background)
Throgmorton: All right! Well, Special Olympics Month. I will read a proclamation, uh, for all
of you. (reads proclamation)
Karr: And here to make the .... some comments is Joyce Rossi, representing Special
Olympics.
Rossi: Good evening! Thank you, Mayor. Once again it is so nice to be here. In 1968,
Eunice and Sarg... Sarge Shriver are the ones who started Special Olympics. Their
first competition was bet ... with the U.S. and Canadian teams. There was 1,500
people and they had it in Soldier Field. Iowa now, uh, serves 13,000 Special
Olympic athletes and their partners. Um, we have several fundraising events.
Our upcoming event is the midwinter tournament. We have a banquet for
everyone who qualifies, on March 1 Ith. Our competition is on March 12th, and it's
between the Fieldhouse. Our competition has gotten so large, we've had to split
it. So it's between the Fieldhouse and West High. They've been gracious enough
to help us out. We have several cam... fundraising campaigns that help us. Ours is
the only competition that when they reach Iowa City, they no longer have any
costs. We pay for their overnight hotel, their banquet, and for their lunch. Uh,
we're very pri ... proud and we take great pride in that we are the only major
competition that has done that. We have a sponsor -an -athlete campaign where
many of our businesses throughout Iowa City contribute to that and help us out.
Uh, we also have our polar plunge, which is coming right up, and now if any of
you on the Council would like to join us (laughter) it'll be April 16th. It's at the
reservoir and we have a wonderful time. We have people coming out in all sorts
of costumes. We raise a great deal of money. We have been able to raise enough
to fully fund all of the hotels and we have about a thousand (clears throat) excuse
me, competitors that come here to compete in basketball, basketball skills,
cheerleading, gymnastics, and power lifting. Uh, we have a (mumbled) golf
tournament, which Iowa football has been behind us and it's just a wonderful
thing. Um, I would like to read the names of our guests and our Special
Olympians that are here and that have competed. We have Julia Brumbaugh,
Sarah Burton, Jenna Helms, Robin Kugley, Chambria Loffer, Brianna McFarland,
Cindy Moore, Danielle Morgan, Mercedes Nicks, Kelly Peterson, Laurie Ruth,
Anne Greenstine, Lindsey Warner, Jeff Hacker, and Shari McKee. We would like
to once again thank you for making this proclamation Special Olympics Month.
It means a lot to us! (applause) If we could, the athletes... would like to have
everyone, um ... do the Special Olympics oath with us, and they'll repeat it, and
then if everyone (both talking)
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regular formal meeting of March 1, 2016.
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Throgmorton: Sure!
Rossi: ...repeat it after us!
Throgmorton: Sure, go ahead!
Rossi: Okay! Let us win! If we cannot win, let us be brave in the attempt! (several
responding) Thank you very much! (applause)
Throgmorton: ... congratulate you too, and congratulations! Yeah, nice to see you. Nice to see
you! Hi! Good to see you. Congratulations! Congratulations! (several talking)
Well done! Congratulations! Oh, okay (several talking and laughing) Okay,
thank you very much!
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ITEM 2. PROCLAMATIONS
ITEM 2b Women's History Month — March
Throgmorton: Okay, I think we can proceed. Our second proclamation has to do with Women's
History Month. So I'll read it and, Andrea, I think you're gonna be the person I
give this to, right? Okay! (reads proclamation)
Karr: Here to accept the proclamation is Andrea Cohen. (applause)
Cohen: On behalf of the people of Iowa City and the Human Rights Commission, thank
you. This year's theme is "Working to Form a More Perfect Union, Honoring
Women in Public Service and Government;" women who have shaped America's
history and its future through their public service and government leadership,
often overlooked and undervalued, they succeeded against great odds, collectively
and dramatically influencing our public policy and the building of viable
institutions and organizations. Their techniques, as well as their skill and
determination, serve to inspire future generations. Women from all cultural
backgrounds, in all levels of public service and government are essential in the
continuing work of forming a more perfect union and city. Thank you.
(applause)
Throgmorton: Thank you, Andrea!
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ITEM 3. STUDENT LEADERSHIP AWARDS
ITEM 3a Regina Elementary
Throgmorton: I'm going to read the names of three kids from Regina Elementary, ask them to
come up, uh, to the area right in front here. Sam Aitchison, Adam Boblenz, and
Frances Bottorff. Hope I pronounced your last names correctly! (mumbled) All
right, we'll ... we'll start with you. Can you tell me your name?
Aitchison: Sam.
Throgmorton: Sam! How you doin'? I'm Jim! Thanks for comin' down! We're very proud of
you (several talking in background) So I wonder if you could read your
statement, and .... and I'll hold the mic out for you, and then we'll do the same with
you and you, and then I'll read the proclamation. Okay? So, here we go!
Aitchison: Hi, I'm Sam and I'm a sixth grader at Regina. I take my education very seriously
and work hard to get good grades. My favorite subjects are math and science. I
love sports and try to be a leader in my football, basketball, and baseball teams.
also enjoy helping my dad coach my little brother's teams and hope to be a coach
myself some day. I help out at my church as an altar server, by singing in the
children's choir for special services, and hopefully soon by playing guitar, as I'm
currently taking lessons. I love to participate in my school's monthly service
projects, like col... collecting donations for the Ronald McDonald House and the
Iowa City Hospice. I feel very honored to have been nominated for this award
and I'd like to thank my wonderful friends, family, teachers, and coaches for
helping guide me on this amazing journey. Thank you. (applause)
Throgmorton: Well done, Sam! You know, I went to a Catholic elementary school too when I
was a little buy, uh, and I sang in a choir. You know what, I can't sing anymore
(laughter) I don't know why (mumbled, laughter) Okay, what's your name?
Boblenz: Adam Boblenz.
Throgmorton: Adam, okay, so here you go!
Boblenz: Hello, my name is Adam Boblenz. I am a sixth grader at Regina Elementary. My
teacher's Mrs. Davis and I'm 11 -years -old. I'm an active member in Boy Scouts,
which involves helping with Eagle Scout projects and other types of community
service. I like to play basketball, soccer, and go on runs. I also serve at my
church. I also altar serve at my church. Every week our family tries to do
something nice for people in need in our community. Finally, I would like to
thank my teachers and family for helping and selecting me for this award.
(applause)
Throgmorton: Nicely done, Sam! Okay! Tell us who you are.
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Bottorff: I'm Frances Bottorff. Good evening. My name is Frances Bottorff and I'm in
sixth grade at Regina Elementary. I'm so honored to be accepting this award
tonight. I feel my teacher has selected me for this award because of my academic
achievement, but more importantly, my actions towards others in our school and
our community. At Regina my teachers have taught me to strive for academic
success by putting forth my best effort and working hard. At my school I also
have the opportunity to help younger students, participate in monthly service
projects that's for others in our Iowa ... in Iowa City, and I work daily on my
character by being a good citizen — respectful, responsible, trustworthy, caring,
fair, and faithful. Thank you! (applause)
Throgmorton: Wow, there's ample reason to be proud of these three kids, isn't there? So ... let me
sit this down. I'm gonna read ... I'm gonna read this one time, cause it's the same
proclamation. It just has your individual names on it. Can you (mumbled)
Thanks! Okay. (reads Student Leadership Award) So, Sam ... here you go! And
which one is this? Adam! Thank you! (mumbled) And Frances!
Congratulations. You all are doing great work. Keep it up! All right. Where are
the happy parents? (laughter) Good deal! Okay! Go on home and ... and do
(applause)
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ITEM 4. CONSIDER ADOPTION OF THE CONSENT CALENDAR AS
PRESENTED OR AMENDED.
Throgmorton:... and there are a few amendments. Oh! Look at that! What is that? It's a
surprise! What could this possibly be? Oh my gosh, it's another proclamation!
(laughter) I wonder what it could possibly have to do with! Bear with me for a
second please. Put this thing on my tie. My gosh, that text is small! Okay ... oh, it
has something to do with Tom! Our City Manager Tom Markus. (reads
proclamation) Please join me in thanking Tom! _ (applause)
Markus: You know I intend to ... have some comments, but I know we have a packed house
right now and there's a section on the agenda toward the end of the meeting, uh,
so you don't have to stick around to listen to my 45 -minute (laughter) Power Point
presentation this evening, but ... thank you! It's been a pleasure to serve, uh, the
Councils that I've worked for, and especially, uh, working with the great
employees, uh, that, uh, serve our community so well. Thank you very much!
(applause)
Throgmorton: All right, we'll step back to where I almost was, uh, before I ... found that
proclamation sitting on my desk. (reads Item #4)
Mims: Move adoption with deferral of 4d(3) indefinitely; deferral of 4d(7) until March
23`d; and removing 4d(10) for separate consideration.
Botchway: Second.
Throgmorton: All right, it's been moved by, uh, Mims, seconded by Botchway. Roll call, or
discussion I should say. Discussion?
Botchway: Real quick, I just want to say a couple of words. I know we're ... have a busy,
packed night. I'm just really excited about the opportunity, um, for Geoff to kind
of step into the role of, uh, Interim City Manager. Um, I've just spoken with a lot
of different groups in the community, whether it be business, whether it just be
regular community folk, whatever the case may be, and they've expressed, um, a
lot of good things about the work that you've done and um, hopefully will
continue to do in this new position. Um, I did tell you before that I would say
this, and I just hope that you do not take Tom's kind of dress wardrobe with the,
uh, sweater vest. Other than that ... um, I'm excited about you having this position.
So, thanks!
Throgmorton: Just so everybody knows, Item 4d(10) appoints Geoff as Interim City Manager,
effective March 19. So that's what Kingsley's referring to.
Botchway: And I was hoping for a little more laughter on the sweater vest joke (laughter and
several responding) It's okay! It's okay! Next time!
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Throgmorton: Okay, so we have a motion on the floor. Uh... no comment I guess? Roll call. So,
uh... is there a motion to, uh... motion to approve Item 4d(10), which concerns, uh,
the strategic plan for Iowa City.
Botchway: So moved.
Cole: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Botchway, seconded by Cole. Discussion?
Mims: Yes. Um, I asked to have this removed and I've got a few comments I'd like to
make, um, about our strategic plan. We started, uh, doing a citywide strategic
plan for the first time, um, when Tom came in in, uh, actually I guess he came in
December of 10 and I think we did our first one, uh, in ... the fall of 11, after the
election in the fall of 11. Um, when we were doing the interviewing, it was one
of the things I mentioned cause I was kind of surprised when I had run for City
Council the first time that some of the departments had strategic plans, but we
didn't really have a citywide strategic plan. And I think they have served us really
well and we've made a lot of progress and have really helped focus where we're
going as a city. Tonight for the first time, um, in the six years I've been on
Council, I am going to vote against our strategic plan. And the reason I'm doing
this is for two ... there's two reasons. Um, one is the process by which we got here.
Um, all of the current Council Members, this would have been back in October
and November, current Council Members and any individuals running for Council
were given a questionnaire to respond to in terms of the upcoming strategic
planning process. When we did our first meeting on November 30t', um,
everybody who was on the Council then and the newly elected Members went
through that meeting on November 30th, uh, to discuss, you know, what things we
should have in the next, um, strategic plan. At the end of that meeting, um ... Jim
Throgmorton gave us all a three-page document with a number of additional items
that he wanted considered for the strategic plan. Um, ultimately we didn't really
sit down and discuss those three, but as we have had, um, if I've counted here
we've .... it's taken us, and tonight would be our sixth meeting I believe, to discuss
and finally vote on the strategic plan. One it's taken us a long time to get here;
two, at numerous of those meetings, um ... Council Members have simply added
and added and added things to this strategic plan. All of which should have been
done as part of that initial process. Okay? Finally, we have ended up with a
strategic plan that has expanded from seven, or excuse me, from five top priorities
to now seven, and under those seven priorities, we have no less than 36 action
items. In my opinion, this puts our staff, um, in an incredibly difficult position
over the next two years. Um, number one, we're going to be short-staffed in the
City Manager's office for probably at least six or nine months, and it is the
members of that office that do an awful lot of the work of overseeing a strategic
plan and directing staff who have to be doing the day-to-day work and working
with consultants who may be involved in some of these areas. I think this sets
them up potentially for failure. I think that is very unfair. I think it sets out a very
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unrealistic expectation of this Council, of the staff, and more importantly, of our
community, that we are somehow going to accomplish these 36 items over the
next two years, and I do believe that when we do a strategic planning every two
years, we really should be focusing on those things that are front and center for
the next two years. So for those reasons I will be voting against our strategic plan
tonight.
Throgmorton: Other discussion?
Dickens: I will not be voting for it as well. I ... I concur with Susan as far as the number of
things that have been added to this. This'll be my last strategic plan as I'll be
going off the Council. I'll probably be in the last meeting when we do it in
December, but you'll have the new Council coming in at that time. I do think it's
overaggressive, um ... there's a lot of great things that were in there. We had some
great conversations. I think there's a lot of things that we can accomplish, but I
just think the magnitude of it is just overwhelming for ... for the staff and with a
new City Manager coming in as well. I think it's just a little bit ... bit too
aggressive.
Throgmorton: Others? (several talking)
Cole: Let me say I'm obviously in favor of the strategic plan and let me highlight two
areas that are going to be a key focus for us. One is racial justice, and I'm not
going to apologize for the priority that we put on that in terms of a separate
category, and the second one is climate change. That is something that we feel is
essential. You ... were right, that there ... there are a lot of challenges in associated
with being able to implement that, but that is something that we believe reflects
the priorities of this community and where we need to head as a community as
well. (mumbled) do have a democracy, uh, some changes have been made, and I
think rather than lament those changes I think we need to work together with the
community to implement, uh, all voices and to hear all voices, and I think that
that's what we attempted to do, uh, was to implement that. This is the first time I
had heard that you were actually going to vote against it, Susan, um, and so that's
certainly your right to vote, but also the voters spoke as well, and they wanted
new leadership and change, and I think that's what we attempted to do with the
strategic plan. And I'd like to identify one thing in terms of the items that
we're ... that we're attempting to implement. We're not only intending to achieve
those through staff, but also in partnership with community groups. Um, we have
fabulous leaders here in the community, and so we anticipate that these are goals
that our staff will achieve in ... in conjunction and collaboration with the
fab ... fabulous groups that we have, and I think that even our 100 Grannies here
tonight, I anticipate we're gonna have a lot of excellent collaboration with them,
as well. So that's why I'm in favor of the strategic plan and I appreciate the
process that we went through, which was to ensure that we had adequate input
and that we reflected the will of all of the community as well.
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Botchway: So I will say ... uh, that I do agree with Susan's, uh, discussion in part. Um, there
are a lot of items on the agenda. Um, I will, you know, agree with Rockne, there's
some particular items that I think needed to be on there, as far as you know
advancing some of the things that, um, while we have done some things, can go a
long way in doing some others as well (noises on mic) Uh, that being said, um, I
just want to make sure that when we go into deliberation from a prioritization
standpoint, we really consider how that's going to look, cause I have stated that
because there's a lot of different things here, I ... I don't want to make ... I want to
make sure that ... we are giving staff adequate time to address all the concerns that
are in this, and address it in a way that is actually meaningful, um, and in a good
way. Like I don't want it to be a rushed job in any type of, um, way, shape, or
form. That being said, another point or note that I wanted to bring up. I was
actually going to bring up in a later discussion, um, was as I've been having
conversations with folks about the Lens, um, and the money that has been put
forth from that perspective, and I know I'm not going to speak too much about
that, um, but in relation to this, I ... I've found out that a lot of people weren't aware
of some of the, um ... fiscal additions that we've, um, put in this particular budget,
some of which I have, um, lot of which I've supported, um, and you know, some
of which I've, um, actually been the person that has put it forth, but I do want to
kind of quickly read through these. There are not that many, um ... for the
additions here (mumbled) agenda packet, it's, uh, bookmobile is $112,000; um,
residential/commercial on/off-street parking study $50,000; affordable housing
form -based code missing metal. Actually some .... $125,000. Business incentives
for persons of color and youth employment, $50,000; street tree planting program
and tree inventory, $75,000; racial equity funding grant program, $25,000;
housing market analysis for University -impact zone, $70,000; adding two
additional UniverCity homes, $100,000; um, this is a part of the capital
improvement budget. I spoke about the operating budget before. Um, carbon
emission reduction project, $100,000; complete streets study, $50,000; affordable
housing construction project is $1 million, but that's actually a transfer from a
previous sale on the Court/Linn property, so that's not additional money. Um,
Franz -Miller Park development, $150,000; um, there are some deletions. Uh, the
Fairchild brick street reconstruction, uh, $375,000; and the one I-80, excuse me,
um, aesthetic improvements, $100,000. The total being ... um, a
million ... (mumbled) take that out because that's... again, the ... the affordable
housing piece that I was talking about, uh, $482,000. Um, and so I ... I do, um,
think that there were many concerns that are brought up in relation to what we
were talking about, um, we will be talking about later on, but I wanted to put that
out to the community because, again, I'm not sure that a lot of people are aware. I
wanted to make sure that that got out to the, um ... uh, media as well, because I
know that a lot of times things need to come before the media to that standpoint
for people who may be paying attention to it, and so, um, I just wanted to note
that from a strategic planning standpoint those additions. Um, and just make sure
that people are cognizant and asking questions about that.
Throgmorton: Other discussion?
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Thomas: I'll just simply say that I ... I support the strategic plan. I wasn't expecting, uh,
Susan and Terry to express their concerns with it this evening. Um, but since it
has been raised, I'll just use this as an opportunity to encourage everyone in the
community to, um, if you haven't looked at our strategic plan to do so, um ... there
are a number of items under each of the priorities, and in fact I wanted five
priorities, Susan, so (laughs) Anyway, um ... rather than seven, but nevertheless,
it's seven now and, um ... you know, I encourage all of you to look at what we as
Council feel are the priorities for the community of Iowa City. So ... um, I
encourage you to look at them.
Taylor: I also am in favor of the strategicXlan as we've presented it. As Susan said, we
started this process November 30 of last year and there has been a lot of decision
making and planning going into this. So it really comes as quite a surprise that,
um, they would, uh, speak against it at this time, and I don't see that 36 items is
really that much. It's not that it's falling on just one person. This is spread
throughout, uh, the City staff. So I don't see that as ... as a valid argument either,
and again, I just appreciate the decision making and process that ... that we
followed up until now.
Mims: I would just follow up with one comment. Um ... I have spoken against a number
of the items that we've added as we've gone through, simply again, not because
the items themselves I don't support, because there's probably not ... more than a
very, very small handful of items in here that I would not support at some time or
another. It is simply the scope of this. Um ... in trying to do this in ... in five
years ... in two years, excuse me, the seven items, and what appears to me to have
been ... pieces added on, piecemeal from meeting to meeting and not really looking
at the whole thing in one big picture and saying, okay, we really have to prioritize.
To me has indicated, um, an inability or an unwillingness I guess is a better way
of putting it, um, of the majority of the Council to really prioritize what it is that
we need to get done in the next two years. Um, and so this is nothing about
lamenting the change in the Council or not accepting things. It's simply saying,
hey, this is, you know, this is where I sit on it. I think this is way too, uh... way
too big for what we can reasonably do in the next two years.
Throgmorton: All right. I'm very, very proud of the strategic plan that we are on the verge of
adopting. We put a tremendous amount of work into it. We, seven people. Every
single person sitting up at this podium contributed to the plan as it exists. I did
everything I could as Mayor of the City to make sure that every single
Councilperson' voice was included and thoughts were included in that strategic
plan. It indicates a shift in direction. What do you expect? There was an election
held this past November and four people were elected. We weren't elected to
continue the way things had been going. We were elected to shift priorities. We
are doing that. That's what our strategic plan does. It's not a gigantic leap away
from the way things were, but it does signal a shift in direction. It ... it is
ambitious! I absolutely understand that. I think I completely agree with Susan
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about that point. And it's a challenge for our, uh... uh, new Interim City Manager,
once he takes office. He and I have had extensive discussions about that. We will
not be able to accomplish everything on that list in the next two years. Don't
expect that we will! Every time I've spoken about this, I've indicated that we're
gonna do things step-by-step, and we cannot do everything at once, but what we
have before us tonight is a really outstanding strategic plan that indicates a shift in
direction that really matters for this city. So I'll be voting for it. Uh, roll call!
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ITEM 5. COMMUNITY COMMENT (ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA)
Throgmorton: Uh... as ... as you speak, please remember we do have a lot of people who are going
to be speaking to other topics tonight, so .... try to constrain yourself and I got the
watchman over here, right next to me (laughs) makin' sure that we don't go over
five minutes each.
Elliott: I just had that speech from my wife before I came down here (laughter)
Botchway: Bob, we've already started your five minutes with that statement (laughter)
Elliott: Thank you! Uh, my name is Bob Elliott, uh, my wife and I have lived at 1108
Dover Street for 50 years and I am appearing before you tonight, Mr. Mayor and
Members of the Council, to, uh... ask you to seriously think about and hopefully
maybe think somewhat differently about a suggestion that has been made. My
friend Darrell Hansen and I have met with Jason Havel of your Engineering staff,
and he's been very kind to share information with us, and we're talking about First
Avenue in southeast Iowa City and Mormon Trek on the west side, and uh, my
understanding is there is at least a discussion about changing four lanes of traffic
to two lanes of traffic, one lane each way, with a turning lane in the middle. Uh, I
think I don't have to remind you, but I will that, uh... in the last, well, since ... I
looked at the, uh, population. In 1970, Iowa City's population, the Iowa City
metro area, was 56,000. It's right at about twice that size now, and think about
what will and might happen in the next 10, 20, 30 years. I grew up in Chicago
and I learned first-hand the difference between trying to put traffic (clears throat)
in two lanes when you're looking at then streetcars, but now we have city buses
and school buses and mini -buses and a number of things. There's just no way that
two lanes of traffic moves traffic as well as effectively as four lanes of traffic.
Uh... our friend ... um ... Coralville has found that out with the strip — what four lanes
of traffic with a center turning lane can do. So I'm asking you to please, uh, you
and the staff think very carefully about what reducing... four lanes of traffic to two
lanes would do, especially in those two areas, which moves a lot of traffic of
people coming in. As our population has expanded in the metro area, so has the
employment and the employment coming from Wellman and West Liberty and
Ainsworth and Washington and Riverside and Hills and many other places. Uh...
two lanes of traffic just doesn't move it. So please think carefully. I ask you, and
do the job I think each of you will be very intent on doing the best possible job
you can, and I hope you think about the things that may happen if you reduce the
amount of room to move traffic. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Bob. Who's next? Roger!
Knight: So most of you know me. I'm Roger Knight. Urn ... I'm just comin' down here. I
wasn't able to speak on ... somethin' that came up for a vote. I was, uh, sick and
didn't feel like sharing it with everybody. Urn ... the addition for above ... well, this
building, with apartments or townhouses, whatever. I can't believe how quick you
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guys voted for it. You guys are like the old City Council, you know, like a little
kid with money in their pocket. Oh, we gotta burn it! We got .... we gotta get
Snickers candy! (making loud noises) Are you serious? You heard people
complainin' about the sirens and they weren't even livin' there yet! We were...
(mumbled) talkin'! And you guys so quickly — yes, yes! Aye, aye, aye, aye ... right
down the ... nobody thought about, wait ... it's actually against the law. Do you
know the fumes that come off these fire trucks? We lost an Iowa City firefighter
years ago because of it. And you guys never thought about it. They put fans in to
get these gases out, and you're gonna put buildings... above it to get apartments in?
Are you kidding me? Seriously, are you kidding me? You guys are so quick to
come up with such bad ideas! Bad ideas! And ... I mean I'll come up with other
things that are on the agenda, but ... just to make my point. The, urn ... the glass, the
statue. We gotta go, we gotta go (mumbled) we got $50,000 we can spend!
Throgmorton: Roger, that's an agenda item.
Knight: Right, I know I'm just gettin' to ... you know, just so many other things just like
that .... know the tower. The city doesn't want it! This is not New York City. If
you want to live in New York City, New York City's in New York, case you
didn't know! I would like to see, like I've brought up so many times before, the
City Council get rid of Mediacom! Get rid of people ... or, sorry, I said people.
Companies... that are inhibiting Iowa City growth for those who are low-income.
Think about ... just what it's been with Mediacom and any other business like that.
You guys are just ... how can we help you? How can we help you? I want to see
Iowa City not for sale sign. An open for business sign ... for anyone! And ... you
know, maybe one idea is for new buildings, and I'll get to the end of this, I'm
sorry, I know, urn ... maybe like I% of whatever you're building has to go into a
community fund, and when that community fund gets big enough, low-income
housing, cause this city seriously needs it. Thank you. I'm sorry I took so
much...
Throgmorton: Thank you, Roger!
Hansen: My name is, uh, Darrell Hansen. I'm a friend of, uh, Bob Elliott's and I'm just
here supporting what he ... what he said already. Urn ... one thing I wanted to add, I
could repeat a lot of the things Bob said, but I wouldn't say it as good as Bob did,
so I won't ... won't take your time up to do that, but ... one thing I'd like to do is
challenge you to go out to Mormon Trek and First Avenue, and at 8:00 in the
morning, or .... during the week day, or 5:00 on a ... on a Friday, and look at the
traffic that's going down those roads, and I think you'll have an impression of
whether or not it should be four lanes there or two lanes, and so that's all I'm
asking for. Thank you very much.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Darrell. Anyone else? Hi, Ann!
Christenson: I'm Ann Christenson. I live here in, uh, Iowa City on Dearborn Street.
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Throgmorton: Ann, could you speak into the microphone, please (mumbled)
Christenson: Okay.
Throgmorton: Thank you.
Christenson: I could get a lot louder (laughter) Um, I'm gonna put a picture up, um ... and could
the photographer dim the lights a little bit? Let's see.
Karr: We need to have the projector on first, Ann.
Christenson: (mumbled) told to do (laughs) Anyway...
Throgmorton: It'll warm up!
Christenson: Yeah! Uh, I can continue. Uh, 1, uh, have sent you all letters and urn ... in regards
to the Lens and proposing an alternative plan. I know that this is a late date.
People have wondered why we come in at this hour, the 11th hour, is because it
wasn't, uh, until I was in Bristol, England a few weeks ago that I was even aware
of such things as ... an energy tree. That's Bristol's energy on their Millennium
Square which is very much like our ... ped mall. Um ... when my husband and I saw
that, we thought ... this should be in Iowa City. We are working for sustainability.
Uh, 100 Grannies is working for environmental improvements, and we want to
make Iowa City a sustainable carbon -free city. The energy tree, the leaves are
solar panels. The panels were made from fragments of broken panels by ... by
people with, uh, disabilities. They were trained by teachers. The children are
taken to this. There's a video on YouTube, uh, that they learn from this tree about
solar, about, uh, how ... all the things that can be done with it. It has four roots on
either side that you can, uh, recharge your telephone on. It's described as a, um, a
public art installation and renewable power source designed to engage the public
in energy issues. It's, urn ... it's ... it engaged community collaboration, artistic
excellence, science and grass-roots energy activism in a unique project. We felt
that, uh, the Lens has become so controversial and is so expensive that this could
be a viable alternative. The price for that one was 70,000 pounds, which today in
dollars works out to about $96,000.
Throgmorton: Excuse me, Ann, I want to make sure you're not talking about the agenda item,
you know, the Lens.
Christenson: No!
Throgmorton: ... you gotta be focused on (both talking)
Christenson: No, we're not on the agenda (both talking)
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Throgmorton: ... gotta focus on ... the energy tree, right?
Christenson: Yeah! So, uh, no, I'm just giving the cost, um ... $97,600. Uh, we could see all
kinds of community involvement in this. We would like to see a local artist or
someone with connections to Iowa City. We can see, um ... professors,
en ... engineering students, art teachers, um ... designers ... all kinds of facets of Iowa
City involved and we would hope that ... um ... the sustainability issue would come
to the fore. Uh, as ... as far as I've heard, the Lens does not provide any
environmental insights or ... solutions. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Ann. (applause)
Kashia: I'm Miriam Kashia. Iowa City resident for about 25 wonderful years. I now
reside in North Liberty, so my apologies for that, but this is still my central base
of operations, and I'm going to be short and sweet. Um ... with apologies that
we've come late to the table about this art piece because, um, we only just learned
about this within the week. Iowa City has an opportunity to enhance its vision
and reputation as a comp ... a community that embraces sustainability on every
level. In our homes, our work places, the commons, and in our collective artistic
expression. This beautiful sculpture, which has gone away (laughs) will ... will
represent our commitment to that vision and put it in action. It will be a daily
reminder to all who see it and enjoy its gifts of elegance and energy, that we are
committed to creating a livable future on our one and only planet home, and it
will serve as an inspiration to our visitors, students, citizens, our leaders, and our
children that together we can make a difference toward a livable future. Thank
you. (applause)
Throgmorton: Thank you, Miriam. Those of you who don't know, Miriam walked across the
country a couple years ago ... on behalf of climate change. Effective action
(mumbled) Anybody else want to speak? Again, this is on any topic not having
to do with an agenda item.
Cilek: Not on the sculpture?
Throgmorton: Not on the sculpture.
Cilek: Okay, I thought they had a picture of it up there. Um ... my name is Dan Cilek and
I've been a resident of Iowa City for 59 years and I'm here tonight just to say how
sad this whole situation appears to me, uh, with the new Council coming on
board, uh... (clears throat) One of the things ... I think that you need to consider is,
uh, Rockne talks about social, uh, justice or racial equality, um ... I work for a
company called Meta Communications and we're tryin' to hire diverse, uh,
populations. We have people coming from all over the nation, and ... I think you
need to reconsider what ... the business environment here in Iowa City contributes.
Um, it...it appears to me that you're very anti -business. And one of the things I
would like to say is that, um ... a lot of the social services depends on successful
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businesses. Um ... and one of the things with the, uh, 100 Grannies sculpture thing
is consistency is one of the things that businesses look for. And with the ... the, uh,
Lens, we worked on it for a couple years now and now all of a sudden appears
like it's on the agenda again, and that's just really disappointing I think. Um... so
I just want to put in my two ... my two -cents, that I think, uh, in general the City
Council, I'd like to invite you all up to Meta Communications, let you know what
we're about. Um, I don't, um, I ... I hate to see the city go backwards with all the
work that's been involved over the last several years. And I really feel in talking
to the community leaders in the business community that that's happening. And
you can have people come up, uh, from whatever, uh, part of the community here,
but I think one of the things that everybody should realize is that, uh... the business
community actually does contribute a whole lot to all aspects of the community.
And, um ... you know, we have a Council Member that's suing, uh, the City
Council and I just .... I really think, uh, one of the things. Just to me.. it's sickening
to me, uh, the direction it's going. So I just kind of want to lay that out there, uh,
if anybody would like to talk to me about that, I'd like to welcome y'all up to visit
me up here. It's right downtown — Meta Communications. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Bob. I'm sorry, Dan! Dan, I would be happy ... Dan? I would be
happy to come up there again. You know I've been there three or four times.
(responding from audience) Yeah, and other times. So I .... (speaking from
audience) I'm just saying I would be happy to go there. Other, uh, anybody else
like to speak? Good evening!
Landry: Good evening. Uh, Doyle Landry, Positive Vision Ministries. I specifically want
to address the racial justice focus of the ... Council as it relates to what was ... front
page news for those of us who still turn pages. Urn ... both Sunday and yesterday
as it relates to African American students at the Regent universities. As ... a former
full-time journalist who worked on a very similar story 20 years ago, it hurt my
heart to realize that if you remove the ... dates here and the names, we're talking
about the same subject. So I think it's commendable that racial justice is a focus,
but 20 years later, the cost of higher education has skyrocketed. And out-of-state
students because the State of Iowa has not done an adequate job of educating
African American students, or any students that are not wired for higher
education, as evidenced by the data, you have students who are paying locally
here at the University $20,000 more than an in-state student, and so if you're
talking about individuals who are paying more money for the same experience,
but because they're deemed not equal by individuals who teach them, who
administrate them, and who interact with them, what hope is there for a ... racially
business inclusive? Because again it's nice during Black History Month, Latino
History Month, Asian History Month, Native American History Month for
everybody to hold hands and play the Kumbaya game, but it's ... I think we missed
the message, the main message about ... Dr. Martin Luther King, that his daughter
expressed here Labor Day weekend, 1993, that her father was killed over
economic justice. So when we ... advance the discussion about whether or not
$50,000 is appropriate for a piece of art, what's more important as it relates to
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children who we say should be judged by the content of their ... um, color, content
of their character, not by the color of their skin. What are our results showing...
right here in Iowa City? All you have to do again is, if you haven't, read the front
page stories for both Sunday and Monday. I say that because it's very
commendable for ... you all who are white to say that racial justice is a priority
because it's about time. The reality is it's a lot of hard work, kicking the can down
the road, year after year, and having token ... having token ... efforts versus a real
proactive strategic plan that says we're gonna push it to the top of the list. It's my
sincerest hope that if we're going to continue honest discussion about including
today's African American students who again are paying more money to be here
locally and contributing to the local economy that we have an honest discussion
about when and ... when and where they enter. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Doyle. (applause) Think we have time for one more person and then
we typically cut off at 8:00. So ... Brandon!
Ross: Brandon Ross. I, uh, I first of all I support the strategic plan. Uh, I've seen the
process. I don't agree with every single little increment, but then, uh, probably
who ... who can. I would ... I would like to say that I am very happy that, uh, the
environmental questions and issues have been put on, and in the priority, and uh,
the gentleman who spoke before me mentioned economic, uh, considerations, uh,
affordable housing, uh... and ... and the like, uh, I think are key projects and are
front and foremost. I think that, uh, climate change right now, uh, is worse than,
uh, than anyone has suspected, is moving rather rapidly. Our city, like most, is
moving rather slowly. Uh, I remember eight years ago that a City Council
Member who (mumbled) City Council... future Member was running and said,
well, we'll make green, you know, buildings and things like that. Uh, nothing was
really ever done. There are no solar projects. There are, or very few if there are.
I don't know much about them. And regarding, um, equal opportunity and, uh...
uh when we talk about, uh... uh, racial fairness in this town, I agree with the
previous gentleman. It's economics. Economics. Economics, and if you don't
have affordable housing. If you don't have, um ... uh... rent control and other types
of things, then the great majority of the people, who in this town are working
class, can't afford to actually live here. Most people in the downtown area who
work, and I mean people who are not manipulating capital, trading stocks and
bonds and real estates and furs and diamonds and ... and spouses and such. I'm
talking about the people who work, and that's where they get their money from.
Most of the people in the town cannot afford to live in the apartments that are
built today, and have been built over the past 20 years. It's been getting more and
more and more expensive, and you cannot have ... whether it be racially, if you
want to think of it as an Afro American, a Latino American, or just a working
class, uh, American, uh, Iowa Citian, you can't afford to live in these places. So
people are having to go further and further and further out, and so I champion the
City Council's consideration, uh, that they will look into this, that this will be a
priority, and that global warming, uh, climate crisis is also a priority because
without those two things we can't live. Thank you so much.
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Throgmorton: (applause) Thank you, Brandon. One minute!
Curden: Thank you so much, Mayor Throgmorton! Um, just in the open section here
(both talking)
Throgmorton: Say your name, please.
Cirtin: My name is Shean Cirtin from here in Iowa City. Uh, I just wanted to ... stop by. I
thought I'd address the new and improved Iowa City Council. I know you guys
have just recently been elected (mumbled) forward to the changes that'll be
coming about. Just real quick with the discussion of the CBD oil here in our
legislature, wanted to bring it back home and uh, talk about an Iowa City
perspective on this issue with our State Senator Joe Bolkcom. I know we've
known for a long time thanks to some studies that this study, this, uh, Council has
commissioned about the, uh, racial disproportionality of marijuana arrests and I
just wanted to come and address the new Council today to see if the people will,
you know, be heard. You have, uh, people who are black getting arrested eight
times more often for pot than people who are white, and when it happens to white
people it's still incorrect. So we have a violation of our, uh, our right
to ... uh... equal protection under the law. The Fourth Amendment is routinely
violated in the pursuit of the war on drugs. Cruel and unusual punishment and uh,
prohibition didn't work for alcohol. It's not working now, and it's incumbent upon
you guys to lead for a change. If you are a new and improved City Council in the
most different part of the state, just do something about it. The police work for
you. The police chief works for you. The police officers work for him. You are
in charge. I want to see bold action on marijuana reform. It's legal in Colorado.
It will be legal nationwide, uh, but you guys are being quite conservative in your
handling of marijuana up until this point, but I know there will be improvements.
Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you. All right, so we typically stop public discussion at 8:00 P.M. There's
time at the end of our, um ... formal meeting agenda for anybody who wants to
stick around and ... and make further public comment. Uh, so feel free to do that.
But in the meantime what we're gonna do is shift to the other agenda items.
So ... we'll move to Item #5, Planning and Zoning Matters. I hear myself echoing
out there in the hallway! (laughs)
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ITEM 6. PLANNING AND ZONING MATTERS
ITEM 6b REZONING SCOTT BOULEVARD AND LOWER WEST
BRANCH ROAD — ORDINANCE REZONING 9.33 ACRES OF
PROPERTY FROM LOW DENSITY SINGLE FAMILY (RS -5) ZONE
AND MEDIUM DENSITY SINGLE FAMILY (RS -8) ZONE TO PLANNED
DEVELOPMENT OVERLAY (OPD -8) ZONE AND A SENSITIVE AREAS
DEVELOPMENT PLAN FOR PINE GROVE LOCATED SOUTH OF
LOWER WEST BRANCH ROAD BETWEEN SCOTT BOULEVARD AND
HUMMINGBIRD LANE. (REZ15-00023/SUB15-00031) (SECOND
CONSIDERATION)
Mims: Move second consideration.
Dickens: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Mims, seconded by Dickens. Discussion? I think it could be there's
somebody in the audience that wanted to comment on this. Please do!
Hamilton: Thank you! Greg Hamilton at 260 Hummingbird Lane and I appreciate the
opportunity to address you last time. I ... I just wanted to, uh, refine some of
the ... the comments. I raised two issues. One was regarding density and I thank
you, the ... thank the City Council for hearing that and asking the City staff to, uh,
do some more study regarding density in this, uh, nine acres that is to be
developed. Um, the City staff, uh, drew up a ... a plan that suggested the maximum
achievable density under the ... the zoning plan, and suggested that 54 units is
theoretically possible using, uh, small lots and ... and alleys, uh, behind
those ... those lots. Uh, as I suggested earlier, I think the ... the true measure of
comparison is the historical density, uh, in that, uh, area of town. Urn ... even if,
uh, those nine acres were to completely be rezoned to RS -8, uh, which would
allow for smaller lot sizes, the historical density would suggest that 45 households
would be appropriate for those (coughing, unable to hear speaker) acres rather
than the 54 proposed. Uh, if the zoning is kept split between RS -5 and RS -8,
then, uh, historical, uh, numbers would suggest that a total of 36, uh, households
would be more appropriate, which would mean that the 36 unit apartment
complex which is proposed, you know, is ... is certainly too large and should be
essentially cut in half. Uh, as I mentioned before, the Northeast District Plan did
not contemplate a, uh, apartment complex of this size. That was, uh, approved
after considerable consi... community input, you know, just seven years ago, and
the circumstances have not changed. As one of your, uh, members noted that, uh,
a apartment complex would be the largest, uh, in the entire area and the Northeast
District Plan suggested there should not be a clustering of apartment complexes in
the Northeast District, but that there should be true diversity of housing. The
second issue really has not been discussed, which is, uh... um ... the drawing up of
the new Pine Grove Lane. Uh, we would agree with the builder that an
intersection with, uh, the arterial road of, uh, Lower West Branch Road does
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make sense and that it would support the traffic from the new development. The,
uh, developer's original proposal was to, uh, preserve the environmental
(mumbled) environment in the area and uh, 40 -year-old mature trees, and they
indicated that, uh, a cul-de-sac would best achieve that. The Northeast District
Plan specifically approves and commends cul-de-sacs, uh, specifically to approve
those sorts of, uh, environmental features and uh, speaks about single loaded, uh,
streets where there is development on one side and environmental features on the
other. Uh, the City Council really has not addressed why a cul-de-sac would be
inappropriate, other than to say that it's, uh, inconsistent with their internal style
manual, but um, they have not provided any particular rationale for that. The,
again, the Northeast District Plan... contemplates ways that a cul-de-sac could be
utilized, and you could still integrate a development with an existing
neighborhood, such as through the use of trails at the ... at the end of a cul-de-sac
development. Um, if... a second access is needed for that road, as I suggested
earlier, Scott Park or ... or Scott Boulevard would seem to be the appropriate place
to take that significant, uh... uh, amount of traffic that would be generated by a
large new, um ... apartment complex. Thank you for your time.
Throgmorton: Thank you. Anybody else want to address this topic? All right, um ... (mumbled)
we have a motion on the floor. Discussion?
Thomas: As I said, I had, um ... I had concerns at the first reading with the, um ... allowing in
a planned unit, planned development overlay of a single-family residential zone
the, um ... 280 -foot long, three-story, 36 -unit building, um, which is not provided
with, uh, access to such amenities as open space or sociable spaces associated
with it. Um ... so for those reasons I will (mumbled) (noises in background)
Taylor: I also have, uh, issues with the number of units in ... in this development. I'm not
opposed to the development as such. I think it's a wonderful use of that area, um,
to be, uh, multi -units and single-family units. Um, I ... as ... as John does have
concern about the lack of any open space or common space. In fact there's very
little space because this ... multi -complex is taking up all of the space, and I do
have concerns with that and I ... so I would not be, uh... uh, giving my approval of
this.
Throgmorton: Okay. Other discussion? I intend to support the, uh... the second reading, um, of
the, uh, of the ordinance.
Cole: Well I think you bring up some very valid concerns. I definitely hear where
you're coming from. I think that's probably the hardest thing and challenge the
cities face. So how do we maintain that quality of life while getting the density
right? Um, you know, if we're to start over on this, could we sort of reduce the
density (mumbled) you know, at an earlier stage. I think we probably could.
Um ... but you know I think we really need to do it in terms of an overarching plan.
I do hear your concerns in terms of how well we are complying with the
Comprehensive Plan. Um, but I think that the staff is trying to sort of balance a
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number of different factors in terms of the density. There was some single-family
homes in part of this, so I don't know that it's a perfect framework for us, but I
think it's practical enough for me to support it, but I ... but I really appreciate your
comments on that, and that's probably the hardest zoning challenge we have is
getting that density right while maintaining the quality of life, but I am going to
support it.
Throgmorton: No further discussion? Roll call. Motion passes 5-2.
Karr: Motion to accept correspondence.
Botchway: So moved.
Dickens: Second.
Throgmorton: Uh, all in favor say aye. All opposed. Motion passes.
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ITEM 7. AMENDING FY2016 OPERATING BUDGET - AMENDING THE FY2016
OPERATING BUDGET
Throgmorton: We'll turn to Item 7, and Marian, you and I talked about Item 7 and 8 and you had
a suggestion about how to proceed with regard to these two budget related items.
Karr: Item 7 and 8 both have public hearings, one of them on amending the FY 16
operating budget. The other one on adoption of the FY17. Uh, our Finance
Director will be presenting one Power Point containing both .... all the
information. We'll go ahead and we'll open the public hearing on 16 and... then if
there is discussion prior to the adoption of the resolution on items in 16, that
would be the appropriate time. Then we'll open the public hearing on 17, not for
the Power Point again, but for discussion of items on the 17 budget.
Throgmorton: Okay.
Karr: So it might be helpful for the public to know that distinction.
Throgmorton: So Dennis will speak now. Then I'll open the public hearing on item...
Karr: Dennis is part of the public hearing. So you can go ahead and open it.
a. PUBLIC HEARING
Throgmorton: (bangs gavel) Open the public hearing. Welcome, Dennis!
Bockenstedt: Thank you!
Throgmorton: I saw you practicing earlier today! (laughter)
Bockenstedt: I was! Hopefully it works out now. Uh, good evening. I'm Dennis Bockenstedt,
the Finance Director for the City of Iowa City. Uh, tonight we are conducting the
public hearing for the City's fiscal year 2017 proposed budget and also the public
hearing for the City's, uh, fiscal year 2016 amended budget. Uh, preparation of
the fiscal year 2017 budget began in the summer of 2015. Back in August of
2015, the Finance department collected performance measurement information
from each of the departments. In September of 2015, the departments then
submitted capital project requests for the five-year capital improvement program.
In Oc... in October of 2015, the departments then submitted their fiscal year
2000...17 budget requests and their fiscal year 2016 budget amendments. In
November, the City Council held their strategic plan retreat and the City Manager
met with the departments to discuss their budget proposals. In December, the
proposed three-year financial plan and five-year capital improvement program
were submitted to the City Council and the general public. In January and
February of 2016, the City Council held public meetings to discuss the proposed
budget and the strategic plan. In March of this year, the fiscal year 2016 amended
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budget and the fiscal year 2017 adopted budget will be filed with the State of
Iowa. Preparation of the fiscal year 2017 budget ... was consistent with the City
Council's financial goals. It was guided by the City Council's strategic plan
priorities and it was focused on fostering an inclusive, just, and sustainable city,
of maintaining fiscal integrity. The City Council's financial goals are 1) to
continue to monitor the impact of the 2013 property tax reform legislation and to
evaluate alternative revenue sources; 2) to continue to build the City's emergency
fund; 3) to monitor potential changes to the Moody's rating criteria and maintain
the City's triple-A bond rating; 4) to continue to reduce the City's property tax
levy rate; and 5) to maintain healthy fund balances throughout the City's diverse
operations. As of the fiscal year 2017 budget, the actual impact of the property
tax reform legislation is relatively close to what our original projections were.
This budget seeks to lower reliance on property tax and diversify revenues. It
continues to seek operational efficiencies and it focuses on long-term, multi-year
sustainable approach to financial operations. This budget continues funding for
the City's emergency reserve. This fund was created to help protect against
sudden revenue shortfalls, pension and healthcare rate spikes, natural disaster
emergencies, and other unforeseen financial emergencies. This budget sets aside
emergency funding for the third consecutive year. Fiscal 2017 budget continues
to emphasize low debt levels and early debt retirement. This chart here represents
the City's outstanding bonded debt against its legal debt limit. Blue bars here
represent the City's legal debt limit. The yellow bars represent the City's
outstanding debt. You can see since fiscal year 2009, the amount that the ... of debt
that the City would have allowed to be issued has grown. While at the same time
the amount of debt that the City has actually issued has decreased. This budget
continues to shift capital financing to pay-as-you-go versus long-term debt
obligations. It also maintains strong reserve and fund balance levels. The fiscal
year 2017 proposed property tax rate is $16.58 per $1,000 of value. This is the
fifth consecutive property tax rate decrease. The chart here represents the City's
property tax levy rate over the last 10 years and it has been on a downward trend.
Fiscal year 2017 budget continues that downward trend. We're also continuing to
explore opportunities for revenue diversification, such as a local option sales tax
or utility franchise fee increase. The fiscal year 2017 budget meets the fund
balance requirements of the City Council's financial policies. It maintains
strategic replacement reserves, such as heavy equipment, vehicles, landfill cells,
and buses. It also maintains sustainable (mumbled) of rates that sufficiently
recover the cost of operations including depreciation wherever feasible. In
addition to the City Council's financial goals, preparation of the 2017 budget was
guided by the City Council's strategic plan priorities. Those priorities are to
promote a strong and resilient economy, encourage a vibrant and walkable urban
core, to foster healthy neighborhoods throughout the city, to maintain a solid
financial foundation, to enhance community engagement and inter -governmental
relations, to mot ... to promote environmental sustainability, and to advance social
justice and racial equity. The fiscal year 2017 budget seeks to promote a strong
and resilient economy through contributions to the Entrepreneurial Development
Center, to the Iowa City Area Development Group, and to the Iowa
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City/Coralville area Convention and Visitors Bureau. It also includes economic
development opportunity funds, a downtown facade improvement loan program,
and business incentives for persons of color, and youth employment. This budget
includes a sponsorship to the Cyclocross Roller Cup Event, funding for the
Summer of the Arts, contributions to the City of Literature for the Iowa City Book
Festival, and contributions to the Englert Theater, Film Scene, Riverside Theater,
and Mission Creek Festival. This ... this budget also includes a local foods
initiative in partnership with Johnson County, an edible landscape at the Robert
A. Lee Recreation Center, expanded community and neighborhood garden
opportunities, and a centralized SNAP offering at the Farmers Market. This
budget also seeks to encourage a vibrant and walkable urban core. It includes the
continued development of the Riverfront Crossings Park, landscape and
walkability improvements on Riverside Drive from the railroad bridge to the
Myrtle intersection, the reconstruction of the Madison and Clinton intersections
on Burlington Street, facade improvements at the Capitol and Dubuque Street
parking ramps, the reconstruction of Washington Street, improvements to the
B1ackHawk Mini Park, and an increase in staffing dedicated for historic
preservation. This budget also seeks to foster healthy neighborhoods throughout
the city through funding a new affordable housing construction project, through
the development of an affordable housing form -based code, through funding a
low-income housing project in the Towncrest area. This budget continues the
(mumbled) the targeted neighborhood investment, PIN grant and GRIP programs.
It includes an on/off-street parking study in the near -downtown area, a facade
improvement program for the University impacted neighborhoods, a housing
market analysis study in the University impacted area in conjunction with the
University of Iowa, and five new UniverCity homes. For neighborhood parks,
this budget includes an update to the Parks and Recreation Master Plan,
improvements to Frauenholtz-Miller, Willow Creek, Kiwanis, Creekside, Happy
Hollow, Pheasant Hill, and Hickory Hill Parks. It includes ADA enhancements in
the park system, an additional elementary school recreation center, improvements
to the Robert A. Lee Recreation Center, and a Library bookmobile program. This
budget doubles the ADA curb ramp replacement program. It funds the
reconstruction of a portion of Davenport Street, and it increases the funding for
the annual pavement rehabilitation program. Fiscal year 2017 budget also seeks
to maintain a solid financial foundation. It continues the City's emergency fund.
It decreases the property tax levy by 7 -cents. It includes an early call of the 2011
A GO bonds. It has increases to the storm water utility fee and the Senior Center
membership fees. And it adds development staff at the Senior Center to assist
with fundraising efforts. This budget also includes an expansion to broadcast City
Council work sessions, includes funding for innovative outreach efforts, and
funding for enhanced web and internet communications. This budget also seeks
to promote environmental sustainability. It continues the City's
partic ... participation in the STAR program. It includes street light replacements
with LED lights, a new carbon emission reduction project. It adds solar -powered
recycle units in public areas. It continues the City's energy efficiency revolving
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loan program for City facilities, and includes upgrades to the BAS controls in City
facilities.
Throgmorton: Sorry, what are BAS controls?
Bockenstedt: It's the building automated systems, it's the remote controls they put on the ... on
like the boiler and the air conditioning (mumbled)
Throgmorton: Thanks!
Bockenstedt: This budget also funds an update to the City's bike and pedestrian master plan. It
continues the development of intra -city bike trails. It funds bicycle parklets,
racks, and fix -it stations. It continues the City's sidewalk in -fill program.
Incru... includes three -lane conversions of Mormon Trek, First Avenue, and
Sycamore Streets. And it funds a complete streets study and an annual complete
streets improvement program. Funding is also included in this budget for a
natural area inventory and management plan, annual creek maintenance and storm
water quality grants, a street tree inventory and planting program, a sustainable
roadway vegetation management program, and it continues the City's Rummage
in the Ramp event. The fiscal year 2017 budget also advances social justice and
racial equity through the creation of a new social service endowment fund at the
Johnson County Community Foundation. It continues the Aid to Agencies
funding. It includes contributions to the 1105 Project and the winter homeless
shelter, and it continues the City's utility discount program. This budget contains
a new racial equity grant program. It continues the City's racial equity... racial
equity agency partnerships, and human rights' outreach programs. It includes the
City's GARE membership and additional staff training, and adds a new, full-time
Police community outreach officer, and includes an expansion of the Police and
Fire education outreach programs. It also continues to fund the St. Ambrose
traffic stop study and review. So the total City budget for expenditures for all
funds is $185.3 million. The City's governmental funds, which are primarily
supported through property tax and inter -governmental revenues totals $114.5
million, and the City's proprietary funds, which are its business -type funds such as
water and sewer utilities, have total budgets of $70.8 million. The City's general
fund, which is its primary operating fund, has a budget of $54.5 million. A debt
service fund budget of $15.1 million, and capital project fund budgets of $35.4
million. Fiscal year 2017 is considered a balanced budget, whereas its revenues
are equal to or in excess of its expenditures. To summarize, the fiscal year 2017
proposed budget was (mumbled) clear financial goals. Its priorities were
determined by the strategic plan. It was focused on a sustainable, multi-year
financial model and proposed property tax levy ... levy rate is $16.58 per $1,000 of
value. A decrease of 7 -cents from last year. I'll try and answer any questions if
you have any.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Dennis. That was very thorough. I appreciate it very much. Uh, do
we have any questions for Dennis? I can tell you practiced! (laughs) Thank you
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for doing that. Okay, if not ... I need to open that public hearing. Did I already ... I
already opened it (mumbled) All right, so this is, uh, with regard to ... uh, the uh...
amending the FY2016 operating budget. Are there any people who would like to
speak to that particular topic? Seeing none I'll close the hearing. (bangs gavel)
Uh, is there a motion to approve...
b. CONSIDER A RESOLUTION
Mims: Approve the resolution.
Botchway: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Mims, seconded by Botchway. Discussion? Hearing none, roll call.
Motion passes 7 to nothing. Moving, uh, 7-0, sorry.
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ITEM 8. PROPOSED FY2017 OPERATING BUDGET AND CAPITAL
IMPROVEMENT PLAN - PROPOSED OPERATING BUDGET FOR THE
FISCAL YEAR JULY 1, 2016 THROUGH JUNE 30, 2017, THE
PROPOSED THREE-YEAR FINANCIAL PLAN FOR FY2016 — 2018, AND
THE FIVE-YEAR CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN 2016 — 2020
a. PUBLIC HEARING
Throgmorton: I'll open the public hearing. (bangs gavel) Are there any people who would like
to speak to this particular topic? Good evening, Jay!
Semel: Good evening, Council, and Jim! Good evening, all. I'm Jay Semel. I'm Vice
President of the Iowa City Public Library Board of Trustees and I'm currently a
member also of the Library Friends Foundation. I'm here to thank you for your
support of the proposed bookmobile service. The idea for the bookmobile grew
out of the Library's recent... extensive strategic planning process. A key
component of the process was a survey, an exhaustive survey, which gathered
comments from a wide range and large number of Iowa City residents and groups,
um ... gathered comments from people which included users and non-users of the
Library. Uh, for those concerned about access and those concerned about
underserved populations, the bookmobile seemed to be the most effective,
economic, and rational alternative for all of the residents who suggested moving
the Library from its downtown location to a parking mall somewhere, where there
would be easier parking or those who ... who suggested building a branch library.
The... the... the bookmobile is way cheaper than building a new library and
building a branch library, and the branch library, by the way, we are the only Iowa
city of our size that doesn't, uh, have a bookmobile and ... and it's ... it's just such a
reasonable alternative to ... to building a new library or a branch library. Um ... it'll
be staffed by, uh, full-time professional librarians. It ... it'll, uh, operate all year
long, just like the Library, and will carry books, uh... specially selected by
professional librarians to serve the broad range of the bookmobile's clientele.
And the bookmobile will build on very long-standing partnerships which now
provide collections for people of all ages at the ... at both neighborhood centers and
which conduct regular outreach programming at the neighborhood centers and
numerous daycare centers. Last year over 11,000 kids attended one of the
Library's 298 outreach programs, and we also work with schools to extend their
services and ... and ex ... and encourage reading. As part of a pilot project, we
currently are working with Horn Elementary to issue Library cards to
Engr ... English language learners. Those of us from Philadelphia are barely
English language learners. Um, shortly we will make our annual spring visits to
all of the Iowa City elementary schools to encourage Library card sign-up. In
preparation for these visits, uh, we have prepared Library materials in English,
Spanish, French, and Arabic. A teen librarian is working with Tate High School
staff on a grant to provide at -risk youth the opportunity to read, reflect, and share
ideas on topics that resonate with the kids. These are just a few examples of the
many partnerships that will be strengthened by adding our bookmobile service to
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their services (mumbled) and moreover the bookmobile will increase visibility
and improve access to the Library's entire collection, and enhance services to
citizens of all ages throughout the community. A ... a ... another crucial
public/private partnership is between the Library and the Library Friends
Foundation, which raises private money from individuals and corporations for the
Library. The Foundation has set aside more than half the
magic... magic... match... matching funds necessary to support the purchase of the
bookmobile. Moreover, gift money has been committed to support additional
bookmobile staffing. Finally, the Foundation has identified staffing for children's
services as a high priority for future fundraising. In a brief parenthesis, let me say
that I'm confused by requests to the Council to not fund the bot... bookmobile that
have come from supporters of the Antelope Lending Library.
Throgmorton: Jay, you... you're well over your time now.
Semel: I'm sorry! I didn't realize I had a time limit.
Throgmorton: (both talking) Five minutes.
Semel: I will close by saying, um ... this bookmobile idea, uh, grows out of years of..of
strategic planning and collaborations and is a logical and economic alternative to
building a new Library or branch. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you.
Semel: Sorry that I went over!
Throgmorton: So please restrain yourself to not more than five minutes. We ... we have two more
(mumbled) activities to talk about tonight.
Hartley: My name's Brian Hartley (both talking) um ... I, uh, I'm from ... I live on, uh,. 1524
Muscatine Avenue. I ... it was very important for me to come here tonight because
I know how it feels to have ... the future of, uh, your future determined by the
decisions that you as a Council make, and um ... my family business, uh, has ... I'm a
co-owner of my family business that's been here in Iowa City for over 60 years
and it's important to me that ... that Antelope Lending Library gets their
opportunity to continue the service that they're providing for the community,
because the Library's not going anywhere, and they're a great organization. But...
this funding and this project for the bookmobile I feel like could jeopardize these
people's future and I ... I recognize that and I ... I ... I feel their... anxiety about that,
and I feel like they deserve an opportunity to continue the great work that they've
been doing. I've seen the presence that they've had in my community personally,
and I think they're doing a great job. They've done many of the things that this
gentleman just talked about. I know that they're like bi-lingual right now already,
you know, and they're operating, and there's lot of (mumbled) there's lots of great
points about it that I'm sure lots of other people will want to, uh, talk about, but
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mostly I just wanted to share my perspective of Ahey have a dream. They
deserve to carry it out, and uh.... I understand that the local government has
supported them and I ... I think it would be a shame if, uh, they didn't continue to
get that support and I know ... and I don't feel like it should be the Library versus
the Antelope Leb... Lending Library. They should have an opportunity to work
together, before they become competitors. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Brian. (applause) Good evening, Dan!
Daly: Good evening! My name is ... Dan Daly. I'm wearing my sweater vest in Tom's
honor! (laughter) Um...
Throgmorton: (both talking) Is there a monogram on it that says Tom (several talking and
laughing)
Daly: (both talking) ...on the 4t' when the official day comes, right? (several talking)
I'm a retired librarian. Uh, but since then it's been my honor to serve as market
master and ... and last couple of years I've been, uh, market master for the Iowa
City Farmers Market at the eastside, uh, sites, where Antelope Lending Library
bookmobile is a very welcome fixture. Iowa City and the Iowa City Public
Library should reach out to endorse, assist, and thank these folks who've worked
so hard and so well to build a stronger community through literature and learning.
It would be an insult and a waste not to build on their track record for bringing
books for loan, stories for children, and other important library services to those
who might find travel downtown inconvenient. These are dedicated folks who
love the work they do. These are good people who provide a valuable service and
deserve our support. It would be an operational efficiency. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Dan. (applause)
Elton: Hi, uh, my name is Cassandra Elton and I am the Director and Founder of the
Antelope Lending Library bookmobile that's already been talked about a little bit
tonight, and I know it's been discussed in previous meetings as well. Um, I last
stood before the City Council three years ago requesting funds through a PIN
grant sponsored by the Longfellow and Grant Wood neighborhoods to support my
newly -established bookmobile service. Iowa City does already have a
bookmobile. City Council Members at the time approved the request and asked
how else they could support this endeavor. I stand before you today and ask for
your support once more. Antelope Lending Library is one of only three
bookmobiles in the entire state. We are members of the Association of
Bookmobile and Outreach Services, a Division of the American Library
Association, and have their support in our project. We specifically work to serve
low-income areas and schools in need of assistance in the Iowa City community,
as well as neighborhoods at a distance from our city center, where people are least
likely to be making regular trips downtown. We also participate in City events,
such as Soul Festival and Arts Fest. We have expanded our services every year
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since we began, making weekly stops at summer programs, parks, and mobile
home communities, among other locations. At these stops we offer book check-
out, story times, literacy and writing activities, wireless internet and computer
access — all at no cost to our patrons. We spoke to the Iowa City Public Library in
2012 about our idea and they said they were already serving everyone in the
community adequately. While our resources may be comparatively small, we are
making a big impact. We purchased a used bookmobile in 2013 for only $11,000,
as opposed to commissioning a new vehicle, which would have been well over
$300,000 for one the same size as ours. With an International diesel engine, our
mechanics say it has at least 10 more years of life left in it, with a current
operating budget of just under $6,000, for our summer programming and a
completely volunteer staff. In 2015 alone we had nearly 4,000 visitors and
offered over 300 hours of service to residents in the Iowa City area. Joyce Carroll
of the Iowa City Parks and Recreation department has supported our bookmobile
from the beginning and wrote to me saying, "I have heard nothing but rave
reviews every time Antelope is brought up. Thank you for doing what I have so
hoped for ever since I came here 30 years ago. It was a long wait, but Iowa City
is very blessed." We continue to work with the Parks and Recreation department
as their funding has continued to decrease, to ensure that children in their
programs have access to books and educational activities throughout the summer.
In the budget meeting on January 9a', 2016, Library Board President Robin
Paetzold said that Antelope Lending Library "actually proved to us the need for
some of these services." We are deeply flattered that our bookmobile service
inspired the Iowa City Public Library to action. I only wish that the inspiration
they took was to think of new and innovative ways to take library services to our
community by partnering with other organizations such as ours rather than simply
duplicating existing programs. I hope you've had the chance to read the letters
sent in from members of our community, including what I was able to hand out to
you tonight. These are your constituents, detailing their support for Antelope, and
(mumbled) you've heard from a few of them already tonight and you'll get to hear
from more. I am not a lone voice and I hope that you'll take all of these views
into consideration as you move forward with your budget for fiscal year 2017.
An ongoing line item of $112,000 including a new staff position is a lot of money
for a department that still has yet to share the details of their proposed service.
I'm not sure how anyone can ... how anyone can know that it will be 'apples and
oranges' as Councilor Cole has previously claimed without knowing what
specifically the Public Library is proposing to provide. Hoping for them to take
these funds and put them toward a community partnership with our organization
in the future is naive. They've shown no inclination to do so before now and
giving them funding for their own project would give them no incentive to do so
in the future. I ask you again to reconsider your approval of the $112,000 yearly
for the Iowa City Public Library bookmobile, a request ... a request that you
already voted once not to fund 4 to 2 not because we see them as a competition or
because we do not support public libraries or City -run bookmobiles, but because
in times of fiscal need public/private partnerships are what will enable all of us to
succeed. And that is why I stand here today, to ask again for your support. You
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supported us in 2013 and I ask again for your support now, to support our
community, support our existing services, support public/private partnerships. l
know you've changed your mind once before and so I know you can do it again.
Thank you for your time. I have every confidence that you'll make the right
decision.
Throgmorton: Thank you (applause) I ... I wonder if all people who would like to speak to this
topic would raise their hand so I have some sense of how many people are
involved. Okay, I see like five hands. That's 25 minutes if we do five minutes
per person. I'd like to ask you to keep yourself down to three minutes in your
comments. Otherwise we're gonna be here till like 1:00 or something, you know;
not a good deal! Good evening.
Roberts: Jim, I can do it in two. I'm Cindi Roberts. I live in the Grant Wood neighborhood
in southeast Iowa City. I'm here in support, not only of the Antelope Lending
Library, but of course of our wonderful Iowa City Public Library, but my
emphasis here is with the Antelope Lending Library. The economics of this have
been addressed thoroughly by Cassie, as well as others, but I wanted to bring up
when I thought about what I wanted to say about the Antelope Lending Library
that might be a unique perspective from someone who lives in a neighborhood
that has benefited greatly from Cassie's expertise, as well as her volunteers, and
that perspective is some intrinsic values that I think unless you live in a
neighborhood such as mine you wouldn't necessarily be aware of that. I live in a
very diverse, whether diverse socio-economic neighborhood, as well as ethnically,
and Cassie's Antelope Lending Library for the past several years has been a
wonderful resource to not only school-age children, but also adults, and when I
say intrinsic values, think of it this way. When you have a group of, and I ... I don't
know how many volunteers that Cassie has had, uh, recently, but it's a large
number of volunteers, and it sends a very special message to neighborhoods when
you have volunteers come into your neighborhood... when they don't need to be
there. They're there because one, they feel this is important, they are doing this
because they enjoy it, and you're sending a message to individuals who live in the
neighborhood that ... this is important, you are important, and this matters. I would
like to see a partnership develop between the Antelope Lending Library and our
Iowa City Public Library. That has not been embraced. I don't understand that. I
also don't understand why our Iowa City Council would even consider this type of
expenditure at this point in time. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Cindy. (applause) (mumbled)
Logsdon: I'm Kara Logsdon. I'm Community and Access Services Coordinator at Iowa City
Public Library and Robin Paetzold who is our Board President is not able to be
here tonight because of a family emergency so she asked me to read a let ... a, um,
something for you. (reads letter: "...Their commitment shows the level of trust in
our organization to do this job the right way and to encourage full use of our
services by their neighbors. (added the following: Your support was the next step
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to make this project community owned initiative that would share the services that
many ofyou may be choosing to access in our library on a regular basis.) I'll
jump ahead cause I know time is limited. (returns to letter)
Throgmorton: Thank you.
Brown: My name is Jessica Brown. My husband and I moved here a little over 11 years
ago. We've enjoyed thoroughly raising our five kids here. I wanted to speak in
support of the Antelope Lending Library. Um, to keep it short, just, um, I guess
(mumbled) provide a counterpoint to some of the points from the Iowa City
Public Library. Um, they've made mention of, um, finding a need for the
bookmobile after paying for consultants. Urn, Cassie saw the need through her
work, um, as the before and after-school care program director with Twain. She
saw the need for literacy, for kids in the poorer neighborhoods and she did
something about it without expensive consultants. Um, she ... they've also made
mention of...of the services that they would provide, um, with their given budget.
Um, I bet Cassie would be more than happy to provide those services even with
half the budget. Um, she has spent countless hours, um, they talk about
professional librarians. She has a master's in Library Science. She could be a
professional librarian, but she's chosen to spend her time and her efforts in
making sure this gets done, um, without pay. Urn, and so I just think that rather
than duplicate, urn, a service and possibly, um, driving it out, um, something that's
already successful, it makes far more sense to throw our resources behind
something that's already proven and ... um, that much passion and love is spent on.
Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you. (applause)
Young: My name is Heather Young. Um ... I live at 502 Third Avenue. Uh, 1 am here
to... uh, ask a question, um, as a community member. I've heard this
evening... you've talked about your strategic plan. You've talked about
how ... there's been made mention of you want to collaborate with community
groups. It's in your budget in one of the goals that you are pursuing
collaborations with community groups. If that is your goal and that is the
strategic plan that you are all voting for and you voted for tonight, how ... how does
the Antelope Lending Library not fit into your strategic goals? The Antelope
Lending Library has been an active part of our community for three years now!
This is not some new thing that just is some idea that's unrealistic. It is already a
functioning part of our community. How come you're not choosing to collaborate
with an organization that's already here doing the work ... but in my opinion, the
Library should have been doing all along and chose not to. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you. (applause)
Byers: (mumbled) My name is Terri Byers. I live at 2509- Nevada Avenue, right in the
middle of the Grant Wood neighborhood. Okay! So my other role is, well, I'm
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two roles tonight with you guys. I'm President of the AFSCME Local 183, which
is the union that represents non -safety, um, persons in the City. I'm also the
Steward at the Iowa City Public Library. And AFSCME this year is celebrating
our 40"' anniversary of the City staff, um, City workers uniting to form a union
and choosing AFSCME as their union. So, and that ... two of those people were
librarians. Jeanette Carter and Carol Spaziani. Let me just say what I need to say
right now. I am opposed to any outsourcing of library services, and make no
mistake, this would be outsourcing library services. The staff at the Iowa City
Public Library is professional and well-trained, whether you are a state -certified
librarian or a certified support staff member, such as myself. We are trained and
we are held accountable for our duties and through our work, through out
budgeted positions with the City. The other entity has no definition of what their
staff would be except that they're volunteers. And while they are educated, there
is no indication of accreditation of any kind or check or balance of who is actually
doing the work. Do we want an ambiguous source extending the City's limited
resources and in what manner would that project? The staff of the Iowa City
Public Library is a budgeted, governed... we're governed by a Library Board and
we're directed by our Director, and we have contractual obligations and
definitions of what we do. Dilution of library service will be detrimental to our
rich history of a union and labor management with the City and unions, and so I
ask you to consider the ... the bookmobile, but not to dilute it into another entity.
Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Terri. Other speakers?
Paulson -Peters: My name is Marcia Paulson -Peters. I and my husband John Durham Peters have
been living here for 30 years and we love the Library. We love the books. We
love Iowa City, the city of books. And I love Antelope Lending Library. And
folks, we don't need to reinvent the wheel. The wheel is already running ... in the
library wheels of Antelope Library. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you. (applause) Okay, I don't see anybody else wanting to speak. I'm
going to close the public hearing. (bangs gavel) Didn't hit it right (laughs) Okay!
Motion?
b. RESOLUTION ADOPTING THE ANNUAL BUDGET FOR THE
FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 2017
Botchway: Move resolution.
Cole: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Botchway, seconded by Cole. Discussion? I want to ask, uh, Tom a
question.
Markus: Sure!
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Throgmorton: You and I discussed this briefly this morning. You had a particular suggestion.
Would you care to share that with us, so it can be part of our discussion?
Markus: Yeah, I ... in discussing this, it seemed to me that ... I'm not sure that any real
collaboration discussion occurred and I think that ... knowing that this is in the
budget, I would suggest ... and as we talked, um, that you'd go ahead and approve
this within the ... the current budget ... but that you would ... you would bring this
back and have a discussion about the collaboration, uh, between the two entities,
and see where that takes you. Before any money could be spent.
Dickens: (mumbled) ...increase the budget but you can lower...
Markus: Right.
Dickens: ...is what you're saying.
Markus: It wouldn't have to be spent with that proviso.
Throgmorton: It does seem to me that we have two stories going like that ... next to one another,
not engaging one another. I don't know why that is and I don't claim to have deep
knowledge about this, but I can tell you from a Councilperson's point of view,
that's what it looks like. So I ... I don't have any desire, I'll just kind of go on here,
I don't have any desire to try to amend our budget right here at this moment in
time ... but I like your suggestion.
Markus: So the expectation would be ... that both parties would be coming back and you
would be having a subsequent conversation. Both parties would... would... engage
in a conversation about ... what impact this would have on Antelope, from their
perspective, what services over and above what Antelope provides, that the Iowa
City Public Library would provide, and if there's some common ground. It ... you
know, I can't help but read the story about Antelope Public ... or Antelope, uh,
Lending Library and ... and not be impressed with the kind of engagement that
they've created! On the other hand, you know, we have a wonderful library! You
know, it's one of the things that I first saw when I came to town. It's strategic
location in our downtown and yet there are ... there are neighborhoods that are not,
you know, it's not as accessible. It's a challenge for some people to get to our
Library. I get that! So ... instead of trying to reverse direction at this hour in terms
of the budget, I would recommend that you approve the budget as is, but I would
expect that you would get an acknowledgement from our Library Director and
from, uh, the Director of the Antelope Library to sit down and come back with...
a discussion with a solution that resolves this ... this difference. And recognizes
that -that this is a ... this Antelope Library is a valuable resource! They are not
as ... I'm confident they're not providing... the breadth or the depth of service that is
intended by our own Library, um ... and there's some other questions, quite frankly,
you know, is ... is the ... is the City's, uh, Library bookmobile going to go out into
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the county? It's my understanding there's.... there's funds that come in for our
Library from the County. I can tell you that ... you know, whether it's innuendo or
whatever, I've heard concerns that, you know... funding the Library, some of the
constituents that the County may have have concerns that they're not getting out
there. So is the Library going to be pushed out into the county? Um ... this ... this
mobile library, uh, sponsored by Iowa City Public Library. So I think there's a lot
of those issues that ... quite frankly you're hearing, you know, two sides to this.
Um, I understand Terri Byers' perspective, urn ... she will not be surprised that I
have a differing opinion on outsourcing certain things, and by the way, this is an
expanded service. This isn't an existing service that the Library provides. And so
this is a crucial decision. And I can tell you, long after I'm gone, you're gonna be
looking at your budgets, and you're gonna be looking at what things you're going
to have to cut. I'll guarantee that's what's going to happen. And so there will be
times when you're gonna look at things that maybe you should have evaluated
very differently when you were discussing expanding services.
Cole: What timeframe would you suggest, Tom? And two, do you think it would make
sense to have Geoff Frain be part of that, maybe that'd be, you know, just in terms
of (mumbled) what I'm wondering is is if there could be a hybrid solution here.
Um, I never viewed this as supporting one was detrimental to the other. You
know, we are a community of 75,000, but a non-profit does have fundraising
issues and I understand that, and when you go out and ask for donors, how do you
explain to them that there may be someone else. So I look at the concept of how
we have the City of Literature partnered at the Library. We have this dynamic
non-profit (mumbled) the Writer's House, partnered with the Library, um, and I
don't view that the expansion of one detracts from the other. So do you ... what
timeframe would you be thinking of, and two, do you think it makes sense to have
Geoff part of that?
Markus: Yeah, I think Geoff ...Geoff will have to be a part of it (both talking)
Cole: ...in terms of the actual discussion itself.
Markus: ...and I think it should come back to you before the actual start of the fiscal
year ... which is July 15`
Throgmorton: So (both talking)
Dilkes: Are we clear that the funding is contingent on further approval by the Council,
because (both talking)
Markus: ...the Council.
Dilkes: ...that has to be clear since the Library Board controls those funds once...
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Markus: And that's why I asked for an acknowledgement from the Director, that the Board
Chair is here, and that's why I asked for an acknowledgement by the ... the Chair or
the Director of the Antelope Library. Look ... I'm confident the Library would do
an excellent job with this, but I'm impressed (laughs) with an organization that
formed itself, goes out on a non-profit basis, and does this kind of outreach in our
community. And when they tell us that we're putting them somewhat at risk by
going down this path, and there has not been — from what people have said
publicly — an engagement between the two sides to resolve this, that's a concern to
me, and it should be a concern to all of you, and ... and yet ... you know,
there... there's probably some hybrid that's potential here to make this all work.
Throgmorton: Thanks for the suggestion, Tom. I ... I think it helps in our discussion. So,
Kingsley, you want to (both talking)
Botchway: So I'll say this, frankly I'm a little frustrated, cause this is exactly what I said when
we, um, brought it up before when we talked about it from a strategic planning
standpoint, that we needed to go back and not necessarily spend these dollars at
this time for this year and hopefully mend whatever, you know, bridge needs to be
built here to have a conversation as far as how we can have that hybrid
collaboration. That being said, I am very much supportive of, um, what Tom has
proposed. Um, I think it's a ... a great idea. Um, I think we're gonna have multiple
discussions tonight and even in the future, as far as what money and who
we're ... what money we ... will we be spending and I ... I just don't feel comfortable
moving forward knowing that there is another option out there, um, that could ... I
wouldn't say provide the same service. I don't know! That's why you have hybrid
models. That's why you strategically work with individuals to do different things,
and so ... I'm very interested in moving forward with what Tom just proposed.
Throgmorton: I'd like to ask Eleanor a ... a clarifying question. We have a motion on the floor,
uh, and ... no, we don't? Yes, yeah, we have the motion on the floor, and Tom's
made a suggestion that I think is getting some considerable interest. Can we
adopt, approve the motion ... with the understanding that Tom articulated, or do we
need to amend the motion to take into account what he was suggesting?
Dilkes: I ... I think you can amend it, and ... and what I would suggest is that you amend,
um ... to include a provision that the funds .... that allocation of...of the funds for the
bookmobile is contingent on subsequent approval of the program by the City
Council.
Throgmorton: And ... and subsequent to ... with clear evidence of conversation between the two
(both talking)
Dilkes: I don't think you need to say that bec... that's clearly your expectation. 1 think
what you need to get on the record is that it's .... the allocation of the funds is, um,
contingent on subsequent City Council approval of the actual program.
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Throgmorton: Okay.
Botchway: If that's the case, oh go ahead! If that's the case, can I rescind my motion?
Throgmorton: No (several talking)
Mims: ...amend your motion (several talking)
Throgmorton: ... second to agree to the amendment.
Botchway: Oh, okay. Well I amend my motion with the stipulation that Eleanor provided.
Thomas: Second.
Mims: (both talking)
Throgmorton:... originally (both talking)
Cole: ...second that.
Throgmorton: All right, so we're all right with that. Kingsley just amended it in that way, and
Rockne seconded it.
Dilkes: That's fine.
Throgmorton: Okay. So, discussion about ... about this.
Cole: So this then would be effective July 1St, is that what the expectation would be?
Markus: I think they have to come back. You, you know, you with ... you withhold your
decision until you ... you feel comfortable with moving ahead with that. That's
your prerogative as the City Council.
Cole: So we can do it earlier than (both talking)
Markus: Yeah, I mean you can ... you can resolve how you're going to go but the fiscal year
doesn't start until July 1St so...
Cole: Okay.
Markus: I'm just saying that you should have some sort of report back before July 1 st
That ... that should give them adequate time to sit down, discuss this, see if there
isn't a collaboration that can be resolved.
Throgmorton: Okay! Further discussion?
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Dickens: On this issue or something else?
Throgmorton: On ... on this particular issue. And... and... and let me (both talking)
Dilkes: Or any other budget issue. Right.
Dickens: Well, okay, I do have one (both talking)
Throgmorton: Well, yeah, so I want to clarify something too. When the original motion was
made, I ... I wasn't clear about specifically what was being referred to, so it has to
do with the resolution adopting the annual budget for the fiscal year ending June
30a', 2017, right. There's another motion that comes afterwards having to do with
another resolution, having to do with the capital improvements program (several
talking) Right. Okay, so that's what this con ... is focused on.
Dickens: My ... my question is when I suggested moving the Miller-Frauenholtz Park
development, I thought that we were going to move ... take this money, move it up
from another park and move that into a later year. I did not intend to add more to
the budget. I thought it was shifting money from one year, from a different park
and moving this up, because this park is ... I did get a garbage can put there last
year, or two years ago, and nothing has happened in that park. And that's why I
brought it up, is that it's one of the few pa ... designated parks that has had nothing,
but I thought we were going to move... something in the budget.
Fruin: When we looked at that we didn't really have a good candidate to move back, and
frankly it's a ... it's a fairly small outlay in terms of park improvements. So, we
were able to move it up, um, I think the plan is to pursue that in calendar year
2017 and really had a minimal impact on our capital improvements plan (both
talking)
Dickens: I ... I didn't intend for it to add to the budget. I was trying to move things around
just to get it moved forward.
Fruin: Yeah, I ... the, in the grand scheme of things I think it's, uh... you know, 150,000 or
so, um ... and you're lookin' at a roughly $10 million bond issue that year. So it's
a ... it's a fairly small... maneuver there.
Dickens: Yeah, I just didn't see anything that stated that. (several talking)
Mims: Yeah, um ... talking in ... not only about the Library and the Antelope but some
broader, um, budget considerations ... we started, um, I think as Dennis did a great
job really on, you know, staff started way back in late summer, early fall with the
budget and it came out to the public and to the City Council in late Decem... late
December and we started our budget meetings, um, on January 9a', and ... through
that process what staff originally brought to us, uh, was a budget that decreased
our property tax levy by 10 -cents, um ... and looked at, as anybody who's watched
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Council meetings and ... and heard me talk at all, you know I'm probably and
maybe the most fiscal conservative person on this Council, um, because I look at
what's going to happen in the future as the 2013 property tax reforms really start
kicking in from the State, and as Tom said just a few minutes ago, you know,
without question we're going to be back here, um, in a few years potentially
looking at having to cut services and cut budget, um, if we can't find other
potential resources. We are so heavily reliant on property taxes, um, to fund our
budget and our services in this community and they are services that, you know,
our people want, our residents want and expect, and we need to have. Um, so I'm
very... always have been very, very concerned, um, that we are very fiscally
prudent with our budget. Um, when we came in, um, one of the things that
happens is that, um, you know, as staff goes through and does those things,
everything kind of filters up through to the City Manager's office and they make
determinations on any additional, uh, staffing within the, uh, City, and one of the
things that ... that has happened in the five years that Tom has been here, um, is we
have managed to, I say'we'....really the staff has managed to reduce our overall
staff by close to 50 positions. I believe all of those by attrition, except maybe
one. Um, and so these are people who, you know, have retired, have left the City
for whatever reason, and through cross -training and other mechanisms I think we
really have not missed a beat in terms of providing the services to the people of
our community and have really helped streamline things and control our budget.
And we need to continue doing that going forward. The Library I think as you
understand, um, is a little bit different animal in terms of State statute and the way
it is controlled and funded, etc., and they have the right and authority to come to
us and ask for another position, which they did. Um ... at that point the Council
agreed to add that for the bookmobile. Um, at our next meeting after that, I think
between Kingsley and I we, you know, we had talked about the fact of really
wanting to hold the line on this 10 -cent reduction in the tax levy, feeling that that
was really important, and the idea of, you know, we really wanted to see some
attempt at some collaboration, and certainly ... I was not as aware of maybe some
of the difficulties between these two organizations as has become apparent
with ... with the correspondence that we have gotten, the communication, and I
would agree with Tom — I think we have two absolutely fantastic organizations
that we need to find a way to work cooperatively. I am a huge believer in public/
private partnerships. Um, we cannot do all the things that we need to do in this
community or any other community simply with tax dollars. We have got to find
ways to engage our community through volunteers, through donations, through
private funding, etc., to make things work. And while I personally was not really
aware of Antelope at all before all of this came up (mumbled) it sounds like
they're a wonderful organization doing lots of good things, not able to do with
funding and volunteers everything that the Public Library could do with a
bookmobile, but I believe we need to find a way to try and work together. The
goal in my mind at that time was to put off the funding of the ... the Library
position for a year with the idea that we would revisit it after, um, there had been
some work on some collaboration and again, from my perspective of working
really hard to try and keep ... our tax, uh, reduction at that 10 -cents that staff had
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originally brought to us. In addition to that, uh, during the budgeting process a
number of things and ... and Kingsley mentioned and listed I think all of them off
earlier so I won't do that again, um, somewhere in the ballpark of $1.4, $1.5
million was added to the City budget. Um, and as he indicated, one million of
that is in a way not in addition; we'll only get it if the Court/Linn property sells
and we get that $1 million. It's part of that contract. But there's still another
ballpark $400,000 or $500,000 that was added to the budget ... for a variety of
things, consultants, etc., um, which are not being affected this year in the tax levy.
They're being taken care of primarily a little bit through, uh, our bonding, but
mostly through a reduction in our fund balances. I find that also very concerning
because if we continue these kinds of activities, which I assume this Council will
want to do, and .... and I'm not saying they're bad activities! They're good
activities. But if we continue them, the City Manager has made it very clear that
to do that we really need to add them to the general fund, which means that we
will then increase our tax levy in future years to cover those things. Okay?
Because of those things, because of my concern of our having to find ourselves in
a ... in a ... situation of significantly cutting services or significantly raises... raising
our tax revenues, tax levies, okay, I was very comfortable with the original budget
that was provided by staff. They had made changes after the election to try and
address some of the issues that they knew were coming with the new Council, and
there have been additional significant changes since then. And for those reasons I
will not vote in fa ... in favor of this budget tonight.
Throgmorton: Other discussion?
Dickens: I think the decrease ... in the amount that we were going to decrease will affect all
housing, because it comes from our property tax values that are coming up.
Values are still going up, even though we're decreasing the levy. They were
lowering it another 3 -cents. That is really hitting everyone from ... every walk of
life, whether you're renting apartment or you're owning a house or ... trying to buy
a house, that will increase your taxes, so ... I ... I just can't support ... that much
difference. That's... that's a big difference in the amount of dollars that will affect
everyone I think.
Botchway: I will say I do support it, um, you know, um, Susan brings up a lot of good points
from a standpoint of, um, it's about 400,000 or 500,000 additional dollars from
that standpoint, and um, it's concerning to me simply from the standpoint of when
I was going out ... I think I said standpoint three times, apologies! Gettin' tired!
Um, when I was going out talking to folks about other agenda items, um, they
were expressing the, um, need for fiscal responsibility and making sure that we
pay attention to those different things. Um, I only say that to say, um ... I hope that
now knowing some of the numbers that I was able to, um ... urn, discuss and Mark,
I'm looking at you in the back there, um, that it gets out in the media in some type
of meaningful way to not have a divisive issue again, um, where folks are coming
before Council in upcoming meetings, um, to state, you know, why did you, you
know, expend this particular amount of money. I am supportive of the different
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initiatives in the funding that we're putting behind it. So I will say that I know
that sounds somewhat convoluted, but I do think that is a ... it is, um, a ... a change.
It is something that is good, um, and a lot of the initiatives need to have those
funding dollars from that perspective in order to go forward, but, um, again I do
have the concerns about that, cause I don't want it to be something that comes
back from the community as being a very divisive issue, especially since a lot of
these things are good projects that I think need to go forward.
Cole: Well and I think really what we have to get into is I'm going to be in favor of this
budget. We have to respect the democratic process, and while certainly there
were some very positive developments that we had in previous Councils, not
everyone in the community liked the direction that the Council was going! That's
the nature of democracy, and if people don't like what we do in four years, then
we'll answer to the voters. So rather than resent what the ... what democracy
brings, let's embrace it and recognize that we're not always going to agree on
everything! And when we disagree, rather than condemn and name -call and
insult, let's celebrate those difference and understand that we each love this
community, we each want to improve it, and we each want to improve the quality
of life. In terms of fiscal responsibility, I'm not going to talk about something that
we'll address later, but there's an expenditure that we'll be discussing that's related
to fiscal responsibility and we are reducing the property tax levy, while increasing
access for racial justice initiatives, youth employment, environmental initiatives.
You know what, those are critical things too that reflect our values, and I ... we're
not going to apologize for standing up for large numbers of this community that
have been entirely marginalized and left out. That is what the focus of our group
is, and it's true ... those voices, we are going to emphasize, that have not been
emphasized in previous Councils, but we're not going to apologize for that and
we're going to stand up for it. So I am enthusiastically in favor of this, and then
you the community members, if you don't like the direction we're going, uh, then
we'll be thrown out of office in four years. That's the nature of democracy and we
understand that that's what we sign up for when we're elected.
Mims: Rockne, can I just ask you a quick question, and if I did this I certainly apologize.
I didn't realize I was name-calling. I'm assuming you were referring to me since I
was speaking against the budget. You talked about name-calling and I certainly
did not ever intend to insult that. I was trying to represent as respectfully as I
could my position on this budget. I ... yes, this is democracy, and I am in the
minority here on this issue and that's fine, but as ... as one of seven Members of this
Council, like all of us, I'm entitled to present my position and it's not against
democracy. It's not against anybody on this Council. It's not ... I certainly did not
think I was name-calling, and if I did, please tell me and I will apologize. Um...
simply presenting to the public my position, which in this case happens to be in
the minority and so be it! I accept that!
Cole: So noted.
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Mims: Thank you!
Throgmorton: Any other discussion?
Thomas: Yeah, I ... I support the resolution (clears throat) Um .... and as I mentioned with
the strategic planning exercise, I ... I think what I would like to encourage the
community to do is ... uh, Dennis sort of gave you the outline, but I'd be very
interested, I'm sure all of Council will be interested in your thoughts with respect
to ... how we've structured the budget for this coming fiscal year, what your
thoughts are, what you support, what you don't support, uh, there are a number of
deletions, as well as additions, uh... in the discussions we had as the new Council.
So, I support it and I would be very interested in ... in your thoughts regarding the
budget.
Taylor: I also am supportive of it. Um ... I have to admit I've received some
misinformation about the Antelope, um, Lending Library, but I am concerned that
before I even came on the Council, I knew nothing about it. I live on the west
side of town and I don't recall it ever ... ever seeing it over on the west side, off of
Benton and Mormon Trek, that area over there, so I really knew very little about
it, and I think that is ... that is concerning to me, and I ... I do ... really, uh, latch onto
Tom's idea that ... that you need to work together, you do need to collaborate, cause
you're both offering very good services and .... and I think that, uh... if...if that is
done then I'm very supportive of...of this resolution.
Throgmorton: Thank you. So ... I'm going to support the budget as amended, not amended but
as ... with the qualification that ... that, um, Kingsley identified. This budget reflects
the strategic plan of this Council, but it also reflects a long period of work by the
staff to produce the draft budget that it's based on. The draft budget is pretty
much what we're adopting. All we did was make a few adjustments. I ... you and I
were talkin', uh, not long ago, Tom, and you said something like, uh, you know...
well, I don't want to put it on you. We ... we ... excuse me ... um ... the ... the
adjustments are (both talking)
Markus: That's okay! You can put it on me (laughter and several talking) I just don't want
you fightin' amongst yourself anymore so put it on me! (laughter)
Throgmorton: Adjustments are ... are modest, but significant. And in the end, if you look at the
material that Dennis, uh, so skillfully put up on the screen for all of us ... you ... you
will see what we tried to do, and like I guess John said, if...if you don't like it, if
you disagree, please do ... as Susan and, uh, and Terry have done, just tell us! I
mean, that's okay! But the bottom line, you know, is ... is that, not the bottom line
but one of the bottom lines is ... the property tax levy's being reduced by 7 -cents!
You know? It's not as if we're jackin' the property taxes way up because we ... we
added all sorts of spending to it! We didn't do that! We cut the property tax rate,
the levy I mean. So, um ... enough! Uh... roll call please! Motion carries 5-2. All
right (both talking)
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Karr: Motion to accept correspondence.
Botchway: So moved.
Dickens: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Botchway, seconded by Dickens. All in favor say aye. All opposed
nay. All right, motion, uh, passes, uh, 7-0. So there's a related resolution. This is
a resolution approving the three-year financial plan and five-year capital
improvements program for the City of Iowa City.
Mims: Move the resolution.
Botchway: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Mims, seconded by Botchway. Discussion? I guess we've ... we've kind
of discussed this, haven't we? Okay. Roll call. Motion... motion carries 7-0.
Thank you.
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ITEM 9. CURB RAMP 2016 PROJECT - APPROVING PLANS, SPECIFICATIONS,
FORM OF CONTRACT, AND ESTIMATE OF COST FOR THE
CONSTRUCTION OF THE CURB RAMP 2016 PROJECT,
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
Throgmorton: (bangs gavel) Open the public hearing; would anybody care to address Item 9,
curb ramp project?
Dickens: Think Roger wants to.
Throgmorton: Roger, you want to address the curb ramp project? (unable to hear response from
audience) Okay! No more than three minutes, please.
Knight: I just got a quick little thing to say. I know this says for, uh, curbs and the
sidewalk, but as you can see on, um ... what is it, Clinton... yeah, Clinton and
Washington. If you walk on ... that, um ... sidewalk, if you will, in the intersection,
it's really bad and I hope you guys can also approve some money to fix ... whatever
that's .... that part of the street, um, I don't know what you would call it, but I'm
sure you guys do. The brick has ... more waves in it than the Iowa River,
so ... thanks!
Throgmorton: Thank you.
Frain: Quick comment! That (both talking) I'm sorry, if I could just interject real quick.
That intersection is being reconstructed with the Washington Street project this
year. (unable to hear response from audience) (laughter)
Throgmorton: Nice try, Geoffl (laughs) All right. Um, any other ... any other person wanted to,
uh, speak to this topic? Seeing none I'm going to close the public hearing. (bangs
gavel)
b. CONSIDER A RESOLUTION
Botchway: Move resolution.
Dickens: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Botchway, seconded by Dickens. Discussion?
Dickens: Just glad that we're (mumbled) this dollar amount. I know several years ago we
moved it to ... instead of every other year we doubled it and this is a great (both
talking)
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Throgmorton:... we're doubling it again, right?
Dickens: Try to keep it ... keep up with the, uh, ADA. I think it's very important.
Throgmorton: Yeah. I agree.
Mims: I agree.
Throgmorton: Roll call.
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ITEM 11. STORMWATER UTILITY FEE - AMENDING TITLE 3, ENTITLED
"FINANCES, TAXATION & FEES," CHAPTER 4, "SCHEDULE OF
FEES, RATES, CHARGES, BONDS, FINES, AND PENALTIES,"
SECTION 6, "STORMWATER UTILITY FEE" AND AMENDING TITLE
16 ENTITLED "PUBLIC WORKS," CHAPTER 3, "CITY UTILITIES,"
ARTICLE G, "STORM WATER COLLECTION, DISCHARGE AND
RUNOFF," SECTION 10(F)(3) TO CHANGE THE RATE OF THE
STORMWATER UTILITY FEE
b. CONSIDER AN ORDINANCE (FIRST CONSIDERATION)
Botchway: Move first consideration.
Mims: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Botchway, seconded by Mims. Discussion?
Mims: This is just another effort by our staff to keep our fees adjusted on a more frequent
basis to, uh, stay on top of the actual expenses rather than letting them go for too
many years and having to do really, really significant bumps, so think it's
important.
Throgmorton: Further discussion? Hearing none, roll call.
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ITEM 12. ICDD FUNDRAISING - RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY
MANAGER TO EXECUTE AN AGREEMENT WITH THE IOWA CITY
DOWNTOWN DISTRICT FOR FUNDRAISING EXPENSES
ASSOCIATED WITH THE ART WORK PORTION OF THE NORTH
PEDESTRIAN MALL IMPROVEMENT PROJECT AT A NOT TO
EXCEED COST OF $50,000
Throgmorton: Uh, I would be pleased to, uh... hear from people, but I wonder ... if we could take a
short break. It's 9:30. Some of us actually would benefit from that. So ... uh, is
five minutes reasonable? (several responding) We're going to take a five-minute
break (mumbled)
(BREAK)
Karr: We're ready to start! (several talking in background) Gavel!
Throgmorton: (bangs gavel) All righty! We need to get a motion on the floor. Did I already
read the ... the topic? I did, didn't I.
Karr: Yes!
Mims: I'll move the resolution.
Botchway: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Mims, seconded by Botchway. Uh... so just ... not discussion. I want to
hear from people, so please raise your hand if you intend to speak on this topic.
Keep your hands up, please! All right, thank you. Would you please keep your
comments to three minutes ... uh, cause I, you know, three times 15 is 45 minutes.
All right, so ... Bill, looks like you're in line there.
Gerhard: Thank you, uh, I will be brief. This is way past my bed time! (laughter) Uh, I'm
Bill Gerhard. I'm, uh, lived in Iowa City since 1969. I'm also President of the
Iowa State Building Trades. I'm here just to lend my support to this artwork
called the Lens. When I saw it in the paper I was excited. Think Iowa City
deserves something big and bold, uh... a lot of work went into that by a lot of
different people, you know (mumbled) ...at stuff. I think not to get behind it and
support it now would do a disservice to all those people. So, I encourage you
guys to support it, and thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Bill.
Elkadi: My name is Hani Elkadi. I live in 4417 Country Club Drive, west side of town,
by Weber School neighborhood. I have lived here 36 years, uh.... that began with
the Writer's Workshop. I moved to teach medicine as a surgeon in the University
of Iowa Hospitals for 10 years. After I retired from my medical service, I joined
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the education system and taught in, uh, Iowa City Public Schools for, uh, 20 years
art and science, especially for at -risk kids and alternative education. Uh, let me
begin by thanking, uh, our City Council for letting me, uh, or letting us voice, uh,
our opinions. I shall try to be as honest as I can be. As Jenny Arnold told me,
being honest may not get you a lot of friends (laughs) but it will always get you
the right ones. As my student Nicole (can't hear) urged me to speak today before
you, uh, in order to be heard not by those in power but by those who matter
(mumbled) confirm or affirm my enormous respect for your relentless efforts to
improve life in our beautiful city. Meanwhile I'm here today joining the sincere
citizens who oppose the Lens project. My hope is that my criticism will not be at
the expense of decades of friendship... with those on the other side. And I should
mention, Jim Throgmorton, Susan Mims, Kingsley Botchway of the City Council,
and Shirley Weyrich, Marcia Bollinger, and Bill Nusser of the Public Advisory
Committee. Those are good friends for more than two decades. The public have
raised a myriad of questions and concerns. I shall mention here some of what I
believe should be taken under consideration of this esteemed Council. You are
about to contribute up to $50,000 of your constituent's tax money toward hiring a
consultant to guide the fundraising committee in putting together private funds to
pay for what people don't support. The taxpayers wonder what is your
contingency plan if enough money's not raised ... while the fundraiser still gets
paid. In a commentary, Mary Murphy found it troubling in light of our revenues
being under severe pressure that, and I quote, "even where Iowa City to provide
dollars for fundraising to an outside party, there has been no discussion
addressing up to what amount Iowa City would pay for the Lens if the fundraising
does not raise the full amount of its costs." I'll try to do my best, sir. Before you
vote to approve the $50,000, Murphy says you should first address the maximum
amount of dollars Iowa City can afford to pay before the deal is done. And I ask
your, uh... uh... uh, forgiveness, I need five minutes really. I tried to speak slowly
because I have an accent and then that's why I need people to understand (both
talking)
Throgmorton: Go ahead.
Elkadi: ...what the heck I'm saying, you know (laughs) Caroline Dieterle asserts that we
are ... we are all owed to the City to do our best to make the Council see reason and
not spend the $50,000 for hiring a fundraiser to collect $500,000 to erect an art
piece that much of the populous doesn't like. An article she wrote with
community activist Carol deProsse, they stated that the Lens fails as an art, but
succeeds as a monument to grandiosity. Although, uh, Mrs., uh, Lanzini, who is
an avid supporter of, uh, public art considers the mega -Lens out of place in the
mini park, she wrote 'do we need to welcome innovation of that type; who is that
enormous piece going to benefit? It is going to be a fist in the eye and another
one in the stomach.'
Throgmorton: (both talking) Excuse me ... excuse me, Ani.
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Elkadi: Yes?
Throgmorton: You're now at five minutes and it's really unfair to the other people (both talking)
Elkadi: Okay. Okay, sir! Uh... uh, (can't hear) described the Lens as an edifice to
Orwellian products. Now the last part that, uh, my conclusion, I believe there
should be no vote tonight. And if there will be one (mumbled) and Councilman
Terry Dickens should not take part and recuse themselves for the following
reasons. Mayor Throgmorton for his role as a member of the committee that
approved the project, and Mr. Dickens as an owner of a business that will be the
first to benefit from the proposed structure that will be located right in front of his
store. I urge you to allow for more community involvement in the process of
decision making and to let our community chose the best opinion ... or the best
option for the BlackHawk Mini Park. Thank you for listening and for your
consideration.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Hani. I ... I do please ask you to restrain yourself to three minutes
each.
Melvin: My name's David Melvin. I am a homeowner for the past 15 years, no 20 years,
at 329 Samoa Court in Iowa City. I am asking you tonight to deny funding to the
Lens. Uh, the ... even though there's been much sacrifice of time from family and
business interests of the people who are designing it, because they have not taken
into consideration the quality of life for the apartment dwellers who live
downtown currently, and who will as the next five to seven large apartment pub...
projects come online, these people all need a green, leafy, quiet space close at
hand. They need a front porch, they need a backyard. All of these things are now
provided in the ped mall and Black Hawk Park, as it stands. Uh, and I do want to,
uh, remind you that this population... is necessary to support businesses downtown
and it's necessary to increase the variety of businesses downtown, and ... I want to
ask you to defund this project in the interest of their quality of life. They need
every bit of green space they can get down there. Thank you!
Throgmorton: Thank you, David.
Peterson: Hello. Thank you for hearing me. My name is Royce Peterson. I'm a resident of
Johnson County. I'm the Business Representative for Carpenter's Local 1260 here
in Iowa City. We employ 430 local carpenters. I'm speaking in support of this
project for more than one reason. One, I think it would be a beautiful addition to
downtown. It will add work for carpenters. Two, I think we need to attract
businesses as well as residents to the loc... or ... to the local area. Um, business is a
big part of our community. It helps to support the community. So, on those two
reasons, I support it. Whether you vote tonight to fund the $50,000 seed money,
I'd still like to see this project go forward with private funded money. So ... I'll
leave it at that and thank you for hearing me.
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Throgmorton: Thank you, Royce.
Mildenstine: Good evening, my name is Brian Mildenstine. I'm a local homeowner, business
owner, and a long-time ... uh, member of Iowa City community. Ali .... I'm here to
support the Lens. I think it's, um, it's a project that can enhance our downtown
area, will become a focal point of the downtown, and, um ... you know, the
downtown sort of getting its legs back under it after years of being a little
bit ... little bit rundown and not being the center of the commerce in ... in Iowa City.
Um ... as a business owner, seeing that first-hand, as well as, uh, my own business
on the peripheral of...of downtown, I think benefits from that as well when people
are shopping, spending more time in Iowa City. Beyond that, if I were to run a
sale as a business owner and take 91 % off ..it would be 89% off the price of, uh,
of an item. I guess 91 % off (laughs) off the price of an item, um, which is
roughly the bargain you're getting by paying $50,000 for something that total,
with your contribution or our contribution as a community and that $500,000
raised outside of there, uh, we're getting this $550,000 beautiful piece of art for a
mere $50,000 local investment. So ... I'm here to support the Lens and I hope you
would consider that. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Brian.
Summerwill: Good evening, my name is Joyce Summerwill and I think I know all of you
(laughs) Um, I'm here to, uh, present the support of the Lens project in a little
different light. Um, when I started hearing about the fundraising effort of, uh, or
fundraising, uh, vote that you will soon pass, I sort of thought to myself, 'This is
the cart before the horse,' in a way. What I really think that we would like to hear
from this Council is your support for the Cecil Balmond piece. I know that you
approved, or the previous Council approved, uh, Cecil Balmond as the artist that
was selected last January, 2015, and, um .... and the Council approved him in
February 2015, um, but you have yet to approve the piece that he is presenting.
That's number one, and for ... for placement on the ped mall downtown. I think
this is important for more reasons than just the fundraising. If we were to go ... go
ahead with the project on a public/private basis, a public, uh.... favor of this, we
would need your ongoing verbal support for this project. It started as a City
project and even though ... funds may not come out of the City for this project, it
looks like, it's very important when we go forth as a private fundraising group of
this community that we always have the City behind us saying 'we do support this
project.' So ... as you consider your vote tonight, I'm not so concerned, um ... yay or
nay on this, so I'm supporting the project, but I'd really like to know if you are
going to support this particular piece and on .... it's placement on the ped mall.
Thank you so much!
Throgmorton: Thank you, Joyce.
Fleming: Hi, uh, Matthew Fleming, 14 Forest Glen. Um, I'm a volunteer gallery team
member at Public Space 1 here in Iowa City. I'm here to, uh, support the Lens.
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think the size and, uh, shape that will really activate that space and add vibrancy
to the ped mall in general. Um, I want you to, um, kind of respect the project and
procedure that this city initiated two years ago and all the hard work, um ... uh,
from City staff and community members have, uh, put into it. And, um ... finally
I'd want, uh, the... Councilors today to have the courage to vote without recusal.
So ... thank you!
deProsse: Hi, my name is Carol deProsse and I live at 1401 Burry Drive in Iowa City.
Um ... my best friend and I have been having lunch together one day a week and
then going over to the Iowa City Public Library and doing research about history
of Iowa City, and this topic seemed to resent itself as a .... a interesting dis... topic
to research. So, we found out things that I won't talk about tonight but about the
history of the B1ackHawk Mini Park, how it came to be, it's role in the original,
uh, role of urban renewal and the controversy that surrounded urban renewal.
Um, all of which I lived through as a Member of the City Council, or much of
which I lived through as a Member of the City Council. One of the things we
came across was a Press -Citizen article from 1997, uh, reporting on a July 29th
City Council meeting where they were undertaking a discussion about whether
the City should indeed, um, have a public support of public art. And, urn ... the
meeting was actually postponed to a later date because they were unable to even
get to the topic of defining what was art, much less whether or not the City should
support it with funds. Initially the City did agree to do that for the sum of
$100,000 a year, that was then cut to $50,000 a year. Then it was cut to $14,750 a
year, and then it was eventually cut to an allocation of a little bit more than $2,500
a year. This was due, of course, because of various kinds of budget constraints
that were being put on the City, um, and projected possible shortfalls in budget,
and so the first place that, or at least one of the places that was seen fit to cut, was
this. What I would like to say is that at that meeting Karen Kubby, who was a
Member of the Council at the time, noted that including art in the public pro ... in
public projects had benefits, saying it helps to build community, and I don't
disagree with that. But the controversial sculpture proposed for B1ackHawk Mini
Park, in the form of the Lens, is not unfortunately building community. It
is ... tearing it apart. It is dividing us over its possession or lack thereof of artistic
merit. Its failure to engage a local artist. The failure to even vaguely express the
history of the park, and whether or not it is appropriately sized for the alloted
space. Whatever the process, the process has failed to bring any reasonable
community consensus about the Lens, and I hope you will reject not only the
funding for the Lens but the idea of the Lens, the project for the redevelopment of
the north ped mall is not to start till next year and there is time to go back and
look at what might be done in the ped mall that would be more acceptable to a
larger segment of the community. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Carol. While Charlie's walking up I want to thank all of you for your
patience in sitting through all the other parts of this meeting. At least we're inside
where it's warm and not outside where it's cold. Hi, Charlie!
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Eastham: Hi! I have to go outside later, so .... (laughter) My name's Charlie Eastham. I live
at 953 Canton Street. I've lived in Iowa City since 1971 or so. Uh, my ... my
purpose in addressing the Council is not so much to support or not support this
particular, uh, artistic, uh, piece. Uh, but to ... but to ask the Council to arrange for
the public to have more input in the way of, uh, a funding campaign. If there is...
reasonably wide -spread support for this piece in this location, then this coming
year when there are going to be many, many people in downtown Iowa City for
all the festivals, on Friday nights, on Saturday nights — it's a great opportunity in
my mind for proponents of this particular, uh... uh, project to be down there and
soliciting donations. Dona ... you know, if we were talking about a thousand $25
pledge cards at this point, it's a much different conversation than I think has been
happening over the last few weeks. If we're talking about 100 $25 pledge cards
after some, uh, attempts, that's also a different, uh.... uh, conversation. At
the ... 100 Grannies group was here proposing a different sculptural piece. If they
want to ... to do a fundraising, a pledge campaign, they can do the same thing.
Every... everybody, you know, everybody can use the downtown area to
accomplish those fundraising, pledging (mumbled) so I think we need to have a
process of trying to figure out what, uh, a substantial part of the community wants
in that location, with some kind of a pledge drive, and that would inv... involve
deferring or ... this motion, until we can work out a little bit different arrangement.
Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Charlie.
Bird: Good evening, I'm Nancy Bird. I'm the Executive Director of the Iowa City
Downtown District. Thank you for hearing all of the comments on this topic area.
I know it's been a ... a, there's a lot of interest around it and clearly there's a lot of
passion, and I know it's taken a lot of time for all of you to hear that, so thank you
very much. I think tonight, one of the things .... you know, we submitted a letter
that's in the packet so I won't go over all of those things, but one thing that I
wanted to really ask, number one — were there some, um, where there's not clarity
is whether or not the plan in place will be, um ... uh, supported and approved, and
we'd like that ... that, uh, gesture from Council, prior to even really talking about
the fundraising piece. I think if there's support, as Joyce indicated, for the overall
plan that, uh, there's been a year and a half, um, in that process to come up with,
uh, something for the north end of the ped mall, as well as all the other elements
of the streetscape update. So we'd like that indication of whether or not this
Council will support the plan in place, which includes the art piece, and um, you
know, one thing that I ... I'll call out is that there was a real consensus for public
art. Whether or not you're going to get consensus on what the public art should be
is a whole other matter of discussion, but the fact that this community is filled
with creatives and, um, you know, really cares about that element and how it
can .... a public art piece can really be there for everyone, and you don't have to go
into a museum. You don't have to pay anything for it. When you come
downtown it's something to reflect on. So there was a lot of support for that, and
there were ...there was really years putting into that process. So, um, I'd like to
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hear from Council tonight whether or not that plan will be respected and the
process will be respected. Number two, I think the fundraising, um, costs are, um,
something that helps support making sure that that story of what the public art is
all about can go out to the neighborhoods and make sure we can engage larger
community. Everybody can find a way to contribute in some way and make this
art piece kinda their own for the entire community. So the fundraising, I think, is
still important. Um, you know, we're ... we ... we want to be a partner. We're a
stakeholder in this process. It's still a city-wide project and so however we can
help, we want to help do that. Uh, but I think it ... those, uh, those process pieces
that are unclear, we really need your direction. One of the things that, um, you
know, I'm tasked with is going out, making sure that I'm, you know, helping to
provide information to people that, not only the businesses but the cultural
entities, the non -profits, and the offices that are downtown, they have a lot of
questions about how things are going with City Council. Um, so you know what
we can do to better improve downtown Iowa City, and I try to tell them the things
that I know, and I think it's going to be very challenging for me to go back and
say, you know, without that indication tonight that there's approval for the plan.
Um, because the next steps are really important, whether or not .... if it's not the
Cecil Balmond art piece, if it's something else and how that ... that process moves
forward, does it mean that the whole ... the whole north ped mall needs to be
replanned, and what do I tell those people who showed up at all those meetings
that we're going to do it again. We're going to revisit that process. So I hope you
can help me, um, and provide guidance to the entire community really about what
your intentions are for the planning process that's already taken place. So thank
you very much for your consideration.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Nancy.
Dieterle: Um, I'm not sure that there's room to sign in anymore. (mumbled) Okay. I, uh,
I'm Caroline Dieterle. I live on Walnut Street and have lived here a long time.
Um ... since 1968. Um, the expenditures that Kingsley mentioned earlier,
uh... when we were talking about, uh, other things, um ... were all things that the
City contributes to that I thought were very, uh, practical ones. Um, that were
well worth funding. But in comparison, um ... giving $50,000 for hiring a
fundraiser for the Lens a ... at best you could say it's a controversial piece, is a
frivolous way ... way to spend $50,000. Um ... and using the $50,000 to help
programs and agencies that provide needed services for residents is better than
using it to hire a professional fundraiser to bring in $500,000 for a controversial
object for downtown's mini park. Just as an example, listening to the meeting
here tonight and the speakers, I'd rather see that money go to the Antelope
bookmobile or the City bookmobile, I mean, consider how many people on the
edge of town would get a lot of benefit out of that. And (clears throat) the man
who spoke earlier... about the need for downtown residents having green space.
The City, you know, missed a big opportunity when the College/Gilbert site
was ... was open. They should have made that into a park in between the Chauncey
Swan and the Rec Center, but they didn't do that, and Iowa City is short on that
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kind of space, and to make something like a Lens be the focal part of the ... of a
downtown thing, the 30 -foot piece that would go in there, just doesn't fit the
space, and it bothers me that the sketches that people are using to make the
decisions don't match very well. If you look at the one from the developer,
Dennis, that is supposed to do the overall thing, it's a rather nice looking thing that
has lots of trees and benches and, uh, amenities there, and a very small little dot
kind of in the middle for where the ... Lens would go, or where a public art piece
would go. On the other hand, if you look at the artist rendition of that same space,
uh, the mini park doesn't look like a mini park. It looks like a maxi park, to make
room for the 30 -foot Lens. So that's one of the reasons I think that people don't
like it and don't like the way that, uh, it's been planned. I mean other speakers
here this morning ... or this afternoon have ... people been talking about it all times
of day (laughter) but anyway, this evening, you know, I've made some very good
points about the process of doing this and I know that the people who tried to do
it, tried to do the best that they could with it, and until something comes into the
public eye, lots of times people don't rise to the occasion and say that they do
indeed have an opinion, but it's obvious that they now do, and it's also obvious
that the center part, the center piece in that mini park downtown oughtn't to be
something so divisive. Um, that many will only feel resentment when they look
at it. The other well, you know, deserving things like the Antelope bookmobile!
They couldn't give us any money for that, not one thin dime, but here they're
spending $50,000 on this ... piece of art that we don't even all like!
Throgmorton: Caroline, could you please wrap it up?
Dieterle: Yes it is .... a high price does not determine an artistic worth or sophistication or
gentility. High price tags don't prevent things from being perceived by some as
tacky, um, and I think that it needs to be rethought and please don't spend this
$50,000 on a fundraiser. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you.
Knight: Um, I was just going to say real quick, I don't thin it'd be smart to spend any
money on this, uh, Lens. 1, you know, you have too many people speaking out
against it. I would like to see something like a ... a community limited time statute,
because it's .... (mumbled) statute around anywhere. After a while people get tired
of it. I'd like to see something like that where it will keep ... people coming, oh, I
want to go see the new statute! For ... this quarter or something. Thank you!
Throgmorton: Thank you, Roger. Hello, Dan!
Cilek: Hi, I would like to, uh... ask the Council to, um ... fund this, uh, fundraising here.
Uh, couple things, uh, I'd like to say is I think it really is your leadership that
needs to push this through because, uh... if you look at the Jackson Pollock
painting, I think you could look at that and say it's a wonderful piece of art or you
could look at it and say anybody could do that. You know, throw a bunch of paint
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on the canvas. That piece of art is the most expensive object in the state of Iowa.
And it's worth more than the Prudential building, which is the largest building in
Iowa. So I think you really need to look at what does art bring to the community,
and uh, I'd like to echo a couple things. One is, I think it is a good value to spend
$50,000 to get a art piece that's minimally going to be worth $500,000. Probably
in 10 years from now, it's a world-renowned artist that's going to probably be
valued at a million, two million, who knows that it's going to be worth. And uh,
so to say that that's not a, uh... a, uh, asset to the community, I think is wrong. The
other thing is I keep hearing this myth about how everybody's against it.
Uh... boy, I sure don't hear that from the people I talk to, and I talk to a pretty,
uh... diverse crowd here in Iowa City, and um, you know, say it wasn't fully
vetted or that, you know, these things are all myths I think that I'm hearing here.
It's not reality. I was in a, uh, meeting where ... Jim, you were there at the, uh,
Midwest (mumbled) Bank. There was, I don't know, probably 40, 50 people in
there that heard the artist give a presentation that ... this artist has given a thought
of every inch of that space. And he's a world-renowned artist. And we don't
respect that as a community? Uh, we talk about the democratic, um, process and
that we should respect that. We've spent two years having people give input. The
previous Council came to the conclusion that this is what we wanted. We invited
I don't know how many artists it is, um, but say it started out at 15. It got down to
three. Jim was there. They came to our space. They looked at the space, and a
group of highly educated people chose this artist. And now we're saying we don't
know what we're doing? We're this far into the process and maybe we want it,
maybe we don't want it? That seems ridiculous! And so I think the people on the
Council have to say ... that this is something that has been vetted. There's been a
democratic process. You're saying let's respect that, let's do that, and let's show
some leadership and get this, uh, funded and get it through. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Dan.
Galvin: Hi, my name is Michelle Galvin and I've been an Iowa City resident since 1990
and I have never been up here to speak to you ever before! I don't like to get up
in front of people (both talking)
Throgmorton: Welcome!
Galvin: ...I really do feel, um, like the gentleman said before there's this myth that people
don't want it. I'm an Iowa City citizen, I'm a business owner, I live close to
downtown, and I want it! I think it's important, um .... the ... and ... and I ask myself
why, why do I want to get up? I'm not comfortable up here, why do I want to do
it? And I'm not even an art person, but I think what this piece can bring to
downtown is ... it's an interactive public art. It's for everybody. It changes ... the
time of the day, the wind — it's all ... what you have there is a moment in time
that ... I think with all the distractions of what's going on in the world that it's going
to be different for everybody who sits there, at different days, and I think
people ... that connection to Iowa City is something that people are going to take
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with them, whether they're Iowa City residents and their kids and they go back to
their home, or they're visitors, or they're international students. I think that it's a
gift that you all can give to them from Iowa City and I think you should support it.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Michelle.
Michaud: Hi, I'm Pam Michaud and I live on College Green Park. Um ... personally I like
the Lens. I think it's very attractive, uh, I think it's, um, it's got lights and uh, a
pleasing circular form. Uh, what the ... sketch drawings don't often portray is the
true magnitude of a piece, and urn ... and there are already two sculptures on the
ped mall and I don't think anybody knows ... has mentioned what's going to happen
to them. They're both, um, about 10 -feet tall and they have green glass in them.
Nobody's mentioned, uh, an experience looking at them. And then the two
bronzes on the south end of the ped mall that are sculptures of...of humans.
Urn ... I would like you to imagine the Lens being in this room right now. 30 -feet
is approximately the arch of this ... uh.... this span here, and I think the 30 -feet is
not the, uh... the ceiling is not 30 -feet tall. So we would be standing in a very
large space ... uh, when we would just be surrounded by this Lens, and I ... I don't
think you can imagine how huge that's ... how much space that's going to take up in
the ped mall. A lot of things go on in the ped mall — parades, lots of performances
for children. I think this is an interesting interactive piece, but I think it's out of
scale and something that maybe is 10 or 15 -feet in diameter would be more
proportional and you could still play with the lights and the ... the shadows as
the ... the sun moves across the sky. Uh, so I ... I'm just saying it's an interesting
piece. Um .... but I don't think it has to be a huge scale like this. Because it would
interfere with the use of the ped mall. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Pam.
Simpson: Hello, Jacob Simpson. I'm a representative of the undergraduate, um, Student
Government at the University of Iowa. Um, this particular item relates to a
funding mechanism for the Lens. Um, but as, uh, couple of the audience
members have brought up, um ... there's not a clear, uh, message from the Council
as to whether it support the particular art project is supported, and uh, so I want to
voice the student's opinion on the merits of the art project itself, because those
two discussions are kind of blurred at this point. Um, from the student
perspective, uh, the ped mall is a ... holistic destination at this point, and I think, uh,
Black, uh, BlackHawk Mini Park itself is underutilized, and people don't
necessarily think of it as a destination within the ped mall, and I think ... public art
is something that is lacking overall in the ped mall and I think students agree and
um, having something on this scale would definitely shift attention to that section
of the ped mall and um, bring students down there. Um, from a recruitment tool I
don't think many people realize what asset we have in the ped mall and making,
um, a larger statement, um, rel ... in relation to public art and also just visually, um,
would encourage, um, people to come to our community, and relating to, um, the
locality of the artist, um, one of my favorite parts of the University is that it's an
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international community, and really I do think Iowa City is an international
community and I think art has an international component, um, so ... just
(mumbled) that particular aspect of the piece, urn .... I think it's actually .... a nice
thing to have, um, someone international coming in, but .... thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Jacob.
Cirtin: Shean Cirtin, Iowa City. Um (clear throat) I think, uh, everyone agrees that
there's a need for public space, you know, throughout all of history there's been a
public area where people can get together, to talk about politics, religion,
philosophy, commerce, uh, that's part of just what a city is (clears throat) The
definition of a real city, metropolitan or otherwise. There has to be that space.
(clears throat) But the great ... the reason we believe in that is because it benefits
everyone equally and takes from everyone nothing. Whatever people want to talk
about that day, that's what that space is utilized for. But it almost seems like
this ... I don't agree with anyone here. Seems like we're talking about something
quite (can't hear). We might as well have been sitting in here to discuss what
everyone'll eat for supper tomorrow night. (mumbled) this opinion, I have this
opinion, I like chicken, I want vegan. Okay? What we're talking about is an
extraction of our community's time, to ... to discuss something that is really quite
minor (clears throat) There's real human victories and tragedies that happen in
this town. There's people who don't have enough money. There's people who
maybe pay a bit too much in taxes. It's not (clears throat) it's really not even
about a ... a monetary issue. It's just about how should government operate. Okay?
(clears throat) You know, wh... when do people build big statutes? You know,
you have the Statute of Liberty. You have, in the ancient world you have all these
statutes. This is about people's legacy. These people who feel so invested they
say, oh, the old Council was for it. Well, the people made a change. Half of you
represent the change of the people. The other half of you are from the old guard.
(clears throat) So everything that the previous Council did is irrelevant. Because
they are not in control anymore. So, some of you guys on this Council who are
new, you don't like this because it seems too corporate. But maybe you'd be in
favor of something you can plug your phone chargers into. (mumbled) talking
about the downtown ordinances, where people can't even plug their phone
chargers in in the first place, where people can't lay on benches, or people can't
store property downtown. We have it illegal to ... it's essentially illegal to be
homeless in downtown Iowa City. But you want to bicker over public art. So
(clears throat) here's the part where I ... I agree with maybe one or two people in
this room. It's too much damn money from a taxpayer's perspective. If the
economy was good enough maybe I'd pay enough property taxes and have real
license to speak to that.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Shean.
Ross: I like that guy! (laughter) Uh, Brandon Ross. Uh, live in Iowa City. Came here
to go to the Writer's Workshop. Urn ... I've been artist and a writer, and a writer
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about art, and uh, a musician, and um ... I, uh... I think that people do go to
B1ackHawk Park. There's a lot that goes on there. Uh, there's a lot of activity.
Dance, music, uh, fairs, things like that. It is about public space. I .... I like what
the previous, uh... person said about that. Uh, it's illegal to be homeless in Iowa
City, yet we're considering this monument, and what does this monument mean?
What does this monument mean for the City? Does it mean anything at all? Um,
there was a comment that said I don't hear people that have a disagreement with
this, but obviously you've heard people who've had a disagreement with this, and
in my crowd, in my circle, uh (mumbled) you will, I hear a lot of, uh, jokes about
it. Uh, so I don't think that this is a ... a foregone conclusion that everybod ... that
everyone likes this. I think a lot of people have disagreements. It seems to have
been commodified also, as well, uh, what we should invest in this. This is an
investiture and who is going to benefit from this investiture? I strongly agree with
funding going to Public Space 1. Someone spoke from Public Space 1, or PZ as
they've called themselves at times, because it generates more community art. It
actually involves the making of, uh, of art and local involvement, and kids. I
don't see that, uh, in this particular project. I don't see that it involves anything to
do with the community at large, uh... particularly, and as an artist ... maybe because
I don't quite agree with the art, it seems monumental. It seems, uh, kind of
trumpish, uh... sometimes I'm looking at that and maybe it's because I'm hearing a
lot about Trump that it's starting to look to me a little bit like Trump, his face, uh,
that's probably unfair, but again, it boils down to I think the financial
considerations — where they should go, who is going to benefit. Why isn't this
piece being put on the south side of town? How bout that? You know, where, uh,
First Avenue HyVee is, Broadway, that area. Why is it just this thing that's being
thrown around by a central business committee in town here? Why can't we have
a nice thing not quite in the downtown, where it is our public ... our, uh, our
commons? And will it become something, uh, you know, like the Starship
Enterprise, out in ... is it Washington or Riverside, I forget where the Enterprise is.
Captain Kirk (several talking) It's Riverside, uh, thank you, trekkies! Fellow
trekkies! Anyway, uh, I disagree with it. I feel like I represent a large, uh, group
that disagrees with it, on those multiple fronts, and I appreciate all the work that's
gone into this. I think that the Council has not wasted their time. I think that
you're doing the process, and I feel that, uh, the people's input is very important,
and I feel like you're bringing it in. Uh, this is the process. Thank you so much.
Throgmorton: Thanks, Brandon. Who's next? Hi, Bill!
Nusser: I'm Bill Nusser.
Throgmorton: Thought I saw you a long time ago! (laughter)
Nusser: Right, you did! Uh, I live in ... I've lived in Iowa City for all but 7 of 63 years, and
urn ... I was going to talk about the process that ... that this went through and I think
you're all aware of the process, uh, but I .... but what I do want to say now is
that ... that the need for public input was always stressed in the whole process
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of. ... of finding the artist and developing the piece of art and there were at least six
opportunities for the public to interact with this particular... with... with the ... with
both the concept of public sculpture in B1ackHawk Mini Park, as well as the
artiest himself, and uh... uh, and so, uh, it's just very interesting that ... that, uh,
that ... what people pay attention to and what they don't, and we try to do our best
to ... to get the most significant public impact that .... or input that we could, and we
did get a lot of impact, a lot of impact, and uh, and many of you were there.
Um... uh, I wanted to respond to, uh... uh... the ... the remark about the different
photos, and the photos are through all different stages of the development of this
particular sculpture, and ... and um, it's true that there will be landscaping around it
and none of these photos really properly, uh, reflect what the pieces, what the
final piece is going to be like. We don't have the interactive photo between
the ... the environment and the sculpture yet, and um, or not the photo but the
drawing, the ... the rendering of it, and ... and uh, and the closest that comes to it is
the piece that was mentioned, in which there are trees and there's green space, and
um, honoring B1ackHawk Mini Park was a .... was an enormous part of this, uh,
instructions to the artist, um, and ... and so it's an assembly area, that the Lens is
not just that circular piece. It's also the plaza in front of it. It's also the seating
that goes around it. It's the rostrum at the end to accommodate public speaking.
It's, uh, also planned... removable, uh... uh, chairs and tables for people to be able
to sit, you know, that are not exactly in that spot, but they're adjacent to it and will
probably be close to a donor wall, if that's approved, and so, uh, this is a much
more inclusive piece than just that egg slicer as people are, uh, referring to ... to it.
I wanted to comment a little bit about local involvement too, that it's Balmond's
desire to make it as local as possible, that ... that he intends on using people from
the Engineering School, from the Art School. He intends on sourcing as many of
the materials locally, including the ... the facing of the sculpture itself. Um, so ... so
there's an enormous, uh, local component, urn ... uh... and ... and I could go on, but I
have to say that I agree with, uh, with Joyce Summerwill and Nancy Bird that we
really need to get a ... a .... an approval from the Council that the Council is
committed to this piece before we talk about, uh, subsidizing a fundraiser who is
to ... whose purpose would be to fundraise, uh, for what (mumbled) is the ... the
people that matter, and ... and uh, if the Council doesn't, uh, approve of it, then I
think that there's no point in having a fundraiser and so ... um, that's ... it's my desire
that that's what you vote on before you vote on the money. Thank you very
much.
Throgmorton: Thanks, Bill. Anyone else? All right, uh, is there a motion, uh, with regard to
this, uh, agenda item? (several talking) We did? We already (mumbled) Sorry!
It's been so long! Okay, so, uh, motion's on the floor. Discussion?
Dickens: First of all I'll answer why I should not vote on this. I will be voting on it. I
spoke to Eleanor, the City Attorney, that one of the main criteria is what I would
have to gain. I would gain nothing more than everybody else in the downtown
area. Uh, two of my competitors, which I consider friends, which is unusual
in ... in the business community a lot of times. Both of them have come to me to
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ask for my support on this project. Um, that ... that says a lot about them, and
hopefully it says a lot about me, that I will make a decision based on everybody I
hear from. I've listened to people from all over the town. I kind of charted things,
you know, everybody gets the same emails, uh, for and against. I think most of
you get the same. You gotta go out and talk to people all over this town, not just
in the downtown area, because it is going to be an Iowa City project. I've talked
to so many people that think this is a gem. Uh, talked to an artist from Arizona
whose mother happens to live here in town. He says you guys are the best kept
secret, as far as the art world is concerned, and this will only add to it. This will
actually bring you up. So ... um ... I'm very much in favor of this, uh... the dollars,
we just got our bid estimates for the Washington Street that were $690,997 less
than the ... the estimate from the Engineer. I'm not thinking about that money
going into something like this. It saves everyone this money, and hopefully it
comes in on .... on, uh, on ... on the bid. So I would really ... ask that, uh, everybody
support this. I do apologize for missing the meeting when the first vote was. My
flight was canceled. I had every intention of being here, by 7:00. My flight was
supposed to land at 6:00, so I was going to come in what I was wearing and drag
my suitcase with me because I thought this was very important. I just was not
able to be at that meeting, so ... I do apologize for that.
Botchway: Well first and foremost, uh, I want to thank everybody that was here. I want to
thank all the comments that were made, um, both ... both negative (mumbled)
positive, um ... uh, from my previous support of the piece. I want to agree with
Shean Cirtin in part because, uh, I do want to make mention that there are a lot of
folks here, uh, of various backgrounds. On April 19t' we will be speaking about
the St. Ambrose study, in talking about disproportionality. I hope to see a lot of
you here, um, to discuss why, um, that's an important issue, not only from, uh,
just an Iowa City standpoint, but just from a treating people, um, better
standpoint, and that's April 19th at 5:00 P.M. So I hope everybody can make it.
Um, one of the things I will say that it's troublesome to me in this whole process
is just the overall divisiveness about particular issues. Um, you know, we have a
local versus out-of-town, and I think, you know, sometimes, um, I forget that I am
from out of town and sometimes, um, people remind me that I'm not local. Um,
then you have a downtown verse not, and I do find it troubling because I feel like,
um, as Susan has frequently talked about, in an upcoming ... (mumbled) upcoming
fiscal crisis and as we kind of move forward in community with a lot of different
strategic planning initiatives, um, the divisiveness I would feel like has to stop in
some type of meaningful way. Um, we're not going to get anywhere with a lot of
the things that we need to do if we have, um, downtown businesses or businesses
throughout the community on one side and then, you know, the rest of the
community on the other. It just ... to be honest with you, it just doesn't make sense.
I don't know of any collaboration that's worked in any particular way from that
standpoint. Um, I would agree, um, that you know, from a .... kind of logical
standpoint that, um, we need to make a decision first on the piece and then, you
know, if we don't agree on the piece, then we don't necessarily need to make a
decision as far as the fundraising component of it. Um, I will say that at times
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Iowa City, um, folks can look at this community in a bubble and um, and not
necessarily look outside of the community for the different things. I know that,
um, I frequented and researched, um, some of the public art in the four to two-
hour radius, um, and I frequently talk about Des Moines because I have that great,
uh, Facebook picture of my son who's, you know, around that particular piece,
and I ... I go there to visit that piece. I would literally drive two hours and
that's... that's a lot for me, urn ... um, to go and see something that, you know, at
times I think people would say would be, um, a terrible piece or people will say
they love the piece, and I actually love the piece from that perspective. Um, that
being said, I also, you know, did some research as far as, you know, City and
public partnerships, and that was another ... there were multiple pieces, um, in
downtown, um, Des Moines area and some other communities, um, not only in
Iowa but in Missouri and Nebraska that, um, there has been that, urn ... uh,
city/public partnership, maybe not in the .... maybe not from the standpoint of a
fundraiser, but have actually given dollars to the actual piece in and of itself, um,
and so it ... it's tough for me to have that understanding as far as why we are,
urn ... um, so focused at times about this issue. I will say that I do understand that,
um, you know, there are many other things that, uh... um, are important for this
community. Um, we've talked about hunger. We've talked about, uh... uh,
affordable housing, and I do want to make clear, and I hope you're writing back
there, uh, Press -Citizen, Gazette, and Mark as well, that uh, my support for this
particular art piece does not mean I do not support many of the other initiatives,
even though I think that some of the commentary has ... has, uh, said that that is so.
So, um, for me ... I support the piece. I think that, um, you know, some people
spent some time doing this. I think it's important from that standpoint, urn ... to
respect that. Um, I do think there does need to be a need of better collaboration
between the downtown and the overall community, as far as making... making sure
that people are incorporated in the process. I just think unfortunately at this time,
uh, I would kinda want to move forward.
Throgmorton: Got it!
Mims: I'll support the ... the funding for the fundraiser and I'll go back to what you said,
Kingsley, in terms of the piece itself, and I ... I support that. I am no artist and I do
not pretend to be any kind of art critic (laughs) or, uh, you know, what's... what's
good and what's bad. I just kinda know what I look ... like and maybe what I don't
like. Um, but here that's irrelevant. I ... to me, there was ... a major process that was
gone through with lots of public input, and I think maybe a little bit contrary to
what you said, Kingsley, I think there was a lot more than just the downtown
involved, you know, in that public process of, you know, re -imagining the ped
mall and what was important and people really speaking out about really wanting
a major art piece. Okay? Whether it's the right piece, the wrong piece .... I think
it's really important that we as a Council respect the process and the public input
that went through that, the committee that selected the artist (noises on mic,
unable to hear speaker) meet with the artist, urn ... and then the development of the
piece. There's... there's just been a, you know, really, really big public process and
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I think at this point for the Council to ... to not support this, both the piece and the
money for the fundraising, I think really puts in question any kind of public
engagement that we would ask of our community members in the future. Um, if
we're gonna ask people to put in hours and time and collaboration with others in
the community, with the idea that the Council is behind that, and then at the 1 Ib
hour we kind of pull the rug out from underneath them because there is some
controversy, and I think as so many people have said — with public art you're
probably always going to have some controversy. And I ... I really think it's going
to be hard for us to move forward with part of that strategic plan in terms of, you
know, increasing our public engagement and working with people. Um, couple of
other comments that have been made about, you know, this kind of...not being
talked about until the very last minute, and there wasn't any specific proposal until
near the end in terms of exactly how the City was going to, um, contribute to this,
but it was clear from, um, one of our community members who really researched
the minutes of the Public Art Advisory Committee meetings, talking about the
fact that there was discussion at those meetings that this would have to be some
sort of a public/private partnership. So ... I think everybody involved in that
process understood that, nobody knew really exactly what they meant ... what that
meant or how many dollars that meant, until ... you know, we got near the end and
here we are now. I think probably at the early stages it'd be pretty tough to know
exactly what that meant till you kind of had an idea what the piece was and ... and
how much money needed, um, to be raised. So I think ... I think that's a really, um,
important thing to keep in mind. So ... again, I'm no art critic. Um, but it's what
the public process brought to us and I think it's important to respect that, and I
think getting back 10 to 1, um, in terms of the money raised, hopefully, for this
versus what the public would be investing via our tax dollars, I think is something
important, and just the very last thing — Kingsley, I totally agree and I think
everybody up here gets it too — this does not mean that we don't support so many
other important issues. I mean, there's even a State law that requires a certain
amount of funding for art in State buildings. Um, and that has been around for a
long time. If you, I mean, if you walk into University Hospitals and you look at
the art in there, that is because of that State law. That was how much it was
valued that that was an important part of public spaces, um, and so I think for the
City to commit $50,000 on a return of hopefully $500,000 I think is a reasonable
investment. (mumbled)
Thomas: Thanks, everyone, for your comments. This was a long evening and ... and it was,
uh, thanks for hanging in there. Urn ... I had some comments at our last meeting
regarding the process, which ... which I won't focus on, at least initially. Uh,
and ... and just sort of focus on what I think is where we are at this point. Um, I
think we have general agreement, and that's what I feel is really what we as a
Council need to be looking at, is what is the general agreement on this whole
process. I think we have general agreement on the value of public art. I sense the
community supports that as a, uh, a concept moving forward. I believe there is
general agreement on public art in B1ackHawk Mini Park. Um, and I ... I ... I
support that insofar as it has general agreement. I ... do not feel that the concept of
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the Lens has general agreement in Iowa City. I think that's evident. We're ... we're
seeing the sense, uh, you know, and Carol mentioned, uh, finding this quote from
Karen that public art builds community. That's what it should be doing. That
should be the primary purpose of this piece of public art in one of Iowa City's
most significant open spaces. If it doesn't achieve that, and this is part of the
process in my view, right, uh, you know, I ... I totally respect all the effort that
went into getting here, but the final point in the process is is it supported by the
community? And we're never going to get unanimity on anything ... in any
community, but I think we understand what general agreement is, and this is not
general agreement in my view. General agreement would be what we saw with
the Unitarian site and the parking lot, um, across the street on Gilbert. That's
general agreement. I ... I didn't hear any sense of the community... um, being
divided on that particular land use issue. Sometimes, and my background is in
landscape architect. I worked for many years in San Francisco. We would work
on projects; we'd go through the whole nine yards, just as we did on this; and we
ended up with a project and it didn't get the support of the community. So we
went back and redesigned it. That's not the end of the world. We can ... we can
come up, I truly believe, come up with a concept for B1ackHawk Mini Park with a
public art piece that has the general agreement of the community. Unfortunately,
I'm not hearing that and seeing that with this particular proposal.
Taylor: Well I think what we keep forgetting is the ... the real issue we're really considering
here, and it's right in the resolution is ... is the authorization of the fundraising
expenses. Uh, I also believe there's a total misunderstanding of what some of us
believe in here. Uh, it's been said by folks that, uh, we're against public art and
we're against progress and we're against, uh, improving the downtown area. And
those three things, uh....they couldn't be farther from the truth, uh, I myself am
totally in favor of public art. Uh...just because of the late hour I'll say here I was
8t' grade art student of the year (laughter) in junior high and uh, so I've always
appreciated art. Always had a great appreciation for art and I'll never forget the
piece, and a lot of you in the room may remember this, of the old Art Museum
where, uh, when it was along the river, there was a piece that ... that moved, if you
sat there long enough. I see some heads nodding. Think it was like stainless steel
or something, it was just absolutely beautiful and it didn't move the same every
time. It changed! And I never tired of going to see that piece and so I ... I totally
miss that now, um, but I don't see the Lens as being quite that, uh, earth -grabbing
to me, uh, because I just absolutely loved that piece, so I'm just saying I
appreciate art. I do appreciate art, uh, I also am in favor of improvements to the
downtown. I was very much in favor of the, uh, $5 million we proposed for the
Washington Street, uh, and that's going to be wonderful, and I would, uh... uh, be
in favor of committing to continuing, uh... uh, funding for improvements to the
BlackHawk Mini Park. And ... when I saw the video of the Lens, it really does
look like an interesting, beautiful piece, but (mumbled) but honestly I don't think,
urn ... BlackHawk Mini Park does it justice. I ... I would love to see it in a big open
space, uh, I myself. Can I say where I'd like to see it? Where I'd truly like to see
it is where the old water treatment plant was, uh, there's a lot of space there, it's
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green, and you can see it from over on the highway, along the bridge, coming
down Gilbert and Kirkwood, I mean it's a very open space. There would be
parking for people. It could be made into a wonderful, beautiful park, and I just
think it needs a lot of space to be appreciated. I just think that BlackHawk, uh,
spot is ... is too small for that, and we just concluded a very lengthy discussion
about being fiscally responsible and uh, use ... using money wisely and so I ... I just
can't be in favor of the, um, footing the bill for $50,000 for a fundraiser.
Cole: And let's remember why we're all here. We're all here because we love the
community. I think we all agree on that, and I think so often with these
community, um, you know, conflicts is I think rather than sort of reaching out, I
think we both sort of doubled down. Um, you know last night I went to a ... a
reading by a world-class writer, uh, and I was ... I had a ... sort of a interesting
vantage point cause I was off in the coffee shop and I could see all the faces in the
audience and I saw several people at the reading that disagreed with me on a lot of
issues and several people that agreed on a lot of issues, and I think in particular on
this issue. I think what I say is we have to find a way to work together on this
thing. Regardless of the outcome tonight, I hope everyone in this room, if you
disagree with me, with individual Council Members, rather than retreat to our
own group to confirm why we're right, I hope you will accept my invitation as a
community member to have coffee, and that includes everyone in this room,
because I think we have so much creative energy in this community. Frankly I'm
tired of the conflict, and I know I've been a part of some of that too. But I think
we need to channel this creative energy into a positive direction. As to the
particulars of it, to answer your question, um, I think that if we do not authorize
the funds, and ... and we've ... I understand from Nancy Bird $200,000 has already
been raised, or ... or committed, and that full, you know, we have a commitment
that if $500,000 is ... is raised, that reflects the ... the support of the community, then
I think we have to respect that verdict, as to that particular question. As to the
funding mechanism, I think Carol deProsse brought up a very apt point. We've
seen the public funding reduced year after year after year until it gets down to
$2,500. And now it's up to $50,000. But I think all we're asking in terms of this
process is that Council are stakeholders too, and that if you have a financial
request, let's articulate that at the beginning, rather than at the tail end, which is
what happened here, because as a factual matter, the $50,000 number came a
month ago, if I'm not mistaken. I would like to see that funding mechanism
outlined at the beginning, so I am going to be against this particular funding
mechanism, but that does not (mumbled) question the entire Lens process, and if
the entire amount if funded, I think we have to accept that outcome.
Throgmorton: All right. So ... my turn! Uh, the question has obviously attracted a substantial
amount of passionate, public comment. I think that's really good. It demonstrates
we live in a lively democracy. How lucky we are! Uh, you can imagine other
places we might be living. But I ask everyone in the room to look around and
note the individual people you see. We're neighbors. Everyone here cares about
our shared home. So ... let's ... let's take that as a given. I'd also like to comment on
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the process that has led us to this point. Oh, and I should say, I'm obviously not
going to recuse myself. I ... I have no vested interest in this. Yes I did participate
in those two earlier processes, I'll talk about them in a second, but that was my
job. I was asked to be on those committees, by the Council, so... So with regard
to the process, as many of you know, I've participated in the two committees
relating to the proposed project ... with Bill Nusser. I ... Bill, you and I were on both
committees together is the way I remember it. The first was the steering
committee for the downtown streetscape plan update. This committee, which met
through 2013 and early 2014, agreed that the northern end of the ped mall needed
some notable art object. But it was unable to define what that object should be.
And many of us in the room remember the, uh, the artist's rendering... architectural
rendering showing sort of a black box where the art object would go. It was fairly
small, just indicating a presence, no specificity, right? Ultimately the
committee... that committee decided it, um, it was necessary to develop the art
piece first and then design the landscape around it. So it was left kind of
ambiguous. So ... a six -person artist selection committee was formed. Six persons.
Some of its members are in the room tonight, myself included. So Bill and I were
on that committee. I don't see anybody else. Uh, Marcia, you kind of managed
the thing for us. Thank you for doing that. (laughter) But I don't think ... nobody
else, uh, in the room was on that committee. So, four other people. Uh, they,
um ... this committee was given the task of selecting the pref...one preferred artist
out of, was it 26 or 28, I don't remember the number. Uh, who... individuals who
responded to a request for qualifications. So we had to do that winnowing
process to go from ... I'll say 26 down to three. The members of this committee
were very well suited to perform the task they were assigned and they did it with
great skill, excluding me! Leave me out. The other five people did beautifully.
So ... I disagreed with specific decisions... especially the very start. Bill, you
remember when we were doing the winnowing. We were asked individually to
identify the three or four, uh, people, artists, that we thought were the best in
terms of the qualifications they submitted. We all did that and then it was kind of
collectivised. So my recollection is that ... maybe one of the people I
recommended ma ... remained in the, uh, batch as a result of that winnowing. I
don't remember for sure. Marcia, maybe you have record, I don't know, but that's
the way I remember it. In any event, we winnowed, collectively, we winnowed
from 26 or so down to three. I see no reason to question the process that led to the
selection of the artist. The people who served on that committee, the other five
anyhow, deserve our thanks. That said ... in my view the artist selection committee
was not asked and in fact was not qualified to answer the critical question, namely
would the chosen artist project in this specific location be good for Iowa City. Put
differently, does the Lens express our collective sense of who we are and who we
want to be. Would it advance the common good and the well-being of all Iowa
Citians, or at least the large majority. These questions cannot be answered
adequately using artistic criteria alone. So we can't talk about the process having
been completed... before we came into this room. This is part of the process. So, I
think it might be helpful to think of B1ackHawk Mini Park as an outdoor room, as
such it's similar to a room in your own home. Imagine a substantial work of art
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being located near the center of your favorite room. What would that piece of art
have to be like in order to you ... for you to feel at home in its presence? That's the
kind of question we'll ... we're really having to grapple with. So what I'm
suggesting is that the key questions we face tonight are not about the quality of
the art or the quality of the artist, and they're not about respecting the public
engagement process that's been conducted so far. In fact, these questions lead
directly to the last step in that process, and that's for us to deliberate together
tonight. So, deciding whether City funds should be used to help install the Lens
in this outdoor room of our shared home requires us to exercise the best political
judgment we're capable of. It's not an artistic question. It is in part, but not
entirely. So ... we're divided. The public's divided; the Council's divided. As I ... as
I've said, I don't question the quality of the artist or his project. In my view
they're both of very high quality. Nor do I question the process ... that got us to
this point. But .... as for the immediate question, whether we should approve the
proposed fundraising model, my answer has two steps. So the first step is this — I
will not support the proposed funding model and will vote on the ... no on the
motion. Now I know this differs from my vote on February the 2nd. So I have to
explain ... you know, it ... it'd be (mumbled) appear to be flip-flopping and all that
kind of stuff. So I want to explain. I came into that meeting on February the 2nd
intending to vote no. But when I realized that as the last person to vote out of six
people, my vote would make no difference whatsoever in whether the motion
would pass or fail, the motion was going to fail. It was going to fail 3-3 or it was
going to fail 4-2. So ... with knowing that, I wanted to make a vote that acted as a
gesture or a mark of respect for the people who had served on the artistic selection
committee. And the other people that had been involved in the process. But I
knew ... I knew the motion was going to fail. So ... maybe I made, if you will, a
political blunder by doing that, cause it got us back into this room right now. But
that's the way I was thinking. So if I blundered that way, I apologize to all of you.
I know it set up misleading expectations about how things might go tonight. But I
have more to say — not too much more. Although I think the Lens is a brilliant
artistic design, I've become convinced that it is inappropriate for this particular
site. Throughout the downtown streetscape and artist selection processes, I
repeatedly stressed how important it is for an art piece on this site to reflect the
space's unique history and past uses, especially its origin in the 1970s battles...
battle against urban renewal. Its connection with B1ackHawk, and its frequent use
as a site for public speech, musical performances, protests, and demonstrations.
Moreover, in order for me to support the project ... this is probably the most
important thing — in order for me to support this project wholeheartedly, I need to
see wide -spread support throughout the community. What I see instead is
division. Now, for the second step. I am fully aware of the question about
whether we would support the project if all the funds were generated through
private donations. But we're talking about a project intended for a large, outdoor
room that belongs to all the residents of Iowa City. I believe ... that it ... to impose
this project on a divided public would be a serious mistake. It's not one I
personally am prepared to make. But it would also be a serious mistake to impose
an alternative that completely disregards the past work done by the streetscape
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and artist... artist, uh, selection committees. So, with these facts in mind, I would
be willing to support the proposed project if proponents can provide clear
evidence of wide -spread community support. Nancy, you and I talked about this
with Kingsley up at, uh, High Ground. I don't know, week and a half ago,
something like that. I need to have a sense that there's wide .... uh, wide -spread
support. In my view, this would require not just a small number of large donors,
good though they would be, and necessary though they would be, but a pretty
large ... a pretty large number of small donors, kind of like what Charlie Eastham
was referring to earlier. If, for example, 3,600 people, adult residents that is, of
Iowa City, made contributions in the range of say $5 to $100, that would carry a
lot of weight. So you might wonder where I get this 3,600 people from. That's
the number of people that have to sign petitions to get initiatives and referendum
on the ballot. So, I didn't dream it up. it's ... it's similar, that's all I'm trying to say.
So, I would support having the ... and then after that, if we could see evidence kind
of along those lines, I would support having the City contribute $25,000 to the
project directly and would agree to the project's installation. But I need to see
wide -spread support. Yeah? (unable to hear person in audience) (several talking)
Nusser: (unable to hear) ...Nusser again. Who would be responsible for ... for obtaining
these signatures? Are you charging a particular... are they just supposed to come
out of the (both talking)
Throgmorton: I can only speak for myself. I think supporters need to do that. Whoever the
supporters are.
Nusser: Thank you.
Botchway: So two points ... are you .... two points of clarification.
Throgmorton: Yeah.
Botchway: Um, one ... um, and when we're talking about wide -spread support, um (mumbled)
the young man come up here and talk about student population, and they have a
huge, um, number of folks in our community, and I think it ...frankly at times we
consistently forget about them being a part of our community. Um, so I say that
to hopefully ... if I'm ... if we're being clear, if that's the case, um ... we could reach
that number relatively quickly from that standpoint. My other clarification
standpoint is ... I ... if I count correctly, I think we had a 4-3 support as far as moving
forward with the Lens. If...if I'm clear on your expectation (both talking)
Cole: Well I mean I (both talking)
Throgmorton: (both talking)
Cole: Yeah. No, in terms of like the ... Jim's funding mechanism, I think that is
consistent with my point of view. That if we get the ... and I think in terms of that
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3,600, but I don't think we need to work the details out tonight. Tonight is yay or
nay, um, in terms of the $50,000. Um, but if we do reach that threshold of
$500,000, um, and you'd mentioned 3,600, Jim. I hadn't really thought about that
particular number, but I would agree with that funding framework, um, to get the
support because I think there has been a lot of work. This represents politics. It's
compromise, and I would support that funding mechanism. (unable to hear
person from audience)
Throgmorton: Please, Joyce.
Summerwill: Again I'm Joyce Summerwill and I spent most of my professional life in the
public art sector, uh, I started Project Art at University Hospitals and it now has
over 8,000 works of art exhibited in all its many buildings and whatnot. Um, that
was started with a great deal of questioning, negativity, uh, questions about why
are we doing this in a hospital, I mean I can go on and on. It's very, very late. I
would say that's very typical of all public art. Um, when Maya Lin did the
Vietnam, um, public art piece in Washington, D.C., there was so much backtalk
about that. They never thought they could get that off the ground. I have done
public art projects around the country, 26 teaching hospitals, and I would say it's
not a matter ... it's not a matter of trying to sell the public art to the people. It takes
leadership from the people who are supporting the arts in general to come forth
and express that the importance of the art reflects who they are as citizens of that
community, and I would say ... bottom line, is that when I think of what's great
about Iowa City, I said ... are two things. Our values are very good. How we treat
our fellow ... man (mumbled) resides beside us in our community, how ... how
compassionate are we towards our other human beings in our community, and
worldwide, and what legacy has the world ... do we want to leave the world, and
for the most part in the world, it is left through the arts. Whether it's visual arts.
Literary arts. Theater arts. Musical arts. Li ... film arts. It goes on and on. And
for the most part, the things that stay on in our ... in our legend, so to speak, are
those things that were way far above their time, ahead of their time, when they
were selected with a lot of misgivings. So it does take leadership. It takes
education. It takes enthusiasm. It takes as I said in a brief letter to the editorial,
the only way this project will ever succeed is when every nickel and dime from
every citizen in this community takes a part in it. But it never starts at the start
that way. I mean we can go out and get signatures, but that still....people are still
gonna say, I don't understand the piece, I don't know why we're doing this. But it
does take some sort of commitment. You've made the initial commitment.
You've made the initial commitment. You even selected the artist. The artist, I
think, has performed quite well. Did I ... did I see exactly what I wanted to see?
No. But I'm not an artist. I am an appreciator of art, and I have somehow faith
and trust that what this professional artist is ... is proposing is going to be top-
notch.
Cole: Well I'm wondering ... for tonight we could have no and then (both talking)
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Summerwill; That's all I wanted to say.
Cole: (both talking) March 23rd for the proposal that Jim makes. (unable to hear person
from audience)
Fleming: Can I say one thing please? I think the Mayor admitting, um, that he's engaging
in selfish gamesmanship in his previous vote is not reflective of a appropriate
leader in our community.
Cirtin: Now, I'm really proud to have Jim Throgmorton as our Mayor (clears throat) He's
a ... he might be a waffling liberal democrat and I'm a conservative libertarian
republican, but this is the sort of calm, mature deliberation and balancing of
different, uh, different people's, uh, desires and ... and needs. So, first off, I'd just
rise to defend Jim Throgmorton as a good Mayor of Iowa City. So first off that's
it, but ... you know ... we're talking about legacy once again. I remind you, the
previous City Council did not get re-elected. It doesn't matter what some
(mumbled) bureau of six downtown business owners were trying to make a legacy
for themselves what they've done. They act like they have a burden; that's a
privilege. This process where we're talking here for three, four hours in the
middle of the night, this is all that matters. You all were elected. (mumbled)
other comments that, oh, why didn't people speak out about this earlier. Because
they're at work! All right? People don't have time for this (laughs) and nobody's
got time for this. Uh, the previous Council's not re-elected; you were elected.
You are our Mayor, and uh... (clears throat) what that guy just tried to do is he
tried to punish you for being honest. In politics it's all about optics, perception,
messaging. Something that the business community is quite good at. Okay? But
uh ... whatever you ... whatever the process that you're leaving is, Jim, I feel like I'm
comfortable in it and I feel it's appropriate, so thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you but the question at hand ... (several talking) we ... we .... (several talking)
Yeah.
Bird: Mayor Throgmorton, respectfully I think your proposal ... um, opens up a lot more
questions than it answers. And I think what we need for those stakeholders who
participated in the plan, the planning process, is ... what is the next step? Is the
next step for, um, people who were involved in the planning process to go out?
This is a city-wide streetscape update plan. And we need real answers to
understand what do we do next? We're here as stakeholders to say, you know,
there was a lot of of enthusia ... enthusiasm around public art. We're here to help
and support, and held support if there are donors who are compelled to give to it.
We're not here to staff the city-wide streetscape update plan. We need that
leadership. We need everyone here to say that they're for it or against it, and
move forward. I mean I think predictability is really important, and that
leadership is important, and we ... if it gets to be a tough call, I understand that.
Coming up with a new plan and putting it back on the stakeholders, that it's
somehow we are the ones that are part of the issue for not bringing the community
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together, I think, is challenging for us to even know what to do with that. So I
would ask you to think about that as you deliberate further.
Mildenstine: I'll be brief. I ... I understand that not everyone was able ... I didn't participate in the
planning process. I didn't get any charrettes or whatever we had, and um ... and
you know, many people in the community didn't, just like many people didn't
show up and vote most of you into office. I mean, we don't get 80% turnout on
City Council elections, um, but ... this is the (mumbled) we have, right? And you
weren't elected by us fairly and um ... and we need to respect that. Um, but just
like we went through a process with this that was ... was engaging and open to the
public, and if people don't show up ... you can't force 'em to show up, but they, uh,
are sometimes then saddled with what's dealt to them and I think we should look
at that. Also as a city I think we need to be weary of soliciting bids, input, um, on
big projects that we don't then follow through with, and I think we're starting to
get a bit of a reputation as a place people don't want to ... want to do big projects,
or don't want to participate, because ... um ... it's not clear whether you ever actually
have support of the Council or you don't, and uh, we can look at the Chauncey,
either way you look at it we ... we asked people to go through a pretty big process
and then in the end we ... we step back from it and in this case again now we've
gone through a long process of planning and ... and coming up with a project, and
then in the end we're going to pull back again, and I ... I agree with all of you on
being civil and engaging, and uh, respectful, but I think we gotta start looking
about how much we're gonna ask people to do without a ... a commitment of
support that's ongoing from the Council on some of these occasions.
Throgmorton: Thank you. I didn't mean to open up the floor to further public hearing kind of
comments so... We ... we need to discuss among ourselves at this moment (unable
to hear person in audience) (several talking) We need to discuss at...at this
moment, so I don't know who ... well, we have (several talking)
Cole: (both talking) ...record our votes and then in terms of the concerns of the
community, March 23rd is the next meeting. We come up with a proposal with
the stakeholders and we ... that would be our consideration for the next meeting. Is
what I'd like to do. So I'm voting no tonight.
Mims: Are you voting no on the funding or are you voting no (both talking)
Cole: ...voting no on the funding. The question of the Lens is not before the Council on
the agenda tonight (several talking) It's only the funding.
Throgmorton: Yeah, that's... that's the question before us, right now, and if Af.... if people want
to move ahead in some other fashion, some adjustments have to be made.
Cole: Yep.
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Throgmorton: So let's, uh, let's have a roll call. So and the motion is whether to approve the
proposed fund... fundraising model, etc.
Botchway: Well I ... I mean I guess for me I don't necessarily agree with the $50,000 cost. I
was hoping that, you know, in the ... kind of logical order of things we were going
to kind of talk about the Lens and if there was agreement with the Lens, we could
talk about, you know, how we could fundraise, um, differently, or how we could
ask for, you know, I talked about it from an escal... or I had some notes as far as an
escalator standpoint. Right now it's at 40% with $200,000. Um, we could only
give $20,000 and then move forward based on what type of funding was, um,
provided or what type of funding was recorded.
Cole: But the only resolution we have is Item 12.
Botchway: And that escalator speaks to ... that particular piece as far as the, um, money is
concerned.
Taylor: But that would be something new that we didn't know about that before we
looked at this and gave this some thought as far as, uh... allowing for fundraising
expenses. (both talking)
Botchway: (both talking) ...well I guess I'm (both talking)
Mims: But to Kingsley's point, I think ... we are in a position, if people wanted to, to
amend that ... we do that frequently. So .... it does speak to the fundraising.
Dilkes: I'm sorry (several talking) I didn't hear that, Susan.
Mims: I mean if Kingsley wanted to propose an amended... motion... in terms of doing an
escalator on the fundraising, that procedurally could happen, correct?
Dilkes: Yes. I mean... the... the issue of the Lens and the fundraising has been
no ... properly noticed. If you want to, for instance, do a motion ... that there's a
commitment to the Lens... separate from the fundraising, you're free to do that.
Mims: Okay! I think that's important that we understand that.
Cole: I'm not comfortable doing that tonight, but I would March 23rd. So I'd like a yes
or no vote on the $50,000 tonight.
Botchway: I feel like this issue is, you know ... we've been talking about this for a long time.
mean to be honest with you, I mean I feel like you know we need to move
forward on some of our strategic planning priorities. Um, I'd really be interested
in voting tonight on the particular piece and on the, uh, fundraising piece (both
talking)
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Mims: So would I (both talking)
Botchway: ...move this conversation forward.
Throgmorton: Do you have a motion you would like to propose because (both talking)
Dilkes: There's one on the floor (several talking) there's one on the floor.
Throgmorton: I know that. (mumbled) Well who made that motion? (several talking)
Karr: Moved by Mims, seconded by Botchway.
Throgmorton: Do you want to propose an amended motion?
Mims: I think what we're talking about is a totally separate motion, which Eleanor has
said we could do because this has been properly noticed that we're talking about
the Lens tonight, and so I think to Kingsley's point, and I would agree with him,
that there's been a lot of discussion on this and I think the people who've been
very involved in this process have specifically asked us tonight that they want to
know separate from the funding, is this Council even supportive of the project.
Cole: (several talking) ...that's why we need three weeks and then (both talking)
Mims: Why? I mean I (both talking)
Cole: ...because Jim brought up a very thoughtful proposal that I think I'd like to
ventilate more into the community (coughing, difficult to hear speaker) and then
so in three weeks we can have that yes or no answer on that.
Botchway: That's from a fundraising standpoint. (several talking)
Dickens: How does that affect ... you know, we put out a bid for this, how is that going to
affect the start date for the construction on the rest of Washington Street?
Dilkes: Can I suggest that you, I mean you can vote on what's on the floor and then you
can put a motion on the floor ... (several talking)
Botchway: Okay, so I want to do this. I suggest, Susan, can you please make a motion to,
um...
Mims: Well we've got a motion on the floor.
Throgmorton: Let's do the motion on the floor (several talking)
Mims: ...then we can continue our discussion on the other if you want.
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Throgmorton: Okay, so the motion on the floor is whether to approve the $50,000 fundraising
(mumbled) (several talking) So, roll call.
Botchway: I'd like to make .... I'd like to make a motion that we, um ... show our commitment
for the Lens project.
Mims: Second.
Throgmorton: Discussion? I ... I'll toss my two -cents worth here. Even thought it's four after 11,
I ... I cannot agree to a ... a .... a motion worded that way. For me, I have to see
wide -spread support. That's what I was talking about (laughs) So there's gotta be
some ... some indication from supporters... cause there are certain people who are
very advo... uh, active supporters of this project. I need to have some indication of
how they intend to reach out to people as ... as, uh... I guess Charlie suggested
during the summer, connecting with all those people that'll be flooding
downtown, and getting 5 to 10 to $20 donations, so that we have ... like I
suggested, something like 3,500 or so supporters. That's a demonstration of wide-
spread support. If I ... if I don't see it, I have to vote no! I ... I ... I gotta be clear
about that. I don't (several talking)
Cole: ...why we should do a March 23rd, so we can allow the community an opportunity
to come up with a proposal and then we can signal (mumbled) support.
Throgmorton: Well, let ... let me ask ... (several talking) Only one person, please.
Dilkes: Hold on one minute! We ... there's not been a statement of what the vote was on
the last motion, so can we get clear on that. (several talking)
Throgmorton: Uh, the motion, uh, failed 2-5, with, uh, Mims and (both talking)
Dilkes: (mumbled)
Throgmorton: ... in the negative, or (both talking) positive and everybody else was negative.
Thank you. I apologize.
Summerwill: Dick Summerwill. Jim, uh... you just can't do that to go out and ask a bunch of
people to raise money, get massive support, and then say the Council is for it.
You gotta say you're for it! You gotta lead this project! And if you don't lead it,
then it's dead! And so ... let's get it over with, you know? Uh, you've got a bunch
of people who are willing to do this (applause) for Iowa City, but they're not
willing to do it without your help! So .... make a decision!
Throgmorton: Okay!
Dieterle: I would like to speak in favor of Jim's idea of gathering the 3,600 supporters in
the manner that he suggested, and (clears throat) I speak as being a veteran of a
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lot of campaigns to raise signatures, to get signatures for things. Most recently I
worked on the red light camera ordinance one, and we got 4,500 people that we
talked to individually to sign the petition. So that there would be enough
signatures on there to meet ... the required number, knowing that some would be
thrown out. And (several talking) so .... this is something that ... people who are
committed to something are willing to do, and that's it!
Throgmorton: Thank you, Caroline (several talking) We have a motion on the floor.
Botchway: I say we vote. We have a motion on the floor — I say we vote! (both talking)
Throgmorton: ... restate the motion.
Botchway: Basically... there's...
Karr: Show commitment to the Lens project.
Botchway: Thank you. For me, it's as simple as (mumbled) standpoint, I like what you're
trying to do there, Jim, but if I had the time I could get 3,600 people to, you
know ... vote for a particular initiative. Um, just when ... just using the student
population. That's why I asked that specific question from that standpoint of
when we talk about wide -spread support (both talking)
Mims: They're residents too.
Botchway: ...we don't normally talk about it from a student standpoint, so I'd rather just get
this done and move forward.
Throgmorton: Any other discussion?
Taylor: Well I ... I just can't say yes or no for sure because as I said earlier, I ... I do like the
piece. I just don't see it in the B1ackHawk Mini Park. I really would like to see it
in a larger open space because I don't think that small space, which it is! It's
small, no matter how you call it, does it justice, because from your description of
it and ... and the artist, it's a beautiful piece!
Dilkes: Do I interpret your motion correctly that it ... the Lens project means the Lens in
the B1ackHawk Mini Park (several responding) Okay. So that's what ... that's what
you're voting (several talking)
Taylor: ...against it.
Throgmorton: Okay, any other discussion? I ... I cannot support that motion as worded. Roll call.
Dilkes: It's a voice vote. (several talking)
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Throgmorton: Voice vote?
Karr: All those in favor.
Throgmorton: All those in favor say aye. I count three. Did I hear three? All those opposed say
aye. Count four. Motion's defeated ... 4-3. Or 3-4. (several talking) Okay, we
have one more item.
Karr: The vote is 3-4.
Throgmorton: Yes (several talking) 3-4 on the motion, Marian.
Karr: The last vote was a motion to show commitment to the Lens project in the
B1ackHawk Mini Park.
Throgmorton: Yes.
Karr: It was defeated 3-4. (several talking) Can I have a motion to accept
correspondence?
Botchway: So moved.
Dickens: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Botchway, seconded by Dickens. All in favor say aye. All opposed.
Motion carries 7-0. Maybe we should give folks a few minutes to leave. (noises
in background) (reads Item 13) Is there a motion?
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ITEM 13. TRANSPORTATION NETWORK COMPANIES (LIBER) — ORDINANCE
AMENDING TITLE 5, ENTITLED "BUSINESS AND LICENSE
REGULATIONS," BY ADDING A NEW CHAPTER 3, ENTITLED
"TRANSPORTATION NETWORK COMPANIES". (FIRST
CONSIDERATION)
Botchway: Move first consideration.
Mims: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Botchway, seconded by Mims. Are there any people who would like
to speak to this topic? Bring it on!
Mims: Three minutes?
Throgmorton: Three minutes, please! Some of us want to go to bed (both talking)
Cirtin: Shean Cirtin, Iowa City. I'll take like 90 seconds. Hope so! So, um ... I think
people like to talk about, uh, about public safety when we talk about regulations
in this community and many ... many of our lawmakers here have a high value in
regulations. A lot of people who are in the minority position, as far as (mumbled)
community, they are opposed to regulations, and the reason that many in this
community support regulations is they want to tamper down some of the damages
that the excess of the marketplace can cause. So ... we say that we want regulations
to prote... to promote and protect public safety (clears throat) but if you just think
about it from a common sense standpoint (clears throat) if someone wants to take
their car and give someone a ride for money ... is that not a human right? We want
to have regulations to promote safety and to protect safety (clears throat) what
does a (mumbled) do to stop someone who's in town doing evil? You know, we
want to have people meet this requirement and that requirement, uh... but what we
really have is something called protectionary regulation, that you have, you know,
people who don't want marijuana to be legal. California, who was it — people
who, uh, who ran prison unions, police unions, pharmaceutical unions, alcohol...
alcohol and pharmaceutical corporations, etc. (clears throat) So we have this
sense of what regulations, what value we have in our society, and it is very
important. Food safety, child labor, etc. (clears throat) There is no role that you
all have to stop someone from taking their car ... offering a ride to someone, and
charging them money to protect and promote their family and their family's
wealth and security. Someone having a laminated badge or some, uh, some sort
of...some sort of stamped document from some of these fine ladies does nothing
to attest to their safety or professionalism or quality. Um (clears throat) these
people with Uber will fire someone very quickly if they're behaving
inappropriately. On the other hand, uh, different organizations or trade groups or
unions can protect someone who's providing a bad service in a heavy regulated
industry with protectionary regulation. So (clears throat) we should have Uber,
we should have Lyft, we should have Airbnb, we should have food trucks, uh, we
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should have these things in our community and the vibrancy that it would bring
our downtown, maybe that would address, uh, the question we were just
previously asking, cause we have to have a public space for people to have their
liberty. (mumbled) their lives however they see fit, and you don't have a right to
interject in that. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Shean.
White: Good evening.
Throgmorton: I admire your patience!
White: My name is Michael White and I'm the General Manager for Uber, uh, in Iowa,
and uh (clears throat) thank you very much, Mayor, Council Members, for taking
a few minutes to consider this proposal. Um, to start off I want to compliment the
City staff and the City Manager. Um, we've worked closely with them on the
draft that's before you and um, have had quite a few discussions with them
on ... our business model, how it's developed over time, that have resulted in this
proposal. Um, and I appreciate you ... your endurance and, um, in kind of hearing
us through tonight. Urn ... Uber is a technology company. What we've built, uh, as
a company, as a .... as an app on a smart phone that connects riders and drivers, uh,
in a very efficient way that enables, uh, local members of the community to have
a very flexible earning opportunity with an existing asset, and provides safety
features that are unprecedented in, um, the current kind of transportation, um,
industry. Uh, because of the technology that we've developed and that is,
um .... uh, being used by other similar businesses. Urn ... Uber is, urn ... the ... the....
the technology enables safety in a number of different levels. Uh, before a ride
rather than street hails or standing out on the street, you're able to press a button
and get a car to come pick you up. You see the driver in the app, the name of the
driver, the vehicle they're in, license plate that's coming to pick you up.
(mumbled) tracked on a GPS. When the vehicle arrives you get in, you can share
your location of the ... of the driver who's coming to pick ... who's taking you on a
ride exactly where you are with a friend during that trip. After the trip, it's a
cashless experience. There's no cash exchanged. The driver also doesn't have any
cash in their vehicle and ... you get an electronic receipt after the fact that shows
how much you were paid. Um, and you're able to provide support, or support
feedback on that trip immediately, as monitored by a 24-hour, 7 -day a week
support team, who can take action on that feedback if needed. The policies in the
ordinance here represent, urn ... essentially a consensus has been reached across a
number of different cities around the United States. We operate in over 100 cities
in the United States, over 300 cities around the world, urn ... and what's... what's
(mumbled) is a lot of those same standards that ... that have been duplicated in
other markets. Um, in ... in Iowa currently we operate in four different ... in four
different markets, um, Cedar Rapids, Quad Cities, uh, Ames, uh, and Des Moines.
And I think what this ... this model represents is a ... uh, a structure that ensures
safety. It requires driver vetting and screening, so a ... a multi... federal, multi -state,
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and county level background check on each driver before they're, uh, accepted on
the vehicle ... or accepted on the platform. A, uh, driving record review, urn ... a
zero tolerance policy with drug and alcohol use. Um, and the feedback system,
the transparency in terms of pricing, uh, that's part of our ... our technology.
So ... (noises and person speaking) Fair enough. I want to just make myself
available to you now or in the future for any questions you may have about
(mumbled) how we operate in other cities within the state, um, and (mumbled) to
support the, uh, ordinance before you. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thanks.
Krakauer: You all have remarkable patience! I appreciate that. I have coffee — it helps!
(laughter) Uh, my name is Josh Krakauer. I am a small business owner here.
Uh, I ... I think a lot of people are going to talk to you today the economic value to
the community, the practical value, but I think another thing that's really
important to me is the perceived value of this community. And, when I, uh,
decided to, uh, intentionally start and grow a company here in Iowa City, it was
with the expectation that the community around me would grow at the same pace,
and continue to be a place that I wanted to run a business and grow, and uh... start
a life! Uh, when I ... when I hire people today, uh, it is them buying into my
vision, not just for the company but also for the community, uh, since that is a big
part of the reason that I chose to be here. When the decision was made not to
bring Uber before I understand there was very legitimate reasons that you couldn't
move that quick, uh, at, uh, the decision. However, it sent a really strong signal to
people like me, and I think there's a lot of people like me here, who both are
trying to bring new ideas and uh, start great things here. I just hope that this time
around as you reconsider the decision, uh, you think about the signal it's going to
send to people that really, really believe in growth and impact in....in making a
difference and celebrating new ideas and.... embracing those here.
Throgmorton: Thank you. What's the name of your company?
Krakauer: It's called Sculpt. We're a social media marketing agency.
Throgmorton: Thanks!
Krakauer: Four years old!
Throgmorton: Thank you.
Neal: My name's Nicole Neal. I would like to speak on behalf of the student body. So
as a student who's very busy and things go late in the evening, like we're seeing
tonight (laughs) and other student (mumbled), I think it would be a really nice, uh,
transportation option for students that's safe. I know I feel safer if I can see the
driver's information prior to entering the car. I feel safe knowing I can send my
location, and I feel safe knowing that I can rate my driver. This is all about
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student safety and if a student has a choice of taking an Uber or walking alone late
at night, I would hope they would take an Uber. Thank you for your
consideration!
Throgmorton: Thanks.
Bultsma: Hi, good evening! Uh, my name is Sara Bultsma. I am a student at the University
of Iowa and I live in the wonderful Burge Residence Hall. Um, we need a
transportation system in Iowa City that aids its users, and its users will most likely
be college students probably. Um, I'm here to bring you a student's perspective
on that. Um ... I did a little experiment before coming here. On my way here I
called four taxi services — the first four that pop up on Google. I got a hold of one
of them. I rang and rang and rang, one of them answered. He told me he could be
there in 20 minutes. I would have been late. So I walked 16 minutes in the dark,
in the cold, by myself. Now that's not unusual actually because with the popular
nightlife and kids going out, there have been times with me, or many others that I
know, get separated from their friends. Their friends want to do something
different, and they stand in the dark, alone, for 30 minutes, waiting for a taxicab
to pick them up. That's not safe, and if I told my mom I did that, she'd be really
mad at me (laughs) So ... you don't want students doing that. We're not keeping
them safe in Iowa City, if we can't give them a public transportation system that
offers them safe rides at all hours of the day. Additionally, Uber and other, um...
transporla ... transportation systems like it are much cheaper than a taxicab. A ride
from, off of Burlington Street to Burge costs me $15. I was in the car for about
three minutes. I was with two other people. That seemed a little ridiculous to me.
Well I can afford Uber with my part-time job and 15 credit out-of-state tuition. I
think that's what we need. You need to tend to its users, and its users will be
college students. We need to keep them safe. Give them safe rides through out
city at all hours of the day. Um, even further, Uber is ... like the General Manager
said, very safe. 2005 vehicles or newer. The drivers go through background
checks. You can see and rate them through your app. It's easy to use. It's safe to
use, and it's easy to pay because we all know college students never have cash on
them. We all use our credit cards all the time. Uh, it is the best system for Iowa
City cause you're keeping up with your population and providing a public
transportation service that serves to its users. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thanks.
Honorary: My name is Shereena Honorary. Um, and I just want to thank these students for
making these points about student safety and I would like to add to that, cause I'm
not a student any longer but coming to Iowa City, uh, in 2014 and I heard some
scary incidents happening with taxi drivers and it was very frightening for me to,
uh, take cabs and I opted to walk a lot of times and that's was also not safe. I've
come into some weird encounters with, um, people on the street at night and
I ... I've used Uber in cities. I feel very safe using Uber. I can even, uh, keep
swiping until I get a female driver if I want a female driver and I like that option,
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um, if I'm not comfortable with the car that pulls up, and um, I also like the
option, I'm in between jobs right now, and if I want to make a little extra cash on
the side, I can do that. My, uh, my elderly friends who are still trying to support
themselves, uh, beyond retirement but can still make some money, they can have
an option for jobs, and my students .... my friends who are trying to support
them... themselves through college, it's also a wonderful option for that, as well.
So I just think it's a very wise and sustainable and environmentally friendly option
in moving forward for Iowa City. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thanks.
Yokanovich: Hi, my name is Greg Yokanovich and I work in North Liberty. I'm not an Iowa
City resident, but I am a driver for Uber. Have been for about ... eight months
now. Um ... I have a full-time job. I do it for the fun of it. I've met people today.
I met somebody from Australia. Meet people from Ireland, New Zealand, India,
met a guy from the Congo who had never seen snow before. So I do it for the
fun. Um, I also do it because I consider it a community service to get people
home or get people from one destination to another when they need it. Um ... I
know for a fact that on Friday nights or Saturday ni ... Saturday nights when my
wife will let me, uh (laughs) to go out and have a little fun and do my thing, not
spend money but actually make money, I know for a fact there are people that
would not make it home in the condition they're in. Um ... I feel bad for'em. Uh,
every time I talk to 'em I say I'm just glad you're home, you're home... you're home
safe, and um, I consistently bring people from the airport to Iowa City, and
constantly have to remind them that I'm sorry but you can't take a trip back to the
airport. You'll have to get a cab. So, just from a driver's perspective, I do it for
the fun. It's a great community service. It's safe and uh... that's why I do it!
So ... thank you!
Throgmorton: Thank you.
Torres: Wow! (laughter) (mumbled) ...long night! Okay! Um, my name is, uh, Jesus
Torres. I'm a retired Sergeant out of the United States Air Force. I am also a, uh,
full-time employee with Mediacom as a business technician, a chauffeur with, uh,
Executive Transportation out of Burlington, Century 21. Um ... I'm just gonna let
you guys know a little bit about an experience that we have, uh, as drivers,
urn ... basically ... what you're getting is pretty much the home feeling, um, being
able to understand that when you go to different communities, not just Iowa City,
Cedar Rapids, Des Moines .... Quad Cities, you're actually getting somebody who
actually works that area, who actually has been around. Myself, I travel to the
different cities that have been here since they kicked off with Uber. I have made
it to Des Moines. I have made it to Quad Cities. I've made it to Des Moines, and
I usually make my rounds, and basically I've been nicknamed, uh, Hans Solo for
some reason, uh, reason why is my vehicles are outfitted with some high-tech
technology, okay? Uh, when you get into one of my vehicles, what you're getting
is service. Service to you. I am committed to this whole entire program. I have
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outfitted 'em with additional cell phones. They have wireless internet in order for
them to communicate in case, you know, something goes wrong with their phone.
They have charging bank ... banks in our vehicles. Uh, we also even provide a
simple thing as entertainment, which would be them being able to choose the type
of music they want — Sirius radio station, Spotify, the whole nine yards. When
you think about trying to get home, that's what we're doing is trying to provide
you that opportunity to get home with a familiar face, not something about how
these other, uh, individuals (mumbled) who were explaining that they are afraid to
walk home at night. There have been numerous incidences that we have come
across, even from myself and my own experience, you know, witnessing a young
lady who was getting harassed by an individual, 1:30, 2:00 in the morning, after
being separated from their friends, you know. Um, I committed myself to this
program, uh, because I want to do it. It's my service and I have invested my
money into it. I have three vehicles, one on stand-by. One is an executive (both
talking)
Throgmorton: Can you wrap it up? You're well over three minutes.
Torres: Okay. I just want you to understand that we ... we are here to help the ... help the
community and to join everybody together to make sure that we actually get home
safe. That's what our job is. We're charged with that, and you know, like I said,
this is, uh, our responsibility and we like to try to take advantage of that.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Jesus.
Torres: Yep!
Ross: I think that, uh, you know, what needs to be looked at is where is ... where is the
company? And ... how are they accountable in Iowa City, and how does it affect
local businesses in Iowa City? If you have cab companies that are in the city,
they're accountable. They're accountable with taxes. They're accountable with
standards, uh... they can be, uh, inspected, um ... I think that's important. If you
want ... if...if people want to drive, uh, they can drive for a cab company. I think
that it's an Amazoning... uh, Amazoning I guess of...of...Walmarting of...of our
local economy. I was almost out the door. I can't believe I came back in here!
Uh, anyway, my ... my take is it's not good for, uh, the cities. It's not good for
locales. Uh, it's actually sucking, um, sucking money and revenue out and that,
uh, it's not necessarily safer or more preferable. I don't see that. Um ... and so I
disagree. I think that it's not a good thing. Respectfully.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Brandon.
Karr: Mr. Mayor, if I could, if you could sign in because if we do need to contact you
for further questions, we ... we have no way of doing that, so if you could.
Brandon, I know you (several talking and laughing)
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Dickens: You're a legend! (laughs)
Throgmorton: Would anybody else like to address this topic? I see ... (several talking)
Lubaroff: Honorable Mayor, Members of the Council, thank you for your service, your
time, and your patience this evening. My name is Helene Lubaroff. I have lived
in Iowa City since 1984. Went to college here, raised my family here, and I have
driven a cab here on the night shift since 1999. Now I know that Uber is coming
to this market. There's basically no question about that. Because the young, the
affluent, the business professionals, and the out-of-towners want it, and we need
their money! No matter how persuasively I could argue that Uber is bad for the
community because they hurt small, locally -owned businesses, because they are a
global corporation that is running a massive fleet of gypsy cabs on the back of
part-time, non-professional drivers who frequently come into an Uber market
from other towns because the money they make is better there and then they take
that money right back to wherever they came from, right out of the market they
just made it in. That's not good for business! I could also argue with you that
local law enforcement does not need to deal with an as -yet, unknown but
definitely significant number of extra vehicles zipping in and out of traffic during
heavy traffic times in the downtown area on weekend nights and on football
games around Kinnick Stadium. We can already see the impact of this through
the order -up vehicles that are running around on the weekends. It is definitely
having an impact and it is dangerous. I could argue with you that Uber is
essentially the Walmart of the vehicle -for -hire industry and make no mistake,
these are vehicles for hire. No matter what method you use to get the vehicle, you
pay money for that vehicle and driver to come to your location, pick you up, and
take you to another location. That is a vehicle -for -hire, no different than the cab I
drive. That being said, there is no reason Uber should not live by the same
standards that all the rest of us have to live through in this market. Their drivers
should have a chauffeur's license. They should pass a criminal background check
and a driving record check with out Police department. There is no reason to farm
this out to Uber and just trust them to do it right. Um, sorry, excuse me, uh, that
is my request is as you address this ordinance that you bear in mind ... to keep it
fair, cause there's a lot of us here that we aren't doin' it for fun. We make our
living off of this. I've raised my family driving a cab on night, making sure young
ladies get home safe. Picking bums up off the street. Doing all the things that
frankly Uber can't do and won't do, because you know who's going to use Uber —
it's the young and the affluent. They aren't going to be taking women and
children to the Domestic Violence Project House. (chimes in background) They
can't do that service. Is that my time up? (several talking) Thank you very much
ladies and gentlemen. (several talking)
Throgmorton: Shean, please be very short because you've spoken (both talking)
Cirtin: ...yeah, I appreciate it. Um (clears throat) you know ... I think there's a lot of, uh,
there's a lot of price and, uh, cost and time and effort to get these licenses and
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remain in good standing, and I feel like people are very emotionally invested
in ... in being a cab driver. So, you know, it's like, uh, it's like the draft. They want
to draft women now. Some people say, oh, let's make it equal for everyone.
Drafting anyone isn't right. So just because other ... just because cab drivers have
a ... had a hard go of it, and they're seeing a decline in business, it doesn't mean that
we should make it fair by making it harder for everyone. They say if you want
to ... if you want to drive people around, become a cab driver. No, if you want to
become a cab ... if you want to drive people around, become an Uber driver. (both
talking)
Throgmorton: Shean (both talking) Shean, you've... you've spoken plenty tonight and we've
already heard your view and we have other people to hear from. So...
Cirtin: Thank you very much, Mayor!
Bradley: Hello, my name is Roger Bradley. I'm the Manager of Yellow Cab here in Iowa
City. Um, I would like to start out by saying that ... Uber is already legal in Iowa
City. They could start up here yesterday if they wanted to. The issue is, is
whether or not, you know, or the issue is why haven't they, um, and they're
holding out because they ... they want certain things. Um, there's always been
competition in the taxicab market in Iowa City. So, you know, our issue is, you
know, we ... we've been dealing with competition for years. If Uber comes to
town, we'll be dealing with them as competitors as well. Um ... the real issue is...
you know, can we ... you know, should you guys be creating a government-
sponsored, you know, benefit for them because ... by not letting them or by not
forcing them to go through the same rules and regulations that we have. Um... it
costs us to comply with the ... with the code. It costs us about $2,000 per taxicab to
put one on the street. You know, by painting it to the color scheme and
everything. Um, decals, that sort of thing. Um, I got this yesterday from the City
Clerk's office ... this is the amount of paperwork that I have to do between now and
May 1St, or May 2nd I guess this year cause the 1St is a Sunday. This is the amount
of paperwork I have to complete in order for us to do another year's business in
Iowa City. So basically we're asking, um, make it ... make it equal. You know, it's
not about making it hard for someone to come into town, you know, but make it
equal. It's about making it equal. You know, just, you know, if...if you don't feel
the background checks, uh, by the Police department are needed, um, then they
shouldn't be needed by us, as well. I mean if you can trust a multi .... you know,
multi -national company, uh, to conduct their own background checks without
there being a conflict of interest, then I would hope you can certainly trust me to
do it. So there's... there's... there's an issue of fairness here, as far as ... you know,
competitiveness ... in this ... in this particular market. Um .... what we're asking for
is basically, um ... a level playing field. Also I want to point out at this time, this
was in your packets, uh, not the late handout packet but the other one. Um, as
you consider this measure, I'd like you to go back and take a look at a
memorandum from February 5th of last year. Um, it was issued by six people, uh,
Simon Andrew is the lead person on it, but ... let me read just two things. Given
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that Uber operates in other cities with regulations far more restrictive than Iowa
City's proposed ordinance — that was proposed at the time — it is clear that City
code is not the reason why Uber is not currently operating in Iowa City. Nor
would the requirements proposed by staff to a police in the event (chimes in
background) of an investigation prevent Uber from operating here. So
essentially... you have eight companies that can comply with all these regulations
and rules, so it can't be that difficult. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Roger!
Dalton: Good evening, my name is Bryce Dalton. I'm, uh, an attorney here in town with
Pugh Hagan Prahm. I represent Yellow Cab of Iowa City. You've heard from
Roger the General Manager. You heard from (mumbled) a lot of different people
and different aspects and ... and on behalf of Yellow Cab, Yellow Cab's not
opposed to Uber being here. As Roger mentioned, they already know ... they
accept they're going to be here. But what we're ... we're dealing with tonight isn't
the issue of keeping Uber out. It's the fact that before the Council is a specific
ordinance just for Uber. And as Roger pointed out, we already have an ordinance.
We already have a taxicab ordinance in place right now, where Uber can operate
under those requirements. So essentially what ... what I'm here asking the Council
to do is look at what's before and make sure that you're not creating a specific
ordinance for one different company. Uber and taxicabs are in the exact same
industry. It's already been brought up ... their business model's the same. Uber
makes money off giving people rides. Taxicab drivers make money off giving
people rides. Yellow Cab uses an app. You can download that app and hail a cab
using that app, the same thing as Uber. They're not different. This whole guise of
saying that because app is a technological company, they're somehow exempt
from the City's regulations is ... is mere misleading. That's not what's before the
Council. The Council shouldn't listen to that. Additionally it creates a ... an unfair
competitive advantage for ... for Uber. Uh, as .... as Roger pointed out, there's
several things. If you take the ordinance the Council already has, the City already
has, compare it to what's being proposed. It's so off -side, it's so lopsided towards
benefiting Uber that it's quasi -unconstitutional, and that would be our argument if
this is brought to legal proceedings, is this is unfair. It's inequitable. Uh, for
example, looking at what's required under the taxicab ordinance right now at
dealing with records. For example, a taxicab company, like Yellow Cab, has to
make their vehicle and driver information... provided to the City upon demand.
Under the current ordinance, if the City wants the ... that driver and vehicle
information, it has to issue a subpoena, court order, or warrant and then Uber has
seven days with which to comply. I can tell you from legal proceedings that's
going to take time to get those warrants, those court orders, and then you have an
additional seven days. Under the current ... the proposed ordinance, Uber ... you'll
only be allowed to examine their books or audit their records once per year. Right
now you can go into any taxi company as the City because you regulate them and
ask for those records. Lastly, it's been brought up that somehow Uber is going to
be more safe for the public welfare. The Council has a fiduciary duty to watch
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out and protect its citizens. You did so last year rightfully when you amended the
taxicab ordinance to make it more protective of the citizens, of the passenger.
This claim that somehow being able to get information on your phone related to
the license plate and the driver, perhaps that's safe, right? Let's think about that
individual who's been out late on a Friday night. How likely are they actually
going to take their phone and line it up to the license plate, or look at the picture,
and how often is that picture going to really be reflective of what you look like
today. I can tell you my driver's license doesn't look like what I look like today,
based on five years ago, right? Essentially, again, what we're saying is, the
ordinance places an undue advantage on Uber. What we're asking is the Council
to stop and think about what they're doing, and make sure the ... like it's been
mentioned before, the playing field's even. It's fair. Let Uber come in.
Let ... work with Uber and the taxicab if you're.... you're dead set on revising a new
ordinance or creating a new ordinance. And again, we appreciate your time and
hope that you'll take that into consideration.
Throgmorton: Thank you.
Bird: Nancy Bird of the Iowa City Downtown District. I'm going to make my
comments really quick. Um, this ... the Uber matter is really important to Iowa
City downtown businesses. We've heard this across the board. It really helps
solve a parking and access issue, um, and we feel like that parking that we hear
about all the time. I'm sure you hear about it all the time. We've, uh,
experimented with valet in the past, um, allowing Uber into this market — and I
recognize it's a ... it's a market disruption, and there's challenges to that — but
having Uber enter this market would be very beneficial for those parking issues
because we see that as a ... a method that's less expensive for people getting in and
out of town really easily. So I hope you'll take that under consideration.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Nancy. Anyone else? All right. I don't see anybody else, so ... I
should close the public hearing at this point (several talking) Well, I should close
the public discussion (several talking) All right, so .... discussion?
Botchway: So I'll be quick. (mumbled) seven points ... eight points, and I'll be really quick.
Um, I do disagree with the young woman over there. Um, she said that it was just
for college students. I do actually agree with the other things you said, but I think
it's something that can be used, um, throughout the community. Um, I've seen it
used throughout the community in a lot of different, um .... um, uses in different
cities, in different towns, um, it's not just for, um, the affluent at all. Urn ... so I do
disagree with that. Um, recently we, um, not too long ago we did a street
harassment, um, talked about street harassment and I put it on my Facebook so
please like it and check it out, where um, we talked about how at times young
women have to walk, um, home from, um ... uh, from, you know, whatever they're
doing downtown, um, or you know, whatever they're frequenting downtown from
that standpoint, and I think it's really important to ... provide more options. Um,
number three is kind of a (mumbled) statement. Um, you know, the previous
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Council, I myself included, made a mistake. Um, I made a mistake. I hope the
Councilors won't make the same mistake I did. Um, I looked at it strictly from
the standpoint of, um, you know, the students don't necessarily know what they're
talking about, uh, the residents know what they're talking about as far as safety
and other things. I have researched this. I know what's best and I made a
determination based on that. I was, um, quickly corrected, um, by a wide spread,
um, support for Uber. Again, not just from students, but from folks outside of
town, from, um, law students, from graduate students, whatever you want to say,
and so I do have issues, um, that again we talk about it from a student perspective.
Only talk about it from a student perspective. Number four, just concerns —
background checks, surge pricing, um ... you know, uh, congestion concerns,
safety, and not necessarily being for low-income community. I think staff has
done a wonderful job as far as proposing the ordinance that I think addresses
some of these concerns in that particular way, and so I do feel comfortable from
that standpoint. I do look at it from a work/life standpoint, not just the downtown
perspective standpoint. I frequently talk with kids that have to work within the
school system... sorry, I'm going quick! (laughs) Have to work within the school
system about these particular issues and you know the cost is high, and uh, that's
something that is frequently talked about, again, from high school students, how
they would want another transportation option. I....I actually am in favor of total
deregulation. I know that's an option, um, before Council, but I'm willing to, you
know, um, compromise with just the regulation that was put forth. Um ... and I'd
be willing to ... from a separate situation or separate issue, look at de ... deregulation
from taxi companies. I think the workload... City Clerk's standpoint, and I haven't
talked with Marian previously, is ... is too much. I wouldn't want that to be
something that she would have to bear ... if Uber or Lyft or whatever would have
to, um ... um, comply with our current, um, ordinance at this time and so from a
workload standpoint, I'd be interested to look at, you know, deregulation for all
taxicab companies, but not at this time. This is not on the agenda.
Throgmorton: Other people?
Mims: Yeah, I'm in favor of it. Um, I think from when we looked at it, I don't know
when it was, Kingsley, a year or two years ago, whatever. I mean I think
everybody across the country has gotten more experience with these kinds of
businesses and um, I think some of the bugs have been worked out. I think there's
still some issues and I think people, you know, still have some concerns about
some things, but in general, I think they offer an alternative that is very attractive
to a lot of people and I would totally agree. We were talking earlier at the break
that it's not just students. Um ... it's not just the affluent. Um, it offers an
alternative for people, um, all kinds of, you know, days and nights and different
locations and I think there is a lot more safety involved with it. Um ... I ... I'm
interested in ... and I know Tom had mentioned earlier about the, you know ... other
places have just totally deregulated. I ... I'm interested in maybe looking at that
after this. Um ... I do have a concern as a college town doing that. Um ... but I'm in
support of, uh... this (mumbled) the network companies.
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Throgmorton: Others?
Cole: Well you know I found out about this proposal on Thursday and the reason why I
found out is that I heard various stakeholders talk about this. Um, I would like to
defer this, and so I'm going to vote no for now, but I would like to defer this for a
further Council meeting. This is a complicated issue and I think the attorney
brings up a good point. Whatever regulatory framework we have should apply
equally and I think it has to come out at the same time. I do not want this to come
out as anti-Uber. I am not anti-Uber. What I am for is a fair playing field, but I
think that that has to be brought out simultaneously, um, so I think we need more
time to be able to make that assessment, uh, and you know, as I said, I want to
change, uh, the ordinance making process. What we found out about ... when we
find out about something on Thursday and then all of a sudden we have a work
session in order to do the first reading and that's not good policy making in my
judgment. Um, so as to this motion I'm going to vote no, uh, but I am not ruling
out a future consideration of a fair framework for all TCN's, urn ... or TNC's should
I say — transportation network companies, and taxicab companies. That's what we
need to do.
Throgmorton: (several talking)
Dickens: ...I agree with you! (laughter and several talking) Urn ... I was an Uber virgin up
until .... my trip to Phoenix when I was there for business and uh, took my first
Uber trip then. It was a very ... very enlightening. They put me in the front seat
and I got to talk to a young man from Iraq who is there ... he was sponsored by his
brother and brought over there. A very interesting young man. I understand...
that I don't want to take away from our taxis, so I do agree with you that it needs
to be an even playing field. You just can't ... throw this in here with separate rules.
Uh, our cab companies have complied; they've done everything that we've asked
them to do. I think they've done an excellent job. Um, overall we should be very
proud of the way we set this up, but I do think ... I hate to defer things, but I ... I
have to agree with you on this one that we need to defer, that we can look at this
and make it a more even playing field. If we're going to do it for Uber, it needs to
be good for the companies that have served Iowa City for ... uh, Yellow Cab's been
here as long as I can remember and that's a long time, so ... I'm a lifer here, so ... I
guess that's where I'm standing.
Throgmorton: Terry, that sounds like an indefinite deferral? Is that what you're asking for?
Dickens: At least till .... the 20...
Cole: 23rd, yeah.
Dickens: ...23rd, if we can get something... somewhat put together. If not, defer it from
there. But I think it does need to be...
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Throgmorton: John, Pauline?
Thomas: Rockne and Terry have said it well. I, you know, I'm ... I'm not familiar until, uh,
we got the package on, uh, packet on Thursday with the whole question of...of
this and so, um, spent as much time as I could trying to get some background on
it, but um, I don't ... I would prefer not voting on something that I just received the
packet on five days ago, but .... (mumbled) the testimony I've heard tonight,
clearly the question of the level playing field is a really important one, urn ... so I...
would like to defer as well.
Taylor: I would agree with deferring it. If I were to vote now I probably would vote no,
um, only because ... I also believe that, uh, they should work by the same standards
as the taxicab companies to keep it fair and an equal playing field. Although I'm
concerned hearing things about our local taxi companies that ... people aren't
getting answers on the phone when they call, or it's taking 20 minutes to half an
hour to get a cab, and I ... so I think that's something within your own companies
here locally that, uh, maybe you need to look at that and how you can better
service the area so that it can be an equal playing field for ... for both the taxi
companies and (mumbled) I ... I would defer ... until next time.
Throgmorton: Okay so out of, uh....uh....out of respect for my fellow, uh, new Council
Members, I think I need to vote for deferral as well. It's very hard to come in and,
uh, absorb this kind of material and respond, uh... um, remotely knowledgeably.
Uh, but that ... by voting for a deferral I do not mean to indicate that I intend to
vote no when we get to this on the 23rd. I'm inclined probably to support it. Uh,
but for now... deferral, and ... and the other thing I'd say is, um, we've talked about
this a lot over the last couple of years. There's been some discussion about it.
The industry's obviously in flux. I think it's moving toward deregulation, and uh,
the taxi companies probably should be thinking about looking ahead to that and
then we'd have conversations ... along those lines (several talking)
Dilkes: I should just ... I .... I just want to comment that ... I think this is a political issue for
you. I don't think it's a ... a constitutional issue. Urn ... I think there's a reasonable
basis for the distinctions that are being made in the ordinance. So ... I don't think
it's a constitutional issue.
Throgmorton: Tom, did you want to...
Markus: Yeah, first off I want to tell you, this is of course my last meeting (laughter) and
um ... I do support this, uh, bringing Uber in here. I think Uber's going to be here.
I think it's a model that's been found to work in this country and ... and uh, overseas
as well. I would say that the issue before you tonight is this, um ... this
transportation network company ordinance. That's what you have before you this
evening. I'm glad Eleanor pointed out that this is not a matter of discrimination.
In fact, the taxi company that wants to come under this particular ordinance can
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change their mode of operation consistent with this type of company, and they
would be ... eligible to follow this ordinance. So ... it seems to me that that's not a
case of discrimination. The other thing I'd point out to you is this is the first of
three readings, okay? So by deferral, it'll be ... it'll be four meetings from now
before you get through this ... unless you consolidate. I agree with the, uh,
gentleman that spoke about deregulation. I think this ordinance ramps down quite
a bit of the regulation over what we're used to. I can tell you the extensive
reg ... uh, regulation that I see in our current taxi ordinance. I'm not sure it's
achieved the desired results of safety, service, or anything else. So I question how
much value regulation is actually achieving, uh, in some of...some of the
enforcement of the regulation. Or ... the responsiveness of the companies
in .... following the regulation. So, in my opinion, I think it's a service that you're
going to have, um ... I brought this back because we as a staff hear about wanting
Uber here constantly. It doesn't stop. When we gonna get Uber? When we
gonna get Uber? Well ... if taxis were handling it all, um, I don't know that you'd
have that kind of concern. I think people are expressing a view that they would
prefer the Uber service over taxi. Is there room for both of 'em? I guess we'll find
out, but the more you get closer to ... to deregulation, the market's going to decide
who's going....who's going to win this ... this race between traditional taxi and the
Uber model. And I can tell you I think Uber is going to compete quite well. To
the point where ... taxis may have to convert to this type of model to succeed
and ... and to survive. (several talking)
Mims: You know, I ... I spoke in favor of this and wanted to vote on it tonight, and I ... I
hear everybody and their concern about deferral, but I think Tom makes a really
good point, that this is only the first of three readings. I mean, the third reading, if
we don't do any condensing, um, if I look at my calendar right, would be
May ... April 5t'. We have one more meeting this month and then our third reading
would be, uh, Tuesday, April 5th. That ... gives potentially staff time enough to
start looking at our concerns about a level playing field, and I'm assuming,
Eleanor, Marian, if we didn't have what we wanted by the time we got to the third
reading, could we defer the third reading? So, I mean if we got to that third
reading and said, wait a minute, we're not ready to put a level playing field in, and
we don't want to give anybody a "head start," at that point we could defer the
third reading, but we might have something back from staff by then that we would
feel comfortable. So from that perspective I'd like to see us go ahead and take the
first vote tonight. You can always kill this with a no vote later on.
Throgmorton: So, uh, Rockne, John, Pauline, uh, are your minds changed?
Cole: That does not change my mind. You have four days on a first reading, I think it's
bad policy to do it that way.
Throgmorton: Okay. Okay.
Taylor: I agree with Rockne.
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Thomas: I would prefer collapsing if we ... you know, if we want to make up (both talking)
Throgmorton: ... rather defer, uh, to the 23rd for our first reading. Maybe collapsing (several
talking)
Dilkes: Why don't we get a motion on the floor to defer, and then we can...
Throgmorton: Right.
Dilkes: ...know where people stand.
Throgmorton: Okay.
Cole: So moved .... for first consideration of the Uber ordinance on (mumbled) TNC
ordinance on, uh, March 23rd
Botchway: We have a motion on the table.
Throgmorton: Yeah, there is a motion already (several talking) Yeah, all right, so ... all you're
saying is (several talking) move to defer to the 23rd
Cole: To the 23rd, yes.
Throgmorton: Is there a second?
Thomas: Second.
Throgmorton: All right. Uh, moved by Cole, seconded by Thomas. Discussion about that?
Botchway: Clarification question. So they're mentioning.—there was a lot of mentions about
Simon, uh, things that want to be addressed as far as, you know, Councilor
concerns, um, the only thing I would add is that if we were ... there's a difference
between equality and equity, and I hear it a lot, and it's interesting from that
perspective, um, cause if you're talking about equality, which I've heard a lot of
people say and I want to make sure we're matching these different things, and so I
think that, you know, Uber provides something that, you know, you can look on
your phone or look on something to see the face of your driver and some other
things, I mean, I want to see whether or not, um, what is our taxicab response in
those different areas as well. Just as a question for bringing back for Council
when we, um, deliberate it later on.
Throgmorton: Okay, there's a motion on the floor. Roll call.
Karr: It's a motion.
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Dilkes: Motion (several talking)
Throgmorton: Oh (several talking) voice ... all in favor say aye. All opposed say aye. (several
talking) ...to defer (several talking) They said aye. So the motion carries 4-3.
Karr: 4-3?
Throgmorton: Yeah.
Dickens: I changed. It made sense to move it forward and (several talking)
Karr: ...so Dickens, Botchway, and Mims?
Throgmorton: Yes. All right.
Karr: Motion to accept correspondence.
Botchway: So moved.
Mims: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Botchway, seconded by Mims. All in favor say aye. All opposed.
Motion carries 7-0.
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ITEM 16. CITY COUNCIL INFORMATION
Throgmorton: I'll say one thing — there's going to be an open house for Tom Markus this coming
Friday, March 4, from 7:30 to 9:00 A.M. and people are cordially invited to come
down and ... bid Tom a fond farewell. Others?
Mims: I just want to say, not that anybody is probably watching still (laughter and
several talking) they can ... they can stream it later! Um, I just feel that I would be
really remiss as ... Terry and I being the two Council Members on here that were
part of the Council that hired Tom ... to not say that, um, it has ... it is inequiv...
unequivocally the best decision that that Council made, um, over the six years that
we've been on the Council. Urn ... you know, that was not an easy process, as
you're bringing people in and trying to decide who really is going to be the best fit
and do what you want. Um, but Tom came in. He ... he listened to all of our
concerns during that interview process about the things that we needed in this
community. Um, you know, in terms of, you know, working better with the
development community who felt we were very hard to do business with, to
looking at succession planning within the staff, um, of the City, um, identifying
potentially some overstaffing and how we could be a little bit leaner and more, uh,
responsive to the public, and has made, you know, significant changes, and I think
has been just an incredible mentor to a lot of the staff members, um, and helping
them see things maybe in a little bit different way than, uh, they had seen things
through the previous City Managers. So, um, as much as we hate to see you go,
and probably Terry and I in particular since we served with you the longest,
congratulations, best wishes to you and Deb in Lawrence, and we'll be down to
see you!
Dickens: (mumbled) (laughter)
Markus: Well we're talking about downsizing, so it might be a little cramped! (laughter)
Mims: Didn't say we'd stay with you! We'll come see you!
Throgmorton: I'd like to echo that. Very briefly I'll have something else to say Friday but uh, I'd
like to thank Tom for what I take to be enormous help in making this transition
that we're ... we're under, uh, undergoing and helping me guide my own way
through the process. So, I make mistakes, they're obvious, but uh, I help ... you
helped me learn from that and I appreciate it enormously. And I look forward to
coming down (several talking and laughing)
Markus: Well we actually have talked about running some exchanges back and forth.
They're doing, you know, it's amazing how similar they are. They're about, eh,
20,000 -plus larger than Iowa City, and there's some other differences — the ratio
of, uh, citizens to students is very different than it is here. The med school is over
in Kansas City versus Lawrence, so ... there's some ... there's some interesting
differences, but they're doing some things ... in terms of affordable housing, um,
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they're doing some things in job training, uh, specifically, Jim, one of the things
that you had talked about, and they're doing some other things, and we're doing
some things that I think they could learn from. So ... you know, back in Michigan
we used to do exchanges with other cities. In fact we ventured up to Canada to do
Canadian, U.S. city exchanges, and I ... I always found'em very worthwhile. If
you give me ... five minutes (several talking and laughing)
Cole: One last time! (laughter)
Markus: I have some things that I will reduce to writing and they'll be in your next
Information Packet, and basically they're kinda my final thoughts and comments
about some things that I think this city needs to consider, and ... and I give you this
after having five years of experience plus here, plus ... over four decades of
experience in this business, and I don't know if I'll make five decades, but ... I want
to share some ideas I have for our community, and ... and the role that I think Iowa
City could play, and the first one, believe it or not, is tax increment financing!
And I think that, you know, this new Council came in saying that, you know, they
wanted to consider some policy changes. But I think that there's some things that
really....move beyond Iowa City. So I have five suggestions for amendments to
the TIF law in the State of Iowa. The first one is that I think, um ... the TIF law
needs to be amended to include 'but for' language. Now, you're not familiar with
that, but across the country'but for' language is included in many TIF laws across
the country. And basically it requires a ... you have to prove up a financial need for
TIF before you're given it, not just a individual list of criteria, but an actual
financial need. The second item I would suggest that the law needs to be changed
is that it should be rebates and rebates only, not upfront money. We've already
made that conversion. Um, I want to say that the ... the anti -piracy language, we
found out recently that, uh, the TIF, um, language for anti -piracy is a lot less
restrictive than the high-quality jobs program, and you recall what project I'm
talking about. I think the TIF language should be as strong as the high-quality
jobs language. Um, the next item is ... and this is a combined TIF amendment with
affordable housing considerations. I think the State law needs to be amended so
that when TIF is granted, where a project includes residential, a certain percentage
of it should be required to be affordable housing. I think that needs to be
ensconced in State law because I think that there's certain communities that are
starting to address affordable housing, not just in this state but in this country, but
they're far too mu ... far too few communities. We're one of 'em ... starting to
address those issues. And I think it needs to be across ... not just the state but the
country, but we gotta start some place and I think it should be ensconced in State
law here. The other thing I would recommend is currently there's legislation bills
pending in your State Legislature that talk about, um ... controlling the number of
years for both an economic TIF or for a, uh, slum and blight trif...TIF, and
currently there's no limit on slum and blight. I think the ... the proposal that's
before the Legislature right now is too restrictive. I think ... but I think the bill
drafter is willing to amend that. Those are some things that I think going forward
we need to get our lobbyists on and work on. Affordable housing is my next
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issue. I think that in addition to adding it to TIF, Johnson Bount... uh, Johnson
County Board of Supervisors came up with this idea, and I don't know how far it's
gone, but...um, I give 'em a lot of credit for even having the discussion. And
they've talked about doing a county -wide bond issue. Now there's two points that
I'd make about that. If you use a bond issue, the TIF properties in the ... in the
Johnson County area are not protected, so the debt levy would extend to all
property, not just TIF property. So it'd be a wider tax base that would pay for it,
and I think the other advantage of it is, is that you'd have everybody... paying for
affordable housing. It's not just the core city's issue. It's ... it's everybody's, and so
Johnson County came up with that idea. I think that's a great idea in terms of
getting buy -in. Um ... I have a few more! Um ... fire service. Um ... I have to tell
you, public safety in my opinion in this area is probably one of the more
expensive service delivery models that I have seen, between fire, emergency
medical, and police. Traditionally I've seen across the country where at least
when you have fire and police, that fire is combined with paramedic service.
We've got'em separated. I think we should grow into a model where you have
fire and paramedic combined, as well as ... other disaster kind of management. I
think it should be a county -wide service. The place I'm going to, it's a city
operation that serves the entire county and the small cities out there, and I think
that's a model that makes a lot of sense for us going forward. Going forward
you're going to need to look at models of service delivery that provide the same or
better service, but you're going to have to learn how to control the costs, and the
other thing I would say to you is ... you have to look at a hybrid model of
employment. It needs to be both full-time employees and paid on-call, and your
paid on-call employees could be your farm team, so to speak, using a baseball
analogy. The farm team for the full-time people, as those full-time positions open
up. You're going to get resistance on some of this. Okay? I get that. But .... at
this point in time, I think it's good for you to understand that there are some things
that you can do both on the expense side that do not diminish your services. In
fact I think make them more efficient. And, at the same time, you're going to
have to look at revenue. The other one is law enforcement. By my county there's
seven different agencies representing I think the four or five metro... metropolitan
communities. Iowa City, Coralville, North Liberty, uh, University Heights — they
all have individual departments, and Tiffin's one of the other communities. I'm
confident they're served by the County. You have University police, you have
County Sheriffs, and you have State police. It seems to me that there should be a
model where you create a metro police department in this area and you roll in the
University police into that program. You'd get consistency of policy and ... and
practice. I think things like CIT, crisis intervention training, would be a much
easier process to evolve into by having one area department that handles
situations similarly. Crime doesn't see boundaries. You know, they're imaginary
lines to us. Other things in terms of law enforcement that I have suggested is that
we should put our full support behind this crisis intervention team approach.
Crisis intervention is a diversionary tactic that takes people out of the ... the court
system, out of the jail system and deals with probably some problems that are
causing their behavior that ... that the judicial system isn't geared up to handle.
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Mental illness, uh, chemical and alcohol dependency, um, that's what these
programs are designed to do. The County, again, should be complimented for
initiating the pursuit of this kind of approach and it's something we should get on
board with, and help lead this process. As I told you earlier, Rick Dobyns has
been designated by the President of the University to serve in ... in this role, and I
think that, um, I think that this is something that you just want to pursue. Um...
disproportionate minority contact, we are going to be coming back with, uh... um,
the study from, uh (several talking) Dr. (several talking) Barnum, and ... here's my
comment. My expectation is that we will need to drill down into these stats to
have a more complete understanding of their meaning. It will require everyone to
look for the causes of DMC, take the necessary actions to correct any and all
inappropriate policies, practices, actions, and attitudes that lead to
disproportionate minority contact. Sam Hargadine, in my opinion, gets a lot of
credit. He started reviewing this process and revies... uh, reviewing DMC long
before it was popular to even talk about that issue. There's gonna be a lot of
debate about this. I think we have to be careful about the data interpretation, but I
think that we need to work on changing the DMC numbers that I'm seeing. Um,
not just in Iowa City but across, and here again you have a chance to be a leader.
The only other city that's been working on this, as I understand it in the state, is
Davenport. There's been some discussion at the state level, but it's going to
require a unified effort of the police department, the courts, the hospitals, uh, the
mental health, uh, services, both public and non -private .... or non-profit, the
hospitals, so there's a lot of players that need to come together, but it's the right
approach and I think it deals... specifically in response to what the, um ... the ... the
population here has been telling you on the ... on the jail referendum, uh, you
know, rejections repeatedly. You need an alternate way to deal with, uh,
individuals, rather than incarceration. There's too many people in jail that quite
frankly the incident may have put them there, but that's not the way to deal with
the problem. Uh, in terms of personnel, urn .... when I started, uh, I was pushed to,
you know, get into a succession plan. The Council was very clear about the
things that they wanted done. And so we did the succession plan. Believe it or
not, we've changed over management and, uh, supervisory, lead supervisory
personnel, almost to the extent of 60%, since the time I was here. You had a great
core of people that were here. We brought in, I think, some outstanding people as
well. They've blended together well. I don't think the community missed a step
with all of that turnover. People don't even realize how many people that we've
turned over in that period of time. And it wasn't because I came in here and ... and
was the most difficult manager in the world to work with. You could look at the
retirement, ages, you know, how much they were vested at that point. It was ... it
was by choice that they were going to move on. We've dealt with most of those
issues while I was here, and I feel very proud of the staff that's resulted. I could
tell you how impressed I am. You have some ... you have some people in this
operation that would be leaders any place in this country. They're that good!
They're that strong! I'm not going to name 'em, because I ... probably would offend
somebody, but some of 'em are sitting pretty close to me (laughter) and across the
table. So ... I .... but I gotta tell ya, you should be very proud of your staff, because
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they ... they work very diligently to carry out the..the mission that this ... this
Council establishes. Finance, you know I harp about finance. John reminded me
at some point along the way! Um, but ... you know, we ... we get blamed for a lot
of, uh, being a little bit ... you know, outside the norm when you're around the
state, and I take great pride in telling people, yeah, well, we're so far out of the
norm, how is it that we're only one of two triple-A communities in this state?
How is it that we have cut our property taxes five straight years? How is it that
we have gotten our budget and our annual reports recognized by the GFOA,
consistently now, especially the reports, but budgets since I started? It's because
we're ... we're paying attention, and when you look at the Moody's report, one of
the things I take great pride in is they refer to the prudent management of this
place. That's not just me! That's ... the staff in the Manager's office. That's all the
departments. That's the City Council, okay? That's our public. And I'm glad to
hear you talkin' about those things, cause you gotta keep that in your mindset.
You gotta think about those things going forward. I want to come back five years
from now and still see that we're the triple-A and ... and I gotta tell ya something —
I know Mary Gravitt's talked about we don't have the same demographic as a lot
of the ... the triple-A. I wasn't entirely sure what she meant by that comment. That
is a comment that's reported out in Moody's. I actually take that as even a better
comment! Because what I said to me is that we don't have the per capita wealth
of a lot of the traditional triple -As. We don't have the huge tax base of the
traditional, uh, triple -As. We do a lot of different things. We pay a lot of
attention to how we manage our financial affairs. You guys should take great
pride in that, and when I talk and hear people talk about, uh, they're gonna move
away from Moody's and they're gonna get one of the bonding agencies, a different
one, I ... I've been evaluated by all three bonding agencies. You are being
evaluated by the gold standard — Moody's. That's my opinion about what happens
here, so take great pride in that, and it's ... and it's deserved. Uh, finally I want to
just say that... I have a lot of respect for elected officials and what you do,
and ... I ... I want to caution you going forward. Okay? It's ... it's easy ... to get on each
other, okay, but I think it's fair to express your differences of opinion, and I'll tell
you a little story. My dad decided to run for council after I'd been in this business
for about 15 years. And he was elected, and I had moved on to another place and
state and we couldn't sell our house and so my wife and kids went down and
helped my dad campaign. And it was really one of those bonding experiences in
our family. So I have, uh, and my dad ... dad went on to be the mayor of my home
town and we were always very proud of that, so it's always a part of our legacy.
And I remember a call he made to me and he said, tell me what you know about
hockey rinks. Now, remember, we're from Minnesota. And I said to him, well,
the number one thing you need to know about hockey rinks is they don't make
money. Okay? And the second thing you need to know about a hockey rink in
Minnesota is, if you vote against it, you're not gonna be the mayor any more
(laughter) and uh... so he said I just ... I don't, you know, I really don't like this, and
so he didn't vote for it. And um ... and sure enough he wasn't the mayor after he
didn't vote for it, in the next election. But I have to tell you, I was never more
proud of him. I mean he, you know, he stood his ground and ... what I want to tell
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you is ... always vote your conscience. You heard it tonight. There's always going
to be somebody here that's going to be disagreeing with you. That's the nature of
our business. At the end of the day, just vote your conscience, because even when
you get pushed on, you knew that you....you voted the way you really believed
was the right thing to do, and that's all any of you can do! And ... I can disagree
with any number of your positions, but the next day, we have to go back to work.
That's what your role is. I think council/manager form of government is the best
form of government for local government that exists. It combines grassroots,
elected officials with professional management, and I think you've had that here
and I think you'll have that going forward. Keep the civil tone about your
Council. Don't get on each other! Don't rise to ... to the rhetoric. You're going to
be pushed by your public on occasion. Remain civil, remain calm, remain
respectful of each other and your public, and you'll be just fine! (several talking)
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