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7. Community Comment(items not on the agenda)
Throgmorton: This is a moment when anyone who would like to address us about any topic
that's not on the formal meeting agenda should feel free to come up.:..come up to
the podium, state your name, address that topic, and please do not take more than
five minutes to do so.
Jaynes: Hello!
Throgmorton: Good evening!
Jaynes: I'm Allison Jaynes,um, Iowa City resident and I'm going to bring up the matter
of the,um, control of the deer population once again. Uh, we have a few
representatives here from Iowa City Deer Friends and I just wanted to ask again
since we've heard,uh, silence from the Council, if there's anything more that we
needed to provide to you, um,that would maybe get a response in terms of
moving forward with non-lethal methods of deer population control, i.e.
sterilization. Um,we've provided a lot of information, entire correspondence,
many pages of information, and.we're willing to do the work. We have several
people here,but we have a lot more people that don't,show up to these meetings
because they're,um,.not able to. We're just more the face of it. And so we're
hopingto hear something from you so that we can get a yes, move forward with,
um, making a larger plan so that we can provide that to you for consideration, or
you know, I know that we're gonna go ahead with different means of population
control.
Throgmorton: Geoff,have we reached out to the State in terms of,uh, determining the details
about whether we can do sharpshooting or can do bow and arrow....must do bow
and row or anything like that that pertains to this topic?
Frain: We are going to be on the December agenda, and I don't have a specific date,but
I'd be happy to get it to you. The...the December agenda for the,uh, State board
that,um,would license us,um, for sharpshooting. So we've applied for a
sharpshooting authorization or permit. Um,we should hear in December whether
that's granted or not.
Jaynes: Okay,let me also say that in parallel we can also be working,uh, to make a plan
for the non-lethal means of population control,urn, from our side,that we can
present to you for consideration for maybe, urn, a future,um, implementation in
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addition to if you're definitely settled on the sharpshooting to control the
population this season. Maybe for the future we can provide that to you.
Throgmorton: Well it would seem, uh, I wanna see if there's concurrence among the Council. It
seems to me if you want to provide us with some information about(mumbled)
complementary approach that we could use, uh.....knowing that we intend to do
some....culling of the herd.
Jaynes: Uh huh.
Throgmorton: Um, that that would be reasonable. I don't know, does that sound reasonable
from a staff point of view?
Fruin: Yeah, in, uh, keep in mind there is a Deer Commission, uh, that is not only going
to be looking at, you know,the....the short-term needs, but also the long-term
needs. So it'd be appropriate to work with that group too.
Jaynes: Okay. Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Allison. Would anyone else like to address us on any topic that's not
on the formal meeting agenda? Good evening, Brandon!
Ross: Good evening, Council, Mayor. I, uh, I come here tonight and, uh, I see a.....I see
a flag at half-mast and.....I see a flag at half-mast. I see a flag at half-mast for
children who are in poverty and have nothing to eat. I see a flag at half-mast....
for the cuts in education and programs, so that tax money may be cut and the
money can be given to the rich. I see a flag in half-mast for those who are
walking our streets without a home. I see a flag at half-mast for....those with not
enough food. For the black people who have been shot, for the simple reason of
the color of their skin. For the Jewish people who have been shot in this country,
for the simple belief that they have in their religion. I see the flag at half-mast, I
see the flag at half-mast for all the children who have had to suffer....by the
hundreds of thousands.....by the bombs which have been manufactured in the
United States, and deployed by the people we consider our government. I see the
flag at half-mast....for the unevenness of the wealth in this country that we call a
democracy. I see the flag at half-mast for that democracy. I see the flag at half-
mast for those who cannot get from one place to the other because of a handicap
or because there's no....there's no transportation. I see the flag at half-mast for
the women who suffer without programs to help them,who cannot take care of
their children.....who cannot feed their children. I see the flag at half-mast. I see
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the flag at half-mast for all the language that is said, about how great a country
and a community can be,but whose words from its own people fall on deaf ears.
I see the flag at half-mast. I see the flag at half-mast and I ask myself....whose
flag is this? For whom is the flag lowered? I see the flag at half-mast for all of
us, in this time. I see the flag at half-mast for those who are suffering in the fires
of California. Those who have died already, because....of the interests of a small
group of oil companies and others encouraging global warming. I see the flag at
half-mast.....for the un-inhumane ways that people are treated. The flag should
be at half-mast. The human beings should be considered, whether they are in our
borders or outside. Until those....until these things are corrected, in some small
past, some small part, I see the flat at half-mast. And I ask myself, whose flag is
it? Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thank you, Brandon. Would anyone else like to address us? All right, seeing no
one else,we'll move to Item 8, Planning and Zoning Matters.
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8. Planning and Zoning Matters
8.a.Behavioral Health Urgent Care Center Rezoning- Ordinance
conditionally rezoning approximately 5.82 acres of property located at 1914
S. Gilbert Street, 1805 Waterfront Drive,260,306,&346 Southgate Avenue,
from Intensive Commercial(CI-1) to Neighborhood Public(P-1). (REZ18-
00018) (Second Consideration)
Throgmorton: This is second consideration,but the applicant has requested expedited action.
Mims: I move that the rule requiring that ordinances must be considered and voted on for
passage at two Council meetings prior to the meeting at which it is to be finally
passed be suspended,that the second consideration and vote be waived, and that
the ordinance be voted on for final passage at this lime.
Taylor: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Mims, seconded by Taylor. Discussion? Seeing none,roll call please.
Motion carries 7-0.
Mims: Move final con....minal (laughs)move final approval at this time(laughter)
Taylor: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Mims, seconded by Taylor. Discussion?
Mims: I would just say there's going to be a lot of people that are really happy to get this
piece done,uh, the rezoning for the Access Center and condensing this tonight
will allow the County to go ahead with the originally planned closing date of
December 14th. They will take possession of the land as soon as, uh, the weather.
works for them. They will start putting fill in so that construction can start next
spring or summer.
Cole: Terrific!
Throgmorton: Anyone else? Uh, I'm very excited that we're moving ahead on this, uh, for all
the reasons that have been discussed previously,but some of you may not know,
um....several of us have gone to San Antonio and seen the restoration center,
Haven of Hope,the use of crisis intervention training down there that really
enables....uh,people to receive the kinds of services they need immediately when
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they're in crisis, for whatever reason, and....to do so in a way that helps them get
back on their feet, so to speak. So I'm really pleased, uh, to col...collaborate with
the County,with the University, with Shelter House, with....a whole range of
other entities to move ahead on this. Coralville too! Right, they're (both talking)
Mims: Coralville's contributing money as well.
Throgmorton: Yeah. Okay, anyone else?
Taylor: Along with that, Jim, I'd like to thank all those folks you listed, including Susan.
She's been on the planning stages, uh, for planning this, it seems like it's been
forever, and finally coming to fruition and...and, uh, it's going to be wonderful.
Throgmorton: Absolutely!
Mims: Lot more planning to do too! (laughter)
Taylor: Still more planning!
Throgmorton: Yeah.
Teague: And there is, um, low barrier shelters....
Taylor: Yes!
Teague: ...um, associated with this as well so....excellent!
Mims: Yeah, gave us a permanent location for that, which'll be great.
Teague: Yes.
Throgmorton: Yeah. So....yeah! Roll call please.
Mims: (both talking) I'm sorry, did anybody from the audience want to address this
(mumbled) Okay! (mumbled)
Throgmorton: Motion carries 7-0. Could I have a motion to accept correspondence please?
Thomas: So moved.
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Mims: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Thomas, seconded by Mims. All in favor say aye. Opposed. Motion
carries.
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8.b.Rezoning at 4643 Herbert Hoover Highway- Ordinance conditionally
rezoning approximately 5.49 acres of property located at 4643 Herbert
Hoover Highway, from Interim Development Multi-Family Residential(ID-
RM)to Medium Density Multi-Family Residential(RM-20) and Low Density
Multi-Family Residential (RM-12) . (REZ18-00020) (Second Consideration)
Throgmorton: This is second consideration,but the applicant has requested expedited action.
Mims: I move that the rule requiring that ordinances must be considered and voted on for
passage at two Council meetings prior to the meeting at which it is to be finally
passed be suspended,that the second consideration and vote be waived, and that
the ordinance be voted on for final passage at this time.
Taylor: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Mims, seconded by Taylor. Discussion? Geoff, I wonder if someone
could explain why the applicant's requesting.
Fruin: Uh,there's a Iowa Finance Authority deadline,uh, for phase two of the project,
which is,uh, has been talked about as the senior housing portion of it. Uh, they
need to have that rezoning,uh, done, uh,before the first of the year in order to,
uh,have the application,urn(clears throat) considered complete.
Throgmorton: Thanks. Uh, any Council discussion? Seeing none,roll call please. Well I....I
should ask(mumbled) (laughs) Would anybody like to address this topic? All
right, seeing no one, disc...uh, roll call please. Motion carries 6-1. Could I have a
motion to pass and adopt please?
Mims: So moved.
Cole: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Mims, seconded by Cole. Discussion?
Cole: I would just like to briefly mention one thing. One of the things I'm really
thrilled with is something that we're not seeing. I think what the City of Iowa
City is saying is 'yes in my backyard' and I think that's terrific. Urn,there's not a
lot of low-income housing in the northeast part of our community. This is gonna
be additional, several units that are gonna be part of that, and I'm just really
thrilled that we seem to have reached....as much as we can in a city like Iowa
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City, where we like to disagree in dialogue from time to time, and we seem to
have widespread community support, um, so I'm really thrilled that we don't have
a lot of people speakin' up against this, and that this is gonna be an important step
forward to improve affordable housing throughout the community.
Throgmorton: Anyone else?
Teague: I love that it's movin' to that, uh,part of town because we don't, um, it's been
developed over the years but it....this is a great,uh,projectmovin' to that part of
town.
Throgmorton: Okie doke. Roll call please. Motion carries 6 to,uh, 6-1. Could I have a motion
to accept correspondence please?
Mims: So moved.
Salih: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Mims, seconded by Salih. All in favor say aye. Opposed. Motion
carries.
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8.c. Zoning code amendment related to transfer of development rights for
historic properties - Ordinance amending Title 14, Zoning Code of the Iowa
City Code related to Transfer of Development Rights for certain historic
properties. (ZCA18-00003)
1. Public hearing [Continued from 11/20 meeting]
Throgmorton: I'm gonna open the public hearing. (bangs gavel) Would anyone like to address
this topic please? Good evening, Pam!
Michaud: Pam Michaud, urn....in Iowa City, and I'm sorry I haven't been attending these
meetings. Uh, I'm kind of wondering....I don't know if this includes the, uh, 12
W. Court project.
Throgmorton: Well....no. (several responding)
Michaud: No, not really? So is that....on this agenda or not?
Throgmorton: No, it's not.
Michaud: Okay, that's simple then. All right so then this is just in general, X number of
floors might be transferred to different parts of town(both talking)
Throgmorton: Floors or density.
Michaud: ...or density. Okay. All right, so there is part of this that I'd like to address.
Urn....uh.....density's good. I guess, um....noting.....how projects are
represented at times and how they are executed is not always straightforward.
Urn.....so I've noticed a difference in a discrepancy in, urn, height represented in
some....a project something like including The Chauncey. So this is if....if
there's a public perception that 15 stories is so many feet, urn....were if....if the
five stories, let's say somebody wants to...instead of a three-story building in a
certain area. They want to add two stories, how...how large are those stories
going to be? What is the exact foot height elevation or meter elevation of the
proposed project? Because it's a little disingenuous to say, oh, it's just a five-
story building, when we might think 'oh well there's maybe 10 or 12 feet per
story and it's going to be so tall.' It's good to have exact numbers on the
elevation proposed. Urn, because otherwise people are taken aback when lo and
behold, instead of 15 there are 16 stories. There're not 16 floors in The
Chauncey, but there are 16 stories because there's not a 16th floor. So there is a
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huge bump up of 14 feet on the stop of a 15-story building. So what does that
mean practically for a place like College Green? On a very large scale,projects
such as this, it's just that much more of the sky that's blocked off for the
enjoyment of the whole east side. So when there's Planning and Zoning
adjustment for comprehensive plan,which would be in the future for 12 W. Court,
um, there oughta be an exact measurement on the proposal,not just some,you
know, cocktail sketch that we're....maybe mistaken about....the height because of
our own private residence experience,because a hotel was going to be much
larger with 20-foot ceilings. So...uh, I would....so this does kinda relate to the
increased height, um....and it would be good to hear some, if there's a proposal
for increased height or zoning change, that,um, a height limitation should be
more in yards, meters, feet,miles—not just stories,because those stories are....
shall we say fiction, you know, so we don't wanna get too literary here in Iowa
City,but um(laughs) We wanna be more precise with our requirements when
there's a zoning change and(mumbled)requirements should also be exact height
that we're presenting to the public in a very straightforward,honest,transparent,
etc.,way.
Throgmorton: Okay, thank(both talking)
Michaud: Thank you.
Throgmorton: Thanks. Ann, would....would you be able to talk about the....the heights of
stories.
Russett: Um, I guess I could say that they generally vary,but for the purposes of the
proposed transfer of development rights ordinance,we are saying that 10-feet
equal one story for the purposes of calculating any potential transfer.
Throgmorton: Great, thank you! Would anybody else like to address this topic? Okay, seeing
no one else, I wanna remind you that the Planning and Zoning Commission
recommended approval. So I need to ask you if you are inclined to vote in
accordance with the Commission's recommendation to approve the ordinance. If
not,we would continue the public hearing to allow the,uh,the Commission with
an opportunity to consult about it. So....point of clarification I guess here. We
had extensive discussion about this at our last meeting, and I....my personal sense
was that we should not move ahead. I don't know what the rest of you think in
terms of voting but if....if we decide not to move ahead, then we would need to
consult with the Commission, or offer to consult with the Commission,but we
could also....have, use this as a moment to reflect on maybe a couple or three
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suggestions, or whatever, we have about....what the staff could do, cause you...
you didn't, uh,there's none....no paperwork mentioning that, uh, what the....the
developer had to say, is there, or did I overlook(both talking)
Frain: No,there's not. So a quick update. Um,the,uh....the owner of the property on
Clinton that prompted us to....to go down this path, urn,has verbally agreed to
extend the deadline that we set for the end of January,uh,to June or July. Um,
we would have to have a....a formal agreement to....to solidify that but(clears
throat) I guess my message to the Council tonight is....we only need to extend it if
there is further study that would help you make your decision, and a lot of the
angst with this, uh, ordinance has been with the receiving sites and, urn,whether
in the future we think that we're going to be willing to grant these on a....on a
fairly consistent and regular basis. I don't think that concern's gonna go away
with any amount of study. Uh....uh, you have some maps that are hopefully a
little bit more clear to you in the packet. Hope you had a chance to look at those.
I know for me they....they helped me think about those sites and for me
personally they kind of amplified the concerns. So, we can extend it,but I
wouldn't just do it to continue the conversation. I....I wanna hear from you
exactly what further study that we could provide you as staff, uh, that would,uh,
research that we could provide you that would help you make your policy
decision.
Throgmorton: Okay, so...this'd be a moment when we could suggest some possibilities of....of
....uh, I don't know, information that the staff could compile in the next six
months if we think it might be fruitful and if it might influence our judgment
about what to do. I wanna raise a couple or three possibilities. I....I don't know
that they're gonna sway me, but I just wanna get 'em out there. Uh, one is, might
there be some criteria that would enable the staff to narrow the,uh, the number of
possible receiving sites or the types of possible receiving sites while
simultaneously enabled...enabling desired developments in specific
neighborhoods. You know, cause as it is now, I...we have this map kinda
showing places all over the....all over the city, and I'm thinkin' if we could target
....this,uh, transfer of density in a way that would accomplish other objectives,
then I....I'd be interested. So I'm....I'm just wondering, maybe over the next
several months, staff could investigate that. The other thing is, in order for this to
work,there'd have to be willing buyers, right? It doesn't matter if there are 150
sites that are potentially possible. The owners have to be willing to say I'll be
involved and buy the density or transfer the density to their property. So, how...
how would we go about identifying the willing buyers, if I'm understanding the
process correctly. So those two questions come to my mind, and then I wonder,
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does it make any.....does it make good sense to have staff spend more time on
this, despite the (laughs) two questions I just asked? You know, so hope I'm
bein' clear about this, you know, and I see two possibilities that the staff could
explore, but I'm not sure it's really worth asking the staff to spend the time to do
it.
Mims: My response would be no. Um....number one, I wanna say I really appreciate the
staff's time and effort in this, cause I can't imagine how many hours (laughs) you
guys spent in trying to pull this stuff together and give us, you know, what we had
asked to have to consider,urn,based on that,uh, property owner's request. But
for me....and I.....got a sense that at least some other Councilors and maybe
everybody kinda agree with this last time. This is an incredibly complex,um,
situation and....and program to put into place. I think it's gonna be very complex
for people to understand and...there's....with that complexity is also going to be a
considerable amount of uncertainty as to whether the transfer of development
rights would even be allowed, since every single one of those applications would
come back to the City Council. Um,when I looked at the maps, and again,thank
you very much for the more detailed maps (laughs) I don't know how much time
that took,but it really helped me a lot. Um, I would concur with Geoff's
comments—it just raised my level of concern even more. Because as I looked at
so many of those, I could just kind of envision neighbors in those areas saying,
wait a minute, it's already dense enough here. We don't need or want more
density. What's that gonna do to parking, you know, all other kinds of things, and
then immediately that is coming back to a Council. Now, five years, 10 years, 20
years from now to have to make decisions on those. Urn....we started with the
premise of trying to solve a problem, or make it easier to address preservation of
historic property. My concern in trying to address that issue,which I....I think is
a real issue, and how do we find ways to incentivize it and make it happen, I....I
think we're almost....I think we're coming up with a solution that is going to
cause more problems than what we're trying to solve. And so my position at this
point would be to vote against it,urn, if we were to vote tonight. So....
Cole: I would guess I was sort of a solitary voice before in terms of wanting to move
forward with it, so I'd hopefully try to persuade and get some votes into that
position. Urn, Susan's absolutely right—it is an incredibly complex issue,but as I
see it, it does come down to,um, Council does have control both over the
landmarking process and making a historic district. So there would be that public
feedback at that stage, and you're right. There would be essentially potential
controversies on the back end for deciding where the receiving sites are,but I
think the underlying concern of all of this is us somehow losing control over
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unintended density in places that we don't necessarily want, and so to me we have
that level of control through the landmark process, in terms of I would hope that
through that discussion, if there was a developer wanting to landmark,that there
would be a related discussion of where you would wanna use that...that density in
terms of the receiving site. I know that that wouldn't happen in all those cases,
like for example with Tate Arms. They're still looking where....where they can
actually send that,but I think we have that level of control,urn,both at the
sending site and the receiving site. The second thing is, it's not as if, although we
don't wanna do tweaks, you know, all the time,that we can't make some
additional modifications over the next two, three, four, five years,whoever's on
the Council at that time. Final point would be, I don't think there's any chance at
all of ever getting historic preservation downtown unless there's some sort of quid
pro quo for the district to be able to get some of the value out for the historic
designation. Um, I just bring that up in terms of,urn, I don't think that's gonna be
able to happen,uh, and so...if we ever do get to that point, it would be nice to tell
that district that, hey, if you do get this historic designation, you'll be able to
transfer some of that value in terms of other parts of the downtown. So I would
like to see us moving through,um, it did go through Planning and Zoning. Um, I
believe the Historic Preservation Commission,were they unanimous?
Throgmorton: Um, no, I think the answer's no but....
Fruin: I don't recall.
Cole: It passed them, so at least two different bodies that are....that are...have expertise
in that area, and I'm always reluctant.....of course we'll hear from the Planning
and Zoning if I don't persuade people,um, but....but I'm reluctant to overturn
their judgment unless I believe there's a clear reason to depart,urn, from their
careful consideration. So I'll be a yes.
Throgmorton: I....a yes for what in particular, for approving the (both talking)
Cole: For approving it as is. Yes.
Throgmorton: Okay.
Thomas: (both talking) I'm willing to, urn, also give my support to it. I....you know,
I...and in part it's....I understand that in the big macro picture this thing seems
very unwieldy,uh, and problematic. Um, at the same time I'm looking at the
immediate issues that we're facing, which are the, urn,preservation of the
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property on Clinton and....and there's another,uh,property on Bloomington,both
of which seem to me in the staff's presentation, at least the Clinton and I think it
would apply at Bloomington,the....the amount of transfer that we're talking
about is a very modest amount. Um, I...unless I'm misunderstood something,uh,
and.....and staff could correct me on this, but it seemed to me that in those sorts
of situations the process,uh, would not be as complex because the amount of
transfer is not that great. Urn, and so I would....I would want(laughs) you know,
we're so pleased with the preservation of Tate Arms. That was one property, uh,
I'm willing to approve this so that at least one property at a time and those...and
those conditions where it would apply and...and be a workable,uh,remedy,uh,
can move forward. And other....other issues or other strategies may be necessary,
uh,you know,to complement this,but I do think if....if we save at a minimum
one or two properties, uh, I think it's worthwhile moving forward.
Throgmorton: Other discussion?
Teague: I...I think the...um, theory of this,um,up front is really good,uh, as far as like the
historic preservation piece. Um, I think it would be great to have,uh, a...a....a, in
the toolkit, uh, somethin' that developers would want to reserve. Um, some.....
and...and make some properties historic, except I think on the back end,um, as
Susan has mentioned, um,there's so much uncertainty. Right now we, you know
(laughs) in our work session earlier, you know, there's master plans, form based
code, Capitol Street height bonuses and this other stuff that sometimes I think
Councilors may want to, um, get away from. Um, and....not....you know, abide
by what the....legislatively what's been written in directives,urn,for the Council
to take on. So for me, this is somethin' that I....I don't think on the back end is
good,urn, it's gonna cause a lot of distress, I believe, um, for some individuals, if
they want to place a property, uh, some place where the Council doesn't agree,
and so I would not vote for this.
Throgmorton: Anyone else? I wanna say somethin' but I wanna get my note correctly here.
Okay, Ann, could you come up please? Thank you. I wanna make sure I'm
correct in stating something. Uh, do I understand correctly that the ordinance as
currently written would enable property owners to transfer density to the
downtown?
Russett: Yes.
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Throgmorton: Yes, and do I understand correctly that if an historic preservation district is
created in the downtown, owners would be able to transfer density from the
downtown?
Russett: If they were contributing properties (both talking)
Throgmorton: Yeah.
Russell: ...district.
Throgmorton: Yeah, so...thank you. That's...that's, I just wanted to make sure I knew about that.
Well that makes no sense,to have the downtown be both a receiving and a
sending area. So there's something just pretty wacky with that. Uh, I think....I
think transferring density to the...to the downtown would worsen the conflict over
preservation and development. So there's that. I think transferring density from
the downtown would potentially involve massive transfers of density. Where
would they go? Where would these massive transfers go? Also, transferring
density to different area, to the Riverfront Crossings District is not necessary
given the existing height bonuses that already exist there. So we already know
the den...the Riverfront Crossings District has received a massive upzoning for
anyone who....gets rezoned to Riverfront Crossings District. So transferring
density into that district is just....and they have height bonuses and transferring
more density into that district? I....I don't understand why that would be
reasonable. So, I think none of those make any sense,nor does it generally make
sense to transfer density to the Northside neighborhood, John. I mean it, you
know,the map shows all sorts of sites in the Northside neighborhood that....could
be,uh,you know,possible receiving areas. So that doesn't make any sense to me,
and then the bottom line though is what,uh, you....you've already mentioned,
Susan. I'll use my own words though,uh, basically every one of those receiving
sites on the map is a flash point for political conflict....involving resistance from
neighbors for....for, you know, completely legitimate reasons. So I don't wanna
get into that....that kind of set of conflicts. And I can say more but I think that's
plenty. So L...L...I cannot support the....the, um, proposed ordinance for those
reasons and others,much as I admire the great work that our staff has done on it.
Any other discussion about this?
Mims: Well I think we have to hear from Pauline and Mazahir to know what our
numbers are.
Throgmorton: Yeah we do.
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Taylor: I was just trying to scroll through, cause you'd asked about the Historic
Preservation Commission,uh,looks like they did vote unanimus...unanimously
(both talking)
Throgmorton: ...but Planning and Zoning Commission.
Taylor: ...but yeah, uh,but both the Planning and Zoning and the Historic Preservation
still had concerns. So I....I don't understand voting in favor if...if you have
concerns and....and as I do, I have some concerns about it too, and don't really
understand the necessity of it and uh,mostly on the part of the receiving units
as....as has already been mentioned. We don't wanna get in the middle of that
battle in the neighborhoods. So, uh, I...I would probably not be in favor of it.
Throgmorton: Do you wanna say somethin', Maz?
Salih: I guess the same thing, this is really complicated to me and I think,uh,we,need to
look into a lot of things. We need to reach out to lot people on this and....I....I
think we need time to decide on this. That why for now I will vote no.
Throgmorton: All right, so that means we need to offer....uh, a consultation with the Planning
and Zoning Commission and we need to continue the public hearing until we
learn what they say. So....could I have a motion,right,to continue the public
hearing?
Salih: So move.
Throgmorton: So what,help me with the date? Would I say two weeks from now or...indefinite
or....
Dilkes: We'll get ya a definite date. Well...probably the 18th. I think if we can fit the...
when does Planning and Zoning meet next? (talking in background) Thursday.
Okay. Well we can either do it to the...the December 18th or January 8th.
Frain: If we keep it on the 18th,we could possibly do it at the work session. That's short
notice on P&Z. If they can't do it we'll just defer it again.
Throgmorton: Yeah. Okay.
Cole: Makes sense.
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Throgmorton: So the motion would be to defer the public hearing until the 18th of December and
to offer a consult.
Salih: Move.
Mims: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Salih, seconded by Mims. All in favor say aye. Opposed. Motion
carries.
2. Consider an Ordinance (First Consideration) [Deferred from 11/20
meeting]
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9. Council Compensation Ordinance Amending Title 1 "Administration",
Chapter 5 "City Council", Section 3 "Compensation" of the City Code to
increase the salary and health insurance benefit of the Mayor and Members
of the City Council effective January 1,2020. (Pass and Adopt)
Throgmorton: Could I have a motion to pass and adopt please?
Cole: So moved.
Teague: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Cole and seconded by Teague. Discussion?
Teague: Again I think this is a great opportunity for the Councilors to, um, allow, um,
individuals with less means to totally be a part of the Council. Um, if someone
has a full-time job or....and they have to go to part-time or whatever the case may
be, I....I....I think that, um, this is the time to make that opportunity, and we're
talking....if we're talking about like, you know, $15 an hour, this of course
doesn't incr...equate to that at all, but when we're talkin' about, um, ensurin' that,
um, workers and (laughs) you know have,um,really wages that will help them,
uh, be successful in our community, I think that Council position,um, is....is....
is a part of that as well, a part of that equation. We're not doing anything that
other Councilors throughout the....throughout our state and throughout the nation
does already, and so I really do feel that this is a step in the right direction, urn,
for our community and will allow others in our community the ability to be a part
of this,uh, team up here, um, so I....I 100% support this.
Cole: Yeah, I agree, Bruce. I think really what we're trying to find as I see it is the
Goldilocks amount, not too high, not too low,but just right. I think if we get too
high then we start getting the people who say,hey, then all of a sudden it becomes
a permanent position, and I don't think any of us want people who view council
as a career. Urn, I think we want to view it as service, right, and so...but there's
the practical reality, um, Susan, I think you raised a very legitimate point, I mean
will this really do what we think it will do. Well I....I think there's a good shot, I
mean cause if you're talking about, if you're making, you know, 8, $9 an hour,
and I think total that'd be about 15,000 to 18,000 a year, and if you're talkin'
about a council salary, given what we work, at roughly commensurate with that,
that may tip the scales in terms of being able to open up some opportunities. Um,
you know,the nice thing about this is by statute,uh, we're accountable to
the...the, uh,public in terms of this cannot go into effect until there's an
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intervening election, so for those of us that, urn, intend to run again, if we do,
every single one of us will have to be 100% accountable and if people think this is
unfair, unreasonable, uh, they're, uh, entitled to register their opposition at the
ballot box. Uh, so to me, and this....as Jim points out, this is not a huge increase.
Um, and it has not happened in about 20 years. So I....I'm very comfortable, urn,
in terms of making this recommendation. I think it's a very sensible number that
we've picked at and I think it is the, uh, the Goldilocks amount,just.right.
Taylor: I'm often asked how much time do ya spend, uh, with Council business and that
really varies, and I think we had a very lengthy discussion about that and as I
pointed out,uh, we're not really thinking of it as an hourly salary. It's salary. It's
just a salary that's given, uh, to, urn, serve on the Council. So I think we have to
continue to think of it that way.
Thomas: And (mumbled) the last aspect of this that I would mention is, you know it's....
we're trying to establish parody with other cities of comparable size and
complexity. So this will do that as well, which I think is, you know,just right.
It's sort of tied, uh, to what other cities are doing as well.
Salih: I voted no for this last time and I'm gonna continue voting no, not because I don't
...I disagree with you all, you know, the concept that this is encouraging the low-
income people to run for Council. That's true. Completely I believe on this but
you know I don't think we have to do it now. Uh, since day one I was just saying
that we need to increase the seasonal City employees, uh, you know, income
(mumbled) wages first to $15 an hour before we can move forward and increase
our own salary. That's why I'm gonna still continue saying no to this.
Throgmorton: Anyone else? Okay, I'd like to mention one thing, uh, an additional....I've
already laid out several justifications for increasing the salaries by...incidentally,
by a total of approximately$30,000 per year,total, for seven people. So it's not a
very large increase. So here's my additional justification. As somebody who
served on this Council 20 years ago, I can tell you the job's a lot harder, a lot
more demanding than it was 20 years ago, and the bottom line is I think we need
to realize we're a larger city facing a lot more complicated array of challenges
than we did then. And....that's just a fact. So....uh, I think that's....that's
justification for at least$10 a year more(laughs) I think it, uh,really warrants it.
Anyone else? Okay, hearing no one, uh, no further comment, uh,roll call please.
Motion carries 5-2.
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10. Council Appointments
10.a. Parks and Recreation Conunission
Throgmorton: We have one vacancy to fill a four-year term and the gender re....there is no
gender requirement. So we have four applications from Jessica Brass, Clayton
Claussen, Sarah Urion, and Brianna Wills. What's your pleasure, folks?
Mims: I would support Brianna. I think, I mean I think we talked about Clay last time
and I, you know, I indicated my support and even though he'd been...he's been on
a long time, he's been off a year and it certainly seemed to be the consensus of
Council that we didn't wanna go that direction. So given that, I think when I look
at the other three, I think Brianna shows maybe the longest and most,um,
distinctive involvement with the parks and visiting all the parks and studying all
the parks, in helping her neighborhood,um, develop a park in...in that
neighborhood. So I think she's....shows through that her interest and....and love
of and compassion and care about the parks in Iowa City. So I would support
Brianna.
Cole: Well not only that. I think her experience in the non-profit world now that she
has Old Brick(mumbled) she could bring that directly to the fore,but I know a lot
of the non-profits use a lot of our facilities. I think that'd be a great asset to have
that connection. So yeah, I...I'm a....a huge fan of Brianna and I would definitely
support her.
Salih: I will support her too.
Thomas: Me too.
Mims: Great!
Throgmorton: There you go! Sounds (mumbled) could I have a motion to appoint,uh, Brianna
Wills to the Parks and Recreation Commission?
Salih: So move.
Cole: Second.
Throgmorton: Moved by Salih, seconded by Cole. All in favor say aye. Opposed. Motion
carries.
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13. Community Comment
Throgmorton: Anybody who wants to address a topic on....da, da, da....hi, Gustave!
Stewart: Gustave Stewart, uh, Student Liaison. Urn, all I'm gonna say is if you know of
any students, urn, that is looking for a ride to the airport, uh, UISG is facilitating,
urn, a shuttle service, urn, from the campus to,uh, the Cedar Rapids Airport. Um,
yeah,pretty much it! Thank you!
Throgmorton: Great, and when does that start?
Stewart: Urn....I believe it is the Friday of finals week, but I might....it's around then.
Throgmorton: Is it just for the holiday break or what?
Stewart: Yes,just for the holiday break and, urn, I believe, uh, we did it for Thanksgiving
break and I think we plan on doing it for, uh, the spring break period as well.
Throgmorton: Okay, great!
Stewart: Thank you!
Throgmorton: Thanks, Gustave.
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14. City Council Information
Throgmorton: I wanna....I wanna distinguish between what we're gonna do right now and what
we do during the work session. In the work session,uh, what I was hoping to get
is reports on what boards, commissions, etc.,that we're assigned to, have been
doing. For this, it's just about....pending work session topics, upcoming
community events, Council invitations, what you've done, meeting schedule, I
mean stuff like that. So, let's start with Rockne and move to the right.
Cole: Um,just a few different things in terms of various events going on in the
community. Um, there is an annual....my daughter just started trumpet in fifth
grade, so I'm much more into brass and interested in those issues. There is an
annual holiday tuba concert at the University of Iowa Old Capitol Museum. Uh,
the UI Tuba and Euphonium Ensemble will be bringing seasonal music and cheer
to the University of Iowa. Takes place Friday, December 7th, from 12:30 to 1:00
P.M. on the steps of the Old Capitol Museum. That sounds like a lot of fun to me
so...I....I might actually go to that. Uh,there's also a 2018 Holiday Market, um,
the Holiday Market will take place from 8:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. on Saturday,
December 8th at Robert A. Recreation Center, um, 220 S. Gilbert Street. Uh, the
market will be held in the recreation center's first floor gymnasium and second
floor social hall. Uh, Farmers Market vendors will make homemade home craft
and seasonal goods. And then finally, um, we're getting up to the winter solstice.
Um, you can celebrate the winter solstice with friends and family at the Winter
Solstice Festival of Light. The celebration will take place from 6:00, uh, 6:00 to
8:00 P.M. on Friday, December 215t, 2018 at the Robert A. Lee Recreation
Center. That's all I have!
Thomas: I'll just mention Susan Craig retired, is retiring. I'm not sure exactly when her
last day is but, uh....there was a....an event at the Library, uh, Room A, urn,
celebrating her 40....41 years of service. It was a really nice event, urn,
Library....the folks who love libraries, it's kinda fun to be around those people,
and uh, so it was...it was a real pleasure to be there.
Throgmorton: Yep! Susan?
Mims: Just, urn, you know we're coming up on a major break in our community. You
know we have the summer when all the students leave and we have this next
month or so when the town kind of empties out and so I would just wish
everybody, uh, safe travels, especially in this winter weather. Urn,hope their
planes, trains, cars, whatever mode of transportation (laughs) you're using, urn,
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get there safely and don't get delayed, um, by terrible winter weather. So just
hope everybody enjoys the break, the holidays, and comes back invigorated, uh,
for their second semester, for those who are on the academic calendar and you
know hopefully things will slow down a little bit for us over that time too and
we'll come back and hit budget season! (laughter)
Throgmorton: Oh, thanks! (laughter) Pauline?
Taylor: Uh,just to echo on John's comments about, uh, the retirement reception for Susan
Craig. It really was a nice event. Very well attended. Uh, it was great to see
Marian Karr was there and it was good to see her smiling face again and to chat
with her and catch up with, uh, what she's been doing in her retirement, urn, and
allow the comments made by people, uh, about Susan were just spot on for what
she's done for, uh, our literary community. So it was a really nice event. Urn,
Jim and I, uh, I think it was in the, uh, late packet, the listening post summary.
Uh, attended that out at Weber Elementary. That was very nice and pretty well
attended. Good comments from the folks. Urn.....in the past week I've attended
two events that are related to,urn, University, uh, dealings. Uh, the SCIU, the
union that represents the healthcare workers presented their contract to the union,
or to the hospital, and uh, also then there was a 'Save the Labor Center' summit,
uh, the other day, uh, regarding the Labor Center, and I know we don't, we're not
in the business to tell the University how to do their business and they don't tell
us, uh,how to do ours, um....but uh....how the University chooses to handle both
of these situations will ultimately affect, uh, members of our community and we
should pay, uh, close attention to how each of those, uh, play out. That's all.
Teague: On, urn, the 30th of November, urn, there was a....a,the readin' of names from
sunrise at 6:45 A.M. until 4:40 P.M. and I was, urn, very fortunate to be a part of
that day, where we read, urn, the names of individuals that have passed away
from, urn, HIV/AIDS. Urn, and it really did,urn, humanize,urn, all of these
individuals by readin' their names and they had a....a quilt that was dedicated to,
urn....um, that was made by....I'm not sure if it was actually made by, urn, IC
RED committee members or from....yes. Come on up!
Wu: Urn, it was actually a panel from the AIDS Memorial Quilt, urn, so each year IC
RED, or I guess Red Week in the past, urn,has brought it over from Atlanta.
Teague: Thank you!
Throgmorton: State your name again, please.
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Wu: I'm Austin Wu, uh, should I put my address down or....
Throgmorton: No. (laughter)
Teague: So that was a, urn....it was actually a very emotional day. Um,just to be up there,
bein' a part of that. Um, I....on December Pt, after the rain stopped,urn, I took
my two nieces downtown and we got on the trolley, um, and that was fun. We
actually sang about three carols, which I think they only wanted to do one,but uh,
we had a singing group on our(laughs) on our trolley, so that was fun!
Throgmorton: I bet you did! (laughter)
Teague: And then my, now my niece....nieces are 9 and 11, wait....l 1 and 13, so I took
them over to sit on Santa's lap, but that did not happen (laughter) so we did go on
the Film Scene and look at Santa,but they were like we are too big to do that
(laughter) so, urn, it was a fun weekend, urn,with them, walkin' around, urn,
downtown Iowa City. Even went to see all of the bears, which was in the Hilton
Garden Inn. Urn, the....the teddy bears, and that room was beautiful. It was
decorated very nicely with all the teddy bears that was there. Urn, a few things
that'll be corrin' up. Uh, will be the choir, urn, in the LGBT community on the
15t of December. They're gonna be havin' a concert and that's gonna be at 7:30
P.M. at Zion Lutheran Church. Urn, other than that, there's a few things that I'm
gonna be goin' to, urn, it's gonna be Think Iowa, urn, and that's gonna be on the
11th. Urn, and that'll be a City luncheon, um, with Think Iowa. Urn, other than
that, um we. we have students that are gettin' ready to take finals and I wish
all of them the best during this time. I remember those days,but they're over
(laughter)
Throgmorton: Maz?
Salih: I really don't remember anything. I don't have anything (mumbled) Thursday I,
uh, I....am going to the (mumbled) dinner, something like that, with Little
Village. Uh,because I been voted at best elected official with,uh, Stacey Walker
and we have like I guess breakfast(mumbled) everybody invited. (laughter)
Throgmorton: Congratulations!
Salih: Thanks!
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Throgmorton: Is that it? You've been outta town though. Where'd you go?
Salih: Yeah, I....I went to Sudan,to bring my mother. She's sick and she's here right
now,yeah, even though she don't like the cold but....I promise her only one
month and she can leave. Yeah.
Throgmorton: Well welcome back! So I would like to wish all of our Jewish residents and
friends a Happy Hanukkah. I would also like to mention about the listening post,
Pauline, that one of the things we heard was concerns expressed about the
encroachment of CAFO's in the southern part of Johnson County and the
potential health risks in Iowa City associated with CAFO's. And a CAFO
(Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation) is (several talking) so the....and the
health of,uh, public health concern that was expressed has to do with,um,
airborne or water borne spread of community MRSA, which is a highly
infectious,urn,bacteria,right? And, Pauline knows a lot more about that than I
do,but....yeah, so they....they wanted us to be aware of their concerns and about
how there's a new organization that's formed, what is it, Save Our.....Iowa Land?
I don't remember the exact name now. Anyhow, we did that. Like Bruce I read
names at the World's AID....World AIDS Day. I went aboutnoon and the told
me you'd already been there,that you were there like 7:00 or something like that
in the morning(laughs) I thought, okay, good for you! I don't wanna do it. I
also, uh, I'm sure some people would like to know that there's a supervisor
candidate forum tomorrow night,which is Wednesday, December the 5th,right
here in City Hall, starting at 7:00....7:00 P.M. Uh, I'm also going to be at Little
Village's breakfast of champions on Thursday to accept an award on behalf of
Iowa City,the City of Iowa City. That'll be fun. I'm gonna participate in a
Chamber Community Leadership Roundtable,which our fine City Manager
organized, on Friday the 7th, over in the Coralville Library,right? Yeah. And,
let's see....the Convention and Visitors Bureau annual awards luncheon will take
place on December l lth, the 1 1th, in the Graduate Hotel. So I'm gonna participate
in that as well. And, let's see, you and I, Bruce, are gonna meet with the
University's,uh, Government Relations Committee on the 12th of December.
Yeah. That'll be a fun thing to do. And I wanna....uh,this is the last thing I
wanna mention. I wanna alert you to an opportunity and see if any of you are
potentially interested in going,taking advantage of this opportunity, and that is
the Mayors Innovation Project is holding its winter meeting in Washington, D.C.
on the 25th and 26th of January. So if you're interested, let me know, uh,there's
no registration for member cities,people coming from member cities. So,uh, and
you know if....if you're interested and can do it, you know,that'd be a pretty
valuable thing to do. I think the topic....I don't have the list in front of me,but
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the topics (mumbled) discussing are spot on, so....that'd be a good reason to do it.
Okay, I think that's it for us.
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15. Reports from City Staff
c. City Clerk
Throgmorton: Kellie?
Fruehling: Just one clarification, your summary for the listening post will be in this
Thursday's info packet, so on the 6`s.
Throgmorton: Okay. Good deal!
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