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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-01-21 TranscriptionPage 1 Council Present: Bergus, Mims, Salih, Teague, Taylor, Thomas, Weiner Staff Present: Fruin, Monroe, Andrew, Dilkes, Fruehling, Hightshoe, Kubly, Knoche, Havel, Bockenstedt, Fleagle, Lehmann Others Present: Fixmer-Oraiz, McKinstry, Padron, Alter, Aguilar, Drabek (HCDC); Lenkaitis (UISG) Joint meeting with the Housing and Community Development Commission (HCDC) to discuss funding for the Aid to Agency grant program f IP41: Teague/ All right, so we are transitionin' to our Iowa City City Council work session for Tuesday, January 21st, 2020, here at City Hall. Um, and .... we have just invited HCDC up here to join in the first item that we're gonna discuss, and this is the joint meetin' with them in relation to the discussion for fundin' for the Aid to Agency grant program. I'm gonna invite Kirk up here and maybe give us a little background from staff perspective. Lehmann/ So Kirk Lehmann, Community Development Planner. I staff the HCDC. Um, I just wanted to go briefly over the background about how we ended up where we are today, so with some initial changes, the second round of changes, and then today s request. So in July, 2018, Council adopted changes to the Aid to Agencies process, where prior it had been one funding round that would occur from August through July when they would receive funding. Um, that... recommendation split Aid to Agencies into two sets of funds. So legacy agencies were those who had received funding in the past five years, and then emerging agencies were everybody else, with most funds going to .... to those legacy agencies. In January of 2019 then as that fust set of recommendations was... was going through its first funding round, um, HCDC was considering the legacy Aid to Agency allocation. Um, at that point in time, uh, HCDC had a budget request ... or a budget, uh, estimate of $355,000 and HCDC decided to make a recommendation for full funding of requests for legacy agencies, which was $625,500. Um, they requested a joint meeting with Council to discuss, and in February they had a joint meeting on .... on February 5th, and Council recommended approval of that, uh, as a one-time allocation with the understanding that HCDC would again revisit that Aid to Agencies process to see if there's a way to avoid those last-minute budget requests again. So .... HCDC went through another funding.... process, evaluation, from April to June, and then July made a new recommendation, and that is what you find in your agenda packet up there. So with that, legacy agencies was no longer those who had received funding in the last five years, but instead got incorporated into the City STEPS funding, or the City Steps plan which is the consolidated plan that is updated every five years, and that is also reviewed annually. So it gives it opportunity for new agencies to potentially come in, um, but it also adds some consistency because its a formal process for determining what are legacy agencies. So Council approved that in September, uh, and during that time City staff, plus the City Council—or City Manager's office, and HCDC representatives, as well as agencies, all met to discuss what budgets might look like in the future, and the Agency Impact This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 3 process, um, that works well and I'm .... I'm really heartened by the fact that we've had conversations with City staff, with the City Manager's office, uh, so I just kinda wanted to say thank you to everybody for putting so much time and energy into this. Um, and I think really tonight there's a couple reasons why we thought it might be good to just continue this conversation. Urn .... one is, and this is kind of overall, is to really shift our understanding, um, of the work that our human resources, uh, non -profits perform and that it's ... it's not necessarily charity. It's really an investment. And I think for Housing and Community Development Commission, every year we get funding requests that are .... that far exceed, um, and historically have far exceeded what we've been able to provide and I think that that's why last year you saw this real, uh, change, and there are reasons for that! Um, you know, just (clears throat) to kind of recap some of the data that we've had. Last time we had convened, you know, the local population has grown 11 % from 2010 to 2017. We've had increased costs of living, more than 14% inflation, um, from 2010 to 2018. And the number of people served by the agencies has increased and funding has remained flat or actually decreased. Uh, with increased demand, agencies have really needed to increase their staffing. And their supplies. And we've seen this actually, agencies coming forth and saying that they're at risk of losing federal funds because they can't get their matching funds. And that's a real concern, uh, for us. And really when I say investment, I mean I think that what I'm trying to get at is, you know, the services that our non -profits provide, uh, the City cannot provide, right, but they.... they really are providing benefits that have costs that .... that tri .... that trickle out throughout our entire community. Um, and so it's .... it's the human cost, but it's literally the .... the amount of funds that they can, um, they can generate and the projects that they do and the people that they serve, um, that type of investment, I think, is ... is something we should really be looking at and I say that as though they are vendors. They're providing services to our community, um .... that I don't think anybody else can really provide. Uh, so I think it's sort of important to kind of frame it in that, uh, regard, and then I kinda had two sort of goals, a short-term and a long-term. Um, one would be to create a starting point for funding agencies that accurately reflects public needs being served by those agencies. So the starting point that we had, it was like (mumbled) (laughs) you know, it was pretty abysmal and it had been flatlined for a really long time, for over a decade, which is before we came last year. And, um, we had....I.....I think what we're seeing is that we need a new starting point that actually reflects what is going on in our community, and I think that it was somewhat of a surprise to City Councilors last time because nobody had really presented data, and um, that's kinda what we were hoping to continue the discussion about today. Um, and so then our recommendation is that that starting point be 675, moving forward. $675,000. And then second is a long- term plan, and I really would like to .... urn, encourage another conversation that is to start planning for a sustainable investment resource outside of Aid to Agencies. So our recommendation, or my recommendation, would be that we collaborate with City staff to outline a pathway forward to launch a local option sales tax, uh, venture, and um .... I think that there's a lot of opportunity. That's one idea, uh, but I think that there's a real desire to push this a little bit further. The .... the community that we are a part of is really strong and vibrant, when we look at like our volunteerism, when we look about and see the diversity and the strength that we have. These seven goals, our social justice, our racial equity, all of. ... all of these elements, I think that we can rally around our non - This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 4 profits who serve our community and create, um.....a local option sales tax venture that would be successful, and so to keep those local non -profits in that, um, calculation for that. And so I really would welcome a conversation and a plan to move forward, because I think that we need that long-term, uh, that long-term vision, that long-term venture, whatever that may be. There've been a couple of those discussed — a utility tax, local option sales tax, uh, was the one that I think has gained a little bit more traction. So anyway those are kind of the opportunities that we have discussed with the, um, the Agency Impact Coalition and with City staff, uh, over this last year. So, um, those are kind of the two things I was hoping that we could discuss a little bit further, and then I would also like to introduce our Aid to Agenc.... or our .... Agency Impact Coalition. Too many agencies! (laughs) Uh, Agency Impact Coalition, um, actually put together a presentation to sort of introduce themselves and I think that they have some really, um, interesting and compelling information that as the HCDC, you know, it's really their story to tell. So, um, if it's okay with you, I .... I think that they would like to show their presentation. Teague/ Sure! Do we have staff that can help set up the computer? Ross/ Hi, good evening, my name is Nicki Ross. I am, uh, Co -Chair of the Agency Impact Coalition. We convened for the first time last February, um, and we have 17 of 22 agencies, um, who receive A to A funding are part of our coalition. I'll let (unable to hear, turned away from mic) (laughs) Canganelli/ I'm Crissy Canganelli, Executive Director, and Shelter House is a member of the Agency Impact Coalition. Ross/ Um, before we begin, so I know how quickly to move, uh, how much time would you like to give us for this .... part? (laughs) Teague/ Um, how much time did you .... would you like? Ross/ (laughing) I will keep it snappy and you can ask questions if I go over things too quickly, how bout that? (several responding) Okay (laughs) Um, so really we will reiterate what it is that V said. We are asking for an investment in our collective community impact. We wanna talk a little bit about that today. Something that might have been missing from the process, a prior process, and the determination of what funding should be for our social services in our community is really the conversation about what is that scope and how are we working together to provide this much-needed service, um, to our community and enrich the lives of people. We don't talk about that often enough in my opinion, and in the opinion of, um, AIC. So let's start with talking about .... ooh, I'm going the wrong direction (laughs) Urn .... the continuum, um, the continuum of care, the idea that we have funded organizations as a "okay we're gonna put some funds here to healthcare, to education, to employment." We wanna make sure everybody understands, um, and the reason we convened together was to tell our story together. This is a continuum of care. Every piece works together. All these organizations work together to provide a framework and a safety net for folks in our community who are vulnerable. We cannot This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 5 do it on our own as a single organization. The City cannot do it on their own. We have to combine that together. Um .... that collective impact has substantial economic multipliers. And a significant public benefit that positively impacts our community. Um, I'm gonna go through some of these pretty quickly, but I'm gonna ask also, um, Crissy to help me (laughs) We have several points, uh, about.... actual cost impact to our community for some of. ... some of the work that we're doing collectively. Um, and I try to identify where the information came from, urn .... at the end here. So we know that the winter shelter decreased the, um, decreased vagrancy calls by as much as 74%. That's a decrease in public safety costs. Um, in terms of healthcare, we're sending folks to the appropriate level of care when they get, um, support from the Free Medical and Dental Clinic, and then, you know, improvements in housing are also, uh, contributing to those decreased healthcare, hospitalization, emergency room, and even incarceration costs. The other two areas, um, that we chose to identify tonight, just know this is .... there's so many more, we tried to like sum it up (laughs) Um, it's just that improved employability. So the youth organizations, um, in our community who are a part of this, uh, are building mentoring relationships that have enabled 55% of the student mentees to stay in high school. 100% of everyone in the Youth Transitional Living program as part of UAY has obtained or maintained employment. I mean, not just providing housing, but actual economic contribution is provided. Um, childcare, I think you can, I mean that's a clear connection (laughs) Um, and then the .... the other piece, last piece we wanted to talk about, was how our organizations are actually capturing extremely valuable resources that are .... would not be captured by anybody else. So, um, first of all, well ... we're organ .... we're utilizing local funds to leverage state and federal funding. It's really important to know that as local funding decreases, we are at a huge risk of losing federal and state dollars if we cannot keep up. Um, for the Free Medical and Dental Clinic, 1.6 million of in-kind expert medical services are provided to people. That's how we can keep that cost so low, that's how we can provide appropriate care that doesn't involve going to the emergency room. Um, Table to Table, we just .... for what we bring to Iowa City, is $4.5 million worth of food that would go into the landfill. And we're getting it to people who need it. Um, food pantries, meal sites, and meal deliver.... delivery services are bridging that meal gap for a fraction of the cost of retail food. And wherever possible, all our agencies are utilizing, um, volunteers to provide basic services. That was a quick summary of that. (laughs) So let's move into what funding has looked like. Um, the Iowa Policy Project folks put together a, um, an assessment for us to understand how funding has kept up over time, and what they discovered is that when you take into, um, account inflation, Aid to Agency funding has decreased by 17%. Um, if Aid to Agency funding is meant to provide a stable.... source, something we can rely on to continue the level of our services, um, that's been a challenge, and it's not stickin' up there with us. Um, and so we have a few examples. Um, it's a lot of information that has been provided to you. Uh, I will ask Crissy to help me, uh, with some of the different items. So I'm just gonna call to your attention we've gotten six organizations to provide some very specific examples. A lot of what we talked about is broad, um, but here are some specific organizations. Um, so .... the Free Medical and Dental Clinic, they did receive an increase in funding, but take a look at double their weekly clinics and increased, you know, shifted their focus from, um, drop-in, uh, urgent care to more comprehensive health services. Um, I'm gonna let Crissy take over for me. (laughs) This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 6 Canganelli/ Um, so to, uh, pick up where Nikki left, is ... what we tried to do is take a snapshot of several different organizations and share with you, uh, given the level of funding in 2010. So if you'd look at that bluish text book there, um, given the level in 2010, compared to, uh, FY2019 funding.....to look at that in comparison to how our service needs or service costs based on either, uh, activity level, service of on .... or units of service, um, how those have changed in comparison with the level of funding received from Aid to Agencies. Um, in every way it's not kept stride. We've really struggled with trying to, um.... communicate different, um, metrics that would speak in a consistent way for the Council, um, but at the same time we also want to, as we're sharing this information, uh, add to the conversation that this is based on a gross assumption which is that, in the first case, that FY2010 funding .... was a relevant starting off place to even begin the conversation. And I would say without exception across the, uh, Coalition, uh, we agree that it is not. So, um, Free Medical Clinic, in indicating the, uh, numbers of individuals that they're seeing and the services, they've increased their weekly medical clinics by 30%. Uh, doubled the number of weekly dental clinics. Uh, talking about the scope of services, so more comprehensive care. Um, and shifting from acute to chronic care. All of these things are much longer conversations, but we're trying to truncate the information to make it, uh, something that can, uh, be metabolized in a short period of time in this evening's conversation. So 37% increase in costs, uh, required to support the increases and the number of scope of services, and then if we go back into the text box, um, it cost $317,000 per year to serve Iowa City residents in the Free Medical and Dental Clinic, and they're leveraging so much more. Um, and then briefly, um, just some high level kind of impacts and cost to the community, you can see there in the bottom, and I don't wanna continue to read everything for everyone, but .... any questions on that and ... and if there are I'd ask Barbara to ... to speak to that. Vinograde/ I knew Crissy could summarize what we were trying to get at (laughs) so thank you for that. Um .... and I'm just gonna go through really quickly. Um, I do encourage you to read these more closely. I think what they do is paint a picture for us of how every individual service has grown in its own way to meet a changing scope of need in the last 10 years. Um, and then how that reduction of funding is ultimately impacting, um, these organizations and our community. So UAY expanded programming, their funding has decreased by 54% .... in the last 10 years. They've adjusted the scope and direction of services, while having minimal budget increases. That's... you know, that's an incredible feat, um, but then to continue to do that with 50....54% less funding. Um, Community has, uh, has offered a 48% increase in their number of assists doubled the amount of food per visit. So, folks, when we're talking about people visiting a food pantry, um .... it really matters how much people are walking away with (laughs) like how long they can be fed by these programs, and (mumbled) doubling the amount of food per visit certainly makes an impact there. Urn.... the.....this.... this is correlated with .... this one's an interesting one because, um, to talk about why we should maintain the level of funding, um, this year with that increase in funding that was .... was offered by the City, um, Community was able to support an 8% increase in the number of people served. And do a Saturday, um, do a Saturday pantry. So these are real impacts. Um .... Shelter House, I'll let you speak to this. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 7 Canganelli/ Sure. Thanks. Um, so .... one thing that I'd use us as an exemplar of is that initially, uh, Aid to Agencies funding supported emergency shelter services. Um .... again the amount that we were initially awarded based on not necessarily relevantly, uh, need is I was told, and I'll be candid in this, going .... more than 15 to 20 years back (laughs) um, where you were funded at was based on, and I quote from past City staff and past Council Members that I advocated with, again, no one here today, uh, was a part of those conversations, but it depended on who you knew, um, within the staff and the Council, and when you came into the process. Not very data -informed. So, um .... just based on the changing in .... just alone on the nights of shelter, 148% increase in the nights of shelter. But over time and if we just look at FYI as a starting point, we have radically changed the service offerings through Shelter House and we're not unique. Other agencies have done the same work. So the work that we're doing is more sophisticated. It's more expansive. Not based on us driving that, but on the community need, and there are macro issues that we're responding to that we don't have control over. So programs such as 'rapid rehousing,' 'permanent support of housing,' which are allowing us to not just manage homelessness, but end it. And make real impacts in our community that have public benefit. These things are not even consideration in the current funding levels. And are technically, if we wanted to be restrictive in how we talked about that, not literally supported at the current levels. Uh, again using us as an example, um, that we're not unique. There are other .... the same stories across these different agencies. Is that helpful? Teague/ And I do wanna make sure that we'll have more time for Council to discuss with the commissioners, so.... Ross/ I .... that's why I asked! (laughs) Um, so you'll note two additional examples. It's the .... it's a similar story, but we all are doing things, um, expanding services or .... or Big Brothers and Big Sister has a waiting list. That's one thing we haven't talked about yet. What happens when you are not funded? You do not grow to meet the need and you have a really big waiting list, and that's fewer folks who can .... who can, um, benefit from these services. Uh, and so I'm gonna have Crissy speak to this last slide. Canganelli/ Um, so our focus here and our message is that we amplify and exponentiate the work of the City, your work, and we can't do that, uh, without your support. This is a collaboration. Um, in moving forward we have essentially three asks, and .... and it's to work together in collaboration to, number one, approve.... we recommend, to approve the current funding recommendation from Housing and Community Development Commission. Help us move the needle forward on this foundational starting point. Continue funding at this level. It's the minimum needed to maintain our sustainability, our consistency, and our continuity in care. To build, strengthen our continuum of care by increasing the investment in our operating capacity and our capital needs. And three, to commit. Commit to establishing new and increased financial resources, invest in our collective (mumbled) uh, collective community impact. We hope to do this, uh, in partnership with you. Thank you. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 8 Teague/ Thank you. All right, so that's the impact, um, the HC Impact Coalition members. So really appreciate you all comin' out and, um, havin' a video to share with the Council and the Commissioners today. All right, so we'll kinda open it up to Councilors and Commissioners to have a discussion. Padron/ I would like to say a few things from the last time that we met. (mumbled) these agencies combined provide, uh, have a full-time equivalent, uh, of more than 500 employees, and they bring to our community $36 million from other sources of funding, and also they provide benefits like retirement and healthcare and things like that to their employees. Teague/ Thank you. Thomas/ One .... one question I would have is on the, urn .... how is the .... how is your funding from private donations, the Aid to Agen.... the agencies, how .... how is their funding trending? Is it increasing as well? Or decreasing? Fixmer-Oraiz/ I am not aware of their private, um, funding, like resources, revenues. And I'm certain it's probably different according (both talking) Thomas/ Probably different but, yeah in terms of. ... is it trending .... is it flat as well or is it increasing? (several talking) ...speak to that? (several talking) Fixmer-Oraiz/ Yeah, maybe one of the agencies can speak to (mumbled) Mullins/ Stu Mullins from UAY. Ours has gone up. That's one of the .... they touched on, that we've had a, you know, we've halved our amount in the last 10 years and that's how we've tried to keep up, and yeah, our fundraising has been aggressive. We worked really hard at it and ifs .... it has gone up a lot. Um, I think in the last year or so it's gone up 150%, something like that. So thafs how we're trying to meet our gaps. Fixmer-Oraiz/ I will comment on that too is, you know, urn .... it also depends on your capacity, right? So how much capacity you have with staffing to commit to fundraising and I think that certain agencies probably are at a disadvantage or a steep learning curve, um, with ... with that, you know, so it's sort of a circular kind of (both talking) Mullins/ (mumbled) I mean I'm .... I'll make one last comment. I mean we, that was a, by design the board and I, um, and our management team, we wanted to go after it aggressively and put somebody in that role. A to ... to fill that gap where we were losing money, um, but also to have the community better understand our value. That was a big piece of it was just we needed to do a better job of raising money, but a better job of showing why we're important. So.... Thomas/ I .... I would just comment that I think your presentation, uh, this evening where you... you did show the kind of collective impact, um, addresses to some degree the fact that each agency's capacity to fundraise is different. So it seems to me that the collective con This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 9 ....concept both better.... portrays the fullness of what it is that's being provided, as well as could help with.... the.... the fundraising component, uh, that would go along with it. Salih/ I.....I just wanna ask you, remind me what the original amount .... we have, the City allocated for (both talking) Fixmer-Oraiz/ (both talking) ....before last (both talking) Salih/ Before the increase, yeah. Fixmer-Oraiz/ Before the increase. I can't remember, it was something like 350 (several talking) Salih/ 300 something, right? Fixmer-Oraiz/ 355 or something. Salih/ And .... (unable to hear person speaking away from mic) Fixmer-Oraiz/ 378. Yeah. (unable to hear person speaking away from mic) Salih/ It was how much? Lehmann/ 378,700 for a couple of years. Salih/ Okay, when .... when the last time we increase it? (several talking) Is 10 years ago, like 2000.....10? (several talking) Fruin/ Good evening, Geoff Fruin, City Manager. Um, when we've really looked back from fiscal year 10, it's been pretty steady. It's gone up a little some years, gone down a little some years. Both in the general fund contributions and in the CDBG contributions. Um, staff looks at it a little bit more holistically. It looks at, um, all the support that we're providing to agencies, not just legacy agencies or emerging agencies. So some of you may recall when this came up last year we laid out, um, while the grant program has stayed fairly stable since 2010, that funding level, the City has certainly, uh.....picked up funding for a number of other causes — winter shelter, behavioral access center, uh, things of that nature. Even the 1105 project we financially contributed to, and of course you're very familiar with what we've done in the affordable housing area. So when I look at Aid to Agencies, I don't look at it as a grant program. I look at it as more of a holistic approach to how the City is funding, uh, some of these community needs, and if you look at it that way, our support has grown tremendously since that time. However, the grant program itself has stayed very flat. What was proposed to you in the fiscal year 21 budget is roughly about a 25% increase over that historical flat level, but again that changes from .... from year to year. Um, that 25% increase was meant to reset the base, if you will. That was the conversation we had with the Council in August about resetting that base. So we looked at, uh, factors like the CPI, like a 2% inflation factor, uh, the This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 10 growth of our taxable base, and ultimately our recommendation was ... was that, uh... uh, 25% roughly increase. Fixmer-Oraiz/ I also might add too that the Aid to Agencies is a little bit different because it's, uh, somewhat unrestricted. So some of the other grant programs, yeah, this is ... this is different because it can be applied to salaries and things like that, um, just to show you that there's some nuance there and I think that's why.... agencies have really sort of come together around this issue because it's .... it's different than other grant, um, programs, but it is, you know, true what Geoff has said and we've been talking about that in our discussions. Um, it's just that this pot is different in that sense. (several talking) ...as you can imagine non-profit, it can be very vital. Alter/ I would just add to that when looking at individual fundraising that many times going outside of these funds, they are restricted. Um, and so .... and they might be small dollar, you know, a couple of thousand dollars is not small and yet if you're looking to be able to grow for those goals and those needs, that's an awful lot of grants that are having to be put together and there's a limited number of dollars in the private sector for that as well. So, um, I just wanted to mention that, that at the same time that there've been a lot of fundraising, um, efforts, um, they can't go for some of the things that are desperately needed in terms of operational needs. Bergus/ From a (several talking) (laughter) I was just going to say, from a policy standpoint I think one thing that would be helpful for me to understand from the current Council is really where we see ourselves in terms of this, um, framing as kind of the core governmental services and talking that investment in the community. I think Crissy, you know, tried to really talk about impact in terms of data, right? We wanna have data - driven information and understand the impact that is quantifiable in .... in some manner, and so I think the other, um, avenues that Geoff just mentioned, the affordable housing and, I mean I think even of our climate action grants and our, um, social justice and racial equity grants, I think the City has shown through those programs collectively that we have a policy understanding that we wanna support this kind of investment in our community and this kind of work. Personally I ... I very much appreciate what V said of having a fair and transparent process, and I think, you know, when we look at what the Council .... the Council's role in this is delegating the authority to HCDC to grant these funds in a relatively unrestricted way and so if we're just talking about what is the size of that pot and what's appropriate to reset it at. Again I'm just kind of looking for consensus on,um... do we think that that .... that number really was too low and resetting it to .... to the right point, is it 625? Is it 675? Personally I'm in favor of, you know, some.... some increase over history, as long as the Council uses that process and really does give the authority to HCDC to make those decisions. We've seen ourselves kind of bend over backwards and .... and, you know a smaller, specific requests and so that ... that's kind of where I'm coming from. Mims/ I guess where .... and I appreciate that comment, Laura, cause that helps with what I was gonna ask. Um, number one, I'm gonna come back to your point in just a minute, but if I This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page I I could first, I'm interested in asking the Coalition what kinds of requests and/or what kinds of money have you received from other municipalities? Weiner/ Can we add the County in there as well? Mims/ Sure! It ..... I .... I'm serious about this, folks. Coralville and North Liberty are each close to 20,000 in population, so when you put them together, they're about 50% of the population of Iowa City, and there comes a point that it is not fair, and I know you're all going to say 'Oh she doesn't wanna spend the money.' No, that .... that's not it! It's also about fairness. If they're 50% of the population of this metro area, they should be contributing a significant amount of money, and so if they're not even coming close to what Iowa City is giving, proportionally, I think we've gotta have some real serious conversations about how we move forward on this instead of Iowa City always being asked to pick it up. Reedus/ Becci Reedus, I'm the Executive Director of Community. Um, I think I can answer this a little bit differently than some of my counterpart and agencies in that there are food pantries that exist in Coralville and, um, North Liberty. Um, so Coralville and North Liberty do fund both of those food pantries. We do not seek funding for food pantries from Coralville or North Liberty. However, we have a basic needs program, um, and in that, um .... generally about two-thirds, maybe a bit more of the individuals that receive assistance through out basic needs programs are Iowa City residents. So I take a look at a total program when I'm presenting for funding for multiple entities and I take a look at the total number of recipients and I break it down very specifically by residency, and that forms the basis for our funding requests. You might, Iowa City might get a request out of I00 .... if I'm going for 100,000, I might ask $70,000 of Iowa City, for instance, I might ask 15,000 from Coralville, I might ask the remainder or close to remainder from North Liberty. There's no guarantee of ...of success in meeting that, um, but we do apply to all.....we go after all funding sources. I believe probably most of, uh, the non -profits with me in the audience today would say something similar. So I think our response is a little bit different. So we do go after those, um, requests, but, urn.... Councilman, the, uh, the fact is that the .... the larger proportion of our services are provided to Iowa City residents. Salih/ Uh huh. Vinograde/ I'm Barbara Vinograde with the Iowa City Free Clinic. I don't have the exact figures in front of me, but .... um, over 50%, I think it's 54% of Clinic users are Iowa City residents, and we also request, um, funding from Coralville. We ... about, I believe 13% of our patients are from Coralville, and a relatively small percentage are from North Liberty, but we do get funding from all three of those, uh, municipalities. I requested funding from North Liberty for the first time in this fiscal year that we're in now, and we did receive some. Coralville funding has increased, um, slightly over the last five years. And I can give you exact figures if you want. Um, they're in the ... in our application, as well. If you'd like exact figures .... we receive, um, about 5,500 from Coralville; 1,500 from This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 12 North Liberty; and until this last year, 15,000 from the City of Iowa City. (several responding) Mims/ I mean if you just, and I'm not saying this is the way it is, but if you looked at it purely on a population basis, you'd be looking, I think, roughly at two-thirds should come from Iowa City, um, and the other third coming from.... combined Coralville and North Liberty when you look at an 80 and 40, and so I'm just kind of curious (mumbled) Crissy, I'm just curious. I would also say, while Crissy's coming up, it ... it's interesting to me and it's not the answer or the solution to this, is .... how many people live in Iowa City because we have the services in Iowa City, versus .... they might chose to live in North Liberty or Coralville, but the services they need don't exist there, and so when we look at the number of Iowa City residents that are being served, they're also here because of the services. So.... Canganelli/ Well and so much of it is also how does one prescribe residency? 1151 I"OR"7i41fi! Canganelli/ Um ... that's different across different systems. And becomes obstacles for each of us, given the different funding sources that we're working with. Um, but I'd add, um, so funding from, um .... the other municipalities is a .... a fraction of what the City does provide to Shelter House. Um, the County is largely in step with City funding. I don't know, the other part of this is how does that compare with the resources that those entities, those municipal entities, have to, uh, distribute, right? Um .... when we met with, uh, Geoff and City staff, we talked — the Coalition that is — as far as wanting to make this conversation expand, um, more regionally. We understand that this goes beyond the City of Iowa City. That's not lost on us. And we know that we have an opportunity, um, or we believe that we have an opportunity with your leadership to, um .... inform that conversation in a different way and to inspire some more bold behavior frankly. Um, the City of Iowa City is the one community that has a consolidated plan. It is an entitlement community. Each of these organizations plays a vital role in executing and ensuring that that, uh, consolidated plan, that strategic plan, for addressing the needs of individuals who are lower to modest income, um, to be able to, um, not just survive but thrive in our community. We play a vital role in that. Um, we don't have that same kind of tool and vehicle to, uh, work out of with those other communities, but um, given an opportunity, we can certainly make those arguments. Um, it's just that they don't subscribe to the same kind of planning either. So .... does that..... Mims/ I appreciate it. I appreciate everybody's comments. To get back to your point, Laura. I'm .... what I would like to see us do, um, in regard to this is one .... I think this decision needs to be made in the context of the entire budget. And so I think while we all may have ideas in terms of we wanna see the full funding, we wanna see some increase but maybe not the full funding or whatever, I .... and I don't care what people have to say tonight from the standpoint of. ... of presenting those positions, but I think a formal.... formal decision kind of related to that should occur, probably at our next meeting when we .... we'll probably have the opportunity to talk about the budget, because we need to This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 13 look at where this money would come from, you know, are we comfortable taking more money out of reserves, do we, you know, what could it do to our tax levy, etc. So I think it does need to be decided in the context of the overall budget. Salih/ I just wanna say something here. You know .... no doubt this organization are providing really essential, critical service to our, you know, resident in Iowa City. As Vic said, as V said, you said that we need to look at this not as a like charity. I think the same thing. I really think that our contribution to those kind of organization not have to be .... we don't have, we have to stop looking at it as a charity. We should look at it as just .... we need to look at those, you know, those organizations as a vendor who are providing service to our residents of Iowa City. Just think about it, if this organization are not there, like I'm going to give few example. I know there is awesome, lot of organization but what come in my mind right now like the ... the Crisis Center for the food and the Shelter House and the Free Clinic, if we don't have those organizations there, that means we gonna have a lot of residents in this community who are staying without the basic need such as food, shelter, and .... you know, the healthcare or like clinic or just ... the right to go to the clinic. Just .... I ..... I would like the people to think about it as the same thing. Our cities cannot operate without water, without like, uh, infrastructure, without the road. Same thing! Our city .... also cannot really operate without our resident having access to food and shelter and healthcare. We really need to fund our .... we really need to fund our social service agency at the same amount last year we increase it to or the request that you guys have, which is 675, I think. And, um .... I don't thinks, if we look at this increase and this money, comparing to the City budget, is not that huge. It is really like small amount. When I see there is many like .... we invest thousands and million of dollar in some other project, of the City, and I think this is, especially this project is really, really an awesome project which help our vulnerable people in the community who are really.... in, they need the basic need like this is not like .... some is not like for .... for fun. They are not doing like .... some service that people are not needing. They doing critical services, which is basic need. I think, you know, um .... if we can just increase this like amount and make it like .... like this every year, keep it the same amount, because when I look at the (unable to understand) project and they saying that the fund has been decreased to 17%, that's the research saying that. That's like a number who is real and I think if we, since 2000, if we was increasing it since 2010, by certain amount every year, today we would reach the same amount, which is 600 -something. I really support that we just increase the amount that, you know, HCDC requested and I support the full fund. Thank you. Weiner/ I really appreciate the form that your presentation took. I appreciate enormously that the Agency Impact Coalition has taken the time to come together, uh, to work through this whole process, and to come up with a proposal that .... that demonstrates that these are a number of agencies that are not only serving our people, but that are working together to provide this continuum of care, as you described it. Uh, the other piece that I appreciate is that you're .... in looking forward, not just talking about the base funding that you're looking for right now, but you're also looking to .... other .... stable, permanent means of funding going forward. So sort of creating.... creating community in that way as well. There are a couple of numbers that struck me. One was the re .... in real terms, 17% decrease in funding. The other one that someone mentioned earlier was also the .... the This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City session of January 21, 2020. Page 14 increase in population of 11 % over a .... over a more limited number of years. When you put those together, those are substantial numbers. Um, the .... it's basically from my perspective, it's Maslow's.... Maslow's Law. If. ... you don't have the basics in life, uh, you can't really focus on anything else. You can't focus on learning, you can't focus on a job, you can't focus on .... on moving forward in your life. So I am interested in looking at it in .... in the context of the overall budget picture. I think it's important that we do that and make sure that as we look at our budget, as the City, that it's part of. ... that it's ... that we look at it holistically. Uh, I'm also interested in looking at it in the larger context of what other cities are doing, what the County is doing, so that as .... as much as were doing with the, um, with .... the.....the new, um.....(several talking) the access, thank you, the access center, that this is something that not only maybe agencies can.... can.... can approach jointly, but perhaps, uh, governmental agencies can ... can approach jointly. So basically I .... the need is there. These .... you are contributing to the community, and I think this should be part of our overall budget discussion. Taylor/ I also agree we should include it in our overall budget discussion, just to, um, see the numbers. I....I do very much appreciate the, I didn't even know the Agency Impact Coalition existed and I .... I appreciate their information and ... and all the data, that Laura mentioned about, uh, data -driven information. I think our nation and our country, people have become so data -dependent. They like to see the numbers and the data, uh, the real, uh, grit behind what they're trying to make decisions on. Uh, people do that in their everyday lives in their own budgets in their homes and look at data, uh, and what they're using for energy, etc., uh, so I do appreciate your report. Um, and I ... I also appreciate the HCDC because we have appointed these people to this commission, uh, to do exactly that, to ... to look at these agencies and to divvy out the funds as they've seen needed, and they've seen over the years obviously an increasing need and ... and as the data was shown, uh, by the, uh, Impact's, uh, presentation, there is a need out there, but there were some other options mentioned. Uh, V, you had mentioned the LOST, uh, and we as a group have talked about that many times. We, uh, of course, we kind of had blinders on and were thinking of, um, for road use, cause Cedar Rapids uses their LOST, most of their LOST funding for road use, but ... but this is obviously a big community need here and I .... I just, uh, really appreciate the comment, I don't remember who said about the, uh, these agencies are, uh, these plans, it's for individuals not to just survive but to thrive, and I think and ... and as everyone has eluded to, we want the members in our community to thrive, no matter what their income level is or who they are. So 1 think that is something, and that would go along with our budget, more of our budget decision, rather than just saying flat out now this is how much we wanna do. Teague/ I guess for me, um, I .... what I hear is definitely that we're gonna have, um, continued discussion about this. Councilors, we do have two more meetings before we actually, uh, finalize the budget, so the 4th and the 18th is when we will have the finalization I guess for scheduled Council meetings, um, because of some of the things we have to get for state documents and that type stuff, and public hearing, um, obligations. So, uh, just as a point of reminder. As I think about this, I actually, um, am happy that Geoff, uh, made comment because he talked about the global, of what we've done here within our community, and so .... when I hear about the winter shelter, the access center, the 1108 This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 15 buildin'? 1105 buildin', I knew it was somethin' (laughs) um, the affordable housing, um, that .... it really, really makes me happy that our community actually has done a lot, um, when I think of a human rights city, um, these are the elements, as Councilor, uh, Weiner talked about, you know Maslow hierarchy, and so .... I'm very happy to hear all the things we have done. What I do know is therefore the Aid to Agencies, um, I would have to agree with V, it is a little different. Uh, this is where, um, we're talkin' about the ... the impact for the services, for them to be activated, there's a employment element to a lot of this, um, and, you know, fundins' are very different. I'm not gonna even try to compare, um, federal funding matches, um, other community matches. What I do know is that within our community, um, we pride ourself in ensurin' that we take care of everyone within this community, and we're talkin' about, you know, the basic needs of individuals, and .... and this continuum of care. I love that model, uh, where you all show the continuum of care. It really does touch base on, um, all the needs of those within our community that are less fortunate or really do need help. Um, we all have our personal stories and I won't go into mine, but I can tell you that, um, our agencies do make a difference in our community. So for me, I know we're gonna wait till the 4th and the 18th, um, but you know, I am .... beyond convinced that we need to increase the funding for our Aid to Agencies, and so, um .... so that's where I am, and where we are, I do believe, um, as Councilor Bergus talked about, you k now, we need to look at this from a policy point of view, you know, how do we .... if we're gonna do this, how do we make it sustainable, uh, and I believe that we do have to have those conversations as Councilors, um, but I think we do need to also be aggressive in what we're gonna do, to make sure the individuals that are on the .... they're the ones that are doin' the work, um, we need affordable housin' and, you k now, all these structures to house people. We need that, but when I think of social workers, uh, everyone within these agencies, I consider them to be social workers. They are navigatin' the system to make life, um, things that we .... a lot of us just take advantage.... that we just have, we have, you know, all these opportunities and so for me I'm lookin' forward to the conversation on the 4th and/or the 18th, uh, where we further our discussion, um, so .... yeah! Thomas/ I'm .... I'm supportive of the, um, the request for the 675,000. I ... it is interesting, uh, really.... useful presentation that was made in terms of the .... the collective actions, 500 employees, um ... that make up those services. The City of Iowa City has 600 employees (laughs) roughly so that's a vast network of services that are being provided by the agencies. Uh, and you know, I think as I mentioned earlier, presenting them as a collective, and their collective community impact I think is really useful, and I hope will help with, uh, the contributions that will be coming from the community, because I'm concerned that the state and federal levels are fragile as well. So, you know, I do feel, uh, your .... your impact on the community needs to be understood by the community, and that will also help with the funding efforts, um, but I think it's clear the City of Iowa City has .... has strived to be a leader on these issues and I would add transportation to all the other things that were mentioned. So equity plays a very big role in Iowa City and I think this is an important piece that needs to be corrected. Salih/ Yes. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 16 Teague/ So would it be .... would Council be in agreement that maybe we can put this on the February 4th meeting, um, just to continue some budget.... items then? (several responding) Bergus/ Yeah, I think I have a couple of requests for staff, but I wanna get your all buyin before I ask for that. Um, one would be to quantify those things that Geoff mentioned of, kind of what are all these, um, different mechanisms of support and what are those buckets, right, because they....they may have different funding sources or they may come out of different funds, but what we could characterize and what we could articulate to the community as .... you know, promoting those types of, um, services, not just the Aid to Agencies but I .... I think that would be really helpful, if that's something staff thinks they could pull together, for that global discussion. Um, and then also the .... the question of just where HCDC's role is. I'm wondering if, um, and V, maybe I could put you on the spot, um, if you feel like the Commission has kind of the right parameters for the scope of what we're talking about, given that this funding is changed, even just that big jump the one year, um, do you feel like you have adequate direction. I think staff is kind of recommending a different direction. And so I'm just.... Fixmer-Oraiz/ What exactly do you mean in terms of the parameters (both talking) Bergus/ Yeah, is the Commission's charge from the Council and the City appropriate for the scope of really what we're talking about in the types of services that we're helping to fund. Fixmer-Oraiz/ I mean I can speak for the Commission that we're on right now, the Commissioners that I have, and the process that we've been through with the Agency Impact Coalition and other organizations that, um, I think we've learned a lot (laughs) Um, and I feel fairly confident that I am also .... really for process and transparency. Um, I think we understand our role, um, in terms of what we need to bring to you, and that some of the changes that we have made have really incorporated a lot of staff comment, uh, which I think has kind of leveled the playing field there. So I feel like we're .... we're very comfortable in our role, um .... and now that we have the Agency Impact Coalition and our other organizations, um, I feel like there's a real clear channel of communication and also with Council. So this has been very illuminating for us and a great learning process. I mean I don't wanna speak for all of us but I feel like we've (laughs) kinda gotten to a point where we feel comfortable with where we're at. Bergus/ You don't feel like you're kinda off on your own making recommendations that aren't fitting into the framework of what the Commission is supposed to do. Fixmer-Oraiz/ I don't think so, and I think that it also fits into the larger goals of the City. I think what we do is we try and make sure, and I've had conversations with some of our, um, agencies as well, that you know, they really want to help fulfill the seven goals. So how can they do that? How can they, um, you know, incorporate into their services aspects of that. So I .... like I said, I think that we have a really good working relationship and I think that the role that we play is ... I will say that today it's way better than when I first This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 17 stepped in two years ago (laughs) I felt like it was blinders, and now I feel like we actually have a process that staff and agencies, and the Commission, have really worked hard to make it feel like, you know, people aren't on the chopping block. We're not making decisions in isolation. Um, and that there's a real fair, um .... and inclusive process. So, that's kinda how I feel. I think that we're pretty well charged at this point, and the Commission even beyond the people that are a part of it, I think, has a better understanding of its role. Salih/ I just wanna say something final before you close this. You know, I know that, you k now, the City and staff already propose budget for us. That it would reduce the tax 6 -cent. And I know that most of the Council are for the reduction of the tax, even though it only six -cent, I always think that our residents not gonna feel it and if I said don't (unable to understand) like leave it alone, just, uh, you know, don't increase it, don't reduce it. But maybe the City Manager going to say, or the Finance person, they will tell me the six - cent is from the .... I guess the debt service levy. I understand that you cannot use this money to give out like another money but we are using .... like from the general fund some money to do some kind of project. Instead we can just bond for that, make it for the debt service levy, and use this money, and don't reduce tax, don't increase tax, leave it alone! Just as it is. Our resident is not gonna feel that. Anyway, you .... you just take this with you and when we come back during the budget maybe we can think about this so we are not gonna interrupt the budget of the City, if that's gonna be interruption if you cannot find something else. I just propose that to the Council. Weiner/ If I could add one thing is that the other piece that I fou .... that I think gives a fair amount of. ... of structure and certainty now is folding the existing agencies into the City STEPS process, uh, and having this five-year window so that there's a certain amount of certainty and .... and agen.... and agencies can know what to expect, um, certainly for a two-year period, but probably further on. So that to me is an important part of the process, um, and I .... I do believe that whatever level we end up at that ... that process and then sticking to those goals and those budget levels will be important going forward. Teague/ I know Councilor Bergus had made a .... recommendation, um, but need other Council support to request that Geoff do some quanti.... some quantifyin' of kind of the global things. So.... Mims/ I think we've gotten that before and I'm sure (both talking) Teague/ All right, so ..... all right. I just wanted to make sure that we had that support. So thank you. Um .... (several talking) Fixmer-Oraiz/ I just wanted to, um, ask .... for the local option sales tax, when we're thinking long-term. Is there ... some way we can start that conversation, or is there something that you would need from HCDC or...you know, like .... I know it's kind of a large conversation, but just trying to think small baby steps, you know, what would that process look like or how could we work with staff or, you know, the Agency Impact Coalition just trying to get a feel for that (both talking) This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 18 Mims/ Yeah, what I would say to that, V, is I think we're going to be, um, discussing that probably in quite a bit of detail here shortly, um, in terms of some of the other planning for the City in terms of, um, stability for the budget, as you talked about. We're, you know, you may realize that we're one of the .... we're the only metropolitan area in the state that doesn't have it. Um, I think one of the .... some of the discussion that we will have to have at that point is what does the actual ordinance language look like in terms of how much do we tie our hands in terms of where that money goes. Um .... we've looked at what various cities have done and what gives you the best chance of getting that percentage that you need at the ballot, um, and so what I think we have to do is in talking with staff, in the Council discussion, talking with communities, the community and agencies, etc., that all have their various interests, is .... trying to make a final decision that gives us the best opportunity to make sure it gets passed. Which might mean that it doesn't include it all being sliced and diced the way some people would want, because what we've seen happen with some communities is you slice it and dice it too much and you get somebody who says "I don't like that 5% so I'm going to vote against it. I don't like that 10%, so I'm going to vote against it." So it's.... it's that balance of having some structure to it, but having it fluid enough so that we can get the votes. So we'll have that discussion certainly going forward. Fixmer-Oraiz/ I would just like to propose, in my conversations with the Agency Impact Coalition, um, I feel like they really see potential in partnering in terns of .... you know, the services they provide Iowa City are very, um, robust and, uh, community invested. So ... even when you're thinking about, you know, I know a lot of um LOST it can be like, oh, we're doing parks and rec, and so the community sees, oh, we have better parks. When you're thinking about, you know, the agencies and what they provide, they could really be great partners in saying 'this is what we provide,' and so it's a....it's sort of a win-win. I just know there's been a lot of conversation about the benefit of having our agencies and how, uh, some sort of like, you know, awareness campaign or local option sales tax could be helpful in that. So just to kind of add that to your conversation. Thank you. Teague/ Appreciate that. Thank you so much. I wanna thank the Commissioners for comin' out today and bein' a part of the conversation, and also for the Agency Impact, um, Coalition, uh, for also comin' out today. Thank you all so much! (several talking in background) While they are transitionin' off I did at least wanna make mention of somethin' that Maz talked about. So the, um, as far as like .... our ability to change the, um, the tax rate, um, that has to be set by January 28th, which is, um, before the next Council meeting, so I just wanted to at least make that notation so it is aware. Frain/ Mayor, as we're gettin' settled, can I chime in real quick (both talking) funding mechanism. Uh, at your next Council meeting, you need to set the public hearing on your maximum tax rate. So that's part of the new legislation that was passed last year. This is a new step. Uh, therefore we have to publish that maximum tax rate at .... for your next meeting. (several talking) ...because we're setting the public hearing. So when you set the public hearing, you have to .... put it out, put that tax rate out there, and that's the This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 19 maximum. So you cannot go up. So if the Council has an interest in raising the tax rate to fund an increase, we need to know that tonight. Um, my suggestion, and .... and of course we had talked about this scenario, uh, coming into the meeting, you k now, we would not suggest that you .... use the tax rate to .... to fund an increase. Um, we do budget a .... a surplus this fiscal year, uh, budget that you have proposes a $70,000 surplus. Um, but we are also over, um, slightly our target reserve level. So our maximum target in general fund reserve is 35%, uh, and we're about 36% now. So for a funding increase of a scale that you're talking about, uh, what we would suggest is we use that surplus and then we use some one-time funds to bridge the gap this year, and then we incorporate that as a goal going into the FY22 budget, so that, um, we can maintain that level and not see a drop and again, um, if you're willing to set that priority for your fiscal year 22 budget right now, I don't see any problem in using the one-time funds, uh, that we have to....to bridge that gap, and that way you're not getting into tax rate discussions. Salih/ Okay. You mean you .... you think you have a ways, as you mentioned, all those kind of opportunity for this year. Fruin/ Yes. Salih/ And also you have a way to do it next year, hopefully. Fruin/ Hopefully, yes. I ... I mean that becomes a top priority because you don't want this to be a pendulum where, you know, one year it's up and one year it's down. Um .... so that's a... that's a priority, and as you know, you'll have a number of priorities going into next budget. We'll just have to really make that commitment here to .... to bridge that gap, uh, but we're talkin', dependin' on where you land, 100,000 or so, um... Salih/ I .... I believe if you can figure it out, you know, we don't need to do anything. That's my personal, you know, really if you can figure it out then we don't need to change tax or we don't have to go through with those kind of things. You know. Fruin/ So I think the option is allow staff to work within the current tax levy, sorry, tax rate that we've...we've established. If you wanna give yourself that other option, we can publish a higher tax rate and then scale it back, but that's going to cause a lot of confusion and angst in the community. Salih/ Yes. Mims/ I'd rather stay where we are. Salih/ (both talking) ....if you can figure it out. We don't have to do anything! Determine discussion topics for February 11th ioint meeting with UISG 1IP51: Teague/ All right! Great, well on the 4a' of February we'll have it on the agenda to have more discussion. All right, so we're gonna move on (several talking in background) to, we're This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 20 gonna be havin' a University of Iowa Student Government, um, joint meetin' with Council, and that's going to be February 11th, and today we wanna talk about what topics we might want to discuss with the UISG. Lenkaitis/ Yeah, so I guess I'll (laughs) thanks! Um, good to be back with you all and welcome new Council Members. Um, so yeah, so I guess just to preface the conversation here, Austin and I really want the conversation on, uh, is it two weeks from now? Two weeks from now, to be productive. Um, and so we really wanna pick, you know, specific agenda items that are, you know, going to progress the conversation, um, and make it productive overall. So I sent you all an email before I went off to break. So you should have had time to look over the results of the survey, but there was considerable, um, attention on affordable housing, as always, um, also carbon out ... output, looking at climate action steps, um, and also physical safety of students was something that, um, I was kind of surprised by as far as, you know, in ... just in talking about that with you all. But, yeah, I know graduate and undergraduate student government, um, members are very excited to have your undivided attention, um, at this joint meeting, and so, yeah, just wanted to get some input from you all as to, um, other items that you'd like to add to the agenda. Mims/ I think the ones that the students want are the most important ones. Teague/Sure! Mims/ You know, if others have.... Thomas/ Well I certainly agree with, you know, the three top priorities, um, should be .... should be discussed. I'm .... I would add perhaps, urn .... you know there are special areas, geographically, in Iowa City, uh, that are of concern to you, um .... in whatever, for whatever reason that they might be a concern. Uh, so I mean the three we're talking about, I mean physical safety might be an example of that actually, where it specifically what are we talking about. I mean I think its possible to take any one of those three and try to be more specific about what it is, the concern is. Lenkaitis/ Right, yeah, and I guess I .... that's kinda what I wanted to get from all of you is looking at those, um, those comments, those themes as, you know, as big umbrellas and um, just, you know, just to have that on the agenda, items from you like things to talk about, I don't know, um, things that you guys have been working on in the City, you know, on that .... on that side of things, just to kind of start the conversation there, and obviously at the joint meeting, I mean it's just gonna be a big ole' conversation, so nothing's going to be voted on. You know, very casual, laid back, just an opportunity to have some open conversation. So just like something to kind of get the conversation moving, if there were any, you know, specific things you wanted to make sure to talk about that address these issues, um..... Taylor/ I was thinking that, uh, one item that wasn't listed but kinda goes along with all of those is the parking issue. That's a big issue and I know it's a concern of students and .... and This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 21 residents also in the city, but I know students especially, probably they come in with a car and they don't know what to do with it then. So we might have some discussion on that, with their thoughts and what they think the City might be able to do to help 'em with that. Teague/ As a point of reference, um, like for the physical safety of students, um, I wonder if. ... I mean we may be able to kind of comment on that, but I wonder if maybe we wouldn't have someone from the Police Department, urn .... because I know we have the downtown officer ending and might be able to.... Fruin/ Yeah, we'll.... we'll, just takin' notes here, we'll have sort of our subject matter staff experts present that night so (several talking) police. That sounds like climate action, NDS, and affordable housing. We'll have folks there to help you out. Teague/ Awesome! One thing that I would love to hear about, and I don't know what the Councilors think, is we hear that the students kinda stay downtown (laughs) and we would love to find out what are some of those barriers for gettin' them in other parts of the community. Um .... so at least me personally I would love to know what would it take to get them, you know, to other parts of the community. Thomas/ One thing that has come up, uh, in some recent conversations with students that I've had, some of them were door knocking for various presidential candidates and um, I was surprised to how articulate they were on the question of affordable housing. Uh, so one of the ways that conversation could be framed would be, uh, housing preference. You know, I heard some preferences from students in terms of what type of housing they would be interested in, uh, including options such as, uh, co -living, for lack of a better word. You know, where you have, uh, shared common spaces but .... which can include kitchens, for example. Again, that ties into the affordability issue. So what .... beyond sort of the housing types that we see, uh, what are some thoughts of the students, as well as with.... within the conventional framework that we often deal with, you know, of. ... buildings up to three stories, perhaps up to six stories, and then .... our highrises. How do .... how do students feel about those options? Teague/ And as far as the structure of the meeting, um, what is the length of time for the meetin' itself? Lenkaitis/ Yeah, so .... the UISQ you know, normal meetings usually go from 7:00 to 9:00, you know, that's the cap at 9:00 and then there's committee time after that, um, so definitely no longer than two hours. Um, I'm not sure that we'd get to that length, but, um, yeah, we would just have, you know, introductions and go through, um, an agenda. Austin and I are going to draft up an agenda and then we can send it off to you just to, you know, see a draft of the final agenda. If there's anything that you all would like to change, um, we can address that at the next City Council meeting. Um .... and, uh, yeah, just .... yeah I'll send you a final agenda so you can see how the process will go, but yeah. Definitely not over two hours for that. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 22 Teague/ Okay. It would be helpful for our Councilors to know how much time we'll have so we can govern ourselves accordingly (laughs) (both talking) Bergus/ Sorry! Just subject matter, um, a lot of the themes I was seeing, obviously waste management was a high one of the second and third priorities, and it looked like from the individual comments specifically recycling and compost. So, Geoff, I think if we can have some information. I think it's a great opportunity just to share, you know, what... what's available, what we're already doing, directions we can go in addressing some of those concerns. I just wanna make sure that one's on the list for .... having some information available. Teague/ Great. (mumbled) Any other thoughts on this topic? Lenkaitis/ No, I mean, uh, I think that sounds good. As far as public safety, or yeah, physical safety, um, I know that, you know, this was more in the renter's guide comments, but we saw a lot of concern about, you know, snow removal and ice and things like that, um, especially for students who are maybe living farther off campus or even at, you know, apartment complexes, um, and so maybe also touching on that topic might be a good idea, urn .... but no, other than that, yeah. I think that's great, and Austin and I will get back to you, send you a, uh, a draft of the final agenda and, yeah, we look forward to having.... hosting you all at the .... the Iowa Memorial Union comin' up here, so thank you! Clarification of Agenda Items: Teague/ We're lookin' forward to it. Thank you! Yes! All right, moving right along, clarification of agenda items. 12. Repeal Rental Permit Moratorium Ordinance repealing Ordinance No. 19-4793, a temporary moratorium on new rental permits for single-family and duplex units. (Second Consideration) Mims/ Um, I've got one, it's not so much a clarification but just kinda let people know, when we get to .... urn .... Item #12, repealing the moratorium, um, given that the delay in this was Council instigated, I am going to propose that we consolidate the second and third readings and get this done tonight. Salih/ (mumbled) during the.... Teague/ We can do it. It will require a super majority, and so I just wanna see a nod of heads of (both talking) Mims/ I don't think we need to see a nod of heads now, do we? I mean (several talking) Salih/ Later.... This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 23 Teague/ I mean we (both talking) Mims/ I mean I can make the motion, and somebody can second it, and then if. ... if it passes it passes (several talking) it doesn't. Teague/ Okay. Sounds good to me! Any other.... agenda items? Mims/ Kinda.... light agenda, which is nice! Information Packet Discussion 1January 9, January 161: Teague/ Yes! (laughs) We have (several talking) Yeah, we have new Councilors. It was done just for them! (laughs) Had nothin' to do with me! (laughs) No! Yes. All right. If there's nothin' else on agenda items, we'll move it .... move forward to info packet, January 9th. We'll move on .... am I movin' too quick? Move on to info packet, January 16th. . Thomas/ I'm okay with the summer meeting schedule, um, IP8. (mumbled) (several talking in background) Teague/ Sorry! (talking in background) So, are Councilors able to see..... Mims/ That looks fine to me. Fruin/ So for .... for the, uh, Council Members that haven't gone through this, occasionally we'll change our meeting schedule in the summer, uh, cancel a meeting based on vacations or somethin'. What .... what I'm suggesting here is that we go to an every three-week schedule, as opposed to every two week. I just realized for those of you that will be around, if something urgent comes up and we need to get a vote on a specific item, oftentimes to approve a project or what .... that has a time -sensitive issue, uh with it, we'll call a special meeting. Usually last five or 10 minutes but we'll get the vote and we'll move on, uh..... Council updates on assigned boards, commissions, and committees: Teague/ Okay, that works for people. (mumbled) Any other item from info packet, January 16th? All right, I think we'll move on to Council updates on assigned boards, commissions, and committees. And not to put Pauline on the spot, hopefully in the future I'll kinda give people fair warning, but we're gonna be just kinda rotating this way, um, so we started with Maz the last time and so today we'll start with Pauline. Taylor/ Well I, uh, don't have any report on really any of the, my assigned cormnittees. Urn, all of us, I think almost all of us, were at the Joint Entities meeting so we all kind of know what we discussed at that. Uh, it was a pretty short, sweet agenda as usual. So I really have nothing else as far as assigned boards or commissions. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 24 Weiner/ The boards to which I'm assigned have not yet met, at least with me on'em! Bergus/ I attended an ICAD board meeting on January 10th and I think you all are probably aware that Mark Nolte is moving on and so the board will be undertaking a search for new executive director, and it was a very nice farewell to him on the 17th also. Mims/ Which most of us missed because of the weather (several talking and laughing) Bergus/ I was very grateful to be downtown at that time and to be able to shuffle over, and then I attended a UNESCO City of Literature meeting on the 14th and we're undertaking some strategic planning! Thomas/ No .... no meetings have been held. Mims/ I haven't had any. We have JECC meeting this Friday, so.... Teague/ All right, so the only thing that I've had outside.... well I had the Assessor's meeting, um, and that was as we just kinda went through that today. Um, and then today earlier today I did the...um .... Partnership for Alcohol Safety had a meeting there, um, other than that, that was really kind of an intr...introduction meeting, givin' me a little history about how the, um, how the partnership kinda started and kinda where we plan to go here, in the fixture. So outside of that, no other committees for me. Salih/ You don't have any. Teague/ All right, great. Well, if there's nothin' else for now we will be adjourned until our 7:00 P.M. formal meeting. This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020. Page 2 Coalition, which is the coalition of legacy agencies, came up with the request of $568,400 as a.....as a budget estimate. Um, December, this last meeting for HCDC, December 19th, um, the Agency Impact Coalition again came back and noted, um, they would really like to maintain those current funding levels because they had seen increased need, which I imagine HCDC will be talking about, and so they came back with a request of $675,000, uh, and that led to this request and this meeting once, uh, Council accepted the request. So .... in terms of moving forward then after this meeting, HCDC will make its budget recommendation on January 23rd. So right now staff has estimated $435,000 based on the proposed budget that is currently out there. So that would be for legacy agencies, in addition to, uh, $23,000 for emerging agencies. So that would be 458,000 total in Aid to Agencies, and HCDC has received 660,300 in, uh, Aid to Agency requests from legacy agencies. So I can throw out more numbers at you, but most of those should be in here. Again it's in your packet. If you do have questions, just wanted to give you a brief background on that. Teague/ Thank you, Kirk. And, urn .... so for the purpose of Councilors here, we're very happy that HCDC has made this recommendation, and for those out in, um, the community, ub, that don't know what HCDC means, it means the Housin' and Community Development Commission, and so we wanted to definitely welcome all of you for bein' here today. Um, because all of us don't know you. I ... know each of you, but I .... I would like to just go around and just say your name for all the Councilors. Please repeat, please! McKinstry/ John McKinstry. Alter/ Megan Alter. Drabek/ Matt Drabek. Fixmer-Oraiz/ V Fixmer-Oraiz, the Chair. Aguilar/ Peggy Aguilar. Padron/ Maria Padron. Teague/ Thank you all for coming and bein' a part today. So what I'm thinkin' is we might start with, um, if HCDC would like to, um, share with us and then after that we'll, urn ..... have some Council discussion, and Councilors, feel free to jump in and seek any clarification that you might have. Fixmer-Oraiz/ Thank you, Bruce, and thank you, uh, Council Members for agreeing to have this joint session. Um, it's .... it's interesting to note that it was almost a year ago that we were here last time, and uh, it's obviously a little bit different makeup but we're .... we're very excited to be continuing this conversation with you. Uh, I think that, you know, I really commend the agencies in our community and my fellow Commissioners for really trying to create a .... a.....a fair, transparent process for people applying.... for organizations, agencies to apply for this funding, and I think that we've, uh, really tried to put together a This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of January 21, 2020.