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Council Present: Bergus, Mims, Salih, Teague, Taylor, Thomas, Weiner
Staff Present: Fruin, Monroe, Kilburg, Dilkes, Fruehling, Hightshoe, Knoche, Nagle-Gamm,
Seydell-Johnson, Sovers, Havel, Bockenstedt
Others Present: Van Heukelom (UISG)
Review recommendations from the Iowa City Area Transit Study:
Teague/ So welcome to everybody. Today is October 20'x, uh, 2020, and we are with the City of Iowa
City work session. And so I wanted to ... maybe have Geoff start us off to kind of catch us back
up on the Iowa City Area Transit Study that we started the conversation with last week ... or last
meeting. So, Geoff, I'll turn it over to you.
Fruin/ Uh, thank you, Mayor, um, good to see you and the Council tonight. So at your last work
session, you had a pretty lengthy presentation on the Iowa City, uh, Transit Study, and you
didn't have a whole lot of time to discuss that. So we wanted to return to work session tonight
to give you a chance to, uh, ask any questions that you have and ... and provide staff, uh, any
direction. Uh, Darian is here on the call and ... and can, uh, answer, uh, your questions. The
slides from the presentation were also posted in the October 8th information packet, if you need
those for a reference, and really what we're looking for tonight is, uh, we need three things from
the Council. One is general concurrence on ... on the ... the plan, uh, that was presented. That is
the ... the routes and the ... kind of the philosoph... the philosophical change in service. So, uh,
fewer routes, higher fre... uh, frequency, focusing on those, um, arterial roads in Iowa City. Uh,
wanna make sure you're comfortable with that. We'll make any minor refinements, uh,
throughout the fall and winter as we do a little bit more targeted outreach in the community, but
wanna make sure you don't have any major concerns with... with... with that, urn ... uh, changed
approach to ... to transit here in Iowa City. Um, second is the fare policy. We wanna make sure
you understand what we presented and ... and what, uh, the changes would mean for Iowa City
and for our riders, and if you're comfortable with that, we can begin to work with the City of
Coralville, uh, to make sure our fare policies, um, are indeed aligned, and our goal would be to
be able to implement that change even prior to the route changes. And then third is any
indication from the Council on which of those add-ons that were presented, if any, that you
want to pursue right away. So that would be things like evening service, Sunday service, uh,
new routes, uh, fare -free transit, anything like that that's going to require extra budget dollars,
um, we would like to have a ... a good sense, uh, on ... on which of those are ... are priority one for
you that you'd like to see implemented with ... with the other changes. We can then return to
you, uh, in the subsequent work sessions and give you some options on how to pay for those
expanded transit services. So with that, I'll ... I'll tum it back over, uh, to ... to you, Mayor, to
facilitate the discussion, and again I'll defer to ... to Darian on any questions that you have.
Teague/ All right, thank you. So, yeah, this is a ... a .... a great opportunity. I think we've been waitin'
quite a while for this study to come before us, and I think we'll just kind of jump into it from
Council and see where we land.
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Taylor/ Well it seems to me that the majority of the comments that we've gotten over the years is the
need for the evening service, and certainly the... our... our city has grown and, uh, there are many
businesses out there that don't follow the 8:00 to 5:00 business schedule. So I think that is a
very big need, and I think we, uh, that might be a top priority for us to look at that and which
routes might it ... might be needed, and ... and, uh.... uh, when to get started on that.
Thomas/ I'll go through, um, those three questions briefly. Uh, the first one, do I concur with a
philosophical change. I would say yes and ... and in that broad picture that was presented, I... I
in support of it. I have a ... a few comments on this particular issue. One is that, you know, we
are increasing... we're making adjusted... adjustments to increase ridership, uh, and there are
some minor impacts on coverage. So that's something that I think will be ... we'll need to look at
in a little finer grain as to what... how... how can we address some of those impacts that occur
with the, uh, reduction in coverage in certain areas, and some of that has to do with ... how do we
look at the connectivity to the routes that remain, so that we're ... were there will you a longer
walk. What is the character of that walk and ... and what ways can we improve the comfort and
safety of it. Um, secondly I would say, in addition to the route improvements, uh, considering
how to improve the experience of riding the bus, which includes a walk or a bike ride at each
end of the bus ride. It includes waiting at the bus stop, which is addressed in the presentation,
and then it includes the ride itself. Uh, so I think it's ... it's interesting to kind of think of the bus,
uh, and I ... before moving to Iowa City, I ... I was without a car for 13 years and pretty much got
about where I lived, uh, with ... with the bus. Uh, think of it as a mobile public space and, you
know, in my experience some of those mobile public spaces were really extraordinary
experiences and in other cases, not so much. So, you know, if we're trying to attract ridership,
the experience of the ride, I think, is important. And then lastly on this point, numbering the
routes, I think, was a good idea. I wasn't clear if...if that would also, um, if we keep the name of
the routes. So it'd say be like the, uh, the 7 North Dodge or the 11 Rochester. Uh, I think
there's something to be said for keeping the name while adding the number. On number two I...
I ... I support the revised fare structure, trying to making ... make them consistent, and then in
terms of some of the enhancements, uh, that are currently not within our existing budget, uh, as
I mentioned at our last meeting, I'm ... I'm very intrigued by the fare -free transit service, which I
think would have a great public benefit in terms of advancing equity, public health, and our
climate response. I think we ... we could consider ways to, um, in addition to identifying funding
sources, uh, opportunities for improving the land productivity that a free fare service could
generate. You know, I think trying to couple our ...our mobility and transit service with our land
use patterns is ... is, I think, a useful thing to think about. Uh, in terms of the Sunday service,
you know, I just wanted to throw out, aside from the cost of the Sunday service, which I think
we had already identified, um, if we were to look at it as a service that would (mumbled) we
provide, um, income quali... income qualified on -demand Sunday service, kind of like what
we're talking about with the night owl service ... as another possible option. And then the ... the
idea of the on -demand night owl service, uh, and again, considering that it's something that
could be offered to those, um, who are on a limited income, you know, get ... either giving them a
discount or, you know, just a voucher on that service. So those are ... those are my comments.
Salih/ Well, Mayor, I really believe, um, that, you know, Sunday services and evening services, uh, you
know, is very important. As a first hand experience with, uh, low income people and minority, a
lot people was complaining about (mumbled) that they work on Sunday, and there is no
transportation. A lot of people complain that they work second shift at many factories around
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our area, and there is no Sunday service (mumbled) but there is no evening services that go like,
uh, for night hours. Anyway, I ... I just mean that there is a lot of people who will be benefiting
from Sunday (garbled) and as Pauline said, night services. So I will encourage to have those,
um, going like free ride ... ride, it will be ideal if we can have like free fare Sunday services and
evening services, but if...going free ride, it will affect, like fare -free will affect the Sunday
services and the evening services. I rather have it like discounted than like eliminated. Uh, you
know, is ... is really important for the people to pay for it, and to find the service (mumbled) it is
free and there is no service for them for the evening and ... and Sunday. That what my position
is. Thank you.
Mims/ Without going into the same deep level of detail that John did, I would say I'm pretty much in
line with ... with his comments, um, in terms of going through, um, general concurrence on the
plan. Um, I think the idea of...of kind of streamlining our routes makes a lot of sense. It's
going to be a big change for people, um, and as John said and they talked about the
presentation, some people are going to have a little longer walk, which they probably won't be
happy with, but I don't think we can make these improvements, um, and unfortunately ...and
satisfy everybody, um, but making, you know, making the whole system so that it can run on
time. I think as the presenters talked about two weeks ago, the idea that you have a reliable
system, you know what time the buses are coming and/or, um, during certain periods of time,
you have more frequency (garbled) shorter headways, so that people can ... aren't waiting for an
hour if they missed the bus kind of thing, I think, is really important. Um, yeah, getting the fare
policy aligned with Coralville, um, and so that that makes sense for people in terms of what
works and what will get them from here to Coralville without a second ticket, etc. I think, um, is
really important. In terms of the add-ons, um, I know there's been a lot of...a lot of requests for
extended night and Sunday service. I would like to see us tread very, very carefully there
because of the cost and really look at, um, more of an on -demand, um, income -eligible type
situation, not just running the buses on the exact same schedules. The other thing that ... that
concerns me with doing the regular bus schedules is if we're running that, then we have to run
SEATS, and so I'm not sure if that, um, that Sunday service number that they gave us of
780,000, if that includes, uh, what SEATS would cost for running those hours as well. So I
think ... not that I don't wanna run SEATS. I do. But again, trying to keep in mind what we can
afford and how we can do this as efficiently as possible, looking at those later evening and
Sunday, uh, routes as an on -demand, uh, income -eligible, and really trying to start partnering
with some of the businesses to help pick up some of those costs potentially.
Bergus/ I'll ... I'll jump in. Urn, I did have one question really quick for staff. The enhancements list that
was in our packet and the pricing for those, is that based on an assumption that we would go
through with the ... the preferred alternative changes that were presented, like sort of a step one,
cause that's all, um, sort of budget constricted, and then those enhancement costs are based on...
we would also have the preferred alternative first, but then add those on, is that right?
Nagle -Gamin/ That's correct, uh, Councilor, yes. So it's a presumption with all of the vision items is
that the preferred, um, design system design would be intact and these would be enhancements
on top of that.
Bergus/ Okay. Thank you. Um, so I think with ... with that understanding, yeah, I also agree with the
philosophy. I also agree with, um, hopefully very soon, short term, um, fare policy making that
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consistent and the changes that were recommended there. As ... as far as the add-ons, um, I do
like the idea of on -demand service, especially for, um, the ... the late night. I think the
presentation indicated that maybe on -demand for Sunday wouldn't be feasible, just because of
the ... the costs involved. Um, but I think one thing we ... that I've heard, um, from people who
need, uh, service maybe outside of those core hours is that it may not always be exactly the
same route, it may not always be exactly the same, um, location, and so I think that on -demand
flexibility, I find that appealing, um, for those lower volume, um, that would be expected there.
and I also have heard the community's call for Sunday service, and so just having, you know,
whatever.... whatever the ... kind of break point for that would be in terms of the fixed route
versus on -demand, I would trust the expertise of staff on what makes the most sense there.
Weiner/ So I'll jump in now. I mean I ... I agree with the general structure. Um, I have to say that it
basically cuts out the area where I live, and it's not going to be walkable, uh, which is sort of out
...out Melrose, and so that's... that's... that... that... that and that there were a number of riders out
there. So that to me is the onl... is really sort of the only ..is there any way to serve that question.
Otherwise, um, the ... I ... I'm in agreement with the ... the general simplification of the system.
Um, there... when... when we were shown what it currently looks like, it'd be...it made it really
clear why we need to simplify it and how also having numbers, and I think, John, they said in
a ... in addition to the names, numbers and names, so that ... so that, um, people don't get confused,
but they can be clear. You're just going to get on the number 1 bus here if you don't necessarily
know the geography or the number 10 bus. And what they're trying to do made a lot of sense to
me. I also agree that we should strive for fare consistency as soon as possible, because one of...
one ... thafs a real barrier getting from here to Coralville and Coralville and back, and being able
to have consistency there across the fares. In terms of the ... in terms of the add-ons, what I was
looking at is, um, what other folks are talking about, but largely.. largely services that are ... that
the public has really said that they want. Um, and that do not require an additional one-time
capital outlay. So that ... those are the things ... those are things like the ... like some ... some form of
Sunday... Sunday service, whether ifs ... whether it's consistent or, um, or on -demand. The, uh,
later night weekday service and on -demand night owl service would be the ones that would...
would seem to me, particularly for ...for folks who are working and don't have any other form of
transportation, would be the ones that are really key.
Teague/ One of the questions I have is what you just, uh, kind of reference is the operatin' versus the
one-time capital cost. So ... when I look at ... and I don't know which, uh, slide it is, but for the
free ... the fare -free, um, Iowa City Transit Service, I understand the one-time capital cost is 4.9
million, and then it's 2.2, almost 2.3 million, for the operating costs annually. Um, for the
Sunday service, improve Saturday service, late night weekday service, and on -demand, not owl
service, and one more on -demand service in low-density neighborhoods. Those don't have any
cap one-time capital costs associated with it. Um, I wondered if staff could just speak to that,
um, for a second.
Nagle -Gamin/ Sure, Mayor, yes. Um, so yes, you see kind of a hefty price tag in terms of capital for
the fare -free alternative or enhancement, and the 15 -minute service on multiple corridors, and
that is because of the additional buses that would be required to support that level, um, of either
service level and in the case of the 15 -minute service, or the expected ridership increases,
which, um, estimates are between... for fare -free option at least (garbled) ridership increase,
which means we would need to add additional (garbled) add additional buses to certain routes,
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um, because, uh, it becomes a much more attractive option. So in comparing that to Sunday
service, improved Saturday service, and those down the line. Those are during, um, those times
when we don't have as great of demand on our fixed route system. So we have excess bus
capacity that are ... that are not running at that time. So we wouldn't need to buy extra buses or
require extra buses in order to provide that service. We'd be able to do it with the buses that we
already have today.
Teague/ Great, and I know we have some electric buses in that, as well, which is good for our climate
action goals that we're tryin' to achieve. Um, for the operating costs, that includes staff salary.
Is that correct?
Nagle-Gamm/ That is correct.
Teague/ Okay, so ... and one last thing, I just wanna make sure that, um, the operatin' costs that we
anticipate for the free -fare is $2.2 million, almost 2.3.
Nagle -Gamin/ That is correct.
Teague/ Okay. All right.
Nagle-Gamm/ Annual. Yep.
Teague/ Annually, yeah. All right, so, um, great job to the staff for doing this. One of the ... uh, a lot of
the things I'd certainly agree with our (mumbled) on, um, as I'm looking at the numbers, just
with the operating costs and I look at, um, Sunday services, um, if we look at the operating
costs for just the free -fare, and look at the Sunday service, the improved Saturday service, late
night weekend service, on -demand service, I'm at 1.7 million right there. And then if we add
the ... the on -demand service in low-density neighborhoods, I may have, uh, messed up there, but
I think we're still within the area of one line item of the free -fare fair. Am I calculatin' that
correctly?
Nagle-Gamm/ Mayor, I'm not sure I got all of those down that you're... you're trying to ... to sum up.
Um, if you could repeat them, I could ... I could (both talking)
Teague/ I could, yeah. So it's the Sunday service
Nagle -Gamin/ Okay.
Teague/ The improved Saturday service, the late night weekend day service, the on -demand night owl
service, and on -demand service in low-density neighborhoods.
Nagle-Gamm/ I can pencil that out for you in just one moment.
Teague/ Okay.
Nagle-Gamm/ And by pencil I mean calculator (laughs)
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Fruin/ It's roughly the same, Mayor. It's... it's... it's a little bit less than 2.3 million.
Mayor/ Yeah, and... and... and... and that's what I was thinking. Um, my..my calculator (laughs) kinda
missed a number. I gotta extra one in there at the end. Um, so as I look at this, and I know that
there's huge benefits to free service. Um, they're free. And I wonder if we don't look at
including these other options that we've heard from the public on and, you know, granted we
don't know what the ridership will be on Sunday service, but we know that it's needed for some
individuals in our community. We know that late night services are needed. We have workers
that work, you know, 3:00 to 11:00, so they can't get home at 11:00 unless they, you know, uh,
use a cab or something like that, or a Lyft or Uber. And then we also have, um, you know,
kinda this night owl on ... on -demand for people that, you know, some early morning or late in
the middle of the night type stuff. So I personally think that we should look at those options,
incorporating them. I know that our Mayor Pro Tem just made mention that if we had to kinda
somewhat sacrifice the fare -free, uh, a little bit, maybe we want to relook at who ... who we
might give some reduced fare to, free fare to. Um, that's where I would be. I know that we
currently have, um, certain hours that we give free fare for persons with disabilities and that
type stuff. I would certainly recommend, which I believe I ... that was a part of the presentation
where there ... we would just do free all day. Um, and so that really could be the portion where
we just kind of uplift, um, those current restrictions and then, um, maybe the free fare we have
to look at a little closer. Um, but I believe the services are really important within our
community to allow people to get to, uh, places where they need to get for work, but also, um,
Sunday service, uh, not having that available, I believe, does limit a lot of people to engage in
greater activities beyond just their neighborhood. So, that would be my thoughts on that.
Otherwise goin' from the 26 routes to 13 routes, I think that's great. Um, it ... it, and yeah! I'll
leave it at that because I think everybody else has kinds said everything that I would have said.
Weiner/ Could I ask again what ... what possible funding sources are for this, aside from what we bring
in from fares ... fares, and it seems to me there are some ... I know that we got some ... some grant
money from the CARES Act from ... from it, but otherwise are there ... are there are grants
available or how ...how would one go about ... how would we go about funding this?
Fruin/ Yeah, I ... I can, uh, comment on that briefly. So the, um, most of the grants that are available are
gonna be focused on ... on cat ... on the capital side, on bus acquisition, like we just got for our
electric buses, facilities, those types of things. There might be some ... some very targeted
operational grants, but, um, those are fewer and further between. Uh, so really for funding
sources, uh, you're... you're probably, you know, it's the same ones that come up with any
discussion that you're gonna have. We're going to look to property taxes. Uh, we're gonna look
to utility tax. We're gonna look to, urn .... uh, perhaps a local option sales tax, depending on ... on
the final number that you're looking at. Um, and then, um, I believe there's an opportunity
to ... to look at parking too. Uh, the challenge with that as you all know where our parking
dollars stand. We're.... we're, uh, you know, a year ago at this time, uh, we were in a really
good position to be able to leverage parking dollars for transit. Uh, right now we're lucky to be
breaking even on ... on our parking budget, and ... and we're not doing so, uh, in all months. Uh,
so to be able to use parking is ... is really dangerous at this time. Um, we do have some CARES
Act dollars that we have some flexibility with and, um, you know, kinda where my mind is right
now is ... is to look at some of these expanded services, um, with a ... with a pilot project that's
funded with CARES Act dollars, and then allow us, uh, again to ... to come back in a year, maybe
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18 months, um, and look at the ... the numbers and the cost per ride and ... and some of those
things, uh, before you commit, um, a longer term funding source like a ... like a ... like a, uh,
property tax, but 2.5 million, 2.3 million. You don't just kind of find that in the budget. Um,
you're talkin' about, um, a .... a significant property tax hike or .... or, you know, uh, we're at 1%
utility tax right now. You're talkin' 2 to 3% on top of that to get that kind of revenue, uh,
generation. And then, of course, local option sales tax could .... could certainly pay for that,
but ... but you all know of all the ... kind of the wish list items out there that the community would
have for that funding source should you ... should you wanna pursue that. But that's kind of our
next step is to break that all down for you, tell you exactly how that would work, um, how we
might leverage those CARES Act dollars into ... into some pilot pro .... uh, projects, and if we do
a pilot project, I think it's safe to say you have to commit to at least a year to 18 months at
minimum, uh, for a project like that. You don't wanna ..you don't wanna offer Sunday service
for ...for six months. That's... that's really not going to tell you much. So, um, we'll put some of
that together and ... and return to ya and see what your thoughts are on ... on those ... on those
sources.
Mims/ Darian, can you explain, um, again, with the on -demand night owl service, kind of how that
would work and how ...could we potentially use that as part of a pilot in terms of the improved
Saturday service and maybe even for some Sunday service, without the full blown fixed routes?
Nagle -Gamin/ Yes. So essentially this would just, uh, this would be an income -qualified or any type of
qualifications that we would ... that we would want to put on it. But, um, ultimately it would be
sort of, um, a back end, and I don't have all the details, Susan, um, to be ... to be fully honest. We
are sort of waiting to see, um, what, uh, what direction we might get or what interest we would
get from the Council, but it's my understanding that it would be, um, subsidized in some way,
um, so that either income -qualified candidates in the community or the full community would
be able to access, urn ... uh, some sort of a ride sharing service that we develop a partnership
with, or, um, alternatively... or a taxi service. Um, so it wouldn't have to be, you know, an Uber
or Lyft. It could be a local taxi service or..or any other transportation, um, provider. So it
would more or less be an agreement, um, and then there'd be fundamentally some way to
connect, um, whether it be through an app or whether it's, uh, you know, it's a call and schedule
service, um, but they would ideally then be subsidized. That's sort of how the program's
structured.
Teague/ All right, so any other questions or thoughts for staff, and then I also wanna make sure that,
um, Darian and, uh, Geoff have enough to go off of for now.
Fruin/ Yeah. So I ... I heard general, um, approval of the ... of the new route structure. Uh, an
understanding that you're not giving it your final stamp of approval, but allows us to move
forward with implementation plans and final public outreach. I heard clear, uh, indication for
fare consistency and, uh, just to be clear, that does include expanding, um, to, um, our ...our
pass ... uh, our free passes that we have in place to, uh, peak hours. Currently they're limited to
off-peak hours, so, urn .... uh, we will move forward with that and have those discussions with
Coralville. And then on the enhancements, we're going to focus in on Sunday service, uh, and
then the late night services, both weekday, weekend, and the on -demand services. We'll kinda
hone in on those. We'll give you a little bit more details on what that may look like, um, hours
of operations, those types of things, and, uh, begin to, uh, paint a path forward for ..for funding
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those, um, and get your preference on ... on what that looks like. So if I missed anything, let me
know. But I think that's what I ... what I came away with.
Teague/ All right, I'm seeing a consensus, so ... great! All right, I think, uh, we are going to stay with
staff updates a little while longer and talk about some operational changes during the winter, uh,
weather (laughs) uh, that we just had yesterday, a little snow that surprised us all. So, um,
Geoff, I'll probably have you start us there.
Presentation from staff on operational chances to 2020-21 winter weather procedures:
Fruin/ Yes. Well, it's two years in a row we've had an October snow, uh, a fairly sizable one. So, um,
thankfully this time of year it doesn't stick very long and...it...it doesn't really cause a whole lot
of problems on the roadways, but we ... we do know the colder weather's, uh, approaching. Um,
the memo we provided really sums up, um, our operations I think pretty well, uh, but we have a
couple of new Councilors that haven't been through, uh, a full winter yet, and, uh, I think it's
always a good refresher because you will certainly hear from the public, uh, who has thoughts
on either our snow removal practices or their neighbor's, uh, snow removal practices. It's just a
very common thing that we ... we all hear about over the winter months. So we wanna make sure
you are familiar with those processes. I'm cognizant that you have a lot to talk about, um, this...
this evening with ... with your work session. There's several IP items, um, that we wanted to get
your feedback on too. So maybe I'll just, um, open it up and say, you know, we're happy to
answer questions, whether that be on our practices or on ... on, uh, kind of what are the ... the
responsibilities of private property owners are. We can answer those or if you prefer, the staff is
prepared to kind of walk you through that memo, but, um, well just ... we'll start with questions
and see where it takes us.
Thomas/ Well, one ... one question, um, or comment perhaps that ... that I was reminded of in ... in looking
at this memo, and thanks for putting it out, uh, had to do again with the ... the question of snow
removal on the curb ramps, which, you know, just following up, for example, on our discussion
of, um, bus transit service and the need to be able to get to that bus route, um, in order to take
advantage of it, uh, and (mumbled) a role in which fully accessible path of travel to that route is
important. And, you know, in my experience, uh, the curb ramp situation in the winter time is a
...is a major problem. Um, it...it pretty much makes, unless you're willing to walk out into the
street, uh, you know, access is ... is really constrained and impacted by that. So, I did have this...
I had some time this afternoon to look at, um, I was kinds curious what other Iowa cities are
doing on this and ... and I found that in Coralville, Cedar Rapids, and Ames, uh, it is identified
and ... and on their websites, uh, that it's the adjacent property owner's responsibility. So, uh,
just throw that out there. Um, that's ... that's how they've defined it. And, you know, I
understand in looking at the language in the Iowa Code why one might say, well, um, we really
can't require the property owner to remove that snow, because it's not the result of a natural
event. On the other hand, there are cities in Iowa that do identify the adjacent property owner is
responsible. In any event, I would say that the ... the .... the way it is now is ... is really a problem
and, um, whether it's possible, if not, changing the language to say that it's the adjacent property
owner and perhaps exploring ways, particularly in areas where we do have high levels of
walkability, that our snow removal trucks try to limit the amount of snow, you know, the pile of
snow that is ... is left, um, along the ... the curb at the ramps. Um, it...it really does impede, uh, an
accessible path of travel through the winter months.
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Teague/ Any other thoughts or...on this item?
Weiner/ Um, the only other thought I had was, but there are some of the really wider sidewalks that
people have been using ... for exercise now, particularly when we're ... so many people are still
sort of hanging out at home because of COVID. Um, is there ... does the City clear those, for
example, there's... there's a very broad wide sidewalk along a chunk of...of Mormon Trek, as
well as other places, that don't appear to be the ... the job of any one property owner there. Is that
something the City takes on or how does that get cleared?
Fruin/ In ... in, uh, those cases, it's the ... it's the property owner's responsibility to clear that. Um, what
we're doing this year to try to broaden some of the, um, outdoor recreational opportunities
with ... with COVID is clearing more of the trails within our .... our parks and our public system.
So an example, probably the most prominent example, would be Terry Trueblood. In past years
we haven't cleared that trail and people have ... have used it for snowshoeing and other things,
but, uh, were going to clear it this year, uh, just knowing it's ... it's been very popular during
COVID. But if you think of kind of Scott Boulevard or Mormon Trek, um, unless I'm ... unless
I'm mistaken, staff can jump in if there's... there's certain segments of those ... of those roadways
or other examples. That's the ... that's the property owner's responsibility.
Dilkes/ This is Eleanor. I, uh, I think there are a few sections of...um... Mormon Trek, for instance,
with the abutting property owner is still in the county, then that property owner does not have
the obligation to ... to remove the snow.
Froin/ We can ... we can look at those. I'm not sure, um, we'll have to kind of zero in on those. But
we ... we can look at them and if we're not clearin' them already, which I ... I presume we probably
are. But, um, if...if we're not, we can certainly look to have those.
Weiner/ I just ... I just think we all need to ... as one of the newbies, I just think we all need to be
especially cognizant of that this winter because I constantly see people out for walks in our
neighborhood who didn't used to walk pre ... pre-COVID. So it's really a major part of the ... the
(mumbled) the COVID lifestyle right now, so...
COVID-19 Update:
Teague/ Okay. All right. Anyone else? We'll move on to COVID-19 updates. Any thoughts there? I
did wanna mention that, um, I have been in conversation with some Big 10 mayors,
some ... some cities that have Big 10 football football, um, groups and so we did release a letter
that ... we all collaborated on, and thanks to mayor of, uh, East, uh, Lansing, Michigan, Aaron....
Mayor Aaron Stevens. He was the one that really helped bring this group together and, um,
great conversations. There's a lot of concerns, of course, with football activities taking place.
Uh, and not only that, but other activities, um, when there's large groups of people. Now we do
know that here in Iowa, um, we will not have, um, it won't be open to the public, like, uh, it has
been in the past. And so just know that that is of great concern, um, although we do support,
you know, safe, uh, activities in the community and ... and just know that we're really looking at
what the positivity rates will be, very closely here at the City, and I know our County has also,
um, gonna keep a ... gonna become very hyper -vigilant as well at ensurin' that we're doin' all that
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we can to keep our public safe. So just wanted to mention that the ... the Big 10 mayor's have all
had conversations and we'll continue to collaborate as we're seein' things throughout our own
communities.
Weiner/ It won't surprise you that I have something to say on COVID, since that's (laughs) has been my
hobby, one of my hobby horses. Um,that's great. I'm really glad that ... that all the ... that the
group of mayors got together. A couple of things that sort of just appeared today is the CDC has
announced that the ... the excess deaths between January and October is over the normal, is
300,000, um, and I know that the, sort of the official total right now is around 220,000, which is
still way too high. And the chief epidemiologist that UIHC (mumbled) Selena says also just
done an interview in which he is really, um, highlighting the need to take measures. There are
basically no ... virtually no measures in place now in Iowa and he's really concerned about the
raising... the... the rising rate of hospitalizations, over ...overall in the state and concerned as we
come into flu season at the same time. So I just really, you know, everybody's tired of this.
We're tired of having to watch out. We're tired of having to talk about COVID, but it's not
going away. And so I just, you know, make the ... make the same plea as always: please wear a
face covering; please social... distance yourself socially; please do whatever you can to protect
others.
Taylor/ Yes, I ... I'd like to echo, um, Janice's comments and ... and thank you, Mayor, and the other
mayor's, for, uh, making that statement. And I think, uh, the current concern, real concern here
is going to be the behaviors and ... and ... and what's going to happen, uh, with the games and ... and
folks watching those, uh, games and getting together to celebrate and the activities, uh, in the
bars and the restaurants, and I ... I would just encourage all the owners of all of...any of those, uh,
types of facilities and people in general, uh, just to encourage vigilance and ... and do as Janice
says: wear masks, do the social distancing, you know, avoid, shoulder -to -shoulder crowds and
we can still cheer the Hawks on, so, uh, just be vigilant.
Bergus/ I just had a quick question about City staff policy relating to face coverings. I saw that the
University of Iowa recently, um, changed their non -hospital face covering policy to essentially
say that, um, face shields by themselves may not be, uh, sufficient or aren't as good as a cloth
face mask or disposable, you know, face masks. So I didn't know if we had any intention of,
um, changing the internal policy. I think we've been allowing either one. And as we learn more
about the science and how the virus spreads, that may be something we're looking at or...
Fruin/ We did briefly discuss that, it's probably been, uh, two weeks or so ago when the, I think the
State had updated some ... some guidance on that, and we opted to ... to, uh, to stay with that being
the ... the choice of the employee. So, uh, face masks by themselves are still permitted internally.
Of course, we'll ... we'll continue to kind of look at the evolving science and ... and you know,
PPE guidance, but for now face masks are still sufficient for us.
Bergus/ Thank you.
Weiner/ So Susan just ... I got a text from Susan. She just lost connectivity and she's trying to get back
on.
Teague/ Okay.
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Thomas/ The Library did change its policy, uh, when I was picking up a book the other day, you know,
I normally or often am wearing a shield, and they said that wasn't, um, that wasn't, it wasn't
going to do it. So fortunately I had a ... a mask, so I put that on instead.
Continue discussion of Resolution (20-159) of Initial Council Commitments addressing the Black
Lives Matter Movement and Systemic Racism in the wake of the murder of George Floyd by the
Minneapolis Police and calls for action from protesters and residents:
Teague: Okay. All right. Well corona is definitely still alive and well, and we're ... we're tired of it I
know as a community and as a nation, and even throughout, uh, other parts of the globe, and
so ... yeah, we just have to keep goin' for now and hopefully soon this will be behind us. We'll
move on to, um, our discussions related to Black Lives Matter and systemic racism and, you
know, we'll just kind of open it up from here. We just finished our six series of...of some of the
listening, uh, posts that we had in the communities, and, um, I ... I really valued all the voices
that came out to be a part. And it was great conversations. So, I'll ... I'll just leave it at that and
open it up.
Weiner/ Appreciated not just the ... the ... all the people who came out to all the forums, but also the
people who wrote in, um, and staff's efforts to really compile all the information and put it
together in ... in ... in a place so that we could ... we can go through it and ... and draw information
from it.
Bergus/ Mayor, I know that, um, a little bit later on our agenda for the work session I think staff's
looking for some direction relating to the follow up from those, um, listening posts. Don't know
if we should jump into that now or if you have other...
Teague/ Yeah, I think now would be appropriate to kinds jump into that. Maybe we can start, um, well
just bring IP 6 from October 15th into this conversation. I think that would be appropriate.
Fruin/ Well, Mayor, maybe I can help jump start the conversation here, and, um, I ... I also think that
there was some great value in those listening posts and ... and thank you all for the extra time that
you put in, um, attending and leading those, um, posts. We are at, uh, October 20th, uh, today
and December 15th will continue to ... to come, uh, I'm sorry, December 15th will continue to
come very quickly, and that's the ... the date that we've targeted for the preliminary plan, uh, per
your June resolution. Um, I ... I want, um, to let you know that staff's prepared to ... to put
together, uh, that plan and ... and what we would look to do tonight is ... is to hear some guidance
from you, uh, anything specific you want addressed in that, but I ... I fully believe that, uh,
through... through just observing the conversations at the listening posts and hearing you all talk
over the last couple months, I have a pretty good idea on ... on, uh, where we need to go. Now,
when we present this plan, I want to be clear that this is not a ... this is not a staff plan. Um, we
have to get it out, but we're going to put together something, uh, that, uh, I think is reflective of
what we believe you and the community are asking for. Um, it's also not a final plan. Um, and
I think you were, um, very intentional in June in saying this is preliminary, because you're
gonna want some time to ... to vet the different things in that plan. Uh, you're gonna wanna
allow the community... you're gonna warns allow your boards and commissions. Uh, you're
gonna wanna allow your new police chief to ... to all weigh in on ... on the contents of that plan,
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um, but we do need to get to work, to ... to put pencil to paper, uh, so that there are concrete
things to react to. Um, so again, my hope tonight, if it aligns with how you see this process
going, would be for you all to ... to share your takeaways, uh, from the listening posts, um,
indicate something that, you know, indicate anything that you really wanna see in that plan, and
then allow us to come back to you on December 15th with that written report that ... that then the
community can begin to vet and ... and ultimately you can reshape and ... and finalize, uh, in the
spring of 2021.
Thomas/ Well, with that in mind, and .... and thanks for the clarification. Uh, I, you know, we've ... the
last month or two, I think, has been, um, a really useful opportunity to both, uh, share with the
community our thoughts, uh, hear from others. Um, also learn more about some of the, um,
services that are already provided, and the framework that I've tended to, um, to try to put all of
that into is the framework that IFR had presented back in August, uh, you know, as part of their,
um, community wellness and accountability architecture was how they referred to it, and it had
five different elements. They referred to some response teams, but I'll just perhaps describe
them as elements, and they were mental health, anti -homelessness, interpersonal conflict, road
safety, and drugs and alcohol. I think the ... in my mind, the mental health, anti -homelessness,
and interpersonal conflict, at least in ... in many respects, uh, were covered very well in the
listening posts, and I think we got a, uh, a pretty clear understanding of how some of the
existing agencies play various roles in ... in addressing those needs within the community. I did
hear a lot of, um, interest in the CAHOOTS program as something that could further advance
our work in those areas. Uh, you know, I've read several articles about CAHOOTS over the last
several months, and just over the last few days was looking at, um, where if anywhere, uh, other
cities are beginning to adopt that program and found that, um, it does appear CAHOOTS has
consulted with, uh, Portland, Oregon and Denver, and uh, they are ... they have launched pilot
programs modeled after CAHOOTS. And San Francisco will be introducing its first crisis
response team next month. So there are ... there are cities, and this is where it's ... ifs so nice to
see that we are in this moment where we can try to, uh, glean from other cities in terms of what
other practices are showing up. Um, so I think in those three ... those three of the five areas, I
think Iowa City is really well positioned. We have good working relationships between the
police department and those agencies. Uh, so with the ... the one added element that I ... I keep
hearing of CAHOOTS, I think we're really moving, uh, in a very positive direction in those
three areas. In terms of road safety, uh, I ... I have had conversations with IFR, I've had
conversations within the community, uh, there were comments, um, not so much at the listening
posts, but at the ... the end of that memo that Geoff prepared, references to, uh, traffic law
enforcement. And that's an area where I do think we can make, uh, progress, uh, advancing
Black Lives Matter. We do know that there is disproportionate contact with our traffic stops,
which as I recall, are over 12,000 a year. So ... so we do have, uh, data indicating, you know, that
disproportionate contact, and so I'm ... I'm trying to identify, and I've spoken at some of our
previous work sessions and in conversations, about several strategies, which I think could be
useful in this particular area. Uh, the simplest one, uh, in some respects, would be to better
design our streets so that the speeds we want, uh, drivers to ... to adhere to are matched by the
roadway conditions. Uh, a .... a term that's often applied to this notion, it would be that the
streets with self regulate, uh, meaning the ... the speeds we wanna see observed by the drivers,
um, the road is ... is conforming to those speeds and the drivers follow the lead of the road
design. Um, road diets are a really good example of that, you know, there's a clear benefit to
the road diet in terms of...of basically telling the driver to slow down. Um, and with the slowed
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speeds, there tends to be a dramatic, significant reduction, uh, in traffic collisions and ... and then
of course there's the benefit in that the police .... the police have fewer reasons to interact with
the public by way of a traffic stop, when our ...when our streets are self-regulating. So that ... that
is, I think, uh, the ideal approach and that it, um, it achieves our goals, uh, as it relates to Black
Lives Matter by reducing the number of...of times that a police officer will interact with the
public, um, in order to enforce traffic law, and we know there's disproportionate contact here, so
there's that benefit. Another... another item that we've talked about in this matter would be the
question of trying to eliminate some of the, um, minor infractions, you know, the classic, uh,
defective taillight situation, um, citing individuals for jaywalking, things of that sort. If we just
simply, um, limit those practices to really what I would argue might be called the most essential
reasons for a traffic stop, which would be, uh, say driving while under the influence is one
example. Um, the goal being again to try to limit the number of traffic stops, um, to what's
really essential, uh, and avoid this ... the situation of a ... of a traffic stop for a defective taillight,
um, morphing into, uh, a really tragic incident as ... as often happens. And then the third item I
would ... I would put forward would be the idea of traffic cameras, uh, either for enforcing speed
or red light running. Uh, there's a lot of, uh, good documentation supporting that ... the use of
them, um, in terms of improving traffic safety, and then again, uh, the benefit as it relates to
Black Lives Matter is it takes the discretion away from the police officer in terms of enforcing
that traffic law relating to speed or red light running. And ... and since we do have a history of
disproportionate contact, uh, taking that bias out of the decision as it relates to those issues of
speed and red light running would have a benefit as it relates to Black Lives Matter. So I do
think there are some opportunities there that, again, would ... would address Black Lives Matter
and then, um, always looking .... I'm always looking for something that have the co -benefit, it
would have a general benefit to the public by dramatically improving road safety. Uh, so the
last item then would be drug and alcohol use, uh, of the five. I think as it relates to ... to Black
Lives Matter, um, you know, clearly, uh... and the ... and the general public, as well, uh, would be
to try to de—decriminalize marijuana. Uh, that might not be ... that's not something that we can
do locally, but I think advocating for it, uh, is something we should be considering, and ... and
then that leaves alcohol use, and, uh, I haven't had an opportunity to really explore that, either
personally or in conversation with others. I do know we have a lot of work that's being done in
that area. Um, we have the Partnership for Alcohol Safety. The University has its, uh, own
alcohol harm reduction plan. Um, but that too is an area where there's quite a bit of police
activity, uh, that, you know, there's a lot of in law enforcement related to, uh, laws relating to
drug use. So it seems that, like other areas where our law enforcement has a relationship to the
community at large, um, the ... the drug and alcohol use issue is a big one, um, as is traffic law
enforcement. Um, so I'm hoping we can use this opportunity, this ... this chaos in a way that
we've been thrown into with respect to, you know, behaviors, um, what we can and cannot do,
uh, particularly with respect to alcohol in town with the impact on ... on bars, that we really try to
think through how we could improve our ...our, in effect better try to self -regulate with respect to
our alcohol consumption, uh, perhaps give students more opportunities for socializing, other
than in the bars. Just various ways in which we could improve our record with respect to
alcohol consumption in Iowa City. So ... so those are some of the key elements that I've been
focusing on, again, using the ... the framework that IFR presented, which I found, uh, did seem to
touch on a number of the areas where we do have, uh, some major issues which we can address
with respect to policing.
Taylor/ I ... I'd like to start out by thanking the staff for taking such good notes at the listening posts, uh,
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and for including the online public comments here for us. That was very helpful um, in
condensing things, and as John mentioned, uh, there were recurrent comments about the Oregon
CAHOOTS program and that is the Crisis Assistance Helping out on the Streets program. And
the program seems to be functioning very well in the Eugene and Portland areas, but when we
look at this program, we have to keep in mind that it was developed and has been functioning
there for over 31 years now. That's a long time to be in existence and get things right. Uh, so
this is not something that can be developed overnight or...or even in our case by December, but
of course by December we could maybe if it would, uh, please people, uh, have it on our list by
December to perhaps consult with them, at least get some, uh, ideas from them on how they got
started and what they, uh, needed to do that. Um, I did read an article that said that individuals
in Oregon are willing to consult with any community that might be interested in a similar
program, which ... which is something we ... we should keep in mind, and perhaps by our
December date. Uh, apparently, also, there's an interest in the U.S. Senate for a bill that could
provide financial resources for communities, uh, to pursue similar approaches as CAHOOTS,
uh.....um, and to provide funding and maybe even grants to get that on the ground. Uh, that
could also be something we could keep in mind and keep an eye on for that. Of course that's
going to probably be later than December and depend on who's in office there in, uh, in D.C.
Um, our community already has a good base, I believe, of resources, uh, that could play roles in
such a program. Uh, the CommUnity Crisis Center has been taking calls, such as the ones the
CAHOOTS program, uh, is modeled after, for some time now, and of course the Guide Link
Center will be opening very soon. Again, not before December though, uh, which will provide,
um, centralized location for individuals in a mental health crisis, and I think that's what we
heard over and over again, especially from those folks who are involved in the mental health
field, that that is a very, um, big need in the community Uh, it's being... it's being met, but, uh,
there's even greater need for it. Um, if we were to consider putting such a ... a program together
though, uh, it would be helpful kind of to start by looking at what percent of the current police
budget has been utilized for such calls, uh, by police officers and even having serious
communication, uh, with those officers who typically handle those calls, to get some idea from
their perspective, um, and when considering such a project, we would have to look seriously at
all the aspects, especially financial ones, uh, that would cover (mumbled) be 24/7 operation,
uh...um, including well trained dispatchers and responders and, of course, uh, a need for
vehicles. The CAHOOTS program have their own vehicles. And if that is indeed though what
... the route that the Council would choose to take at some point, uh, I would go along with that
decision because it does sound like it's a big need and would be helpful. Uh, also back to John's
comments about his traffic cameras. Uh, he's talking about that quite a bit and ... and I think it's
an excellent idea, and I think that is something that we could look at doing, uh, before
December is ... is, uh, installing some of those, because I think as he sort of alluded to, there, uh,
those cameras are colorblind. They're not ... the stop, uh, is going to be, uh, just whoever, the...
the ... the driver is and it won't see the color of the driver, uh, which I think, uh, can eliminate any
sort of potential discrimination on that. Um, and also he mentioned the decriminalizing
marijuana. And I think that's also something we could look at, uh, prior to December. Another
item in ... in our, uh, meetings today is ... is about our legislative priorities, and I think we can't
forget about that, stressing that enough to our local legislators, although I think most of our
local ones are on board with that, but stressing that to them and to our, uh... uh, lobbyist that...
that that's a priority for us, cause I think that is important.
Bergus/ Mayor, I'd like to maybe drill down into this a little bit deeper, because I think, um, you know,
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I've had a couple conversations with ... with staff and, um, I think maybe we're even a little bit
further along than we all together have talked about, and I know we each went to different
listening posts, so each of us got a little bit different, um, perspective from the particular topics
that were there and the data that was offered in advance of those, but I feel pretty optimistic
about, um, the information that we've collected already, as far as assessing a program like
CAHOOTS, as well as having a good idea of the number of, um, crisis -related calls that we
have. I mean, we had that information available for those ... those listening posts. So I ... I would
just ask, um, Geoff, I'm going to kind of put you on the spot, if you could ... if you could just
speak to kind of where we are and h ... and learning more about those kinds of programs and
other alternatives. Because I think that's really what ... what the public is looking for and what I
think all of us together as a Council is like, what ... what are the options? What's worked in other
communities, and I think we've heard a lot of, you know, CAHOOTS exists, and if we're ... if
we're kind of beyond that in our research, maybe we could hear about that.
Fruin/ Yeah, uh, thank you. I'll ... I'll jump in, and if I get a little long winded, I ... I apologize. By all
means cut me off, but, um, we are as staff, we're not ... we're not sittin' around and ... and waiting,
um, for ... for you all to make decisions. Part of what we're trying to do is anticipate where
you're going and ... and try to get two steps ahead so that, um, when you feel comfortable and
you make your decision, we're ready to go. So, we are reviewing, uh, policies on our traffic
stops right now. We're reviewing, uh, policies on (mumbled) stops. Um, we are looking into
the CAHOOTS model. We have spoken with the Eugene, Oregon Police Department and our...
our ...we have information from them on their program and our staff has also reached out, um, to
the nonprofit that ... that actually runs that program. So, um, those are just a couple of...a couple
of examples of...of how we're ... we're trying to get ahead on these issues. But, you know, um,
specific to the, um, the notion if there's one thing that you heard loud and clear in the public
input and the ... and the listening posts, it's that people wanna connect those in crisis with the...
with a .... a, um, a crisis professional that can best produce long-term outcomes for them.
Whatever their crisis may be, they want to make sure that when all pos... whenever possible, it's
not a law enforcement officer that has to solve that problem. Um, but it's a trained professional
that ... that is there, that can ... that can connect them with, again, the resources they need, uh,
for ...for the best long-term outcomes, and it's really helpful for me, um, to think about this as a
spectrum. And ... and one thing I really want to stress to Council and I'd stress to the community
as well, is that there is no one model that's going to ... that's going to solve everything across
this ... this ... this entire spectrum of calls that we get. We can't adopt CAHOOTS and ... and think
that that's gonna take care of all of our crisis calls and needs. It's not. So, um, let me kinda
walk you through just how I ... I think about this a little bit, and I'll try to give you some
examples of...of each of the steps, but, um, that ... that kind of ranges from what the best outcome
is to what the necessary outcome is. So the best outcome is we prevent the calls from ever
happening. Okay? Um, that means we have a really strong social service network that is
engaging with our population, that is helping them. Uh, it helps prevent them from ever being
in crisis. That way the calls never happen. We do that through our programs like Aid to
Agencies. So how can we bolster those programs to ... to get the nonprofits the support to help
people before they enter a crisis, and then there's, um, community awareness and outreach,
and ... and, uh, I was not able to attend the last listening session. Uh, that was the only one I
missed. But, uh, what I took away from that in just reading the notes and talking with staff is
there was a lot of conversation about the need to educate the community too about when it's
appropriate to call the police and when it's not. And we can play a role in that community
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education, uh, as a city, but, um, you know, the example that ... that perhaps was used is you
should not call the police when you see four black juveniles walking down the street. That's not
suspicious activity. Don't call the police. We have to make that message loud and clear on
when it is appropriate to call the police and when it is not (laughs) and the community has a role
to play. So that gets to things like, um, you know, the ongoing training that we're trying to offer
the community through... through our Human Rights office. We need to be able to ramp that up.
Again that's preventative medicine, that's trying to make sure that that call never happens. Um,
and then there's targeted outreach where ... where we need it. So where do we have really acute
problems in Iowa City, acute needs, and how do we target that. So one would be homeless
outreach, um, and we're having some really good conversations with the Shelter House and
what ... what additional homeless outreach services could look like. In the past years, and we've
been really proud of the ... of the work that, um, our downtown officers have done. They've
essentially functioned like street outreach workers, right? They're not out there enforcing laws
against the homeless. They're trying to connect them with services. But let's rethink that, and
let's ... let's try to ... let's ... let's try to take that away from the officers, even though they do a really
good job at it and you've all seen that, um, but how do we get a ... a, uh, a professional street
outreach worker, um, that is employed by a social service agency to do that targeted outreach,
um, so those calls, again, never... never... never, uh, take place. They're out there. They're...
they're meeting, they're talking with folks. Um, they're deescalating things before they even
escalate, and that's that call about a concerned, uh, person in, uh, downtown never actually
comes into the... the... um, the department. So again, that's the preventative section. That's...
that's the best we can do is let's ... let's eliminate those calls. And so there's some short things
there that ... that we can do, and there's some long-term things there that we can do. Um, this
idea of a civilian, um, street outreach worker, uh, that's employed outside of the police
department, um, is one that we can do I think fairly short-term. We're having some very
productive conversations on that. And again, that's not waiting for your plan. We hope to ... to
try to piece that together and present it to you as a start right there. Um, expanding social
service outreach and, again, broadening their ability, kind of that first thing I talked about, that
can't happen overnight. You can't just ... you can't just snap your fingers and ... and double the
amount of services that are being provided by those nonprofits. That's a longer term process
that's going to take, um, years of...of concerted effort by the City, and frankly.. frankly from the
entire community. So again, both short and long-term things that we can do with ... with the
preventative option. So the second, once you move from the prevention piece, kind of that
second piece of the spectrum that I think about is ... is diversion. If you have to make a call, how
do we divert those calls away from law enforcement when appropriate? And that's, you know,
we have thankfully the mobile crisis unit already established here. So how do we bolster
mobile crisis, how do we ... how do we, um, you know, make sure that, um, we can use their...
their existing resources to the best of our ability. Um, but also how can we expand. In Iowa
City the last couple of years, um, they ve been between 505, you know, 550, uh, calls, uh, our
mobile crisis unit for the community's mobile crisis unit. How do we move from 500 calls to
5,000 calls, how do we start to ... to bolster that mobile crisis, um, is a question we need ... we
have to, uh, dive into. Is that expanded staffing or is that, uh, a different type of staffing, you
know, CAHOOTS has EMTs that... that... that are part of...a part of that unit too. So is it a
different skill set we need to incorporate into mobile crisis. And then it's also just promoting
that service. I mean before these conversations were taking place, how many of...how many of
us knew mobile crisis existed, and how many of, uh, members of the community know mobile
crisis exists now and that that service is available. Do they know how to reach `em? Do they
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know the phone number? Do they know that there's a text option or a chat option? We have a
role to play to promote those services so those calls from someone that's in crisis gets diverted
away from law enforcement, and then there's, um, I think, uh, one of the big lessons that ... that I
took away in hearing the police chief from Eugene, Oregon speak is, um, that 9-1-1 integration
piece is ... is really important too, um, and that's... thats a ... that's somethin' that they've
accomplished, which is a ... which is an impressive feat, because you don't see that very much
throughout the country. But how do we work that, uh, 9-1-1 dispatch into, um, how do we work
mobile crisis, uh, into our 9-1-1 dispatch system, and another.. another diversion, um, and this
one's a little bit different because it's still internal to the City, whereas the others are external to
the City. We do have, um, non -sworn personnel in our police department right now that
respond to calls for service. Are we maximizing those opportunities as well? You're familiar
with our CSO, our community service officers. Uh, they ...they are in the white pickup trucks.
Those are unarmed individuals. They're not sworn officers, and they ...they handle a number of
calls per year. Um, do we expand that staff? Is there a demand ... are there ... are there calls that
that staff can (mumbled) can, again, respond to? So again, that's ... this is the diversion piece.
We went from preventative to ... to diversionary, and, uh, with the short-term and long- term,
again, there's things that we can do. Um, I'll start on the long-term this time. 9-1-1 integration,
that's not going to happen in a couple of months. We're not gonna get that done by December.
We're probably not going to get that done by next December, um, but it's absolutely a long-term
goal that we can and we should work towards. How do we bolster mobile crisis staffing? That
maybe is kind of a medium term type of issue. Again, we need to study our calls for service, we
need to really collaborate with the mobile crisis team and figure out how best to... to scale
that ... that type of operation, um, and in theAn the, um, short term, we obviously can do a much
better job as a city in promoting the existing crisis services in the community. We do have
strong communication capabilities. We have a platform of City officials. We can absolutely,
uh, be creative in the way that ... that we promote those services to ... to the community and ... and
hopefully, uh, maximize the, uh, the capacity for, uh, the existing services. So I told you I was
going to be a little long winded. Um, thanks for ..thanks for bearing with me. I'll ... I'll speed up
here, but we have the preventative, diversionary, and then there's kind of a co- response, uh,
segment that I see. And this is where, um, the ... the PD has to take on kind of a secondary role.
(garbled, goes silent) a mobile crisis unit or the crisis teams outside of the city, social service
agencies aren't exactly comfortable responding, um, to the call based on the information that
they know. So this could be, uh, still leading with a ... a crisis professional, but having kind of
po.... police there as a secondary (garbled) ideally a ... a plainclothes officer, um, and not a
uniformed officer, um, that kind of stages, um, behind, that can assist as needed, until ... until all
the details of the situation, um, is ... is really ...until they're all, uh, really known, um, and then
this of course can also tie in in the future to that 9-1 ... 9-1-1 integration. Um, again, that's a very
long term, um, long-term option, but we're always gonna have those situations in which the
initial call that comes in leaves enough, uh, ambiguity to say, you know, for the social service
providers, the crisis providers, to say I'm not exactly sure what this is. Please come along, uh,
with me, to the police department, and again, how can we respond in a very non -threatening,
uh, a ... a kind of backup type of approach to make sure everything's safe, but also make sure
that, um, the crisis professional is ... is ... is front and ... in front and center. Now when you start
this type of, uh, program, um, we don't have the volume of calls to keep a co -responder, you
know, busy from ... from, uh, you know, whatever... whatever shift they have. There's going to be
lulls in the day, so you get ... you get the benefit of...of that professional, uh, doing some other
things. They can do preventative work too. They can follow up with people that have, um, had
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law enforcement interactions, maybe the last week or two, to make sure that they re getting the
care that they want. Um, and ... and they can, uh, educate officers on ... on other options that are
available in the community when they encounter. They can help kind of dissect maybe, uh,
calls for service that happened and ... and help train your officers to ensure better responses
going forward. So that co -response model, um, because we're just not of a size of community
where they're going to be going call to call for ...for crisis type of calls. Um, there's
some ... there's some additional benefits outside of that kind of co -response segment. Um, again,
9-1-1 integration long-term. Uh, short-term, um, you all know, I think it's been reported in the
paper, that the, uh, mental health region, the Central Region, opened up, um, funding
applications for a co -responder, uh, type of position, and we have applied for those funds, and I
just wanna be clear about that. That does not mean that is the one model that we think is going
to solve all our ills in the ... in the community. Um, as I'm trying to paint a picture right now, I
think ... I think it can really help in one small segment of what we need to do, but by no means
does a co -responder really help us get to those goals of diversion and prevention that I just
got ... I just got done talking about, but I do believe, um, that if we're awarded these funds from
the Central Region, that we can, um, bring a great deal of benefit and ... and that would not be a
police department position. That would be a position outside of the police department, um, that
works closely with the police department, um, in responding to those calls. So, you know
as ... as that process unfolds and as they make their decisions, we'll certainly come to you and
your approval will ... will absolutely be needed. But I think that's an example of a potential
short-term, uh, stride that we can make, um, to ... to really have as focus in this ... in this particular
segment of the spectrum. And then the last piece, uh, so we moved from prevention, diversion
to co -response. So ... so what I kinda think of is stabilize and hand off. When it's absolutely
unavoidable that ... that police need to ... to respond. These are gonna be cases in which there's,
um, violence being displayed or a weapon, um, and you have to have the police front and center
as opposed to secondary. How do we make sure that our officers have, um, the appropriate
training, the right policies in place, to best be able to de-escalate, use the least amount of use of
force, um, that's necessary. Hopefully no use of force, and then hand off. So that's the stabilize
and then hand off, and you can think of the hand off as taking that person to the Guide Link
Center and taking that person to the hospital, connecting them with mobile crisis resources or
whatever... whatever it is that they may need, um, making sure that ... that our officers are
supported, um, in their efforts to do that and that they have all the tools and resources and
community support they need to be able, uh, to do that. That is, uh, that is, uh, always going to
be short-term because those calls happen, um, on a regular basis. So we have to be committed
to that every single day. That's... that's just ... has to be an everyday focus. Um, longer term,
we've been working on these things and we just have to stay committed to `em. Cross Park
Place, Guide Link, those are examples of that hand off that I'm talking about. Those aren't
enough and we're already kind of, uh, the community (mumbled) is turning its focus to a second
Cross Park style, uh, Place, and two of these, you know, facilities aren't gonna be enough. So
we have to continue to stay committed, and just as you heard, um, in ... in your Guide Link
presentation, that facility is going to be a tremendous benefit, but we can't pretend it's gonna be
the cure all. We're gonna know that there's gonna ... we need to know that there's gonna be
additional (mumbled) and, you know, for example, the Guide Link Center's not gonna handle,
um, a juvenile, uh, referrals. So we have to make sure that we're thinking long-term about
what's that best hand off for ...for juvenile, urn ... uh, referrals. Um, so again, that short-term
focus is every day, because it's how we respond to every single call that we go on. But the long-
term, the Council needs to remain committed, and I ... and I know you will to those long- term,
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um, hand off solutions. So that's... thaVs, um, that's kind of how I'm thinkin' about it in my mind
and I just encourage you to ... to really, um, think about the variety of calls that we get, and
in ... and, um, make sure that... that... that you know that one type of response model is not going
to be sufficient. I think we have to be committed to multiple types of models, and prioritize and
push as many calls as possible, uh, to that first end of that spectrum, which is that diversion
prevention. But ... but co -responder's going to be necessary, because there are going to continue
to be calls in which there is some type of public safety concern. I hope that's ... I hope that's
helpful. Um, it's at least how I'm kind of framing things after, uh, listening to the community
conversation, uh, at your listening posts.
Mims/ I must say, I found that very helpful. Um, I think presenting this on the spectrum that you did,
Geoff, really of, you know, trying to avoid the problems in the fust place, um, and get people
help before the call is made all the way to, you know, that hand off when it does involve the
police. And all the, you know, all the various components in between. I think it's just it ... for me
that's really, really, really helpful in terms of the way you framed that and how we look at, um,
you know, I don't know if you really call it restructuring, but how do we ... how do we take some
of that load off from the police department, um, and so how do we look at, um, adding to the
resources, either through City staff or through contracts with nonprofits, etc., to help us, but I
found that, and I apologize for my being gone. I had an internet glitch and I've relocated here.
Um, so I missed some of the conversation, but thank you, Geoff. I think that was very, very
helpful and I really like that perspective, and I like proceeding in that direction of looking at the
various pieces along the spectrum and how can we start working on each of those right now,
and which of those are going to be a little bit longer-term pieces, as well. What it doesn't fully
talk about, um, is really the Black Lives Matter issues. I mean what I walked away from, um,
in terms of the sessions that I was involved in, and also in reading all the information in the
packet, was it seemed like an awful lot of that public input was directed towards the mental
health issues and their interaction, people with those problems, to interaction with the police.
There was not as much in terms of the racial issues, and so we have to still make sure we're
looking at that, um, and I think the training, making sure, uh, what the training is, there's
enough of it, and I think getting out to the public how much training our officers do, because I
think most people do not understand the amount of trainings done ... that is done, and I think
always, you know, rethinking and relooking at what that training is and improvements that we
can make over time, etc. And again, you know, outreach. I know there was a lot of discussion
at Dream City about that. Um, so making sure that we're not overlooking those aspects in terms
of trying to make those connections between the police department and the various
communities, um, within town.
Fruin/ That ... I think you make a good ... good point, Susan, and what I presented is ... is by no means the
extent of the plan. I mean that ... thafs a central component of the plan, but, um, there's
absolutely a lot more that ... that you charged us with that ... that would have to be presented, and
again, one thing I just warm make clear. I think I started with this. Um, we ... we are trying to
be ahead on this and staff and you're not always seeing that because we're not ... not quite ready
with all this stuff yet. And we wanna make sure we're ... we're not getting some in front of you
or your direction, maybe a little bit different, but you will continue to see policy changes and,
um, ordinance changes and ... and things like that as we ... as we go through our own internal, uh,
our internal reviews. So just because your June resolution specified use of force and body cams
and duty to intervene doesn't mean that's where we're stoppin'. Um, as staff we're... we're
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taking a much more comprehensive look at all of our policies, um, because those policies were
identified because of a specific situation. We all know the next situation is going to have a lot
different circumstances to it, and we're tryin' to do our best to anticipate what those are and
make sure that, uh, our policies, um, reflect the exact actions that ... that we want, uh, our officers
to take on the street.
Teague/ I have attended four of the meetings and ... and I would ... I would concur that a lot of the
language was related to ... can you all hear me okay? All right. A lot of the language was related
to mental health and, um, I ... I certainly have a heart for mental health, and I believe that the
CAHOOTS model does offer us something that we really can look very closely at. Um, as
Geoff mentioned there's other opportunities that we learned through the East Central Region,
and I do believe that we'll have to look at all the ... a .... a few models and try to figure out what's
right for our community. I know that Councilor Taylor talked about, um, opportunities of
collaboratin' with CAHOOTS and, uh, maybe even a visit. If we're going into where I wanna
go, uh (laughs) just so that people know cause I would love to see what CAHOOTS or..is doin'
or if there's another identified, um, community policing that is happenin' throughout our nation,
I would love to be a part of that. Um, of course and I will want integration. I think will be very
key as we move along this continuum, and I've said it before that... that... whatever we start, this
is not the end. But I ... I do believe that we have to start somewhere. The one thing that I do
want to do is elevate the black voices that I've, um, that I've been in conversation with, because
one thing that was missing a little bit from the conversation was how do we address, um, some
of the concerns that, um, we have when it comes down to police and ... and people of color, the
BIPOC population. I do believe that we have to get, um, some concrete things within our
policies that we identify, you know, some things and all of that is good, but I also believe, um,
that the voices of the BIPOC, the people that I've talked to, what they've said is ... we've been
sayin' a lot of stuff for years about how we, you know, the treatment has been a little different at
times, and ... and I ... I appreciate Councilor Thomas talking about, you know, the lights, you
know, the ... the traffic stop lights or the traffic, uh, stops, um, and how we can, you know, look
at other opportunities, uh, within our community where we can certainly enforce the law when
it comes down to speeding, but also, um, decrease that disparity, uh, that is happening amongst,
uh, people of color. So I ... I think there's great opportunities here. The other thing that I'll just
mention is,, um, and Councilor Taylor talked about this, marijuana, you know (laughs) we're
gonna be talkin' about what are some of our legislative priorities. And I believe that marijuana,
especially when we sit adjacent to, uh, a state where marijuana is legal, Illinois, and we're here
in Iowa and, um, we're ... we're criminalizing marijuana, and I know that that comes from the
State, but I...I know that Madison, Wisconsin, it's their ...uh, they just passed an ordinance
where, um, the penalty for possessing 28 grams or less of cannabis is $1, and so, uh, their state
is not legal, but the city, whether it's in ... in, uh, whether they're violatin' the—the state law or
not. That's what they're... that's what their (mumbled). I'm sorry about that. That's what their
county did, and so I believe that we need to look at not only ...some of the things that we're
doing with policy, um, but we need to look at some of the things that is happening with our state
that is not here yet and ... and ... and be very, very aggressive and bold in what we do. And again,
I cannot emphasize enough the ... some of the black voices that I ... that I've heard and myself
included, we've said enough. We already know, uh, a little bit of what the challenges are, uh,
within our community. We're gonna continue to, uh, share specifics of what those challenges
are, but it's time for action, and I appreciate, Geoff, and, um ... for your presentation tonight. Of
course there's a few things that, um, I wanna make comments about, but I don't think I need to
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do that right now because overall I know that the intent is for, um, us to get ... for Council to
receive somethin' that we can look at, the public can weigh in on, and we can move forward
with our initial plan, which we plan to have in December.
Weiner/ I think what you just said, Mr .... Mr. Mayor, is really ...is really powerful. I ... one of the areas
that I just wanna say a couple of things having to do with what ... what John... Councilor Thomas
mentioned and ... and Councilor... Councilor Taylor with respect to traffic. Um, we can ... we can
figure out a way to do better there. Um (mumbled) I ... I looked up, um, Lansing, Michigan.
They have a ... they have a program now, or at least they had a pot ... they have a pilot program
where they're essentially saying no to pretextual stops. No pretextual stops. Only for matters of
public safety. And ... and I think ... I think that we need to take a good look at that. We can't just
sort of put up speed cameras, because it's illegal under Iowa City law right now. So we have,
we're gonna have to deal with that whole debate if we, again if...and I think that's a way to go as
well, because they... but... but we we have to be prepared for a real conversation on that. Um,
and ... and you know, there ... there are different ways to get minor traffic, uh, minor car issues
(mumbled) like driving... driving my (mumbled) well, poor essentially if you ... if you have
taillight problems and other issues. Um, fire stations, for example, regularly hold sessions to
show people how to install car se ... child ... child ... child car seats properly. Um, there's no reason
that we can't have something similar from ... from the police to just say, hey, come, um, and pick
up a coupon, do something, but it doesn't have to be in the form of a stop, and it doesn't have to
be something that's... that's really going to ... it can ... it can be something that creates goodwill in
the community rather than ... than difficult relationships is all... is all I'm trying to say.
Fruin/ I think that's a ... that's a good point, Janice, and we do have the bulbs program, which
necessitates a stop. You know, we ... we will give you a coupon to get your defective equipment
fixed, uh, but that necessitates a stop. So how do you take that same platform and ... and just,
you know, create that, uh, environment outside of a stop. That's a ... that's a real good thought.
Teague/ Well, I would ... I know that this is important to Councilors and so, um, yeah, I ... I guess I just
wanted to get a consensus. Is Council, um, comfortable directin' City Manager to come back,
uh, with ... with some proposals? I'm seein' some shaken up heads. So, yes. All right. (both
talking)
Fruin/ Mayor, just, uh, Mayor, just to be clear, uh, our goal is the, uh, get the ... get the plan out by
December 15th and we'll accomplish that. Um, but I fully expect that, uh, between now and
then, we'll have some of these incremental steps in front of you. So, um, we won't wait for the
plan, um, if there's opportunities, uh, whether that's policy changes or, uh, positions. Uh, those
will come before... before December, and, of course, you always have the ability to defer action
if you're not quite comfortable, but, um, this is not a situation which we're gonna wait till
December to take action.
Clarification of Aeenda Items:
No discussion.
Information Packet Discussion (October 8. October 15):
Teague/ All right, thank you so much. All right, let's go on to clarification of agenda items. This is for
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the formal agenda. Hearin' none...all right, we're gonna go on to ... urn, let's tackle October
8'...wait, let's tackle... , uh, let's go ahead and do October 8th packet, info packet. Is there
anything anyone wants to say there?
Mims/ Just quickly mention, um, IP 6, the invitation for October 23`x, the ribbon cutting for the mural
in the South District.
Teague/ And that starts at 4:30 ... or...3:301
Bergus/ 3...3:30 to 5:00 P.M. 1030 Cross Park Avenue, so it's on the east side of Pepperwood Place is
the ... the mural on Broadway there, but Cross Park is on the south side.
Teague/ All right hearin' nothing else from October 8th we'll go onto October 15`s, and we're gonna
start here with IP 7 and we'll start with the, uh, Assistant City Manager on this item,
introduction to solar study concept for Johnson Clean Energy District.
Monroe/ Thanks, Mayor, um, I will just summarize very quickly what this memo is for, um, that was
included in the packet. Earlier this year, the Johnson Clean Energy District's members
approached, uh, our office and the Climate Action and Outreach office about this proposed idea
that they had to, uh, generate a study and further explore opportunities for solar throughout the
community. So, um, everything from smaller solar projects to larger -scale projects, and
identifying them through a plan that would be developed with community stakeholders, um,
bring in expertise from everyone from the University to other technical experts that could help,
uh, advisory assistance from our utilities, and, um, any other community partners, and the
second piece of their proposal is, um, intended to really generate awareness of the opportunities
that solar may bring in the community and so, uh, seeing that our climate action and adaptation
plan includes, um, an expectation that will consider or pursue additional opportunities for solar
projects. Um, this fits in with those goals. And, uh, we had suggested that they bring their idea
first to the Climate Action Commission for some feedback and ... and any advice that they may
give. Um, wanted to make sure that the commission was first supportive of their idea. Um, at
their early October meeting they were supportive, um, of this being brought to you for
additional feedback and, um, essentially the next steps would be a, uh, a joint partnership, um,
at this time. There's not an agreement or any funds changing hands. Um, but the ideas for
stakeholder meetings to start, um, to further explore the idea of solar opportunities, uh, with the
couple of potential partners I had mentioned and a few others, and, um, ultimately the goal is to
increase engagement and awareness around solar projects, potentially find a project that could
be, um, could be from the City, and also, um, get, you know, supported by community
stakeholder feedback and support, as well as the Council. So this is just the first step, um, and
we wanted any direction or feedback that you had before we pursued something like this, um,
and we would, of course, keep you updated through the process. So I'd just entertain any
feedback you have, if you want us to go ahead!
Mims/ It sounds like a good idea and I think particularly after what we had happen, uh, with our project
with Mid American where, um, I think staff and the Council, to a certain extent that, you know,
a bit blindsided by the ... by the negative public reaction. I think to take this kind of approach
and really have a group that wants to get out there and engage the public and, um, get ideas of
what's important to them, what kinds of areas they would, um, see as acceptable, particularly on
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public land for ...for solar arrays, I think would be really advantageous for the City, one to
hopefully get more solar out there, um, and to ... know ahead of time kind of what that public
response was going to be before staff and/or any other entity doesn't get too far down the road
with something and then realize we're not going to have the support we thought we would.
Weiner/ And then I think it's also an organization or a group that can help build consensus in the
community and create consensus and ... and ... and create room for ideas um, that ... so, for
example, if it had existed before we dealt with the Mid American project, we might have, uh,
ended up tweaking it a little bit, but ... but getting it through because there would have been
broader... broader, uh, broader community... community participation and knowledge about it.
So I think it's, uh, and ... and looking at the different kinds of solar. I personally think it's a
really ...um, a really excellent idea.
Thomas/ I agree. Im really enthused about this and ... and supportive of it. Uh, I think it'll provide a
foundation, uh, and a vision from which we can then identify specific projects that will flow
from that vision and the foundation, uh, in a ... in a smoother way one. Uh, one correction I
would note, I ... I tried looking up a couple of the sites that were identified in this memo, uh,
Bloomfield being one of them, and the other is State Center, not State City. So if you look on
the map for State City, you're not gonna find it (laughs) um, but it's ... it's a little small town, ha..
about halfway between Waterloo and Ames, Iowa. I mean, these are ... these are two small towns
of maybe less than 2,000 people, uh, who have generated solar, municipally -owned solar farms
of 1.8 and 1 megawatt. It's ... it's kind of a interesting, um, interesting examples of what a small
community can do, but I'm really pleased with this and ... and happy to see it move forward.
Bergus/ Just a quick question. Ashley, do you, um, I mean my only I guess concern or question that
wasn't answered in the memo is are ... are we worried at all that this will slow down the
processes that are already in place with our ...with the Climate Action Commission and staff that
are working on initiatives or do we really ...we're confident that this'll supplement that in a net,
you know, sort of net positive way.
Monroe/ Actually think, uh, I have to give this group kudos for coming to us and ... and recognizing a
community issue that ... that came up and, um, they had continued interest in pursuing this, and,
um, I think their assistance is actually going to further our ...our ability to do a project like this.
So, you know, I think their assistance and that of our community kind of coming together on
this type of project will actually bolster staff's ability to move projects a little bit more quickly.
Bergus/ Excellent. Thank you!
Teague/ All right, sound like there is consensus there. So, anyone else wanna chime in on that? Great,
thank you. All right, the next item is going to be IP 8 and that's related to the 20-21 State
legislative priorities, um, development schedule. So III let our Assistant, uh, City Manager talk
about ... are you gonna talk about that or you (both talking)
Fruin/ Yeah, I think really what we're looking for from the Council, we're gonna present to you the draft
legislative priorities at your next work session and, um, just wanna... wanna be able to schedule
some time with our delegation to talk through those and knowing that their ...their lives become
increasingly, uh, busier as we approach the start of the session. So, um, really looking... we've
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done it multiple ways in the past. We can try to have, uh.... uh, see ... see who's available to join
you at a regular work session. We also know there's a lot of demands on your work session
time right now. Um, we can set up a special meeting, uh, special work session or you could
appoint a ... a couple of people from the Council that wanna carry the message of the legislative
priorities to them, which would give us a lot more flexibility on, urn ... uh, scheduling, but it's
really... there's no right, wrong way to do it. Um, you'll ... you'll publicly adopt those legislative
priorities. It's just how best you want to convey those to the delegation.
Taylor/ I ... I would be in favor of an in-person meeting with the legislators, I guess via Zoom probably,
not really actually face to face. And I think it's important that we as an entire Council, uh,
speak to them so they know it's, uh, truly coming from the entire Council, and I also, uh, did
like the idea and believe that we should include our lobbyists. I don't think we have in our
discussions before, but I think that would be important. Of course that ... that throws another
iron into the coals, as far as scheduling, but I think it'd be important to ... to do that if we could, if
possible.
Mims/ I would agree with Pauline and I know for many years we managed to do like an early morning
breakfast. Again, I think it would be virtual, um, but if that helps with people's schedules at all.
We used to meet like at 7:30 or something and be done by 8:30 or 9:00, um, or we tended to do
a late afternoon, but my schedule tends to be pretty flexible, but I would agree with Pauline, I
would prefer that it's the full Council.
Teague/ I ... I would prefer whole council as well. So the question, and I see some heads nodding, so the
question would be is, um, do we do it within a work session, do we extend our work session one
hour. Um, Maybe start the work session at 4:00 P.M., or do we go a different time all together?
(laughs) (mumbled)
Weiner/ I like the idea of breakfast or something, but please not till 8:00. Otherwise you're going to
have like a little kid running around ... my real ... like crazy.
Taylor: I ... I prefer just separate with them and different from our work session cause I think that does
send a message to them also that ... that it is important to us and that they're important to us and...
and these issues are important to us.
Teague/ Is there a typical day when that would take place by chance? No...
Fruin/ We can work with the individual schedules and try to find one that ... we don't know. I don't
know if we'll get everybody, all Council, all delegation. We'll do our best.
Teague/ Okay. Does that sound good, uh, well just have staff email us a ... a time and we can work it
out there. All right. We have a minute left. Anything before ... any other ...anything anybody
else want to say for the good of this time that we have together? All right, well, we will not
have to come back to the work see .... work session, um, but we will see you at our 7:00 P.M.
formal meeting, which is a different Zoom link. So we'll see you all soon!
This represents only a reasonably accurate transcription of the Iowa City City Council work session of
October 20, 2020.