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HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - November 2023 Monthly Project Highlights Contact the City Manager's Office at 515-239-5101 515 Clark Avenue, Ames, IA 50010 Report compiled by Jeramy Neefus, Principal Clerk City Manager's Office NOVEMBER 2023 MONTHLY PROJECTHIGHLIGHTS FINANCE Customer Service: The Finance Customer Service team is currently working on a project to enhance communication channels with customers through automated text and phone service. The primary goal is to improve resident engagement while reducing expenses associated with processing and dispatching notifications. At present, the cost of sending a first notice is $0.76, while posting a second notice on a door amounts to $9.37. In the past year, the City dispatched 25,993 first notices and 8,930 second notices. Staff estimates that the proposed text and phone call communications will cost $0.035 each. By implementing these methods, staff expects to reduce the need for first and second notices. The team anticipates full implementation of this communication method by the end of this year. 2 FIRE Grant for Butt Can Project: With money from a FEMA grant award, the Fire Department purchased 500 stainless steel outdoor ashtrays with lids. The smokeless ashtray will not tip or blow over. In addition to the City of Ames logo, 1-800-QUIT-NOW is engraved on the front in case a resident would like help quitting. The promotion is designed to eliminate the use of plastic receptacles like coffee cans being used as makeshift ashtrays in area rental housing. While smoking is not allowed in most rental units, many will smoke outside on their deck or patio. For those that choose to do so, this project provides a safer alternative. To distribute the ashtrays, inspectors will leave a door hanger on each door in an apartment building during the inspection. The door hanger, pictured below, provides information about the program and instructions on how to receive a FREE ashtray. 3 LIBRARY 2024 Black Arts Festival Call for Artists: Ames Public Library is gearing up for a 2024 Black Arts Festival April 20, 2024. Applications are open for artists and performers in the greater Ames/Des Moines community to be included in the festival. For more information, visit https://www.AmesPL.org/BlackArtsFestival. IDEA Center: This December, Ames Public Library will unveil its newest addition: The IDEA Center! Located in the Library’s Studio on the second floor, this space connects library users to technology to digitize personal photos, slides, videos and sound recordings. Adobe Creative Cloud and Final Cut Pro are available on all stations for editing and creative projects. There will be an Open House on Saturday, December 2, from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. to give visitors a chance to explore the IDEA Center. Stop in or find out more by visiting the webpage at www.AmesPL.org/IDEACenter. Reading Challenges: The “12 to Try” Challenge for adults is already in full swing, with 12 categories to read from between now and August 31, 2024. Learn more at www.AmesPL.org/12toTry. 4 The Library’s IditaRead Challenge for all ages begins December 1 and runs through January 31. Participants will earn a prize for reading 30 days over the next two months. Consider taking on one or both of these challenges and earn prizes for reading! 5 PARKS AND RECREATION Ames/ISU Ice Arena: The 2nd annual Skatesgiving 5K was held on Thanksgiving Day with 29 people in attendance. The Ames/ISU Ice Arena partnered with the Ames Public Library to host the first ever Destination Storytime at the Ice Arena. It was held on a Friday morning with 27 kids and parents participating in storytime, which was followed by painting on the ice and skating. Homewood Golf Course: The course opened April 1 and closed for the season on November 5. This year had 4,236 more rounds of golf played than in 2022. A comparison of 2022 and 2023 is shown below. 2022 2023 Passes Sold 157 180 Pass Holder Rounds 8,834 9,809 Green Fees Rounds 10,215 13,476 Total Rounds 19,049 23,285 Golf Cart Rentals 5,546 8,021 Concession Revenue $35,117 $42,064 6 Outdoor Ice Rinks: Staff erected two outdoor ice rinks in South River Valley Park for the winter season. Like previous years, one rink is set for hockey and the larger rink is only for free skating. Staff will fill the rinks when temperatures are low enough for ice making. Staff will provide updates as to when the rinks are open on the Parks and Recreation website and Facebook. Steven L. Schainker Plaza: Henkel Construction LLC of Ames, Iowa, is continuing to make progress on the water and ice amenities at the Steven L. Schainker Plaza. Contractors for the water portion of the Plaza have started to install water transmission lines from the mechanical room in the restroom building out to the splash pad location. The ice rink contractor is in the process of completing the installation of the coolant tubes and connecting them to the main transmission header. The next step for the ice rink pouring the concrete for the ice rink surface, which will take place in early December, depending on weather. Pictured right is the progress of the water transmission lines. Trout Stocking at Ada Hayden Heritage Park: Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Fisheries staff released approximately 2,000 rainbow trout into the north lake at Ada Hayden 7 Heritage Park in early November. This is the eleventh year that the Iowa DNR and City of Ames have partnered to stock the lake and provide area anglers this unique fishing experience. Wellness: Several wellness classes began in November with the following registrations: Program Registrations Group Fitness: In-Person 393 Group Fitness: Virtual 31 Line Dance 17 Seven free drop-in classes were held over the Thanksgiving weekend with 67 participants. Food was collected for the local food pantry. 8 POLICE Communiations Center Staffing Shortages: The Police Department has been challenged by staffing shortages in the Communications Center. At normal staffing, there are 12 positions, with four dispatchers per shift, and at least two working at all times. Currently, three of the 12 positions are vacant. To ensure continuity of operations, the department has been relying on partner agencies and existing staff to fill open shifts. Staff recently learned that one of the remaining nine dispatchers has taken a job in Georgia and will be leaving December 1. With this latest resignation, the Communications Center is down to eight dispatchers to fill three shifts. In addition, the Story County Sheriff's Office is soon to be down three dispatchers with an additional pending retirement in February. Both the County and the City of Ames are currently working on recruitments. With the staffing challenges, it will be more difficult to have County dispatchers take City overtime shifts as its staffing suffers. Staff has also spoken to Iowa State University (ISU), which has some ability to work overtime shifts for the City; however, ISU dispatchers require additional training to be able to work in the City’s Communications Center, as it is a full Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) dispatching Police, Fire, and Medical. Staff met with Sheriff Fitzgerald and his Communications staff on November 21 to discuss shared staffing challenges. It was decided that in addition to overtime shifts, an Ames dispatcher may be sent to Story County to work in its center to provide coverage for both agencies. Staff believes that most callers will not notice the change, as staff has worked diligently over the past few years to ensure redundancies in the system. City phone lines can be transferred, and the City and County already use a shared radio system and Records Management System. While both the County and the City are currently recruiting, there is no guarantee that either will be able to hire enough staff to fill openings in both departments. This arrangement is anticipated to last several months, and this time will be used to evaluate and consider different approaches and models to ensure that the communications function is maintained in the future. 9 TRANSIT Battery Electric Buses: At its November Board meeting, the Transit Board of Trustees approved award of contract to Gillig LLC for the purchase of five 40’ battery electric buses (BEBs). The Zero Emission roadmap for CyRide, developed by the Center for Transportation and the Environment, has indicated that up to 17 BEBs could be supported in the CyRide fleet. Adding five BEBs takes a large step toward the Transit Board’s goal of 17 BEBs while reducing CyRide’s carbon emissions. The City Council approved the award of purchase at its November 28 meeting. CyRide has been pleased with the performance of its first two BEBs and their battery range has matched expectations. Customers also like the BEBs – CyRide has received several positive comments from the public! Security System Upgrade: Also at its November Board meeting, the Transit Board approved the release of plans and specifications for CyRide’s Security System Upgrade, Phase II. CyRide worked with the Information Technology division to develop the plans, which call for camera installations in the interior and exterior areas of the facility, monitoring all doors by installing door position switches, installing electronic access control on priority doors, and migrating to a new access control and monitoring software that will be integrated with the City Hall system and be supported by the Information Technology division. The City Council approved the release of the plans and specifications at its November 28 meeting. Bids will be due January 10, 2024, and presented to the Transit Board and City Council in late January 2024.