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Home My WebLink About~Master - September 2021 Monthly Project Highlights MONTHLY PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS SEPTEMBER 2021 Report Compiled by Carly Watson, Principal Clerk, City Manager’s Office 2 CITY MANAGER’S OFFICE Public Art Commission: The Public Art Commission celebrated its 30th Anniversary on Wednesday, Sept. 22, at the City Hall Gymnasium. Tours of public art in City Hall were provided followed by a program and awards ceremony. Speakers at the event included Lynette L. Pohlman, Kathy Svec, and Mayor John Haila. The Public Art Commission was formed by resolution of the Ames City Council on March 26, 1991, for the purpose of establishing public art philosophy and developing a public art plan for the City, monitoring the public art budget and recommending funding allocations for public art within City facilities, developing guidelines for selecting artwork, seeking private and governmental funding for public art, and developing educational, promotional projects for public arts programming. Through the years, the Commission has established several public art programs, including the Annual Ames Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit – now in its 25th year – and the Neighborhood Sculpture program. The Commission has also partnered with other area organizations for events such as the Black Arts and Music Festival and Downtown Art Walk. Other activities of the Commission have included sponsoring visiting artists and hosting community activities like a birdhouse competition, photography contest, tactile art workshops, and Chalk the Block. The awardees of the Public Art Commission Photography Contest were announced during the awards Ceremony at the 30th Anniversary Celebration. The Commission hosted this contest to celebrate the Parks of Ames. Photos submitted were required to be of a scene, item or pe rson taken at a park under the purview of the Ames Parks and Recreation Department. Submissions to the contest will also be reviewed by the Parks and Recreation department for the chance to be printed and displayed in the new Clubhouse at Homewood Golf Cou rse. The awardees of the contest are: From an Ant’s Perspective by Jiwen Li (Youth); Summer Sundays by Lydia Gebhart (Youth); Welcome to Ames by Tana Tesdall (Adult); Boat Crossing by Jidong Sun (Adult); Fishing At Sunset by Jon Wilson (Adult); and Evening Delivery by Linda Cather Johnson (Adult). For more information about the Public Art Commission or to learn about its upcoming events and projects, please visit https://www.cityofames.org/public-art-commission. 3 FIRE As of August 31, the City of Ames is now operating on the new StoryComm permanent radio system. The new radio system increases coverage across the entire county and has greatly improved radio signal penetration into ISU and Ames buildings, which improves communication and the safety of responders working inside. Ames Fire crews participated in InBody testing. InBody testing breaks down the user’s body composition to measure hydration, analyze lean muscle and fat content. The testing process, which is completed twice a year, gives firefighters an inside look at how diet and exercise effects their overall health. On Wednesday, September 15, crews responded to 119 Stanton Avenue for a reported structure fire. Thick black smoke could be seen throughout much of the Campustown area. Based on the amount of smoke coming from the building it appeared that the entire building was on fire. Fortunately, it was only a 30’ strip of rubber mulch that was burning on the exterior of the 7-story apartment complex. Neither fire nor smoke made it into the building, and only minor damage was caused to the exterior of the building (pictured right). There were no injuries, and the cause of the fire appears to be carelessly discarded smoking materials. 4 LIBRARY Miss Jerri Has Retired: Youth Services Manager Jerri Heid retired September 15, and we miss her already. “Miss Jerri” has become a well-loved fixture in our community—our own Miss Frizzle—and will be missed enormously. A search committee is now evaluating applicants in the hopes of filling a Jerri-sized hole in the Library. National Voter Registration Day: Ames Public Library and the League of Women Voters will celebrate National Voter Registration Day September 28 by helping library visitors get registered to vote between 11:30am and 4pm in the Library’s lobby. New Teen Librarian: Our new Teen Librarian, Ethan Atwell, has hit the ground running. Already, he’s lined up several new events for teens, including Teen Videogames, In Their Shoes: A Teen Dating Violence Simulation, and Mindful Teen: From Surviving to Thriving in a Busy World. Storytimes and More: Youth Services Staff took a short breather after a busy slate of summer events, but they’re back in full force! The fall season of weekly family events has begun, including Family Storytime, Storytime with Ben, Kids Create, and our new Science at the Library series. Check the Library’s calendar for storytime schedules and many special events for a variety of ages. Understanding Social (In)Justice Thought the Power of Place: Ames Public Library will host a special series of interactive virtual workshops exploring the history of Des Moines’ Center Street neighborhood. The workshops will be led by Madison DeShay- Duncan, Ph.D. and Richard Duncan, creators of the upcoming documentary, The Center Street Story: An Urban Renewal Retrospective. Sign up at www.amespubliclibrary.org/events. 5 PARKS AND RECREATION Ada Hayden Fishing Pier Repairs: Woodruff Construction, Inc., is continuing to make progress on the fishing pier. Six pilings were removed, all decking and railings have been removed, and the existing pilings have been leveled. A new concrete footing wall has been added and the beams are being shimmed and leveled. Once the substructure has been leveled, all new joists and decking will be installed along with a new railing system. Lastly, new concrete walkways will be added to connect to the existing path. Work on this project is scheduled to be finished in October. Bandshell Park: On September 15, Iowa State students enrolled in the Entertainment Venue Management course spoke with Auditorium, Bandshell and Community Center Manager Craig Kaufman at Bandshell Park. Students asked Craig about presenting events, venue operations, community engagement, and the benefits and challenges of operating a City owned facility. 6 Franklin Park Improvements: A new two-bay set of swings has been installed to the west of the play equipment and a concrete border has been poured around the equipment and swings. A shelter structure and roof have been completed. Final aspects of the project include a drinking fountain, electricity to the shelter and future path lights, and light fixtures in the shelter. Public Works will be installing a shared use path through the park in 2022 which will connect to these new features. Splash Pad Project: City staff is preparing a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the splash pad design which will be distributed to vendors who specialize in splash pad design. Vendors can submit up to two design proposals and all proposals will be evaluated based on established criteria. The successful bidder will construct the splash pad in 2022! Tahira and Labh Hira Park Development: Concrete paths are currently being installed along with a basketball pad. Staff is installing a shelter and will be adding the basketball goals. A drinking fountain, electricity, light fixtures, grills, and benches will be added in early October. This will be the first park to have a central trash area which will be adjacent the east parking lot. There will be signage to educate users of the “carry-in, carry-out” type of philosophy for this park.