HomeMy WebLinkAbout~Master - Regular Meeting of the Ames City Council 12/11/2018MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE AMES CITY COUNCIL
AMES, IOWA DECEMBER 11, 2018
The Regular Meeting of the Ames City Council was called to order by Mayor John Haila at 6:00
p.m. on December 11, 2018, in the City Council Chambers in City Hall, 515 Clark Avenue, pursuant
to law. Present were Council Members Bronwyn Beatty-Hansen, Gloria Betcher, Amber Corrieri,
Tim Gartin, David Martin, and Chris Nelson. Ex officio Member Allie Hoskins was also present.
SPECIAL RECOGNITION: Mayor John Haila on behalf of the City of Ames recognized the Ames
High School Girls Swim Team for being the AHS Girls Swim Team State Champions. Dan Flannery
Swim Team Coach noted that they had won their 8th title in the past nine years.
PRESENTATION: Mayor Haila presented Finance Director Duane Pitcher and Budget Officer
Nancy Masteller with the Government Finance Officers Association Distinguished Budget
Presentation Award. This is the 34th consecutive year that the City of Ames has received this award.
CONSENT AGENDA: Mayor Haila pulled Consent Item No. 21, “Resolution accepting completion
of 2017/18 Seal Coat Street Pavement Improvements (E. 16th Street, Linden Drive, Carr Drive, and
Crestwood Circle)”; and Council Member Gartin requested to pull Consent Item No. 13, “Resolution
approving Commission On The Arts (COTA) Special Grants for Spring 2019 for separate
discussion.”
Moved by Corrieri, seconded by Betcher, to approve the following items on the Consent Agenda.
3.Motion approving payment of claims
4.Motion approving Minutes of Special Meeting held November 20, 2018, and Regular
Meeting of November 27, 2018
5.Motion approving Report of Contract Change Orders for November 15 - 30, 2018
6.Motion approving 5-day (December 17 - 22) Class C Liquor License for Dublin Bay for
Chamber of Commerce event to be held at 3100 S. Riverside Drive
7.Motion approving Carry-Out Wine Privilege for Class B Wine - Casey's General Store
#2298, 428 Lincoln Way
8.Motion approving Carry-Out Wine Privilege for Class B Wine - Casey's General Store
#2560, 3020 S. Duff Ave
9.Motion approving Carry-Out Wine Privilege for Class B Wine - Casey's General Store
#2905, 3612 Stange Rd
10.Motion approving renewal of the following Beer Permits, Wine Permits, and Liquor
Licenses:
a. Class C Liquor, Catering, & Outdoor Service - The Café, 2616 Northridge Parkway
b. Class C Liquor & Outdoor Service - Aunt Maude's, 543-547 Main St.
c. Class C Liquor, Catering, & Outdoor Service - Thumbs Bar, 2816 West St.
d. Class C Liquor - Tip Top Lounge, 201 E. Lincoln Way
e. Class C Beer & Class B Wine - Casey's General Store #2298, 428 Lincoln Way
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f. Class C Liquor - 1 Night Stand, 124 Welch Ave.
11.Resolution approving Federal Fiscal Year 2020 Airport Improvement Program Application
for Ames Municipal Airport
12.Resolution approving ongoing engagement of outside legal counsel related to close-out of
new Water Treatment Plant
13.Resolution approving Commission On The Arts (COTA) Special Grants for Spring 2019
14.Resolution approving U-STEP Funding Agreement with the Iowa DOT (U.S. Hwy. 30
Westbound Off-Ramp and South Dakota Avenue)
15.Resolution approving Agreement with Iowa DOT for Pavement Repairs on U. S. 69 (Lincoln
Way between Duff Avenue and Gilchrist Street)
16.Resolution approving preliminary plans and specifications for 2017/18 Accessibility
Enhancement (Airport Road Sidewalk); setting January 16, 2019, as the bid due date and
January 22, 2019 as the date of public hearing
17.Resolution approving date changes for the Unit 7 Boiler Repair Project; setting January 16,
2019, as bid due date and January 22, 2019, as date of public hearing
18.WPC Security Camera Replacement:
a. Resolution approving Change Order #2 with Baker Group of Ankeny, Iowa, in the
amount of $9,900 to add one additional camera
b. Resolution approving reallocation of $10,000 from the WPC Grease Receiving
Station Upgrade project to the Security Camera Replacement project
19.Resolution accepting completion of 2016/17 Right-of-Way Restoration
20.Resolution accepting completion of 2016/17 Arterial Street Pavement Improvements (West
Lincoln Way)
21.Resolution accepting completion of 2017/18 Seal Coat Street Pavement Improvements (E.
16th Street, Linden Drive, Carr Drive, and Crestwood Circle)
Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Resolutions/Motions declared carried/adopted unanimously, signed by the
Mayor, and hereby made a portion of these Minutes.
RESOLUTION ACCEPTING COMPLETION OF 2017/18 SEAL COAT STREET
PAVEMENT IMPROVEMENTS (E. 16TH STREET, LINDEN DRIVE, CARR DRIVE, AND
CRESTWOOD CIRCLE): At the request of City staff this item was pulled from the Agenda. It
will be added to the December 18, 2018 agenda.
RESOLUTION APPROVING COMMISSION ON THE ARTS (COTA) SPECIAL GRANTS
FOR SPRING 2019: Council Member Gartin requested to have this item pulled due to a conflict
of interest.
Moved by Nelson, seconded by Beatty-Hansen, to approve the Commission on the Arts (COTA)
Special Grants For Spring 2019.
Vote 5-0-1 Voting aye: Corrieri, Betcher, Nelson, Martin, Beatty-Hansen. Voting nay: None.
Abstaining due to conflict of interest: Gartin.
PUBLIC FORUM: Sara Spohnheimer, 210 Main Street, Ames, read aloud the letter that had been
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sent to the City Council from Gary Youngberg of Ames Silversmithing. Ms. Spohnheimer stated
that they are seeing an increase in customers that are coming Downtown to shop, who normally don’t
shop Downtown. She commented that these customers are complaining about the rates of the meters.
Mary Richards, 720 Kellogg Avenue, Ames, noted that she spoke a few months ago before City
Council in regards to Climate Change. She pointed out that the 8th Annual “Iowa Climate Statement
2018: Designing Buildings and Communities for Iowa’s Future Climate” was released a couple
months ago. Ms. Richards read aloud the Iowa Climate Statement and noted that she will get a copy
of the Statement to each City Council Member.
Richard Deyo, 505 - 8th Street, #2, Ames, asked about the possibility of the art projects that are
displayed on the streets to have words instead of designs.
No one else came forward to speak, and the Mayor closed Public Forum.
STAFF REPORT ON CAMPUSTOWN PARKING AND PLAZA DESIGN: Planning and
Housing Director Kelly Diekmann stated that the City Council had held a Campustown Visioning
Workshop during the summer, and at the conclusion of the meeting, the Council had requested
follow-up information regarding relocating the fire station, locating a plaza at the SE corner of
Chamberlain and Welch with potentially closing Chamberlain to expand the size of the plaza. Mr.
Diekmann noted that a traffic analysis was done by the Traffic Engineer, who looked at doing a full
closure of the roadway as well as making it one-way. The conclusion of the Traffic Engineer was
that, with the volume of traffic that travels on Chamberlain and in Campustown, the diversion of the
traffic by closure would not have an impact on the operations of the intersection. He explained that
staff focused on the full closure option, due to the outcome of the traffic study.
Mr. Diekmann displayed Plaza Dimension Options.
Plaza Design Options:
•Option 1 - Parking Lot Y Only - No changes would be made to the street, other than
removing the current driveway to Lot Y.
•Option 2 - Parking Lot Y and Remove Parking Along Chamberlain - This option would
eliminate approximately eight on-street metered parking spaces and a truck-loading zone.
The design would also include eight-foot sidewalks along the perimeter.
•Option 3 - Closure of Chamberlain - this full closure option would result in a 95-foot-wide
plaza that is 170 feet long for a total area of approximately 16,000 square feet. The 16,000
square feet is inclusive of sidewalk area and the emergency vehicle access route.
•Option 4 - Plaza and Shared Street Design - Chamberlain could be integrated into the design
of the plaza as a Shared Street. Shared streets are typically designed for the mixing of
pedestrians, bicyclists, and cars for transportation purposes rather than mixing for leisure and
transportation purposes.
Mr. Diekmann noted that the second issue mentioned in the report was the displacement of parking
with the Plaza. He noted that staff is advocating to recognize that Campustown is a Commercial
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District. Staff is recommending taking a basic philosophy that short-term parking is in the center,
where customers can park and go to businesses, and long-term parking would be along the perimeter.
Increasing on-street parking spaces would require changes from parallel to angled parking. In
circumstances with a 40-foot street width and minimal driveway interruptions, angled parking is the
most efficient parking pattern. Changing from parallel to angled parking would create a handful of
more spaces on each street compared to parallel. This would require removing and replacing striping
and resetting parking meters. Mr. Diekmann explained that the Intermodal facility is jointly
managed between the City and ISU. The number of reserved spaces within the facility could be
reduced and replaced with more public meter parking if approved by the City and the University.
However, it should be noted that if the utilization of the spaces results in a funding deficit, the City
and the University must share equally in the shortfall. Adding additional public parking spaces in
the Intermodal facility would be appropriate in response to changes in the on-street supply and the
desire to market or advertise specific locations for public parking. Adjustments to the number of
spaces could be done annually and would not require a long-term commitment.
Council Member Gloria Betcher questioned the width of Chamberlain Street. Question answered that
it is about 40 feet. Ms. Betcher asked if, with the shared street option, it been discussed about using
retractable ballards. Mr. Diekmann stated that, with the shared street option, they wouldn’t have
ballards as the street is meant for people to be on it all day. He further explained that staff did not
discuss any particular features in detail, but his general impression from talking with the Fire
Department and Public Works is that if a temporary street closure would be needed, they would
spend money on retractable ballards that may not be needed.
Council Member David Martin noted that it had been mentioned the possibility of undertaking a CIP
project to widen Stanton in the 100 block, which could open up ten parking spots. He questioned
what this would do. Mr. Diekmann stated that on Stanton, there are a few carved-out parallel spaces
and there is an overly wide grassy/dirt area on the east side where they could carve out about ten
parallel spaces. He noted that, if looking for more parking spaces they could convert all the parking
to angled and move to the east side of the road. Council Member Beatty-Hansen asked for a rough
estimate on the cost of undertaking this CIP. Mr. Diekmann stated that Public Works gave a rough
estimate of between $300,000 to $400,000.
Mayor Haila opened public comment.
Ryan Jeffery, 116 Welch Avenue, Ames, said that Mr. Diekmann’s presentation was laid out very
well. He noted that something like this should be moved forward as he has been pushing for it for
the past five years. He mentioned that a Comprehensive Parking Plan needs to be done for
Campustown. Mr. Jeffery stated that working on the areas piece by piece is not working, and he
would like to see a Comprehensive Plan that includes a vision for what projects would be
recommended for the District, and to especially look at parking. Council Member Gartin asked Mr.
Jeffery for help with reaching out to the community and the stakeholders. Mr. Jeffery stated he
would help in any way he could.
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No one else came forward to speak, and the Mayor closed Public Forum.
Council Member Beatty-Hansen stated that in Parking Lot X and Y, the meters are currently ten-hour
meters and changing those to the two-or-four hour meters could help with the loss of the short-term
parking with the redesign of Welch Avenue. City Manager Steve Schainker pointed out that the City
has not discussed these options with the Campustown stakeholders yet. Mr. Diekmann commented
that any parking changes wouldn’t happen until school was out next year in May. The Council
discussed who would help reach out to stakeholders. Mayor Haila stated that it would be easier to
give staff direction to get public input and let them reach out to the appropriate groups.
Moved by Beatty-Hansen, seconded by Betcher, to direct staff to gather input on several
Campustown topics related to parking 1) short-term vs. long term and changing ten-hour meters to
two-hour meters in Lots X and Y 2); Increasing parking supply by modifying parallel to angled
parking and potentially a larger project on Stanton Avenue 3) use the staff report as a template to do
public outreach.
Vote on Motion: 6-0. Motion carried unanimously.
Council Member Martin asked if the 200 block of Welch was in the scope of considering angled
parking. Mr. Diekmann stated that the parklets are still there, but no direction has been given on
what to do with the 200 block of Welch. The direction given was on the concept of Welch and
getting a design engineer hired and see where that was going before dealing with the 200 block of
Welch. Further discussion was had regarding having a clear vision of design for Welch Avenue and
Campustown.
REVISED PRELIMINARY PLAT FOR SCENIC VALLEY SUBDIVISION: Council Member
Martin wanted to know if there were any provisions for internet service for this Subdivision.
Justin Dodge, 105 S 16th Street, Ames, stated that CenturyLink is putting in all fiber internet.
Moved by Corrieri, seconded by Betcher, to adopt RESOLUTION NO. 18-647 approving the
Revised Preliminary Plat for Scenic Valley Subdivision.
Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Resolution declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby
made a portion of these Minutes.
HEARING ON RDF STORAGE BIN REPAIR PROJECT: Council Member Beatty-Hansen
asked when they would expect to have a bid awarded. Electric Director Don Kom stated they
received three bids; one was below the engineer’s estimate and the other two were a lot higher. Due
to the difference in bids, staff wanted to do a little more research into the low bidder and make sure
they are making the right choice. He mentioned that staff should be ready to award the project in
January.
The public hearing was opened and closed by Mayor Haila since there was no one wishing to speak.
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Moved by Nelson, seconded by Betcher, to accept the Report of Bids and delay awarding the
contract.
Vote on Motion: 6-0. Motion carried unanimously.
HEARING ON WPC FACILITY SCREW PUMP DRIVE REPLACEMENT: The public
hearing was opened and closed by Mayor Haila since there was no one wishing to speak.
Moved by Beatty-Hanson, seconded by Betcher, to adopt RESOLUTION NO. 18-648 approving final
plans and specifications and awarding a contract to Weidner Construction, Inc., in the amount of
$111,997.
Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Resolution declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby made
a portion of these Minutes.
HEARING ON 2018/19 TRAFFIC SIGNAL PROGRAM (LINCOLN WAY/HYLAND
AVENUE):The public hearing was opened and closed by Mayor Haila after no one came forward
to speak.
Moved by Beatty-Hansen, seconded by Betcher, to adopt RESOLUTION NO. 18-649 approving final
plans and specifications and awarding a contract to VanMaanen Electric, Inc. in the amount of
$238,792.73.
Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Resolution declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby made
a portion of these Minutes.
HEARING TO VACATE WATER MAIN EASEMENT GENERALLY LOCATED AT 2205
GREEN HILLS DRIVE: The public hearing was opened by the Mayor. The hearing was closed
after no one asked to speak.
Moved by Gartin, seconded by Corrieri, to adopt RESOLUTION NO. 18-646 approving the vacation
of the Water Main Easement located at 2205 Green Hills Drive.
Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Resolution declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby
made a portion of these Minutes.
HEARING ON ZONING TEXT AMENDMENTS FOR LIMITATIONS ON EXPANSION OF
NONCONFORMING USES, DISCONTINUANCE OF A NONCONFORMING USE, AND
DEFINING REMODELING OF A NONCONFORMANCE USE: There was no one wishing to
speak, and the Mayor closed the hearing.
Moved by Corrieri, seconded by Betcher, to pass on first reading an ordinance placing limitations
on expansion of nonconforming uses, discontinuance of a nonconforming use, and defining
remodeling of a nonconformance use.
Roll Call Vote: 6-0. Resolution declared adopted unanimously, signed by the Mayor, and hereby
made a portion of these Minutes.
ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING PARKING REGULATIONS ON SUNCREST DRIVE,
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FROM RED FOX ROAD TO CEDAR LANE: The public hearing was opened and closed by
Mayor Haila since there was no one wishing to speak.
Council Member Martin noted that the report had mentioned there were about 90 responses from an
online poll, and he questioned if there was a way to eliminate duplicates. Public Works Director John
Joiner stated that this particular poll did ask for an address, but it is not 100% accurate as to if any
duplicates were removed.
Moved by Corrieri, seconded by Gartin, to pass on first reading an ordinance to establish parking
regulations on Suncrest Drive, from Red Fox Road to Cedar Lane.
Roll Call: 5-1. Voting aye: Martin, Beatty-Hansen, Gartin, Corrieri, Betcher. Voting nay: Nelson.
BUDGET ISSUES/GUIDELINES: Finance Director Duane Pitcher stated that they did not see a
lot of big issues this year. The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision that will result in collection of sales
tax, including Local Option Sales Tax, for online sales will go into effect beginning January 1, 2019.
The Iowa Department of Revenue expects to begin making distributions of internet sales tax
collections beginning in late spring of 2019. Based on this and current retail sales numbers, it is
expected that the City will meet the budgeted Local Option Sales Tax revenue for FY 2018/19 and
a conservative growth of 3% for FY 2019/20.
General Fund: Mr. Pitcher stated the City is ending the year with a balance of about $600,000, but
this could be adjusted as they are still closing out the year. There is some money available for one-
time projects.
Finance Director Pitcher outlined the following:
CyRide. Some new federal safety regulations were released that will require CyRide to add a Chief
Safety Officer position to develop an agency safety plan and monitor its safety risks. This will increase
CyRide’s FTEs by one and require funding in the budget for an estimated $85,000 in wages and
benefits.
Water Pollution Control Nutrient Reduction. Staff had recommended that this watershed track be
established initially at $100,000 per year, but after further consultation, the staff is now recommending
that initially $200,000 per year be designated for this purpose.
Resource Recovery. Mr. Pitcher stated that there is a strong potential for rate increases due to operating
issues. There was a loss of revenue last year due to scrap metal. He noted that they needed to look
at how the operation looks to Electric since it changed from coal to gas. The adjustment in refuse-
derived fuel payments still does not provide adequate funding for Resource Recovery operational and
capital needs looking into the future.
Parking. The City parking system is operated as a self-funded enterprise. There are limited alternative
options available for funding parking lot improvements, including local option sales tax, general
obligation bonds, and hotel/motel tax. Use of these funding sources will require either the reduction
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in funding for other projects or an increase of property taxes.
Council Member Gartin inquired as to how long the parking has been a self-funded enterprise. This
was discussed and no one was sure of the exact date, but has been over 40 years.
Fire and Police Retirement and IPERS. IPERS contribution rates will remain flat, both of the systems
are not fully funded, but working towards that.
Health Insurance. Mr. Pitcher explained that they had a challenge several years ago from the City
Manager to keep rates below 10%, and right now staff is only projecting an increase of 2% for FY
2019/20.
Rollback and Valuation. Staff is concerned that continued funding of the State obligation to provide
backfill for property tax relief may be at risk for FY 2019/20. The total amount of replacement tax
backfill included in the FY 2018/19 budget is $973,210, representing 3.3% of levied taxes. If funding
of the replacement tax is eliminated and City Council chooses to maintain current service levels, a
property tax rate increase of approximately $0.33 would be required.
Council Member Gartin, pointed out that he would like to have a conversation about the backflow and
what the strategy is to fund it.
Mr. Pitcher also stated they are moving from a commercial/industrial class tax at 90% to be taxed at
the same rollback rate of residential property. That will impact the City at a cost of about $50,000 a
year and will drop down to 75% of the valuation be taxed.
Local Option Sales Tax. Staff’s forecast for local option sales tax revenue for FY 2019/20 is
$8,313,027 or a 3% increase from the FY 2018/19 adopted budget.
Assistant City Manager Brian Phillips continued with the following:
ASSET Human Services Funding. According to Mr. Phillips, for FY 2019/20, City ASSET funds
requested $1.6 million, an increase of 17%. Overall, the requested increase is about $884,000. The
primary reason for the increase is that ASSET is now recording the funding of the Juvenile Court
system. Of the $884,000, roughly $400,000 is the Juvenile Court system funding. Mr. Phillips
pointed out that even though it shows up on the report, the Juvenile Court system is not asking the
City of Ames for additional funds. The intent is to show all County funding in one place.
Mr. Phillips noted that the City Council requested information as to which services had turned away
clients due to a lack of funding. There were 21 services in which clients were turned away. He
stated they have been providing this information for about the past seven years and wanted to know
if it was still a helpful metric when going through this budget process. Ms. Corrieri asked if the
agencies are clear on how they are answering the question of turning people away. Mr. Phillips
stated it is not consistent; they get their data from the ABF 50 Outcomes page. Ms. Corrieri
explained she feels this question is not helpful unless it is very specific. She then questioned where
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the City was with Scorecard, and asked if the City’s moving any closer to an outcome-based system.
Ms. Corrieri stated that a lot of agencies are choosing their own outcomes and a conversation should
be had at a later time regarding establishing outcomes and having agencies match their outcomes to
the City. Mr. Phillips stated that would be a good discussion to have at the Joint Funders’ meeting
in May.
Mr. Phillips mentioned that the next step would be to decide how much funding the Council wanted
to authorize the volunteers to allocate to the different ASSET programs. He noted that in the past
several years the increases have been about 5-6%, those increases are outpacing the growth in the
Local Option Sales Tax fund. The projected growth in the fund is 3%. Mr. Phillips stated that the
other funders will be making their decisions soon as well. Mr. Gartin commented that, in the staff
report, it notes the amount of funds that each agency is asking for, but there is no documentation to
substantiate the requests. Mr. Phillips stated that he would not be able to get that kind of information
to the Council tonight and noted that the process is set up where the volunteers do the research and
find out if an agency deserves funding or not.
Mr. Martin wanted to know if the number of service units turned away was useful or not, and
whether would this be information that the volunteers actually relay upon when making their
recommendations. Mr. Phillips stated that the volunteers have to balance a lot of different
information and do the best they can.
Ms. Betcher asked if the 3% projected growth in the Local Option Sales tax was coming from the
online collection. Mr. Pitcher stated that it is their best guess at this time, and he is not sure how
much there is going to be for online sales. Ms. Betcher asked how long the 5-6% increase each year
has been outpacing the Local Sales tax. Mr. Pitcher mentioned it has been several years.
Further discussion entailed regarding Local Option Sales Tax.
1.MICA. MICA is not requesting an increase for their service.
2.The Salvation Army Homelessness Prevention Program. This organization noted that over
300 families/individuals were declined services due to a lack of funds. The organization is
asking for a slight increase.
3.The Salvation Army Representative Payee Program. This organization is requesting a slight
increase.
4.The Salvation Army Bill Payer Program. This organization is requesting a slight increase.
5.Heartland Senior Services Home Delivered Meals Under 60 Programs. This agency did not
request funds in FY 2018/19, but is requesting $3,000 from the City for FY 2019/20.
According to Mr. Phillips, the City’s estimated share for ASSET administrative expenses will be
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$6,312 in FY 2019/20.
Moved by Gartin, seconded by Corrieri, to increase ASSET funding by 3%.
Vote on Motion: 6-0. Motion declared carried unanimously.
COTA - Performing Arts Funding. Management Analyst Tesheik Kerr noted that the allocation for
FY 2018/19 was $163,979. This year the requested amount is a 26% increase. The increase that is
requested is due to the Central Iowa Symphony and Story City Theater Company requesting an
increase in funding as a result of the City Auditorium no longer providing a discount to Ames
Community Arts Council members for use of the Auditorium. The Ames Chapter of the Des Moines
Metro Opera Guild made a first-time request for funding.
Moved by Corrieri, seconded by Martin, to increase COTA funding by 3%.
Vote on Motion: 5-0-1. Voting aye: Betcher, Nelson, Martin, Beatty-Hansen, Corrieri. Voting nay:
None. Abstaining due to a conflict of interest: Gartin. Motion declared carried.
Outside Organizations Funding Requests. Ms. Kerr noted that they received eight applications and
seven of those are requesting Local Option Sales Tax funding. The request is up about 68% over
what was allocated last year. She highlighted a few of the requests and noted that there was a new
outside organization requesting funds: The Community Academy. The funds that they agency is
requesting would be used to engage 60 Ames area youth in a renovation project of the Audubon Trail
in Brookside Park.
Council Member Beatty-Hansen stated that she saw in the report that the Community Academy is
looking to do a specific project at Brookside Park. She wanted to know if there was a mechanism
to fund part of this project through the Parks. City Manager Steve Schainker mentioned that there
is not, but Council could do a one-time funding allocations. Ms. Kerr stated that, out of the $58,000
they are requesting only $6,000 would be used for the Brookside Park. Further discussion was had
regarding the options to have a one-time funding request versus a percentage amount given.
Moved by Martin, seconded by Beatty-Hansen, to increase Funding Requests from Outside
Organizations funding by 5%, which excludes the AEDC request, which would be funded from
Hotel/Motel Tax Fund.
Council Member Chris Nelson stated that if you take out the one-time request awards then the 5%
looks like you are giving more than what the agencies are requesting, and what would happen to the
left over money. Mr. Phillips explained that the Council is giving them an authorized amount and
the group doesn’t have to recommend giving all of it.
Vote on Motion: 5-1. Voting aye: Betcher, Martin, Beatty-Hansen, Gartin, Corrieri. Voting nay:
Nelson.
Public Art Commission. City Council will receive the funding request for FY 2019/20 for the Public
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Art Commission in January 2019.
Road Conditions/Road Use Tax Fund. Mr. Pitcher stated no increase due to relatively low fuel tax.
STAFF REPORT ON TRANSPARENCY REGARDING TAX INCENTIVES: City Manager
Steve Schainker stated that in March 2018, the Council asked for a report on how more advanced
notice could be provided to the public regarding incentive requests from developers that come to
City Council. He explained that staff is not providing any different level of information than what
was done before, but how much advanced notice should be given to the public. He reviewed three
options:
•Option 1 - Notice given two weeks in advance at Council meeting during Council
Comments; however, the public will need to be watching the meeting.
•Option 2 - Notice given two weeks in advance at Council meeting by placing the
announcement on the Agenda; however, the public will need to be checking the Agenda for
future mention of incentives.
•Option 3 - Notice given two weeks in advance at Council meeting by placing the specific
request from the Developer and the Staff’s recommendation for an appropriate level of
incentives on the Agenda; however, the Council would accept the information and then table
it for the next meeting for public input and discussion.
Mr. Schainker asked the Council to decide if the system needs to be improved at all, and if so, how
many week’s advanced notice should be given and in how much detail.
Ms. Beatty-Hansen inquired if any of the past incentive packages would have failed due to having
to wait for notice to be given to the public. Mr. Schainker didn’t believe it would have delayed any
projects, but there may be the rare occasion when the State may require a faster answer and wouldn’t
be able to wait the two weeks. Ms. Beatty-Hansen stated in those cases the Council could suggest
to suspend the rules. Mr. Schainker noted that any tax abatement requests are done through the City
Assessor’s office. Ms. Beatty-Hansen stated that the information being given out two weeks prior
wouldn’t have any private information on it.
Further discussion ensued regarding the three options.
Mayor Haila opened public input.
Drew Kamp, 304 Main Street, Ames, mentioned that each project is different and most of the time
there are several people who are negotiating. There are a lot of times, when there are no two-week
parameters. He noted that the City has set clear parameters to meet. Mr. Kamp commented that the
Council is looking for a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist right now. Mr. Kamp recommended
not making any changes at this time. Mayor Haila asked for Mr. Kamp to speak about the timing
of incentive requests. Mr. Kamp stated they are constantly looking at Council agendas and notifying
the City as soon as possible to get put on an agenda.
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Moved by Nelson, seconded by Betcher, to take no action regarding increased transparency when
considering requests for economic development incentives.
Vote on Motion: 6-0. Motion declared carried unanimously.
DISPOSITION OF COMMUNICATIONS: Moved by Nelson, seconded by Betcher, to refer to
staff to provide a memo regarding the Champlin Lloyld Farm request for annexation.
Vote on Motion: 6-0. Motion carried unanimously.
Moved by Beatty-Hansen, seconded by Betcher to put the memo from Damion Pregitzer regarding
the summary of parking system information on a future agenda.
Council Member Gartin stated that the report that was received is not what he was looking for as he
is not interested in taking money from other forms of revenue. He had wanted to see if there were
other sources in the budget to be reallocated from to the parking system. Mr. Schainker stated that
in order to cut expenditures and reallocate funding it would be up to the Council to work with him
to find out where they want to cut funding. Mr. Gartin stated they need to have a conversation as
to where to find funds instead of having the taxpayers pay.
Motion withdrawn.
Motion by Beatty-Hansen, seconded by Betcher, to have a discussion about modifying Downtown
parking meter rates on a future agenda.
Vote on Motion: 5-1. Voting aye: Betcher, Nelson, Martin, Beatty-Hansen, Gartin. Voting nay:
Corrieri. Motion declared carried.
Moved by Betcher, seconded by Beatty-Hansen, to put the Staff Report regarding increased parking
enforcement in areas adjacent to the Iowa State University Campus on a future agenda
Vote on Motion: 6-0. Motion declared carried unanimously.
COUNCIL COMMENTS: Ms. Betcher stated that the Council never came back to the issue of the
Capital Improvement Grant Fund that was discussed earlier.
Moved by Betcher, seconded by Beatty-Hansen to discuss the Capital Improvement Grant Fund for
Human Improvement Agencies on a future agenda.
Vote on Motion: 6-0. Motion declared carried unanimously.
Mr. Martin explained that he had sent an email to Council about sidewalk access to commercial
developments, and there is no sidewalk access at Chestnut Street.
Moved by Martin, seconded by Beatty-Hansen, to ask staff for a memo or report on (1) approaches
for creating better sidewalk access to the Cinemark/OnPoint area from South Duff such as at
Chestnut Street, and (2) approaches for requiring better sidewalk access to sites by ordinance or other
technique.
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Vote: 5-1. Voting aye: Martin, Beatty-Hansen, Gartin, Betcher, Nelson. Voting nay: Corrieri. Motion
declared carried.
ADJOURNMENT: Moved by Gartin to adjourn the meeting at 9:11 p.m.
____________________________________________________________________________
Amy L. Colwell, Deputy City Clerk John A. Haila, Mayor
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