Minutes Quick Links

August 18, 2008 Minutes Posted by Clerk
The semi-monthly meeting of the City Council of Walcott, Iowa, was held on Monday, the 18th day of August, 2008, with Mayor Koberg-Schaefer, calling the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Council members present were: Couper, Dietz, and Smith. Absent: Smith and Kostichek (Kostichek arrived at 7:08 p.m.). City employees present: L. Rickertsen, J. Brockmann, J. Mason, J. Blake, and T. Schirman.

Couper moved and Dietz seconded to approve the agenda. Motion carried.

Consent Agenda. Dietz moved and Smith seconded to approve the consent agenda including the invoices, July 2008 financial reports, and Resolution 2008-33, Acknowledging New Investments. Roll call ayes: Dietz, Smith, and Couper. Motion carried.

Audience. Jim Abbitt, Derek Ossian, and Jackie Puck.

Ordinance 434-08, Amending the Zoning Map. Couper moved and Dietz seconded to waive the second reading of Ordinance 434-08. Roll call ayes: Couper, Dietz, and Smith. Motion carried. Couper moved and Dietz seconded to approve the third and final reading of Ordinance 434-08. Roll call ayes: Couper, Dietz, and Smith. Motion carried. This amendment rezones Ossian’s First Addition, property lying east of Walcott School and North of the railroad tracks, from S-A (Suburban Agriculture) to M-1 (Light Industrial).

Kostichek arrived.

Resolution 2008-34, Approval of Ossian’s First Addition Final Plat. Couper moved and Dietz seconded to approve Resolution 2008-34, which includes requiring an assessment waiver for E. James Street. Roll call ayes: Couper, Dietz, Smith, and Kostichek. Motion carried.

Resolution 2008-35, Approval of Site Plan for Ossian Inc. Couper moved and Kostichek seconded to approve Resolution 2008-35. Roll call ayes: Couper, Kostichek, Dietz, and Smith. Motion carried.

Resolution 2008-36, Approval of Site Plan for Arogas, Inc. Dietz moved and Couper seconded to approve Resolution 2008-36. Roll call ayes: Dietz, Couper, Kostichek, and Smith. Motion carried.

Building & Zoning Report. Mason reported he sent an abatement notice to Stan Giese for his property at 402 W. Cedar Lane Drive.

Public Works Report. Discussion was held on amending the pavement thickness of Moeller Road and the southbound, outside lane, between Moeller Road and Pilot Travel Center from the current eight inches to ten inches. The purpose of the change in thickness is to provide a longer life to the public roadway and to provide consistency to the thickness of the newly contracted pavement replacement of Plainview Road. Jim Abbitt, McClure Engineering, was present and stated he felt it was prudent to bring the pavement thickness change request to the council’s attention. After discussion, Couper moved and Smith seconded to approve an additional 2” pavement, from 8” to 10”, as discussed, not to exceed $30,225. Motion carried. Discussion was held regarding park clean-up during the recent tournament. Mayor Koberg-Schaefer stated there were problems with enforcing the new no smoking regulations.

City Clerk Report. Rickertsen presented the investment report for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2008. She also reminded everyone that the next regular council meeting will be on Tuesday, September 2nd.

City Attorney Report. Schirman stated he prepared an ordinance amending provisions pertaining to nuisance abatement procedures and junk and junk vehicles which includes minor administrative changes. Dietz introduced and moved to approve the first reading of Ordinance 435-08, Amending Provisions Pertaining to Nuisance Abatement Procedures and Junk and Junk Vehicles. Seconded by Kostichek. Roll call ayes: Dietz, Kostichek, Couper, and Smith. Motion carried.

New Business. Discussion was held about the offensive graffiti on a trailer at the mobile home park.

Dietz moved and Couper seconded to adjourn at 7:55 p.m. Motion carried. All votes on motions were unanimous, unless noted.

August 4, 2008 Minutes Posted by Clerk
The semi-monthly meeting of the City Council of Walcott, Iowa, was held on Monday, the 4th day of August, 2008, with Mayor Koberg-Schaefer, calling the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Council members present were: Couper, Dietz, and Koberg. Absent: Smith and Kostichek (Kostichek arrived at 7:05 p.m.). City employees present: L. Rickertsen, J. Brockmann, J. Mason, D. Kopatich, and T. Schirman.

Couper moved and Dietz seconded to approve the agenda. Motion carried.

Public Hearing on Rezoning of Ossian’s First Addition from S-A to M-1. No written or oral comments were received. Dietz moved and Koberg seconded to close the public hearing and resume the regular meeting. Motion carried.

Consent Agenda. Koberg moved and Couper seconded to approve the consent agenda including the invoices, Class C Beer permit renewal for Casey’s General Store, and minutes from July 21, 2008. Motion carried.

Kostichek arrived.

Recreational Trail Committee. Brent Puck reported the committee would like to apply for another REAP grant in the amount of $75,000 for trail components. Dietz moved and Koberg seconded to proceed with the submission of the REAP grant application. Motion carried.

Ordinance 434-08, Amending the Zoning Map. Dietz moved to introduce and approve the first reading of Ordinance 434-08. Seconded by Couper. Roll call ayes: Dietz, Couper, Kostichek, and Koberg. Motion carried. This amendment rezones Ossian’s First Addition, property lying east of Walcott School and North of the railroad tracks, from S-A (Suburban Agriculture) to M-1 (Light Industrial).

Resolution 2008-31, Approval of Ossian’s First Addition Preliminary Plat. Couper moved and Kostichek seconded to approve Resolution 2008-31. Roll call ayes: Couper, Kostichek, Koberg, and Dietz. Motion carried.

Resolution 2008-32, Setting Date for Public Hearing on Amending the Walcott Urban Renewal Plan. Koberg moved and Couper seconded to approve Resolution 2008-32. Roll call ayes: Koberg, Couper, Kostichek, and Dietz. Motion carried.

Engineering Contract with McClure Engineering. Dietz moved and Kostichek approved the contract with McClure Engineering. Motion carried.

Proclamation - Unsinkable Spirits Day. Mayor Koberg-Schaefer declared August 11th as Unsinkable Spirits Day. Unsinkable Spirit Day recognizes that many people have suffered financial hardships due to flash flooding and the flooding of many area rivers and all citizens and businesses are encouraged to contribute to flood relief efforts.

Building & Zoning. Couper requested additional detailed information from Mason regarding his daily log. Stan Giese arrived and a lengthy discussion was held regarding the clean-up of his property on West Cedar Lane Drive. Couper moved and Kostichek seconded to move forward with the nuisance abatement procedures for the Giese property. Motion carried. Attorney Schirman will work with Mason to start the necessary paperwork.

City Clerk Report. Rickertsen reported it would take approximately 300 hours to copy/scan all minute books. Council members agreed they do not want the minute books to leave City Hall and City Hall staff will work on scanning them as time permits.

New Business. Discussion was held on a request from a Planning & Zoning Commission member that the city looks at adopting a jake brake ordinance. Chief Kopatich will explore a jake brake ordinance for residential areas.

Dietz moved and Kostichek seconded to adjourn at 8:10 p.m. Motion carried. All votes on motions were unanimous, unless noted.

July 21, 2008 Minutes Posted by Clerk
The semi-monthly meeting of the City Council of Walcott, Iowa, was held on Monday, the 21st day of July, 2008, with Mayor Koberg-Schaefer, calling the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Council members present were: Couper, Dietz, Koberg, Kostichek, and Smith. City employees present: L. Rickertsen, J. Brockmann, J. Blake, and T. Schirman.

Couper moved and Smith seconded to approve the agenda. Motion carried.

Consent Agenda. Koberg moved and Smith seconded to approve the consent agenda including the invoices, June 2008 Financial reports, and Class C Beer permit renewals for Pilot Travel Center #043 & #268. Motion carried.

Audience members: Jackie Puck, Bud & Janice Dawson, Brian Dawson, Leon Downing, and Virgil Lund.

Minutes. Moved by Smith and seconded by Dietz to approve the minutes from July 7, 2008. Kostichek abstained due to absence from meeting. Motion carried.

Calvary Church City-Wide Celebration. Koberg moved and Kostichek seconded to approve closing East James Street from Main Street to Henry Street from 3 – 7 p.m. on August 23rd. Motion carried. Leon Downing reported the celebration will be from 4 -7 p.m. and it will include a steak dinner and entertainment.

Council Minutes Preservation. Discussion was held on project participation with Davenport Public Library to apply for a grant to microfilm the city council minutes of each incorporated city in Scott County. Mayor Koberg-Schaefer reported the minutes would have to leave City Hall for a few days in order to get them microfilmed. Council expressed their concerns with original documents leaving City Hall. Rickertsen was asked to come up with an approximate amount of time it would take current staff to copy old minute books. The topic was tabled until the next regular meeting on August 4th.

N. Downey Street. Mayor Koberg-Schaefer questioned the condition of the street. Brockmann stated the road is tar and chipped, therefore dust control cannot be applied but they would sweep the street and the potholes have been repaired.

Insect Spraying Invoice. Virgil Lund questioned the decision to expend the parks department funds to spray the parks just prior to Walcott Day following the Park Boards recommendation to not spray. Since the Little League games were finished, he questioned if Walcott Day Committee should be responsible for the expense. Koberg stated the council coordinated the spraying with Walcott Day and Lund could present the bill to the Walcott Day Committee if he desired. Dietz moved and Koberg seconded to approve the invoice to Tree Savers, Inc. in the amount of $665 for insect spraying at Victory Park. Kostichek abstained as he was not present at the last meeting when the insect spraying was approved by council. Motion carried.

Temporary Fence for Baseball Tournament. Couper moved and Kostichek seconded to approve temporary outfield fences at Wescott and Victory Parks from August 13 – 18. Motion carried.

Resolution 2008-30, Approving Contract for the North Plainview Road Reconstruction Project. Couper moved and Smith seconded to approve Resolution 2008-30. Roll call ayes: Couper, Smith, Dietz, Kostichek, and Koberg. Motion carried.

Building & Zoning. Brian Dawson reported on the damaged building on their property on E. Lincoln Street. A new building will be required, but it may take six weeks before the existing equipment can be removed from the current building. Council members agreed with the time-frame as discussed and thanked Dawsons for attending the meeting.

Public Works Report. J. Brockman reported on the Mr. Fuel project on N. Plainview Road and presented information on a video pipeline inspection system. Mayor Koberg-Schaefer referred the inspection system to the Sanitary Sewer Committee.

City Clerk Report. Rickertsen reported a contract was received from McClure Engineering for the contract administration and construction services of the North Plainview Road Reconstruction Project. The proposed contract is in the amount of $8,400. Council consensus was to allow the Mayor to sign the contract and official council approval will be taken during the next regular meeting.

Attorney Report. Schirman reported that he will follow-up with S. Giese regarding the clean up of his property after the July 31st deadline.

Couper moved and Smith seconded to adjourn at 8:12 p.m. Motion carried. All votes on motions were unanimous, unless noted.