Belle Plaine, Iowa
November 2, 2022
The Belle Plaine City Council met on November 2, 2022, at 6:30 p.m. in the council chambers with Mayor Dave Fish presiding. Present: Judy Schlesselman, Mitch Malcolm, Garrett Landuyt, Mary Pech, and Lyle Morrow. Also present: City Administrator Stephen Beck and City Clerk Sandy Walton. The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.
Motion by Pech, seconded by Schlesselman to approve the Consent Agenda, Council Minutes of October 19, 2022, receiving & filing of the minutes from the October 25, 2022, meeting of the Belle Plaine Community Library Board of Trustees meeting and bills received. On roll call vote, all voted aye, motion carried.
Brian Baumgardner, BPCDC President, introduced Cori Tri as the new Belle Plaine Community Development Director. She started this week. The City Council welcomed her to her new position and commented that it is good to see the position filled with someone enthusiastic!
Resident Comments: Alicia Jacobi of 1512 A Avenue was present to express her family’s concern over the 9/21/22 pet hearing response. They were unaware of the hearing that impacted their family and discouraged by the council’s action. They have experienced vet and doctor bills as well as a traumatic experience for their children and no longer feel safe outside at home. They also feel that the neighbors are not always using the harness on their dog as was ruled by the council. Mayor Fish apologized for how the hearing transpired and will request that our officers patrol the area each shift and asked that they call if they see the dog out without the harness.
Michael Sills of Kinetic by Windstream gave a short presentation on their fiber optic services which are now available in Belle Plaine. They have made recent investments in the community.
Motion by Malcolm, seconded by Landuyt to approve the Class C Liquor License with Sunday Sales to O’Leary’s Office Tap at 825 12th Street, Belle Plaine, Iowa. On roll call vote, all voted aye, motion carried.
Motion by Landuyt, seconded by Morrow to approve a one-time utility credit of $177.60 at 1403 4th Avenue, Belle Plaine, Iowa for a leaking toilet. On roll call vote, all voted aye, motion carried.
Motion by Schlesselman, seconded by Landuyt to approve a one-time utility credit of $378.88 at 1002 5th Avenue, Belle Plaine, Iowa for an upstairs toilet that was running. On roll call vote, all voted aye, motion carried.
Motion by Pech, seconded by Morrow to approve Resolution #22-11-01, a resolution setting a date of meeting at which it is proposed to approve a Development Agreement with Wiley Plaza, LP, including Annual Appropriation Tax Increment payments. On roll call vote, all voted aye, motion carried.
Motion by Malcolm, seconded by Pech to approve the first reading of Ordinance #22-14, an ordinance amending section 55.20 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Belle Plaine, Iowa by amending provisions pertaining to animal control violations & penalties. On roll call vote, all voted aye, motion carried.
The City Council reviewed and approved changes to the City’s Employee Handbook. The City Clerk’s office will make those changes and distribute copies to current employees.
The Committee of the Whole listened to an update from the City Administrator regarding the water supply engineering report. We are still running tests on water put through the test filter on Well #6. Nick drives these to the lab in Ankeny (State Hygienic Lab) each week. Results still look promising.
The City Administrator, Stephen Beck, reported on the restructuring of the Public Works department. New job descriptions have been distributed and a group meeting is planned to go over lateral leadership and spending policies. Weekly meetings will be held on Monday mornings to plan goals for the week. New LED lights for the city shop are being ordered to improve the lighting and save on energy. There are some good Alliant rebates for them also. Steve stays in contact with Veensta & Kimm as well as Jack the filter guy regularly. The well status is holding steady, but we need more rain soon. The Minnow Creek project is going well.
Steve had updated costs associated with acquiring, relocating & reprogramming two sirens & poles from the decommissioning of the Duane Arnold Energy Center. The cost estimate is now $13,000 for both if we allow them to be moved on Frontline Warning System’s timetable. Plans are to place one unit in the Southeast quadrant of town and the other unit in the Northwest quadrant. He suggests we utilize some of our ARPA funds to cover this cost.
The first shipment of trees arrived today. All OneCalls are in and are to be cleared no later than Monday. The Tree Board will give the final check-off of the planting list at Thursday night’s meeting.
Mayor Fish reported attending the Benton Landfill Meeting, Benton Development Group, and ECICOG meetings. Some conversation regarding a CDBG grant for digging a new well was mentioned.
Correspondence: None
Old Business: None
Resident Comments: None
There were no updates from our attorney regarding litigation, so the council did not go into closed session.
Motion by Schlesselman, seconded by Landuyt to adjourn the meeting. On roll call vote, all voted aye. The meeting adjourned at 8:34 p.m.
Dave Fish, Mayor
Attest: Sandra Walton, City Clerk
Transcribed by the City Clerk subject to Council approval
Jim Magdefrau 