CITY OF CORYDON
REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
Wednesday, April 22, 2020

The regular meeting of the Corydon City Council was called to order at 7:00 P.M. by Mayor Dennis Moorman. Present were council members Bennett, Christian, Holmes, Rupe and Rodgers. Others in attendance were City employee Brandon Trower, Jen Reed from the Times Republican, Rhonda Bennett, Nancy Buss with Hall Engineering and Eva Moore, City Clerk. Clint Housh was present, but seated in back of room. Present on the phone conference call was City Attorney Verle Norris, Deputy Clerk Laticia Stewart, and Desiree Grismore.

Nancy Buss addressed the council with updates on ongoing projects. Due to some resident complaints received by the city clerk, Nancy has reached out to the contractors and the contractors have been asked to make sure that the job sites are secure at all times. Weather permitting, seeding and service restoration will take place in approximately two weeks. The street paving project has started and culvert work by the school has been completed with a change order for approximately $5,000 to $6,000 more in costs that the city will be responsible for paying. Norris Asphalt is set to start approximately May 1 in the area.

Mayor Moorman asked Nancy of Hall Engineering if she was aware of the Dollar General request to pave the alley behind their building and if Nancy had been contacted. Nancy stated she was not aware and had not been contacted.

Verle Norris inquired (via phone) about details on the paving request from Dollar General. He recommended that the council wait for a written legal document from Dollar General first and that the project must be done by the city and the city’s engineer since it is city property. Further discussion will be required.

Nancy Buss then updated the council on the meter building progress. Gas and electric will need to be hooked up with the city taking care of utility hook ups. A new furnace does not have to be purchased and the current one should be ok.

The public hearing for the State Revolving Fund Loan (SRF) was called to order at 7:17 by Mayor Moorman. Publication was in the Times Republican. Mayor inquired if City Hall had received any oral or written comments. Moore had not. Council Member Bennett made the motion to close the public hearing. Rodgers seconded. Ayes-Bennett, Christian, Holmes, Rupe and Rodgers. Nays-none.

Nancy Buss addressed the council to consider a quote from Jetco for water tower controls in the new water meter building that were approximately $1056.00 more than the original quote, stating that the city is responsible for this cost. Holmes made the motion to accept the quote from Jetco. Rupe seconded. Ayes-Bennett, Christian, Holmes, Rupe and Rodgers. Nays-none.

The public hearing regarding the property at 211 W. North St. was called to order by Mayor Moorman. Publication was in the Times Republican. Mayor inquired if City Hall had received any oral or written comments. Moore stated none. Council Member Holmes made the motion to close the public hearing. Bennett seconded. Ayes-Bennett, Christian, Holmes, Rupe and Rodgers. Nays-none.

Bennett made the motion to approve Resolution 2020-17, a resolution declaring the property at 211 W. North St. to be a nuisance. Rupe seconded. Ayes-Bennett, Christian, Holmes, Rupe and Rodgers. Nays-none.

The public hearing regarding the Budget Amendment FY 2019/2020 was called to order by Mayor Moorman. Publication was in the Times Republican. Mayor inquired if City Hall had received any oral or written comments. Moore had not. Council Member Rodgers made the motion to close the public hearing. Christian seconded. Ayes-Bennett, Christian, Holmes, Rupe and Rodgers. Nays-none.

Clint Housh addressed the council with his proposal to build a two story fourplex apartment complex. He would like to use local contractors that he is familiar with and trusts to complete the project. He will be communicating with city hall on requirements and updates.

Rhonda Bennett addressed the council in open forum regarding parking issues on South Franklin St. Tenants of local apartments continue to park in front of businesses and are not adhering to the no parking signs. No parking is allowed from 2 A.M to 6 A.M. Landlord and tenants have been notified in the past. Trower stated he would put up another sign if needed as well as talk to the Sheriff’s office. Moore offered to contact the landlord again. Verle Norris (on phone) stated that this was a problem all over town, and around the square. Mayor agreed that it needed enforced all over town.

Desire Grismore (on phone) addressed the council with questions regarding the pool. She wanted to know if the council had any information about when the pool will open. If the Governor does not allow us to open until June, will the city still be able to prepare the pool to open for the season? Or will the pool remain closed? Mayor stated the pool needs repaired still. Grismore wanted to know if maintenance could still be done to some extent if the pool were to remain closed. Trower was able to find valves for $2,000 instead of $10,000 to save money. Holmes stated that the city needs 2 weeks to do the work required to open the pool. Council stated that we would need to wait for more information from the Governor as well as discuss further at the next meeting May 7.

Rodgers made the motion to approve Resolution 2020-18, a resolution setting a public hearing for May 20, 2020 at 7:00 P.M. concerning the proposed vacation and conveyance of alleys by the City of Corydon, Iowa pursuant to Iowa Code 354.23, regarding vacation of alleys in Beal’s Addition. Bennett seconded. Ayes: Bennett, Christian, Holmes, Rupe and Rodgers. Nays-none.

Council Member Bennett made the motion to consider/approve Resolution 2020-19, a resolution amending the FY 19/20 Budget. Rodgers seconded. Ayes-Bennett, Christian, Holmes, Rupe and Rodgers. Nays-none.

Council Member Holmes made the motion to consider Resolution 2020-20, a resolution approving an application from Lois Wailes for TAX ABATEMENT UNDER THE CITY OF CORYDON’S URBAN REVITALIZATION PLAN for the property at 404 S. Dekalb St. Rupe seconded. Ayes-Bennett, Christian, Holmes, Rupe and Rodgers. Nays-none.

Verle Norris addressed the council about the property at 215 N. West Street, suggesting a discussion needed to be made regarding the sale of the property. There are things yet to be considered as far as setting the public hearing for bids, selling as is or on condition to be demolished etc. The council will further discuss.

Council reviewed revision/addition to Personnel Policy Manual regarding vaping. Discussion was that the revision needed to be revised to add tobacco products like other policy manuals for other businesses, and have City Attorney update and send back to Council.

Bennett made the motion to consider/approve the First Quarter Roll Off Reports from Hill’s Sanitation and C&E Trucking. Rupe seconded. Ayes-Bennett, Christian, Holmes, Rupe and Rodgers. Nays-none.

Mayor Moorman asked for good cause business.
1. Trower and Mayor discussed grease trap option for Hy-Vee Sewer to avoid sewer problems from happening again.
2. Christian brought up concerns about city employees responding on Facebook to public comments. Discussion among council occurred on how best to handle.
3. Clerk brought up continuous issues with loose dogs in town. Rodgers inquired of Verle Norris (on phone). Verle offered to call the Sheriff and discuss options.
4. Laticia Stewart (on phone) inquired of council about her proposal to stay on longer. Council along with Verle Norris will discuss at a later meeting.

Christian made the motion to approve the minutes from previous meeting and clerk’s report. Bennett seconded. Ayes-Bennett, Christian, Holmes, Rupe and Rodgers. Nays-none.

The clerk reported on Rodger’s recycling request. Midwest recommends adding on an extra tote for $25 as it is not cost effective for the entire town at this time. Midwest rep would like to come to a future meeting to discuss informing residents that continue to put trash in recycling. A yard waste only tote would also not be an affordable city wide option, only case by case basis.

The clerk reported on delinquent water bills and that City Hall had reached out to residents offering payment plans on old bills. Most residents are keeping to their promises, but not all. Many local towns are still shutting off water to their delinquent customers.

The council discussed and agreed that water shut offs will begin again in May, unless the Governor says otherwise.

The clerk brought up the Dollar General alley issue. City Hall is still waiting on written documentation from Dollar General before the City can proceed. Verle Norris (on phone) stated that the engineering needs to be done by a city engineer and not Dollar General’s choice of contractors.

The clerk reported on the creation of a Facebook page. The page will be used for informational purposes only and will not be monitored daily. The public will be re-routed to the City’s webpage and no comments on Facebook will be allowed at this time.

The clerk reported on obtaining additional software upgrades to help streamline and save time on processes at work. Council would like to see a free demo from the software company, but more research has to be done and the software demos are not always free.

The clerk asked about the progress of computer and phone upgrades. Bennett is still researching computer quotes.

The clerk inquired about a resident issue in the past about a pro-rated bill. Council agreed it was agreed upon and that we were to start doing that for all residents going forward. The ordinance will have to be updated.

The clerk reported on the golf/ATV ordinances. The permits are online and can be mailed out to residents as well. The stickers have arrived and will be mailed out to residents after the application has been received. Insurance companies have been notified in the hopes of reaching more residents and making those residents aware of the new ordinances.

The clerk reported on reaching out to some local realtors and asking that they help inform buyers and sellers to notify City Hall when moving in or out. Some water billing issues are being had, not only with renters, but billing issues due to City Hall not being informed in a timely fashion when someone buys or sells a home.

The clerk reported meeting with the Zoning Commission on April 17 regarding two issues as well as reaching out to the Board of Adjustments. Christian inquired as to what the rules are regarding votes from each board. Currently the city is not zoned for fireworks, and the zone would have to be updated for the fourplex. Verle Norris (on phone) stated he needs more details on what the process is and that members may not be willing to serve if City Council tries to over rule their vote.

The clerk reported that Midwest Sanitation had missed picking up recycling on 3-4 streets and would be picking up extra from those areas on 4/24. Sometimes our residents are still putting out things that are not allowed, but in this case, it appears Midwest may have actually missed picking up, or a mixture of both issues occurred.

The next regular council meeting will be Thursday, May 7, 2020 at 7:00 P.M.