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City council hears project updates

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By Shelia Tomkins

At its first monthly meeting of the new year on Jan. 11,  the Guttenberg city council heard updates on major projects and heard two funding requests from the Chamber of Commerce director. 

Mayor Bill Frommelt called the meeting to order with councilmembers Austin Greve, Fred Schaub, Virginia Saeugling, Jane Parker and Mick Pierce in attendance. Also on hand was City Manager Denise Schneider. 

City project updates

Steve Thompson, an engineer with Veenstra & Kim, Inc., gave brief updates on numerous city projects. He noted that the contractor for the sanitary sewer project  is bearing the cost of problems that have occurred due to plugged lateral lines.

Thompson said that work on the riverbank repair project in downtown Guttenberg began Jan. 11, and that a decision was made earlier that day as to how to proceed with some unstable soil conditions. Thompson said final landscaping design is ready for bids. 

A meeting was held for the Schiller Street Corridor project with the Umbrella Arts group to discuss decorative planters. Thompson said final plans are nearing completion and he hopes to have bids awarded in early March. "I'm going to have a lot of alternates to match your budget," he told the council. The council approved moving forward on the bidding process with the contract expected to be awarded at the March 8 council meeting.

The Horseshoe Pond dredging project is awaiting silt samples  in order to estimate the amount of sediment that will need to be removed.  

The council approved a contract with Veenstra &Kim for a water system study that is needed  in order to apply for funds from the Community Development Block Grant/State Revolving Loan Fund. 

Chamber requests

Chamber of Commerce Director Brandie Tomkins spoke to the council about city funding for the group, requesting $29,000, the same as last year. In the past, the city has used proceeds from the hotel/motel tax for that purpose, and the City Manager said that the Iowa League of Municipalities has projected a 15% decline in that revenue due to COVID-19 effects on travel. The City Manager said the city should know by June 30 how much the city will be getting this year. After discussion, the council voted to donate up to $29,000. The city's funding of Clayton County Development Group will be $2,400. The motion passed on a 4-1 vote with Pierce voting nay. 

The council approved the Chamber's request to again help sponsor a show by the Army Golden Knights Parachute Team on the same basis as last year, by funding up to $5,000 in radio advertising/sponsorship. Plans call for Guttenberg's celebration to be held July 3 this year. The Golden Knights would appear here 5 p.m. on July Fourth. 

Other business

The council set a public hearing for 6 p.m. on Feb. 8 for the city budget for fiscal year 2021-2022.

The council accepted a gift from Dave Brown Jr. for portions of Herman Pond and Harter Pond along Highway 52. Discussion was held on re-establishing a fountain in Herman Pond. The mayor expressed thanks for the gift.

The city manager reported that the contract has been signed for the demolition of the Palmer house and said that work might be completed by the end of the month.

The council approved seeking bids to demolish the Tim Schmitt property on Acre Street. Schmitt will be notified that he has until Feb. 8 to remove the building. 

The Riverfront Advisory Board recommended that riverfront lease rates stay the same as last year at $8 per foot. After discussion on rates and commercial lease holders, the motion passed on a 3-1 vote with Pierce voting nay and Parker abstaining. 

Joe Zittergruen was approved as Fire Chief for the coming year.

The council okayed a resolution allowing for a reduction of interest rates on water revenue and sewer revenue bonds.

An agenda item regarding removal of a cottonwood tree in the area of the riverbank repair project was not acted on, due to the fact that the contractor has a plan to work around it.

Discussion was held on a possible amendment to the city's infectious disease action plan that would address immunizations. The council voted to extend until June 30 the 80 hours of COVID leave for employees who have not yet used it.

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