This meeting of the Cedar Rapids City Council will come to order.

Welcome everybody to the Cedar Rapids City Council meeting for Tuesday, August 12th, 2025.

I'd like to welcome our city manager, our city clerk, and our city attorney.

And as always, thank you to our city staff for being available to answer questions of those who are in attendance today.

A reminder to those of you here to turn off any cell phones or electronic devices that might distract from our proceedings today.

And note that all city council meeting agendas, minutes, and videos are available on our city's website.

Regular sessions are also available to watch live and on Facebook live.

We'll begin now with our invocation, Councilmember Poe will do that, followed immediately by our Pledge of Allegiance.

Thank you, Mayor.

Please grant me please join me.

Dear God, grant us gratitude for your gift of this day for family, friends, colleagues, and community.

Please, God, guide this council as servant leaders to do your people's work and teach us patience to await your perfect timing.

God, we ask that you bless this council, police, city staff, and community partners as we work hand in hand with transparency, honest conversations, kindness, and moral courage with open heart to build trust for the same common goals of inclusion, accountability, acceptance, and hope.

Lead us, God, with purpose through compassion and integrity, with a balance of humanity, faith, mercy, and grace.

God, we pray you keep our police and fire personnel and first responders safely in the palm of your hand and to carry with them the shield of blessings from a grateful community for their service.

With gratitude, we ask these blessings in your heavenly name.

Amen.

Okay, we're going to begin with a series of proclamations today.

So I first like to invite those here for the water and wastewater workers of Iowa Week to join me, followed by the OSHA Safe and Sound Week, and then our TCR 100th birthday bash and groundbreaking will be our third one today.

So we'll begin with our water and wastewater workers.

Whereas the dedicated professionals who provide more than 140,000 residents, businesses, and major industries with an average of 40 million million gallons of clean water every day, and who responsibly return that water to the environment are essential to the health, quality of life, environmental protection, and economic prosperity of the city of Cedar Rapids.

And whereas water is the foundation of a thriving community and a vital resource that supports public health, daily life, and a strong economy.

And whereas the water and wastewater workforce across Iowa is committed to protecting our natural resources through environmental stewardship, scientific expertise, and the delivery of safe drinking and recreational waters.

And whereas their ongoing dedication to environmental sustainability plays a critical role in enhancing quality of life, safeguarding public health, and preserving the natural beauty of our state for future generations.

Therefore, I, Tiffany O'Donnell, Mayor of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on behalf of our City Council, hereby designate the week of August 17th through the 23rd, 2025, as Water and Wastewater Workers of Iowa Week, and urge all residents to recognize and honor the critical work of our water and wastewater professionals, including engineers, operators, managers, and support staff, and to celebrate their substantial contributions to public health, environmental protection, and the well-being of all Iowans.

Thank you, Mayor.

Thank you, Council.

On behalf of the approximately 250 water and wastewater workers who are out busy today making sure that they're delivering clean, safe water and taking care of it and putting it back into the resources, we thank you.

Thank you, Director Husband.

Okay, so those here on behalf of OSHA Safe and Sound Week.

I'm glad.

That's great.

Come on up.

Whereas each year, more than four and a half million workers suffer serious job-related injuries or illnesses, and 5,243 Americans died in work-related incidents in 2023.

And whereas these incidents not only hurt workers and their families, but also negatively impact businesses, the economy, and the community.

And whereas each week, businesses across the country spend over 900 million dollars on workers' compensation, which is money that could be better invested in sustaining and growing small businesses and job opportunities.

And whereas implementing safety and health programs can improve business performance and contribution to the local economy and job force.

And whereas the city of Cedar Rapids is committing to committed to setting the standard for being the safest and most rewarding place to work for the benefit of all its employees and those who are served in the community.

Now, therefore, I Tiffany O'Donnell, mayor of Cedar Rapids, on behalf of our city council hereby recognize the second week of August as OSHA Safe and Sound Week and urge all employers to join in the effort to raise awareness and understanding of workplace safety by being alert, communicating and working safely every minute, every hour, and every day throughout all departments within the city of Cedar Rapids.

First and foremost, I'd like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to the mayor and city council for recognizing the importance of workplace safety and health.

This proclamation for OSHA Safe and Sound Week is a testament to our collective commitment to creating the safer work environments.

I'm proud to work in a place where the culture of safety starts at the top.

City Manager Palm Rance recognizes this and is committed to ensuring employees put their safety first.

Workplace safety is not just a regulatory requirement, it is a moral obligation.

Ensuring the well-being of our employees is paramount, and it is through initiatives like Safe and Sound Week that we can raise awareness, share best practices, and foster a culture of safety.

At the city, safety is a collaborative effort involving employees, management, safety professionals, and the community we serve.

As we celebrate this recognition, let us also renew our commitment to continuous improvement in workplace safety.

Let us continue to work together to ensure that every worker returns home safely at the end of each day.

Together we can make a difference.

Safety as a team effort.

Either way.

We are grateful for the support of ARPA funding that goes towards a historic renovation that we will be celebrating the groundbreaking of today.

One hundred years ago, on this day, Grant Wood and his friends hosted a gathering and performed our very first play, and therefore we celebrate our hundredth birthday.

And Tyler will be relieved that I will not be forcing him to perform a one-man play in front of you today, although I did um consider it.

Um we are all so grateful that Theater Cedar Rapids continues to be such an essential part of this community's um cultural fabric, and it is our pleasure and honor to continue its legacy.

Thank you so much.

Tyler, will you pose correct question?

Perfect.

Thanks, everybody.

It's now time for a public hearing.

So I'll remind everybody who wishes to speak today, whether it's during a public hearing or during a public comment period of a few matters to ensure that we have an orderly meeting.

First, please remain at the lector.

And if you have any documents you wish to share with the council, please hand them to the police officer on your right.

He will get them to us.

Second, uh comments are limited to five minutes of speaker.

So when the light on the console turns yellow, you have one minute remaining, and when it's red, we will invite you to take your seat again.

And please be aware that all comments must be directed to the matter of the public hearing and that abusive, loud, obscene, threatening, irrelevant comments will not be allowed.

And finally, we need to hold an orderly hearing.

So there shouldn't be no um applause, cheering, booing, or other distractions from the audience today.

So we thank you in advance for that.

Does the clerk have any comments or objections in regard to any of the public hearings on today's agenda?

Uh your honor, there were no written comments or objections filed.

Thank you.

Item number one then is a public hearing to consider an annexation moratorium agreement with the city of Ely.

Jeff Wosencraft is here.

Jeff, I'll recognize you.

Thank you, Mayor.

Uh, as stated, this is a resolution to uh approve an annexation moratorium agreement with the city of Ely.

Um, an overview.

So these are agreements to support orderly and efficient growth.

Um, they define growth areas for both municipalities where neither locality would object to an annexation in the respective jurisdiction, and they are valid for a period of 10 years.

Um so for this agreement, here's an overview of the areas considered.

Uh, area B is in the light blue, and that would be Ely's growth area.

Area A is in the light gray, and that would be Cedar Rapids growth area, um, Spanish Road up to Airport National Golf Course, and then Wright Brothers and Maybe Road, just a section north of it all the way to Jappa Road.

Um, so for the Ely Agreement, there is no existing agreement with the City of Ely.

Um, the boundary lines are primarily adhering to topographic features of the area.

Um, the agreement also memorializes uh continued coordination with the city of Ely as it relates to respect to uh development in this area.

Um, and then the agreement would be valid for a period of 10 years.

So for the timeline, this was approved by the Ely City Council on July 21st.

Um today we're here for the public hearing with the city here.

Um, if approved, this would then be uh filed with the state city development board.

With that, staff would recommend approval of the resolution, and I'll pass it back to the mayor.

Thank you, Jeff.

This is a time and a place for public hearing on this matter.

Does anyone here wish to address council?

All right, let the record show a public hearing has been held with no objections for the record.

Uh Council.

Councilmember Van Orney.

Thanks, Mayor.

Um Jeff, my question just is we actually saw um kind of this alignment that there was going to be a potential for growth at an early meeting either this year or the year prior, where we had um kind of showing that our growth for Cedar Rapids could go all the way abutting, Swisher, and to I believe 120th.

Um so I'm just kind of wondering like uh why are why are we doing this in this order where it didn't come immediately after?

Because I knew that Western I had spoken to my grandmother about that because um that's where she originally went to school.

And so I knew that this was part of our growth area.

I'm just kind of wondering about the timeline of the different maps and people we have to talk to in terms of like our growth strategy.

Um so this is aligning Elia was going through its comprehensive planning process in 2023.

Um, and this was um aligned with that.

Um our future land use map was adopted in 2015 and doesn't extend all the way out here.

This is quite a bit of growth area beyond significant amount of time.

Um so um there is no specific sequencing um as it relates to Swisher versus.

Um we are trying to have agreements with all the buddy municipalities to make sure that it is orderly as best we can, but no particular sequencing.

Okay.

And it also in council.

All right.

If there are no further questions, the adoption of this resolution has been moved by Meyer, seconded by Hager.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye, those opposed say no.

And the motion carries.

Number two is a public hearing to consider the continuation of an approved public improvement project for the South Hoosier Lift Station replacement project.

Rob Davis is here.

Rob will recognize you.

Thank you.

Your Honor City Council Rob Davis with the public works department.

Uh this area is very similar to what we just discussed on item number one.

This is uh talking about existing growth.

Let me just show you where we're talking.

This is uh Walford Road, uh Wright Brothers, who are on the east side of Interstate 380, basically from Walford Road up towards uh 76th Avenue here.

Uh this is the uh existing uh South Hooser Key lift station in the Southwest Quadrant is at capacity and needs to be replaced to keep up with the rapid growth that's already occurring.

Uh this project will build the new lift station for us, main and improvements to sanitary sewer.

City council has already approved uh a contract for the design of this.

Uh the current schedule is to bid the product in December of this year with construction next spring to uh through fall of 26.

And the estimated cost is 4.5 million dollars.

Uh the development of Cedar Rapids has left some agricultural parcels uh inside the development as it tends to the outside, and there are three agricultural parcels that this project would affect.

And uh, in accordance with state code sections, uh uh we are required to have a public hearing uh before we may negotiate any acquisitions from the permanent temporary easements necessary to build the forest main on those properties.

Uh so the next steps would be for you to have the public hearing here and uh consider the approval so that the staff may consider uh or can make the acquisition documents to proceed.

Uh we would then hire appraisals and negotiate with those property owners, and so that we may proceed.

Um we have a public hearing and we would recommend adopting the resolution to proceed with the agricultural property acquisitions.

Thank you.

I'll turn it back to the mayor.

Thank you, Rob.

This is the time and a place for a public hearing on item number two.

Does anyone wish to address council?

Let the record show a public hearing has been held with no objections for the record.

Council Councilman Van Werny.

Yeah, thanks, Mayor.

Um Rob, I think this uh I don't think that's this will be a problem, but I with all of the um American prairie development happening there.

I just know that um have personally grown up with my family's farms um on this bit of area and am very familiar with how much Hoosier Creek can flood pretty rapidly.

Um so I just want to make sure that we're just uh communicating with everybody as much as possible because they already have a lift station there, um, which we've been a good partner to them of maintaining the access and everything like that on um Benish Road there, but um just making sure that with all these changes that it is something in concert with them because I think that they fully intend to stay farming for generations, so um they're some of our last bits in Cedar Rapids, so I'm just very mindful of that.

So thank you.

Councilman Rolson.

Rob, um so when we have a the lift station's been there a long time, so as development continues uh into the future.

Do they is there an assessment to uh uh hook into that or how how does that work uh differently from when sewers are installed in development without a lift station?

Because I know we've been taking over all the lift stations just to keep them because a lot of them weren't functioning well.

Now we're improving them all.

So how does that work in the case of this cost?

Is that reimbursed as development occurs?

That I would I would check and get back to you on.

I think we have already discussed uh this particular item, uh, but let me can we get back to you.

Anyone else?

All right, but there are no further questions.

The adoption of this resolution has been moved by Hager, seconded by Councilmember Tyler Wilson.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye, those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

Moving on to public comment now here in the city of Cedar Rapids.

We have two public comment periods.

The first is a chance for the public to address the city council on any subject pertaining to council action set for today.

A second public input period comes at the end of the meeting for residents to speak on issues that are germane to the city, but not on the agenda today.

Council members and city staff make themselves available to answer questions at this time during public comment.

We are here as a council to listen.

Remember that all the matters I addressed prior to the first public hearing today apply to the public comment periods as well.

So reminder to stay at the lectern.

If you have documents, give them to the officer.

When light turns yellow, you have one minute.

When it's red, we'll ask you to take your seat.

If you've signed up to speak, please approach the microphone when called upon.

Today we had quite a few people signed up to speak, so I'm just going to call in order on my sheet.

And I have Leo Regel here.

Regal.

Leo, you'll be first.

And if you could just give us your name in your city, please.

Yeah.

Hello.

My family owns some property off of Wright Brothers Boulevard.

And we are affected by this List Asian improvement.

And I got a letter from the city on July 14th, and I wasn't sure it affected us.

Because there was no map included with it.

Therefore, I thought maybe it was sent to us in error.

And I found out that we are affected by it two weeks later by a later lady that called me, her name was Jennifer, and she worked for some Stanley something company.

And she talked about an easement about that sewer system.

And she also mentioned being agnexed within the city of Cedar Rapids, and I told her this is the first I've ever heard of it.

So if there's something going on, please let me know.

This needs to be cleaned up.

Yeah.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Regal.

Abigail Cornejo here to speak on item number 26.

Hello.

My name is Abigail Cornejo.

I live at 4333 First Avenue Northwest.

I have been an ELL teacher, English language learner teacher at Hoover Community School for the past three years and six in the district.

I'm here in support of rezoning at Hoover.

As you're aware, we've outgrown our building, evidenced by the portables in which our whole fifth grade class is now housed away from the rest of the building.

In winter, additionally, our heater causes our building to smell like sewage.

Nobody deserves to have to go to school in that.

Mold is evident also in spots in our building.

Cedar Rapids motto is welcome as our language.

Our elementary school, the physical building, does not embrace that.

A little bit about Hoover is 174 of our 420 students received English language services at the end of 2425.

A total of 57% of our student body speaks another language, some even three at home.

29% speak Swahili, 18% French, and 14% Haitian Crayol, and 100% of our student body is resilient, capable, wonderful children that I'm honored to teach.

Our kids deserve a big, clean, safe, physical building they can be proud of.

A city that supports them.

Our kids deserve this now, whatever the cost.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Mark Kramer here to speak on item 26.

Thank you.

My name is Mark Kramer, and I live on Roxbury.

It's uh adjacent to item number 26, the Hoover rezoning.

And I want first to make clear is we totally, I believe all of us approve of the new school building.

We have no argument there.

One of our biggest concerns has been with the lack of communications by the school board or their people who are supposed to be communicating with us about what the plan was going to be.

We didn't really hear about this until a couple of months ago, and we've asked you to postpone this so that we could get further communications and what they plan to do with this building, and hopefully to change it.

After we've seen the plans, they planned on putting this service drive about 10 feet from our lot line.

After we've seen the plans, they planned on putting this service drive about 10 feet from our lot line, and it's a 26-foot-wide service drive.

And the school didn't be didn't look to be much further past.

They have since tried to adjust that a little bit, but our problem mostly is that they're not communicating with us.

We don't really know what's going on, and they don't seem to want to listen to what our suggestions are to uh make this more uh palatable to us as neighbors.

Again, we don't mind the new school building.

I'm pretty sure, as the previous uh speaker said that you kind of wonder who their maintenance staff is if they're having those kinds of problems, but uh whatever it may be, a new building would more doubt resolve those.

Uh we asked them one suggestion was to this service drive was going to also service bus drop-offs.

There's only two buses that drop off at that school building.

So I suggested they follow what the West Willow School does.

That's another new one they built out there on the west side, uh, where they just come right off the road, the street, and make a widening there where the the buses pull in and drop off.

The other thing we asked them to do is to move this drive further away from our lot lines and provide some sort of uh sound berm or trees.

Uh they have suggested fencing.

We really don't know what's gonna happen yet.

They haven't got with us to tell us what the plan was.

Uh a third thing we suggested was if they simply rotate this building around, that it would probably resolve all these problems, but they refused.

That's probably because they've already put in all the design work, and that would increase their cost because they'd have to redo it.

Um all we're asking the council city council to do for us is to table this third reading until the school board gets with us and meets with us and addresses our issues.

Um we really do support the new school building.

We they obviously do need one.

This is an older facility.

It's just that we don't like the way this has been going on.

And I'm sorry to put you in this because your only responsibility is to approve this reading to change the zoning.

And really, this my problem is not your problem.

This problem is with our school board and the school district, and but we're not getting anywhere with them, so we're simply asking you to help us get them to the table with us.

And thank you very much.

Thank you.

Gary Dusell.

And after Gary will be Don Clark.

Then Sarah Hinsman and then Cindy Garlock.

Thank you, Mayor and Council.

Uh Gary Dusell, 3934 Roxbury Drive Northwest.

I lived there for 35 years, so I've seen a lot of development in that community.

And we'll like to see some continued uh development in that community.

First and foremost, the Roxbury neighborhood are not opposed to improving or enlarging that school.

I want to make that very clear.

Uh I personally, I don't think all plan options to a large Hoover School have been seriously considered.

And we've uh presented several of those plan options uh to the to the school.

But I don't do not believe that they've been seriously considered.

Uh they have a plan in place, and it's like trying to turn the Titanic around.

They're gonna go right with the plan that they already have.

Instead of the access drive, like uh my neighbor was talking about, uh Willow, West Willow did a nice cutout drive, and there's room to do that off to the parking lot where the buses can drop off the students, where the uh uh delivery trucks, which are twice a week, can drop off and where they can and uh they trash can be picked up.

So there's no uh blocking the traffic on wood and wiley if they did a nice cutoff into that parking lot on the west end of Hoover School.

Uh our I would like to say also our uh the weather school is being built and and put in our neighborhood, it's not conducive for for our quality of life that we've uh envisioned and lived on the last my 35 years and the other neighbors uh several years as well.

We have to uh look at a 28-foot tall building, basically what I think is in our backyard, looking at a wall of a 28-foot building where today I have a nice trees uh all along the line.

Where with the proposed uh building, we're going to lose uh tree canopy, and I think that's very important to Cedar Rapids.

They're gonna wipe out and clear cut all the way down the line, clear for my on the west side of me, effective eight to nine neighbors.

So they'll say they're gonna plant trees.

Well, not my lifetime, I'll ever see those trees grow as tall as they are today.

Uh the other thing is geothermal wells are being drilled 60 feet, approximately 60 feet for my property line, and the other other neighbor on Clive, uh, he's gonna have a well drilled, no less than about 10 to 15 feet, and those wells are going down 350 feet.

So you imagine those trill drills or well drills, uh geothermal wells being drilled, and it's not a quiet because I've heard those already being drilled on the northwest corner and the northeast corner.

None of that is quiet, and those drills should not be that close to our property line.

Put yourself in our shoes as property owners along the high uh along the high and the large uh school being built next to your next to your property.

I feel our property values aren't going to be as highly valued as they are today, with what we have to see in our backyard and our scenery.

Work site construction trailers.

I'm gonna be looking at approximately according to the plan, six construction trailers less than 60 feet from my property line.

I'm gonna sit on my deck, drink a cup of coffee, look at six construction trailers, and you know what's gonna be coming and going to all the work and all the workers are gonna be coming down that line uh reporting in the morning.

So there's no privacy there that I see.

I would like the uh city council to table this and go and tell the school to go back to the drawing board and let's get with the neighbors and come up with a solution where we can all live on a win-win situation.

I believe uh, and some of the uh Hoover neighborhood uh neighbors believe that we're we are more than collateral taxpayers.

We are concerned about the students, we are concerned about the neighborhood, and hopefully you as uh city council members will take this into consideration.

Therefore, I'm requesting the city council not approve the current Hoover rezoning.

Thank you very much, Don Clark.

Thank you.

I'm Don Clark.

I live at 66 Clive Drive.

Um, unlike my neighbors on Roxbury that has the the road, if you will.

The people on Clyde's concern is, and I believe this is probably the third or fourth time I've been up here with my concern is the storm water flow towards my house.

We got that earthen dam there, and it's gonna be taken out.

Um, you know, we we've been asking the school the Cedar Rapids School District, you know, these are our concerns, get us involved.

I haven't heard anything from anybody.

You get uh, yeah, Mr.

Clark, we hear what you're saying, uh talk to out front after the meeting, but they never get back to you.

So I even invite them out to say to show them the concern, right?

The other day we got three inches of rain, and you can just see the water flowing.

That thing's down, my home's flooded.

Um I did get a promise from Chad Schumacher that if my home was flooded, the Cedar Rapids School District would pay for repairs.

That was a verbal thing, you know, put it in writing, and I'll be fine with this.

As you heard, nobody from the neighborhood is opposed to a new school.

We're just asking to be involved with our concerns.

You know, these are our concerns, this is our neighborhood, and we just want to be involved so that we can get a new school.

And I'm I'm gonna ask for you guys to table it until we are involved.

Thank you.

Thank you, Sarah Hinsman.

Good afternoon, Council.

I'm Sarah Hinsman.

I'm an alumni of Hoover Elementary.

I'm also a neighbor on the Roxbury Drive quadrant of the Hoover property.

I just wanted to give you an update on some of the activities since you last heard from us.

We had a sit-down meeting at my home with some of these neighbors and some of the school district and Shiv Hattery representatives.

I really appreciate that.

It was a nice opportunity to collaborate, but I don't think it really like moved us too far forward in addressing our concerns.

But it was a nice um way to start collaborating.

We also uh the school district, hello, excuse me, has scheduled three upcoming meetings for neighbors to come and provide input.

Not exactly sure on what, but I think primarily they want us to collaborate on outdoor elements like screening and fencing.

Um those are coming up.

Um I also took over the weekend time to craft a letter to my neighbors and walk the neighborhood and hit up every house that was on the physical site plan so that they all know that these meetings are coming up because the district doesn't have all their contact information.

So that's all kind of fallen on me.

I'm happy to do it because I'm an advocate at heart, but um, that's something that has also occurred.

Um, and we received an updated proposal from the school district.

I don't believe y'all have seen it, um, but essentially their intent is to move the access road and the um school building five feet further to the north than was originally proposed to you.

And thank you.

Um five feet is nice, um, but it's still real close to the property lines on Roxbury Drive.

So for us, it doesn't feel like quite the compromise we were looking for to really make an impact and resolve our concerns, especially compared to the outcomes that we could literally see at the other schools.

Um, none of the other schools have quite this intrusive of an access road right behind property lines, so we still remain opposed to the road.

Um we appreciate that the council has heard our concerns and taken the action that is possible to give us more time to start this collaborative process and working together with the district in earnest.

Um, especially I want to thank Councilmember Van Orney and Councilmember Poe for your um votes in the past.

Um, thank you for your uh for your help.

I have one more request of counsel today.

Um I fully expect that you will take action to move the rezoning based on the arguments that you have made, um, which are valid in previous meetings.

But what I would like to ask for your continued action is to put a condition on this rezoning.

Um, and that condition would be to ensure that you all review the site plan um when it comes to the development services department rather than permit staff administrative approval.

Um, and the reason I'm asking for that is to ensure that the trust and transparency we have been begging for continues regarding the compromises that are in development.

They're not finalized, but they're currently in development between Hoover neighbors and the school district.

So that is my final request of y'all.

Thank you so much.

All right, Cindy Garlock.

Hi, I'm Cindy Garlock, president of the Cedar Rapids Community School District School Board, and I do know that you did receive a communication from the district regarding the meeting that we had with the Roxbury neighbors on July 28th.

Along with that email, you should have received a document uh containing frequently asked questions that do address some of the concerns that you've heard here today.

I do want to just review a few of those with you.

We did shift the position of the building a little bit so that it allows an additional 20 feet between the property line and this driveway that is the point of contention.

We did also, Chad did look at the doing a cutout on Wiley, and uh that seems to be impossible because that Wylie is uh termed a collector street, which makes that possibility um untenable.

Um we have met with the neighbors once.

Uh Chad was there, our CFO was there, a representative from Shive, I was there, our board vice president was there to visit with the neighbors.

We went through all of these possibilities and talked with them about what might work, what might not work, regardless of um whether we do a cutout on Wiley or not.

Regardless of whether we do a cutout on Wiley or not, we still have to have that access road.

It is required by fire code that the fire trucks need to be able to access that part of the building.

That access road does need to be 26 feet.

Again, that is by code.

That is not something that we're deciding.

Um, so we have tried to listen to the neighbors and accommodate their wishes as we move forward with this building.

Um, I think we all agree that there needs to be a new building on the Hoover site, and we need to move forward.

You heard a description of what the interior of that building is like.

It is not the best learning environment for our students.

And as a board member for the school district, that is my priority to make sure that our students are giving given every opportunity and given the best possible opportunity that we as a community can provide for them.

So we will continue to work with the neighbors.

Um, as you heard, we have three more meetings scheduled with the Roxbury uh neighbors to see what we can do about providing screening, trees, uh fencing, whatever their preferences are.

We have a meeting set up in August, September, and October to work on that.

Um, we did have an arborist actually come out and look at the trees that were referenced earlier.

They are all in poor condition and do need to come down.

Um, so that concern also has been addressed.

We will continue to work with the neighbors and do everything we can to accommodate them, but we need to have a school on that site, and we need to move forward with this process.

We can't delay any further.

Thank you.

Dr.

Grover.

Thank you so much, Mayor and City Council for the opportunity to come back and address the property over at Hoover.

You've heard from President Garlock.

So she shared a number of the facts related uh to the topic at hand today.

Um, I'm here on behalf of administration.

Um, I am so proud of the Hoover, the Hoover community.

Last night we heard from some of our students as well as our teachers, as well as our neighbors.

And so where we center is certainly around our children, Hoover School, what it provides uh to all of us.

I just want to assure you that as we have worked uh with our design team, um, if there was anything else that we could do on behalf of this project, we would absolutely do it.

We've taken into consideration all of the comments, and I know that's something that the mayor as well as the council who care about us listening, trying to find solutions.

Um, I feel like that we have done that, um, and we will continue to do it.

Um, we have set those dates out so that we can have the transparency, that people can plan for it, that they can participate.

So we're looking for the opportunity to co-create the next steps as we move forward.

Today I had the opportunity to welcome over a hundred new teachers to the Cedar Rapids Community School District.

It's always a fun day for us.

Um, a high percentage of those um new teachers in the room, they were returning back to Cedar Rapids, something that I know you also care about.

As I look out to our teachers, we're there to make sure that they understand the mission that we have at hand, but also how we support them.

One of the promises that we're making to our staff members is that we want to ensure that they have safe and secure learning environments.

One of the promises that I'm making to them is no matter which school that they're in, no matter the zip code, that they will have an environment that is conducive to learning where they can do their best work on behalf of our students.

So that's why I'm here today asking you to please help us move this forward.

This has been a conversation within um the Cedar Rapids Community School District.

Uh teacher reminded us last night since 2018.

Um, it is now time for us to move forward uh the action that is needed to ensure that we can get a school the fall of 27 for the Hoover community.

So thank you in advance for your consideration and your support in advancing it here today.

Thank you.

Thank you, Dr.

Grover.

Jarrell Robinson here to speak on item number 27.

Hello, my name is Gerald Robinson.

I live on the southeast side of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

I'm here today because I've seen firsthand how the system works when there's no meaningful oversight and the harm that can come from it.

The full repeal of the Cedar Citizen Review Board is not just a procedural change.

For many in our community, it is deeply personal.

And although I know it is not this body who set forth a ban on the Citizens Review Board, I do want to remind you that you do still have the power in how you respond to such a disgraceful law.

Today, I would like to use this time here to remind you that why we need civilian oversight, an entity that can be continuously working to make our police department more reputable and just.

Repealing the CRB sends a message that the progress we made since 2020 can be erased at the stroke of a pin, that any step toward accountability is temporary and can be taken away, that if we step too far out of line, we will be snapped back.

Our community deserves nothing less.

And if you're in support of what I'm saying today, can you please raise your hand?

Thank you.

Thank you.

Item number 27.

Hello, I'm Cersei Stumbo, and I live on the Southeast Side of Cedar Rapids.

I'm speaking today as a representative of the Advocates for Social Justice, a community-based nonprofit here in Cedar Rapids that initially called for a Citizen Review Board or CRB and was part of the process to design the original ordinance.

I'm speaking on the proposal to repeal the CRB and have copies of our statement, which I'll share when I'm finished.

I'm here to again register emphatically ASJ's call for you to not repeal the entirety of Chapter 74 of the municipal code, but rather to amend it.

But we need to go on record that the decision to repeal all of Chapter 74 is over compliance with the state statute.

When we combed through the code and compared it to SF 311, we found only one of six of the powers and duties of the Cedar Rapids CRB, and only one of the four articles in the code would need to be removed as a result of the state statute.

Even if you look at word count, fully half of the words in the existing code describe actions and procedures that are still allowable by law.

This council has the opportunity to amend Chapter 74 to address these spots rather than repeal it all together.

We are grateful to Council Members Meyer and Van Orney for recognizing this and responsibly voting against the repeal last month.

Now, to be clear, we have no quibble with the desire to deliberate the details of how the current CRB has been functioning and tweaking the design in ways that are more feasible, effective, and allowable.

Over the past month, we have been sitting with city staff, inclusive of the police department, to discuss how to go about deliberating these details.

We want to honor the fact that city staff have started this process of deliberation, and we appreciate the spirit of honesty and compromise that we have at the table together.

We have said in those meetings, and we're here today to say to you that if you are going to repeal the CRB in its entirety, then it is vital that we start by working with what is already in practice and making it better from there.

Mayor O'Donnell, you noted last month that our citizen review board really is best practice.

Councilman Overland, you said we went through that process back in 2020, 2021, and at the end of the day, what we ended up with was outstanding.

Councilmember Hager, you said something that was then repeated by others.

We have nine champions on this board.

We appreciate those words tremendously.

Now we do not begin to claim that all of the specific practices that were codified in Chapter 74 are sacrosanct, but we should use that ordinance as a starting point.

It was what the community coalesced around, and it is what we have evidence about in terms of how things are functioning.

So to be clear, the idea of a police chief advisory board is perhaps a fine and good entity to have here in Cedar Rapids.

We appreciate that the current chief of police is welcoming input from the community.

But a chief's advisory board is no replacement for a citizen review board.

We need an enduring independent body with citizen representation named by our citizen elected officials, you, the city council, who should be the ones to oversee its enactment of the core work of data analysis, research reviews, policy appraisals, and planning.

Such a new board or commission can complement the work of a chief's advisory board, but a board run by the chief cannot replace the vital functions that you all audited at the last meeting.

Councilmember Todd, last month you acknowledged the energy that was put into the 2020 Citizen Review Board was an exercise and commitment on the part of a lot of people.

Councilmember Poe, you said we can make this work, we can do it together just like we did in 2020.

ASJ pledges to work alongside you all and city staff to help make that happen.

It is our hope that today you will vote against the full repeal of the Citizen Review Board.

If the repeal passes today, we urge you to ensure there is an independent replacement established as soon as possible.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Jonathan Hafner here to speak on 27.

Thank you, Mayor.

Thank you, Council.

I'm Reverend Jonathan Hefner and I live on Forest Drive in Southeast Cedar Rapids.

I'm my fellow community members are watching this the discussion related to the repeal of Chapter 74 of the municipal code with great concern.

The Citizen Review Board was something that the community came together across diverse starting points and created something good.

To have to destroy the CRB is a major loss.

It would be a major loss and it would be a major setback.

Last month, as Cersei noted, we heard everyone on the council say that you are champions of what we have designed.

I'm speaking today to ensure that you carry through on the promise to replace the current board with a new entity.

As you look forward to specific language about what a replacement board or commission might look like.

First, the new board must have membership appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the city council.

This is the only way that we'll be able to ensure its independence and to ensure that the voices of our community are heard at the tables they need to be present at.

The city indicated that there is a proposal in the works for a chief's advisory board, which would be designed, appointed, and directed by the chief of police.

That's a fine entity to have.

It's a good thing.

We appreciate that the current chief does seem to genuinely want to hear how the community is experiencing policing in Cedar Rapids.

However, it is not an appropriate replacement for our current citizen review board.

I join the call for the city to establish a new board or commission, one that can work in parallel with the chief's advisory board run by the police department.

Second, the new board or commission should have the responsibility, both power and duty, to look deeply at public safety policies, practices, and impacts in our community.

This means hearing from community members and from police officers about what they see as challenges to public safety and how they are experiencing our city's responses to those challenges.

That means looking at data on police and community interactions, deliberating how to make sense of that data.

This means reviewing research about policing and public safety and bringing the research to the table when working to understand the root causes of any challenges this board or commission would identify.

This means reviewing policies to compare with every evolving best practice and to identify areas for further inquiry or change.

All of these functions are allowable by state law and will help to build the relationships, trust, and best practices that ultimately will keep our community and our community members safe.

Finally, this all should be feeding into the new board or commission's support for long-term planning, which is another critical role to maintain for the new board or commission.

What do we want public safety to look like in Cedar Rapids?

What mechanisms and partnerships do we need to ensure the public is safe?

What roles does the police department play?

What are the immediate short-term, medium-term, long-term public safety goals for our community and for our city departments?

The voice of the community has to be at the table, not just to hold departments accountable, but truly so that we can forge a new future together.

Please vote against the repeal.

If the proposal to repeal passes, please ensure that there is an independent replacement board or commission established as soon as possible.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Mimi Dowd Captain Captain Captain Captain Claire.

I want to start start by discussing really quickly the rezoning of Hoover through item 26.

It is incredibly important that our schools are up to date and able to sustain staff and students alike.

Public education should always be equitable and without a proper building, our students suffer.

Their education and stability suffers and our community suffers.

It is unfair to require children to be in a building all day, all day that inadequately supports a thriving, consistent, and healthy learning environment.

I also believe we need to ensure both our neighbors' staff and student or all our neighbor staff and students are taken care of during the process.

And I believe that there is a solution here where everyone can be supported while a new building is being built.

And I wanted to thank the community members who have joined the city council meeting today to voice their concerns.

Moving on to agenda item number 27, I wanted to share some thoughts and reflections from the first reading regarding this ordinance.

There was a lot of talk last time about how we have nine champions on city council, how we all came together and established the CRB, how it was a joyous and meaningful moment of community and collaboration.

And while this is true, I remind you that the climate of 2020, after George Floyd was murdered, contributed to, if not was the main reason of the pressure experienced by elected officials and community members to bring about change.

It was because people were protesting and there was a feeling and a sense of urgency.

I want to be clear, I'm not saying we forced your hand, but I think it's important to name how in times of distress we are often forced into action, and I think that's what led to the creation of the CRB.

I know that the fear of community members is that without this sense of urgency, that momentum we are hoping for might get lost.

So I want to continue to invite you all to have conversations with advocates for social justice.

Show us your commitment, don't just tell us.

Additionally, it is incredibly disappointing to hear that one of the notes provided by the city attorney as to why this ordinance was inefficient and needed to be fully repealed and then replaced was the implementation of the police liaisons.

I want to remind everyone that this was a suggestion by the city and was insisted upon by the city and was not brought forward by the community leaders at the table discussing the CRB.

I want to also note that these notes only coming up during the discussion of repealing the CRB can come off as an act of bad faith.

I know that Tiffany O'Donnell, you have stated numerous times that you don't want us to assume ill intent.

I understand that.

But it's also important to understand and empathize with why community members might be feeling distrustful of the elected officials sitting before us today.

That being said, I want to thank city staff who have already started a meeting with us to discuss what replacing this ordinance looks like and have scheduled follow-up meetings as well.

This is what I meant by show us your commitment.

Don't just tell us.

But I hope that city council members will also follow suit.

I want to end by thanking council members Meyer and Vanorney for voting no to the last city council meeting at the last city council meeting.

I urge you all to vote no today.

Regardless, I urge you all to join us in conversation about protecting black and brown lives and protecting the security, safety, and trust of our communities.

Thank you.

Thank you.

All right, and that will close out our first public comment period.

City Manager Pomrance, do you have any changes to the agenda?

No changes.

No changes.

Do any council members need to recuse themselves on any of the agenda items or make any changes?

Councilmember Olson.

Thank you, Mayor.

I need to recuse myself from agenda items 10 and 23 A D.

10 and 23 A and D.

Oh, sorry.

23 AD.

23AD.

Next page.

Got it.

Yeah.

Thank you, Councilmember Olson.

Anyone else?

All right.

So that brings us a motion to approve the agenda.

The approving of agenda has been moved by Councilmember Overland, seconded by Councilmember Poe.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And the motion carries.

Thank you, Council.

That brings us to our consent agenda.

The approval of the consent agenda has been moved by Poe, seconded by Van Orney.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

Thank you, Council.

Moving on to our regular agenda.

Uh, we'll begin with a report on bids for the 18th Avenue Southwest Reconstruction from Wiley Boulevard to Edgewood Road project.

This has an estimated cost of $2,790,000.

Doug Wilson is here.

Doug, I'll recognize you.

Thank you, Mayor.

Doug Wilson, Public Works Department.

This project includes reconstruction of a seal coast street to a concrete curb and gutter street.

Improvements include new storm sewer throughout the length of the project, uh, water main replacement and new sidewalks throughout the length of the project with ADA compliant sidewalk ramps to be constructed.

We expect the work to begin in September of 2025 and be completed in September of 2026 prior to the opening of the new library.

Bid opening was July 30th, and eight bids were received.

The bids range from 2,194,427 and 23 cents to 2,529,608 and 47 cents.

The public works department recommends approval of the resolution to award the construction contract to Rochy Construction.

Thank you.

Thank you, Doug.

Council, any questions.

All right, seeing none, the adoption of this resolution has been moved by Van Orney, seconded by Todd.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

Item number 25 is a report on bids for the downtown library plaza refresh project with an estimated cost of 230,000 dollars.

Jason Stanclift is here.

Jason, I'll recognize you.

Thank you.

Good afternoon, Mayor and Council members.

Jason Stancov with Facilities, and I'm here for the Downtown Library Plaza Refresh Project.

A public hearing was held on July 22nd.

The bids were received and opened on July 23rd, 11 a.m.

Estimated cost for the project was 230,000.

Project completion date is set for October 31st of this year.

Two bids were received.

The first one was withdrawn, and the second one was for 284,900 and 54 cents.

Excuse me.

City maintenance services recommends award to Valentine Construction Company as the lowest responsive and responsible bidder and recommends a council authorized city manager and city clerk to execute the contract as described.

Thank you.

Jason, thank you.

Council, any questions?

Councilmore Todd.

I'd like to thank Jason for sharing the plans with us.

They were reviewed by a real cross section of uh folks uh who put an extra set of eyes on it.

And so I feel very comfortable with uh what they're trying to do down there.

So thank you, Jason.

Absolutely anyone else?

All right.

If there are no further questions, the adoption of this resolution has been moved by Todd, seconded by councilmember Scott Olson.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye opposed say no.

And the motion carries.

So that now brings us to the ordinances.

Item number 26 is an ordinance granting a change of zone for property at 4141 Johnson Avenue Northwest from suburban residential low single unit district to public institutional district as requested by the Seed Rapids Community School District.

So for item number 26, I'll go ahead and take um if I can have a motion to adopt this ordinance on the third reading.

So moved by councilmember Tyler Olson, seconded by councilmember Todd.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And the motion carries.

Moving on to item number 27.

This is an ordinance repealing chapter 74 of the municipal code, citizen review board for community law enforcement.

I'll take a motion to approve this ordinance on its second reading.

So moved.

So moved by councilmember Tyler Olson.

Do I have a second?

Seconded by Councilmember Hager.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

No.

Council members Van Orney and Meyer register no.

And the motion carries.

Thank you, Council.

Councilmember Poe.

Thank you, Mayor.

I move the role requiring three readings on three different days, be suspended, and the ordinance be adopted on its third and final reading.

So the adoption of the ordinance on its third and final reading has been by moved by Poe.

Do I have a second?

Second by Councilmember Tyler Olson.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

No.

Meyer and Van Orney register no and the motion carries.

Thank you, Council.

Item number 28 is an ordinance establishing the East Lawrence Drive Southwest and West Lawrence Drive Southwest Water Extension District and related water extension charge.

The approval of this ordinance on its second reading has been moved by Councilmember Scott Olson.

Seconded by Councilmember Todd.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And the motion carries.

Thank you, Council.

Councilmember Poe.

Thank you, Mayor.

I move the role requiring three readings on three different days be suspended and the ordinance be adopted on its third and final reading.

The ordinance, the adoption of the ordinance on its third and final reading has been moved by Poe, seconded by Van Orney.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

29 is an ordinance granting a change of zone for property at 1310 11th Street Northwest from traditional residential single unit district to public institutional district as requested by the Cedar Rapids Community School District.

Go ahead and take an approval of this ordinance on its second reading.

Do I have a motion to approve?

So moved by Councilmember Tyler Olson.

A second.

Seconded by Councilmember Hager.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

Thank you, Council.

Councilmember Poe.

Thank you, Mayor.

I move the role requiring three readings on three different days be suspended and the ordinance be adopted on its third and final reading.

The adoption of this ordinance on his third and final reading has been moved by councilmember Poe.

Can I get a second?

Seconded by Councilmember Scott Olson.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

Thank you, Council.

30 is an ordinance granting a change of zone for property at 2525 29th Street Southwest from suburban residential low single unit district to public institutional district as requested by the Cedar Rapids Community School District.

Seconded by Overland.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

Thank you, Council.

Councilmember Poe.

Thank you, Mayor.

Thank you, Mayor.

I move the role requiring three readings on three different days be suspended and the ordinance be adopted on its third and final reading.

The ordinance uh adoption of this ordinance on its third and final reading has been moved by Poe, seconded by Councilmember Hager.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

31 is an ordinance amending chapter six of the municipal code, city administration to increase the size of the Civil Service Commission from three to five members.

The approval of this ordinance on its first reading has been moved by Councilmember Hager, seconded by Councilmember Meyer.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

Councilmember Poe.

Thank you, Mayor.

I move the role requiring three readings on three different days be suspended and the ordinance be adopted on its third and final reading.

The adoption of this ordinance on its second and third readings has been moved by Councilmember Poe, seconded by Councilmember Meyer.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

And that closes out our formal business today and would bring us to our final public input period, though it looks as though we have no one signed up to speak for this.

Uh so we will go ahead and close out our second public input period.

City Manager Pomrance, do you have any communications for today?

None.

Thank you.

Seeing no further business to come before council, Councilmember Tyler Olson moves to adjourn.

Seconded by Councilmember Overland.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

We are adjourned.