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

Welcome everybody to the city of Cedar for being here today, and thank you to city staff as always for attending and being available for questions.

Should we have them after the meeting today?

A reminder to those who are in the gallery today to turn off any electronic devices that might distract us from our proceedings today.

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

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

And before we begin, I would also just like to welcome in the gallery today our students from Isaac Newton Christian Academy, who uh were a large part of the mayor's uh leadership youth leadership summit and followed up with a visit today.

So thank you for your interest and in government.

And now we'll begin with our invocation by public safety chaplain Jim Coyle, followed immediately by the Pledge of Allegiance.

Thank you, Mayor, Council.

Uh what a great time of year for us to be grateful and thankful.

So, God, I just asked that uh your presence would guide the conversations here today, that the decisions that are going to be made will benefit not only Cedar Rapids but for every individual present and not present.

So be with us now, and I pray these things in your name.

Amen.

I'd like to please face over religious stance under God.

And now I'd like to invite our special guests who are here for small business Saturday, every Saturday, to join us here at the Daisy.

Wonderful.

Thank you for making time out.

It isn't lost on us that the people that can't get away at lunch are our small business owners.

So we appreciate you uh making time as we uh work to um elevate the conversation about supporting our local businesses, especially after such a tough weather weekend.

Mother Nature wins every time, but we can do our best.

It's my honor to issue a proclamation today.

Whereas the city of Cedar Rapids is home to a vibrant, diverse, and hardworking community of small business owners whose creativity and dedication strengthen our city's economy, cultural richness, and character through the goods, services, local jobs, and community support they provide.

And whereas the small businesses, artisans, makers, and local restaurateurs play a vital role in sustaining Cedar Rapids' unique identity and quality of life, and continued support for these enterprises helps preserve the cultural assets as well as economic vibrancy that strengthen our city.

And whereas Small Business Saturday is a nationally recognized event held each year following Thanksgiving, which encourages residents to support local merchants and strengthen neighborhood economies, and whereas this year's small business Saturday was heavily impacted by a historic record snowstorm that temporarily closed many of our community's small businesses, reducing opportunities for residents to shop locally and take part in this important annual tradition in our commercial districts and venues.

And whereas extending the spirit of Small Business Saturday throughout the entire month of December will provide residents with additional opportunities to shop and dine locally and support those who make Cedar Rapids a thriving and welcoming place to live, work, and visit.

Now, therefore, I, Tiffany O'Donnell, mayor of the City of Cedar Rapids, alongside my grateful council, do hereby proclaim every Saturday in December as small business Saturday in Cedar Rapids and call upon all community members to join in supporting our local retailers, artisans, service providers, and restaurants during this month and throughout the year.

Thanks for all you do.

Do you want to just say the the businesses you represent today?

Mode Health Hut.

Almost famous pop.

Almost famous pop popcorn.

Funky Cebra's boutique.

Next page, next page books.

Alan Vital Wellness Clinic.

Newbow City Market.

And thank you for again for taking time out.

And we know there are so many more, thousands more in our community that aren't able to be here today, but just know that we support you as well.

So thank you.

I'm going to give this, I'll give this to someone after, okay.

Next up, I need to ask my friend Bart from Next Page Books to stay up here.

Uh what many of you may not know is Bart uh was scheduled to be honored at this meeting for meeting a milestone that all retailers I have to imagine aspire to, and that is uh being around for 10 years through the good times and the bad.

And I'm gonna have, I know your dear friend, uh Councilmember and Mayor Pro Tem and Poe read that for you.

Okay.

Well, this one's for you, Bart.

Well, congratulations on 10 years uh of next page books in New Bohemian Czech Village area, we're really proud of you, so thank you so much for your continued commitment to small business in that portion of our community, beloved community, I should say.

This is a proclamation, whereas Next Page Books was founded on December 1st, 2015 in the historic new Bohemian neighborhood of Cedar Rapids and will celebrate 10 years of book selling throughout the month of December.

And whereas Next Page Books serves as a welcoming community gathering place where individuals from all walks of life can engage in free and open expression of ideas, fostering a vibrant culture of dialogue and connection.

And whereas Next Page Books has demonstrated remarkable resilience overcoming economic and natural challenges with continued growth each year since its founding, more than doubling its annual revenue in attracting customers from across the state, nation, and the globe.

Whereas Next Page Books along with Cedar Rapids has generated significant attention at both the state and national level, having been featured on Iowa Public Radio, National Podcasts, ABC's Good Morning America, and KCRG's Everyday Iowa Morning Show, as well as in prestigious publications such as Forbes Magazine and the New York Times.

And whereas Next Page Books has received numerous accolades since 2015, including the recognition of its owner, being named the 2020 entrepreneur of the year by the Little Village magazine for his innovative response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

And whereas Next Page Books, Resident Cat, Frank, delights customers and has become a beloved local celebrity working at the shop on Monday, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

Now, therefore, for IN Poe on behalf of Mayor Tiffany O'Donnell and the entire Cedar Rapids City Council here by proclaimed December 2025 as Next Page Books of Cedar Rapids Month.

Wow.

And encourage residents to visit visit Next Page Books.

Support local businesses and encourage one another through the love of literature, celebrating the profound impact this establishment has had on our community.

Let us come together as a community to honor this milestone and to continue to foster an environment where creativity and conversation can thrive.

Congratulations, Bart.

Oh, I didn't know I had to speak.

So I'm so grateful to be here.

I'm glad to have you.

Thank you so much.

Congratulations.

And now I'll invite those here for Employee Learning Week.

Thank you for being here.

Good morning.

Thank you.

Good morning.

Thank you for being here.

Thank you.

Great.

This is a proclamation for the city of Cedar Rapids.

Whereas the organizations of Cedar Rapids and the Association of Talent Development, Hawkeye Chapter, are committed to creating a highly skilled workforce that is critical to growing and sustaining a competitive advantage.

And whereas they recognize that having knowledgeable, skilled workforce improves the performance of those organizations.

And whereas learning develops individual and organizational knowledge and expertise.

And whereas the Association for Talent Development, ATD, the world's largest association, dedicated to those who develop talent in organizations, has declared December 1 through 5, 2025 as employee learning week and designated this time for organizations to recognize the value of employee learning.

And whereas the Hawkeye Chapter, Association for Talent Development in Cedar Rapids, has demonstrated its commitment to developing the skills of employees and the workforce in our community.

Therefore, INPO on behalf of Mayor Tiffany O'Donnell and the entire Cedar Rapids City Council hereby recognize the first week of December as employee learning week.

We recognize the value of learning and the important link between knowledge, highly skilled workforce, and organizational success.

Thank you.

Thank you.

I'm pretty sure many of you have not heard about the Association of Talent Development.

So I just wanted to let you know that it is an international organization in 100 countries.

It is 80 years old, and we here in Cedar Rapids are the Hawkeye chapter of that organization.

And next year in 2026, we will celebrate our 40th anniversary as a chapter.

We work very hard to make sure that our employees are trained, upskilled, reskilled, get leadership development, and all of the things that make the world a better place to work and our community more successful.

So thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you so much for having me.

Thank you.

Thanks, everybody.

Next up, we have a presentation by on the City of Cedar Rapids and Cal's ISU partnership.

Bill Michael's gonna present that for us.

Bill, I'll recognize you.

Thank you, Mayor.

Um like to introduce Justin Hagedorn from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences from Iowa State University.

The City of Cedar Rapids has a long-standing partnership with ISU focused on maximizing the competitive advantage that our existing uh cluster of food and bio uh employers have by locating here in in Cedar Rapids.

Uh industry cluster initiatives uh proven to produce higher wages, higher skilled jobs uh in an area, and uh we've really pivoted in the last couple of years to focusing on enhancing the connection between Iowa State University students and workforce pipeline to Cedar Rapids and our uh food and biomanufacturing companies.

So, with that, I'll turn it over to Justin.

Thank you again.

I'm Dr.

Justin Hagador, and I've been the program director for the Iowa State University Cedar Rapids Partnership since April 2024.

Uh, there's been three goals, three large-scale goals provide scholarship opportunities to Cedar Rapids and Lynn County students through the Dolezall Scholarship.

This is essentially a guaranteed half tuition scholarship to any student from Lynn County who picks any major in the College of Agriculture and Life Science, renewable for four years.

Um, so if a student were to start its $24,000 over their four years.

Uh, support area businesses with their workforce needs, and then utilize Iowa State's world class resources research to enhance that competitive advantage for our ag and bioprocessing manufacturers here in Cedar Rapids.

So, to that point, uh, within our Doles Hall scholarship, we've seen since 2024 25% year-on-year return uh growth for our students with this past year having 125 Lynn County students receive the scholarship to the tune of $687,500, and that scholarship will actually go up an additional $500 a year starting next year as unfortunately tuition costs have gone up.

Um we're seeing 91% retention rates.

So students who do get the scholarship stay in school, they stay in our college, and they get the education that they need to hopefully come back and support our economy here in Cedar Rapids.

We also host these students for uh tours within our local businesses.

Um this past uh month, we were in both Cargill and Diamond V with a group of students.

Um, so they're having great experiences uh while they're at Iowa State to hopefully come back here.

Within workforce development, uh, we've done multiple projects.

We utilize um our resources to support hard to fill positions for employers.

Um employer came to us and said we are having a hard time finishing uh filling this position.

Um we used our resources and contacts with students to have it filled within a week, and it had been up for over a month.

Uh we also help with human resource needs.

So when employers tell us we're having a hard time, um, we review their job description and help them decide what might be a better way of recruiting people uh to the Cedar Rapids area.

As well as we've went to the University Career Fair, which had over 1800 students at it represented Cedar Rapids, the city, as well as represented uh our employers in the area who might have internship opportunities.

In addition, we've done a virtual internship programs that allows our employers in the area to hire Iowa State students during the fall and spring semester, provide uh projects, training so that when they're at Iowa State, they can get that training, and then in the summer, either start a summer internship or receive full-time employment.

As part of the partnership in the last year and a half, we've contacted over 1,100 students.

We've developed a website and had over 850 unique visitors, and we've interacted with 37 businesses within Cedar Rapids.

Um prior to my beginning, uh a big part of the partnership was developing the uh Cedar Rapids Food and Biomanufacturing Report.

Um, it's a definitive white paper, uh, special focus on waste streams.

It's available online.

So if anyone has questions on that.

And then even though we shifted away from applied research, we still provide applied research support for our area businesses.

Um building connections to research centers, whether that be entrepreneurship, whether that be agriculture related, um agronomy, really whatever uh business might need, we provide support for that.

Our college alone provided 72 million dollars this past year in research funds, and we want to make sure that research is applied and used by companies in the Cedar Rapids area.

We've also recently coordinated with the city business retention and expansion survey, make sure that we're maximizing our employer outreach.

Again, my contact information for the partnership is there.

David Connolly serves as the partnership coordinator for the city of Cedar Rapids, and Andy Zier is at Iowa State University.

Thank you so much.

Since we have students here, how does one apply for this?

Yeah.

So if you apply to Iowa State University and you pick any of the majors in the College of Agriculture and Life Science, you fill out the one app scholarship, which qualifies you for about 95% of Iowa State scholarships anyway.

That's it.

I get an email that says, hey, the student qualifies for it.

Do you want to send them money?

And I click yes.

Great.

Keep it coming.

And the scholarship has a fund of 1.7 million annually to give away.

So we're still we have plenty of opportunities for more students.

I see some note-taking in the gallery.

That's great.

Council.

Anything?

Okay.

All right.

Thank you, Dr.

Hackedorn, for all you do.

Thanks, Bill.

It's now time for public hearing.

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

Reminder to stay at the lector.

If you have any documents you want to share with council, give them to the officer and he will get them to us.

Comments are limited to five minutes.

So when you see the light in the console tone yellow, that means you have one minute.

And when it's red, we will invite you to take your seat once again.

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

And finally, we need to hold an orderly meeting.

So we ask for no applause, cheering, booing, or other noise or disruptive conduct from the audience.

Thank you in advance.

Does the clerk have any written comments or objections in regard to any of the public hearings on our agenda?

Your Honor, there were no written comments or objections filed.

Thank you.

We'll begin with item number one, which is a public hearing to consider repealing chapter nine of the municipal code, streets, alleys, and sidewalks, and enacting a new chapter nine in its place to include updated right of way widths, a new major streets map and clarification of property owners' responsibilities for maintaining sidewalks and underground vaults in the right of way.

Kendakiser is here.

Ken, I'll recognize you.

Thank you, Mayor and Council.

Here's the background.

The last time chapter nine was updated was in 2018 for sidewalk repairs.

Um we are proposing major updates this year for a new city street plan, uh, policies for clearing snow and ice, underground vaults in public rights way, which is a totally new section of the of the uh code, and then clarifying sidewalk construction and repair.

And just noting that these items are within the city council's priorities for clean and safe city.

So the first thing I'll talk about is the city street plan.

There's an official street map from the 1960s that's attached to the ordinance.

Um that is since obsolete, and um what we would propose is to replace that with the Iowa DOT's urban federal functional classification map.

Um that map is updated every year.

We would adopt it by reference, and uh our participating cities and MPO have input into that map.

In addition, there are required rights of way widths.

There's a list of streets in the current code that have a prescribed right-of-way width for those.

That we were proposing to remove that and to provide a more flexible range for the type of street, and this would align with our design standards with with SUDAS, the statewide urban design specifications.

So here's some examples I note below.

Um, Blair's Ferry Road currently is listed in needing a minimum 66 foot right-of-way.

Uh Blair's Ferry Road has a much bigger need for that based on the function of the road, uh, utility corridors, sidewalks, and trails.

So typically it's gonna be the 80 to 105 feet according to the current design standards, and that aligns with what we see in Blair's Ferry Road today.

Uh conversely, Eastern Avenue is a collector street that's prescribed as 80 feet.

We really we can probably live with 60 or 75 feet.

So, why are we proposing the change?

Uh, because the city street map and the right-of-way requirements in chapter nine are currently outdated.

And the intent of this work is to maintain a current street map without having to change the code frequently and adopt the DOT's up-to-date map by reference.

And then provide flexibility for the city and property owners for best use of the rights when adjacent private property.

And I've experienced this a number of times in development services where we worked on a proposed site plan with a developer, and and when we were flexible with the right-of-way width, that could really help them uh maximize their use of their land, and we can still get what we need for a nice sidewalk and uh and utility space.

Uh the next thing I'm gonna touch on is clearing snow and ice.

So currently, property owners are to remove snow from the entire width of residential sidewalk and at least five feet from a multi-use public walkway and five feet from a commercial sidewalk.

What we're proposing is the owner's properties that abut the private public sidewalk shall remove snow from the entire width of the sidewalk, and then the city will remove snow from designated shared use passive trails.

These are generally 10 feet or greater in width.

And why are we changing this?

Because sidewalks can be wider than five feet.

Design standards have changed so that we see sidewalks on major streets that are now six feet.

We also have sidewalks that are wider than five feet when they abut a retaining wall or some other type of right-of-way feature.

And and this can be confusing for property owners.

I've I've taken numerous calls in the past for folks that you know, you give you gave me a six-foot walk here.

You know, I only want to shovel five feet.

So it's just sort of thing we like to kind of work through the with the property owners.

There's also some confusion over residential versus a commercial property, too.

Um is an apartment complex residential or is it commercial?

So this sort of thing, we we try to avoid some of the uh the semantics with that type of thing.

Uh multi-use public walkway is not defined.

And then the city and owner, we've had this situation before too, where sit the city and the and the property owners shared in shoveling snow from a 10-foot trail, and that doesn't work well at all because now you got well, you you push your snow over on my side and vice versa, and that that gets to be a problem.

So the intent here is that property owners are responsible to remove snow from the sidewalks, period, and the city is responsible to remove snow from the trails.

And this would not affect any agreements that the city has with Smids or other downtown groups regarding maintenance in the core neighborhoods.

Um this is the new section.

This is for underground vaults.

Uh we provide a definition for for a vault, which is a privately owned building extension located below the ground level within public rights way.

Uh, these are typically used for building utility storage or parking.

In the past, they may have been used for ice or coal or other types of things back um before you know electricity and and the gas and stuff downtown.

So the vaults are predominantly located in the downtown district.

There's about 60 of them there.

And what we're proposing is that when the city constructs improvements within the right-of-way, whether it's a street reconstruction or or we're we're addressing a vault that's in bad condition.

Adjacent property owners will not be allowed to keep or maintain their vaults except as approved by the city for active uses.

And there are active uses on some of our vaults.

Some of them are uses as mentioned for parking and building utilities.

So we will have flexibility to work with property owners that actively use their vaults and work out an encroachment agreement so that it's actually we have it's official that here's your vault, you're gonna maintain it, you're gonna use it.

Umapproved vaults will be abandoned and filled.

Uh, this is the property owner's responsibility to abandon this or be assessed by the city.

Approve vaults will also be the property owner's responsibility to repair or be assessed by the city.

And I will talk a little bit about cost sharing program here in a bit.

So here's um underground vaults in a nutshell.

Um the graphic here shows um vaults they extend out into the right-of-way, often into the curb and gutter of the street, even and they're below uh the sidewalk level, and a lot of times we don't even know they're there.

Um, an example of uh this is a one that's used for parking currently.

And then we also there's a telltale sign here with this picture of a is a grill with a sidewalk so that can give you an indication of whether there's a vault in the in the area.

So, why are we proposing the new section?

Because the vaults are privately owned, they're part of the building, they're not city owned, and many have not been sufficiently maintained or actively used over time.

And if we keep deferring the maintenance, whether it's us or property owners, that can be risky.

And here are some examples here of some vault deteriorations that we're looking at.

But the intent of this is that property owners are responsible to maintain their vaults or no longer needed remove them.

And what we're gonna propose, and this isn't codified, but this is something we would work with the property owners, is a cost-sharing opportunity to incentivize the removal.

So, sidewalk construction and repair.

Uh currently property owners are responsible for sidewalk maintenance and repair.

Uh, sidewalk defects are not specifically stated in chapter nine.

So I've listed an example of typical defects.

Sometimes we get calls from from people who don't, you know, if they're uh they argue about a crack or a missing panel, it's not you know my responsibility, this sort of thing.

So we like to make sure that we've got the typical defects at least listed in the code.

Uh why the change because we we want to clarify what constitutes a defect so we can tell property owners what needs to be repaired and it solidifies their responsibilities.

So for public information, we presented this originally to the infrastructure committee last May.

We also gave a presentation on downtown vaults and sidewalk repairs to the SMID board in October.

And we are currently developing a project uh along 2nd Street between 3rd and 4th Avenue, and we're working with a vault owner on a repair project, and we are going to be cost-sharing with them to abandon the vault.

They're going to be responsible for utility relocation, and we'll take care of the vault, actual filling it in.

So there's an opportunity to work with people and incentivize these to get abandoned uh once and for all.

And here are the next steps.

Today is the hearing and first reading and then the second impossible third reading at the next uh meeting.

And um, happy to take any questions.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ken.

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

Does anyone here wish to address council?

Just state your name and your city.

This is Isaac Davis from Cedar Rapids.

Uh, this is specifically about the uh sidewalks and the snow removal.

Um, I want to commend the city for maintaining the commitment to uh making sure that snow removal is something uh that we prioritize.

Uh it's not just about um, you know, the snow's there, so let's get rid of it.

This is about accessibility, this is about uh the pedestrian experience is about being able to walk.

Um, a story, not just walk, but also roll.

A story that I um have that like really emphasizes the importance is a time when I saw a sidewalk that was not cleared, and I was driving on the road and it was the evening because it's the evenings really early, and there was someone with a mobility device who was in the street because that was the only way to travel because there were three, there were six inches of snow on the sidewalk.

And so being able to really emphasize the importance and the necessity.

Um, and I also want to uh put in a plug for the My CR app.

If you ever see these situations um where you know our neighbors, especially our our business partners, our landowning partners, we want to make sure that everyone who has the resources is making use of that responsibility to make sure that we have the accessibility for the uh for the sidewalks.

So the my CR app allows us to uh point out specific properties and note like this needs uh this needs plowed.

My understanding is that the city works to make sure that it gets done, um, and the the cost share and responsibility is shared.

So I think that's a really good setup as well.

It's pretty late in the season, but I also want to plug the snow buddies program.

It's really important for those property owners who maybe clearing the sidewalk is a challenge.

That's the one piece of this that we don't want to put burden on other people.

The snow buddies program is a great way for people who care a lot or people who want to help out with this accessibility with these things that matter to help plow the snow for our neighbors to share our community responsibility, and that way we can again focus all of our resources on improving the uh maintaining the accessibility that we need and making sure that all of our partners have the resources to be able to uh kind of uphold their part of the responsibility.

So thank you for uh emphasizing this.

Thank you for the extra clarity in the ordinance.

Um and good job.

Thanks, Isaac.

Does anyone else here wish to address council?

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

That brings us to council comments.

Councilman Rolson.

Thank you, Mayor.

Uh Ken, we've I've been talking about this uh because of vaults and some of the buildings that are historic downtown, but also uh over the last several years, uh, we've done walks once a year, the public works has, and we've marked sidewalks and lots of damage, and because of the SMID connection when they did all the brick work and stuff.

So are you saying now that all sidewalk repairs are property owner responsibility or what belongs with the city?

Because the city has been down in different times repairing downtown sidewalks, curbs, brick, you know, because that is an issue downtown that we have right now.

Right.

This is uh the so closely related to this code or the current MOUs that were prepared with the with SMID groups, and that puts the sidewalk repair responsibility primarily on the city.

Now that would bring what it's gonna do is it's gonna bring the property owners from downtown into the sidewalk repair program.

So we are gonna be working with them, and they'll be um they can do their own work and be reimbursed up to a certain amount where they could be assessed.

Um we current we had a meeting just last month uh with the downtown group um about the sidewalk repair program coming out.

We got one specifically for downtown targeted next year.

And uh we're gonna be building it in phases to consider all the events and those sorts of things and work with owners one on one on that.

Yeah, and I and I think that's a point of confusion because again, it if you know, having a building in downtown, you know, I want to not have broken sidewalks and things like that, and you maintain it.

We have other property owners that you know just let them go and and everybody's a fine line.

So I think by bringing all the property owners together and developing a partnership to accomplish that, we'll get it done just like we're doing on the vaults and everything.

And so I I just that was the point of, you know, it's always thought the city had to take care of those downtown walks, which you said is in an MOU.

And so uh, but also there's certain things that need to be maintained, because I've seen some property owners go out and try to patch their sidewalk with temporary patches that are already, you know, just peel up and they're very dangerous.

And so we need to have some control over what happens because of safety issue.

So and so that would go through uh our standard building permit process so we know when somebody's out there correct doing things.

Okay, thank you.

Councilmember Van Orney.

Yeah, thanks, Mayor.

Um, you know, Isaac uh brought up a really good point earlier.

Um it's pretty rare to have anybody thank us for asking them to do their share and and plow the sidewalks uh or shovel them.

But I appreciate there seems to be a contest on my block of who's gonna do the most houses because I think a few of us just called it quits and got an electric uh um uh snow remover.

That being said, uh I do have somebody on my street who uh is dependent on some accessibility needs, and um if he wasn't able to get his chair up and down the block, um, you know, he he can't go and get groceries, which he appreciates doing.

Um, and so again, just another opportunity since we've got students here.

Um, you know, I'm sure you have uh service hours and and really anybody uh middle school and up is pretty able-bodied to be able to help with this, and it's a great opportunity.

There's there's plenty of schools, uh, college community is really big on getting cords, for example.

Um, so if you're doing those service hours, you don't need to be a scout of any kind, um, but it's a really important opportunity to one get to know your neighbors, but also um, you know, there's never uh a deadline passed um in terms of we'll always take more snow buddies.

I saw a lot of people on the chats this weekend saying, can anybody help me, right?

Uh if you know that there's somebody who works late shifts right in the medical community, um, also public works.

There's people who are out, you know, plowing our streets, so theirs might not be there.

So if you know somebody who's got small kids or maybe has an injury or or just has a lot going on, every little bit helps uh in in us looking out for one another and building that community.

And so just really encourage all of you also to talk with your own families and see if there's something or somebody in your community as well that you might be able to assist with.

So thanks.

Thank you, Councilmember Pope.

Thank you, thank you, Mayor.

Um, one of the things, Ken, that I've come across as um, since we're talking about sidewalks and snow removal, um, is that when the plows after a snow event like we've had, um, they go around a corner and at an intersection where the sidewalk comes into the street.

And I I walk in the winter when I can.

And those those areas, whose responsibility is it?

Is it the corner?

Is it the land owner of that corner to go out and clear where the plow has come through and created basically uh a dam where you can't get across the sidewalk because the snow is so piled up?

And I'm I've slept on them.

I have friends who have slept on them.

I've seen people talk about not being able to navigate.

If you have mobility issues, you're not gonna be able to get through that that dam of snow.

So whose responsibility is that for clearing that um off the sidewalk in that intersection or at that intersection?

I'm I'm gonna try to speak for operations on this one.

Uh many times it's gonna be a property owner's responsibility, but I believe that there are cases where we have recurring issues where we have sidewalks that are really close to the road and things where they tend to get piled up more often than others, and where I believe operations will go out and help get those cleared off.

Thank you.

I see that as a as a continuing issue, especially when we have as much snow as we've had.

So I'd like to see if we could follow up on that and get some kind of uh answer on that.

Thank you.

Yeah, and director fall has answered some questions on that too, so maybe we can connect with her after for clarification.

Does anyone else on council?

Councilmember Meyer.

Thank you, Mayor.

Uh, quick question Will the ordinance address whether the filling of the vault needs to be uh concrete or cement, or can it be stone and then therefore porous?

I think there's some requirements if it's in a flood control zone.

So I'd be curious if if that will be addressed in the ordinance.

The or the code isn't going to go into like the design standard part of that.

That would be more within the design standards, but we anticipate more often than not it's going to be granular material in that rather than fill it with concrete.

Thank you.

All right.

There's no further questions.

The approval of this ordinance on its first reading has been moved by council member Scott Olsen, seconded by councilmember Todd.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And the motion carries.

Thank you, Council.

Item number two is a public hearing to consider the proposed amendment uh number one to the urban renewal plan for the big cedar east number one urban renewal area, formerly known as Big Cedar East along 76th Avenue Southwest.

Scott Mather is here.

Scott, I'll recognize you.

Thank you, Mayor.

Council.

Uh Scott Mather with the city manager's office.

I'd like to request to combine items two through five as they are related.

That's absolutely thank you.

Thank you.

So a little bit of background here on November 4th, uh, we had resolutions initiating amendment number one to the big cedar east number one and establishing uh big cedar east number two through four and uh associated TIFF districts.

Just to clarify, a portion of the land in the existing big cedar east number one is being removed, which will create big cedar east two through four.

Uh City Planning Commission uh uh was held on November 6th regarding Big Cedar East number two through four with no objections.

Uh consultation with uh taxing entities occurred on November 17th with no comments or objections.

So today we're here to hold the public hearing uh and consider resolutions to approve the urban renewal plans and the first TIFF ordinance readings.

So just to clarify the purpose of these additional uh urban renewal areas, uh the development agreement that we have with QTS LLC requires the city to provide 20 annual payments per project phase.

So creating four separate east urban renewal areas will ensure that the city meets the development agreement requirements uh in the event that the project phases are completed in separate years.

So here's a map showing how it currently sits with Big Cedar East number one.

And this once amended would uh this would be the amended URA for big cedar east number one, and then two, three, and four, and I will say two, three, and four uh match the final plat for each of those parcels.

So, in terms of uh recommendations, agenda item two looking to approve the amendment number one to the big cedar east URA and the related TIFF ordinance readings, and then items three through five would be to um authorize the establishment of big cedar east number two, three, and four and their related TIFF ordinances.

With that, I'll return it back to you, Mayor.

Any questions?

Thank you, Scott.

This is the time and a place for a 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.

All right.

Seeing no further questions, the adoption of this resolution has been moved by Todd, seconded by Van Orney.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And item number two carries.

Um let's moving on to item number three.

This is the public hearing on the urban renewal plan for proposed big cedar east number two.

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

Does anyone wish to address council?

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

Council.

Councilmember Olson.

Oh, sorry.

I don't want to miss that.

Yeah.

Oh, this one.

I got it.

Thank you.

Okay.

Uh before we vote on that first ordinance, um, we'll move on to the voting on the first reading, which is the ordinance related to the collection of tax increments for big Cedar East One.

Thank you, Council.

If there are no questions on this, the approval of this ordinance will be moved by Todd, seconded by Van Orney.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Thank you, council.

Uh, those opposed say no.

All right, we'll move on.

Same with number three.

So this is the public hearing for Big Cedar East number two.

Anyone wish to address council?

All right.

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

Council.

All right.

If there's no further questions on that, the adoption of that resolution has been moved by Van Orney, seconded by Poe.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And the motion carries before we vote on the ordinance.

Does council have any comments?

All right.

Seeing no further questions, the approval of the ordinance on its first reading has been moved by Poe, seconded by Overland.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And that motion carries.

Um item number four is the public hearing to consider the urban renewal plan for proposed big cedar east number three urban renewal area.

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

Does anyone wish to address council?

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

Council.

All right.

Seeing none, uh, the adoption of this resolution has been moved by Overland, seconded by Councilmember Tyler Olson.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries before we vote on the ordinance.

Does anyone here on council have any comments, questions?

All right, seeing none, the approval of this ordinance on its first reading has been moved by council member Tyler Olson, seconded by Hager.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

And now item number five is a public hearing to consider the urban renewal plan for proposed big cedar east number four.

This is a time and a place for public hearing on that.

Does anyone wish to address council?

Let the record show.

Public hearing has been held with no objections for the record.

Council.

Seeing none, the adoption of this resolution has been moved by Hager, seconded by Meyer.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

And before we vote on the ordinance, does council have any comments?

All right.

If there are no further questions, the approval of this first reading has been moved by Meyer, seconded by Councilmember Scott Olson.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

Thank you, Council.

Now on to item number six, which is a public hearing to consider amended and restated development agreement with QTS Cedar Rapids 1 LLC related to property owners for the data set or campus on 76th Avenue Southwest.

Scott, I'll recognize you again.

Thank you.

So uh as stated, this is regarding the amended and restated development agreements.

Uh the minimum investment for this project has not changed.

Uh it still remains at 750 million.

The anticipated total investment uh is 1.75 billion.

Again, we believe that'll be more than that.

Uh the the project uh involves the construction of a data center campus with up to seven phases.

Prior, it stated it was two or more phases, so this clarifies it can be up to seven.

Uh minimum of 300,000 square foot data center per project phase.

That remains the same with the 250 million dollar investment per phase.

The major change and reason for the amended and restated agreement uh as is that it um adds related property owners as parties to the agreement, in addition to QTS Cedar Rapids 1 LLC, and that's really due to QTS's organizational structure.

So each building will have its own property owner, and so as such, they needed to be added to the agreement.

Uh the employment, the minimum of 15 jobs per phase, uh which all are at or above the high quality jobs threshold.

And just a reminder that conservatively estimating 1200 jobs, uh, construction jobs created as a result of this project.

So the financial incentives uh continue to be a 20 or 70 percent rebate per project phase.

We have increased to increase the estimate, the projected estimate of 2 billion in total property taxes over those uh the applicable rebate periods with a maximum of 1 billion rebated back to the company.

This really has to do with just knowing more information about the size of these buildings and the number of buildings, and so we increased our projection there.

Uh the 20 or 75 percent economic development rebate of franchise fees collected by the city uh continues the same as before, as does the community betterment payment, uh community betterment fund, which calls for the community to provide annual betterment payments to the city uh to increase economic development activities, growth of amenities and infrastructure.

Uh continues to be 300,000 per project phase up to 420 years, a maximum of six million per phase and a total of 18 million.

Just a map showing the project location along 76th Avenue.

And staff recommends approval of the amended and restated development agreement with QTS and related property owners for the construction of the new data center campus.

With that, I'll return it back to you, Mayor, for any questions.

Thanks, Scott.

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

Does anyone wish to address council?

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

Council.

All right, seeing none, the adoption of this resolution has been moved by council member Scott Olson, seconded by Todd.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And the motion carries.

Thank you.

Item number seven is a public hearing to consider it the vacation of a.04 acre permanent water main easement within the A Avenue Northwest right of way.

Rob Davis is here.

Rob will recognize you.

Good afternoon, Mayor City Council Rob Davis with Public Works Department.

Your Honor, if I may combine a presentation for items seven, eight, and nine, please.

Sure, thank you.

These are this is all one project uh to relocate a 36-inch water main.

This serves a major portion of the southwest side.

Uh it's one water main that was relocated for the uh flood control system.

It uh previously was on the south and east side of the interstate here.

Uh this map shows uh item seven, 0.04 acre, uh 0.01 acre for item eight and about 0.19 acre for item nine, but it's all one water main.

That water main has since been relocated out of the easement and into the north and west side uh of interstate theoretically where a new easement exists.

With that, we no longer need the existing easements and uh would uh uh recommend they be vacated.

All right, thank you so much, Rob.

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

Does anyone wish to address council?

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

Council.

All right.

Oh, council member.

Thank you, Mayor.

I need to recuse myself from considerations, consideration of agenda items seven, eight, and nine.

Thanks.

Thank you, Councilmember Olson.

Any and council have comments, questions.

All right, so if there are no further questions, the adoption of this resolution has been moved by Todd, seconded by Van Orney.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And that motion carries.

Um for item number eight.

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

Does anyone wish to address council?

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

Council.

Seeing none, uh, the adoption of this resolution has been moved by Van Orney, seconded by Poe.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And the motion carries now for item number nine.

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

Does anyone wish to address council?

All right.

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

Council.

All right, if there's nothing further, the adoption of this resolution has been moved by Poe, seconded by Overland.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

Thank you.

Item number 10 is a public hearing to consider the proposed plans, specifications, form of contract, and estimated cost for the Ellis Road Northwest at Ross and Lane Sanitary Sewer Improvements Project with an estimated cost of $750,000.

Ben Moral is here.

Ben, I'll recognize you.

Thank you, Mayor.

Ben Warrell, Public Works Department.

This project will replace and line damage sanitary sewer in the area of Ellis Road and Ross and Lane.

The damages caused by a combination of general aging, but also some sulfide discharge from the city of Paylo.

They have since gotten that under control.

Um project also includes extension of eight-inch sanitary sewer across LS Road for future development.

We're going to do that with trenchless construction methods, so the road will stay open.

And the city of Paylo also requested that this project include a flow metering manhole as well.

And all of this is going to be a cost share with City of Paylo in accordance with the previous 2080 agreement.

Engineers' opinion of probable cost is $750,000.

Bid letting is scheduled for December 10th.

Constructions expected February through May with minimal traffic impacts.

Public works department recommends approval of the resolution.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ben.

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

Does anyone wish to address council?

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

Council.

All right, seeing nothing further, the adoption of this resolution has been moved by Overland, seconded by Councilmember Tyler Olson.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And the motion carries.

Here in the city of Seed Rapids, we have two public comment periods.

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

See if we have any speakers signed up.

We do.

A second public input period will come at the end of the meeting.

Thank you.

For residents and business owners to speak on issues that are germane to the city but not necessarily on the agenda today.

Council members and city staff make themselves available by phone or email, but at this time during public comment, we are here to listen.

And please remember all the matters I addressed prior to the first public hearing today apply to the public comment periods too.

I remain at the lectern.

If you have documents, give them the officer.

Comments are limited to five minutes.

Yellow light, one minute, red light, take your seat.

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

And our uh speaker, our first speaker is Jeff Nemeyer here to speak on item number 30.

Mayor and City Council members, thank you for your time.

Uh this morning I received an email from the city explaining why my property at 5051 Williams Boulevard was placed inside the tractor supply urban renewal area.

The explanation was that my parcel was included because of the uncertainty around funding for improvements of the right-of-way on my property.

I appreciate the communications, but the explanation does not match the city's actions.

Long before the city even acknowledged the issues surrounding my right-of-way.

So transparency is not a courtesy, it is the responsibility of government.

The city says the URA is to fund improvements on my property, but all planning has been done for surrounding developers.

The Hall and Hall Engineering Traffic Study was prepared by Greenacre Groves first edition, south of me, and now to the north, the tractor supply URA includes commercial zone lots, a frontage road system, and new peak hour traffic.

Yet both developments to the north and south of me rely on Williams Boulevard access points to carry significant traffic.

That access is treated as if the city owns it already.

This is another example of the city planning traffic and infrastructure around a property it does not own, while offering incentives to the private developers who benefit from it.

Development planning should not come before resolving negotiations with the property owner.

The city has moved ahead with zoning actions, engineering assumptions, traffic modeling, and urban renewal financing, all based on my right-of-way.

While negotiations with me remain unresolved.

I have asked, you know, how can the city justify building a traffic network and urban renewal area around my driveway before it is before whether it has legal access to that driveway.

This is backwards planning and creates unnecessary conflict.

Thousands of new daily trips from both developments depend on access to Williams Boulevard.

My property is that gateway.

It will carry significant peak hour flows of traffic.

Yet I wasn't consulted.

I've not been offered any incentives.

The city cannot keep expanding and planning incentives around my parcel while leaving the core property rights issue unresolved.

My request to the city council, simple.

I respectfully ask that the council shelve the second and third readings of the tractor supply urban renewal area until negotiations of the right-of-way and my property have been completed.

This isn't an obstruction.

Those are a reasonable step and a fair one.

If the city intends to act in good faith, it should not move forward while the urban renewal area that depends on my property, while that very property is the subject of active negotiations and potential eminent domain.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And that is going to close out our first public comment period.

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

No changes, Your Honor.

Do any council members need to recuse themselves from any of the items?

All right.

That'll bring us for a motion to approve the agenda.

The approval of the agenda has been moved by councilmember Tyler Olson, seconded by Hager.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And the motion carries.

That brings us to the consent agenda.

The approval of the consent agenda has been moved by Hager, seconded by Meyer.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

Thank you, Council.

Moving on to our regular agenda.

For item number 27, which is a report on bids for the FY 2026 tree and vegetation removal project with an estimated cost of 120,000.

Ben Warrell is here.

Ben, I'll recognize you.

Thank you.

This project is an annual project that the city does to remove trees ahead of various projects around town.

We do this because the trees must be cut by March 31st in order to comply with U.S.

fish and wildlife regulations protection of the northern long-eared bat, which has a potential habitat range that includes Iowa.

And in order to avoid potentially disturbing summer roosting habitat, uh those trees get cut in the winter.

Project includes reseeding of any disturbed areas.

There's seven of them.

Low bidder was Boomerang Corporation.

Public Works Department recommends approval of the resolution.

Thank you.

Thanks, Ben.

Uh council, any questions.

All right.

Seeing no further questions, the adoption of the resolution has been moved by Meyer, seconded by Todd.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And the motion carries.

28 is a report on bids for third street southeast water main extension project with an estimated cost of 310,000 dollars.

Brandon Jennings is here.

Brandon, I'll recognize you.

Thank you, Mayor.

Brandon Jennings with the Utilities Department.

This project will extend approximately 1,200 linear feet of new water main to the horizontal collector wall number seven to provide fire protection to the site, which is a fire code requirement to obtain the building occupancy permit.

The engineer's opinion of probable construction cost was $310,000.

Eleven bids were received for this project on November 19th.

The bids ranged from 173,775 and 93 cents to 310,822 and 15 cents.

Construction will be completed in the spring of 2026.

The utilities department recommends awarding the contract for this project.

Oh, and I should have said BG Brecki was the low bidder for this project.

The utilities department recommends awarding the contract with that.

I'll turn it back to you, Mayor.

All right.

Thanks so much.

Brandon Council, any questions?

Councilmember Meyer.

Thank you, Mayor.

Uh Brandon, can you just provide some insight as to why the bids were so much slower than the engineer's estimate?

Sure.

We think that there could be a number of factors.

One is that this was a pretty competitive bid.

We received 11 bids, so it indicates that you know work might be slow for a number of different contractors in the area, might have pushed bids down a little bit.

The other is that this allows for some winter work, um, which is generally when construction is a little bit slower.

So you get better pricing that way.

Um, and it's a fairly straightforward project.

It's installing water main through what what is effectively an open field.

So not a lot of complication or risk as well.

So all of those factors likely push the bids down a little bit lower than what the estimate was.

Thanks, Brandon.

Anyone else?

All right, if there's no further questions, the adoption of this resolution has been moved by Van Orney, seconded by Poe.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And this motion carries.

Now to item um now the ordinances rather.

We have a second and third readings.

Item number 29 is an ordinance vacating Stone Glen Drive Southwest right of way as requested by Midwest Development Co.

The approval of this ordinance on its second reading has been moved by uh councilmember overland, seconded by councilmember Tyler Olson.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye, aye.

Those opposed say no.

Thank you, Council.

Councilmember Poe.

Thank you, Mayor.

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

Thank you.

Um thank you, Councilmember Poe.

Before we vote on the resolution, does anyone have any questions or comments?

All right, if there's nothing further, the adoption of this resolution 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 30 is the ordinance relating to the collection of tax increments within the tractor supply urban renewal area along Williams Boulevard Southwest.

Yes.

Oh again.

Oh, the third, I forgot you.

Third reading.

Okay, thank you.

Okay, we've we've already done okay.

Um, after item number 29, we did the resolution.

Your honor, you just have to finish the vote for the third reading.

Yeah.

So Poe.

Oh, Councilmember Poe.

Yeah.

Okay.

Yeah.

You did that already?

I did that.

Okay.

So um okay.

Uh all in favor, say aye.

Aye.

Opposed, opposed, say no.

Okay, thank you.

Moving on to 30 again.

Um questions on item number 30.

This is the ordinance relating to tax increments.

Mayor, I would I'd like to make a motion or a request that uh we just do the second reading and and give two more weeks for negotiations to be completed and uh give some time to resolve the issues.

And if they can't, then we look at the ordinance again.

Absolutely.

So two weeks.

Okay, so I make that a motion on the paper.

Okay, do I have a second?

To do that.

Okay, second.

Thanks, Councilmember Todd.

Uh, then the approval of this ordinance on its second reading has been moved by councilmember Olsen, seconded by councilmember Todd.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye.

Those opposed say no.

And the motion carries.

Thank you, Council.

And that will close out our formal business today and bring us to our final public input period.

Do we have anyone signed up?

We do not today.

Um, so that will close out our second public input period.

City Manager Pomrance, do you have any communications today?

One one communication mayor.

I just wanted to acknowledge the really the great work of our city team in uh the snow removal effort.

And I I know a number of you have already commented as well.

Uh but I I know all of us are really proud of the work that the city team did.

They include a number of departments, certainly public works is a big huge part of that, but also parks and rec and utilities.

And uh I think uh we showed our ability to remove snow quickly, and uh we're ready for the next storm when that when that comes.

But thank you for your support, Mayor and Council members, and we we appreciate uh the resources that are provided by the mayor and city council during our budget process that enables us to be as effective as possible.

Thank you.

Thank you so much, and we're always mindful that we see our citizens as customers.

So um appreciate um the customer service from all of our teams this weekend.

And if there's no more further business before council, council member Tyler Olson moves to adjourn, seconded by councilmember overland.

All those in favor say aye.

Aye aye, those opposed say no.

And the motion carries we are adjourned.