Council Bluffs City Council Meeting and Study Session - August 10, 2026
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Council Bluffs City Council Meeting and Study Session - August 10, 2026
The Council Bluffs City Council held a study session and regular meeting on August 10, 2026. The study session featured presentations on bond sales, proposed park upgrades, and a building condition assessment. The regular meeting addressed public hearings, resolutions, ordinances, and personnel decisions. Key outcomes included approval of bond sales with favorable rates, endorsement of a park improvement plan contingent on city-owned parking lot, and creation of two new community development positions funded by abolishing the chief of staff position.
Consent Calendar
- Approved routine items including the consent agenda without discussion.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Vince Albertson (1605 High Street) raised safety concerns about speeding, stop sign violations, mini-bikes, and lack of traffic enforcement, especially on Graham and High Street. Also requested weed abatement on city property and expressed concerns about homeless encampments and window tinting. Urged council to restore community safety.
- Dallas Lapsley (3525 9th Avenue) suggested a citywide cleanup day and asked about alleyway maintenance. Also noted issues with dead vehicles on private property and high grass. Council members discussed potential cleanup event and noted existing bulk pickup service.
- Michael Danzisak (2617 Eagle Ridge Drive) and Steve Ship (3604 Eagle Ridge) spoke during the public hearing on the Valley View/Greenview traffic signal, expressing concerns about pedestrian safety, especially right-turning vehicles at that intersection and at Highway 92/Valley View. They requested better signage and longer crossing times. Council noted the feedback and traffic signal project includes an opticon system for fire trucks.
Discussion Items
- Bond Sale Results (Study Session): Suzanne presented the results of $6.9 million in tax-exempt GO bonds (Series 2026A) and $3 million in taxable bonds (Series 2026B). The tax-exempt bonds received 10 bids with a true interest cost (TIC) range of 3.21% to 3.32% (0.11% spread). Winning bidder: Brownstone Investment Group (New York) at 3.2588% TIC. The taxable bonds received 5 bids; winning bidder: Piper Sandler (Chicago). Total savings were significant: underwriter discount reduced from an estimated $10/bond to $1/bond, and the A series par amount was reduced by over $400,000 based on pricing. Rates were slightly higher than last year (3.09% last year vs. ~3.21% this year) due to yield curve normalization. Council later approved both bond sales.
- Park Upgrades at Iowa School for the Deaf (ISD) and Highway 92 (Study Session): Brenda (likely from the county), Chris Ruhack (Pottawatomie Conservation Board), Jeff Franco (Conservation Director), and Chris Caftain (ISD Superintendent) presented a proposal to revitalize a 36-year-old plan for an outdoor classroom and trail access. The key need: the city’s willingness to own and maintain a parking lot at the intersection of 92 and Valley View. The area has become overgrown and is an eyesore. Jeff Franco outlined a sustainable vegetation management plan involving controlled burns. ISD emphasized safety for its residential campus. Iowa West Foundation has supported engineering study funds. Council expressed support; the item was not up for a vote that day but will return for formal action.
- Western Historic Charles Museum Building Condition (Study Session): Brenda and Tim Gallaghan presented a structural engineering study of the building. The building is structurally sound but has significant deferred maintenance: roof failure, vandalism (copper, HVAC), aging mechanical/electrical systems. Cost to restore to original condition estimated at approximately $2 million (some items still in refinement). Demolition cost likely higher. Building has potential for single or multi-tenant use. Council discussed preserving the building if a viable use can be found, noting it is a city asset. No immediate action; continued discussion planned.
- Traffic Signal at Valley View Drive and Greenview Road (Public Hearing/Resolution 26-264): Mark presented plans to install a traffic signal at this intersection, part of a broader traffic study. Project to be bid fall 2026 with construction spring 2027. Includes opticon system for fire station. Council approved.
- Social Media Policy (Resolution 26-275): Jake presented a policy for elected officials distinguishing official accounts, personal accounts, and mixed-use pages. Council had extensive discussion about enforceability and consequences. Motion to postpone to September 14, 2026 carried.
- Personnel – HR Generalist Position (Resolution 26-276): Michelle requested abolishing the payroll manager position and creating an HR generalist position (Grade 20, non-union), resulting in a $60,000 salary savings. Approved.
- Community Development Positions (Resolutions 26-277 and 26-278): Chris requested two new positions: an assistant planner (new, Grade 18) and a Housing and Economic Development (HED) manager (reinstated). Funding would come from abolishing the chief of staff position in the mayor’s office. Council debated whether to approve both or just one. Final decisions: Resolution 26-277 (assistant planner) adopted with a contingent amendment to abolish the chief of staff position at a later meeting. Resolution 26-278 (HED manager) adopted without amendment. Both positions approved; funding shift is budget-neutral.
- Fire Chief Appointment (Resolution 26-273): Mayor announced appointment of Rob Schoning as fire chief. Schoning has been with Council Bluffs Fire since 2002, promoted through ranks. Council confirmed unanimously.
Key Outcomes
- Bond Sales Approved: Resolution 26-266 (Series A) awarded to Brownstone Investment Group of New York at 3.2588% TIC. Resolution 26-267 (Series B) awarded to Piper Sandler & Co. of Chicago. Both resolutions approved as amended with specific awardees.
- Valley View/Greenview Traffic Signal Approved: Resolution 26-264 passed, authorizing plans and specifications for a new traffic signal.
- Vacated Alleys Postponed: Resolution 26-265 (vacation of east-west valley) postponed to September 14, 2026 to allow further public input.
- Property Disposals Approved: Resolutions 26-268 and 26-269 approved conveyance of lots to Midwest Architects & Development and NeighborWorks Home Solutions for housing development in East Manawa Drive Urban Renewal Area.
- Ordinances Passed: Ordinance 6693 (repealing weapons ban) and Ordinance 6694 (amending sewer service charges) both approved on second and third readings.
- Engineering Contracts Approved: Resolutions 26-270 (30th Avenue sewer rehab to Embrusk Group), 26-271 (28th Street storm sewer phase 5 to HGM Associates), and 26-272 (recycling center paving to Bluffs Paving) all passed.
- CDBG Disaster Recovery Contract Extended: Resolution 26-274 extended the contract with IEDA for the East Manawa housing project to December 2027 due to construction delays.
- Social Media Policy Tabled: Resolution 26-275 postponed to September 14, 2026.
- HR Generalist Position Created: Resolution 26-276 passed, abolishing payroll manager and creating HR generalist.
- Community Development Positions Created: Resolution 26-277 (assistant planner) approved contingent on future abolition of chief of staff position. Resolution 26-278 (HED manager) approved.
- Fire Chief Confirmed: Resolution 26-273 confirmed Rob Schoning as fire chief.
Meeting Transcript
For the city of Council Bluffs. I used to be project manager in Council Bluffs years ago, so glad to be back. The bid the results of sale is the document that I'll be reviewing. We took bids at 10 o'clock this morning for $6,900,000 general obligation bonds, which is your CIP series for 2026. Happy to report. And banks receive a discount for being bank qualified in their own investments and things. So these were 10 year bonds paid for by the debt service levy. The true interest cost is sort of that aggregated interest rate that we use to every maturity in that 10-year term gets its own interest rate. So we use a TIC or true interest cost method to tell you sort of the overall interest rate for the bonds. The TIC range from the first place bidder to the 10th place bidder was 3.21% to 3.32%. That is an extremely tight range for 10 different bids to be within 11 basis points or 0.11% of each other. And that just indicates the strong competition to win the city's bonds today. And my staff came to me this morning and said, is this a mistake? They only took a dollar per bond in underwriters discount, which is ridiculously happily ridiculously low. We're very pleased to take their pay them their dollar per bond. We had estimated $10 per bond. So very happy to see that savings today. Out of New York, New York, they were at 3.2588% or just 4.6 basis points over the winning bidder today. Pricing just 0.24% or 24 basis points over triple A. So excellent pricing today for the bonds. And you know, I always want to kind of take a look back at where were we last year? The market over the 20-year term is essentially flat, one basis point down. But what happened is we had a normalization of the yield curve. So years one through 10 were actually higher this year than last year, and years 10 through 20 are actually lower than last year. So we had a kind of a normalization of the yield curve, which means since you're borrowing on the 10 year, actually a little bit higher TIC, unfortunately today. But 3.3.09% last year, just 12 basis points below where we were last year. But still excellent pricing, excellent participation from the market. We were thrilled to receive 10 bids today and an amazing winner with Brownstone Investment Group. Regarding the B, that's the taxable series that the city does each year for taxable projects that don't qualify for federal tax exemption. Just two-year term paying back in the first two years. And these again were rated A2 by Moody's. We received five bids from 39 different banks. There was a large selling group with Baird. They had over, I want to say 34 members in their selling group today. And so it doesn't surprise me to see a little bit wider spread. But Piper Sandler really won the day.10% over the winning bidder. And pricing, when compared to triple AB valve, which is a tax exempt scale, 1.78, but right in line with where we would think where we would think. We were then we were then $20,000 of our estimate for the taxable sale, and we were able to reduce the par amount by over $400,000 based on the pricing today for the A series. percent um 10 basis points are 0.10% over the winning bidder um and pricing when compared to triple AB value which is a tax exempt scale 1.78 um but right in line with where we would think where we would think we were then we were then 2000 of our estimate for the taxable sale and we were able to reduce the par amount by over 400 thousand dollars based on the pricing today for the A series and these are all structured to be paid for by the debt service levy based on the pre-levy that was authorized as part of the budget process earlier this year and I will be uh and so everything has been resized to fit within the tax rates that were already determined in the current tax rate for fiscal 27 and with that I'm happy to answer any questions anyone might have any questions okay okay thank you so much congratulations on a very successful day thank you thank you Danielle okay next up we have um Hawk County Conservation Brenda Chris and Chris and Jeff Franco to talk about proposed park upgrades at Iowa School for the deaf and highway 92. Yes uh thank you for the opportunity um the the team here tonight or today is uh Superintendent Chris Caftain from Iowa School for the Deaf Pottawatomy Conservation Board member Chris Ruhawk and Pottawatomi Conservation Director Jeff Franco we have been working together um on trying to figure out how to make this location shine a little bit more for actually a couple of years at least it's a very important location it's highly visible um it's important for trail access it's a key part of recreation I think on the east side of the city um we've been discussing it for several years because it's a little bit of a challenge to figure out how we can make sure that the security and safety on the ISD campus is intact while we also meet the needs of the public. And so that is what you're gonna hear about. The reason we are here to talk about it is because the success of this project kind of hinges on the city's willingness to own and maintain the parking lot on the east side off of the ISD campus. It's where the parking lot currently is if you went straight ahead on Valley View you'll see a picture of that. We've been talking to Matt Cox and his team about that and now coming to the council so you can understand what it is that we're trying to do and hopefully get the go ahead to continue to work on putting together a plan. So with that I will hand it over to Chris Ruhack well thank you appreciate the opportunity to discuss the the parking lot portion but let me give you a little bit of history on on this project because it has been a project that has been around for 36 years. It started back in 1990 I kind of have a robust slideshow so we're gonna kind of rush along but you'll have the data and information to look at at a later time. But in short I kind of revived this back in 2014 thought it would be a good project for us to work on but it's taken that long to get to the point where you know that area we can kind of get together and and maybe like Brenda said make it a highlight on that side of town. If you've been over in that area people use it daily usually see five to six cars every morning and then throughout the day and then into the evening so we're gonna kind of spruce it up again revive it the the basic portion of it will be the trails and education but as far as the history we all know that that uh we're not going to go back far as as the Native Americans or Lewis and Clark but they certainly were were here but we'll start with the Mormons specifically because that site was you know from uh the Mormons came through uh from NAVO stopped there right before winter had to gonna basically wait to cross river at that time so they there was a a site there and there's there's some history there the the national parks actually has some um signage there um and some other things along that that um focus on that history but um it's gonna move forward here's a little bit talks a little bit about what was started it was supposed to be a nature center um there was a a lot of partners involved as far as in support not necessarily financially but in support um so if if you want to read kind of what what's here um but if you we go forward here we talk about uh I don't know if I can scroll up on that or not but basically tells you you know what was uh meant to for this to start you know public access inclusion um student engagement of course on campus we have schools um we would hope that all the schools when it's finished would be able to use it again we'll talk about that a little bit further here integration uh obviously with on campus with ISD being so close there with uh children with disabilities and and and but for everybody general public and that interaction we want that to happen and then of course with the trail being there health and well-being these are some of the partners that were originally involved um and and so you can see it was significant we have letters of support at that time um and um so the dream was there uh it just didn't we weren't able to uh make it come to fruition but I'd like to do that now and to start it off with And then, of course, with the trail being there, health and well-being. These are some of the partners that were originally involved.
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