Mason City City Council Regular Meeting – April 18, 2023
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Mason City City Council Regular Meeting – April 18, 2023
This regular meeting of the Mason City City Council occurred on April 18, 2023, at 7:00 PM at the Mason City Public Library. The council approved the agenda, heard a proclamation for Arbor Day, received the FY22 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR), heard the City Administrator's monthly report, and acted on several agenda items including three related to trail and bridge projects. The council voted on consent agenda items, with items 11, 12, and 13 considered separately due to their significance. All votes were unanimous among the four present council members (Councilors Lee and Toma were absent).
Consent Calendar
- Minutes of the April 4, 2023, regular meeting.
- Claims dated April 6 and 13, 2022.
- Permits.
- March 2023 financial report.
- Appointment of Marcy Troendle as Administrative Specialist (Grade G, Step 1, $20.15/hour).
- Appointment of Eli McGallian as Golf Grounds Superintendent (Grade I, Step 4, $26.89/hour).
- Resolution approving contract and bond for the “2023 Pavement Marking Program” (Project No. 23-1003).
- Resolution awarding contract for a new City Hall Electronic Records Management System to OPG-3 of Bloomington, MN.
- Resolution to correct Resolution No. 23-31 (FY24 Maximum Property Tax Dollars).
- Resolution awarding contract for legal services to Lynch Dallas, P.C.
- The consent agenda (items 4-10 and 14-16) was approved by a roll call vote of 4 yeas (Councilors Yesky, Massan, Adams, Simmons). Items 11, 12, and 13 were removed for separate consideration.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Public Forum: No members of the public sought to comment on any agenda item. The public hearing on the street panel and curb replacement program also had no public comments.
Discussion Items
- Arbor Day Proclamation: Mayor Shickle read a proclamation declaring Friday, April 28, 2023, as Arbor Day in Mason City. Mason City has been recognized as a Tree City USA for 18 consecutive years. The proclamation also invited the community to a groundbreaking celebration for the new High Line Trail on Thursday, April 20, 2023, at 10:00 AM on the abandoned UP Railroad Bridge over State Street. Operations Manager Bill Stangler accepted the proclamation on behalf of the city.
- FY22 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) Presentation: Brad Faldesak of Abadou CPAs presented the audit results. The city received an unmodified (clean) opinion on its financial statements. Two audit findings were noted: material audit adjustments and prior period adjustments, and an internal control issue with bank reconciliations (related to investments not being tracked). Recommendations included documenting payroll approval and entering prior audit adjustments into the accounting system. General fund revenues were $10 million under budget, expenditures $13 million under budget (largely due to the airport project), with a fund balance increase of $618,000 to $12,629,000. Several funds showed deficits: Downtown Reinvestment Fund, South Side Gateway Fund, GEO Capital Projects Fund, and LOST Capital Projects Fund. Total outstanding non-enterprise bonds were $45 million ($28 million TIF-backed, $17 million GO). Enterprise funds (water, sewer, ambulance, cemetery, storm sewer, solid waste, golf course, parking lots, RC Arena) were generally stable. The city changed auditors because the prior firm could not continue due to staffing. Council members asked about the adjustments and the bank reconciliation issue; staff noted the finance department had significant turnover during the period.
- City Administrator's Monthly Report: Aaron Burnett reported strong development activity, with several proposals and site visits at the industrial park and certified sites. He noted spring openings of parks, campground, golf course, and rec programs. Construction season will be busy, with major projects on 12th Street (Winnipeg Avenue project and others) and panel replacements. Bid pressure is increasing costs, as seen with the cemetery building project rebid. The Mason City Arena announced country singer Justin Moore for June 17, 2023. In response to a question, Burnett confirmed that a permanent fenced soccer field has been installed at Lester Middlegan Park to accommodate 88 youth teams.
- Item 11 – Scrip Road Conversion: Resolution authorizing notice to bidders for the conversion of Scrip Road (Birch Drive) into a multi-use trail with two trailheads. The project is part of the Destination Iowa Bike North Iowa project, replacing a deteriorating road that was often used as a shortcut at high speeds. Councilor Massan confirmed that only people wanting to shortcut opposed it. Approved unanimously by roll call (Adams, Yesky, Simmons, Absent: not recorded but all present voted yes).
- Item 12 – Illinois Bridge Improvement Project: Resolution authorizing notice to bidders for widening the narrow sidewalk/bikeway across the Illinois Bridge to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists, especially to and from school. This is also part of the Destination Iowa project. Approved unanimously (Massan, Simmons, Yasheski, Adams).
- Item 13 – General Obligation Local Option Sales Tax Bonds (not to exceed $5,000,000): Resolution fixing a public hearing date of May 2, 2023, to issue bonds for capital improvement projects including the Destination Iowa project. Finance director Brent explained a restructuring from originally planning a LOST revenue bond (which counts against the debt limit, contrary to prior understanding) to a GO bond backed by LOST, shortening the term from 15 to 11 years, and also utilizing a dormant pre-95 TIF (Forest Park) for part of the debt service. The total debt limit would reach a high of 68% but drop below 50% within eight years. No new taxes are needed; repayment comes from LOST and TIF funds. Councilor Massan asked why bonds are used instead of cash; Burnett explained the ability to plan for the future and spread costs over generations. Approved unanimously (Adams, Massan, Simmons, Yesky).
- Item 17 – 2023 Street Panel and Curb Replacement Program (Project No. 23-1002): Public hearing on plans, specifications, contract, and cost estimate ($321,000, funded by road use tax). After no public comments, the council adopted the plans (Resolution A), accepted the bid tabulation (Resolution B), and awarded the contract to Mid-Continent Contracting, Inc. (Resolution C). Approved unanimously (Yesky, Simmons, Massan, Adams).
Key Outcomes
- Consent Agenda: Approved as presented (items 4-10, 14-16).
- Item 11: Approved to move forward with Scrip Road conversion.
- Item 12: Approved for Illinois Bridge improvement design and bidding.
- Item 13: Approved to set a May 2, 2023, public hearing for up to $5,000,000 in GO LOST bonds.
- Item 17: Approved all three resolutions for the street panel and curb replacement program.
- All votes were unanimous among the four council members present (Yesky, Massan, Adams, Simmons; Lee and Toma absent).
- Next steps: High Line Trail groundbreaking on April 20; Arbor Day on April 28; public hearing on bonds on May 2.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening and welcome to the regular meeting of the Mason City City Council. This is the meeting for April uh 18, 2023. I'm Mayor Bill Shickle. Welcome. We're delighted to have you with us this evening. The first item of business is the roll call. Diana, would you call the roll? Yes, hemonds. Present. Massan. Here. Adams. Present. Council members Lee and Toma are absent. Let the record reflect that we do have a quorum present. Next item of business is the adoption of the agenda. Is there a motion to adopt the agenda? Second. We have a motion and a second discussion. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed, same sign. The motion carries. The agenda is adopted. Next we have two items of special business. First, a proclamation for Arbor Day. And I'd like to ask our great operations and maintenance manager, Bill Stangler, to uh please step forward and do the honors in accepting this uh proclamation. Bill, it's an honor to present this proclamation uh declaring Arbor Day to you tonight, and I'll go ahead and read it at this time. Whereas Mason City has been honored for 18 uh consecutive years by the National Arbor Day Foundation with the prestigious Tree City USA Award. And whereas the honor is awarded only to cities that place a priority on maintaining increase and increasing the life-giving benefits of our precious trees, and whereas the beautiful canopy of trees lining our streets, parks, and recreation trails provide shade, shelter, and inspiration for all of us. And whereas even tonight, the city council will be asked to take additional steps toward improving and expanding our outdoor recreation by linking more of our tree-shaded trails and parks in Mason City. And whereas studies show that this kind of improvement contributes to a reduction in crime, decrease in health care cost, and increased economic vitality. And whereas leading up to Labor Day, the community is invited to a groundbreaking celebration for the new High Line Trail in Mason City through the heart of downtown this Thursday, 10 a.m. on the abandoned UP Railroad Bridge over State Street. Now therefore, I Bill Schickle, Mayor of Mason City, do hereby proclaim Friday, April 28th, as Arbor Day in Mason City. Invite all citizens to celebrate by supporting efforts to protect our trees, parks, and trails, and by joining in the groundbreaking celebration on Thursday. And Bill, especially to you and your crew, thank you for all your good work in this area. Let's show our appreciation. Next, we have a special presentation on our FY22 annual comprehensive financial report, and I'd like to invite Brad Faldesak from Abadou certified public accountants to be with us this evening, and he has the report. Brad, good evening. Welcome. We're delighted to have you here. Thank you, Honorable Mayor. Council members. So I think it was a good process. So I'll present these now if you want to. It's on the screen. Perfect. Um we can go to the next slide. So what we're going to go through tonight is the audit results.
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