OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Mason City City Council Regular Meeting – November 21, 2023

City Council — Tuesday, November 21, 2023
BodyMason City, Iowa
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, November 21, 2023
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 25:07

Transcript — Verbatim
0:54

Welcome to the regular meeting of the Mason City City Council.

0:58

This is the meeting for November 21st of 2023.

1:02

On Mayor Bill Schiffer, we're delighted to have you with us this evening.

1:05

The first order of business is the roll call.

1:07

Diana, would you call the roll?

1:09

Adams.

1:09

Present.

1:10

Massan.

1:11

Here.

1:11

Simmons.

1:12

Present.

1:13

Latham.

1:14

Present.

1:14

Yeski.

1:15

Here.

1:15

Councilmember Lee is absent.

1:17

Let the record reflect that we do have a quorum present.

1:20

Can we welcome aboard Councilman Tim Latham for his first meeting?

1:24

Welcome, Tim.

1:25

We're delighted to have you here.

1:26

Thank you.

1:31

Next item of business is the adoption of the agenda.

1:34

Is there a motion to adopt the agenda?

1:36

So moved.

1:39

Uh further discussion.

1:42

All those in favor signify by saying aye.

1:44

Aye.

1:45

All those opposed, same sign.

1:46

The motion carries.

1:48

Thank you.

1:49

This is your chance.

1:50

This is the public form, your chance to comment on any item on the agenda.

1:54

If there's an agenda item that you would like to comment on, you can step forward and use the podium.

1:59

Or if you're tuned in online tonight, you can use the raised hand feature.

2:03

Do we have any public comment at this time?

2:09

Mayor, no one seeks to be recognized via Zoom.

2:12

Seeing no public comment, we'll move to the regular consent agenda.

2:17

We have the minutes followed by the claims, then followed by the permits.

2:21

Item number four is submission of the fiscal year 2223 tax increment financing report to the Iowa Department of Management.

2:32

It shows uh we're ta using tax increment on about 3.5% of our assessed property value in uh Mason City.

2:40

That's very low.

2:42

Very sustainable.

2:44

Uh item five and six are somewhat related.

2:47

Item number five is approving an urban renewal tax revenue fund for repayment of eligible debt.

2:53

This is for twenty twenty-five.

2:55

This will increase our tax uh increment amount to about five point nine percent of uh assessed value, uh well below comparables uh in that area as well.

3:07

And that's all for economic development purposes.

3:11

Item six is approving an amendment to the expanded Mason City Unified Urban Renewal Area.

3:18

Uh this is the newly annexed area down in South and uh Western uh Mason City.

3:25

Um that will allow us to be able to use that money for economic development, flood control, and some other things uh with that expanded district.

3:35

Item number seven is approving a purchase of a uh dump truck for the operations and maintenance division.

3:42

And item number eight, uh resolution A B and C.

3:47

Uh these all have to do with uh leasing vehicles from Pritchard Fleet leasing.

3:53

This is for three pickups, uh five-year lease agreement.

3:56

We have a lease agreement with enterprise fleets that's been working out well.

4:00

We have about 20 vehicles under that agreement, but we've been able to get some vehicles for the engineering department, the water supply um division, and that's why we have that item on the agenda.

4:10

And item number nine is a resolution of support of uh Main Street uh program and authorizing the um uh that agreement.

4:20

That's a four-year agreement, the current agreement with uh Main Street and the and Iowa expires on December 31st.

4:27

Members, that's the items on the consent agenda.

4:29

Any that you'd like to have on separately tonight.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Cannabis Regulation█████████████████████████████████████████████47%
Economic Development████████████████████████25%
Procedural█████████████████18%
Public Safety██████████10%
Summary of Proceedings

Mason City City Council Regular Meeting

The Mason City City Council held its regular meeting on November 21, 2023, at 7:00 p.m. in the Mason City Public Library, presided over by Mayor Bill Schiffer with all council members present except Councilmember Lee. The council unanimously approved the consent agenda, conducted a public hearing for the Bike Park and Trails project, approved a development agreement with the North Iowa Corridor Economic Development Corporation, passed the second reading of an annexation ordinance, and voted to deny a retail alcohol and tobacco license for Northside Liquor.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the minutes of the regular meeting of November 7, 2022.
  • Approved claims dated November 9 and November 16, 2023.
  • Approved permits.
  • Approved submission of the Fiscal Year 2022-2023 State TIF Report to the Iowa Department of Management. The report showed that tax increment financing (TIF) is currently used on about 3.5% of the city's assessed property value, described as "very low" and "very sustainable."
  • Approved a resolution obligating and appropriating Urban Renewal Tax Revenue Funds for repayment of eligible debts for Fiscal Year 2025, which will increase TIF usage to approximately 5.9% of assessed value, still below comparable communities.
  • Approved a resolution to declare necessity and establish an Urban Renewal Area and amend the Expanded Mason City Unified Urban Renewal Plan to include newly annexed areas in south and west Mason City, allowing TIF funds to be used for economic development and flood control.
  • Approved the purchase of one dump body and installation from Highway Truck Equipment of Fort Dodge, Iowa for the Operations and Maintenance Division.
  • Approved three lease resolutions (Lease No. 003-0694524-101, -102, -103) each not to exceed $36,777, with Huntington National Bank for three pickup trucks via Pritchard Fleet Leasing (5-year lease). These vehicles are for the Engineering and Water Supply divisions.
  • Approved a resolution of support and financial commitment for the Main Street Mason City program, authorizing execution of a 4-year Main Street Iowa Program Agreement (current agreement expires December 31, 2023).

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments were offered in person or via Zoom.

Discussion Items

  • Public Hearing – Bike Park and Trails Bid Package 1: Council held a public hearing on a resolution approving plans and specifications for Bid Package 1 of the "28550 Bike Park and Trails" project. The location of Rock Solid Trail Contracting, LLC was corrected from Denver, Colorado to Copper Harbor, Michigan. No public comments were received. The council unanimously approved the resolution, including the bid tabulation and award of contract to Rock Solid Trail Contracting.
  • Development Agreement with North Iowa Corridor Economic Development Corporation (Item 11): The council discussed a resolution to approve a 5-year development agreement. The agreement uses TIF revenue (maximum $1,000,000 over five years, not to exceed $220,000 in any single year) to fund the North Iowa Corridor, replacing hotel/motel tax funding. This frees up hotel/motel tax (historically $700,000–$800,000 annually) for other initiatives such as the downtown fire safety grant program and the DORAL (Downtown Revitalization Loan) program, which had been funded from downtown TIF but will shift to hotel/motel tax due to increasing debt payments on the 2019 bonds. The resolution was approved unanimously.
  • Second Reading of Annexation Ordinance (Item 12): The council approved the second and final reading of an ordinance updating the corporate limits to include a voluntary annexation in southwest Mason City. All property owners consented. The ordinance passed unanimously.
  • Denial of Class E Retail Alcohol License and Tobacco License for Northside Liquor (Item 13): The council considered a resolution to deny a new alcohol and tobacco license for Northside Liquor (1303 North Federal Avenue). Police Chief detailed 23 complaints since March 2021 (including sales to minors, bootlegging, and multiple ABD violations). The current license expires in April 2024; the denial applies to the new license application (effective December 1, 2023). The applicant (Mr. Akbar) could appeal to an administrative law judge. Council discussed the history of violations, the difficulty of local control over liquor licenses, and potential density ordinances. The chief stated his goal is to have the state ban licenses at that location for 12–36 months. The resolution to deny was approved unanimously.

Key Outcomes

  • All consent agenda items were approved unanimously on a single roll-call vote.
  • The Bike Park and Trails public hearing and contract award were approved unanimously.
  • The Development Agreement with North Iowa Corridor Economic Development Corporation was approved unanimously.
  • The annexation ordinance (second reading) was approved unanimously.
  • The denial of the alcohol and tobacco license for Northside Liquor was approved unanimously.
  • No items were pulled from the consent agenda for separate discussion.

Meeting Transcript

Welcome to the regular meeting of the Mason City City Council. This is the meeting for November 21st of 2023. On Mayor Bill Schiffer, we're delighted to have you with us this evening. The first order of business is the roll call. Diana, would you call the roll? Adams. Present. Massan. Here. Simmons. Present. Latham. Present. Yeski. Here. Councilmember Lee is absent. Let the record reflect that we do have a quorum present. Can we welcome aboard Councilman Tim Latham for his first meeting? Welcome, Tim. We're delighted to have you here. Thank you. Next item of business is the adoption of the agenda. Is there a motion to adopt the agenda? So moved. Uh further discussion. All those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed, same sign. The motion carries. Thank you. This is your chance. This is the public form, your chance to comment on any item on the agenda. If there's an agenda item that you would like to comment on, you can step forward and use the podium. Or if you're tuned in online tonight, you can use the raised hand feature. Do we have any public comment at this time? Mayor, no one seeks to be recognized via Zoom. Seeing no public comment, we'll move to the regular consent agenda. We have the minutes followed by the claims, then followed by the permits. Item number four is submission of the fiscal year 2223 tax increment financing report to the Iowa Department of Management. It shows uh we're ta using tax increment on about 3.5% of our assessed property value in uh Mason City. That's very low. Very sustainable. Uh item five and six are somewhat related. Item number five is approving an urban renewal tax revenue fund for repayment of eligible debt. This is for twenty twenty-five. This will increase our tax uh increment amount to about five point nine percent of uh assessed value, uh well below comparables uh in that area as well. And that's all for economic development purposes. Item six is approving an amendment to the expanded Mason City Unified Urban Renewal Area. Uh this is the newly annexed area down in South and uh Western uh Mason City. Um that will allow us to be able to use that money for economic development, flood control, and some other things uh with that expanded district.

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