Council Removes Assessments From Roads Projects
It’s now official – there will be no special assessments to help fund the $1.4 million Vine Street – Railroad Ave. reconstruction projects.
The Glenwood City Council removed the assessments by a 4-1 vote at its April 14 meeting.
The city is receiving over $970,000 in federal funds for the projects, which include resurfacing, widening, new sidewalks, gutters and driveway approaches on South Vine Street. The reconstruction of Railroad Ave. will involve milling gravel and asphalt on specific sections of the road and resurfacing the areas with concrete.
Initially, the council intended to assess property owners along the two roadways to pay for most of the city’s financial liability on the projects, but the assessments became a source of controversy. The projected assessments on Vine Street ranged from $1,785 to $16,000, according to Steve Perry, the city’s engineering consultant on the project.
In March, after city officials learned the project was going to cost more than originally projected, the council was presented a plan that included the special assessments in addition to a debt service levy of 46 cents (per $1,000 taxable valuation) for the 2015-16 fiscal year. The levy would also reimburse the city’s general fund for costs associated with the library roof replacement and the purchase of three vehicles (two for Public Works, one for the cemetery).
As controversy continued to swirl around the projects, financial consultant Susanne Gerlach of Public Financial Management, Inc., presented an alternative plan that would remove the assessments and vehicle purchases and reduce the debt service levy to 34 cents over 10 years. The plan would generate enough funds for the city’s portion of the funding for the road projects and replenish the library roof costs.
The plan won the support of the city council, which voted March 24 to move forward on the projects. The assessments were repealed on April 14 with council member Kay LeFever casting the lone “no” vote.
“If we keep the debt service levy where it is now, we are locking in every property taxpayer for a 34-cent tax for the next 10 years,” LeFever said. “If we include the assessments as they stand now, the debt service levy after the 2015-16 budget would be lowered for all property tax payers and the G.O. bond could be shortened by several years for all property taxpayers.
“If we were voting to lower the assessments and still be able to shorten the G.O. bond in order to benefit all property owners, I would be in favor of that. I am on this council to represent all property owners and all Glenwood residents, not just a few.”
Ryan Sell, a Vine Street property owner who has voiced objections to the plan multiple times, addressed the council before the vote was taken last week.
“You folks have been able to figure out a way to pay for this in a manner that all property owners in the city will pay for this,” Sell said. “It’s much more fair that way. It’s in the best interest of the city and all property owners if you vote down the special assessment.”
Council member Joe Edwards, who was previously undecided on removing the assessments, said in the past couple weeks several Glenwood residents have stopped by his business to discuss the issue. Edwards said to his surprise, every person he spoke to on the matter was in favor of removing the assessments.
Two other notable items on the April 14 city council agenda:
- The council instructed city attorney Matt Woods to construct an amendment to an existing ordinance that will allow the Glenwood Volunteer Fire Department to recruit potential firefighters from a 5-mile radius of the city limits. Currently, firefighters must reside within a 3-mile radius.
LeFever, a member of the council’s Public Safety committee, said extending the radius to 5 miles would “broaden the pool of volunteers” for the department, which had eight members resign earlier this year.
GVFD Chief Butch Fidler said the addition of two new members approved by the council last week brings the department’s roster to 15 members.
“After the walk-out, we built back up to 15, but that’s still not enough to run a volunteer department,” Fidler told the Public Safety committee.
- The council met in closed session to discuss the job performance of city administrator Brian Kissel, who has been the subject of scrutiny following the release of an audit report critical of the city’s financial practices.
No action was taken after the closed session, which included participation by Kissel.
“We did have a very productive, good discussion in regards to the specific performance of an individual,” Florian said. “We found a lot of common ground, some areas for improvement. At this time, we are going to compile a list of improvements for the individual and it will be presented to that person.”
Florian was asked by an audience member when a document detailing the improvements would be made available to the public.
“Once it goes through the Public Administration committee and I assume that could be anywhere from one to three weeks,” Florian said.
In a post-meeting interview, Woods told The Opinion-Tribune the city has to be careful with how much information is released to the public because the matter is a personnel issue.
“The goal is to streamline procedures and establish priorities at that position (city administrator),” Woods said. “It is a personnel matter, although I do believe the public needs to be informed of what’s taking place.”