Rachel's Council Review

As usual for the review, my comments are red and italicized in the context of the latest Council Preview by Bronwyn Beatty-Hansen.
 

The Ames City Council meets on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. at City Hall.  The agenda includes the following. Note that you can generally click on individual agenda items below to get the full staff report or other explanation.
 

• 10. Resolution authorizing Public Art Commission to enter into agreements with artists for 2022/23 Ames Annual Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition selections.
  It is the 26th year of this program, and the Public Art Commission has submitted their 8 choices for downtown sculptures. After the sculptures are displayed for a year, neighborhoods, businesses, or other organizations can purchase them and have them relocated. 36 submissions from 17 artist were winnowed down to these final 8.
  
  This item passed as part of the consent agenda, 6-0.
• 24. Staff Report regarding Outside Funding Request process.
  Some years, Council receives one-time funding requests in addition to ongoing outside funding requests, so we recently asked staff to help us define a system for fairly evaluating these requests. As outlined in this staff report, staff recommend all one-time and ongoing outside funding requests be submitted in time to be included in our regularly scheduled budget hearings. 
  
  Council moved to accept the outside funding request process, 6-0.
• 25. Staff Report regarding Naming Policy.
  While the Parks and Recreation Department has a naming policy regarding the naming of parks, buildings, and equipment, such a policy does not yet exist for other City facilities, such as roads, bridges, buildings, or other facilities. Council recently asked staff to draft a policy for the latter based on the existing Parks & Rec policy.
  
  Council moved to approve the naming policy for city facilities, 6-0. 
• 26. Motion directing staff to initiate annexation of 2219 and 2121 State Avenue.
  This annexation request from the Iowa Board of Regents would incorporate the new ISU feed mill and the Curtis Farm into the Ames city limits. 
  
  
  Council moved Alternative 2, which is to accept the application for 100% Voluntary Annexation for the property at 2219 & 2121 State Avenue, and proceed with a separate annexation of the properties at 2114 & 2126 State Avenue at a later time. The motion passed 6-0.
• 27. Dayton Avenue Tax-Increment Financing Development Agreement.
  After a request from a developer to grant TIF funding for a small-lot industrial park, the City put out a Request for Proposals, and got only one proposal (from the original developer). After negotiations with staff, the developer has proposed a counter offer which has elements which differ from the original RFP. Several issues are laid out in the staff report, detailing the developer's offer and how it differs from the RFP and/or staff's position. 
  
  The applicant was present at our meeting, and spoke about a concern they have with the TIF reimbursement being subject to annual appropriation by City Council. After some discussion, Gartin moved to approve Alternative 1 minus the annual appropriation clause. This motion failed 2-4 (Betcher, Rollins, Junck, and Beatty-Hansen voting nay). Council then directed staff to work with the applicant and continue negotiations on the project, 6-0. 
• 29. Hearing on proposal to sell, subject to easements, City-owned land locally known as 1101 Aviation Way (Sigler).
  This sale was initiated in 2020 and there was a public hearing earlier this month. Now Council needs to finalize the sale in order to finish this transaction.
  
  
  The sale of this property was approved, 6-0.

Communications to Council: The following items are requests and communications to Council that aren't published on the agenda, so we won't deliberate them substantially.  This includes staff reports and communications or requests from constituents and developers. Typically, Council will ask city staff for more information, put the item on a future agenda for deliberation and possible action, or just accept the communication, taking no further action.
 

• ACVB Annual Report 2021.
  This annual report is informational, no action is required of Council
• ACVB Letter 
  This cover letter accompanies the aforementioned Annual Report
• Council Meeting Code of Conduct 
  This Code of Conduct outlines some of the guidelines for participation in Council meetings. While most of the items included in this code of conduct have been unofficially observed for some time, they have never been officially codified.
  Council moved to place this code of conduct onto a future agenda (6-0).
• Mediacom Notice of Rate Increase 
  This is informational only, no Council action required

Thanks for reading,
Rachel Junck
Ames City Council,  4th Ward