Charles City Council votes 3-2 to deny mules within city limits

By James Grob, jgrob@charlescitypress.com

The Charles City Council voted 3-2 Tuesday to deny permission to allow mules within the city limits.

Mike and Jamie Reicherts had requested permission from the council to keep four mules on property they want to buy within the city limits on the far north side of the city, north of L&J Industries and northeast of Washington Elementary School, in the 1900 block of Cleveland Avenue. The location is generally removed from other properties or many adjacent neighbors.

“Ultimately, to keep livestock in town, you have to have council permission,” Charles City Administrator Steve Diers said. “This would be one of those situations.”

In the past the council has usually — but not always — turned down requests to allow livestock in the city, the most recent requests involving raising chickens. The requests that had been turned down were for properties with adjoining neighbors within the city, while those few that had been approved were generally on the edges of town. The property in question Tuesday has about 10 acres of wooded land, and is on the edge of town.

“There is quite a bit of wooded space, and a creek that comes through there,” Diers said.

The Reicherts told the council that they had not discussed the mules with any of the neighbors living near the property.

“I have not contacted the neighbors,” Mike Reichert said. “We used to live about two houses away from that property some years back, but that was just outside the city limits.”

Reichert said he is a Cowboy Chaplin and uses the mules in his ministry. The Reicherts said that, should they buy the property, they would clear some trees to make a border fence around the property and put up some buildings to accommodate the four mules.

The council considered approving the request for a specified period of time, with the option to revoke it at a later date, but no motion was made regarding that.

“I don’t think it would be fair to Mike and Jamie, to have a short-term approval, since they are considering constructing a building for the mules,” said council member Keith Starr. “I do have some concerns with the noise that mules make, however.”

Starr said that approving the request could open things up for others in town to request livestock, and wondered where the city would draw the line.

“I think the world of Mike and Jamie, and certainly would welcome them back in the community,” Starr said. “But this isn’t an existing operation, this is something that’s subject to this being passed.”

Council member Jerry Joerger agreed with Starr.

“I don’t think we should open the door to this type of situation,” said Joerger, who moved to deny the request.

Joerger’s motion passed 3-2, with council members Joerger, Starr and Philip Knighten all voting to deny the request. Council members Phoebe Pittman and DeLaine Freeseman voted against the motion.

In other business on Tuesday, the council unanimously approved a waiver request from Vermeer Iowa & Northern Missouri for parking lot paving requirements.

Vermeer has purchased the former Marzen Towing Service building located at 1107 South Grand Ave. and is in the process of remodeling the building to consist of service shop area, showroom, parts room, storage areas, and office and garage space. The company has requested a waiver to temporarily delay the full implementation of parking lot paving requirements for a five-year period.

Vermeer has plans to meet the requirements, but requested the additional time due to the large investment the company is making in the building remodeling improvements. The Panning and Zoning Commission recommended approval of the waiver to the council.

The council also unanimously approved a resolution for a professional services agreement between the City and SEH engineers for basic services, preliminary and final design and bid document preparation associated with the Water Department Clear Well Project, which will add 1 million gallons in capacity. For these initial services, SEH is quoting a total lump sum amount of $328,550.

As part of the financing of the Water Clear Well Project, the city plans to apply for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding to aid in the cost. The City can apply for up to $600,000 in CDBG grant dollars.

In other business on Tuesday, the council:
— Held a public hearing and unanimously approved an updated development agreement with Charles City Area Development Corp. for fiscal years 2023-25. The new agreement is for annual funding of $46,000 per year for three years, for a total of $138,000. The current agreement is for $42,000 per year for three years.
— Held a public hearing and unanimously approved a renewed agreement with Main Street Charles City (MSCC, formerly known as Charles City Community Revitalization) for three more years. The agreement is for fiscal years 2023-25 and includes annual MSCC funding of $25,000 (increased from $23,000) for a total of $75,000, annual facade program funding of $35,000 (increased from $30,000) for at total of $105,000, and annual culture and entertainment funding of $25,000 (no increase) for a total of $75,000. The aggregate total of the agreement is $255,000.
— Held a public hearing and unanimously approved the proposed development TIF rebate agreement with Mike Molstead Motors. The agreement provides an aggregate rebate amount of $110,000 over five years, or whichever comes first.
— After going into closed section for personnel performance reviews, unanimously approved contracts for City Clerk Trudy O’Donnell, at a salary increase of 2.25%, and City Administrator Steve Diers at a salary increase of 3%.