Charles City Area Development Corp. gets updates on businesses, housing projects,

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

Progress continues on the Pure Prairie Poultry expansion project on North Main Street in Charles City, according to an update at the Charles City Area Development Corp. meeting this week.

CCADC Executive Director Tim Fox said he had a report from Brian Roelofs, the president and CEO of Pure Prairie, that the updated production and packaging as well as the warehouse and distribution addition are expected to be ready in October.

“So that is a pretty aggressive schedule,” Fox said, for a project that had its groundbreaking just a little more than five months ago.

“The employee welfare areas are currently being built and will be ready in stages from November to next spring,” Fox said, adding that the company will began hiring for the new processes in September.

Also at the CCADC meeting Wednesday morning, the board members:

• Discussed the testimony given by Fox last week at the Iowa Utility Board’s hearing on the Summit Carbon Solutions CO2 pipeline permit request hearing ongoing in Fort Dodge.

Fox was testifying representing the Avenue of the Saints Development Park, which the CCADC owns and through which Summit wants a permanent easement to bury its carbon dioxide transportation pipeline in that area.

The CCADC has declined to accept easement payment offers from Summit, so now the property is part of the “Exhibit H” properties that Summit is seeking the right of eminent domain over to be allowed to force an easement.

The CCADC has argued that having the pipeline on the property would pose a significant obstacle to marketing the property, which is one of fewer than 30 Iowa sites that have been state-certified as being “shovel-ready” for development with all required studies having been completed and all utilities and infrastructure in place or capable of being quickly put in place.

The CCADC has also raised concerns regarding the safety of the pipeline going through the city, near residential populations and businesses.

Floyd County Supervisor Mark Kuhn, the supervisors’ representative on the CCADC board, has been leading the effort by Floyd County to intervene in the pipeline hearing process. Kuhn was in Fort Dodge last week to support Fox, and he said he expects the hearing process to go for at least a couple of months before the Iowa Utilities Board makes a determination on whether the project will be approved and whether eminent domain will be allowed.

If eminent domain is allowed then the Iowa Utilities Board will consider whether it is appropriate to be used for each Exhibit H parcel.

• Discussed plans to celebrate the Community Development Corp.’s 50th anniversary this year. A member appreciation get-together is planned for Tuesday, Sept. 26, at Tellurian Brewery, from 5 to 7 p.m., with a short 50th anniversary celebration program at 6 p.m.

• Heard a report on the community Housing Task Force, including plans for several task force members and others to attend the Housing ​​Iowa Conference next week in Cedar Rapids (see separate story).

Housing Task Force Co-chair and Mayor Dean Andrews said the second educational meeting with landlords that the group sponsored recently was well attended, so they will likely continue those.

Andrews also talked about a plan by Katie Nolte, the city housing director, to offer a lead mitigation training session in Charles City on Sept. 11.

“Usually those sessions are in Des Moines. You have to go down to Des Moines for a day,” Andrews said. “She’s bringing the Des Moines people to Charles City to do it for our landlords here. Once you do that and get certified then you can do lead mitigation on your own, rather than having to hire somebody to come in and do lead mitigation on your property.”

• Approved a $5,000 micro-loan from the organization’s Regional Revolving Loan Fund to Aces Entertainment LLC, a new bar and restaurant in Rockford, to help that company continue renovations. The micro-loan may eventually be rolled into a regular business development loan through the CCADC once the company completes a business plan and an application. The loan is at 3% interest for 60 months.