City council prepares for summer event street closures

By Travis Fischer, tkfischer@charlescitypress.com

The Charles City Council approved street closures for summer events during its regular meeting on Monday, June 17.

Representing the Rotary Club, Dennis Donovan went over the street closure request for this year’s Santa’s Shine & Show Rotary Car Show, scheduled for Saturday, July 13.

Due to the ongoing construction on Main Street, this year’s car show is being relocated to the city parking lot by Hot Shots Billiards along Riverside Avenue, with spillover going into the adjacent lot alongside the Charles City Press building.

Donovan also passed along Hot Shots owner Joe Hull’s intentions of getting a permit for outdoor alcohol sales for the event. Hull will need to apply for the permit himself and work with the council on what the parameter boundaries will be.

For other street closures, Community Development Director Mark Wicks asked the council to approve amendments for the already approved Independence Day weekend street closures. To accommodate the parade staging area, Milwaukee Street will be closed from Hulin to Ferguson on the morning of July 4. Also, due to the sand volleyball tournament being moved to the Chamber of Commerce parking lot, North Jackson Street along Central Park will no longer need to be closed on Sunday, July 7, and can be reopened on Saturday after the Farmers Market.

With Main Street construction continuing to be a changing factor leading up to July 4, Police Chief Hugh Anderson also asked the council for the leeway to adjust street closures as needed without going through council approval due to the possibility of other last-minute adjustments to the route.

“As soon as we know for sure, we’ll get it out to the public as soon as possible,” said Anderson.

Finally, the council also approved street closures around Central Park to accommodate the postponed Party in the Park. Originally planned for May 31 and canceled due to weather, the event has been rescheduled for Friday, July 12.

On the subject of Main Street, the council approved the first pay request for the 2024 Main Street Rehabilitation Project, amounting to $381,219.39 for work done through May 31.

The council also approved a pay request for the Million Gallon Clearwell Project, minus a $500 per-day withholding as the project has gone past the contracted completion date.

For other city improvement projects, the council approved the preliminary plans for the 2024 Pool Renovation Project.

Park and Rec Director Tyler Mitchell said that bids for the project will be due in July, with plans for construction to begin in September and be complete in April of 2025.

Mitchell also asked the council to approve the purchase of new playground equipment for Sportsman Park. The $264,850 project is already funded through hotel/motel funds and donations.

In other business, Mayor Dean Andrews reappointed Linda Lindaman and Jim Davis to the Library Board and appointed Mike Scoefield to replace outgoing board member Bob Wolm, thanking Wolm for his service on the board.

The council also held a public hearing before approving the first reading of an ordinance that would rezone the area near the Southwest Development Park from manufacturing to residential.

The area east of Corporate Drive is currently zoned M-2 and will be reclassified as R-3 to allow for the development of multi-family homes. A potential development project to build an apartment complex in that area is already in the early stages.

“Whether that project happens or not, it’s an area that the CCADC (Charles City Area Development Corporation) would like to see rezoned,” said City Administrator Steve Diers.

For the 11th Avenue Trail Extension Project, the council moved up the public hearing that had previously been scheduled for July 15. With a quicker than anticipated turn around from the Iowa DOT and bid letting scheduled for June 18, the public hearing can be held on July 1 instead, giving the contractor the ability to start two weeks earlier.

In new business, the council approved a new contract with Circle K to continue providing public transit service in the city. Rather than a one-year agreement, the city is trying out a two-year contract with a 3% increase each year.

The council also approved its annual short-term borrowing, agreeing to borrow $200,000 to cover a variety of city purchases and repairs.

On the subject, Chief Anderson asked the council to approve the purchase of $25,000 worth of firefighting gear that has been budgeted for the year.

“We have quite a bit that needs replacing to keep our firefighters safe,” said Anderson.

The purchase includes five new sets of bunker gear along with 15 new sets of boots and gloves for the department.

For Water Superintendent Cory Spieker’s expenditure’s list, the council also approved the purchase of a new dump truck for the city, accepting the low bid from Don’s Truck Sales of $163,165.

The new truck will replace a 1995 truck that has 70,000 miles. The city will be accepting bids for the older truck to get it off its hands.

The council also approved the purchase of a new remote tractor for the sewer camera to better operate in larger pipes and the replacement of the pump in Well No. 8.

Finally, the council approved a change in the ordinance to transfer the duty of residential electrical inspections to the state inspector. With the retirement of the current city inspector, it will be more efficient to use the state inspector, who is already performing commercial and industrial inspections in the city.

Along with changing the code, the city is also disbanding the local Electrical Trade Board, which will no longer be needed.