Charles City signs leases for temporary offices

By Travis Fischer, tkfischer@charlescitypress.com

The Charles City Council approved a lease agreement for temporary locations for City Hall and the Police Department during a special meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 26.

The city has been preparing for a long-term relocation of city services while the City Hall/Police Station building draws ever closer to the start a major renovation.

“To make this timeline happen, we need to be moving forward,” said City Administrator Steve Diers.

The council approved a two-year lease to move City Hall operations to 507 Clark St., which was determined to be the best option for the city’s needs while City Hall is under reconstruction.

It is anticipated that it will take 18 months before the municipal building is ready to be moved back into.

The council likewise approved a two-year lease for 623 Beck Street, which will be the home of the Police Department, Code Enforcement and Parks and Recreation Department for the time being.

Police Chief Hugh Anderson reported that the department is already working on the logistics of the move, including establishing separate entrances for code enforcement and Parks & Rec.

When the city offices do move back, it will be under a new address. Rather than 105 Milwaukee Mall, which has apparently become troublesome to locate in the age of GPS navigation, the new address will be 900 Clark St..

“People may eventually be able to find us,” said Mayor Dean Andrews.

Also at the meeting, the council approved the release of $36,250 in forgivable loans to Cambrex as part the city’s job incentives program. Part of a 2017 development agreement with Cambrex, the company has met its parameters of adding 29 qualifying jobs, with an award of $1,250 per job.

The council also held the third reading of the ordinance that would decouple the city from the Charles City Housing Authority, which has been an ongoing process for the last several months.

Moving out of the special meeting and into a workshop session, the council reviewed recommendations from the Planning and Zoning commission, which included a number of proposed updates to make the city’s Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) less restrictive. Among the changes include eliminating the 40-foot setback for businesses adjacent to residential properties, allowing for fewer restrictions on private and storage garages, and allowing roof-mounted solar panels without need of a conditional use permit.

The council also reviewed proposed traffic code changes, which would add a yield sign to the intersection of 13th Street and Corporate Drive.