(Spirit Lake)– The Spirit Lake city council Tuesday deferred action on a proposal to consolidate the city’s urban renewal, or tax increment finance districts, into one. A public hearing on the matter drew no oral or written comments Tuesday, but several council members asked questions about the proposal and said they want more time to review it. City officials say a similar move by the city of Coralville was upheld by the Iowa Supreme Court. The matter will be back on the agenda for the next council meeting.
There was more discussion regarding a 28E agreement being proposed by the Dickinson County Trails Association. Among other things the agreement would remove the association from the auspices of the Dickinson County Conservation Board, putting it under the county board of supervisors instead. Cities are being asked to sign the agreement. The Spirit Lake city council deferred action when it was first brought to them last month. City Attorney Earl Maahs Tuesday reiterated some concerns he has over the proposal, saying it would be the first 28E the city has entered into in which it would not have a representative. Maahs says it would also be the first group not required to come before the city with a budget request; and he says there’s no provision for the city to terminate the agreement on its own. Dave Murphy of the Trails Association told the council they’d be willing to address Maahs’ concerns. The council directed Maahs to meet with Murphy and other city attorneys to work on an agreement that would address the concerns and report back to the council later.
Councilman Jerry Harbst talked about Drainage District 22 and a possible option he feels the city should be exploring when it comes to that, saying it was recently brought to his attention the city doesn’t have have to be responsible for it. The city took over jurisdiction of the district from the county several years ago out of concern more needed to be done to address drainage due to the city’s huge growth. A series of detention ponds were built and improvements made to mains. Costs were assessed to property owners in the district. It’s come under fire recently from some property owners who feel they were unfairly assessed. Harbst wouldn’t elaborate any further on what the option would consist of. He said he and councilman Kevin Bice who make up a drainage committee for the council, will meet to come up with a report and recommendation for the full council in the next 30 days or so.
The council also held two closed sessions. One was to discuss records required or authorized by state law to be kept confidential; the other was to evaluate the professional competency of an individual whose appointment, hiring, performance or discharge is being considered. No action was taken following the sessions.
