HomeMy Public PortalAboutMinutes_City Council Work Meeting_06152021 CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING
IONA CITY HALL
NNE 15,2021 6:00 P.M.
PRESENT: Mayor Dan Gubler, Council President Rob Geray, Council Member Michael
Thompson, Council Member Peter Wadsworth, Council Member Kathy McNamara, City
Attorney Andrew Rawlings, Public Works Director Zech Prouse and City Clerk/Treasurer Keri
West.
ABSENT: None.
VISITORS: None.
ITEMS OF BUSINESS:
Discussion of Iona City Code § 10-1; Iona Subdivision Ordinance, regarding plat
requirements for properties adjoining new developments—Mayor Gubler stated he requested
this discussion because he does not feel it is appropriate for an adjoining property owner be
required to submit a Preliminary Plat when a neighboring property is being developed. He
continued and stated the City Council has the responsibility to manage growth and future
development in the City. Mayor Gubler stated he would like this section edited to remove the
requirement for the adjoining property owner to submit a Preliminary Plat. He continued and
stated this is the time for the Council to discuss, with the actual vote occurring at the Regular
City Council Meeting following this Work Meeting.
Attorney Rawlings stated the only situation where the adjoining property owner is required to
submit a Preliminary Plat is if the development has a dead end street that is longer than 400 feet.
However, he believes the code was written to satisfy the road requirements in situations where
the same owner is doing a development in multiple phases. Attorney Rawlings highlighted the
proposed Ordinance and explained the three options and requirements for a developer to have a
dead end street. Discussion began regarding various properties in the City that are or could be
affected by this scenario. Council Members all agreed with the potential benefits of this
amendment.
Discussion of Franchise Fees — Council President Geray stated he requested this discussion to
determine if the City has the correct franchise fees in place and whether there is additional
information that should be discussed. He continued and stated he understands franchise fees to
be a reimbursement to the City for the wear and tear of companies that use our roads to provide
various services to our citizens. Council President Geray asked whether other companies should
be paying a franchise fee, or if the current charges are excessive. He continued and stated if these
companies are not causing any additional damage or maintenance to the roads, he considers these
fees to be a backdoor tax on the citizens and without a real purpose. Mayor Gubler stated he
believes franchise fees represent an agreement of exclusivity for companies to be the only
service provider for the City. He continued and stated if the City eliminated franchise fees, the
companies would not reduce the amount they bill their customers in the City. Mayor Gubler also
stated the amount of revenue the City collects in franchise fees does help with maintenance costs.
Director Prouse stated he considers the franchise fee a rent to use the right of way for companies
that provide services in the City. He continued and stated if the City views them as such, the
solid waste hauler companies should be paying a franchise fee as they cause the most damage to
the roads. Attorney Rawlings agreed franchise fees should be treated as a source of income to
IONA CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING—JUNE 15, 2021
address the wear and tear of the public assets that companies utilize to provide their services in
our City. Clerk West did dispute the earlier statement that franchise fees are tied to exclusivity
and stated the City could require franchise fees from multiple solid waste hauler companies
without giving them exclusive access to the City. Council Member Wadsworth stated when the
City charges franchise fees,the companies pass that cost onto their customers. He then suggested
the possibility of having an exclusive solid waste hauler company or including that as a City
service and charging for it with the monthly water bill. Mayor Gubler stated he has discussed this
with Director Prouse and stated the City is not in the financial position to begin trash collecting
as a City service. He also stated the City has discussed the option of contracting with one solid
waste hauler company in the past and was informed this would open the City up for litigation by
any company that was being excluded. Discussion continued regarding the cost of starting and
maintaining a City trash service. Mayor Gubler instructed Clerk West to research agreements to
begin charging solid waste hauler companies franchise fees.
Discussion of Iona Sports & Recreation —Clerk West stated she is looking for feedback from
the Mayor and Council regarding the City's Recreation program. She continued and stated the
program has been growing and the City receives frequent questions about why we do not offer
additional sports. Clerk West explained the Recreation Director position is currently seasonal
and adding additional sports would require this position to become full-time. She continued and
stated she believes the additional sports could sustain the added payroll expense, but would like
feedback from the Mayor and Council. Mayor Gubler stated the problem with growing the
program is the lack of City facilities. Clerk West stated the City does have an existing contract
with District#93 to utilize their facilities for the basketball season. Mayor Gubler stated he is not
opposed to Clerk West reaching out to the school district to see what the possibility is of utilizing
their fields for a possible soccer or flag football season.
Clerk West also informed the Council of an idea the Planning & Zoning Commission (P&Z)
discussed at a recent meeting pertaining to recreational land. She continued and stated there is a
lot on 49th North where the old dump used to be and is still owned by Bonneville County. Due to
the past use, building would not be possible on the land. Therefore, the county has never
entertained selling the lot. The P&Z discussed the possibility of the City acquiring the land from
the county to develop it into another City park or soccer fields. Clerk West continued and stated
the majority of the people that are moving into the City are young families and she believes
another park or field to play at would be a huge asset to the City. Mayor Gubler agreed and
stated he has an upcoming meeting with the Bonneville County Commissioners to discuss other
items and will present this idea to them as well.
Discussion of The American Rescue Plan funds and Fiber Internet options — Clerk West
stated she has received confirmation from the state that the City will be receiving a deposit of
$253,168 in the next few days, as well as an identical amount next year from the American
Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). She continued and stated the funds will be deposited in full, with a
report due in October to show how the funds were or will be used. Mayor Gubler stated the
available uses are very broad. Council Member Wadsworth asked if the City can use it to pay
down the debt on the water project. Mayor Gubler stated he would agree with paying down the
debt and potentially lowering the water bill. Director Prouse stated he would recommend keeping
the water bill the same to ensure there are always enough funds available to maintain the
infrastructure of a growing water system. Clerk West stated she will research the ARPA
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IONA CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING—JUNE 15, 2021
guidelines to see if paying down the water bond is a possibility.
Mayor Gubler requested feedback from the Council on other ideas regarding how the City could
use the ARPA funds. He continued and stated he has had a conversation with Director Prouse
and is open to entertaining the idea of broadband. Mayor Gubler also stated he feels there are
many streets in the City that could use improvement and suggested this as an idea on how to use
ARPA. Director Prouse agreed and stated he is already planning on putting together a cost
estimate on rebuilding a few of the roadways in the City. Mayor Gubler encouraged the Council
to come up with ideas for next month's Work Meeting to further discuss ARPA funds.
Discussion of Fiscal Year 2022 Preliminary Budget — Clerk West stated she has made some
changes to the format of the budget, including eliminating some budget lines and adding
additional ones. She continued and recommended adding a "Fund Balance Carryover" revenue
line item that allows you to carry over unused revenue from the previous fiscal year. Mayor
Gubler agreed with this change. He also stated the "Grants" revenue line item is hard to predict
but has instructed Director Prouse to put together a cost sheet to restore the tennis courts so that
Clerk West can begin applying for grants. Mayor Gubler also stated he has discussed the
possibility of remodeling the City Park bathrooms with Director Prouse and estimates the cost to
be approximately$40,000.
Clerk West continued discussing budget line items and explained her desire to streamline
multiple Recreation expense items into one "Recreation Expenses" line item. She also stated the
need for a separate revenue line item for"Business Licenses"because they are currently included
in the "Building Permit Fees" budget category. Clerk West continued and stated she has
discussed it with Director Prouse and they both agree the expenses for the Public Works
Department need to be separated into categories such as streets and parks. Currently, all non-
water maintenance costs are lumped together in a general "Maintenance" expense category.
Mayor Gubler agreed.
Mayor Gubler stated the recently passed House Bill 389 will affect the budgeting numbers and
the amount we receive from new construction. He continued and stated this bill reduces the
amount of property taxes cities receive from new construction from 100%to 90%. Mayor Gubler
continued and discussed the process to receive and/or add to the City's forgone amount. He
stated he does not think the City is in a position to take any forgone because there is not an
immediate need. Mayor Gubler then stated the City needs to be careful to keep the levy rate
consistent with the current growth.
Council President Geray asked if the current fiscal year's budget will need to be opened to
include the immediate funds coming from ARPA. Clerk West stated the current budget will need
to be amended by Ordinance at the July City Council Meeting. Council President Geray then
asked when the first payment for the Water Bond will be due. Clerk West stated she has reached
out to get a payment schedule for the bond and should have it by the next City Council Meeting.
General Water System Discussion — Mayor Gubler stated he had a meeting with one of the
owners of the private road to the new water tank and was told they are not interested in having
the City turn the road into a public road. He continued and stated there would need to be a
different access spot if the City decided to move forward with the bike park near the water tank.
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IONA CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING—JUNE 15, 2021
Meeting Adjourned: 6:59 p.m.
COUNCIL APPROVED: July 20, 2021
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Dan Gu ler, Mayor
ATTEST:
Keri West, C ty Clerk/Treasurer
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