HomeMy Public PortalAboutMinutes_City Council Work Meeting_02152022 CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING
IONA CITY HALL
FEBRUARY 15,2022 6:00 P.M.
PRESENT: Mayor Dan Gubler, Council President Rob Geray, Council Member Peter
Wadsworth, Council Member Michael Thompson, Council Member Evan Mann, City Attorney
Andrew Rawlings, Public Works Director Zech Prouse and City Clerk/Treasurer Keri West.
ABSENT: None.
VISITORS: Randy Homer.
ITEMS OF BUSINESS:
Discussion of Bleachers at City Park—Mayor Gubler stated this has been added to the agenda
because there have been concerns voiced from citizens regarding the removal of the grandstands
and the history they represent. He continued and stated Council President Geray, Council
Member Wadsworth, Director Prouse and himself walked over to the City Park this week to
check on the condition of the grandstands and all determined they need to come down due to
safety concerns. Council Member Wadsworth agreed and stated some of the supports are
completely missing from underneath the grandstands. Mayor Gubler stated he has asked
Building Inspector Allen Eldridge to inspect the grandstands and give a report on the condition
of the foundation and structure itself He is waiting for this report. Mayor Gubler stated if the
community would like to look into fundraising efforts to rebuild the structure, he estimates a
total cost of approximately $100,000. Council Member Thompson suggested taking pictures of
the current structure showing its unsafe condition and post them in the City newsletter to show
residents the reason they are being removed and what will be used to replace them. Council
Member Wadsworth agreed. Director Prouse stated the grandstands were built in the 1930s and
have many deficiencies creating a dangerous situation. Council President Geray stated he doesn't
believe there will be continued opposition from residents after the City has communicated the
concerns. However, he does think the Council should consider this situation going forward when
anything historical is concerned and communicate more effectively beforehand. Mayor Gubler
agreed and advised Clerk West to include this topic with pictures in the next newsletter and on
the City website. Mayor Gubler also stated he understands the barnwood may be desirable for
some residents and has no problem giving it away once it is deemed safe to do so. He also stated
he would like to look into adding an awning system in the future to create a shaded area for
spectators. Council Member Mann agreed that shade is needed. Director Prouse also stated they
are adding aluminum bleachers to the first and third base lines of the south field and will be
rehabbing all the wooden bleachers and moving them to the north field.
Discussion with Recreation Director Randy Homer about Recreation Program—Recreation
Director Randy Homer approached the Council and distributed potential budget numbers to add
additional sports to the recreation program. He stated his philosophy for youth sports is to get
more children involved and be active in a healthy and safe environment. He continued and stated
this basketball season has been eye-opening and a great success. Director Homer stated he put a
survey up on the Facebook page yesterday inquiring what sports our local families would like to
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IONA CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING—FEBRUARY 15, 2022
see added to the program and he has already received 134 responses. He continued and stated the
top responses for youth sports were flag football and soccer. There are currently a few flag
football leagues in Idaho Falls, but they are very expensive. He proposed starting a youth flag
football league in Iona with games on Monday and Tuesday evenings in the spring and the fall.
He continued and stated registration would only cost $48 and would include a shirt and 8 games.
This is compared to a 6-game season at the YMCA for $60. He also stated there would be 10
kids on a team with 2 divisions; 1st/2nd grade and 3`d/4th grade. He went through the numbers and
illustrated how the program would pay for itself. Mayor Gubler stated he would suggest a
minimum of 10 kids and a maximum of 14 kids per team.
Director Homer then discussed the proposal of hosting a softball tournament during the summer
for 10-year-olds. He continued and stated he would need to cap the number of teams at 12 due to
no lights on the field. He stated the outfield will be set at 135 feet due to 2 trees being placed
there. He also stated he is working on getting a portable fence for the outfield that can be set up
and taken down for each game. No concerns mentioned from Council regarding this proposal.
Director Homer then stated another item that came up in the survey was the desire for adult
softball in the City. He continued and stated he thinks the south field would be big enough to
accommodate this if they put up a fence. He stated he is thinking of starting that league in the fall
as a fun, recreational league.
Director Homer then discussed the possibility of youth soccer in the fall. He continued and stated
he has spoken with District #93 about using Iona Elementary and they said as long as we give
them advance notice, that shouldn't be a problem. He would follow a similar registration fee of
approximately$48/player, which is significantly less than other local leagues.
Clerk West stated in the past when the topic of growing the recreation program was discussed,
the two concerns mentioned were space to play and the increased cost for the Recreation
Director to include benefits. She continued and stated she has spoken with PERSI and was
informed if the Director did not exceed 19 hours/week for 11 weeks out of a 5-month period, the
City would not be required to contribute to PERSI. Council President Geray asked if this is
feasible with the addition of the programs being discussed. Clerk West stated Director Homer is
very organized and has been able to maintain 18 hours/week during the basketball season. She
believes he can do that going forward despite the extra workload of adding new leagues. She
continued and said there will be some weeks that are higher, but they do have flexibility there as
long as it is not consistent. Director Homer agreed.
Council President Geray asked if registration discounts are given to Iona residents. Director
Homer said the coach received a 50% discount for their child to play, but there are not any
discounts for Iona residents. He also said residents in Bonneville District #93 do receive
preferential treatment if too many teams register, per the district contract. Mayor Gubler said it
would be a good idea to offer a discount for Iona residents, but the tracking would be difficult.
Clerk West also stated it may be difficult because it is a joint contract with the school district.
Council President Geray stated it is the City infrastructure that is being used, so he thinks it
would be appropriate for people outside of Iona to pay more than residents that are also paying
City taxes to maintain the infrastructure. Clerk West agreed but expressed concern over tracking
the individual player's residence since we only accept team registrations. She also stated the
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IONA CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING—FEBRUARY 15, 2022
recreation program typically does pay for a lot of maintenance and upkeep of the fields with
money brought in from recreation fees.
Council all agreed to allow Director Homer to start a flag football league this spring with games
being played at Iona City Park and Pioneer Park. Council Member Wadsworth suggested not
allowing cleats. Director Prouse agreed. Mayor Gubler then advised Director Homer to continue
communicating with the district about using Iona Elementary for a youth soccer league in the
fall. Council President Geray expressed concern over the conditions of the fields at Iona
Elementary. Mayor Gubler stated the City could help contribute to get the fields in good enough
shape to play youth soccer there. Discussion continued regarding the condition and maintenance
required for the soccer and baseball fields at Iona Elementary and possible grant options. Council
Member Mann expressed his gratitude for Director Homer and the good things he is doing for
the community.
General Water System Discussion—Mayor Gubler stated there were some pin hole leaks in the
tank that they are hoping will fix themselves. He continued and stated they have drained some of
the water down and will begin running various tests on the tank and pipes. Once those tests are
passed, we can begin using the water. Mayor Gubler stated the fencing was not included in the
initial cost. Director Prouse stated he reviewed the notes from previous project work meetings
and they did not include the fencing cost because there was a lot of indecisiveness regarding the
bike path and location of the fencing. Mayor Gubler stated this will be discussed further in the
Regular Meeting as they address the remaining money still available from the bond and
additional grant money opportunities. Mayor Gubler then stated the City has discussed the
possibility of buying a generator for Well #2. Director Prouse said he spoke with City Engineer
Dave Noel and he quoted an estimated cost of$170,000-$200,000 for a new generator. Mayor
Gubler stated he recognizes this is a want and not a need but expressed the importance of a
reliable water system in the City. Council Member Wadsworth asked if it is necessary to have
two generators and two fuel tanks for the water tanks. Discussion took place regarding various
methods of running the water system efficiently during emergency situations. Mayor Gubler
stated they will discuss this more in the Regular Meeting when they discuss the budget and
project priorities.
Meeting Adjourned: 6:57 p.m.
COUNCIL APPROVED: March 15, 2022
Dan Gubler, Mayor
ATTEST: Xa.As
Keri West, City Clerk/Treasurer
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