HomeMy Public PortalAboutMinutes_City Council Work Meeting_01232024 CITY OF IONA
CITY COUNCIL WORK MEETING
IONA CITY HALL
JANUARY 23,2024 6:00 P.M.
PRESENT: Mayor Daniel Gubler, Council President Robert Geray, Council Member Michael
Thompson, Council Member Evan Mann, City Attorney Andrew Rawlings, Public Works
Director Zech Prouse and City Clerk/Treasurer Keri West.
ABSENT: Council Member Peter Wadsworth.
VISITORS: Rylea Farrens, Diana Estrada, Frank Estrada, Trina Stumpp, Kirsti Cook, Brooke
Allen, Daniel Parrish, Tony Glenn, Bill Koester and Kathy Koester.
ITEMS OF BUSINESS:
General Fiber Project Discussion with Direct Communications — Brooke Allen with Direct
Communications (DC) approached the Council and gave the construction update on the fiber
project. He stated DC has confirmed 50% of Iona residents have signed up for their service and
they expect that number to increase as they open more zones. Mr. Allen stated Zones 1 and 2 are
currently being connected and there are a total of 109 customers that have been connected and
are online. He continued and stated Zones 3, 4 and 5 are in the slicing phase of the project. Mr.
Allen confirmed DC will still be offering free installation for Iona residents, until construction is
completed. He stated installation is normally $100. Mr. Allen then introduced the "Empowering
Parents" program that DC is certified in which allows parents with school-aged children to
receive free or reduced rates on their interne bill. Mr. Allen then stated DC also has an"Upgrade
Your School" program that allows new customers to donate the amount of their first bill to a
school district of their choice. He continued and stated with that program DC just donated a total
of$1,758 for the last 2 quarters of the fiscal year to Bonneville Joint School District#93.
Mr. Allen stated DC just added a 2GB speed package. In addition to that, they have also
increased their speeds and dropped their prices. He confirmed these new prices are active now
and existing customers can call to be switched to the new package pricing. Mr. Allen distributed
papers that show the upgraded package pricing as follows:
•300 Mbps - $34.95
•600 Mbps - $49.95
• 1 Gig- $69.95
•2 Gig- $99.95
The previous package pricing is as follows:
• 100 Mbps - $39.95
•250 Mbps - $59.95
•500 Mbps- $79.95
• 1 Gig- $99.95
Mr. Allen continued and stated this change occurred yesterday, so they have not begun
advertising it yet. He stated existing customers will be contacted soon to switch the upgraded
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packages. He also stated they have a new product called, "Direct Protect Plus", which enables
parents to have full control of their router remotely. He further explained this is an app that
parents can use whether they are at home or not to control access of their internet service, in
addition to malware protection.
Mr. Allen asked if anyone had questions on their update. Council Member Mann asked what a
typical speed is for non-fiber internet services. Mr. Allen stated cable internet companies average
speeds of 100/20MB upload and download speeds,but those speeds are not reliable. Council
President Geray stated he has been connected to DC for a few weeks and he started with the
100MB package. He continued and stated it has been more than sufficient for his needs and he
believes 100MB will be fast enough for most customers. Mr. Allen agreed and stated DC has
some smaller school districts that are running their entire school district on 500MB. He also
stated larger school districts are running on 1GB-2GB. He further explained that at that speed, a
customer can download a full 4k movie in about 90 seconds. Mr. Allen also reminded the
Council DC does not cap their data. In addition, DC does not harvest and sell customers'
metadata. Council President Geray expressed his satisfaction in the quality product and process
of Direct Communications and stated he knows the City chose the right company for this project.
Daniel Parrish from DC approached the Council and stated the motive for their price changes is
their way to be the best fiber partner and them staying ahead of the trends and competition. Mr.
Allen agreed and stated he is proud of DC and what they give back to the communities. Mrs.
Farrens stated DC donated to City Events last year for Iona and she is hoping they donate again
this year. Mr. Allen stated he will be in contact with the City and DC is planning to start
attending the monthly Work Meetings to give updates and answer questions.
Discussion of Future Annexations —Council President Geray stated he brought this discussion
up last month and determined after reading the state statutes that annexations over 100 parcels
should be initiated by the development. He continued and stated there are other situations where
the City could consider annexations, including non-residents that are already connected to the
water system and parcels that are landlocked by the City. Mayor Gubler stated the City was just
approached by a non-resident that would like to be connected to the water system. He continued
and stated this can be done by contract and the updated contract will include a "Consent to
Annexation" once they are contiguous to the City limits. Council President Geray suggested
adding that wording to the City Code so that it is transparent for anyone considering this request.
Mayor Gubler agreed. Council President Geray then stated at this point, he does not feel the need
to continue the annexation discussions regarding the Green Valley and Nu'R Subdivisions.
Council President Geray also stated he would like to research and pursue a multi-tier taxing
approach for county residents that do not live within municipalities. He continued and stated if
there is not already something in place, there should be a higher tier of taxes for county residents
because they utilize a disproportionate amount of services to those that live in municipalities and
pay the same county rate. He continued and stated this would reduce the disparity in taxes
between those residents that live in municipalities and those that do not, which would also
incentivize more county residents to be annexed into cities. Council President Geray also said the
statutes illustrate the state's intent to have the majority of residents living within municipalities.
Mrs. Farrens agreed and stated county residents do use a disproportionate amount of county
services including snow removal, street maintenance, etc. Mayor Gubler asked how county
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residents use services disproportionately. Council President Geray stated city residents pay the
same county taxes that non-city residents pay, but the county is not plowing the snow and
providing other services that county residents are receiving. He continued and stated city
residents are paying additional taxes for those services because they are provided by the city, but
their county taxes are not reduced even though they are not receiving those services. Mayor
Gubler stated all Council Members are representatives of the community and should be able to
defend their policies and opinions to anyone that asks. Council President Geray agreed and asked
Attorney Rawlings if this type of tax structure exists. Attorney Rawlings stated he hasn't
researched it much, but he does not believe it currently exists in Idaho. He continued and stated
he does want to look at other states to see if this situation has been addressed. Mayor Gubler
requested Clerk West to make a list of topics to discuss with our local legislators. Clerk West
agreed and offered to contact the Association of Idaho Cities (AIC) for their input.
Bill Koester from the audience asked how the City would handle annexations for residents that
are on Falls Water. Mayor Gubler stated they would remain on Falls Water. Mrs. Farrens stated
the water fees are a separate line item on the City's budget, so a resident that is annexed and on
Falls Water would not be paying taxes towards the City's water system. Mayor Gubler stated no
taxes are involved in either water system. He continued and stated each water system is
maintained and paid for by their own customers. He further explained they are enterprise funds,
which are all service-oriented.
Clerk West displayed the City boundary map and outlined numerous parcels that have not been
annexed but are either surrounded by the City or are on the water system and contiguous. She
continued and asked if the Council would like to pursue annexation of these parcels. Council
President Geray stated he would recommend annexation of any parcels that are landlocked by the
City. Clerk West identified 3 parcels. Director Prouse recommended annexation of parcels to the
east of the City limits that are currently connected to the City's water system. He continued and
stated in the updated Area of Impact Agreement with Bonneville County, that is an area that was
identified as growth for the City. Council President Geray asked how long the process will be for
annexation if someone is already connected to the water system. Attorney Rawlings stated it
should only take a couple of months to complete that type of annexation. Council President
Geray stated he doesn't feel the need to annex those parcels until there is the potential of growth
in that area. Mayor Gubler disagreed and stated if a parcel is already contiguous and connected
to the City's water system, they should be part of the City. Discussion continued from various
perspectives regarding annexing properties already connected to the City's water system.
Mayor Gubler stated his priority right now is to annex those properties that are surrounded by the
City. He continued and stated annexing properties on the peripheral of the City can be discussed
at a later date. Council President Geray agreed. Clerk West stated she will work with Attorney
Rawlings on moving forward with the annexation of the 3 parcels that have been identified as
being surrounded by the City.
Discussion of FY2024 Amended Budget—Mayor Gubler explained the City started the process
last year where we amend the budget after the prior year's fiscal year has ended to better account
for rollover funds, etc. Clerk West stated she would like to approve an amended budget in
February and has provided the spreadsheets tonight as a discussion of what line items need to be
amended. She continued and stated she understands there may be additional grant monies
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awarded later in the year, but would like to open the budget in February to start working with
accurate financial statements now.
Mrs. Farrens asked about the decrease in Recreational Fees on the proposed amended budget and
asked if $20,000 is the expected decrease in revenue this year. Clerk West confirmed. She
continued and stated they had set a high amount for Recreational Fees because our previous
Recreational Director had been promoted to full time and was expected to grow the programs
this year. However, once he left, the City decided to retain the same number of programs this
year as previous years. Clerk West further explained this reduction in revenue for Recreation
also required a reduction in expenses in Recreation to maintain a "zero budget". Mrs. Farrens
then asked about the increase in engineering costs. Mayor Gubler stated as the City grows there
will always be an increase in engineering costs. He continued and stated there is another grant
the City is seeking for additional sidewalks, but grants do not cover the cost of engineering.
Council President Geray asked if the proposed budget includes the grant funds for the road
rehabilitation project on Denning, Scoresby and Free. Clerk West confirmed the $2,000,000
grant for that project has been added to the "Grants" line item for General Revenue and the
"Capitol Improvements" line item for the General Expenses.
Clerk West stated there are a lot of projects that have been discussed and planned this year and
she would like to go over those specific numbers to assign priority. She continued and stated the
Road Rehabilitation project on the South side of town has a total expected cost of$2,100,000.
She stated the grant will cover the first $2,000,000, but the City will need to pay the additional
11140 $100,000 out of the General Capitol Improvements budget. Clerk West then stated the survey for
the park has already been approved for a cost of$12,000. She continued and stated that leaves
approximately $40,000 in the Capitol Improvements budget of the General Fund. Council
President Geray asked if there are other projects that have been discussed. He continued and
stated the South side road project is a large enough project that he doesn't believe there needs to
be any other projects scheduled for this year. Director Prouse stated the other project that has
been discussed is the Child Pedestrian Safety Grant to extend the sidewalks on Main Street from
Rockwood Avenue to Freedom Field Estates. Clerk West stated if the City is awarded that grant,
there would still be a potential cost to the City of$250,000. Mayor Gubler stated the City can
complete as much of that project with grant funds this year as possible and apply again next year
to cover the remaining cost and finish the project. He also stated they could scale the project
back to reduce the cost. Clerk West stated the City should be notified by April if we have been
awarded this grant.
Clerk West then stated there is $425,000 available in the Capitol Improvements budget of the
Water Fund. She stated there will be a discussion in the Regular Meeting tonight about
purchasing a piece of equipment that costs approximately $100,000, which would still leave
$325,000 available in this budget. Clerk West then explained as they discuss the South side road
project, those funds can be used to replace the water lines that cannot be paid for by the grant
funds. She also stated if the total cost of the water lines exceeds $325,000, there is additional
money available in the Water Fund savings. Director Prouse stated he believes the $325,000 is
sufficient to replace the water lines while the roads are being rebuilt for this project.
Clerk West stated she would like to have the budget amendment on the February agenda for
approval. She explained an increase on the Water Hook-Up Fees line item to account for new
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building permits that are expected in Countryside Estates. She then asked if anyone had
questions or concerns about any of the line items on the proposed budget. No concerns
mentioned.
Staff Reports —Clerk West stated the City's annual dinner for staff and elected officials will be
held this Friday at 6:30pm at Johnny Carino's. She stated nothing else to report.
Captain Glenn from Bonneville County Sheriff's Office (BCSO) stated the law enforcement
reports should be in the Council packets. He stated there has been a significant increase in traffic
stops from 2022 to 2023. He then explained other categories of calls. Council Member
Thompson expressed his appreciation for BCSO and the good job they do in our community.
Meeting Adjourned: 6:58 p.m.
COUNCIL APPROVED: February 27, 2024
Daniel Gubler, Mayor
ATTEST: ./la (.. /(d/f
eri West, City Clerk/Treasurer
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