City Council Postpones Resolution On Regional Airport 28E Amendment

Oskaloosa City Hall

By Eduardo Zamarripa, CRI Weekly News

Oskaloosa, Iowa – The discussion on the regional airport 28E agreement amendment will have to wait at least two more weeks.

A death in the family prevented Mayor Dave Krutzfeldt from attending the City Council meeting. However, the mayor wrote a letter to the council issuing a request to remove the resolution from the agenda (Item 15) that would deny the request by Mahaska County to amend the 28E agreement that includes the cities of Oskaloosa and Pella in the construction of a regional airport. His request said that Oskaloosa is waiting for information from the Federal Aviation Administration that “may be critical to this decision.”

Three weeks ago, the Mahaska County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to approve a resolution that amends the 28E agreement and removes the eminent domain clause from the agreement. Eminent domain refers to the government’s right to take private property for public use. However, in order for the resolution to have any effect, the cities of Oskaloosa and Pella also have to agree to remove the eminent domain clause. If either city turns down the proposal, then the resolution has no power and the amendment does not happen.

City Council member Doug Yates read the following from Krutzfeldt’s letter:

“At the time of preparing this agenda for this evening’s meeting (Monday), I made the decision to include Item 15. The resolution denying the request by Mahaska County to amend the 28E agreement regardingeminent domain. My thinking was to re-state our approval of the agreement in its current form in an expeditious manner. Since then, I’ have been informed of the desire for additional information from the Federal Aviation Administration regarding the requirement of eminent domain. In particular, the desire is for the FAA to specifically address the implications on federal funding for the project if eminent domain is removed. The request for this information has already been sent, so we are currently waiting for a reply. Since there is no particular urgency in taking up Item 15, and the information from the FAA may be critical to this decision, it is my request that this item be taken off from tonight’s agenda. Please accept my apologies for the late notice and unnecessary preparation.”

Yates followed the letter by making a motion to take off the item from the agenda until they receive the information from the FAA. City Council member Aaron Ver Steeg did not think the item should be taken off the agenda.

“I don’t know if that’s a good reason to take it off the agenda. We are asking something from the FAA that we already know,” Versteeg said.

The council approved the motion with only Versteeg voting “no.”

The council also held the first reading considering an ordinance amending Chapter 17.28 of the city code regarding the parking of recreational vehicles on a property. These are some of the proposed changes:

• Change the allowed height of an RV on a property from eight feet to 13 feet and six inches
• Change the allowed length of an RV on a property from 25 feet to no restriction
• RVs can’t be parked, or stored, within 20 feet of the back of the curve, or edge of pavement of a property
• Add gravel and crushed stone as surfaces where an RV can be parked on a property
  • This only applies to campers; heavy commercial vehicles can still only be parked on a property’s hard surface

According to Chapter 17.04.030 of the code, an RV is defined as “a vehicle towed or self-propelled on its own chassis or attached to the chassis of another vehicle and designed or used for temporary dwelling, recreational, or sporting purposes. Recreational vehicles include, but are not limited to, travel trailers; campers; motor coach homes; converted buses and trucks, boats, and boat trailers.”

A member from the public spoke against the part of the amendment that says RVs can’t be parked, or stored, within 20 feet of the back of the curve, or edge of pavement of a property, claiming 20 feet is not a realistic number. The council unanimously approved a motion for the council to go into a work session regarding the ordinance.

The council also held a public hearing considering an ordinance to vacate and sell 60′ by 16.5′ feet of the North-South public alley adjacent to 835 South 2nd Street. Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Jon Zobel said the neighbors from the area have discussed the issue with the resident purchasing that portion and that they are in agreement with the purchase.

The council unanimously approved the following payments:

• Pay request No. 3 to Norris Asphalt Paving Company in the amount of $165,709.17 for work completed on the South 7th Street pavement rehabilitation project
• Pay request No.4 in the amount of $4,854.50, completing the final amount of $13,437.25, to TK Concrete, Inc. accepting the completion of the East Mall parking improvements project

The council also scheduled a public hearing for Sept. 3 to consider levying a special assessment against private property for weed cutting. In addition to that, the council unanimously approved two resolutions:

• Preliminary approval of plans, specifications, form of contract and cost for ordering publication of notice of hearing and notice to bidders on the C Avenue East and North 3rd Street pavement rehabilitation project
• Approval of the contract and bond for the West Area sanitary sewer improvements project to Delong Construction, Inc. in an amount not to exceed $498,671.50, and to authorize the city manager to utilize an additional 5 percent ($24,933.57) for project contingency

The next City Council meeting is on August 19 at 6 p.m.