City Council Approves Three Grant Applications
Oskaloosa City Hall
By Eduardo Zamarripa, CRI Weekly News
Oskaloosa, Iowa – The Oskaloosa City Council unanimously approved three different grant applications on Monday night. The applications will be submitted to the Mahaska County Community Foundation.
The applications seek to receive funding for the following items:
- Fixed-route transit bus system ($10,000)
- Speed radar traffic sign ($3,652)
- Edmundson Park Disc golf course improvements ($7,216)
The Transit Committee is working with 10-15 Transit on bringing a bus route to Oskaloosa. If the project receives funding from the Iowa Department of Transportation, then that money covers 80 percent of the project’s cost the first year, and 65 percent the second year. The funding for the project is based on ridership.
“If no one rides it, then we don’t get money. The idea is that you get funding based on the number of people that ride the route,” said Oskaloosa City Manager Michael Schrock.
Schrock said the potential funding from the grant will be used as seed money to kick-start the project.
“We’re trying to build up ridership, and then, by the time the DOT walks away from it, you should have a good idea of how many people you have, and what you’re funding should be,” Schrock said.
In an interview with CRI last month, Bus Route Organizer Amy Langdon said the committee has to raise $25,000 from local sponsors to cover the rest of the funding for those first two years.
The proposed bus route would operate Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m, once an hour. The proposed route is not set in stone, but the bus tentatively will make 15 stops. Those include: Hy-Vee, the Agency on Aging, Mahaska Health Partnership, the YMCA, the Christian School, and the Webster School.
The Oskaloosa Police Department wants to purchase two speed radar traffic signs. One sign will be purchased through the city, and the other sign would be purchased through the grant.
The signs are portable and they collect a car’s speed, the time of day, and the number of vehicles that pass the sign.
Councilman Tom Walling asked OPD Chief Jake McGee why two speed radar traffic signs were needed.
“I’d like to put them in the school zones, have them at two different school zones,” McGee said.
The council also unanimously approved the award of contract and bond to Steven’s Concrete, Inc. for the First Avenue East Sidewalk Project. Steven’s Concrete Inc. submitted the lowest bid for the project, estimating a construction cost of $94,478, and a design cost of $30,600. The project includes the following:
- New 10-foot wide concrete sidewalk
- New curb and gutter
- Composite pavement
- New street lights with underground electrical connections
- Intakes and storm drains
The project is located on the north side of First Avenue East from North First Street to North Second Street, and along the west side of North Second Street from First Avenue East to the law enforcement parking lot. The total cost of the project ($125,078) will be shared by the city ($87,156) and the property owners ($37,922). The property owners will pay for the concrete sidewalk. The approximate completion time is 30 days.
The council unanimously appointed Janel Campbell to the Historic Preservation Commission for an unexpired term that ends Dec. 31, and re-appointed Jakab Huyser to the Civil Service Commission for a four-year term. The council also went into closed session to discuss litigation matters before adjourning.
The next city council meeting is on April 7 at 6 p.m.
