With the city working to keep its budget tight and efficient, there was some fierce and spirited debate regarding three proposals in particular during the Fort Madison City Council meeting last Tuesday.
The council voted 1-5 to reject a proposal to purchase a small portion of the parking lot at Pizza Hut, located at 1123 24th St., to help secure an easement that will allow for the creation of an 8-foot-wide walking trail at the northwest corner of 24th Street and Avenue L.
City staff had been working for months with Summit Pizza, Inc., the owners of the Pizza Hut, to negotiate the terms of the sale, which would have removed one spot from Pizza Hut’s parking lot and, in turn, the city was to pay Summit Pizza $5,000 to cover legal fees associated with the purchase.
The purchase was recommended to the council by both Public Works Director Mark Bousselot and City Manager Laura Liegois.
But after reading the resolution from the agenda and describing the terms of the easement agreement, Mayor Matt Mohrfeld made his feelings about the proposal known to the council.
“I think this is a terrible idea,” Mohrfeld said. “It’s to pay for this easement that is about the size of that podium just so that we have a section of it that (slightly larger). It bottlenecks there because of the traffic light.
“I like Pizza Hut’s pizza, but they’re gonna get a nice wellness trail in front of there and I think they should work with the city a little more than this. I don’t think $5,000 for that little wedge of ground is right. I think it sets a bad precedent as we more forward with our PORT trails and easements.”
Bousselot said he agreed that the purchase was “a lot of money.”
“Where we differ is we’ve been working with Pizza Hut a long time (now) trying to get this easement,” Bousselot said, adding that the city was supposed to have all the easements secured when they were working to get the Department of Transportation (DOT) to approve the trails.
But that was not the case with the portion next to Pizza Hut, so the design was narrowed from 8 feet to 5 feet wide to get around the traffic signal, which allowed the city to bid for that portion of the trail and get approval from the DOT, according to Bousselot, who added that the city had been working with Summitt Pizza to get the easement to keep the trail consistently 8 feet wide.
When Bousselot asked the council why the city should settle for that narrow portion of the trail while the rest is 8 feet wide (as the project was initially planned) Councilman Dustin Yager bluntly answered: “Because they want $5,000.”
Councilman Rusty Andrews questioned the necessity of the purchase.
“If you (leave that portion of the trail only five-feet-wide), who’s gonna be mad?” Andrews asked.
When the resolution finally came to a vote, Councilwoman Angela Roller was the lone YES vote. Councilman Jack Gray was not present at the meeting.
Architecture Firm Decided On For New Public Works Building
The council then voted unanimously to approve a professional services agreement with Solum Lang Architects, LLC, of Cedar Rapids, to help design a new public works building.
Under the terms of the agreement, Solum Lang will be paid $175,000 to provide the initial design for the building.
The vote came after Mohrfeld requested it be tabled during the council’s March 4 meeting, stating at the time that he wanted to research the design and costs of Lee Count’s Secondary Roads Building in West Point and make sure there wasn’t a cheaper but still viable option for the for the desired structure.
But after reviewing state building codes, the city determined an architect and engineer would be needed to design the building due to its size.
The new public works building will needed due to one of the existing buildings, located at 2201 Avenue M, being set to be torn down to make way for the new fire station.
The new public works building is also being designed to allow for additional space to be added in the future to allow for the full consolidation of the Public Works Department and be paid for with funds from the Public Works Department’s budget, which is tentatively estimated at $2 million.
During the meeting, Mohrfeld said he was still concerned about the cost of the project.
“I think it’s critical from the start of the design person to every single corner that can be watched that we are conscientious of the cost,” Mohrfeld told the council.
“(It’s important) when every dollar counts when you’re (working on this kind of project). We’re paying a $175,000 to design a 100-by-150-square box. I’m sorry, but that is not a bargain.
“(Solum Lang) is going to tell me that is an acceptable percentage by the state’s standard, and he’s not wrong. But when you compare that to the (building in West Point only costing) $10,000 to do their building, it’s a different approach.”
Al Buck, an architect for Solum Lang, was at the meeting and said that the goal would be to keep expenses for the new faciltiy as low as possible and that the building is expected to be able to be used for the next 75-100 years, but said the proposed size and code requirements of the building all factor into the price of his firm’s design costs.
“We’re talking about a 15,000 square foot pre-engineered metal building for the storage of commercial vehicles,” Buck told the council. “Unfortunately, that triggers a lot of code requirements when you get into that size. You got to (distribute a sprinkler system throughout the building), otherwise you’d have to divide it up into 5,000 square foot chunks...you gotta heat it, you gotta have ventilation. (There’s just many) code requirements that we’re obligated to meet and factor into that (design).
“We can keep (the design) as bare bones as possible knowing that it is meant to be a storage facility...(But Comparing the West Point building to this project) is like comparing apples to oranges from a building standpoint.”
Mohrfeld did praise Solum Lang’s work on the design for the new fire station at the meeting, and reiterated the importance of the new public works building be done for the “a bare bones” price.
City Partners With SEIRPC for James Block Building
The council unanimously approved a contract for the city to work with the Southeast Iowa Regional Planning Commission (SEIRPC) to help develop a Request for Proposals (RFP) package to help secure a new developer for the old James Block Building, located at 732 Avenue G.
The city bought the old building in March 2022, repaired the outer wall afterwards, and has invested $192,813 in the initial temporary wall repair, design for finishing the wall, and other miscellaneous items.
Beyond those costs, the city has also paid for liability coverage for insurance for the building.
In October 2022, the city entered into an agreement with Barker Financial to have two years to make a purchase and rehabilitate the building into upper story apartments and commercial space below.
But in December, Barker Financial informed the city they are no longer interested in pursuing the purchase or rehabbing the building.
Under the terms of the new agreement, the city will pay SEIRPC $5,000 for their assistance.
Yager and Councilman Rick Thele both questioned the timeline of the pending grant funds that the city plans on using to stabilize one of the walls in the building, as well as the feasibility of fixing the roof, which has been leaking water inside the building and causing ongoing damage.
Liegois reiterated working with SEIRPC would help get the RFPs out to potential developers quicker than if city staff were to undertake the task in-house and that SEIRPC would also be providing additional assistance, if needed.
Despite the hesitancy from some members of the council, Andrews argued that working with SEIRPC would be crucial.
“If (the building has a chance of finding the right developer), it’s going to take the help of (SEIRPC),” Andrews said.
“If we’re giving it any chance, you need their help. If you’re not, then the next meeting, we need to vote on the demolition.”
