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Council OKs Urban Renewal Plan amendment

Public hearings set on development agreement, tax levies for the budget and CDBG?projects

-Daily Freeman-Journal photo by Kelby Wingert Webster City Mayor John Hawkins gives the oath of office to new Webster City Police Department Officer Colt Richardson. Richardson, a 2016 Webster City High School graduate, will attend the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy in April.

The Webster City City Council held a public hearing to discuss the proposed Urban Renewal Plan amendment to the 2013 Red Bull Division Urban Renewal Area during Monday night’s city council meeting.

City staff did not receive any written objections prior to the hearing, nor were there any oral objections given during the hearing.

Following the hearing, Karla Wetzler, city planner, explained the need for the Urban Renewal Plan amendment.

“This is just when we undertake a new project in an Urban Renewal Area, we have to amend that plan to include that project,” she said. “So that’s simply all this is doing is listing the specific project that will be taking place in that urban renewal area by listing their name, what they’re going to do, where it’s at.”

This new project is the use of the former Shopko building at 200 Red Bull Division Drive, which was purchased earlier this year by Gary and Brenda Fox, which is expected to house an Appliance Plus and a U.S. Cellular store.

“That has to be set out in the Urban Renewal Plan before we can take anymore action on that project,” Wetzler explained.

The council voted unanimously to pass the resolution amending the Urban Renewal Plan.

To start off the meeting, Mayor John Hawkins gave the oath of office to new Webster City Police Department officer Colt Richardson.

In other business, the city council passed a first reading of a proposed ordinance amending an existing ordinance to create a no-parking zone on Fair Meadow Drive on both sides of the road from Hospital Drive, east to the end of Fair Meadow Drive.

The council also voted to approve the renewal of a Class B Native Wine Permit and Living Quarters for Heart N Home, 1423 Superior St. Hy-Vee Webster City was also approved for a special Class C Liquor License and Class B Native Wine Permit for a healthy cooking class special event that will be held on March 10.

The city council also set a series of public hearings for various issues.

The first is on a development agreement with Gary and Brenda Fox, who purchased the former Shopko building at 200 Red Bull Division Drive, including annual appropriation tax increment payments.

The second is to consider the maximum tax dollars from certain levies for the city of Webster City proposed fiscal year 2020-2021 budget.

The third hearing will be on the status of funded activities for the Webster City Community Development Block Grant projects status.

Those three public hearings will be during the March 2 city council meeting.

A fourth hearing, which will be during the March 16 city council meeting, will address the proposed plans, specifications and estimated cost for the 2020 Wilson Brewer Park Grounds Improvement Project.

Following the regular city council meeting, the council held a work session to discuss long-term capital planning with Michael Maloney from D.A. Davidson Company, a Des Moines brokerage firm to discuss municipal investment management.

The next Webster City City Council meeting will be at 6 p.m. on March 2, at City Hall. City council meetings are always open to the public.

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