The Ames City Council discussed a change for the speed limit on Oakwood Road and awarded the Ames Animal Shelter with a plaque for achieving a 90% save rate in 2022.
“This accomplishment represents so much more than a number,” read Mayor John Haila from a letter of commendation from the Best Friends Animal Society. “It represents a culture of caring and compassion. It represents a dedicated staff, committed volunteers and motivated supporters. It presents innovative and thoughtful programming and represents extraordinary leadership votes within your organization and within our broader animal welfare movement.”
JHB Group, a manufacturer based in Illinois, was awarded a contract for the purchase of a mobile operations trailer, costing $214,233. Previously, the city was using an old CyRide bus from the 1980s, which has become outdated. It was used as an incident command bus when there was major flooding or large-scale disasters or as a place for residents of Ames to escape harsh weather conditions. In order to operate this bus, a person was to have a special type of license.
Converting it from a bus to a trailer, the vehicle could be pulled by any city vehicle, and the driver would not need a special license. Instead of only being used in drastic situations, it can be more of a mobile City Hall, according to Fire Chief Richard Higgins.
The trailer can be used by any city department to help ease residents with things such as registrations for finance or utilities. It will have a service window, an awning, panning cameras and thermal imaging capabilities. On the inside, there will be workstations that can be used to operate the dispatch center or offices that are not able to function at that given time. There will also still be a rehabilitation space for people to escape weather conditions.
Bond
A resolution considering a bond sale of over $12.5 million was brought up to the council. It was from KeyBanc Capital Markets out of Cleveland, with a true interest rate of about 4.05%. These are 12-year general obligation bonds to fund the city’s Capital Improvement Plan. Ward 2 Rep. Tim Gartin gave his support for the bond sale by pointing out how good he thinks the bond is for city taxpayers.
“I think it’s always a good place to point out the reason why we can borrow at this rate is because of the fiscal responsibility, and I give a lot of credit to City Manager [Steve] Schainker and the finance team for keeping us in a place where we can do this. Many cities can’t possibly borrow at this rate,” Gartin said.
Phase three of the intelligent transportation system, which is a road map for intelligent transportation systems deployment and integration within the Ames Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, was also brought to the attention of the council. It affects the Homewood Golf Course, which is deemed a section four F property, meaning it is a publicly owned recreational area. The installation of a fiber line in the ground was approved. According to the city, the project will not affect the golf course in any way.
The council passed a motion directing City Attorney Mark Lambert to draft an ordinance establishing a 35-mph speed limit on Oakwood Road from University Boulevard to Timberland Road and a 40-mph limit from Timberland Road to State Avenue.
A resolution was brought to attention about widening South 16th Street. It would increase to two lanes and add a new traffic signal at South Riverside Street. The project would place through construction seasons in 2024, 2025 and 2026 to ensure it does not cause any issues with any athletic events at Iowa State.
