Memorial Hall, airport accountings, snow removal budgets, pool opening also discussed
The newly remodeled Eagles Wings facility “looks really great,” City Administrator Bryce Davis informed the council as part of the discussion regarding Resolution 2024-10, to modify the Economic Development Grant Agreement between the city and the preschool/daycare. But “the Daycare Board had some non-substantial concerns, and some substantial concerns” with the wording of the current agreement, and in order to address those concerns and to comply with current law, “this is one of the steps we have to take,” Davis explained.
Among the Daycare Board’s concerns, Davis noted, was wording that could be mis-read to suggest the facility must be maintained in its current state forever. Which, Davis said, was impossible. “If you put 100 kids in a building (daily) the paint is not going to last, there’s going to be scuffs,” Davis offered as one example of wear and tear to come.
Therefore, changing the language to prevent future misunderstandings and any potential misguided future attempts to clawback funding, was prudent, Davis explained. The Council voted unanimously to approve the resolution, with councilman Al Pamperin (who was a driving force of the remodeling effort) noting “it looks very awesome down there. The morale, and the kids are very happy.”
Davis also informed the Council of progress in getting heat to the Rec Center building. Meters had been installed, Davis said. And following an upcoming inspection MidAmerican Energy will be able to “flip the switch” to bring heat to the facility. The Parks & Recreation department will receive the bills for the heat, Davis noted.
In the 2023 Annual Report for Memorial Hall, it was noted that revenues for fiscal year 2023 totaled $7,790.40, while expenses totaled $15,902.00, resulting in an $8,111.60 loss for the year. That loss was due to the extensive upgrades, repairs, and cleaning that had been done to the center in FY 2023, and was not typical, as discussed by City Finance Officer Amy Willard, and City Clerk Araceli Day, as well as Councilman Axtell, who in 2023 had been a member of the Memorial Hall Commission, before being elected to the City Council.
And since the cost to rent the hall had been raised in 2023, Axtell noted, revenues had been trending up, and could be expected to increase in FY 2024.
In the Eagle Grove Airport’s Annual Report the financial picture was much rosier. Revenues totaled $21,037.00, and expenses were only $6,989.83 – resulting in a profit of $14,047.67.
It was noted that this profit came even after the city sealed cracks in the runways and repainted the runway lines. A big part of this profit was attributed to removing the airplane fuel from the facility, which Davis noted had been frequently stolen. However, the accounting showed that the majority of the revenue came from the cash rent of the farmland at the airport, which earned $17,487 compared to only $3,550 in hangar rent, with 6 of the 8 total hangars occupied.
Moving to discussion of the snow removal budget in the wake of the recent blizzards, Mayor Boyd noted that “there was some vehicles towed during the recent snow. There were some tickets.” And, City Administrator Davis explained, “we’re starting to see the overtime, thanks to the snow.” Also, Davis pointed out, some equipment “just kinda broke down during that.” However, the repairs are well within the budget, and the city is still under budget for snow removal.
And, Davis also noted, repairs for the pool were expected to be completed in time to open the pool on schedule. Barring any unforeseen issues that could still arise.
