Author: Theresa Rose

Congratulations to recently named award recipients of the 2021 Access Energy Cooperative Lineworker Scholarship program! Receiving $2000 toward a lineworker educational program are Dalton Gardner and Gavin Thompson.

Dalton will graduate from Mt. Pleasant Community High School. His plans are to attend the Powerline program at Northwest Community College next spring.

Gavin graduated from Danville High School in 2020. He also plans to attend the Powerline program at Northwest Community College. He is enrolled this May.

This is a new program for Access Energy Cooperative in 2021, in addition to the $9000 in scholarship money awarded to students whose parents or guardians of the applicant are members of Access Energy Cooperative. Winners are chosen based on their academics, achievements, community involvement, and a personal interview. They must be enrolled or planning to enroll in a lineworker educational program.

Access Energy Cooperative is as rural distribution electric cooperative, providing power to homes, farms, business and industry in 10 southeast Iowa counties.

AGENDA

Monday, May 3, 2021

Danville City Council, Danville City Hall

Order of business, regular session

NOTE:  The regular session may be conducted electronically as allowed by Iowa Code 21.8     Citizen comments:  Comments must be directed to the subject under consideration.  The presiding officer shall rule on the relevance of the citizen comments.  Citizens making personal, impertinent, or slanderous remarks may be barred by the presiding officer from further comment before the Council during the meeting.

1. Call to order at 6:00 p.m..

2. Accept or amend the agenda.

3. Open forum: A time set aside to receive comments from the public regarding city business.  The Mayor and City Council welcome comments from the public on any subject pertaining to City business, including items on this agenda.  You are asked to state your name and address for the record and to limit your remarks to five minutes in order that others may be given the opportunity to speak.  The Order of Business is at the discretion of the Chair.  No action will be taken.

4. Roosevelt Road Storm Sewer improvements.
5. Update on the project.
6. Action on Pay Estimate #1 from Fye Excavating Inc. for work done on the project so far.
7. Action on Change Order #1 pertaining to work being done on this project.
8. Action on any other items that pertain to the storm sewer improvements.

5. Fire Chief/Building Inspector report.
6. Approval of building permits as presented.
7. Approval of report if needed.

6. Public Works Supt. written report.
7. Approval of the written report as presented.

7. Approval of consent agenda.
8. Council minutes of April 19, 2021.
9. Signing of utility easements.
10. City Clerk to attend meeting in Donnellson, May 12^th.
11. Payment of bills.

8. Council reports and correspondence.
9. Update on the city’s website progress.  Action if needed.
10. Discussion on whether or not to amend the 2020/2021 budget.  Action to set public hearing date if needed.
11. Review email received from Regional Planning regarding the STBG application submitted.  Action by council if needed.
12. Review of current water and sewer rate structures.  Action if needed.

9. Adjournment. The next regular session of the Danville City Council is scheduled for Monday, May 17, 2021, Danville City Hall, 6:00 p.m..

Mount Pleasant Fire crews remained on the scene of a house fire this morning (Monday) at 1004 Redbud Lane.  As of 5:30 am there was still smoke coming from the roof of the single story home.  In addition to fire response, ambulance and utility crews were on standby.  KILJ doesn’t have any information on the cause as of this time.

On April 27 just after 3 am the Henry County Sheriff’s Office received a report of an assault in the 100 Block of East Commercial Street in Hillsboro. After an investigation, it was found that Corbin John Adam of Hillsboro physically assaulted a family member. Corbin left Hillsboro and went to Bonaparte where he was located and detained by the Van Buren County Sheriff’s Office.  He was transported back to Henry County where he was turned over to the Henry County Sheriff. Corbin is charged with Domestic Abuse Assault and Obstruction of Emergency Communications.

The Iowa Department of Transportation is requesting the public’s opinion on a project in eastern Iowa. Proposed improvements to U.S. Highway 61 from 235th Street, just north of Mediapolis in Des Moines County to one half mile north of Iowa Highway 78 in Louisa County would reconstruct just over five miles of U.S. 61 as a four-lane divided highway. This would also include a new diamond interchange at the Iowa Highway 78/Louisa County Road H-22 intersection just to the east of the current intersection. This project is scheduled during the 2024 construction season.

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Forty educators across Lee County have been awarded one of 12 available Iowa STEM Scale-Up Programs. These programs will impact a record 2,489 students in the county and offer curriculum in agriculture, robotics, energy, innovation, interactive math, and more. Now approaching the tenth year, these programs were awarded a total of $73,829.25 to cross-curricular educators from PreK-12 schools, after-school programs, and other educational organizations in Lee County. The Southeast Iowa Region received $142,560 impacting 3,638 students this upcoming school year. Lee County is a leader throughout the state for STEM Scale-up participation and is the only county where every public school building has participated. The STEM Scale-Up Program has demonstrated success in increasing student interest and achievement in STEM across all demographics.

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The Iowa Association of School Boards (IASB) invites communities to celebrate and thank their local school board members during School Board Recognition Month, May 1-31, 2021. This year’s theme is “School Boards: Leading Through Uncharted Waters” and pays tribute to these volunteers for their perseverance and leadership through the pandemic. More than 2,000 Iowa board members volunteer countless hours on board work each month. They receive no compensation, but many say the reward of service is more than enough. These locally elected school board members oversee $5.96 billion statewide in Iowa public schools for 487,651 students.

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The 2021 Mount Pleasant High School March Students of Character are JOSE GUZMAN PEREZ and BRIAN HUYNH. The April Students of Character TINA TRAN AND BRYCE WILSON! All of these students have demonstrated Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring, and Citizenship. Students are nominated by the MPCHS faculty each month. If you see these students at school or in the community, please tell them to keep up the good work!

Following a public hearing Wednesday, the Mount Pleasant City Council approved a formal lease with HCHC for use of city owned land.  An informal agreement has been in place for many years involving the spot where the hospital helicopter pad and E.R. parking are located. But it was determined this arrangement needed to be formalized.

Also, during the Council’s regular meeting….a public hearing was set for May 12 at 5:30 pm regarding the sale of city owned property to the Mount Pleasant School District.  The District would like to purchase the lot at 404 N. Lincoln, east of the Middle School for expanded parking.

Mayor Steve Brimhall was authorized to execute a formal utility easement needed for the City to extend sanitary and storm sewer infrastructure to serve the proposed Mitchell Town House development project on East Monroe Street. The easement is an agreement with Joe Mitchell and his family.

The Council approved two different contracts with Norris Asphalt Paving. One contract is for paving the west lot at the Mount Pleasant Police Department in the amount of $45,005.  The second is for work on South Grand Avenue at a cost of $41,812.50.  The Council also approved the purchase of a pressure washer for the Fire Department at a cost not to exceed $17,000.