April 4 Council Meeting

Had a council meeting just over an hour tonite. Some of the things discussed or mentioned:
Fire hydrants will be flushed on April 12 and 13. So those aren't the best of days to do your white laundry. That can stir up dirt and rust in the water system.

Got a report from the folks that went to the Ragbrai meeting in Webster City over the weekend. They will be looking for more help to pull this off. They have a book of tips and ideas for communities hosting--from bike parking, to shade, to permits for vendors. More to come on this.

Britany Danielsen of the Library Foundation talked to the council about the city taking over maintenance of the lot the Foundation holds, kitty corner from the post office(formerly the Heart of Iowa Co-Op office building was there). Since it was a bare lot, it wouldn't be much, other than keeping the weeds down. The council decided they didn't really want to take that on right now.

The council talked about the trunk line sewer again, and got an update that the proposed route has been surveyed. There was input from the public regarding sewer flows on the east side of Roland, and what was to be done there. If I can restate the consensus of the council--they are aware of issues in many spots in the city. However, they wish to start closest to the sewer plant, and work back. Also, the new sump pump plan will also hopefully get excess water out of the system.

The council also approved the hiring of Doug Gerjets as the new park maintenance employee. He is replacing Ed Nerem, who passed away. Doug will be in charge of mowing at the city parks and maintaining the facilities in the parks. It is a part-time position, with a lot more hours to be done during the heavy grass mowing spring season.