Committee of the Whole Meeting

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE City Hall – Council Chambers July 9, 2018 The Committee of the Whole met in the Council Chambers at 5:50 p.m. on July 9, 2018, with the following Committee persons in attendance: Mayor Pro Tem Tom Blanford, Frank Darrah, Susan deBuhr, Rob Green, Daryl Kruse, Mark Miller, and David Wieland. Staff members attended from all City Departments. Tom Nelson with the Waterloo Courier, Lyndsey Anderson and Tammy Turner both with Waste Trac and other members of the community attended. Mayor Pro Tem Blanford called the meeting to order and introduced the first item on the agenda of Library Board of Trustee Interview of Michael Sulentic. Mr. Sulentic gave the committee a brief history of himself. He stated he is a UNI graduate and resident for over 25 years. A brief discussion was held. Mayor Pro Tem Blanford introduced the second item on the agenda Recycling Facility Update. Brian Heath Public Works and Parks Manager updated the committee on the recycling facility. He stated they continue to have destination based drop off sites for recycling. The City has six locations. He stated there are environmental concerns with curbside recycling including fossil fuel consumption, noise and air pollution, equipment maintenance and quality of recyclables. He stated the recyclables are picked up sorted and most of the products are made into mill grade bales. Mr. Heath stated this is our second full year of shingle recycling. The recycled shingles go into making new asphalt roads. Other items recycled are appliances, glass, electronic waste, batteries, tires, and scrap metal. He stated by providing this service this reduces that amount of waste going to the landfill; this equates to 18.42% overall diversion rate. Mr. Heath reviewed the commodity pricing for the last three years. He stated there are global factors affecting the commodity pricing such as policy’s enacted by China and oil prices. Mayor Pro Tem Blanford opened it up for questions from Council. Mr. Heath answered questions with regards to curbside recycling, additional drop off sites and shingle recycling. He stated they continue to look for additional recycling initiatives such as recycling used carpet. Mr. Heath introduced Lyndsey Anderson and Tammy Turner from Waste Trac. Ms. Anderson explained they are located at 1500 Bluff Street, the old Public Works office location. She stated they have a hotline for residents to call in on for questions they may have. They also have information on the Black Hawk County Solid Waste Management Commission website and Facebook and they send out newsletters. Ms. Turner stated they are having a drop off event on September 22, at the City Municipal Operations Complex at 2200 Technology Parkway. She stated they continue to seek volunteers for the event. She stated in prior years they have had as much as 100 pallets of electronics dropped off. Ms. Turner reviewed statistics from a statewide garbage characterization study completed by Iowa-DNR. She explained that food waste is the second highest for 2017. Top 5 Categoies of MSW Typle of Waste 2005 2011 2017 Paper (Includes Cardboard) 33.00% 25.20% 25.50% Plastic 14.90% 16.70% 18.30% Food Waste 10.60% 13.30% *20.00% Construction 13.50% 13.50% 5.40% 72.00% 68.70% 49.20% * 2017 (Food waste includes both loose and packaged food) She said they continue to coordinate education events and outreach activities at the landfill and the Cedar Falls Recycling Facility. A brief discussion was held. Mayor Pro Tem Blanford introduced the third item on the agenda, Floodplain Ordinance. David Sturch, Planner III reviewed the amendments recommend by Iowa DNR after their visit to the City of Cedar Falls in 2017. He explained these changes will help in administering our floodplain program and how staff is monitoring it. He reviewed the changes, which added definitions; performance standards for detached structures; and will maintain consistency with the floodplain regulations in the zoning ordinance and the storm water management program. He explained the City is in good standing with the IA-DNR and the National Flood Insurance Program. Mr. Sturch explained the proposed changes to the definitions subsection and that they will help Cedar Falls continue to keep their good rating with the Community Rating System Program. He explained these have been reviewed by Planning & Zoning Commission this spring. Frank Darrah motioned to have staff draft the amendment to the floodplain ordinance. Rob Green seconded the motion. A brief discussion was held. The motion carried unanimously. Mayor Pro Tem introduced the final item on the agenda bills and two payrolls. Susan deBuhr motioned to approve the bills as presented and Frank Darrah seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. There being no further discussion Mayor Pro Tem Blanford adjourned the meeting at 6:53 p.m. Minutes by Lisa Roeding, Controller/City Treasurer