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Tuesday, September 4, 2007

Voters approve local option sales tax extension Life Line Screening in Manchester Council discusses nuisance abatements, other business

Voters approve local option sales tax extension

Delaware County residents approved an extension for the local option sales and service tax on Tuesday, Aug. 28. Although voter turnout was only 7.5 percent, the residents approved the tax with 726 ‘yes’ votes and 185 ‘no’ votes. The tax, which will now extend from Jan. 1, 2010 until Dec. 31, 2019, is collected by adding an additional one-cent per dollar on purchases subject to the Iowa sales tax. This tax is not paid on purchases of groceries, medicine, automobiles, farm machinery, industrial equipment, motor fuel, lottery tickets and many other services. The Iowa Treasurer credits the local sales and services receipts into a Delaware County account and remits funds monthly to the taxing jurisdictions where the tax is in effect. The formula used to figure the amount of the remittance is 75 percent on the basis of population and 25 percent on property tax dollars levied for ten years from Jan. 1, 2010 through Dec. 31, 2019. Delaware County’s allocated sales tax amount is calculated using the total countywide taxes levied by the Board of Supervisors during this period. Due to the allocation formula, and figuring approximately $70 million in sales in a 12-month period, the Delaware County Board of Supervisors would receive a rough estimate of approximately $700,000 as its share for a 12-month time frame. The Board of Supervisors has designated that 90 percent of any county allocation be spent for construction and maintenance of hard surfaced roads in rural Delaware County. The other 10 percent would be spent on capital improvements to the Delaware County Courthouse, Penn Center, Fairgrounds and other venues. The funds cannot be spent on other budgeted items. The cities of Delaware County, with the exception of Edgewood, will also be voting at the same time to continue receiving their share for city projects and uses. Some of the county projects done with the one cent local option tax are as follows: (for the courthouse) parking lot resurfacing, new boiler, security cameras, flooring for steps and entrance, county attorney’s office, auditor’s office, conference room and assessor’s office renovations, roofing, steeple repairs, air conditioning for the court room, windows, street project assessments, security mailbox, smoke alarm and security system; (parks) conservation building repairs; roof and soffits on the Delaware County DHS building; (jail facilities) remodel – electrical and air conditioning, emergency generator, sheriff’s office cabinets, security doors and service window; (fairgrounds) walks and parking, water lines to install fire hydrant, Rec Center handicap walks; handicap parking and roadway by pavilion; (Penn Center) lagoon repair and liner, electrical and air conditioning for main building, carpet and ceilings; plus 23.07 miles of surfaced roads. Out of 12,069 registered voters in Delaware County, only 911 turned out to vote for the local option sales and service tax. Another election, for the SILO tax, will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 25.

Life Line Screening in Manchester by Ken Boesenberg

On September 6 residents of Manchester and the surrounding area can take advantage of a screening process that can help in the early detection of heart disease. Life Line Screening will be offering their four part screening package in Manchester at the Community Center on Thursday beginning at 9:00 a.m. Ultrasound technology is used to examine the arteries in the legs and arms, carotid arteries in the neck and the abdominal aorta. There is also a bone density screening to assess osteoporosis risk offered. Life Line Screening was established in 1993, and has become the nation’s leading provider of preventive screenings. The number three leading killer in the world is a stroke. Strokes are responsible for more nursing home admissions than any other illness. The majority of strokes are caused by the build up of plaque in the carotid arteries. Early detection of plaque build up in the carotid arteries can go a long way towards preventing one from having a debilitating stroke. Another part of the screening is for the possible formation of an abdominal aortic aneurysm. An aneurysm is a dilation of a blood vessel that poses a risk to your health because of its potential for rupture. The rupturing of an aneurysm in the brain causes a stroke while the rupture of an aneurysm in the abdominal aorta causes blood loss, shock and may often times be fatal. There are a number of risk factors that are involved in developing an aneurysm, namely atherosclerotic plaque buildup, smoking, and high blood pressure. In recent years there have been some studies that show a certain amount of genetic susceptibility may be involved. Screening for PAD, peripheral arterial disease, is another way of early detection of possible heart disease. Nearly one in every 20 Americans over the age of 50 has peripheral arterial disease. It develops when arteries in the legs become clogged with plaque, fatty deposits that limit blood flow to the legs. Just like clogged arteries in the heart, clogged arteries in the legs mean you are at risk for having a heart attack or a stroke. Early detection of these possible causes of heart disease or stroke can help prolong your life. If you are interested in undergoing the Life Line Screening you may call 1-800-697-9721 for an appointment as pre-registration is required.

Council discusses nuisance abatements, other business by Latisha Sand

The Manchester City Council discussed, and approved, several items at their recent meeting, which was held on Monday, Aug. 27. Among those items were several nuisance abatements. According to City Attorney Jim Peters, the Hauser’s home has been demolished with the basement filled in and the concrete removed. A judge has approved the Bailey house demolition and the Hughes home was discussed again. At the last council meeting, the council decided to have Peters write up a proposal to give to the Hughes Memorial Trust as to what needed to be done to meet the requirements of the nuisance abatement without having to go to court. Peters has a document saying the house must be painted, all the broken glass replaced and the steps put on by a certain date. After the deadlines pass, the court will hold property reviews to make sure those items were completed. As for the back porch, Peters said Marty Kelzer, building inspector for the city, said the building is structurally sound. Council member and Hughes Trust member Jeff Ogden was not present at the meeting to discuss the items. The council also held a public hearing for the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) for the Community Childcare Project. The council was informed that the Storyland portion of the project received $50,000 grant for new playground equipment. According to Manchester City Manager, Tim Vick, the center and committee is looking at a play structure with possible swings. The Carousel portion of the project did not receive the grant because they are in a 500-year flood plan but they will be applying for other grants. “The childcare group is happy with how things are going,” said Vick. “We have a new director and two on-site supervisors hired. Everything is working out well.” The CDBG grant helped the committee purchase Storyland and Carousel childcare centers. An environmental review was completed by the city, which released the CDBG funds on June 25. Community Childcare of Manchester purchased the properties on Friday, June 29 and the buildings re-opened under the new ownership that following Monday, July 2. “We are going to try to continue to expand, offer new programs and keep the facilities up,” said Vick, who is a member of the committee. Vick reminded the council that the centers are not just for Manchester residents. The centers are a non-profit organization with seven appointed members. Ryan Wicks, of TeKippe Engineering, gave the council a proposed cost for the River Front Trail Walkway, which will follow the Maquoketa River from the Marion Street bridge to north of the Main Street bridge, with a parking lot in the former Don and Walt location. The council approved TeKippe’s estimated cost of $125,050. The schedule for the project includes a field study in September of this year, design in October 2007 and bid letting by May 2008. The project would be completed in August 2008 and finalized in September of 2008. The council was also updated on Schram Park and the Tirrill Park Bandshell seating projects. Parks and Recreation Director Ben Page informed the council that there is money and several grants have been coming in for Schram Park. The most recent grant was from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. They are awarding the department a $17,200 Marine Inland Fuel Tax grant for a 15 feet by 114 feet boat ramp for the Maquoketa River at Schram Park. The construction of boat ramp and rip-rap along the river will begin sometime this month. The council was informed of an $8,000 donation from Mrs. Justice for Tirrill Park Bandshell seating project. The project already has a $10,000 Tirrill Trust allocation, a $2,000 grant from the Foundation for the Future of Delaware County and now the remaining $8,000 from Justice. The seats that will be used are also used in several Major League Baseball stadiums across the country. The Tirrill Bandshell will be the first bandshell to use such seating. The cost to the city for the project will be to remove the existing seating. The work would be done next spring. The council also approved: • the contract with AHTS Architects out of Waterloo for the Manchester Fire Station remodel and addition • three voluntary early retirement requests from William Nading, Lyle Kluesner and Leona Meyer. “The employees have been great employees and have dedicated a large part of their lives to us,” said Manchester City Manager Tim Vick. • the purchase of a new 2008 Chevy Impala from Bob Stephen Motors in Manchester to replace the Manchester Police Department’s K-9 squad car, which is the oldest car the department has. The motor in the existing K-9 vehicle needs to be replaced and since the department did not replace or trade a vehicle last year, there was $19,000 in the budget for a new car. The bid was in the amount of $19,419.45. The council also heard from Jeff Robertson, the Strawberry Point City superintend. “We’ve had some tough times over the years,” said Robertson, explaining to the council that they have had no one to operate their sewer or water facilities. “I want to personally thank Manchester for allowing Loren [Harbaugh] and Marty [Kelzer] for coming up and helping us out during the tough times. You are lucky to have them as employees.” Robertson explained that the city has hired level one and level two operators and will only need Harbaugh for a couple of more months. “This just shows cooperation between two communities,” said Manchester Mayor Milt Kramer.

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