The West Delaware School Board met in its regular session on Monday, March 10, in the District Conference Center.

The meeting got underway with the Spotlight on Education awards. Three eighth grade students were recognized for placing first, second and third in the Eastern Iowa Reading Council 2007 Poetry Contest.

The winning eighth grade poem entitled Music was written by Shelby Gudenkauf. Shelby is the daughter of Randy and Tammy Gudenkauf.

Placing second was Tyler Morrison. Tyler is the son of Mike and Tracy Morrison.

Third place went to Autumn Reeder. Autumn is the daughter of Gary and Donna Reeder.
All three were presented plaques by Middle School Principal and Director of Special Education, Randy Stanek.

Other winners from the West Delaware County Community School District were: 2nd grade – Drew Wubbena, “Making Pizza With My Dad; 9th grade – Ben Engelken, “If You Have Not Seen the Mill Pond; 10th grade – Gretchen Fisher, “Pain”; 11th grade – Kaitlin Gudenkauf, “Stormy Nights”; 12th grade – Dorothy Meyer, “That Boy”.

The Board had two work sessions scheduled, the first being with the Physical Education and Health Departments.

Larry Baumgartner and Joey Gatto addressed the Board regarding Physical Education and Health in the elementary school.

Mr. Baumgartner said he has seen many changes in the physical education side during his time at West Delaware. “Probably one of the biggest things that we have observed is that there are more and more kids at this level that have health concerns than there ever has been before.”

“However, that being said we are also seeing many of these young students going on to compete at the highest levels of state competitions as they advance through school,” concluded Baumgartner.

Joey Gatto who is in his fifth year of teaching elementary health said there have also been a number of changes in his department over the past five years.

“We are now teaching more and more things at lower and lower grade levels than ever before. We are seeing more and more childhood obesity and that as well is being addressed at younger age levels,” commented Gatto.

“We have some very good programs in place and one of the more favorite ones for the kids is the Walking Club. The kids, if the want can go out to the all-weather track during certain times and walk laps. We have a contest that goes grade by grade as far as the most laps walked. They kids really enjoy both the competition and the exercise,” concluded Gatto.

Carol Martens and Tony Tjaden addressed the Board regarding the Middle School portion of physical education and health.

They said that they are always looking for new things to introduce into their departments as more variety keeps the students interest longer.

The introduction of lacrosse with modifications so that it could be played at the middle school level has been popular.

Mr. Tjaden related that the development of a fitness database that enables their department to track a student’s progress from fifth through eighth grades has been a very good tool.

Mr. Tjaden, who also teaches health related how there wasn’t a health program when he started 11 years ago. “When we first started the program we had to pull students out of their PE classes to go to health class. We now have two separate classes and are able to do a much better job in the health area than in the early years,” stated Tjaden.

Jodi King who heads up the Physical Education Department for the high school said that some big strides have been made during here 28 years of teaching.

“The physical education classes are now held for nine weeks and we get the kids for 85 minutes a day for those nine weeks. During that time we do a number of seasonal activities including archery, softball, bad mitten, volleyball and even a CPR unit,” commented King.

“We also make very good use of the circuit exercise units in the new weight room. The kids are tested at the beginning of the nine weeks and again at the end with the two tests compared to monitor progress. It is amazing how much progress some of the students make during their nine week course,” concluded King.

The work session concluded with Jeff Voss talking about the high school health program.

“We focus on giving the students information on all facets of health from nutrition to making good decisions with real life problems. The health area is always changing and we are always trying to change with it in order to keep our information current with what is going on around us,” commented Voss.

The second work session was with representatives of the City of Manchester regarding the Planned Unit Development process that the school will need to go through in order to bring the next phase of construction at the school into compliance with city codes.

Manchester City Manager, Tim Vick addressed the Board regarding a problem that he noticed when reviewing the proposed plans for the construction of the new gymnasium.

“The plans did not comply with the City’s setback requirements. The proposed site of the new gym would be within seven feet of the existing property line to the south. The city ordinance states that there needs to be front yard setback of not less than 25 feet and a side yard setback of not less than six and a half feet,” stated Vick.

This left the School Board with a choice to make.

They could either cut back the size of the gym width wise by some 15 feet. By doing so this would create a considerable cut back in the amount of bleacher seating that would be available.

The other option is to apply to become a Planned Unit Development which must go through the Planning and Zoning Committee and as well be adopted by the City Council and pass three readings.

It was decided by the Board to go the route of the Planned Unit Development and take up that issue with the Planning and Zoning Committee at their meeting this Wednesday at 3:00 p.m. in the Manchester City Council Chambers.

There is a potential for a delay in the building process while the Planned Unit Development route works its way through the process. It is anticipated that any delay would be short enough as to not cause any major timing problems with the anticipated construction.

In other business the Board accepted the resignations of three West Delaware employees. Megan Minnihan as music teacher and assistant high school choir director, Katherine Brumm as the seventh and eighth grade band teacher and assistant high school band director, and Gary Besler as Lambert custodian.

As well, three new hires were also approved. They are Lori Tucker who will be the new executive secretary at the Central Office, a spot vacated by the resignation of Brenda Wall. Tom Steffen was hired as the new Lambert custodian and Jennifer Loughren will serves as an Elementary Special Education Para-educator.

It was also reported that Julie Wilson received a grant to purchase another AED for the new addition to the high school through the Iowa Department of Public Health’s rural grant opportunity. The AED is a unit that electronically stimulates the heart if it stops beating. The new unit will be placed in the new commons area.

Elementary Principal, Carol Tjaden reported that she has 138 students on their list of five-year olds. This number includes some students that will attend St. Mary’s, however it is the largest number Ms. Tjaden has had to work with during her time at West Delaware.

Also approved were the following early, third term, graduation requests - Courtney Dryer, Austin Funke, Casey Funke, Amanda Hach, Austin Jones, Courtney Meade, Abbie Payne, Jordan Reiss and Jennifer Ross.

The City of Manchester received a Community Development Block Grant from the Iowa Department of Economic Development in the amount of $600,000 at an awards ceremony in Waverly, March 7.

The grant money will be used by the city to help offset the cost of the Wastewater Treatment Plant construction which is estimated to cost $6,840,000.

The $600,000 grant was one of just 29 grants awarded for similar projects in Iowa. There were 78 applications for grants made for the upcoming year. A total of $9,595,200 in grant money was awarded with Manchester’s share being the second largest amount awarded.

The City of Quasqueton in Buchanan County received the largest grant, $900,000 for Regional Water System Construction.

Other area towns receiving grants were Colesburg in the amount of $300,000 for Wastewater Treatment Plant improvements and Delhi, $300,000 for Sanitary Sewer Collection and Wastewater Treatment improvements.

“The grant money will really help out on our project and in the end will help to cut down the costs to our residents,” commented Manchester City Manager, Tim Vick.

The most recent projection of the cost of the Wastewater Treatment Plant improvements is $6,840,000 as provided by Fox Engineering of Ames.

The time line for the project as provided by Fox Engineering is as follows: March 3 - Send short notices to bidders and plan rooms; April 8 - Bid date; April 14 - First potential award date; March 1, 2010 - Substantial completion date; June 1, 2010 - Final completion date.

In other business as related to the Wastewater Treatment Plant improvement project the Council approved the contract for the Plant Sludge Removal and Disposal Project. The low bid went to McClain Excavating of Peosta in the amount of $34,235.00 for hauling and disposing of the estimated 1,000 cubic yards of sludge.

It was noted that the contract would be adjusted either up or down when the final cubic yards of material were determined.

The Council passed Resolution R-044-2008 Adopting the Annual Budget for Fiscal Year July 1, 2008 to June 30, 2009.

The budget shows total revenues, with transfers to be budgeted at $18,404,511 and total expenditures, including transfers at $16,660,076. The results is Excess Revenues & Other Sources Over Expenditures and Transfers Out of $1,744,435.

For the actual fiscal year 2007 the City had Excess Revenues & Other Sources Over Expenditures and Transfers Out of $185,747.

With re-estimates for the current fiscal year the City is projected to see expenditures exceed revenues by and estimated $1,420,526.

The estimated Total tax levy rate per $1000 valuation on regular property is $15.60688 while the estimated tax levy rate per $1000 valuation on
Agricultural land is $3.00375.

Manchester Rotary Club President, Dave Dudley and Manchester Parks and Recreation Director, Doug Foley addressed the council concerning the Schram Park Shelter.

“Estimates for the shelter are coming in over what we originally thought they would be,” said Foley. “The current estimate is for the shelter to cost $30,000. Of this amount of money the Rotary Club has committed $10,000 along with a number of hours of donated labor. We would like the council to consider using $10,000 in Hotel/Motel Tax funds for the project.”

“If the City could commit those funds then the Rotary Club would come up with the last $10,000 to complete the project,” interjected Rotary President, Dave Dudley.

It was agreed after some discussion that the intent of the usage of the Hotel/Motel Tax funds were for such projects as the Schram Park Shelter Project. The Council passed such a recommendation by a vote of 5-0.

In other business the Council took the following action:

* Approved payment of $11,887.57 to Gibbs Engineering & Surveying for Engineering Services related to the North 13th, West Howard and North 11th Street Extension Project.
* Accepted the resignation of Barb Sailer from the Manchester Board of Adjustment and appointed Jodi Cahalan as her replacement with a term that expires on June 30, 2012.
* Adopted Resolution R-040-2008 Setting Septic Waste Dumping Fees and Establishing Rules for Sewage/Septic Dumping at the Wastewater Treatment Plant. The minimum charge is now $100, up from $35.
* Approved renewal applications for On-Premise Liquor Licenses for Beavers Lounge and for the Cedar Lodge Steak House & Crazy Moose Saloon. Also approved a 5-day Beer/Wine Permit for St. Mary’s Church for an event to be held on April 5th, 2008.
* Approved payment of $3,472.98 to AHTS Architects, P.L.C. for Architectural Services related to the Fire Station Renovation Project.
* Adopted Resolution R-042-2008 approving the agreement between the City of Manchester, Iowa, and Chauffeurs, Teamsters and Helpers Local Union No. 238 Affiliated with International Brotherhood of Teamsters Covering Police Bargaining Unit - July 1, 2008 to June 30, 2010.
* Adopted Resolution R-046-2008 approving the Contract with Connolly Construction for the 2008 Street Project.
* Approved switching the chemical feed system at the Aquatic Center from a gas chlorine system to the more preferred method of chlorination to solid chlorine in briquette form.