CONTRIBUTED GRAPHIC An architect’s rendering of Park Place Condominiums, a 94-unit market rate rental complex between Ninth Street and Twelfth Street proposed by Kading Properties of Urbandale.

The Marshalltown City Council threw support behind a new 94-unit apartment complex.

The structure is to be built this year between Ninth and Twelfth streets south of Lincoln Way.

At the regular Monday meeting the city council support was measured by a 5-1 vote. Councilor Gabe Isom was absent. The vote approved a development agreement with Kading Properties of Urbandale.

A key part of the agreement is the city making Washington Street a through road which will cost $753,630 and make it easier for Kading to install 30 of the 94 units.

The $753,630 expenditure would come from the city’s Road Use Tax Fund city administrator Jessica Kinser said.

In return, Kading will build the market-rate three bedroom leased condominiums on a 17.5-acre site the company has already purchased.

Kading will dedicate the land for right-of-way, cover engineering and installation of the water main for the complex, as well as cover the costs of engineering, preparing plans and specifications for the Washington Street project.

“As we worked through this project, we knew public access was going to be an issue,” Kinser said. “There are two areas of right-of-way the city needs to acquire, and that work is in process now. This is a chance to improve a street which was dead-ended sometime in the 1980s. Once the street is made a through street it will enhance our transportation network on that side of town.”

At-large councilor Gary Thompson voted no.

“I think we are opening a Pandora’s Box here,” he said.

The city’s 2019 housing study verified the need of 332 new rental units to meet current demand.

Kading is familiar with Marshalltown, having built rental properties on Plaza Heights Road.

The company is also hosting a ribbon-cutting at a new rental unit on South Second Avenue east of Marshalltown Mall to celebrate the completion of 48 units of rental housing.

Kari Kading Ramsey, who has nearly two decades experience as CEO, said the company has constructed condominiums, bi-attached, 4-plexus and 14-plexus in 16 Iowa communities over the last 40 years.

City council and mayor salaries

A proposal to increase the mayor’s salary from $7,500 to $11,000 and councilors from $3,000 to $5,500 was overshadowed by mayor Joel Greer and third ward councilor Mike Gowdy announcing they would not run for re-election in 2021.

That was followed by councilor at-large Bill Martin saying he “probably was not going to run” for another four year term when his term expires in 2021.

Greer and Gowdy’s announcement were not surprises based on remarks each made in recent years.

“I am a term limit guy,” Gowdy said. “I will have put in two terms of four years each.”

Gowdy aggressively recruited young residents in the third ward to run for the seat in 2017 but was unsuccessful.

Greer announced at the beginning of the meeting that he and his wife, Judge Sharon Greer, had recently returned from San Francisco and a visit to their daughter and new granddaughter.

During his race for mayor in 2017, Greer had talked of retiring to Texas in the where they own property.

Several residents spoke against the proposed raises, saying they had received only modest raises at their places of employment.

However, they complimented the mayor and councilors as “hard-working and good people.”

The city council did not take formal action but will debate the issue again at the regular March 9 meeting.

Fiscal year 2020-21 budget

For the second consecutive meeting, there were no comments from residents following a city budget presentation.

The city is not raising taxes on residents.

The council members voted 6-0 on setting March 23 as the date for a public budget hearing. The date was based on the recommendation of city finance director Diana Steiner.

Steiner said the budget must be given to Marshall County Auditor/Recorder Nan Benson by March 31.

She said the budget highlights were the city requesting less funds for transit and liability insurance than the current 2020 budget.

However, the Marshall County Emergency Management Commission raised the fee 4 percent – from $30,200 to $31,407.

“The Police/Fire Retirement and FICA/IPERS shows an increase in dollars, since both are based on a percentage of gross pay,” Steiner said. “Other employee benefits went down slightly since the city self-insures group health and did not have an increase in premiums. Overall, the increased dollars for the city generated during fiscal year 2021 is $290,752, a 2.47 percent increase.”

Steiner said she budgeted $60,600 backfill income from state government.

Backfill income was established by the state a number of years ago to compensate communities and counties for the loss of commercial property tax revenue when the state reduced commercial property tax rates.

“The governor’s office recommended the legislature fund backfill, but the legislature has not taken formal action yet,” Steiner said.

The next regular city council meeting is 5:30 p.m. March 9 in council chambers.

Visit the city’s website for the complete agenda packet and to subscribe to agenda notices and department news, wwww.marshalltown-ia.gov.

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Contact Mike Donahey at 641-753-6611 or mdonahey@timesrepublican.com