The Marshalltown city council approved the first reading of the new code of ordinances on Monday, keeping with the schedule of adopting the rewritten document on April 11.

Over the last year, the code of ordinances received its first major change since 1998 with the goal of making the 200-plus page document more friendly to developers and property owners. Michelle Sponheimer, the city’s housing and community development director, said the rewrite accomplishes this objective.

“We want to be positioned to a point where developers are coming to us and saying this is a community we can work with that is progressive and supportive,” she said. “We do have a lot of things that are administrative. That was a priority of mine. That way the ordinances are clear. It keeps things moving quickly.”

Because it is a living document, Sponheimer would like to compile a list of further changes to be revisited about six months after adoption. She expects to find needed revisions once the code is implemented.

Council member Gary Thompson suggested reviewing the document and coming to the April 11 meeting with ideas for amendments, and Sponheimer agreed it would be a good plan. She urged the council members to submit their ideas to her ahead of the meeting so she can include proposed changes in the agenda packet.

One portion of the code which was discussed specifically on Monday was allowing yard signs in right-of-ways or terraces. Sponheimer said a recent Supreme Court decision set the precedent for a city to only determine a sign is allowable from a content neutral position. It would not differentiate between a garage sale sign or political sign. The city would instead determine where signs are allowable, when they are allowed, and the general construction of the sign, such as its size.

In Reed vs. the Town of Gilbert, a high profile 2015 case, it was determined that Gilbert, Ariz. had a sign ordinance in violation of the First Amendment because it regulated signs differently based on their content.

Sponheimer suggested limiting the size of signs and how long they can be placed in the right-of-way. She noted the city has changed positions on sign allowances before based on how residents feel about the issue.

“The plan really takes seriously the goals of this council which are to remove barriers to the growth of our community,” said councilor Dex Walker of the planning and zoning commission’s work on the code of ordinances. “It’s encouraging to members of this council that that’s the direction this work is heading.”

In other business

The council unanimously approved a resolution for the Marshalltown Police Department to offer a $2,000 hiring incentive to non-certified police officer applicants, which was discussed during the last meeting. A hire would receive $1,000 upon being hired and a second $1,000 after successfully completing their probationary period.

The council also directed police chief Mike Tupper and staff to bring a resolution to the March 28 meeting for increasing the hourly rate for extra duty jobs performed by police department personnel. Tupper proposed this plan to the council during discussion, stating the department currently charges $55 per hour for extra duty events. This includes officers being present at sporting events, dances, rodeos and other for-profit activities that require additional security.

“These events can sometimes be chaotic for our staff,” Tupper said. “It’s not always very desirable work. It can be difficult to find officers to volunteer to work these. We do it because it’s a public safety issue for us.”

Tupper proposed raising the hourly rate to $80, meaning personnel would be paid $70 per hour for a minimum of two hours. According to Tupper, City Finance Director Diana Steiner compared Marshalltown’s current rate with other cities, and it was similar. Tupper also noted he is not eligible to be paid these rates as he volunteers his time to work these types of events.

Any changes to the rate would be effective July 1.