T-R PHOTO BY ROBERT MAHARRY Marshall County Sheriff Joel Phillips, pictured, addressed the Marshalltown City Council about a proposal to terminate the current lease agreement between the city and the Marshall County Communications Commission during Monday night’s regular meeting.

After discussing the matter at a pair of previous meetings, the Marshalltown city council voted 5-1 to terminate its current lease with the Marshall County Communications Commission (MCCC) on Monday night, opening the door for a renegotiation of the agreement that allows the organization to operate out of the city’s police and fire station at 909 S. 2nd St.

At present, the MCCC, which operates the 911 dispatch services for all police, fire and ambulance services in Marshall County, pays $1 a year in rent for the space it utilizes, and in response to a $312,000 budget deficit heading into fiscal year 2024, City Administrator Jessica Kinser suggested raising the rent as one of 10 potential solutions to address the situation.

Because the current lease requires a one-year termination notice, the change will not take effect until Feb. 29, 2024, and Kinser said that would provide ample time to potentially renegotiate with the county.

Rhonda Braudis, who serves as the director of 911 communications for Marshall County, attended the special meeting on Jan. 30 to express her concerns with the proposed modifications, and several other county department heads attended Monday, with some speaking out against the motion on the table.

County Assessor Blaze Wurr warned the council that if the city is determined to be charging a market rate rent to a nonprofit, they could lose their tax-exempt status, and that portion of the police and fire station could be declared taxable. Sheriff Joel Phillips spoke next on behalf of the MCCC, on whose board he serves as the chairman, and he stressed that 911 communications benefit all residents of the county, including those who live both inside and outside of Marshalltown.

Phillips then recalled the Citizen Advisory Board established to assist in devising plans for the facility, which opened in 2019.

“Please ask yourself, is this the vision they wanted? To be able to charge another public safety (agency) providing service to our community rent?” Phillips asked. “I understand the troubles that many city and governmental agencies are having balancing budgets. That’s our responsibility. That’s we’re elected for and appointed for… We’ll work things out between city and county government. I have no doubt in that. I just hope that we can come to a resolution where we’re not bringing this up every year, every two years or every three years. We like to have consistency in our public service.”

Braudis herself came forward next and addressed previous questions about what services the MCCC provides specifically to the Marshalltown Police Department, and she noted that they serve as the administrative line for the MPD — specifically highlighting examples of their number being listed as the primary line.

“The Marshalltown Police Department, it’s always dispatch first. If you look at the officers’ business cards, it’s dispatch’s telephone number. So when I say that we are the administrative lines, we are truly the administrative lines,” she said.

In response, Marshalltown Police Chief Mike Tupper said the city provides payroll and human resources services to the MCCC along with hosting their information on the city website and added that the number Braudis cited is for non-emergency calls.

“I think there’s a lot of things that the city does for 911 that is not accounted for at all. So we appreciate the great work that our 911 operators provide. They do a great job,” Tupper said. “Obviously, I think it’s important that when people have a need, especially a 24/7 need, we want them to call the non-emergency number when they can.”

The council ultimately voted 5-1 to terminate the current lease, with Gary Thompson opposing and Mike Ladehoff absent. A new lease with a modified rental rate will require approval from both the city and the county, and that amount has not yet been finalized — though Councilor Gabe Isom did suggest charging roughly $18,000 a year during the Jan. 30 meeting.

In other business, the council:

• Approved setting the maximum property tax levy for fiscal year 2024 at $11,899,977, or a rate of $12.52848 per $1,000 of valuation.

• Approved officially changing the days and hours of operation at the compost facility to 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Fridays, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays and noon to 4 p.m. on Sundays as part of the consent agenda.

• Approved the rest of the consent agenda as listed.

• Approved a motion to use Local Option Sales Tax dollars to cover a deficit in Fund 183 Economic Development Initiative.

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Contact Robert Maharry

at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or

rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.