City sets sights on south Iola

Iola will take a closer look at improving curbs and gutters throughout much of south Iola, water drainage along North State Street and push the Environmental Protection Agency to move faster on soil cleanup throughout town.
Those were among the big ticket items City Council members favored Monday during a discussion of the city’s capital projects, priorities and funding sources.
As City Administrator Carl Slaugh explained, to kickstart the discussion, the Council has developed several potential projects over the past several years, both in and out of strategic planning sessions. From there, those items are prioritized as funding mechanisms are determined.
The final step is seeking outside funding sources — through state or federal grants, for example — and incorporating the city’s costs into its budget-planning process each summer.
The city should focus on infrastructure improvements, council members agreed.
Councilman Austin Sigg got the ball rolling from the council’s perspective, noting inadequate curbs in several locations in the south part of town because of asphalt buildup. That, in turn, prevents proper water drainage in wet weather.
The city is in Phase 1 of applying for a “Safe Routes To Schools” grant, Slaugh responded, which could net Iola up to $250,000 for those types of projects.
Councilwoman Beverly Franklin, meanwhile, noted water drainage along North State Street continues to be an issue.
Other potential projects — replacing aging natural gas lines, developing a shell building in town for fledgling businesses, and pushing the EPA for soil cleanup — also were discussed.
The EPA has placed Iola on its National Priorities List, indicating remediation remains necessary to clean soil from lead, caused when zinc smelters operated in east Iola in the early days of the 20th century.
But there has been little movement from the feds over the past two years, Councilman Jon Wells noted.
Slaugh said the EPA’s response has been consistent. They’ve been “awaiting environmental reviews” before moving further.
Those reviews were supposed to be have been completed about a year ago, Slaugh added.
Council members also suggested the city reach out to Van Scoyoc Associates, Iola’s federal lobbying firm, to assist in seeking out federal grant monies.
Slaugh, who has urged the council to end its contract with Van Scoyoc, noted he presented the firm with Iola’s priorities list more than a year ago, and indications were there were no federal dollars available to help with any of the big-ticket items.
Council members voted 5-0 to focus on south Iola, North State Street and EPA outreach. Council members Nancy Ford and Sandy Zornes were absent.
“I haven’t seen what Van Scoyoc has done for us recently,” Mayor Joel Wicoff said. “Let’s challenge them to find us some federal money to fix some of those (issues.). It’s a road project, and it’ll cost a lot of dollars. It’s time we threw some effort into the south side of town. We’ve talked about it for years.”

COUNCIL members tabled a discussion on purchasing a new defibrillator for the city’s “backup” ambulance, pegged at about $20,000, until more information about potential grant funding is further developed.
Slaugh presented the council with a pair of bids from RoundTree Medical. A rebuilt and recertified unit would cost $19,950, while a new one would cost $31,976.
Ryan Sell, EMS director, presented the bids to the Allen County Commission last week, but was told equipping the ambulances should be Iola’s responsibility through terms of the revamped EMS agreement between the county and city.
The city’s discussion followed a brief update on EMS costs for the city, which are down compared to last year.
However, Slaugh noted there is little room in the budget for big-ticket purchases, such as a $20,000 defibrillator.
In a related matter, council members voted 4-1 to hire an additional paramedic for the Iola Fire Department, even though — in Slaugh’s opinion — IFD is fully staffed.
There has been much discussion about whether each of the fire department’s three shifts should have nine or 10 firefighters/ambulance personnel to operate the countywide EMS. Currently, the department has three nine-man shifts. Adding the paramedic, without any departures, gives one of the shifts 10 employees, Slaugh said.
Council members agreed to hire Michael Lynch, in part, because “paramedic positions are harder to fill” than other ambulance personnel, Slaugh explained. He noted Lynch also has firefighting experience.
Council members also noted the turnover rate within the fire department, which has been higher than usual in recent years.
Don Becker voted against the hiring, citing what he considers undue costs for the city.