Iola City Council members arent keen on removing a stoplight at the intersection of Madison Avenue and Buckeye Street.
The removal was suggested earlier this month by Iola mayoral candidate Larry Walden, who noted foot traffic at the intersection has decreased substantially now that high-schoolers no longer walk from the Iola High School campus to the Bowlus fine Arts Center for classes.
You dont need those lights, Walden said then.
Council members disagreed.
The emails Ive received from citizens say itd be an awful idea, Councilman Chase Martin said at Mondays meeting. Were not here to meddle. It just seems like a waste of our time.
Fellow Council members Gene Myrick and Nancy Ford agreed with Martins synopsis.
I think weve made a conclusion, Mayor Jon Wells said. Were not in favor of sacrificing public safety for conveniences sake. Id call this issue a moot point.
The discussion came after Walden spoke again about the stoplight during a public comment portion of Mondays meeting.
In addition to the stoplight issue, Walden recommended Council members put the water plant and the water distribution, wastewater and sanitation departments under one umbrella.
Youd be surprised at the savings, Walden said.
Walden suggested city employees pay out of pocket an average of $30 a month to cover an additional 12 percent to cover anticipated higher health insurance premiums for the upcoming year. Walden also said the city should cut back the number of studies that dont do anything. We over-plan and under-do.
RAYS Metal Depot, LaHarpe, was the only bidder to remove four condemned houses.
Council members voted, 5-0, to accept Rays Metal bid to remove structures at 330 S. Kentucky St., 530 S. Fourth St. and 602 and 701 South St. for a combined $10,900 a very fair price, Code Enforcement Officer Gregg Hutton said.
Council members also voted, 5-0, to give Rebecca Sander an additional 120 days to make additional improvements to her house at 1008 East St., lest that home meet a similar fate.
Sander told the Council a prospective buyer out of Kansas City backed out of a deal recently, leaving her and her husband responsible for needed improvements, including new siding.
Theyve done some work, Hutton noted.
Im looking forward to the point we can take this house off the list, Hutton said. My biggest thing is the outside. If you get the outside done, nobody cares if it takes them two or three years down the line to get the rest of the house done.
Council members Ron Ballard, Danny Mathew and Mark Peters were absent from Mondays meeting.
