Sean Kleespies

The meeting included approval of the consent agenda, which covered bills, claims, licenses, and permits, including renewals for class B and special class C retail alcohol licenses. A significant portion of the meeting involved a public hearing and subsequent action on the 12th Street reconstruction project, including approval of the plans, specifications, contract form, and estimated cost. An ordinance establishing street grades for the 12th Street reconstruction, which necessitated repealing a portion of a 1960 ordinance, was also passed. Following this, the council awarded the contract for the 12th Street reconstruction to Holstein Excavating, which was the low bidder. Finally, the council conducted a public hearing regarding the vacation of a portion of Southeast Street, which was recommended for approval to facilitate the expansion of the Holy Spirit Center by Keer County School, although a motion was made to only approve the first reading of the corresponding ordinance.

The meeting began with the Pledge of Allegiance. Roll call indicated the absence of two council members and the City Manager, who required emergency surgery. Key agenda items included an update from the Historic Preservation Commission, which detailed progress on cemetery fence work (deferred to next year), the preparation of donor boards for the band shell project (requiring amendments), tombstone cleaning, ongoing training attendance, and compilation of historic business information. Future plans include finishing historic plaques downtown and organizing a downtown character walk. The Council then heard requests for FY2027 outside agency funding. Elder Bridge Agency on Aging presented their request for $6,000 to support residents, detailing their services such as in-home assistance, meal site contribution, and chore services, noting a significant return on investment for local funds. The Carroll Children's Museum presented its capital campaign goal of $400,000 to purchase its current leased space, requesting $125,000 from the City of Carroll to leverage additional state and federal funding, such as the IEDA grant. The museum representatives also clarified their operational structure as a business within a nonprofit framework.

The meeting focused on preliminary budget discussions for the fiscal year 2026-2027. Key discussions included reviewing the airport budget, specifically miscellaneous contract labor expenditures related to unexpected maintenance needs, such as the repair of a hangar door. Revenue projections were discussed, particularly those derived from the farm lease agreement, and future plans to potentially switch from a sharecrop to a cash rental arrangement were mentioned. Significant time was dedicated to the need for a new corporate transit hangar. The discussion emphasized safety concerns due to increased jet traffic, referencing a recent fatal crash in Bangor, Maine, related to ice accumulation, and the inability of the existing hangar (built over 50 years ago) to accommodate larger modern corporate and midsize jets, including those owned by major local entities. The proposed new hangar dimensions and location were detailed.

The council meeting addressed several agenda items under the consent agenda, including the approval of multiple meeting minutes from January and February 2026, bills and claims, and various alcohol license renewals and applications. A significant portion of the meeting involved discussions on two ordinance amendments related to parking regulations: one removing parking restrictions on a section of Sixth Street and another changing parking on a section of 10th Street near an elementary school to a loading zone only, to codify current drop-off and pick-up practices. Another ordinance amendment was considered to adopt Iowa State Code requirements regarding vehicle insurance into city ordinance for enforcement purposes. Resolutions were also passed regarding amendments to the professional services agreement with JEO Consulting Group for Water System Pressure Zone Improvements, covering project management and construction administration for distribution, booster station, and water tower contracts, totaling $268,723 in additional fees.

The meeting commenced with council discussion regarding preliminary budget presentations, focusing specifically on concerns raised about airport commission matters. Key points included requesting detailed data on private jet landings to justify hangar expenditures and inquiring about potential corporate funding contributions. The police department presentation covered the upcoming budget, noting the largest capital expense will be the replacement of an aging server. Discussion followed regarding data storage practices, including video evidence retention policies, and backup/redundancy strategies in case of server failure. Personnel costs were addressed, noting upcoming union salary negotiations. The council also reviewed the success of the School Resource Officer (SRO) partnership, confirming perceived benefit splits and discussing future summer assignments for the SRO. Lastly, the police department's high ranking in state and national safety metrics, particularly regarding low violent crime rates, was noted. Discussions also covered enforcement trends related to new cell phone usage laws and vacation scheduling procedures for officers.