Conservation board asked to take ownership of MU park

By Brooks Taylor, Mt. Pleasant News

Henry County?s Conservation Department?s Board of Directors had a request Wednesday night that John Pullis, executive director of the department, thinks the board will refuse.

Pullis told Henry County supervisors during their meeting Thursday that during the public forum portion of the conservation board?s meeting Wednesday evening, a pair of Mt. Union residents ? Kim Fenton and Mandi Mullin ? asked the conservation department to take over ownership of the Eagle?s Landing Park (the city park) in Mt. Union.

Mullin and Fenton are both officers in the Imagine Recreating Mt. Union (IRMU) organization and pleaded with the supervisors a few weeks ago to not sell Eagle?s Landing.

Since Mt. Union is no longer an incorporated community, the county has been directed by the State of Iowa City Development Board to sell the city?s assets, the park being one of the assets. The county has not taken any official stance on IRMU?s request but it is likely the park will be sold because the money is needed to offset the city?s debts.

IRMU members said they invested $30,000 in equipment and related items to build the park in 2006. There also is a gazebo in the park, purchased by three Krieger brothers and dedicated to their parents. The Kriegers said the gazebo cost them $30,000.

?The board took no action (on the park) because it was not on the agenda,? Pullis told the supervisors. ?The board will probably discuss it next month.?

Pullis, however, thinks the board set a precedent when it received a similar request a number of years ago from Trenton residents to assume ownership of the Trenton park and refused. ?This really doesn?t fit into our mission,? Pullis stated.

In his update to the supervisors, Pullis said the cost of dust control for the year at Oakland Mills and the surrounding area will be $7,007.05. ?From this point on, we should be able to skip some years. I am hoping this is the last year we have to do it in successive years.?

The conservation director also said surveying has begun at Waterworks Park and the next step in the process of refurbishing the park is the design of the new cabins, which has not yet been completed by Mt. Pleasant Lumber.

During April, the county?s two naturalists met with 1,912 people, Pullis said. He also mentioned that the board thanked the department?s high school intern, Jacob Holtkamp, for two semesters of service.

Turning back to the supervisors, the board approved the monthly sewer rate of $60.66 to be charged to Mt. Union residents by the Regional Utility Service Systems (RUSS). The RUSS board approved the rate on Wednesday.

The new rate is effective for the 2018 fiscal year, which begins July 1, 2017. Currently, Mt. Union residents are paying $150 monthly but the county stepped in to pay RUSS the delinquent amount owed by Mt. Union residents so residents could get a more reasonable rate.

Supervisors also approved an agreement with RUSS (which was approved by the RUSS board Wednesday) that should RUSS receive any reimbursement of funds from delinquent accounts that the funds would be given to the county. The county will be assuming the duties of the paying agent to RUSS for Mt. Union sewer bills. In turn, the county will place a special assessment on property tax bills of Mt. Union property owners for the RUSS payments.

The board of supervisors meets again in regular session Tuesday, May 16, at 9 a.m., in the Henry County Courthouse.