Photo courtesy of City of Jefferson
The Jefferson City Council met Tuesday night in regular session.
The meeting started with a public hearing to sell a commercial property at 210 West Washington Street. Dennis and Terry Murphy are wanting to build a meat locker on the vacant property and there were several positive and supportive comments that were made during the hearing. The Council then approved the sale for $25,000 following the hearing.
The Council held another public hearing, in which no comments were made, about the maximum property tax levy as established by state law. All municipalities are required to hold a public hearing and are not allowed to go over two-percent from the previous year’s budget on property taxes. It was indicated at the last council meeting that the city is anticipating a two-percent decrease due to higher valuations. The Council approved the resolution following the hearing.
Additionally, the Council approved forgiving $3,241 of sewer charges to Moe’s Mart, the former White Oak gas station, due to a broken pipe inside the building that caused $7,000 in water and sewer charges. It was determined the water did not enter the city’s sewer system, but the owners will still have to pay the water charges. Next, the Council set February 8th for the 2023 fiscal year budget workshop, a resolution waiving a plat of survey at 1629 235th Street, due to the property being within two miles of city limits and a request for the Jefferson Fire Department to apply for a $130,000 Grow Greene County Gaming Corporation grant for an 8,000 gallon water tanker truck.
Finally, the Council heard an update on The Forge from local engineer and developer Chris Deal. He said despite Accenture, who is operating and leasing the building on East State Street being closed because of the pandemic, they have developed a training program through Des Moines Area Community College and Iowa Central Community College, called cohorts, and from there the student has the opportunity to go into their apprenticeship program, which could then lead to regular employment.