MASON CITY, IA-- Mason City leaders are putting off a decision on whether to grant some water bill relief to the North Iowa Fairgrounds Association.
The Association wants the relief to begin now until a section of property can be sold to some hotel developers and then they are promising to use money from the sale to change their meter from 6" to 3" which could cost somewhere between $8,000-to-$10,000.
Even though City Administrator Brent Trout offered assurances that the rate change would happen during a period when the fair uses the least amount of water and the city would not lose revenue, some council members balked.
Councilman Jeff Marsters noted the Association still owes the city around $17,000 dollars in unpaid bills.
Around $8,600 for traffic control during the Pyrotechnics Guild International event last year and another $9,100 for overdue water bills.
North Iowa Fair Association President Dennis Higgins said part of the problem is connected to last year's water rate increase.
He said the Association's monthly water rate of $2,211 is significantly greater than what they had been paying for the average monthly water usage.
Higgins said the increase was not a budgeted item and they are seeking a "rate more appropriate to what we use, rather than the size of the valve."
If the Association were charged under a 3" valve rate, their monthly bill would drop to about $383 per month.
Council members decided they could not make a motion that would trump a current ordinance, so city staff will be asked to put together a proposed change to the water rate ordinance.
The issue is being postponed until a later date until those changes can be drafted.
In other action:
-Council approved an amendment to the city's hazard mitigation plan. The Mason City School District wants to construct a tornado safe room at the Mason City High School/John Adams Middle School Campus.
-Council agreed to support a HUD housing proposal that would help adults with physical disabilities. Accessible Space Incorporate of St. Paul. ASI wants to pursue funding for a 10-unit wheelchair accessible housing project to be built on a half acre of land the city owns just Northeast of the Fareway grocery store on 5th Street Northeast and North Delaware.
