Sheldon, Iowa — The Sheldon City Council has approved the purchase of $3.4-million dollars in Taxable General Obligation Capital Loan Notes to help finance the new Events Center. A representative of the underwriting firm, D.A. Davison and Company told the Council at their Wednesday meeting that the interest rate for the loan plus associated expenses will be 2.95-percent . The level debt payment will be $280,000 annually, with a call option to redeem the bonds after seven years. All council members including Randy Fonkert voted in favor of the terms of the loan. Fonkert had voted against the Events Center earlier, but told the Council now that the project is a reality he feels everyone in the community should show their support for it. It was announced that the ground-breaking ceremony for the Events Center is scheduled for June 16th at 10:30. Invitations are being sent to government officials and other interested persons who may want to be present for the ground-breaking. It was suggested that a contest be held to give the public an opportunity to give the facility a name. Apparently, neither major contributor to the project is interested in having it named for them.
In other business the Council approved an agreement with Winther, Stave and Company to perform the City Audit for the next three years. This firm has done the audits for the past twenty years, and the agreement will lock in the cost and scope of the audits for the next three years. The cost for the basic City Audit will be $11-thousand per year. City Manager Scott Wynja told the Council that they had received a proposal from another firm, but that firm’s projected cost would have been much higher.
Housing was also on the Council agenda. Wynja commented that the shortage of mid-range housing in the city is still a concern, and particularly a concern of local industry. Council member Greg Geels said that when he first heard about the upcoming Rosenboom Machine and Tool expansion his first thought was how great it was…his second thought was “Where are we going to find housing for these new employees?” The City Manager reported that developers could get housing tax credits that would encourage them to build housing in Sheldon, but they would need to have an up to date City Housing Study to demonstrate the need for such housing. The last Housing Study for Sheldon was done in 2007. The Council approved a new Housing Study which will cost $4-thousand. The SCDC will pay fifty percent of the cost.
It was also announced at the meeting that the mosquito control firm will be spraying the city as soon as conditions are favorable. The company has been given the dates of special events in the city so they can coordinate spraying activity prior to these events.
And finally, the Council had a good-natured discussion about the upcoming slow-pitch softball game between the Sheldon School District and a team from the City and SCDC. The game will be held June 13th at the dedication of the new athletic fields, which are a joint venture by the City and the School District. Councilman Geels referred to the event as the “Showdown in Sheldon”. The game will begin at 5 p.m., but council members were advised to show up about fifteen minutes early for their stretching and conditioning exercises. George Klein, who was attending the meeting, told the council that his family had 7 children, so he had an accumulation of just about every type of brace and support they might need after the game!
