Sheldon, Iowa — When many businesses had to close or greatly restrict the amount of business they could conduct because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Sheldon Chamber and Development Corporation created a promotion to encourage people to support their local Sheldon businesses. That promotion resulted in the SCDC paying out twenty thousand dollars to people who had turned in about two hundred thousand dollars worth of receipts from Sheldon purchases during the 4 week term of the promotion. At Wednesday’s city council meeting the city agreed to contribute forty thousand dollars to another program called “Comeback Cash”, which will provide a savings of thirty percent on purchases up to $500 per family. The “Comeback Cash” will be sold over a two or three day period once the businesses get back to one hundred percent operation.
In other business, the council addressed a request from 15-year-old Conner McDonald to keep chickens at 2530 Park Street as an FFA project. According to City Manager Sam Kooiker, the zoning ordinance says ‘no’ to that practice, while a city ordinance says ‘maybe’. After considerable debate, the council voted to allow Connor to keep the chickens in the city limits for a one-year period. It was stressed that this vote referred only to this particular situation. There will probably be some changes in the zoning or ordinance in the future. Connor says before the year is up he will have the chickens moved to a farm.
The council also confirmed the appointment of Terry Hurlburt to the Parks & Rec Commission and Braden Hindt as a Student Firefighter. They approved a resolution that should allow the closing of the sale of the 1023 Garfield Avenue property to Kerwin and Kathy Sterler, and heard the first reading of a zoning ordinance amendment regarding the former Sunset Motel location, which they passed on to the second reading at their June 3rd meeting.
Public Works Director Todd Uhl brought the council up to date on how the City expects to react to the news that Governor Reynolds was allowing the opening of swimming pools. Uhl reported that Sheldon, along with many other cities will not open immediately because of the strict restrictions on how the pool can be used. With regard to the word that Iowa schools can conduct summer sports activities, Uhl pointed out that it only pertains to school-sponsored activities. As a result, it would not allow city-sponsored Summer Rec programs at this time.
And, the Council voted their support and local incentive for a potential multi-family housing project that would be be built by Eagle Construction near their existing units in the area of the Crossroads Pavilion. The project would add an additional 30 apartment units and 9 new townhouses.
