Allamakee County Board of Supervisors met on Monday, March 14.

The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors quickly navigated through several items on its Monday, March 14 agenda.

There was minimal discussion on the consideration of funding for the proposed Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC) building that is planned as part of an overall improvement campaign on the campus of Waukon Senior High School. The Board of Supervisors made a motion to commit $50,000 a year for three years, beginning with the '05-06 budget, as it had already been figured into the budget for the upcoming year from a previous commitment to the project. The funding will come from the General Basic Fund, or if needed, from the General Supplemental Fund.

Vicki Bloxham was present for the monthly TASC, Inc. draw request for funding of the organization’s building renovation and expansion project northwest of Waukon. Bloxham presented the board with two invoices from Upper Explorerland and Gardiner Architecture. The total dollar amount for both invoices came to $4,894. The board approved the request. Bloxham also noted that the plans and specifications for the TASC project are currently under review by the USDA.

Several board appointments were also made. Kristin Olsen and Rita Erickson were appointed to the MH-DD Citizens Advisory Board for the 2005-2007 term, and Arne Beneke-2008, Carl Larson-2009, and Jim Kruse-2009 were all appointed to the Board of Adjustment.

The motion was made and accepted to approve the alcohol license for George Ashbacher d/b/a Scenic Ridgeview Exotic Animal Ranch.

Allamakee Economic Executive Director Rachelle Howe was present to address the board on two new revolving loan requests. The first request Howe mentioned came from DALACO, Inc. She stated that DALACO had initially asked for $40,000, but when they brought collateral to secure the loan, it totalled $30,000, which is the amount of the loan they settled for. The loan would be for three years, and the interest rate would be the treasury rate as of Monday, March 14.

Howe advised the board to approve the loan, but noted that there was a need for some type of authorization on the corporate signature, and advised the board to ask for the by-laws of the corporation. The motion was made to approve the loan for $30,000, pending the receipt of the by-laws and articles of incorporation, with the interest rate at Monday's rate.

The second loan request presented to the board by Howe was a request for $5,000 from Charmade Accessories, Inc. Howe stated that the recommendation to the Board of Supervisors would be to deny this loan application, due to several issues, including the company not meeting criteria for the loan.

A public hearing was held on rezoning the Andy and Barb Shull property from the current zoning of Ag-1 to Residential-1. According to Laurie Moody, county zoning administrator, the property in question is currently used to store hay and machinery, and the land is not suitable for farming. The Shulls wish to build a home on this site.

Supervisor Lennie Burke posed the question to Moody what the implications of this zoning change would be. She responded by stating that setback requirements would change. Moody also noted that new laws are going to be put into place requiring that anything less than three acres be rezoned. Moody also added that the Shulls came to her for the rezoning request. Burke then stated that he appreciated what the Shulls were doing, but he is not comfortable doing zoning changes until the laws are actually in place and the supervisors know what the policy will be, and he asked if the Shull's could still build a house on Ag-1 property, which they can.

He also had concerns as to whether or not the rural residents who farm in the area know what the implications of the zoning change will mean. Fellow supervisor Bill Clark noted that the public hearing has given neighbors a chance to express their concerns, and there were no verbal or written objections to the rezoning. The County Zoning Board recommended approval, and the motion to rezone the property from Ag-1 to Residential-1 was approved.

In other matters, Jack Sweeney was present to address the board on a problematic situation he has encountered due to an ordinance passed by the Board of Supervisors some time ago. Sweeney relayed a scenario he has encountered where a property owner has sold property to another party on contract. The purchasing party now wants to sell a portion of the property, but that plot needs to be surveyed and recorded.

Under the Iowa Code, the deed holder does not need to sign on the plot, but under the Allamakee County ordinance, it is required. If the deed holder does not sign on the plot, the county recorder will not record it. Sweeney pointed out that few, if any other, Iowa counties have such a requirement, and that it is stopping the seller from profiting, and stymies the real estate dealer's ability to make a living, as well as stopping revenue.

The board responded by stating that they were glad he brought this problem before the board, and they would like to meet with Allamakee County Recorder Deb Winke to find out the other side of the story. There was some question among the board members as to what the reasoning behind the ordinance was. The board planned to look into the ordinance further.