Votes at a glance: Des Moines City Council actions Oct. 20, 2025

The Des Moines City Council took multiple formal votes Oct. 20, approving property conveyances and sale, rezonings and plan amendments, contract awards, bond issuances, and traffic and code changes. Below are the final outcomes as recorded during the meeting. Where the transcript provided a roll-call tally, it is shown; where individual votes were not named, only the recorded tally is listed.

Votes at a glance: - Item 3 — Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher payment standards and HUD-required publication of small-area fair market rents for 2026 (Board communication no. 25376): Approved, 7–0. - Item 4 — Submittal of the Family Self-Sufficiency program coordinator grant application to HUD (Board communication no. 2077): Approved, 7–0. - Item 42 — Conveyance of excess city property north of and adjoining Carlisle Road to the Des Moines Metropolitan Wastewater Reclamation Authority for future WRA expansion: Approved, 7–0. - Item 43 — Sale/conveyance of the Ninth and Locust parking garage (81 Locust) to the Federal Home Loan Bank for $7,300,000: Approved, 7–0 (sale price recorded on the record). - Item 44 — Vacation of CB & Q Street right-of-way between Southeast 20 Fifth Court and Southeast Thirtieth Street and conveyance to WRA (first consideration and waiver of second/third reading): Approved, 7–0. - Items 45–49 — Various plan DSM amendments and rezonings (Legacy 515 LLC at 52030 Fifth Street; Global Des Moines I, LLC at 6101 SE 14th Street; Robert Bastow at 715 E 20th Street; Cold Storage Rehab LLC at 2814 7th Street; proposed zoning ordinance amendments to chapters 134 and 135): All carried by the council, many recorded 7–0; individual ordinance waivers and second/third readings were handled as noted on the record. - Item 50 — Lease agreement with Joppa (see separate article): Approved, 6 yes, 1 abstain. - Item 51 — Lease agreement with E.O. Johnson Company Inc. not to exceed $45,050,000 for leasing multifunction devices for city operations (24 monthly payments, two-year period): Approved, 7–0. - Item 52 — Appeal from Sherman Hill Association regarding Historic Preservation Commission certificate of appropriateness at 1917 Center Street: Council remanded the matter to the Historic Preservation Commission with instruction that a particular commissioner recuse on remand and asked staff to notify the neighborhood association; motion to remand carried 7–0. - Item 53 — Review of Zoning Board of Adjustment decision conditionally granting a use variance for a fitness center at 41460 First Street: Council declined to remand; the board decision becomes final (vote recorded as 7–0). - Item 54 — Issuance of $66,880,000 general obligation bonds, series 2025A, and approval of tax-exemption and disclosure certificates: Approved, 7–0. - Item 55 — Issuance of $6,035,000 taxable general obligation bonds, series 2025B: Approved, 7–0. - Item 56 — Amendments to traffic regulations and parking modifications across multiple downtown streets (detailed in council communication no. 20589): Approved, 7–0. - Item 57 — Amendments to Chapter 135 of municipal code (detailed items on the agenda): Approved, recorded 7–0.

Many other consent items and routine matters were approved en bloc during the meeting; the transcript shows the consent agenda passed and individual consent items were noted for pull requests by council members where applicable. Several items included public comment on the record prior to final votes.

What passed and next steps: The council finalized multiple land­use and financial measures that move projects into implementation phases (conveyances for WRA expansion, the Ninth & Locust sale, rezonings for development and the two bond issuances). Staff follow-up, permitting, and partner agreements remain required for many items. Council members noted that specific operational funding and neighborhood notification steps remain to be completed for projects such as Joppa Village and remanded historic-preservation matters.