Le Mars residents press for Lincoln Street sidewalks, clearer banner rules and formal recognition for deployed Guard; town hall suggested on population

Residents at a Le Mars public meeting pressed city officials and other attendees Wednesday to address gaps in sidewalks on Lincoln Street that send students into the street, asked for clearer rules on the downtown event banner, urged the city to recognize local National Guard members deployed for long tours and suggested a town hall on population issues.

Speaker 1, a resident, told the meeting that recognizing Guard members who serve long deployments is important and said, "this city needs to take an active role in recognizing the guard people that are out, 13 months out of their life." The same speaker proposed a future town hall focused on "citizens and their concerns on population," adding, "I'm not gonna back down. I'm for growth. I'm for strong growing."

The most detailed exchange focused on sidewalks along Lincoln Street, where residents said children walk between school buildings and must use the roadway. Speaker 2 asked, "What would it take to get some kind of a sidewalk down Lincoln Street?" A staff member (Speaker 3) explained regulatory constraints, saying, "One of the requirements to have a sidewalk is to have a curb" and that in some areas the city "doesn't require sidewalks in that type of zone." The staff member said changing the requirement would mean changing city rules.

Residents also raised maintenance and public-space concerns. One speaker said they had "picked up multiple bags of trash" around the golf-course pond this year and asked if there is a trash can there; another attendee confirmed there is a can.

Questions about the downtown banner — who controls it and how groups qualify to have messages displayed — also came up. A resident asked who qualifies to use the banner; a staff member replied the banner was intended as "more of a community events sign" and said it is "not run or programmed by anybody with the city."

The recorded proceedings ended with an unassigned motion to adjourn, a second and an affirmative voice vote.

The meeting transcript indicates these items arose during public comment rather than as formal agenda items; no ordinances, contracts or budget actions were proposed or adopted during the recorded portion.