Norwalk council approves CIP, zoning actions, beautification, sign and franchise ordinances; summary of votes

The Norwalk City Council took a series of votes on March 6 covering the capital improvement plan, zoning changes, public-works contracts, a Highway 28 beautification project, and franchise and ordinance matters. Below are the items the council acted on, with outcomes and key details from staff presentations.

Votes at a glance

- Approval of agenda (amended to remove item 10): motion carried (voice vote).

- Consent agenda (routine items): approved by roll call (motion by Livingston, second by Cool) — motion carries.

- Item 7A: Resolution approving a 28E intergovernmental agreement to provide fire and EMS services to an adjacent city under a formula rate. Staff said the agreement sets the charge for the other city at $1.98 per $1,000 of taxable valuation to align with Norwalk levy for the same services. Motion carried by roll call (yes votes recorded).

- Item 7B: Resolution directing staff to prepare an ordinance to allow off-road utility vehicles (UTVs) to operate on certain city streets. Council approved direction to draft a formal ordinance (motion carried). Staff noted state law limits UTV top speed to 35 mph and restricts travel on divided highways and crossings; the draft will address where within city limits UTVs would be allowed and where they would not.

- Item 7C: Discussion and direction to work with the Iowa Department of Transportation on potential transfer of a DOT right-of-way adjacent to addresses on Sunset Drive; council directed staff to explore transfer and whether property could be ceded to adjacent homeowners (motion carried).

- Items 7D/7E: Public hearing and adoption of the FY26 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). Staff summarized a $10.7 million CIP funded by general obligation bonds (approximately $6.7M), local option sales tax, SRF loans and other sources; council adopted the CIP by roll-call vote.

- Item 7F: Public hearing and first reading — rezoning of 1421 Sunset Drive from C-2 (community commercial) to an Infill Planned Unit Development (IPUD) with C-2 uses (first reading approved).

- Item 7H: Public hearing and first reading — rezoning 7680 County Line Road from AR (Agricultural Reserve) to RE-1 (Rural Estate) to allow property improvements (first reading approved).

- Items 7J/7K/7L/7M: Highway 28 beautification project (wall/fence). Council held a public hearing and approved plans/specifications/estimate (7K). Council later awarded the contract to Jorgensen Contracting Company for $779,201.50 (resolution 7L) and approved contract/bond (7M). Staff recommended the 8-foot option; council approved the 8-foot wall. Council also discussed lighting options to add later.

- Items 7N/7O/7Q/7R/7S: Cherry Parkway widening project. Council opened and closed a public hearing and approved plans/specs/estimate (7O). Council discussed lowest-responsible-bidder issues and, after a separate resolution finding TK Concrete a responsible bidder (7P), awarded the Cherry Parkway contract to TK Concrete ($388,427) (7Q) and approved contract/bond (7R). Council also approved a supplemental engineering agreement for construction administration (7S).

- Items 7T/7U/7V/7W: Norwalk community entry sign. Council held a public hearing, approved plans/specs/estimate (7U), awarded the contract to Edge Commercial for $74,400 (7V), and approved contract and bond (7W).

- Items 7X/7Y/7AA/7BB: Main Street water main replacement project. Council held a public hearing, approved plans/specs/estimate (7Y), discussed lowest-responsible-bidder issues in tandem with the Cherry Parkway discussion (7Z), then awarded the Main Street water main contract to TK Concrete for $1,050,520 (7AA) and approved contract and bond (7BB). Staff cautioned the project could be complex and disruptive and said the city will coordinate water shutdowns with schools and residents.

- Item 7CC: Resolution initiating a rezoning referral to the Planning & Zoning Commission to change 818.5 North Avenue from C-4 (Founders Business) to RF (Founders Residential) — motion carried.

- Items 7DD and 7EE: Second readings of amendments to the Maple Heights PUD and Orchard Hills PUD; both second readings passed by roll call.

- Item 7FF / 7HH / 7II: Final readings of ordinances. Council adopted final ordinances to grant MidAmerican Energy Company 25-year franchises for natural gas and electric systems (replacing local option sales taxes on utility bills with 1% franchise fees), and adopted the Norwalk Technology and Industry Overlay District ordinance; council approved these final readings on roll-call votes.

- Item 7GG (water/fees): Second reading of changes to chapter 92 and chapter 177 — amendments to irrigation/secondary water rates. Council approved the second reading to move to an inclining block schedule year-round.

- Several first- and second-reading zoning matters and PUD amendments were approved or advanced for additional review, and staff will return with final ordinances or site plans as required.

What council asked staff to do next

- Draft the UTV ordinance for a formal first reading and broader public input. - Work with the Iowa DOT on the Sunset Drive right-of-way transfer and investigate whether affected property owners would accept the transfer. - Monitor contractor performance closely on awarded projects and require engineering construction administration and inspection. - Proceed with contract administration steps for the awarded projects and schedule construction timing to reduce school-year disruptions.

Votes and roll-call summaries were recorded for all referenced approvals; most roll-call votes recorded unanimous approval. For items where discussion occurred (notably the TK bidder finding and awards), the council requested closer oversight and reserved performance remedies in contract terms.