Milford resident says vendors are avoiding Story County after board actions

Josh Vorsma, identifying himself as from the Milford Schoolhouse, used the meeting’s public-comment period to raise three concerns: he said the Ragbrai ordinance was not enacted to meet state requirements as had been asserted at a prior meeting; he criticized assigning responsibility for special-events permits to a single official; and he said two prominent vendors told him they would not set up in Story County because they feared being blacklisted and losing income.

"That's not actually true," Vorsma said of the prior claim that the Ragbrai ordinance was in response to meeting state requirements, adding he could not fully develop the point within the two-minute public-comment limit. He accused supervisors of trying to shift responsibility for special-event permitting onto a single individual, calling that disingenuous. He said the vendors contacted him and instead planned to set up in Boone County and Marshall County.

The chair acknowledged Vorsma’s remarks with thanks and the board proceeded to liaison updates; the transcript records no staff response, clarification, or follow-up action on the claims during the meeting. The Open Meetings law was referenced elsewhere in the meeting to explain limits on board action during public comment.

The assertions Vorsma raised — about the Ragbrai ordinance’s legal basis and vendors' decisions — were not substantiated on the record during this meeting and therefore remain unresolved in the transcript. The board did not take formal action in response to the comments; the next procedural items on the agenda were calendar reports and adjournment.