Fremont council designates 23rd & North Cedar blighted, approves contracts and appointments

The Fremont City Council on April 28 approved a blighted and substandard designation for a roughly 22‑acre area around 23rd and North Cedar Streets and enacted a series of routine and capital items, including construction contracts and a five‑year utilities communications agreement.

Council approved Resolution 2026‑111 (declaring the 23rd & North Cedar area blighted and substandard) on a 5‑1 vote after staff described the property owner‑commissioned study and consultants explained how a mix of conditions and statutory factors can meet the blight threshold. "This is just the blighted and substandard study," Jody Sanders, city administrator, told the council, noting the designation is typically the first step before any redevelopment plan or tax increment financing (TIF) request.

Keith Marvin of Marvin Planning Consultants, author of the study, said some properties categorized as "average" can still meet substandard criteria when taken with other factors: "When we see it average condition or worse, those are typically what we consider to be falling into the substandard category," he said.

During the public hearing, Steve Ray questioned whether elements shown in the study (missing sidewalks, outdoor containers) are created or controlled by the property owner and whether soil contamination has been assessed.

The council also approved multiple items by roll call or as consent matters:

- Tin Lizzie Tavern: Council authorized the city clerk to sign an outdoor Special Designated License (SDL) for an event on May 16, 2026; vote 5‑1 (Item 6).

- Cabbage Parking Garage: Council approved final payment of $12,721.52 and a net final change order of ‑$2,209, adopting Resolution 2026‑103 and accepting the completed project; vote 6‑0.

- Appointment: Resolution 2026‑091 appointed Carrie Hofford as Fremont Street Superintendent effective April 28, 2026 after she obtained a Class A license; vote 6‑0.

- Downtown parking lot reconstruction: Council awarded a $460,343.36 contract to Miguel Restoration for two lots and associated alleys (Resolution 2026‑101); vote 6‑0.

- Manhole and junction‑box rehabilitation: Council authorized a $369,904 contract to Ace Pipe Cleaning for rehabilitation of 28 collector vaults and manholes using a specified cementitious liner (Resolution 2026‑102); vote 6‑0.

- Master fee schedule: Council approved updates to the combined city and Fremont Department of Utilities master fee schedule (Resolution 2026‑109), moving to a February 2024 valuation schedule for building permits; vote 6‑0.

- Airport parallel taxiway: Council authorized the mayor to sign a $3,130,133 contract with Paulson Inc. for airport taxiway reconstruction; staff said federal/state grant funding will cover the majority of the project and that the lower bid reduced the city's local match; vote 6‑0 (Resolution 2026‑112).

- Utilities communications: Council approved a five‑year contract with Doppler for incident response and supplemental dispatch services (annual $90,000 base, 5% annual increases, $30,000 implementation fee) to provide after‑hours call handling, outage notifications and an outage map (Resolution 2026‑114); vote 6‑0.

Why it matters: The blight designation establishes a legal finding that can clear the way for redevelopment planning and potential use of TIF later in the process; the large transportation and utilities contracts represent multi‑year commitments and capital spending that affect the city's infrastructure and budget planning.

Next steps: Staff noted redevelopment plans or any future TIF requests would return to planning commission and council for separate approval; project schedules and grant funding paths will be worked out with contractors and consultants.