At the first of what will most likely be many meetings about the future of the Iowa Braille and Sight-Saving School campus – and whether or not the City of Vinton should become its new owner – Vinton's mayor said the city needs much more time and much more information before considering any decisions.
“I would slow this thing down,” said Mayor John Watson. “They need to give us a year, a year and a half, or two.
“They” refers to the Iowa Board of Regents, who in June offered to sell the entire IBSSS campus to the city for $1.
Since then, said Watson, the Regents have modified their offer. Now, he told an audience of about 30 people during Monday's meeting, the Regents have offered to lease the campus to the city, with the option to buy, starting July 1 of next year.
And, adds the Mayor: If the Regents' offer changed that significantly in just a few weeks, it's quite possible that the offer will change again in the future.
In addition to the cost the city would have to address – the $367,000 annual operating budget deficit, along with $1.5 million worth of needed repairs – another hurdle is finding out if other state government leaders agree that the offer from the Regents is legal.
While the packet of information given to the city includes a copy of Iowa Code Section 262.9.8, which authorizes the Board of Regents to “dispose of real estate belonging to the institutions when not necessary for their purposes,” another law seems to contradict that.
State Rep. Dawn Pettengill and State Sen. Tim Kapucian attended the meeting; Pettengill told the council about Iowa Code 270.10, which former Rep. Kyle Hummel helped pass in the 1980s. That law specifically mentions IBSSS in Vinton and the School for the Deaf, and says neither can be closed without a review by the Department of Management, approval by the Iowa Legislature, and a two-year implementation time table.
Pettengill said state leaders “skirted” that section of the law in 2011 when closing the residential program at IBSSS by defining the word “school” by the number of students attending. But, she said, Monday, the law clearly defines it as the site in Vinton.
Other questions pondered out loud during the meeting included:
What other developers/contractors/investors might be interested in working with the city to use the facility and its many acres for business, housing or other community projects?
What will happen if the city passes on the site, and someone else became the owner? One attendee reminded the council of the proposal in the 1980s to turn the campus into a minimum-security prison, and how residents rallied then to “save our school.”
What is the future of the AmeriCorps campus in Vinton? The NCCC has a five-year lease that expires next year. While campus leaders have told city officials they are very happy with the facility, the program also depends on annual funding from Congress, and if Congress should chose not to fund the program, the city would lose the annual $600,000 of lease income the federal government pays for the use of many of the IBSSS facilities.
Business Opportunity Group (BOG) leader Don Eells encouraged the council to reassure the AmeriCorps leaders that the campus would be viable under Vinton's ownership. He also encouraged the city to consider many developers as potential partners.
Watson identified four things he believes are necessary to make Vinton ownership of the campus work:
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The city needs really good partners (including AmeriCorps);
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A payment of $250,000 from the state or Board of Regents for maintenance (although the initial response from the Regents on this request was “no,” Watson has told state officials it is too soon to say “no” to anything in the on-going negotiations with the city);
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A citizens commission overseeing the project to make sure improvements are made appropriately.
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Vinton ownership of Kiwanis Park (which is part of the IBSSS property, and leased to the city).
Vinton City Manager Chris Ward, responding to a question, said that the Regents did specifically ask the city to continue the historical programs related to IBSSS, including the Mary Ingalls Society as well as the museums located in the main building.
The next steps, says Watson, are to set up a meeting between the Board of Regents, City, state officials and legislators, and the AmeriCorps administrators to plan the future of any transaction. Also, the Mayor would like to see a thorough inspection of the campus to evaluate the condition of the buildings, grounds and tunnels.
Also, within a week or so, Pettengill expects to hear from State Capitol Staff on the legal issues surrounding the potential sale of the campus.
Both Mayor Watson and Rep. Pettengill pledged “transparency” throughout the process, making sure that on both the state and local levels that residents know what leaders are planning. Watson said the city would be sure to let residents know through local media when the IBSSS campus is on meeting agendas.
Approximately 30 people attended the meeting, which was moved to the courthouse's main courtroom to accommodate the larger-than-normal crowd expected. All who spoke agreed that the city's decision on whether or not to take over the campus will be a very long process, and that there will be a need for asking many specific questions along the way.
“I will ask Keith to come and speak to our city – to let him see the faces of the people who would bear the responsibility if we decide to take this on,” said Watson, adding that the younger members of the audience may feel the impact for the next 20 years if the city doesn't make the right decisions concerning the campus.
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