3 3 09 City Council Proceedings Official_Special
CITY OF DUBUQUE, IOWA
CITY COUNCIL PROCEEDINGS
OFFICIAL
The Dubuque City Council met in special session at 6:30 p.m. on March 3, 2009 in
the Historic Federal Building.
Present: Mayor Buol, Council Members Braig, Connors, Jones, Lynch, Resnick,
Voetberg, City Manager Michael Van Milligen
Mayor Buol read the call and stated this is a special session of the City Council called
for the purpose of discussing various City departmental budgets.
Fiscal Year 2010 Recommended Departmental Budgets were presented by staff from
the following City departments: Emergency Communications, Emergency Management,
Airport, Police Department, and Building Services Department.
Emergency Communications: Emergency Communications Manager Mark Murphy
introduced staff and presented the department’s Fiscal Year 2010 recommended
budget. Murphy reviewed the status of the new part-time positions and their training.
Responding to questions from City Council Members, Murphy stated that members of
domestic violence programs are involved in the Criminal Justice group and the City of
Farley is now part of the State’s electronic licensing system and no longer has to call
into Dubuque for information. Murphy added that the department receives its share of
prank and non- emergency calls, which are either verified through call backs or
transferred for non-emergency assistance.
Emergency Management: Emergency Management Coordinator Tom Berger
presented the department’s Fiscal Year 2010 recommended budget. Responding to
questions from City Council Members, Berger explained the purpose of the project work
sheets, which are used during the repair process following disaster events.
Airport: Airport Manager Bob Grierson presented the department’s Fiscal Year 2010
recommended budget. Responding to questions from City Council Members, Grierson
described how the broom core equipment is used for snow/ice removal. Grierson
informed Council that American Airlines is not terminating service in Dubuque as
recently reported in the media, and the department continues to work with the carrier to
maintain the current level of service. Grierson added that the airport is approximately 82
percent self-sufficient and works toward minimizing the percentage of property tax
support. He stated that direct economic development impact can range from $42 to $88
million per year with indirect impact through jobs and other opportunities. Grierson said
he continues to work with carriers on fare parity and invited citizens to contact the
airport whenever they are comparing fares with other regional airports.
Police Department: Police Chief Kim Wadding introduced the department’s
Command Staff and K-9 Unit Officer Brian Wullwebber. Wullwebber introduced, Doerak,
the new dual-purpose, narcotic detector dog and gave a brief description of the animal’s
history, training and abilities. Wadding then presented the department’s Fiscal Year
2010 recommended budget. Responding to questions from City Council Members,
Wadding stated that the uniforms for the Community-Oriented Police Officers have
changed over time in order to refresh public awareness and for ease of cleanliness, and
old guns are traded in with dealerships for a discount on the purchase of new guns. Van
Milligen stated that the Council’s decision to add15 police officer positions would need
to be funded through a large one-time funding source in order to bridge the recurring
cost to future fiscal years until they could be funded from the City’s General Fund. He
added that without that funding source, the addition of those positions would have to be
cut or delayed. Wadding described the gender and ethnic make-up of the Police force.
Van Milligen stated that Dubuque compares favorably with other Iowa communities in
terms of crime rates and safety, and this information is provided to companies seeking
to locate in Dubuque.
Building Services: Building Services Manager Rich Russell presented the
department’s Fiscal Year 2010 recommended budget.
There being no further business, upon motion the City Council adjourned at 8:19 p.m.
/s/Jeanne F. Schneider, CMC
City Clerk
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