I-JOBS Water Quality Fund Application_Lower Bee Branch RestorationTO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
SUBJECT: I-JOBS Water Quality Fund Application -Lower Bee Branch Restoration
DATE: November 9, 2009
Stimulus Coordinator Will Hoyer recommends City Council approval of the submittal of a
$7,000,000 grant application to the Iowa Finance Authority for I-JOBS Water Quality
Fund money for the restoration of the Lower Bee Branch.
I concur with the recommendation and respectfully request Mayor and City Council
approval.
Mic ael C. Van Mil igen
MCVM:jh
Attachment
cc: Barry Lindahl, City Attorney
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
Will Hoyer, Stimulus Coordinator
THE CITY OF
DLTB E
Masterpiece on the Mississippi
TO: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
FROM: Will Hoyer
Dubuque
All-AmeticaCi4/f
1
2007
SUBJECT: I-JOBS Water Quality Fund application -Lower Bee Branch Restoration
DATE: November 3, 2009
INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this memorandum is to request approval of the submittal of a
$7,000,000 grant application to the Iowa Finance Authority.
BACKGROUND
The I-JOBS initiative was created in 2008 by Governor Culver and includes $830 million
in funding over three years. Much of this money was intended for infrastructure
improvements and disaster (flood) recovery. Eighty million dollars were ear-marked for
water quality projects and $20 million of that was targeted at cities with populations over
10,000. The Iowa Finance Authority has control over these dollars and will pair grant
money with State Revolving Fund (SRF) money for large water quality projects.
Dubuque is seeking $7 million in I-JOBS funding for the restoration of the Lower Bee
Branch, which is estimated to cost over $15 million.
Dubuque is also seeking I-JOBS Water Quality Fund money for the replacement of the
Water Pollution Control Plant (see separate memo).
DISCUSSION
Flooding has long been a problem in neighborhoods and basements near the Bee
Branch as a result of inadequate capacity in the buried storm sewers that collect the
storm water in the area. The City has chosen to remedy this by day-lighting the creek
and restoring it to a more natural state. This will not only eliminate the flooding but will
also improve water quality by slowing the flow velocity and adding natural vegetation
along the banks, both of which allow contaminants to settle out before reaching the
Mississippi River. Along with the flooding and water quality benefits there will be
aesthetic and recreational benefits from the landscaping and trails along the stream.
Construction is expected to start in the spring of 2010 and finish later in the year.
Completion of the Lower Bee Branch will be followed by later work on the Upper Bee
Branch.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends Council approval of submittal of the I-JOBS grant application to fund
$7,000,000 of the costs of restoring the Lower Bee Branch.
cc: Cori Burbach, Sustainable Community Coordinator
Teri Goodmann, Assistant City Manager
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
Gus Psihoyos
Deron Muehring
CUlVER1JUDG[
Water Quality
Iowa Fi~~ance AuthoYiti
INVEST 1NG IN HOM[ ANO
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Large Community Application (pop. > 10,000)
Applicant: City of Dubuque (Lower Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project)
Tax ID Number: 42-6004596
Contact personlTitle: Deron Muehring, Civil Engineer
Address: 50 West 13th Street
City Dubuque County Dubuque Zip Code: 52001
Telephone Number: (563) 589-4276 E-mail address: dmuehrin@cityofdubuque.org
Population served by the system 57,696
^ Wastewater NPDES Number:
^ Drinking Water PWS1D Number:
® Storm Water Permit Number (if applicable): 31-260-04
Is this project identified in an Iowa Great Places agreement? ^ Yes ®No
If yes, submit documentation that the proposed project is identified in an Iowa Great Places agreement.
Have you begun the urocess for an SRF loan? 1
YP.C Nn N/A llatP T)nna Tl~ta FY„Pn*Prl
Initiation meeting with DNR March 31, 2009
IUP application filed with PER or facility plan Oct. 14, 200
Project listed on an approved IUP Dec. 15, 2009
Environmental Review (FONSI or CX) complete ^ March 9, 2010
Operating Permit issued
Construction Permit issued March 22,
2010
Others: Section 404 permit March 22,
2010
What is the expected construction start date?
Have construction bids been awarded?
What is the expected project completion date?
Spring 2010
^ Yes ®No
November 2010
System Utilization for the most
recent ear: Number of
Connections Annual Revenue Percentage of System
Usa e (DW only)
Residential 20,058 $4,283,728
Commercial 1,895 $1,010,689
Industrial 72 $38,401
Other overnment) 48 $25,601
Unmetered
Iowa Finance Authority 2015 Grand Avenue Des Moines, IA 50312 800-432-7230
Total 22,073 $5,358,419
PROFESSIONAL CONSULTANTS
Project Engineer: Strand Associates, Inc
Name of Contact Person: Mike Bridwell
Mailing Address: 910 Wingra Dr.
City, State, and Zip Code: Madison, WI 53715
Telephone Number: (608) 251-4843
E-mail address: mike.bridwell@strand.com
Bond Counsel: Ahlers & Cooney, LLP
Name of Contact Person: William Noth
Mailing Address: 100 Court Ave.
City, State, and Zip Code: Des Moines, IA 50309
Telephone Number: (515) 243-7611
E-mail address: wnoth@ahlerslaw.com
Financial Advisor:
Name of Contact Person:
Mailing Address:
City, State, and Zip Code:
Telephone Number:
E-mail address:
SOURCE OF FUNDS/COST BREAI~OWN FOR PROJECT
Project Cost Breakdown
Administrative, Financial & Le al expenses $20,000
Land and easements $1,696,771
Planning & Desi n ex enses $40,157
Engineering construction fees $369,157
Construction $11,186,578
E ui ment $
Interest Burin construction $
Miscellaneous $
Contingenc $1,118,658
Other- S ecif $1,110,000
Total Project Cost $15,541,321
Anticipated Sources of Funds
CDBG $
USDA -grant $
USDA -loan $
WIRB ant $
Local funds $
Other- S ecify $
SRF Loan & I jobs ant $8,541,321 & $7,000,000
Total Source of Funds $15,541,321
2
Existing System Debt: Current Balance Interest
Rate Year
Issued Maturity
Date Annual Payment
(Principal+Interest)
Revenue Bonds $1,889,521 3.25 2006 2029 $91,534
$2,000,000 3.25 2009 2028 $137,190
Other Debt
(Pa able from S stem Revenues
Please write a brief description of the project:
The Lower Bee Branch Creek runs through the historic Washington Neighborhood in central Dubuque,
one of the oldest and poorest neighborhoods in the city. On May 16, 1999 many Dubuque citizens were
waiting out a tornado warning in their basement when heavy rains produced a very personal disaster that
shook their lives. As Dubuque resident Mike Hillard said in the May 20, 1999 edition of the Dubuque
Telegraph Herald, "it was evacuate the tornado shelter or drown. Our freezer was just bobbing."
According to the newspaper, hundred of basements were flooded. Furnaces, water heaters, washers and
dryers, freezers, and even electrical boxes were damaged. In the same Telegraph Herald article,
Washington Street resident Faith Kramer said, "As the water came up, we could hear everything banging
around down there, and glass breaking." In 1999 and again in 2002 and 2004, heavy rains produced flood
damage spurring Presidential Disaster Declarations. In each case, federal and state funds were expended
for repairs.
Properties in this area have experienced tens of millions of dollars in damage and fatalities have resulted
from flooding. Even before the flood of 1999, the City Council began charting a new course towards
addressing the Bee Branch flooding issue by commissioning an engineering study to identify
improvements to solve the problem once and for all. Completed in the fall of 2001, the Drainage Basin
Master Plan (DBMP) concluded what thousands of residents already knew; over 1,150 properties were at
risk of flood damage due to heavy rains.
The DBMP revealed that the existing Bee Branch storm sewer, which is on average ten feet wide by six
feet tall, would need to be four times as large to be able to handle heavy rains. But instead of rebuilding
or expanding the underground storm sewer, the City had another idea: resurrect almost 4,500 feet of the
3
creek that flowed through Dubuque over 100 years ago and once again expose it to sunlight. The
daylighting and restoration of the Lower Bee Branch Creek, which is a 2,000 foot section of the entire
Bee Branch project, will help alleviate these problems, and it will improve both the quality of the water
and quality of life in the area.
The focus of the Lower Bee Branch Restoration Project is daylighting and naturalizing 2,000 feet of
buried storm sewer that runs through one of Dubuque's oldest and poorest neighborhoods. Daylighting
and naturalizing urban streams have been shown in case studies across the country to improve water
quality and flood control, provide wildlife habitat and enhance the neighborhoods through which they run
aesthetically, environmentally and economically. Residents of the neighborhoods around the Bee Branch
have borne the brunt of past flooding damage and stand the most to gain from the restoration, which will
add much-desired amenities -green space and recreational opportunities - to the neighborhod and improve
property values.
Restoring this part of the Bee Branch will result in the creation of a permanent pool of water that will
reduce water velocity, allowing sediment and contaminants to settle out and serving as apre-treatment
facility for water before it enters the Mississippi River. It will involve restoring meanders to the creek
and natural vegetation, which will help slow the water and stabilize the streambanks. The restoration of
the Lower Bee Branch will be combined with later restoration of the Upper Bee Branch and already-
completed construction of Carter Road and 32nd Street detention basins to significantly reduce the
likelihood of flooding in the area and improve the quality of the water being discharged into the
Mississippi.
Is the system under any regulatory compliance order? ^ Yes ®No
Describe how the project with improve water quality. For a wastewater or stonnwater project, this would
be the quality of the receiving stream(s). For a drinking water project, this refers to the quality of the
drinking water (maintaining compliance, preventing contamination, etc):
The Mississippi River, the recipient of the water flowing out of the Bee Branch, is listed on the 303{d) list
as impaired due to aluminum, arsenic, mercury, bacteria and nutrients. According to CDM, a water
resources consulting firm, daylighting the Bee Branch will result in a 20 percent improvement in
dissolved oxygen, a 15 percent reduction in bacteria as well as small reductions in phosphorus, nitrogen
and lead coming out the mouth of the Bee Branch. Strand Associates, the engineering design firm for the
project, estimates that restoring the Lower Bee Branch will reduce total suspended solids by almost 43
percent. These improvements are made possible because of the daylighting, which exposes the water to
4
sun, soil and vegetation and slows the flow velocity. This combination allows many of the contaminants
to be neutralized and prevents them from reaching the Mississippi River. Naturalizing the stream also
creates riparian and fish habitat.
Describe any additional projects planned in the next five years with cost estimates. If a capital
improvement plan is available, please attach the relevant sections.
There are numerous stormwater improvement projects that the City is planning in the next five years.
Most of these, with the exception of the Upper Bee Branch restoration, are smaller routine maintenance or
upgrade projects that are detailed in the attached documents from the Capital Improvement Project. The
restoration of the Upper Bee Branch is estimated to have a similar cost to that of the Lower Bee Branch
and will continue the daylighting and naturalization of the Bee Branch upstream from the Lower Bee
Branch project.
The applicant must enclose (or email) the following documentation with the completed application.
Attached Five year pro-forma showing revenue and expenses for system
See below Most recent financial statement ®Audited ^ Unaudited
(If vour financial information is available online you ma iust provide a link)
http://www.citvofdubuaue.or~/archives/93/CAFR%202008 pdf
The undersigned is duly authorized to apply for this grant on behalf of the Applicant. The Applicant
declares under penalty of law that all facts given and information attached are true and correct. The
Applicant authorizes IFA to veri information.
Authorized Signature Date October 30, 2009
Typed Name and Title Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
Applications are due in the IFA office by 4:30 p.m. on Friday, October 30, 2009
Applications should be addressed to: Lori Beary
Community Development Director
Iowa Finance Authority
2015 Grand Avenue
Des Moines, IA 50312
515-725-4965 (direct)
515-725-4901 (fax)
lori.bear~iowa. og_v
..~
MINORITY IMPACT STATEMENT
Pursuant to 2008 Iowa Acts, HF 2393, Iowa Code Section 8.11, all grant applications submitted to the
state of Iowa that are due beginning January 1, 2009 shall include a Minority Impact Statement. This is
the state's mechanism for requiring grant applicants to consider the potential impact of the grant project's
proposed programs or policies on minority groups.
Please choose the statement(s) that pertains to the grant application. Complete all the information
requested for the chosen statement(s).
® The proposed grant projects programs or policies could have a disproportionate or unique ositive
impact on minority persons. Describe the positive impact expected from this project:
The percentage of minorities in the neighborhoods through which the Bee Branch flows is over 3.5 times
that of the rest of Dubuque County. Median household income in these neighborhoods is roughly 40
percent below the rest of the city. As such, minorities will largely benefit from the reduction in flooding,
the creation of recreational opportunities and green space and the resulting increases in property values.
Indicate which group is impacted:
^ Women ^ Persons with a Disability ^ Asians
® Blacks ^American Indians ^ Alaskan Native Americans
® Latinos ^ Pacific Islanders ^ Other
^ The proposed grant project programs or policies could have a disproportionate or unique negative
impact on minority persons. Describe the negative impact expected from this project:
Present the rationale for the existence of the proposed program or policy:
Provide evidence of consultation with representatives of the minority groups impacted:
Indicate which group is impacted:
^ Women ^ Persons with a Disability ^ Asians
^ Blacks ^ American Indians ^ Alaskan Native Americans
^ Latinos ^ Pacific Islanders ^ Other
^ The proposed grant project programs or policies are not expected to have a disproportionate or unique
impact on minority persons. Present the rationale for determining no impact:
I hereb ertify that the information on this form is complete and accurate, to the best of my knowledge:
ichael C. Van Milligen
Typed Name Signature
Summary Statement of Revenue and Expenditures for System*
Lower Bee Branch Restoration
REVENUES 2 vearc au~ Tact VPar ~11rrPnt VP9Y ATuv4 Vor~r 7 , ,. ~ n,...,
Residential 317,222 434,886 549,292 790,981 972,907 v
Commercial 257,743 353,345 446,300 642,672 790,487
Deferred Char es 85,915 117,782 148,767 214,224 263,495
Other- Ex lain 140,000
TOTAL REVENUES: $ 660,880 $ 906,013 $ 1,144,359 $ 1,647,877 $ 2,166,889
EXPENDITT JRF.S
Operation and
Maintenance 189,124 192,396 378,203 387,658 397,350
Depreciation and
Amortization 120,473 213,741 406,431 285,832 275,000
Other- Ex lain
TOTAL
EXPENDITURES:
NET OPERATING
INCOME:
OTHF,R TNCnMF.•
$ 309,597 $ 406,137 $ 784,634 $ 673,490 $ 672,350
$ 351,283 $ 499,876 $_ 359,725 $ 974,387 $_ 1,494,539
Interest
Other: O er. fund interest 10,027 19,056 20,000 20,000 20,000
TOTAL OPERATING
AND OTHER
INCOME:
$ 361,310 $ 518,932 $ 379,725 $ 994,387 $ 1,514,539
INCOME DF,T~TJCTTnN~~
Interest on debt 79,748 153,545 338,725 535,586 748,907
Debt Retired 80,000 135,000 319,000 574,000 826,000
Other- Ex lain
NET INCOME: $ 201,562 $ 230,387 $ (278,0001 $ (115,199 $ (60,3682_
RETAINED EARNINGS:
Beginning of Year: $ 129,397 $ 330,959 $ 561,346 $ 283.346 $ 168,147
Ending of Year: $ 330,959 $ 561,346 $_ 283,346 $ 168,147 $ 107,779
* Figures from most recent pro forma from audited fiscal year ending June 30, 2008