Sustainable Dubuque Quarterly ReportCopyright 2014
City of Dubuque Consent Items # 4.
ITEM TITLE: Sustainable Dubuque Quarterly Report
SUMMARY: City Manager transmitting the Sustainable Dubuque Quarterly Report for
September 2014.
SUGGESTED DISPOSITION: Suggested Disposition: Receive and File
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Type
E September Sustainable Dubuque Report -MVM Memo City Manager Memo
E Staff Memo Staff Memo
❑ September Quarterly Report Supporting Documentation
THE CITY OF
Dui
Masterpiece on the Mississippi
TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
SUBJECT: September Sustainable Dubuque Report
DATE: October 14, 2014
Dubuque
band
AI -America City
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2007 • 2012 • 2013
Sustainable Community Coordinator Cori Burbach is transmitting the September
Sustainable Dubuque Report.
11r11144 Ws,
Mic ael C. Van Milligen
MCVM:jh
Attachment
cc: Barry Lindahl, City Attorney
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
Teri Goodmann, Assistant City Manager
Cori Burbach, Sustainable Community Coordinator
Masterpiece on the Mississippi
TO: Michael Van Milligen, City Manager
FROM: Cori Burbach, Sustainability Coordinator
SUBJECT: September Sustainable Dubuque Report
DATE: October 13, 2014
Dubuque
bierd
All -America City
1
2007
Attached please find the September Sustainable Dubuque report. No action is needed;
this report is provided for your information.
Thank you.
City of Dubuque
Sustainable Dubuque
Project Status Report — September 2014
REGIONAL ECONOMY 4
SMART ENERGY USE 12
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 151-4
COMMUNITY DESIGN 2625
GREEN BUILDINGS 31
HEALTHY LOCAL FOOD 38
COMMUNITY KNOWLEDGE 41
REASONABLE MOBILITY 5354
CLEAN WATER 6062
HEALTHY AIR 6768
NATIVE PLANTS & ANIMALS 6970
COMMUNITY HEALTH & SAFETY 7374
*Please note: in order to manage the length of this report, some historical, non -timely
information has been removed from the current report.
COMPREHENSIVE PROJECTS
Smarter Sustainable Dubuque Performance Measures & Management/STAR Leadership
Community: An application to join the Leadership STAR Communities program was submitted.
The City has been selected as a STAR Leadership Community and will begin data collection in
January with the intention of submitting a final report to STAR in late 2014/early 2015. Many of
the existing Sustainable Dubuque indicators developed through the University of Iowa Iowa
Initiative for Sustainable Communities partnership will be used for this process. Planning
Services Manager Laura Carstens and Human Relations Specialist Manisha Paudel attended
STAR training in Ft. Lauderdale. A temporary intern has begun work in the Sustainability Office
and will assist staff and partners in data collection. Sustainability Cori Burbach has been
chosen as a mentor for the next STAR Leadership class and will participate in training the
group this September.
Comprehensive Plan: Planning for the Comprehensive Plan update, including an extensive
community engagement process, is underway. Efforts are being made to align the
Comprehensive Plan with Sustainable Dubuque.
Green Team: The Green Team comprised of close to 30 representatives from a cross section
of City departments met for the first time in August 2010 and meets regularly. The (draft)
Mission Statement developed by the team is:
"The mission of the City of Dubuque Green Team is to lead in educating, communicating and
implementing practices and technologies to achieve the Sustainable Dubuque vision, to work in
each of the 11 areas of sustainability identified in that vision, to promote these practices among
staff and departments; and to serve as an example for other organizations, groups, businesses
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and the broader community."
The Sustainable Purchasing Policy, Employee Education, and Buildings & Energy Management
subcommittees met to identify priorities for 2012. The Education subcommittee has developed
a plan to provide all employees with regular sustainability information via Spirit Times and other
media.
The Green Team conducted a waste and recycling assessment for those buildings that had the
highest concentrations of City employees. Of the buildings assessed, 11% of the materials
considered "trash" could have been recycled in yellow bins. Cross -contamination of recyclables
with non-recyclables was extremely small and non -hazardous. The Library had the best
diversion rate of 78.5% of materials being recycled. The overall results exceeded expectations,
with a recycling rate of 48%. Larger items which are often diverted by departments for
beneficial use (e.g. recycling carpet) were not included in this analysis. The Green Team will
now work on tips based on these results to improve smart Resource Management.
Staff in the Municipal Services Center and City Hall have begun working towards Petal Project
certification. Each building will have its own committee to work towards the criteria and track
progress. The two buildings going through the process together will allow for team learning and
be an example for other city facilities. Staff at the Carnegie -Stout Public Library have also
begun working towards Petal certification.
Employees are given the option to receive paperless checks and Spirit Times newsletters. It is
estimated that this reduction in paper and printing costs will save the City approximately $2,500
per year. Paperless check and Spirit Times newsletters have been implemented for those
employees choosing to opt in. Over 425 employees chose to participate.
Recycling boxes placed in City Hall, the Municipal Services Center, and at DMASWA now
ensure that ink cartridges and small electronics are properly disposed of. DMASWA receives
financial rebates for qualifying items.
Green Team members met and have identified the following areas for work in 2014: energy use
in City facilities, purchasing, cleaning supplies, printing workflows, and Bike To Work Week.
DMASWA staff provided the following information about cartridges collected and recycled since
the start of the program:
2
Impact Summary
End -of -life Solution (Pounds)
Reused
0.00
1
2
�3
=4
5
Recycled
31.48
Total Units Collected Total Pounds
1 Inkjets
21 Lasers
0 Phones
0 Small Electronics
0 Printer Components
0.12 Inkjets
31.36 Lasers
0.00 Printer Components
5.10 Plastic
0.78 Nylon
8.83 Metal
0.90 Aluminum
0.13 Copper
Greenhouse Gasses Prevented (MTCO2E)*
Via Reuse
0.20
Via Recycling
46 05
Community Climate Action Plan:
The GHG Reduction Plan was written to provide a realistic path to achieving 50% GHG
reduction by 2030 in Dubuque. The recommendations discussed in the plan are tailored to
Dubuque's specific needs and capabilities. The costs, benefits, and GHG reductions are then
calculated for each action, which allows us to prioritize recommendations based on GHG
reductions achieved, effort required, and the side benefits each action brings to Dubuque
(notably, those "side benefits" often far outweigh the GHG impact). Every recommendation in
this plan is designed to benefit Dubuque's health, transportation, and economic prosperity,
reaching well beyond GHG reduction. For more information visit: www.dubuqueGHGplan.org
Green Dubuque, City of Dubuque, and Greater Dubuque Development Corporation, along with
Petal Project support staff, have begun a business outreach initiative and intend to work
through September to collect input about existing programs, opportunities, and barriers to their
implementation of sustainable practices.
The completed 50% by 2030 plan was presented to and adopted by the City Council in
December 2013.
Sustainable Dubuque Collaboration: In fall 2011, Community Foundation of Greater
Dubuque staff informed the City and other Dubuque 2.0 steering committee members that they
would refocus their community engagement efforts around issues other than sustainability.
Since that time, we have met with Foundation staff, 2.0 steering committee members, and other
key stakeholders to determine a path forward to accomplish community engagement and
education around sustainability. The ultimate goals are that these activities continue, and that
the entire community feels that Sustainable Dubuque is an initiative that was created by, and
continues to be led by, the community.
The Sustainable Dubuque Collaboration (SDC) concept has evolved after discussion with
partners as a way to continue community awareness and education efforts, foster collaboration
from all sectors to meet the Sustainable Dubuque goals, and measure our progress towards our
goals. SDC, modeled after DubuqueWorks, is structured in a way that requires commitments to
action from its core members and invites all Dubuque residents, businesses and organizations
to participate.
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All members of the Sustainable Dubuque Core and Investor Networks will be asked to actively
support the goals of community engagement and education. They will continue to operate their
own programs (e.g. Petal Project, Green Vision Schools) and will collaborate as necessary to
achieve these goals. The group will work to assist each other, identify gaps, avoid duplication,
and attract additional funding and resources.
The Core Network has conducted two strategic planning sessions. Overall, the group is
focused on creating an independent, collaborative, community -supported organization with
broad demographic participation in order to gain acceptance of the Sustainable Dubuque vision,
increase community education and partnerships around sustainability, and engage citizens and
organizations so that they change individual, collective and institutional behaviors and culture
resulting in successful outcomes. The group continues to work on planning and is focused on
two areas in the near-term future: organizational development and engaging the community in
setting actionable priorities based on the Sustainable Dubuque indicators.
The Sustainable Dubuque Collaboration Investors met for the first time in October. This new
addition, illustrated below, builds on a Core group that will continue to meet and drive strategic
direction of the Collaboration. The Investors are asked to invest time, talent and/or treasure in
the Collaboration. Currently, eight organizations are represented on the Core Network, with an
additional 16 organizations in the Investors Network. We will continue to recruit additional
members. Three new members joined the Investors, who continue to meet on a bi-monthly
basis.
Core Network
Investors Network
Sustainable Dubuque Community Grants: Forty-one community grants were issued. Identified
benefits of the program include the following: 1. Supporting the development of community
leadership in implementing the Sustainable Dubuque vision. This includes several new
organizations who have received community grants. 2. Building sustainability knowledge and
capacity in the community. For example, Circles received a grant to do a family night, and
worked with sustainability staff to make it a zero -waste event. Since then, they have hosted all
of their events as near zero -waste.
REGIONAL ECONOMY
Government:
Petal Project: The Petal Project is a regional green business certification program designed to
encourage organizations in the Dubuque area to adopt more environmentally friendly business
practices. Businesses receive Petal Project staff assistance and a simple framework for saving
money and resources. The program also establishes a community -wide definition of a green
business for consumers wishing to shop based on their values.
The Petal Project is divided into five categories. Within each category a business must
complete all of the mandatory and a specified number of option criteria to earn that petal. Once
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a business has earned all five petals, it is "Petal Certified".
There are currently 30 businesses participating in the program. Fourteen businesses are now
certified including Finley Hospital (2010), Loras College (2011), DB&T (2012), Premier Bank
(2012), Premier Tooling & Manufacturing (2012), River Lights Bookstore (2012), Dubuque Data
Services (2012), Unison Solutions (2013), Unified Therapy Services (2013), EIMCo (2013),
Carnegie -Stout Public Library (2014), Physical Therapy Solutions (2014), Straka Johnson
Architects (2014) and East Central Intergovernmental Association (2014).
Buyer Supplier Network: Buyer -Supplier is a web based program for businesses that
connects both buyers and sellers in Eastern Iowa to promote and facilitate regional purchasing.
Over $6.3 billion are being spent on goods and services from vendors located outside of
eastern Iowa that could be spent in the region. The goal of Buyer Supplier is to encourage
businesses to purchase from regional providers, shifting dollars back into the regional economy.
Businesses of all types and sizes are encouraged to take part in the program; from small
organic produce farmers, to large corporations. There are currently nearly 1,200 businesses
with profiles on the system. Buyer Supplier staff uploads all City of Dubuque RFPs to the
system.
Workforce Development:
Recruitment and retention: The Training and Workforce Development Coordinator works with
hiring managers to review job descriptions for open positions so the description reflects the
reality of the job expectations and assists in recruiting more broadly for open positions.
Interview processes with the PD and other positions involving high levels of public contact
include a diverse group of community members in the process. An internship program has
been implemented in the police department as a feeder program to full time positions. In terms
of police retention, two police officers trained in intercultural competence have created a
communications course for field training officers and new recruits that we anticipate will assist
with retention by building the necessary communication and intercultural skills. The Fire
Department is in the process of developing a Firefighter internship program.
Apclicant Statistics
Race/Ethnicity
2010
Census
2010
Applicants
2011
Applicants
2012
Applicants
2013
Applicants
White
91%
82.2%
88.2%
91.4%
85%
Black/African-
American
5%
6.8%
7%
5%
8.2%
Hispanic/Latino
2%
2.5%
2%
1.5%
3.5%
Asian
1%
1.4%
1.1 %
.7%
1.8%
American
Indian
.7%
1.7%
.3%
.4%
.4%
New Hires (1 Year)
Race/Ethnicity
2010 Census
2012-2013 FT
Hires
2012-2013 PT
Hires
2012-2013
Seasonal
White
91 %
87%
(34 people)
94%
(32 people)
92%
(188 people)
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New Hires
Gender
2012-2013 FT Hires
2012-2013 PT Hires
2012-2013 Seasonal
Male
Black/African-
American
5%
10.25%
(4 people)
6%
(2 people)
2%
(4 people)
Hispanic/Latino
2%
0%
0%
4%
(5 people)
Asian
1%
2.5% (1 person)
0%
2%
(4 people)
American Indian
.7%
0%
0%
0%
New Hires
Gender
2012-2013 FT Hires
2012-2013 PT Hires
2012-2013 Seasonal
Male
61.6% (24 people)
44.1% (15 people)
48.8% (98 people)
Female
38.4% (15 people)
55.9% (19 people)
51.2% (103 people)
New Hires (2 Years
Race/Ethnicity
2010 Census
2011-2013 FT Hires
2011-2013 PT Hires
2011-2013
Seasonal
White
91%
92% (68 people)
87% (53 people)
92% (277
people)
Black/African-
American
5%
5.4% (4 people)
6.5% (4 people)
3%
(9 people)
Hispanic/Latino
2%
1.4% (1 person)
6.5% (4 people)
3%
(9 people)
Asian
1%
1.4% (1 person)
0%
2%
(6 people)
American Indian
.7%
0%
0%
0%
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Race/Ethnicity 2013-2014 2013-2014
FT Hires PT Hires
Total Hires
(includes
seasonal)
White
82.6% 88.6% 90.6%
(38 people) (47 people) (410 people)
Black/African 10.86% 7.54% 4.6%
American (5 people) (4 people) (21 people)
Hispanic/Latino 2.17% 1.8%
(1 person) (1 person)
2.86%
(13 people)
Asian
4.43% 1.8% 1.98%
(2 people) (1 person) (9 people)
American Indian 0%
0% 0%
Gender
Male
Female
2012-2013 2012-2013
FT Hires PT Hires
73.9%
(34 people)
26.1%
(12 people)
53.7%
(29 people)
46.3%
(25 people)
Total Hires
(includes
seasonal)
49.4%
(229 people)
50.6%
(224 people)
program for newly hired staff to support their
Training & Career Development: We are in
the process of conducting a training needs
assessment to determine the skills and tools
our workforce needs to be effective and
engaged. It will be complete in June and we
will use some of the information to design
leadership workshops, some to design
workshops for all staff as part of employee
orientation, and the needs that are
functional/department specific will be
forwarded to those departments/functional
groups for budgeting and planning. This
year we also worked with Senior High
School to administer the intercultural
development inventory to all staff and to
conduct foundational training with all staff.
City staff from three departments along with
three community members from our
ambassador group designed and facilitated
the workshops. We continue to conduct
short awareness raising workshops for
organizations upon request. Finally, we are
designing an orientation and welcoming
integration into the organization.
A survey of Intercultural Ambassadors in late 2013 (those who have completed a minimum of
32 hours of intercultural skill building) revealed the following results: 65% agreed/22% strong
agreed that they have improved their own intercultural communication ability; 65% agreed/26%
strongly agreed that they have changed their behavior by using the skills learned; 52%
agreed/9% strongly agreed that they have expanded their social connections with people from
different cultures; 91 % are involved in diversity and inclusion efforts in their organization or
community. Organizational changes reported by ambassadors included: conducting
intercultural workshops for staff and/or students; working towards transformative culture change
within a department; advocating for inclusive practices in meetings; making efforts to ensure
diverse candidate pools; hosting panel discussions on creating culturally inclusive classrooms;
using materials from the ICC workshops with mentors and with new employees.
Impact: The objectives of this work are having a workforce prepared for 21St century jobs and
embracing a diverse population that supports a multicultural workforce. The outcomes will be a
city workforce reflecting the diversity of the community; city services that are available for all
and delivered in an equitable and fair manner; and a community where everyone is welcome.
Business:
Dubuque Works:
AccessDubuqueJobs.com
• 7 AccessDubuqueJobs.com investors recruited fiscal year-to-date for a total of 143
investors
• 985 jobs posted in September 2014
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• 200 resumes added in September 2014 for a total resume bank of 4,274
• Site currently averaging 87,500 visitors per month
• 1,634 facebook likes
• A total of 84 internships were posted FY 2013-2014
Newcomer Services
• New relocation guide and video to be released November 2014
• 114 individuals assisted from 29 different employers YTD
• 95 personalized community tours
Opportunity Dubuque
• Program started in July of 2012
• 645 Individuals have attended orientation
• 363 have applied for the program and have been assessed
• 361 Interviews conducted
• 286 students accepted into the program to date
• 238 Graduated
• 223 Employed or continuing education
Skilled Trades
• The STEM Festival was held on April 12th at the Grand River Center with 60 exhibitors.
The Festival attracted over 2,000 participants from the tri-state area. The event is
supported by funding provided by the Iowa Legislature through the Iowa Governor's
STEM Advisory Council. T
Dubuque Sustainability Innovation Consortium (support of GDDC: High Priority): Formed
in late 2009, the Dubuque Sustainability Innovation Consortium is an informal group comprised
of manufacturing, technology, service, wholesale and other industry sectors. The consortium is
staff -supported by Greater Dubuque Development in partnership with the City of Dubuque.
The Consortium has hosted quarterly meetings to engage the private sector about
sustainability -related opportunities, including the topics of energy efficiency/lighting, the Petal
Project, and solar.
Greater Dubuque Development assisted with the promotion of events that were held in
Dubuque (May 29/30) to promote CNG fleets/vehicles. The events were co-sponsored by Black
Hills Energy and Rainbo Oil Corp. Going forward, Greater Dubuque Development / Innovation
Consortium will host an additional event in mid/late 2013 to promote companies/fleets switching
to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG).
During the month of June 2013, Greater Dubuque Development formally hired a new staff
person. Casey Muhm will serve as Greater Dubuque's Director of Sustainable Innovation. In his
role, Casey will pick-up the duties and assignments previously held by Dave Lyons (as they
pertain to IBM, Smarter City, pilot programs, etc.). Additionally, Casey will oversee all of Greater
Dubuque's collaboration, partnering, and programming related to sustainability, including
Greater Dubuque's Innovation Consortium. Casey will also be responsible for Greater
Dubuque's use of data and analytics. Casey Muhm has accepted a new position; Dave Lyons
has been contracted by Greater Dubuque Development to continue the work of this position.
s
On November 13, Greater Dubuque brought together over 75 key decision -makers to discuss
the benefits of using compressed natural gas (CNG) to power vehicles. Our region's natural gas
supplier, Black Hills Energy, spoke to the group about the expected return on investment for
different vehicle types, general trends impacting the price and availability of CNG, and how and
where to purchase or convert vehicles to run on CNG. Kwik Stop was also on hand to
announce that CNG is available at the new Kwik Stop BP station at 16th and Kerper, which held
its grand opening on November 15. Lastly, Eric Hoke, a Nebraska -based electrical contractor
who has been using three CNG vans for over two years, discussed how converting his fleet to
run on CNG has helped him save money, attract new customers, and expand his business.
On August 27th, Greater Dubuque hosted a Dubuque Sustainable Innovation Consortium dinner
meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to showcase Alliant Energy's proven, cost-saving
programs for commercial and industrial business. The program included remarks from Doug
Kopp, President of Interstate Power and Light and a testimonial for Alliant Energy's Small
Business Energy Solutions by Ben Graham, Owner of Graham's Style Store. Over 70+
individuals attended.
Non -Profit:
University Extension Community Development Collaborative (f/k/a Dubuque Institute for
Sustainable Communities and Economic Development): The Dubuque Institute for
Sustainable Communities and Economic Development is a first of its kind collaboration between
Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, University of Wisconsin -Extension and the City
of Dubuque. The institute will focus on issues important to the greater Dubuque regional
economy and successful strategies that can be replicated in other communities across both
states. The institute staff will work with regional universities, colleges and other academic
institutions in both states, as well as extension and colleges within the two universities. Faculty
and staff will look for other regional, national or international institutions to conduct research
within Dubuque and support collaboration with private sector businesses and organizations in
the community.
The Institute's offices have been completed on the second floor of the Roshek Building and are
operational. The Universities have hired the jointly tenured professor to lead the Institute. She
is Professor Deborah Tootle, who was most recently with the University of Arkansas teaching
and working in Community and Economic Development. Her doctorate was from the University
of Georgia and she has spent time working with the United States Department of Agriculture
Economic Research Service and Louisiana State University (as Program Leader for Community
Rural Development). She has specialized in several areas that will be of interest in her work at
the Institute, including Community Stakeholder Engagement and Community Disaster
Recovery.
Project HOPE:
• History
o In 2008, the City identified the need to address economic security of under -
resourced community members. To address this issue, the City of Dubuque
partnered with the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque to activate Project
HOPE (Help Our People Excel).
o Project HOPE is an economic development initiative designed to convene
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community organizations and stakeholders around issues that relate to
disengaged people (those in poverty, unemployed and disengaged youth),
researching and developing best practices to share among local providers and
ensuring action steps are being taken to address identified strategies for
improvement and hosting meetings to encourage communication, data sharing,
and improved outcomes.
Project HOPE Objectives for 2014-2015
o Project HOPE works to improve inter -agency collaboration and reduce
policy/program barriers to service- or simply, makes systems easier to access and
navigate- in order to connect disengaged youth and adults to education and
employment opportunities.
• Program/activity goals are;
o Objective 1: Improve information availability, sharing and use among providers -
ensure collective impact by coordinating system improvements through a common
agenda, mutually reinforcing activities, information sharing and better
understanding community needs. Action; convene a stakeholders group which
will meet regularly to share best practices, ideas for improvement and to
coordinate resources.
■ The Community Foundation continues to convene a core committee on a
monthly basis to move the work of the Project HOPE programs forward.
■ The CFGD produces a quarterly e -newsletter, which is shared with
partners, providers and citizens, that highlights Project HOPE programs.
■ See also, Network Map and Community Assessment under Objective 3.
o Objective 2: Support the Circles Initiative —ensure more families are able to
access childcare, education/training opportunities and employment by supporting
stronger connections to participants in programs like Family Self Sufficiency,
Circles and other similar coordinating efforts. Action: Devote Community
Foundation staff resources to building capacity and long-range sustainability
planning for the Circles Initiative.
■ Capacity Building: The Project HOPE Coordinator will devote
approximately 20 hours per week co -coordinating the Circles Initiative with
City staff, at the Housing Department's request. Responsibilities have and
continue to be weekly meeting planning, leadership development among
Circle Leaders (low-income participants) and the Guiding Coalition
(volunteer board).
■ Long Range Organizational Planning: Project HOPE coordinator is
examining different staffing patterns that support long-term sustainability
and deepened capacity for the program. The coordinator is also looking
outward, building community partnerships with churches, schools, and the
business sector to increase Circles' long-term organizational viability.
Goals for 2014-15 include establishing a sustainable childcare program
utilizing partnerships with higher -education partners, establishing preferred
employer relationships to increase Circle Leader employment
opportunities, and deepening relationships with service providers, churches
and any other organizations that serve as a referral source for Getting
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Ahead class participants, as well as deepening relationships with funding
partners.
o Objective 3: Identify evaluation framework—to ensure the Tong -term impact of the
Project HOPE initiative, clear metrics that align with local and national
benchmarks need to be established. Action: development of a framework for
evaluating the collective impact of Project HOPE partner activities through
building a community network map that will provide the basis for a community
needs assessment that will highlight benchmark areas for improvement.
• Network Map: Project HOPE in partnership with United Way, will build a
map of Dubuque service providers and other organizations engaged in
serving under -resourced or disengaged people. This map will highlight
collaborative networks as well as communication gaps. Participants will be
invited to view the map as a platform for increasing collaboration and
collective impact.
• Community Needs Assessment: The information gathered in the
Network Mapping project will serve as the basis for engaging partners in
conducting a community needs assessment which will inform the collective
impact goals, and capacity building objectives of Project HOPE for 2015-
16.
o Objective 4: Re -connect unemployed people to educationlskills training —
coordinate clear paths to education/skills training that connect to employment and
education achievement. Action: expansion of the re-engagement program to
reconnect people to education opportunities.
■ Re-engage Dubuque: Aug 2012 Project HOPE announced the opening of
Dubuque's re-engagement program. Re-engage Dubuque is funded by a
partnership between the Dubuque Community Schools and NICC. Re-
engage Dubuque is a staffed program that connects high school dropouts
back into education and training opportunities, utilizing the skills and
expertise of two full-time coaches. To date Re-engage Dubuque has
worked with over 212 students and helped 74 individuals earn either a high
school diploma or their GED/ HISED
■ See also Opportunity Dubuque (Objective 5).
o Objective 5: Improve the pipeline to employment —match available jobs to
education and skill levels of the workforce to improve success rate of placement.
Action: development of scholarships and certificate training opportunities for
underserved individuals including possible development of an employment
support specialist position to support people transitioning into working lifestyles.
• Opportunity Dubuque is an initiative that meets the needs of local
employers and unemployed/underemployed workers through an innovative
collaboration of local partners and employers who developed a clear
pathway to employment. Opportunity Dubuque has added a career
pathway to Information Technology.
• This pathway will give participants the skills to receive entry-level
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jobs with the employer sponsors such as IBM,
Dubuque Data Services and Platinum Supplemental Insurance.
• To date 238 people have completed an Opportunity Dubuque
certificate program and 95% percent of them are employed.
o Objective 6: Help families build financial assets —connect families to Earned
Income Tax Credit (EITC), BankOn, Opportunity Passport and other financial
support/literacy programs.
• Bank On- The program offers low- and moderate -income residents free or
low-cost checking accounts and access to financial education. Access to a
bank or credit union account can help residents avoid costly alternative
financial services (check cashers, payday lenders, pawn shops and rent -to -
own stores) and enable families to build and protect their assets.
• Total accounts opened since July 2011 — 142.
• Total active accounts as of Oct 1, 2014 — 44.
• Total number of people completing financial literacy classes with
ISU Extension — 41.
■ Opportunity Passport: provides matched Individual Development
Accounts and financial literacy training to youth aging out of foster care,
through a partnership with Dupaco Community Credit Union and Four
Oaks. Classes are usually held twice a year. The goals for OP participants
are to: become financially literate; gain experience with the banking
system; amass assets for education, housing and other approved assets;
and gain streamlined entry to educational, training and vocational
opportunities.
• Since its launch in 2008, the program has served over 50 youth and
matched nearly $23,000.00 in participants' savings for vehicles,
computers, apartment deposits, and tuition, all assets that help
youth successfully transition to adulthood.
Schools:
People & Neighborhoods:
SMART ENERGY USE
Government:
EECBG: The City of Dubuque was the recipient of $574,700 in ARRA funding through the
Energy Efficiency Conservation & Block Grant program. Funds were spent on the Smarter
Sustainable Dubuque partnership, residential energy audits and energy efficient retrofits,
GreenCorps outreach, replacement of the City Hall HVAC system, and establishment of a
commercial Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Fund This program is complete and on Feb 1,
Congress repealed their reporting requirements. The City will continue to have commercial
energy efficiency loans available through ECIA as funds are paid back from current grantees.
City Facilities & Lighting Retrofits: Building Services staff have conducted a lighting audit of
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City Hall and are now in the process of removing lamps and retrofitting fixtures to more
appropriately meet the lighting demands of the employees and customers that use the building.
Approximately 300 of the 1100 lamps have been eliminated from use in City Hall. All of the
fixtures (except storage room and restrooms) have been reballasted with energy efficient and
longer lasting ballasts. 32 Watt lamps have been replaced with 28 Watt lamps. It is estimated
that energy use for lighting at City Hall has decreased 50%. The project has been completed.
Additional energy for pumping water for the new HVAC does not allow for a simple review of the
utility bills to determine the savings created by the lighting retrofit.
The City has applied to the IEDA City Energy Management Program with the intention of
developing an Energy Management Plan for municipal operations.
Parking Ramp Lighting Project: The 5th Street, Iowa Street and Locust Street Parking
Ramps have recently been updated with new fluorescent lighting. In addition, the recently
constructed Central Avenue Ramp has the same lighting system. The system has been
provided by a firm from Holland, MI, TwistHDM. The system is fully programmable, providing
the maximum in daylight harvesting, occupancy sensing and provides a safety factor in that e-
mails are sent to maintenance staff any time a light is burned out or not functioning for any
reason. Each fixture has its own IP address allowing for state of the industry programming to
reduce energy usage. In the first months of operation, this system has led to a 68% reduction
in lighting costs, or 35% reduction in total electricity consumption in the ramp. The Division is in
the early stages of evaluating the lighting in the Port of Dubuque Parking Facility to determine if
alternate styles of lighting are more beneficial.
Public Works Department:
• CNG -Powered Vehicle: Just as the DMASWA was the first local governmental entity to
purchase and use a hybrid -powered vehicle, it was also the first local governmental
entity to purchase (September of 2011) and use a vehicle using compressed natural gas
(CNG) as its primary fuel. This Smart Energy Use initiative not only further reduces the
Agency's vehicle -related carbon footprint, but is also an indicator of the Agency's
commitment to using domestically-produced/sourced fuels in all of its equipment in future
years. A second CNG -fueled vehicle was added to the Public Works Department fleet
with the 2014 retrofit of the pickup truck already being used by the Lead Sanitation
Driver. The performance of that unit is being closely monitored and will be factored into
consideration for future pickup truck purchases.
• Landfill Methane Reuse: A third DMASWA Smart Energy Use initiative is its commitment
to beneficially reuse the methane it collects and flares from its closed landfill cells. To
that end, it retained the services of an expert and highly -regarded environmental
engineering firm in September of 2011 to evaluate proposals from local industries and
utilities. In spite of intense negotiations with a local employer and electrical power
provider near the end of 2011, a final agreement could not be reached after the power
provider withdrew from the tentative partnership. The DMASWA's engineering firm was
then authorized by the DMASWA's Board of Directors to begin negotiations with the
other electrical power provider in Dubuque county. Those negotiations for a Combined
Heat and Power (CHP) facility at the DMASWA Landfill have concluded. Those plans
had called for an Agency -owned and operated "green electricity" generating facility that
would sell electricity to the power provider and use the heat emanating from the
Agency's generators to heat its three buildings. The DMASWA Board of Directors
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decided at its September 2014 strategic planning session to put those plans on hold
while the Greater Dubuque Development Corporation and the City of Dubuque Economic
Development Department seek to market the methane to new tenants in Dubuque's new
industrial park adjoining the DMASWA Landfill.
DMASWA:
• Provided $2500 to the Washington Neighborhood Association receptacles through the Waste
Minimization Fund.
• Provided $5,495 to the Mystic Casinio to facilitate access to food scrap and recyclable
recovery through modification of their receptacles. This was in conjunction with a Petal Project
application.
Library KiII-A-Watt Meter Checkout Program: In partnership with ISU Extension and the
City's Office of Sustainability, Kill -A -Watt Meters are available for resident check out. These
meters allow residents to measure the energy demand of appliances in their homes, and is
particularly helpful in identifying "phantom energy loads" that occur when appliances and
chargers are plugged in but not in use.
Leisure Services Department:
• LED lights installed as a part of North End Neighborhood trail lighting project.
• Signed up with Crescent Electric for lighting study to review all facilities throughout
Leisure Services Department.
• Received an Alliant Energy sponsored energy audit for Grand River Center.
• Ongoing participation in the Alliant Energy Interrupt Program during peak energy usage
times
• Received an Alliant Energy Level II Energy Audit for Five Flags and used it in the budget
request process.
• Working with the Building Services Department on Smart Metering project for Grand
River Center.
• Received a rebate from Alliant Energy of $252.00 from the lighting project at Sutton pool
• Received a rebate from Black Hills Energy of $450.00 for the installation of a new
furnace in the Flora park warming house
• Received a rebate from Alliant Energy of $75.00 from the installation of the new furnace
and programmable thermostat in the Flora park warming house.
Smarter Electricity (Smarter Sustainable Dubuque):
• The Smarter Electricity pilot was concluded in the first quarter 2012 and the final research
report has been provided. A discussion on the future of the portal was held between IBM
and City staff on September 6 and continued through October 7, 2013, from which
recommendations will be made regarding the portal's continuation or discontinuation.
Due to the completion of the Smarter Electricity pilot, the small number of regular users,
and the cost of providing data to populate the portal, access to the IBM -hosted portal
was discontinued on October 15, 2013. The few individuals still using the portal will be
notified by messaging at the portal URL.
• Results include an average monthly reduction in energy utilization from 4% to 11%. IBM
and Alliant researchers are jointly analyzing these early results.
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Community Energy Management Program: The City has been invited to join the IEDA
Community Energy Management Program. IEDA Regional Energy Managers will work with
City staff to develop a customized Energy Management Plan for city facilities in 2014-15.
Business:
Non -Profit:
Grants to Green: In partnership with Green Dubuque and Petal Project, the Community
Foundation of Greater Dubuque launched the Grants to Green program, a grant program that
pays up to $50,000 for energy improvements to help a nonprofit save money on utility bills and
strengthen its operations. The overall goal of G2G is to build the sustainability of nonprofits by
helping them to become more resource efficient, primarily by building, renovating and operating
their facilities to be as "green" as possible. G2G will provide the planning and education
components of this program and local contracting companies will do the construction work. The
Community Foundation was awarded a $1.25 million grant by the Community Foundation for
Greater Atlanta in March 2014 and a $200,000 matching grant from the Iowa Energy Center.
The six organizations receiving grant funding in the first round of awards are as follows:
• $50,000 to Ecumenical Tower
• $43,100 to Hills & Dales -Community Center/Childcare
• $31,000 to Four Mounds -Grey House
• $27,100 to Stonehill Franciscan Services
• $20,057 to Luther Manor
• $21,298 to Dubuque Rescue Mission
Each recipient developed energy improvement plans that identified areas for improvement in
their operations such as lighting, HVAC system upgrades or insulation for energy saving. Local
contracting companies will do the construction work. Some grant recipients will also use
portions of the grant to fund further study to help determine additional opportunities for cost and
energy savings.
Schools:
People & Neighborhoods:
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Government:
Smarter Discards (High Priority):
A Smarter Sustainable Dubuque - Smarter Discards Pilot Project was approved in FY13 in a
joint development agreement with IBM Research. Project goals are:
1. Measure and improve trend lines in landfill diversion and curbside recycling of residential
discards to help achieve Dubuque's sustainability commitments;
2. Establish the long term cost effectiveness of pilot diversion strategies due to city and
customer access to diversion data, using carts, radio frequency identification (RFID)
technology, customer communications, incentive campaigns, and changes in collection
frequencies;
3. Inform City government of citizens' needs related to current, as well as future, policy,
staffing and equipment issues related to discard management and curbside collection; and,
4. Support the attainment of the City's greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets.
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The project was designed to focus research and foster sustainable behavior change related to
discard management in three target groups:
• The Washington Neighborhood (Monday routes) with its heavy concentration of City
wheeled collection carts and alley collection service;
• A census tract (Tuesday routes) with few City wheeled collection carts, some hills, few
alleys, some on -street parking, yards, average recycling rates, few apartments, and no
commercial areas.
• "Volunteer Subscribers": A third group of 304 volunteers living anywhere in the city (any
route). A Chlapaty Fellowship was awarded to a University of Dubuque student to
assist with the project.
Data collection for the aggregate areas began in May of 2013 and concluded at the end of April
2014. From January to April of 2013, City staff worked closely with IBM to ensure that the proof
of concept started on time vendors selected to provide the necessary technology through a
request for proposals process. For the households in the two aggregate data collection areas,
recycling bins and refuse collection containers were fitted with RFID tags, which enabled the
weight of the bin/container contents to be measured by City collection crews. The aggregate
weights of refuse and recycling materials collected in these areas were automatically measured
at both the DMASWA Landfill and Dittmer Recycling Center, and that data was updated in
IBM's Intelligent Waste Management Solution (IWS) portal.
During the first month of data collection, 92 users logged into the portal at least once. Over the
ensuing months, staff efforts focused on volunteer outreach and engagement to encourage
more users to log into the portal and view their data. One of the main challenges discovered
was the frequency of data -entry error by collection workers using a manual weighing and
reporting method. Collection crews were using hand-held luggage scales to weigh recycling
bins and refuse containers, and were manually entering the weights into a computer terminal
located inside their vehicles. These weights were then transmitted wirelessly to a server, and
used to populate the IBM portal. Camelot Business Management Software of Galena, Illinois
recommended solutions to minimize the risk of data entry errors, but the options were all
deemed too costly for the estimated increase in accuracy over for the remainder of the project.
Data showed that after volunteer engagement began, the number of volunteers logging into the
portal increased substantially. In addition, the amount of trash being discarded steadily declined
throughout the lifetime of the pilot. However, comparisons have yet to be made to the
aggregate neighborhood comparison group, so it is uncertain whether this decline was due to
volunteers' participation in the pilot or simply reflected a general decrease in trash discarded
that would have occurred even in the absence of the pilot.
Data collection for the Smarter Discards pilot concluded on May 2, 2014. IBM, in partnership
with City staff, prepared a final report that summarizes the findings of the pilot. The report
emphasizes how the data can possibly be utilized to improve or enhance solid waste collection
in the city.
Smarter Water / DBQ IQ Water Management Tool:
DBQ IQ is a water management "dashboard" that provides volunteer users online access to
water usage data specific to their utility account. The dashboard displays the customer's daily
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water consumption in gallons in context with weather data (temperature and precipitation).
DBQ IQ also allows users to compare a particular period of consumption to their average
consumption, compare their consumption to other averages, and setup automatic leak or
backflow alerts to be sent to them by email. The data can be displayed as a graph or in table
form. A "daily water budget" is also offered and is calculated based on the account's average
water use for that day of the week.
This new system is an example of the City's ongoing sustainability initiative and allows water
customers to identify waste and consider corrective measures which will save energy and
money. More efficient water use will also reduce the use of both energy and chemicals in the
treating and delivering of water.
• Leak Detection Feature A leak detection feature was provided as part of Neptune's
software package. This feature provides information on individual account consumption
use. The following information provides the number of users with potential leaks.
Type Usage Number of Accounts
Continuous 2078
Intermittent 1297
Total Potential Leaks 3,375
Approximately 15% of our system users could potentially have leaks. According to national
research, an estimated 30% of households have water leaks. As you can see, we are
about half of the national average.
• Grant Leak Program As part of this project, a Grant Leak Program was created as an
incentive to our users who qualify, to repair their leaks. To date, there have been 908
1,014 users who have applied and 742 have been reimbursed. A total of $41,938.81 in
refunds have been paid to date.
• Water Loss:
FY' 11
FY'12
FY' 13
Water Loss Reduction:
29.02%
21.83%
17.32%
15.94%
The reduction in water loss can be attributed to:
• the new meters being more accurate
• repairs done on the distribution system due to a leak survey being performed
• the new meters detecting minor leaks causing users to have repairs performed
• users becoming more aware of their water use and choosing to use less water
• Water Plant Pumpage The city has experienced a downward trend in pumpage at the
water treatment plant. The annual pumpages are as follows:
• FY'10 2.80 billion gallons
• FY'11 2.79 billion gallons
• FY'12 2.64 billion gallons
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• FY'13 2.54 billion gallons
In contrast, the Annual Metered Consumption has increased. This is the amount of water that
is metered in the distribution system.
FY' 10
FY/11
FY' 12
FY'13
FY' 14
1.89 billion gallons
1.98 billion gallons
2.06 billion gallons
2.10 billion gallons
2.01 billion gallons
This is an indication that the new meters are more effective at capturing water usage and
citizens are more aware of their water usage and are conserving.
Public Works Department: The Green Vision Building Materials Management and Waste
Minimization Program is a high priority of the Dubuque Metropolitan Area Solid Waste
Agency. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) has designated construction and
demolition materials (C&D) as targeted materials for diverting from Iowa landfills, noting that
they accounted for 13.5% of all materials landfilled in Iowa, as determined by the Iowa
Department of Natural Resources' 2011 Landfilled Materials Analysis Study. Building and
demolition professionals can play an important role in assisting the Agency and IDNR in
meeting their goals of diverting reusable and recyclable materials from land filling. Rethinking,
reducing, reusing and recycling - the "Four R's" - focus on resource efficiency. Typically, these
practices can save money and control costs by decreasing the amount of new materials needed
for building and reducing waste disposal costs. Equally important, the program helps reduce
the amount of materials being buried at the Dubuque Metropolitan Area Solid Waste Agency
(DMASWA) Landfill.
Retail Plastic Bag Reduction Strategy: The City Council approved a strategy to reduce the
use of plastic bags in retail stores 90% by 2017. The approved plan begins by targeting retailers
over 40,000 square feet and focuses on tracking reduction and recycling of checkout plastic
bags, incentives and education, not enforcement or a "ban." Staff will be working with retailers
and other partners to implement the plan, including creating reporting system and time table, an
implementation toolkit for local retailers as well as a City consumer education campaign. City
staff proposed an ordinance requiring reporting of plastic bag consumption at the March 19,
2012, meeting. The ordinance passed the first reading. After gathering additional public input,
an updated memo from City staff recommended a voluntary reporting of plastic bag use and
cross -sector task force led by private sector businesses to address barriers and opportunities to
reducing plastic bag use at the May 7, 2012, Council meeting.
The DMASWA Education Office continues to sponsor showings of the "Bag It" movie:
More showings are being scheduled. This film reviews the effects of plastics on human and
environmental health and supports the City of Dubuque's plastic bag reduction strategy.
"BYOBag" window clings in multiple sizes have been developed for personal and business use
as a reminder to bring your own bags and will be distributed through various events as part of
the community education campaign.
A BYOB episode of the Sustainability Today cable tv series has been completed. City and
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DMASWA staff continue to support private sector reduction efforts, most notably led by Hy -Vee,
Theisen's, and Dittmer Recycling staff who lead the plastic bag working group.
Airport:
• A new all electric people mover has been purchased for use by the Dubuque Jet Center.
• The Dubuque Jet Center and Airline Passenger Terminal provides is a drop-off
for recycling used cell phones, batteries, etc.
• Dubuque Jet Center recently purchased new aircraft wheel chocks made from recycled
rubber
• Invoices are emailed instead of printed out and mailed.
• The Dubuque Jet Center reduces the use of overhead lighting when possible, uses a
Targe overhead fan in the hangar for air circulation
• The new terminal facility currently under construction has the following sustainability
principles incorporated in its design and construction:
1. Developed and maintained a SWPPP during construction activities.
2. Temporary erosion control measures included:
A. Temporary Seeding
B. RECP
C. TRM
D. Ditch Checks
E. Inlet Protection
F. Rock Outlet Protection
G. Sediment Basins
H. Sediment Traps
I. Stabilized Construction Entrances
3. Temporary & permanent soil stabilization techniques include:
A. Temporary Seeding
B. Permanent Seeding
C. Mulching
D. RECP
E. TRM
F. Sodding along pavement edges
4. Allowed use of lime and flyash for embankment subgrade improvement.
5. Monitored & limited disturbed areas to the extent possible during earthwork
operations.
6. Stripped and re -used topsoil to support turf growth.
7. Stormwater systems are designed to minimize the increase in rate and quantity of
stormwater runoff through the use of detention and infiltration.
8. Pervious pavement is being planned for use in the parking lot.
9. Infiltration basins will be constructed in and around the parking areas.
10. Use of "flow through" ditch checks are being proposed in the outfall ditch for the
Apron.
11. Inlet valves are installed to capture potential fuel spills on the Aircraft Parking
Apron.
12. Replacement of Portland cement with suitable supplementary materials has been
allowed by specification.
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13. Specifications allow for use of by-product materials in the PCC paving such as
flyash and blast furnace slag.
14. Use of PCC pavement provides for a high solar reflectance and uses locally
procured materials.
15. Life cycle cost analysis was performed as part of the pavement design process.
16. Use of aggregate shoulders will reduce impervious pavement area.
17. Used aggregate with minimal processing to serve as the construction access and
base for the Entrance Road.
18. Landscaping is planned to be inclusive of native, low -maintenance and drought
tolerant plant materials.
19. Measures have been taken to control light pollution which is a significant issue on
airports.
20. LED fixtures have been installed for applicable taxiway edge lighting.
21. Landscape waste from site clearing was chipped for re -use by the contractor.
22. Used borrow material from on-site to construct embankments.
23. Use of borrow materials had a secondary benefit for FAA safety grading
requirements.
24. Crushed and re -used waste concrete from a previous project as embankment.
25. Embedded Lytle Creek culverts to allow for redevelopment of a more natural
streambed.
26. Mitigation of relocated Ditch N included:
A. Natural channel meanders
B. Rock riffle structures
C. Native grass buffer
D. Annual monitoring for 5 years after completion
E. Protection by easement
27. Specifications incorporate Buy American provisions and requirements.
28. Allowed for electronic bidding document distribution.
29. Construction protected existing wetland and natural spring from damage
30. The new facility is heated and cooled with geothermal.
31. The new facility has LED lighting and light harvesting.
City Clerk's Office
• The City Clerk's Office has developed a two-page brochure on planning an accessible
special event that will supplement the special events application. This involved input from
Proudly Accessible Dubuque, The City Manager's Office and the Human Rights
Department. The brochure offers important information and suggestions for
accommodating handicapped attendees and achieving reasonable mobility at special
events.
• The City Clerk's Office has begun posting Council meeting agendas in the display case
on the exterior of City Hall's Iowa Street side at the top of the handicap access ramp.
This allows for around-the-clock physical viewing of the agenda as well as handicap
accessibility.
• The City Clerk's Office is working with the Public Information Office on the City's web
page redesign with potential for online fillable forms, submission and payments, which
would reduce paper usage and expedite requests.
• The City Clerk's Office worked with Utility Billing during their office remodeling to reuse
and adapt custom-made cabinetry that matches the cabinetry in the City Clerk's Office
as part of the City Clerk's Office records retention plan. This was completed in
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December 2013 and the cabinet now houses the entire collection of original resolutions
and ordinances since 1980 to present. This expedites documents retrieval and
preservation since the documents are no longer stored in the basement of City Hall.
• The City Clerk's Office has a Zero Waste Event Planner brochure on its special events
web page to aid organizers of special events in planning a safe and sustainable event at
the same time they complete the event application.
• The City Clerk is a volunteer for the Smarter Discards pilot program.
• Use of Novus Agenda Manager continues to aid in the decrease of paper usage for
Council documents. This also results in less maintenance on the Multifunction device,
less toner usage, and less need for physical storage space.
Leisure Services Department:
• Removed city trees are recycled into rough cut lumber that is processed by park
employees for the use in repairing and constructing new picnic tables for all city parks
Library:
• The library has boxes for the recycling of batteries and cell phones. At the close of the
third quarter of 2014 the library had collected 37 pounds of batteries.
• The library's meeting room policy was updated to include a request that recyclable
and/or biodegradable plates and cups be used for events that include food.
Public Works Department:
• Tire Recycling Program Initiated by the DMASWA in the 1990's as a result of
regulations prohibiting the burial of whole tires in landfills, the DMASWA took the extra
step of banning the burial of tires in any shape or form in its landfill. Current federal and
State regulations still allow the burial of shredded, chopped or halved tires. Tires
brought to the DMASWA Landfill are set aside for subsequent collection and processing
by a tire recycling firm. The cost of the tire recycling service is passed along to the
DMASWA's customers. The tires are currently being processed into fuel pellets,
playground equipment fall protection pads, pads protecting concrete floors from heavy
equipment tracks, and sundry items such as park benches and parking lot tire stops.
Community impacts of the DMASWA's Tire Recycling Program have included saved
landfill space/life and reuse of a valuable fossil fuel -derived product.
• Appliance and Metals Recycling Program Similar to the DMASWA's Tire Recycling
Program, and also initiated in the 1990's, the Agency's Appliance and Metals Recycling
Program also exceeds federal and State standards. While the USEPA and Iowa
regulations allow the landfill burial of metal household appliances that do not contain
freon or mercury, the DMASWA bans the landfilling of any appliances at its facility.
Appliances are accepted, however, for a fee to cover the cost of subsequent recycling by
a local firm. Also, the DMASWA provides a free drop-off container just inside its gate
where clean metal items may be dropped off without charge for subsequent recycling.
Finally, DMASWA-employed workers recover any metal items encountered in the landfill
cells and take them to the metals drop-off container. A main community impact derived
from this program is saved landfill space/life. A secondary community impact is the
recovery and reuse of recyclable metal. A third community impact is the reduction of
"upstream" pollution and GHG emissions.
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• Recycling Drop-off Stations Program Beginning with a sole recyclables drop-off facility
on Dubuque's west side in the 1990's, the program has expanded to nine (9) such
facilities at the current time. In addition to the noted original facility on Radford Road,
there now are facilities in Cascade, unincorporated Key West, at the Heritage Trail
parking lot in Durango, Farley, Epworth, in the Flexsteel Industries parking lot at East
32nd Street and Peru Road in Dubuque, along U.S. Highway 52 just north of
unincorporated St. Catherine, and at the DMASWA Landfill. At these facilities, residents
are allowed to drop off unlimited quantities curbside -collectable recyclables. The most
relevant measurable outcomes for this program would be pounds of materials received
and recycled annually through the noted drop-off facilities.
• Asphalt Shingle Recycling Program Soon after a major hail storm struck the central
portion of the city of Dubuque in April of 2011, the DMASWA's Board of Directors
authorized the establishment of an asphalt shingle recycling program. Initially staffed by
temporary workers, the program was revamped in early 2012 and is now contracted to a
regional Iowa firm. At the DMASWA Board of Directors' April 24, 2013, meeting, it
authorized the immediate implementation of a tipping fee discount for all clean loads of
asphalt roofing shingles. These changes were made to encourage more source
separation by roofing contractors in order to increase the Agency's diversion of shingles
for recycling. To date, over 4,000 tons of shingles have been diverted from the
DMASWA Landfill and recycled to pave area roadways.
• Pay As You Throw (PAYT) is the sustainable model for the City's refuse collection and
large item collection programs. It places an added cost on extra trash generation, which
encourages source reduction, reuse through donations, recycling, and composting. The
average Dubuque home only sends twenty (20) pounds of trash per week to the
DMASWA Landfill, which is among the lowest rates of trash generation of any of the ten
largest cities in Iowa. City -owned wheeled collection carts have been supplied to many
alley -service collection customers to improve sanitation and aesthetics in areas of high
population density and few owner -occupied homes.
• Curbside Food Scrap Collection and Composting The City initiated a pilot program
for the curbside co -collection (with yard waste) of food scraps in April of 2006. The City
program quickly reached its maximum number of participants, as allowed by the Iowa
Department of Natural Resources due to its two ton per week cap placed upon the
DMASWA's composting facility. This project was in partnership with the DMASWA and
involved 230 residential subscribers, and fourteen schools, institutions and commercial
subscribers. Those participants for a very small fee, diverted approximately 100 tons of
food scraps per year from regular refuse collection. Those 100 tons were subsequently
processed into 50 tons of compost annually. This pilot program reduced potential
fugitive greenhouse gas emissions from the DMASWA Landfill by approximately 600,000
pounds per year.
In November of 2012, with the intent of facilitating the expansion of food scrap
composting in Dubuque county without further delay due to the State of Iowa's reticence,
the DMASWA's Board of Directors authorized the reduced -cost sale of half -processed
yard and food scrap grindings to Full Circle Organics (FCO). FCO built and operates a
large scale composting facility along U.S. Highway 20 between Farley and Epworth and
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needed the grindings as a starter base material for its operations. FCO's facility is
designed to compost all of the food scraps generated in the DMASWA's service area.
Community impacts of the DMASWA's Composting Program to date include saving an
estimated half year of landfill life/capacity over the last twenty years, plus the generation
and reuse of a valued byproduct — high quality compost.
The City of Dubuque subsequently signed a contract with FCO in April of 2013 to deliver
most of the comingled yard debris and food scraps it collects to FCO's facility. This
change in facilities from DMASWA to FCO has reduced net system costs for the City's
combined "organics" collection and allows all City collection customers to divert their
food scraps by adding them to their yard debris containers for City collection. The City's
GreenCart Program continues as a second option for food scrap diversion for
composting, supplying specialized collection containers funded through additional user
fees.
• Curbside Recycling The City's recycling collection service, has traditionally averaged
one of Iowa's highest per capita diverted tonnage to recycling rates (approximately 40%).
However, recycling tonnages have declined in Dubuque in recent years due to the City
discontinuing the collection of glass and the national consumer shift away from print
media and advertising (newspapers, magazines, books, and advertising circulars) to
electronic media. Dubuque's participation rate of citizens setting out their recycling bins
at least once per month is estimated to still be over 90%. The City's partnership with the
DMASWA in the Agency's current processing contract with Dittmer Recycling has
brought an increased share revenue to the City. Also, additional materials have been
approved for curbside collection for recycling: empty aerosol cans, empty latex paint
cans, books; and crosscut -shredded paper. Regarding glass no longer being collected
for recycling, the Resource Management Coordinator facilitated the Sustainable 2010
Glass Management Options Study and researched local costs and impacts. This
research showed that the curbside collection of glass for recycling in Dubuque was no
longer a sustainable activity and should be terminated, thereby significantly reducing
program costs and generating additional revenue. On April 19, 2011, the Dubuque City
Council supported the Resource Management Coordinator's recommendation to end the
curbside collection of glass on July 2, 2011. The Resource Management Coordinator
had noted at the April 18th City Council meeting that more energy was being expended
recycling glass collected curbside than was conserved by using recycled cullet. He
further noted that the small net environmental benefits derived from recycling Dubuque's
glass could not justify the $325.00 per ton it cost to collect glass curbside for recycling,
• Electronics Recycling The DMASWA's Electronics Recycling Program provides an
environmentally -sound and economically -viable disposal option for old, unwanted
electronics. Electronics are defined as anything containing a circuit board and/or cathode
ray tube (CRT or "picture tube"). All recycled electronics are broken down into
salvageable components at a secure, R2 certified electronics recycling facility in
Davenport.
• Dubuque Area Task Force Addressing Illegal Dumping & Illegal Littering The
Resource Management program has provided staff support to the Dubuque Area Task
Force On Illegal Dumping and Illegal Littering (DATFOIDIL), which was established in
2010 through the support of the DMASWA. The City Resource Management office has
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hosted an Illegal Dumping Hotline (589-4345) since 2000, averaging approximately ten
illegal dumping report investigations per month, with site cleanup where needed and
warning letters sent to identified households. The DMASWA has worked closely with the
Dubuque County Conservation Board by helping fund ($12,000 per year) an Illegal
Dumping Enforcement Officer who monitors problem areas in urban and rural Dubuque
county. Citations have been issued and monitoring continues, with some investigations
having led to arrests related to burglaries and illegal drug. The DMASWA granted the
DATFOIDIL $2000 for enforcement cameras at its September 2014 meeting.
• Dubuque Area Event Recycling and Zero Waste Programs The Resource
Management program has provided staff and logistical support to the Dubuque
Metropolitan Area Solid Waste Agency's (DMASWA) Event Recycling and Zero Waste
Programs since 2006. Recycling is required by the City at stationary events requiring a
City permit. Recyclable cups numbered 1 through 5 are required to increase recycling.
There have been a growing number of zero waste events where event food discards and
compostable paper products get processed for beneficial use. This program provides
appropriate containers, signage and removes the captured materials to be composted.
Further information and instructional flyers are available on managing zero waste events.
There is normally no charge for specialized container usage, signage and collection of
the event recyclables and clean source -separated compostables when scheduled. As
part of the updated special events permit process, an informational meeting was held
with all special event organizers in which barriers to zero waste and correct resource
management were discussed.
• DMASWA Environmental Management System The DMASWA is one of the eleven
solid waste management planning areas in Iowa participating in the State of Iowa's
Environmental Management System (EMS) program to expand the scope of their waste
management systems. The State's EMS program was established by the 2008 Iowa
Legislature and the participating planning areas have subsequently concentrated on the
services they provide to improve their overall performance in the areas of, yard waste
management, household hazardous material management, water quality improvement,
greenhouse gas reduction, expanded recycling services, and environmental education.
Under the EMS Program, the DMASWA is evaluated and judged for continuous
improvement of its services and offering expanded opportunities for environmental
resource management.
The foundation of the DMASWA's EMS Program is its environmental policy, which
expresses the Agency's commitment to improving environmental performance, and
establishes goals for pollution prevention, regulatory compliance, and continuous
improvement. The Agency's established EMS objectives and targets are its guides for
continuous improvement to achieving Agency goals.
Green Iowa AmeriCorps (GIAC): The City and Operation New View will partner to host the
2014-15 GIAC members. This partnership will expand the service territory to Dubuque,
Delaware and Jackson Counties. Additionally, GIAC members will be able to serve ONV's
5,000+ member waiting list.
Finance:
1. The Utility Billing area serves as a collection for CFL light bulbs for employees and citizens.
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This process began over two years ago. The City provides multiple collection sites. Public
Works employees pick up the recycled CFL light bulbs.
2. Laserfiche was implemented for storing supporting documentation for accounts payable and
accounts receivable activities such as purchase orders/direct pays, purchase order
adjustments, journal entries and receipts. This procedure eliminates the need for departments
to make a copy of documents for their files as documents are viewed through Laserfiche.
3. Accepting electronic payments for Utility Billing, parking tickets, (Leisure Services).
Customer initiates EFT via website and City ACH initiated. Utility Billing saves paper by not
including a return payment envelope for customers who have their payment automatically
deducted from their bank account (currently 22+%). Citizens save postage and post office
saves labor/energy.
4. Implemented electronic billing for utility bills in August 2012, with approximately 1,324
customers signed up to date.
5. Accounts payable direct deposit of employee expense reimbursement and vendor payments.
Full implementation will be available. Saves City cost of printing and mailing checks. Saves
paper and energy.
Business:
Full Circle Organics: Full Circle Organics (FCO), a private -sector composting facility, received
state and county approvals in FY13 and subsequently opened its facility between Epworth and
Farley in Dubuque county in early 2013. This facility opened up new opportunities for both
residential and commercial composting within the city and Dubuque county. As a direct result,
the City of Dubuque signed a contract with FCO in the Spring of 2013 and now ships the bulk of
the yard debris and food scraps that it collects curbside to the FCO facility. With the
subsequent loss of the majority of the City's composting feedstock, the DMASWA is now
exploring partnership opportunities with Full Circle Organics, GreenRU, T&W Grinding Inc, and
other interested regional composting service providers.
Non -Profit:
Keep Dubuque County Clean & Green — Sponsored by the Dubuque Metropolitan Area Solid
Waste Agency, Keep Dubuque County Clean and Green serves as the local affiliate of Keep
Iowa Beautiful. Members include representatives from the Dubuque Metropolitan Area Solid
Waste Agency, the Dubuque County Conservation Board, the National Mississippi River
Museum & Aquarium, and interested individuals. The group works with the Illegal Dumping and
Littering Task Force and other community groups to educate the public regarding the
detrimental effects of littering and illegal dumping upon the environment.
Four Mounds/HEART Program - HEART's summer program sustainably deconstructed
Angie's Bar (1401 Elm), reporting 80% of deconstructed material reused or recycled and
retained from the landfill. Four Mounds has been deconstructing obsolete properties for close to
a decade, making use of lumber and materials for other building projects.
Council approved a memorandum of understanding with Four Mounds/HEART Program to
rehab or improve multiple homes -- including some in the city's new "Project 563"
purchase/rehab/re-sell program -- over a three-year period. Under the agreement, HEART
participants will complete total rehabilitations of three properties at $125,000 each, make
accessibility improvements on five residential units at $5,000 each, complete five critical home -
repair projects at $5,000 each and four deconstructions at $15,000 each. The agreement also
calls for $10,000 per year to help meet zoning, inspection and comprehensive planning
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requirements, and to obtain building permits.
Project funding will come from Community Development Block Grants, which must be spent on
projects that benefit low-income residents. The total rehabilitation projects will be part of Project
563, with costs covered by capital improvement program funds and tax increment financing.
The city's Housing and Community Development Department will oversee all of the projects
specified in the agreement. Over 60 students have participated in the HEART program since
2003 and 26 properties have been rehabilitated through the HEART program.
Schools:
People & Neighborhoods:
COMMUNITY DESIGN
Government:
Unified Development Code: In 2009, the City of Dubuque's new Unified Development Code
went into effect. The UDC updates and consolidates zoning, subdivision, site development,
historic preservation, and sign regulations into a single city code. The UDC incorporates text,
photographs, drawings, charts and diagrams for ease of use in an online illustrated version.
The UDC incorporates sustainable design while meeting smart growth objectives. Sustainable
design is the expectation. While traditional development is still allowed, it is now the exception.
The UDC received strong support from City officials and citizens alike. This acceptance of
sustainable design has continued through implementation.
Subdivision and site development regulations were extensively revised to promote sustainable
design, such as conservation design, solar access, and low -impact development measures.
Access for pedestrians, bicycles, and public transit as well as design guidelines for historic
districts, the downtown, and older neighborhoods also are now part of the UDC.
Complete Streets Policy: Adopted in 2011, the City of Dubuque's Complete Streets Policy
was created with input from a variety of community stakeholders. The Complete Streets Policy
provides an integrated multimodal approach to roadway planning and design. The Policy
establishes that development of as many street projects as possible will be done in an
affordable, balanced, responsible, and equitable way that accommodates and encourages
travel by motorists, bicyclists, public transit vehicles and their passengers, and pedestrians of
all ages and abilities. The Complete Streets Policy also ensures that future demand and context
sensitivity is integrated into new facilities, recognizing that topography, cost, and right-of-way
constraints are among the limiting factors and that not every project is a candidate for this
desired outcome. The Policy also includes language regarding the review of street projects for
consistency with the Tri-State Trail Plan, posting annual street projects for public input, and
documentation of project -specific exemptions. The Complete Streets policy allows for project -
specific exemptions to be approved by the City Council, or the City Manager where a project
does not come before the City Council.
Green Alley Project: This project involves the reconstruction of existing asphalt alleys in
Dubuque. The city has reconstructed 20 alleys thus far into green alleys. The alleys contain
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pavement surfaces that allow rainfall from low -intensity storms to pass through the pavement
structure. This, in turn, will recharge the water table and minimize storm water runoff.
Engineering is also working with EPA and IDNR on a project to use SRF funds for
reconstructing approximately $9.4 million dollars in alleys over the next three years. The
project includes the reconstruction of 73 alleys into Green Alleys. These alleys would be
reconstructed with permeable pavers, similar to other recently constructed alleys. A total of 36
alleys are currently under contract. Twelve alleys are complete. Construction is proceeding on
eight alleys currently. Ten (10) additional alleys will be taken to City Council in December 2014
to initiate. The plan is to have reconstructed 40 alleys by the winter of 2014.
Additionally, multiple city departments developed a flood mitigation grant proposal that would
include the funding for an additional 175 alleys and the utility costs for the 73 SRF alleys. The
City received notice the grant proposal was accepted and will be funded on December 4, 2013.
The Bee Branch flood mitigation grant in the amount of $98.5 million will be payable over 20
years. The additional 175 alleys will begin construction in FY 2021.
Washington Neighborhood Initiative (Top Priority): Comprehensive effort designed to
address many housing and social challenges in this 55 square block neighborhood. An
ambitious "visioning" project for the Washington Neighborhood was concluded in 2008 and the
Washington Neighborhood Strategic Plan was presented to the City Council in April 2009.
Homes have now been purchased and rehabbed by 53 first-time owner families throughout the
neighborhood. Previous rental dwellings and vacant structures have been historically restored
for owner occupancy. Since late 2005, the Housing Department has loaned approximately $7
million and a total of $10.1 million has been reinvested in housing in the Washington
Neighborhood.
Since 2003, the Four Mounds/HEART Program (Top Priority) has transformed 32 derelict rental
properties in the Washington Neighborhood into 23 owner occupied, single family homes. Of
the major rehabilitations (8 averaging $100,000) there is 100% original owner retention to date.
These properties have experienced an average of 267% increase in assessed value, all while
remaining affordable for working families. HEART students finished working with Community
Housing Initiatives (CHI) to transform 3 -19th Century row houses on the 1600 block of
Washington into homes that perform for the 21St Century. HEART is now working on a CHI —
owned property at 2059 Jackson.
The Washington Neighborhood and Historic Millwork district received the EPA Smart Growth
achievement award for Neighborhood Revitalization. The award recognized the historic mill
work district as a catalyst for reinvestment in the Washington Neighborhood.
Washington Neighborhood Development Corporation (WNDC): The Corporation promotes
activities to improve the neighborhood in a variety of ways. Key objectives include increasing
homeowner occupancies, refurbishing older buildings, improving the appearance of the area
and greater resident involvement.
Additional activities of WNDC:
o We continue to collaborate and assist with the Small Business Works initiative to assist
new and existing business owners.
o Building relationships with Dubuque Board of Realtors to promote Washington
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Neighborhood and educate realtors about the assets and resources within the
neighborhood.
€—A City Council workshop presentation on the status of the Washington Neighborhood
took place on August 5, 2013. The Council was given an update on revised
demographic data, housing, economic development and neighborhood progress.
o WNDC is partnering with Community Housing Initiatives with a grant received by
NeighborWorks America to help market the Washington Neighborhood. That partnership
has led to the creation of a residential subcommittee and a business subcommittee that
have focused their attention on neighborhood issues. The business subcommittee has
focused on addressing litter, aesthetics, and vacancy in the commercial areas.
o A Washington Neighborhood Grant Facade Application and Program Guideline
document was created with collaboration from the City of Dubuque's Planning and
Economic Development Departments, Dubuque Main Street and the WNDC Board of
Directors and Executive Director. Five commercial property owners have agreed to
participate in the program, as $150,000 of the $225,000 available has been committed.
The City and the Washington Neighborhood continue to explore more leads for the
program, specifically in the Central corridor.
o A second street mural was painted at the intersections of 16th and Washington Streets
on May 31St, 2014, the painting coincided with a neighborhood block party that drew over
4000 residents. The 2013 mural received a Dubuque365 impact award and the Dubuque
Main Street and Iowa Main Street awards for Best Public Improvement Project.
o Continued collaboration with Dubuque Downtown Christian Outreach, Multicultural
Family Center, Four Mounds, Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque, Crescent
Community Health Center, Project Concern neighborhood.
Historic Millwork District (High Priority):
The Historic Millwork District Complete Streets Project provided for the reconstruction and
streetscaping of streets into complete streets.
Engineering is currently working with Horsfield Construction of Epworth, IA, for the
reconstruction of Elm Street between 9th and 12th Streets. This project is partially funded with a
$600,000 TCSP Grant (Transportation, Community and System Preservation) grant.
Construction is complete.
A future Intermodal Transportation Center will be located in the Historic Millwork District along
Elm Street between 9th and 11 th Streets. In October 2011 the city received a State of Good
Repairs (SOGR) grant award of $8 million dollars, to be used for the final design and
construction of the Intermodal Center. The Intermodal Transportation Center, which will consist
of a passenger terminal and a parking structure, will accommodate transit passengers (both
public transit and Intercity bus), bicyclists, pedestrians, Park -N -Ride, etc. A feasibility study
was approved by the Federal Transit Administration in June 2013, with the parking garage
component containing 200 general public parking spaces and 92 transit oriented parking
spaces. Final design is being performed by Neumann Monson Architects out of Iowa City, IA.
The Iowa Department of Transportation has received property right waivers from Interstate
Power and Jacobson Steel, rejecting interest in buying the excess state property needed to
construct the Intermodal facility and adjacent parking. IDOT has mailed the offer to the County,
the Dubuque Community School District, and the City. The appraised value for the property is
$495,000. If no other governmental body is interested, and the acquisition proceeds without
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further delays, construction of the facility should begin in the spring. Groundbreaking is
scheduled to begin early 2014 with completed construction by 2015.
On February 18, 2013 the City Council approved an application for State CDBG funds from the
New Production Round 5 allocation to assist in the adaptive reuse of Linseed Oil Paintworks
Building at 151 East 9th. On June 19, 2013, the mayor was notified that the project received
$2,248,890 in CDBG funds for the creation of 16 new residential units in the Millwork District. A
development agreement was executed on the project on March 7, 2013. The project is
currently in the preconstruction phase. Construction for the 16 multi -family unit rehabilitation
should begin in Spring 2014.
In March 2013, City Staff co -presented information on the Millwork District to Iowa Business
Growth Board of Directors in an effort to secure new market tax credits for the Novelty Iron
Works building located at 1079 Elm Street. Following the presentation the IBG Board
authorized their staff to negotiate a contract for $18 million of NMTC's to assist in this project.
City Staff is preparing a Development Agreement to provide local incentives for this project.
Unlike the Caradco project, it is anticipated that the local incentives will come into the project
upon completion. On June 17, 2013, the City Council approved a development agreement with
Bob Johnson and Warehouse Trust, LLC for the development of the Novelty Iron Works
Building. The Council approved an amendment to the Development Agreement and an
assignment of the agreement to Novelty Iron Landlord, LLC on August 5, 2013, in advance of
their closing later in the month. The first project on the property will contain 76 apartments as
well as commercial space on the lower level. The City Council has also sponsored a Brownfield
Tax Credit Application for the building. Council adopted 2nd amendment to development
agreement with Novelty Iron Works on Jan. 6, 2014. Additionally, the IEDA approved a 2nd
amendment to their Enterprise Zone application, essentially reducing the number of multi -family
units from 130 to 76 units required.
The Dubuque Millwork Collective, located in the Schmid Innovation Center and Caradco
Building, is a group of non -profits co -locating to share talent, resources and space. The
collective consists of StudioWorks, Four Mounds Foundation & the HEART Partnership,
Proudly Access Dubuque, Dubuque Chorale, Habitat for Humanity, NAMI (National Alliance on
Mental Illness) of Dubuque, Presentation Lantern and the Gallery C. The HEART Program,
among others, helped to build out this premier space in the lower level of the building on the
Jackson Street side.
On July 15, 2013 the City Council approved a Cooperative Agreement Application and
associated contract documents pertaining to a Brownfields Petroleum and Hazardous
Substances Assessment Grant that was awarded to the City by the Environmental Protection
Agency earlier in the year. A total of $400,000 was awarded to fund assessment, clean up
planning and community engagement activities related to the containment or mitigation of
hazardous substances and petroleum in the South Port, Historic Millwork District and
Washington Neighborhood.
Smart Planning Grant: In late 2010, Dubuque County and the cities of Dubuque, Asbury,
Cascade, Dyersville, Epworth, Farley, and Peosta came together to form the Dubuque Smart
Planning Consortium. The consortium's goals were to develop a regional sustainability plan
that included the State of Iowa's Smart Planning principles, the City of Dubuque's sustainability
principles, and watershed planning, and then incorporate the smart planning elements of the
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regional plan into local comprehensive plans. This consortium conducted a two-year process,
meeting monthly.
The Dubuque County Board of Supervisors reviewed the final draft of the Dubuque County
Smart Plan at a work session on December 17, 2012 and then adopted the plan at a public
hearing on January 14, 2013. The Dubuque City Council reviewed the final draft of the
Dubuque County Smart Plan at a work session on January 7, 2013, and then adopted the plan
at a public hearing on January 22, 2013. Other cities in the Smart Planning Consortium
reviewed and adopted the plan in January 2013 as well. The Dyersville City Council voted May
6, 2013 to not adopt the Dubuque County Regional Smart Plan as part of the city's
comprehensive plan. This vote concludes the Smart Planning Grant process. A public input
meeting was held at the Emergency Responder Training Center in July, 2013, with
approximately 70 attendees present. A second public input meeting was held at this location on
September 18, 2013 with 8 members of the public present. The County has reopened the
opportunity for written comments regarding the plan and further extended the deadline for all
comments to be submitted from the end of October 2013 to the end of January, 2014.
Leisure Services Department: In accepting two new parks, Westbrook and Creek Wood, the
proposed park layouts included native open spaces, wetlands and woodland areas. Highly
maintained areas were limited in size. This limits the acreage of mowed, manicured spaces
with allowing preservation of open space — a much more sustainable practice.
Planning is in process for Creek Wood, Westbrook and Eagle Valley Parks. Concept plans
were shared at meetings in each neighborhood. Neighbors have been very interested and
involved. Sustainable practices are being considered as a part of development of each mini
park area.
Implemented an edible landscape at the City hall Annex building for staff and neighborhood
residents to harvest and enjoy while promoting healthy eating. All plants were grown from seed
in the city greenhouse and seed will be harvested to continue the planting for following
seasons.
EPA Brownfields Grant: On July 15, 2013 the City Council approved a Cooperative
Agreement Application and associated contract documents pertaining to a Brownfields
Petroleum and Hazardous Substances Assessment Grant that was awarded to the City by the
Environmental Protection Agency later in 2013. A total of $400,000 was awarded to fund
assessment, clean up planning and community engagement activities related to the
containment or mitigation of hazardous substances and petroleum in the South Port, Historic
Millwork District and Washington Neighborhood.
Business:
Non -Profit:
Architecture Days: Dubuque Main Street, in partnership with the City Planning Department
and others, hosted the annual Dubuque Architecture Days in April, consisting of walking and
building tours, children's activities, and other free public events.
Schools:
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People & Neighborhoods:
HEART: Four Mounds is finishing its 4th property in partnership with Community Housing
Initiatives at 2059 Jackson St. The property is marks the 34th unit of housing that HEART has
converted or helped rehabilitate and will result in the 24th home made available for ownership
to a first-time homeowner.
GREEN BUILDINGS
Government:
Environmental & Sustainability Management System (ESMS):
The City successfully submitted an application to participate in ICMA's ESMS institute to be
held in Roanoke, Virginia over the next two years. The 17 -element process will create policies;
identify practices, responsibilities and implementation schedules; and create a self -auditing
system to address the activities, products and services housed in the MSC, and identify those
items' impacts on the environment.
Building Services Department:
• Solar Thermal The Solar Thermal Licensing and Solar Thermal Permits and Inspections
ordinances were created in 2011 after a local solar thermal contractor met with City staff to
determine what licenses and permits they would need to install solar thermal systems
within the corporate limits of Dubuque. The current regulations would require multiple
licenses and permits.
The adoption of the ordinances will allow for streamlined licensing and permitting
processes and support the development of green jobs in Dubuque. Information Services
has updated the Permits Plus system to have solar thermal licensing and permits
capability. Two solar thermal licenses have been issued.
• City Building Efficiency Improvements The 18th St project will significantly upgrade the
energy efficiency of that building with new HVAC, lighting, etc. This project, now owned by
Dubuque Bank & Trust, is complete.
On March 21, 2010, the City Council approved an upgrade to the HVAC system at City
Hall. Water cooled units will have their piping adjusted so that they are no longer dumping
the water into the sanitary sewer system, but into a cooling tower/tank, Water savings of
90+% have been documented.
• Grand River Center Smart Electric Meters: An RFP has been issued for design of a
smart electric metering of the Grand River Center. Responses were due June 4, 2011.
KJWW was hired and completed a design. Giese Electric has installed the equipment.
Training was completed in January, 2013. Plans and specs are being developed for
another phase of monitoring.
The DOE recently issued a challenge to manufacturer's to create a $100 smart meter.
Consideration is being given to waiting until a manufacturer meets the challenge.
A meeting with staff of the Grand River Center, Leisure Services, Sustainability Office and
Building Services was held November 22, 2013, to discuss the pros and cons of installing
31
the exhibit hall meters now or later. Consideration is being given to focusing on retro -
commissioning before any more meters are installed.
• 2012 International Energy Conservation Code We have adopted the 2012 Int'I Energy
Conservation Code and will continue to adopt the most -recent version.
Renewable Energy Systems on Municipal Buildings: The City of Dubuque signed a contract
with a Dubuque firm, Eagle Point Solar, in August of 2011 providing for the installation of 425
solar panels on the roof of the Municipal Services Center. The panels were installed over the
ensuing months, connected to the local grid on November 22, 2011, and are now generating
200 kW of electrical power during optimum conditions — which equals approximately 1/3 of the
facility's electrical power needs. Examination of opportunities to install solar on other municipal
properties continues.
Workforce Housing/Housing Incentives: The City of Dubuque presented a proposal to the
Iowa Finance Authority (IFA) in January 2014 for the creation of a Workforce Housing incentive
program. The proposal was well received, although there was a question as to the source of
funding to be used.
The City Council approved a Loan Agreement with the Iowa Finance Authority (IFA) for
$4,500,000 with 3% interest. The funding is available for creation of workforce housing unit
creation in the Historic Millwork District. Income guidelines exist for the units totaling 120% of
Area Median Income. At the same time, staff is pursuing changes to various tax credit
programs on the national level, to assist in rehabilitation of historic structures.
The loan with Caradco Landlord, LLC was closed on August 26, and the total loan of $4.5
million has been drawn down. Caradco has also drawn down $8,900,000 of CDBG funds for
this project. On February 4, 2013 the City Council approved amendment number 3 to the
CDBG contract asking for increased funding of $1,299,000 to cover extra compliance issues
related to David Bacon prevailing wage requirements. On May 6, 2013, City Council approved
amendment number 4 to the CDBG contract asking for increased funding of $38,200 to cover
extra compliance issues related to Davis Bacon prevailing wage requirements. City staff has
been working diligently with local developers to find new revenue sources to fund the financial
gaps in the rehabilitation of older buildings in the downtown/millwork districts.
At the same time, staff is pursuing changes to various tax credit programs on the national level,
to assist in rehabilitation of historic structures. The Greater Downtown Urban Renewal District
was expanded by the City Council on June 3, 2013 which provides additional tools to
encourage reinvestment and redevelopment activities throughout the expanded District to
support the revitalization of the area.
The City Council created a $2.5 million pool of funds to encourage downtown market -rate
apartments. The City provides a CIP for the Downtown Rehabilitation Loan, Planning and
Design Grant, Facade Grant, and Financial Consultant Grant Programs which are designed to
further the goals and objectives of the Greater Downtown Urban Renewal Plan by creating the
financial incentives needed to eliminate conditions of blight, encourage revitalization efforts and
to retain or create employment opportunities and/or new housing units within the district.
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To date, the Council has approved 300 units for the Downtown Housing Program. Of those,
292 units will be developed. 187 units have been completed and 101 are currently under
construction. As of August 2013, the City has paid $1,803,000 in downtown housing incentives.
To meet the demand of this program, a recommendation was made to the City Council to
recapitalize this pool of funds. This program has done a tremendous job of helping promote
and redevelop the downtown housing options. In FY 2013, the City has approved an additional
$327,540 in grant funds for the Greater Downtown Urban Renewal District, an additional
$670,000 restricted to the Historic Millwork District and $1,500,000 restricted to the Washington
Neighborhood Subarea (includes Bluff/West Locust). Staff has updated the guidelines for the
Downtown Housing Incentive Program on May 6, 2013.
On February 4, 2013, the City Council approved a Development agreement with Weaver
Castle, the Stelpflug family, for the rehabilitation of the vacant duplex located at 407-409 Loras
Blvd. This historic rehabilitation will create 4 new residential units. On April 1, 2013, the City
Council approved a Development Agreement with the Stelpflugs for an additional 5 units at 324-
326 W. Locust.
On February 18, 2013 the City Council approved an application for State CDBG funds from the
New Production Round 5 allocation to assist in the adaptive reuse of Linseed Oil Paintworks
Building at 151 East 9th. On June 19, 2013, the mayor was notified that the project received
$2,248,890 in CDBG funds for the creation of16 new residential units in the Millwork District.
The Council held a public hearing on a Development Agreement for this project on March 18,
2013.
Urban Revitalization Program: The purpose of the program is to attract development to
specific areas, which might otherwise continue to deteriorate, thereby stabilizing and eventually
increasing the tax base within those areas. The abatements are intended to stimulate private
investment by reducing the tax increases that would normally result from making improvements
to residential property.
The program focuses on revitalization of properties in the community's older neighborhoods
and offers a property tax exemption for new improvements made to qualified residential
properties and limited commercial properties. Owners who upgrade their residential properties
located within a designated urban revitalization area are eligible to apply for a ten-year property
tax exemption. Owners of commercial property in the Washington Neighborhood UR district are
eligible for a three-year exemption. To qualify, improvements must increase the assessed value
of the building by at least ten percent or greater depending on the specific district, and applies
to those neighborhoods which have been designated as urban revitalization areas by the City
Council. $727,170 is the current value of properties in tax abatement as of the 2012.
Green & Healthy Homes Initiative: Working collaboratively across jurisdictions and silos of
funding to identify and remove barriers to holistic, household centric approaches to improving
health, safety, livability and affordability of housing in Dubuque. The Initiative will identify the
hazards in the participating client residences, identify funding sources to maximize services to
the clients to remediate these hazards, and follow up with the clients to assist them in
maintaining and sustaining the improvements." Key partners are the Housing and Community
33
Development Department, Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque, Health Department,
Operation New View, Visiting Nurse Association, Northeast Iowa Community College, Lead
Hazard Control Grant, Healthy Homes Production Grant Smarter City Project Manager and
Sustainable Dubuque Program.
The City's Healthy Homes Program has completed 109 units. The Lead Hazard Control
Program has completed 185 units. The Home Advocate has helped the families of these
homes access GHHI Services and other resources such as counseling, mental health support,
health care, food stamps and a variety of other services- the Home Advocate is funded by the
Community Foundation and the City of Dubuque. A shared data platform called ETO has been
implemented among the partners in order to better understand the outcomes from the initiative.
Follow up visits to homes completed are being conducted to ensure the interventions are
sustainable and to measure the impact of the initiative. In addition, families will receive a
cleaning kit, a $25 gift card and follow up support from the Home Advocate.
A new partnership, to link GHHI with Sustainable Dubuque, has been established. Low-
income families utilize recycling programs, energy efficiency programs and other sustainability
related services at a far lower rate than more affluent families. Through this unique new
partnership- Dubuque's Green and Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI) will connect families and
neighborhoods to services and practices, supported by Sustainable Dubuque, that save families
money and resources while helping them create green, safe and healthy homes. Through the
efforts of the GHHI Home Advocate, a trained social worker who makes valued connections
with families and links them to services, low -moderate income families will be able to access
the savings and health benefits that sustainable practices can provide. Funding for this effort is
provided through a TFN grant, recently awarded to CFGD.
Outcomes Achieved Through the Project:
Our project goal -develop a new coordinated approach led by GHHI and Sustainable Dubuque
to increase access and use of sustainable practices and services in Dubuque's most distressed
neighborhoods. This goal had four key elements -
a. Coordinate outreach efforts for sustainable practices through GHHI-
Outcome: As a result of the project, a resource team of more than a dozen agencies (list
to follow) and GHHI assessors understand these services and have the tools to continue
to engage families in these services.
Resource Team Agencies -now equipped to support outreach:
b. Building stronger relationship between GHHI partners and City of Dubuque b y
supporting a Coordinator to work in partnership with City Sustainability Coordinator
Outcome: A full time GHHI Coordinator has been established. In this role, the GHHI
Coordinator now participates in Sustainable Dubuque meetings and activities. This
resulted in including the GHHI Coordinator in the most recent application for a Healthy
Homes/ Lead Abatement Grant as a critical role.
c. Increase engagement in target neighborhoods in Sustainable Dubuque efforts equal to
engagement levels of more affluent neighborhoods.
Outcome: In the target neighborhood, we were able to provide information to
approximately 100 homes and worked to enroll approximately 70 homes. This was lower
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than we had hoped. We found it more challenging than expected to enroll households
without a high level of "hands-on" support that included direct assistance with the
application.
d. Ensure the long-term sustainability of the GHHI model by ensuring it becomes a top
priority of the Mayor, City Council, City Manager and private/nonprofit partner leadership.
Outcome; GHHI funding was written into the City Council Budget (FY2015) and the recent
application to HUD for Healthy Homes/Lead Abatement grant.
Tools Developed;
The GHHI Home Advocate designed a tool kit in partnership with Sustainable Dubuque and
Dubuque County Solid Waste Agency to support the coordinated approach. The tool kit
includes a household needs assessment and information about resources to assist both with
reduction of various living expenses as well as increasing sustainable practices. (e.g. public
transportation programs, discards reduction through recycling, gardening and use of
composting organic waste).
When children were present in the home, the tool kit contained a coloring book and crayons
were to help children learn how they could help.
The needs assessment gathered income and household size information, which was then
compared to available programs. If it was found that the household met criteria, and exhibited
need for these services, assistance was provided in completing the application process.
Modifications and tactics:
GHHI Resource Team — a network of providers was engaged to help connect more families to
resources and to sustain the effort beyond the grant period. This network supports outreach to
access a greater number of households.
Circles Initiative Outreach — More than 80 low-income families working to transition out of
poverty gather weekly thanks to an initiative called Circles. We connected with this group to
engage Circles families in the opportunity and to plug into a volunteer network that can continue
to the project in the future by referring families in need.
Community Health Center outreach proved to be a good place for building awareness but was
not effective for direct enrollment. Toolkits were handed out to families visiting the Health
Center and appointments for home visits were made for follow up. However, there was not an
opportunity to complete a needs assessment or engage in any in depth conversation due to
lack of privacy.
Outreach efforts outside of the home overall were not effective for enrolling families. Through
this project, we have affirmed that best practice is to layer enrollment for Sustainability Services
into a coordinated home visit for GHHI or other support services.
Lead Hazard Control grant: To reduce lead poisoning in Dubuque's young children, begun in
1997 and refunded in 2011 with a $3.1 million grant awarded in January 2011. This is used to
fund several lead control initiatives including inspection and lead-based paint hazard reduction
in 185 Dubuque housing units. One hundred of those units will receive $740 in additional
35
funding for a more comprehensive Healthy Homes approach. It provided a comprehensive
public education campaign aimed at teaching property owners, tenants, and maintenance and
remodeling contractors how to provide and maintain lead -safe dwellings. Additionally, area
contractors will be certified, trained and provided economic incentives to grow their businesses
and improve skills in lead hazard reduction. Through March 2014, 375 applicants enrolled, 241
units received a lead hazard evaluation, and 185 units were completed. The Program achieved
a 96% rating from the quarterly report review from the Housing and Urban Development
Department (HUD). The HEART Program has partnered with the City for years to help
completed the rehabilitation of homes under the Lead Hazard Control grant and in return the
City has trained staff Four Mounds as a certified Lead Contractor and all the students and staff
as Lead Safe Workers.
This program will reach completion June 30, 2014. A new application for additional lead hazard
control funding is being prepared and will be submitted to the United States Housing and Urban
Development Department by June 30, 2014.
Healthy Homes Production Program: To eliminate or reduce health and safety issues in the
homes of children under 18, elderly, and disabled, a $1 million grant was awarded in January
2011. These funds were utilized to identify and remediate housing -related health and safety
hazards in 100 housing units throughout Dubuque. The 7 Healthy Homes Principles focused
on are Keep It: Dry, Clean, Pest Free, Ventilated, Safe, Contaminant Free, and Maintained.
The Program was designed to develop low-cost methods for hazard assessment and
intervention, evaluating the effectiveness of interventions, building local capacity to educate
residents and mitigate hazards, developing and delivering public -education programs, and
partnering with other programs and agencies to maximize services.
This program was conducted in conjunction with the Green and Healthy Homes Initiative to
address the conditions in the physical environment in the home as well as issues in the lives of
the dwelling's occupants. Through March 2014, 200 applicants enrolled, 132 units received a
comprehensive healthy home assessment, and 94 units have been completed. The Program
achieved a 100% rating from the quarterly report review from HUD.
Previously members of the Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes Program staff attended
and became certified as Healthy Homes Specialists through a Healthy Homes Practitioner
Course held in the City Housing Department. Also included in the training were the City's
general housing supervisor and inspectors, Section 8 inspectors, and members of the City's
Health Department, and the local Operation: New View Community Action Agency
Weatherization inspectors. This is continuing the goal of having City departments and related
outside partner's cross -trained and sharing job duties whenever possible, as well as
contributing to the GHHI goal to streamline and reduce duplication in the assessment process.
This program will reach completion June 30, 2014. New funding is not available from the
United Sates Housing and Urban Development Department in Fiscal Year 2014.
Neighborhood Stabilization Program: $444,328 from the Iowa Department of Economic
Development received in April 2009. The grant provides funding to purchase foreclosed or
abandoned homes and to rehabilitate, resell or redevelop these homes in order to stabilize
neighborhoods and deter decline in valuation of neighboring homes. Nine properties have been
36
acquired by the Housing Department utilizing our Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP)
grant. To date eight properties have been sold to first time homebuyers. 1318 Jackson is
currently listed with a local realtor for sale.
Sustainable Living:
The Family and Assisted Housing Programs is designed to improve the lives of people living in
poverty to help make a sustainable community with opportunities for all by engaging people
across class barriers, utilizing approaches to improve family and housing stability and by
building community partnerships. Housing is critical to meeting basic human needs for shelter,
security and a sense of connection to the community. The assisted housing programs are
funded by HUD (US Department of Housing & Urban Development). Approximately $3.6 million
from HUD is paid to area landlords annually. The assisted housing payments are paid on behalf
of tenants participating in the Housing Choice Voucher Program. The family pays the difference
between the actual rent charged by the landlord and the amount subsidized by the program.
Eligibility for the program is determined by the total annual gross income and family size and
may not exceed 50% of the median income for the City of Dubuque as determined by HUD.
The Voucher program also includes the option of purchasing a home for first-time homeowners
rather than renting. The homeownership option is available to participants who have
participated in the rental assistance program for at least 12 months and meet the employment,
minimum income, and home counseling requirements. Since the City began offering
Homeownership options for participants of the assisted housing programs, twenty eight (28)
participants have purchased homes. In response to the need for affordable for seniors with very
low income, the City has entered into a ten-year contract with a local assisted housing facility to
offer 17 units as Project Based Vouchers known as the Rose of Dubuque.
Carnegie -Stout Public Library Renovation:
The Library was awarded LEED-EB certification at the Silver level in October, 2012. The library
is the first city -owned building to earn LEED certification and is the first public library in this
category to earn certification while also maintaining a listing on the National Register of Historic
Places. A "Green" Ribbon Cutting ceremony was held on April 21, 2014 to celebrate Petal
Project certification. Mark Hirsch, author and photographer of the book That Tree presented a
program.
Fire Department: Currently undertaking a project for evaluation and re -design of HVAC and
lighting systems across all six fire stations.
Leisure Services Department:
• More insulation and insulated doors were added to mower repair building.
• LED lighting was added to five pole sheds.
• Lighting fixture upgrades were completed at Sutton pool saving an estimated cost of
$373.00 in electrical costs annually. Two LED canopy lights were also installed on the
exterior of the building
• A high efficiency toilet was installed at the Slattery center to replace the outdated fixture.
The fixture meets the EPA's watersense guidelines by using 20% less water.
• Lighting fixture upgrades to T8 two bulb fixtures in the Tree division garage building
• LED external security lighting was added to the Bee Branch Stormwater Maintenance
Building
37
• Added 14 inches insulation to the Allison Henderson Building bringing the R -factor up to
an R-49 rating overall
Business:
The following are private and public LEED-certified buildings in Dubuque. Several additional
buildings have been built to LEED standards, but have chosen not to complete the certification
work.
Certification
Date
Development
LEED Status
2007
Durrant Architects
Platinum
2007
Medline Industries
Silver
2008
Hormel Foods
Gold
2009
IBMIRoshek Bldg
Platinum
2009
Kohl's
Certified
2009
McGraw Hill Regional HQ
Gold
2010
Kwik Star 495 (2685 Dodge St)
Silver
2011
EB Lyons Interpretive Center Expansion
Silver
2009
Carnegie Stout Public Library
Silver
2012
Finley Hospital Private Patient Room Addition
Certified
Non -Profit:
Wood Window Workshop Week- May 14-17 During Historic Preservation Month:
Four Mounds presented three workshops to more than 60 attendees this spring. Each
workshop addressed various aspects of of historic wood window restoration and energy
efficiency techniques. Home and building owners were empowered to repair their maintainable
historic window systems, preserving them for another century or more. The workshops were
free thanks to anyone residing or working in Dubuque County due to generous partners and
sponsors, including DMASWA, the City of Dubuque, Old House Enthusiasts, and Dupaco
Community Credit Union.
Schools:
People & Neighborhoods:
HEART: The greenest building is the one that is already built. The HEART program (Top
Priority) continues to restore and rehabilitate homes in the Washington Neighborhood (Top
Priority). Reinvestment in existing infrastructure takes pressure off of sprawl and helps existing
neighbors take back their neighborhood from blight and absentee landlords. Since 2003,
HEART's partnership has reclaimed 34 derelict rental units and transformed them into 24
owner -occupied single family homes. In 10 years since its start, among the major projects, the
program has 100% retention for original owners and the tax assessments have increased by an
average of 267%.
HEALTHY LOCAL FOOD
Government:
A Regional Foods Coordinator was hired in August 2012 to implement the UI
recommendations as well as the deliverables included a grant received through Limestone
Bluffs RC&D. The Dubuque County ISU Extension and Project Concern have partnered to hire
an Anti -Poverty VISTA who is working with local partners to address food security issues in
Dubuque.
38
Urban Hens: The City of Dubuque Planning Department eased zoning restrictions regarding
the raising of urban chickens and ducks. The City will partner with ISU Extension and the
Dubuque Rescue Mission to host an educational workshop for interested residents in October.
Community Garden Collaboration: Community gardens include the Dubuque Jaycees
Community Gardens at Veterans Memorial Park, 2700 Northview Dr, St. Luke's United
Methodist Wading Pool gardens, Dubuque Rescue Mission garden, the Four Mounds
community garden located at 4392 Peru Road, the Dr. John Viner garden at 21st Street
between Elm and Kniest Streets, the Garden Organic program which is filmed at Barrington
Lakes garden (private property) and Steve's Ace Hardware, the Washington Neighborhood
garden at 18th & Central, and Convivium Urban Farmstead (Jackson Street). More information
about these gardens can be found at www.cityofdubuque.org/communitygardens.
The City of Dubuque has partnered with the Dubuque Jaycees to create a community garden at
Veterans Memorial Park. These plots will be available to all area residents for a fee of $30 for
an in -ground bend and $40 for a raised bed, plus a $25 deposit which will be returned after
harvest if the plot is cleared. Income -based fee waivers are also available to those who qualify.
Under this agreement, the City will provide the land for the garden plots and the Jaycees will
maintain responsibility for all aspects of managing the garden.
A group of community garden leader meeting was held with the intention of finding ways to
collaborate on gardening efforts, identify gaps in community gardening need, and share
volunteers and resources. Additional meetings are planned for the non -growing season. A
community garden planning meeting was held in December, with approximately 25 community
garden organizers, gardeners, and volunteers attending or providing input via email. Their input
will be collected and used to plan for the upcoming growing season. The group was particularly
interested in forming a Community Garden Coalition, in which gardeners and garden organizers
could meet to collaborate, share resources, and identify gaps in community service and/or
opportunities for new gardens. The group would be supported by the ISU Extension Regional
Foods Coordinator and City Sustainable Community Coordinator for the short-term future.
Leisure Services Department:
• Edible garden installed at City Hall Annex. Installed a rain barrel at the city hall annex to
aid in the up keep of the edible landscape
Business:
Dubuque Food Co-op: The Dubuque Food Co-op has announced its Board of Directors and is
currently completing a nation-wide search for a store manager and a marketing campaign to
secure 1,000 members. The Co-op is slated to open in fall 2013 in the Historic Millwork District.
The Co-op received a $200,000 challenge grant commitment from Dubuque Initiatives and has
raised the required match. They have hired a General Manager, who comes with Iowa City
New Pioneer Co-op management experience. The Co-op opened in May 2014.
Non -Profit:
Dubuque Farmers' Market: The Dubuque Farmers' Market is administered by Dubuque Main
Street on behalf of the City of Dubuque. Dubuque Farmers' Market has been involved with the
Farmers' Market Nutrition Program for Seniors and for Women, Infants, & Children for
numerous years. Vendors (22) who meet the criteria for selling produce apply through the Iowa
39
Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship to be a certified vendor. Customers redeem
their benefits in the form of a check or voucher. Vendors deposit the checks and/or vouchers at
area financial institutions for reimbursement. There are no fees involved for vendors.
In addition, vendors are encouraged to participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
Program (SNAP) (formerly known as food stamps), which is administered through USDA's
Food and Nutrition Services. Dubuque Farmers' Market vendors are challenged to participate in
SNAP due to limited access to electricity for land -line based technology. The vendors (7) who
do accept SNAP's electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards have to purchase or lease wireless
equipment to accept the cards, as well as pay transaction fees on each purchase.
On May 5, 2012, a customer count was conducted at market. On May 5, more than 3,100
stickers were distributed, which equals more than 3,100 customers. On July 2, 2011, there
were 3,682 customers (this date was selected because it fell before the availability of sweet
corn). On October 1, 2011, there were 2,813 customers. Dubuque Main Street conducted their
first customer count in July 2010, which was 3,800 customers and was the first day sweet corn
was available at the market.
Winter Farmers' Market: From November to April, the market opens every Saturday morning
from 9 am — 12 noon at the downtown Colts building. This volunteer run market extends
Dubuque's focus on local healthy foods sold year-round. Approximately 40 regular vendors
participate. Over 400 customers per week visit the market, which is run under the umbrella of
Four Mounds Foundation. With almost a zero operational cost, vendor fees are primarily
pumped back into the market, providing a grant program that expands the region's capacity to
grow more unusual varieties over a longer season. Grants to vendors include root cellar
shelving, hydroponic equipment, equipment for baked goods expansion, mushroom growing
supply, hoop house construction, and beekeeping equipment.
The Farm to Table Dinner partnered with Four Mounds this year to connect the community to
local growers and raise funds for the gardens at the Dubuque Rescue Mission and Four
Mounds. Along with the Driftless Farm Crawl, this harvest season series of events raises
awareness for farming with a free family -friendly crawl highlighting the changing nature of
farming in our region, focusing this year on hydroponics, hoop houses, organic agriculture and
urban farming. Products highlighted were greens, meat, orchard fruit, a winery and more.
Partners included four featured chefs, Dubuque Co. ISU Extension, Four Mounds Foundation,
Blaze Farm to Table Events and many farms and sponsors. The sold -out benefit dinner took
place under a tent and stars overlooking the Mississippi at the Four Mounds Gentleman's Farm.
Schools:
Farm to School Initiatives: In October 2013 four classes have been taught to K -5th graders at
Audubon and Marshall through the St. Marks Youth Enrichment Program by ISU Extension
around gardening and farm to table principles. A highlight included a local apple tasting by the
students.
A small vegetable garden was planted by Loras students and staff in May 2014. This will be
maintained and promoted through a partnership between a Senior Honors group, the Biology
Department, and the DMASWA Education Office (located at Loras College). Future goals
include additional gardens located around campus.
40
Clarke University has installed a community garden for student and faculty use, and has joined
the EPA Food Recovery Challenge.
Hempstead High School held a ribbon cutting for their community garden, greenhouse, and
outdoor classroom in May 2014.
COMMUNITY KNOWLEDGE
Government:
• Mayor & Council Sustainability Pledge: The original Mayor's sustainability pledge was
launched in 2007, and thousands of copies have been distributed to schools, businesses,
and residents in Dubuque, giving them concrete ways they can implement each of the 11
Sustainable Dubuque principles. In October 2012, a new Mayor & City Council pledge was
created to challenge residents to consider new actions. For each principle three actions are
suggested -a "beginner, intermediate, and advanced" approach to implementing each
principle in daily life.
Growing Sustainable Communities Conference: In early 2008, Dubuque hosted its first
Growing Sustainable Communities Conference entitled "Leading the Way to Global Climate
Solutions" at the Grand River Center in the Port of Dubuque. It was a regional event that was
attended by over 600 elected officials, business and community leaders, and college students
from the tri-state area. This inaugural event was designed to provide community leaders with
the knowledge of experts about the science of climate and how to incorporate sustainability into
their own communities.
The record-breaking 6th Annual Growing Sustainable Communities Conference was held on
September 24-25, 2013. Approximately 495 attendees, up 8% from last year. Of that number,
39% represented governments, 25% were from businesses, 29% represented educational
institutions (including approximately 100 local college students), and 7% were from non -profits.
91% of the post -conference respondents replied that they were "extremely or moderately
satisfied" with the event. The 7th annual conference will be held on Oct 7-8, 2014.
Volunteer Development
Grant Pilot Program:
Three non-profit organizations in Dubuque focused on serving with citizens challenged by living
in poverty and working toward self-sufficiency:
• The Circles Initiative with the City of Dubuque
• Operation New View
• Project Concern
Partnered with:
• Iowa Campus Compact and compact institutions, Loras College & Clarke University
• The City of Dubuque — Human Rights Department
Utilizing a collected impact model focused on a three -pronged approach, (concentrating
volunteer efforts on immediate needs, economic development and empowerment of citizens in
poverty); to recruit volunteers to impact the CNCS focus area of Economic Opportunity.
Outcomes measured through this service included:
41
287 volunteers recruited and retained in two months
134 new volunteers recruited
121 volunteers retained/managed
30 philanthropists donated funds
2 board members recruited
12 trainings attended by five Iowa Campus Compact VISTA members and non-profit
organization staff in the following capacity -building areas:
6 volunteer management
5 best -practices in non-profit management
1 skill -based approach to volunteer management
Three non-profit organizations, Circles, Operation New View and Project Concern assessed or
implemented five of the following management practices from knowledge obtained in capacity -
building trainings:
1. Identified gaps in public relations practices.
2. Reflected upon how to improve record-keeping practices to solidify sustainability of
management practices implemented by VISTAs.
3. Plan to increase utilization Memorandums of Agreements in future partnering and
business practices.
4. Plan to create orientation for volunteers.
5. Plan to create a recognition event for volunteers.
The three agencies involved in the VGF pilot will be increasing their collaboration with Iowa
Campus Compact VISTAs in 2014-15 and will be collectively measuring a minimum of one
shared outcome focused on volunteer management practices. The new VISTA members will
begin in June and July 2014. One goal will involve connecting economically disadvantaged
individuals to volunteer opportunities and workshops to build skills and social capital; a second
goal is to expand and strengthen the partnership between these agencies so we are tracking
collectively the impact volunteering is having on economic opportunity and civic engagement
both for volunteers and for those being supported.
The Dubuque National Service Partnership also continues to meet and build its capacity to
jointly report on the impact of the work national service members in our community. Here in
Dubuque, the partnership involves AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, VISTA, and Green Corps
working with numerous non -profits in the community
In addition to carrying out grant requirements with community partners, HRD is looking to pilot
stronger volunteer engagement inside the organization, beginning with the Human Rights
Commission. CEC and HRD director are evaluating what currently exists and what is desired in
an engaging and informative HRC orientation program. Days of Caring: Human Relations
Specialist is participating in this effort with Cori Burbach in the Project Committee, with a goal of
being directly connected with area non -profits and community -led projects.
Impact: As a collective, Dubuque National Service volunteers served more than 89,000 hours
last year. At the rate of $17.55 per hour set by the Independent Sector, these efforts equate to
$1,561,950 of impact in our community. In addition to the financial impact, we are realizing
human impact. For example, teachers reported that 96% of the students with a Foster
Grandparent last year improved their reading skills. Homebound seniors in our community
42
received more than 3,000 meals each month, and more than 200 seniors received rides to
important appointments through DuRide. The outcomes will be more ownership in community
solutions as people see selves as part of solution; a sense of inclusion will increase as people
are welcomed to contribute their skills and develop a sense of belonging.
City Life: three sessions of our citizen academy have been completed. Reports on the results
of each program are online at www.cityofdubuque.org/citylife. The most recent pre-and-post
assessments are below and the impact is a more informed and connected citizenry amongst
participants. Next steps will include a survey of past participants and analysis of program
design for potential improvements.
16 /
14
12
10 � 8
8
6
4
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
Able to find services I
need with ease
Pre Assessment
I view myself as a I've had I understand how
partner with opportunities to ask community members
departments questions/share my can influence
thoughts with changes in
departments department services
Post Assessment
Able to find services I
need with ease
I view myself as a I've had I understand how
partner with opportunities to ask community members
departments questions/share my can influence
thoughts with changes in
departments department services
• Agree
Neutral
• Disagree
• Agree
Neutral
• Disagree
Fire Department: In partnership with an Americorps VISTA, the Fire Department installed five
Little Free Libraries on their properties to support the 3rd Grade Reading Initiative.
Library:
During Money Smart Week, April 20-26, 2014 the Library held a Money Smart Shred Event and
people shredded 1,800 pounds of documents for recycling.
The Library introduced a new service called "While You Wait" that is managed by a volunteer.
Used books that have been donated are placed in waiting rooms throughout the community for
people to read and pass on.
The library hosted a Volunteer recognition dinner and the theme was sustainability. Extra
coffee mugs that people donated from their cupboards were donated to the library. They were
filled with potting soil and either flowers or herbs as a gift for attendees with a stick sign in them
reading, "Volunteers: Our Greatest Natural Resource."
43
Library staff visited all public schools to encourage the children to sign up for the summer
reading program. They demonstrated how to make "elephant" bubbles by reusing a water
bottle to promote a science project that will be incorporated into the summer reading program.
Family Self -Sufficiency (FSS) Program: The FSS Program prepares participants for financial
independence and possible home ownership. The FSS program provides access to child care,
transportation, education, job development, household skills training, affirmatively furthering
fair housing and financial literacy training. As of June 1, 2014, the FSS program is serving 122
households. In FYE 2013 153 households were involved in FSS. Four households completed
the FSS program and earned an average escrow check in the amount of $4,127.00.
Circles® Initiative: Family and Assisted Housing staff is also instrumental in "Getting Ahead in
a Just Gettin'- By World (Getting AheadTMM)", a program for people in poverty to help them
understand the hidden rules of the middle class as well as communication skills, value systems,
and expectations used in order to bridge the gap from poverty. Participants are exposed to the
Bridges out of Poverty concept based on Philip DeVol and Dr. Ruby Payne's research on
poverty, which offers a framework for understanding the culture of poverty. As of June 2014,
203 individuals have graduated from Getting Ahead. Getting Ahead Round 12 will begin
August 2014.
Getting Ahead graduates are eligible to become leaders in the Circles® Initiative. The Circles®
Coach matches graduates with community volunteers who can provide support and friendship
on their journey toward self-sufficiency. Circles® has been active since September 2010 and
has matched 21 Getting Ahead graduates in 19 circles (some couples choose to be matched in
the same circle). Six of these circles have completed their commitments and obtained the
goals they set for themselves. We are currently working with 11 matched circles; have 6
Leaders waiting to be matched with Allies.
Circles® meets weekly on Tuesday nights at Prescott School and averages 65 community
members in attendance. The Circles® Initiative received the Faces and Voices, CommUNITY
Award for Diversity Initiatives of 2013 and was recognized at the Community Foundation of
Greater Dubuque's Block Party event as favorite non-profit initiative through a community vote.
The Circles® Initiative was awarded $1,110 from the Sustainable Dubuque Community Grant
program for "Circles® Initiative Family Fun Night". The event took place in October 2013. With
the remaining funds from the grant, Circles® partnered with Sustainable Dubuque and Green
Team to help make the Circles® community a zero waste community with the use of
compostable materials for the weekly meetings. Circles® also received a $415 grant from the
Women's Giving Circle to partner with Iowa State University Extension to provide babysitting
classes and first-aid kits to ten youth who attend Circles® meetings on Tuesday nights. The
classes took place on two Tuesday nights in March 2014 at the weekly meetings. We estimate
that 40-50 individuals will be served by this project, including the certified babysitters, parents
and children who will receive care. Circles® also received a $415 grant from the Women's
Giving Circle to partner with Iowa State University Extension to provide babysitting classes and
first-aid kits to ten youth who attend Circles® meetings on Tuesday nights. The classes took
place on two Tuesday nights in March 2014 at the weekly meetings. We estimate that 40-50
individuals will be served by this project, including the certified babysitters, parents and children
who will receive care. The Circles® community also partnered with FSS and Operation: New
View to host a Poverty Simulation on Tuesday, November 5 during the Circles® weekly
44
meeting. Over 85 people participated and 20 Circles® community members volunteered for
this event.
The Circles® Coach and Jim Ott offered a Bridges Out of Poverty training in May 8, 2014 and
was attended by about 65 people.
Road to Success, a job readiness fair designed to prepare low-income individuals for
employment was held on June 3, 2014. We have volunteers who will come together to provide
participants an opportunity to experience a variety of learning tracks including "Thirty five
community volunteers came together to provide participants an opportunity to experience a
variety of learning tracks including: "Mock Interviews"; "Dress to Impress"; "Creating a Resume
that Gets You Noticed"; and "Resume & Cover Letter Critiques". Each participant will receive a
folder fully loaded with resources designed to support job seekers in their continued search for
employment plus one-on-one attention from professionals who volunteered during the event.
Participants included members of the Family Self -Sufficiency Program, Getting Ahead and
Circles, residents of community shelters and individuals referred by our many community
agency partners.
Shelter Plus Care Program: The $536 000 grant commenced in FY 2008 for the five-year
program to provide rental assistance to homeless persons with disabilities. We have since
received two additional one year grants allowing us to continue providing permanent housing
along with supportive services for homeless individuals/families. As of June 1, 2014, twenty-
five individuals/families are being assisted. The Housing and Community Development
Department administers the funds and provides them to Project Concern, who contracts with
private landlords to provide needed housing.
Arts and Culture (Top Priority): The City of Dubuque participated in national studies of arts,
culture, heritage and preservation. According to the study, nonprofit arts and culture
organizations in Dubuque spent $17.6 million during fiscal year 2010. This spending is far-
reaching: organizations pay employees, purchase supplies, contract for services and acquire
assets within their community. Those dollars, in turn, supported 577 jobs, generated $15.6
million in household income for local residents and $1.3 million in local and state government
revenues. In addition to spending by organizations, the nonprofit arts and culture industry in
Dubuque leverages $29.6 million in event -related spending by its audiences. As a result of
attending a cultural event, attendees often eat dinner in local restaurants, pay for parking, buy
gifts and souvenirs, and pay a babysitter. What's more, attendees from out of town often stay
overnight in a local hotel. In Dubuque, these dollars support 953 full-time equivalent jobs,
generated $21.1 million in household income for local residents and $3.7 million in local and
state government revenues.
Also in conjunction with Americans for the Arts, The Local Arts Index (LAI) was conducted with
both the non-profit and for-profit sectors throughout Dubuque County. The Local Arts Index is
the first county -level study ever designed to measure the health and vitality of the arts industries
throughout the United States. It will use a single methodology with information gathered from
research produced by the federal government and private research organizations and covering
multiple industries, including non-profit groups, for-profit arts businesses, employment figures,
and more. When these quantitative measures are taken together, the Local Arts Index will
provide a year -by -year and community -by -community comparison of the nation's arts sector.
The Index is being developed so that it can be replicated in communities across the country.
45
Arts Funding: The City of Dubuque has provided over $2.3 million dollars in funding for the
arts since the establishment of the City's Arts and Cultural Affairs Advisory commission in 2004.
The City has invested $2,370,000 through three programs established by the Dubuque City
Council. In all, $1,820,000 has been awarded to area arts and cultural organizations through
the Operating Support Grant Program and $345,000 through the Special Projects Grant
Program, which has also leveraged another $814,192 in community support. An additional
$175,000 has funded Art on the River, a temporary sculpture exhibition along the Mississippi
RiverWalk in the Port of Dubuque.
The City has recognized the importance in sustaining long-term viability for existing arts and
culture organizations and identified increased arts funding as a high priority since 2005.
Operating support is provided to established 501(c)(3) arts and culture organizations located in
the City of Dubuque that primarily serve Dubuque residents with year-round arts and culture
events, programs and services, and that can demonstrate a record of programmatic and
administrative stability. Since the inception of the program in 2004, both the number of eligible
organizations and their cumulative operating budgets have increased from 7.3 million to 10.6
million. In FY 2014, a record 16 eligible arts and culture organizations, up from an original 12
organizations, received funding through this program. The Commission anticipates that at least
one additional new arts organization will apply for funding in the next fiscal year,Distribution of
funds is overseen by the Arts and Cultural Affairs Commission that has refined the process to
hold organizations more responsible for the expenditure of City funds and to influence greater
organizational capacity.
The demand for these operating support funds have far exceeded the available funding of
$210,000. The maximum funding levels initially established for the program are 6% of
organization's previous year's operating expenses or $50,000, whichever is less. Awarded
funds historically have been well under these guidelines. Fiscal year 2015 Operating Support
funding applications are available after February 2014.
The Special Projects grant program was first funded in FY 2005 with an annual budget of
$35,000, the same amount that is now currently budgeted. The original purpose was to
"encourage the development of new or expanded arts and cultural programs in the Dubuque
community."
The Arts and Cultural Affairs Advisory Commission and staff worked through 2013 to better
align the Special Project grant program with the City Council's goals and priorities, best
practices in community art funding and the art needs of the Dubuque community, examining
how to use arts and culture to engage all community members, make our residents more
participatory, and ensure that arts, culture, preservation and heritage programs and events are
welcoming and inclusive to those outside of a traditional audience. One of the Safe Community
Task Force's recommendations stated that "the city should devote resources to a human
relations initiative that could include programs in the arts, cultural programs and other strategies
that promote respect and understanding among residents." The changes to this grant program
support this strategy.
The program has funded 57 separate arts projects in our community leveraging $814,192 in
community arts investment. It has successfully encouraged the expansion of arts and cultural
activities in our community as well as utilizing the arts to promote community engagement. The
46
demand for these funds have far exceeded the amount budgeted in the program.
The City Council approved the creation of the Art on the River outdoor sculpture project in
November 2005, and approved a budget of $300,000 over the next 10 years for this innovative
initiative. Working in conjunction with the Arts and Cultural Affairs Advisory Commission, the
Dubuque Museum of Art and a volunteer committee made up of artists, educators and city staff,
the City has identified highly visible locations at the Port of Dubuque to display selected
artwork. The Port of Dubuque is a 90 -acre riverfront campus which features the National
Mississippi River Museum and Aquariums, Grand River Center conference center, Grand
Harbor Resort and WaterPark, Diamond Jo Casino, historic Dubuque Star Brewery, and
Dubuque Shot Tower. Admired and replicated by many communities, Art on the River is
recognized as one of the premier temporary art exhibits in the country, drawing applications
from artists from across the country and foreign countries. It is distinctive for using a panel of
expert professionals to select the work. Now in its ninth year, the exhibit has brought over 80
works to the City that have been viewed by thousands of citizens and visitors. The application
period for the 2014 exhibit will open December 2013.
In 2013, conversations have started between the City Council, Arts and Cultural Advisory
Commission, staff and community partners to develop a master arts and cultural plan, including
a public art plan in order to sustain and grow arts and cultural elements in the City of Dubuque.
In October, 2014, the City of Dubuque in partnership with the Dubuque Museum of Art and Iowa
Arts Council hosted the Iowa Public Art Network Conference at the Grand river center. The
event drew over 100 arts administrators and professionals from 4 states in the Midwest.
Intercultural Competency Initiative:
• In November and December 2013, TVVDC administered the Intercultural Development
Inventory (IDI) to fifty (50) teacher and administrator from Dubuque Senior High School.
TVVDC and Intercultural Ambassadors Nancy Knipper (WR&RC), Jeremy Jensen
(Police), John Stewart (University of Dubuque), Sue Ann Marino (University of Dubuque)
and Richard Anderson (Loras College) designed and delivered a series of two and a half
(2.5) hour training sessions Dubuque Senior High School based on the results of the IDI.
• Ten 25 -minute sessions were offered by TVVDC, HRS, Maddy Cairney (Housing) and
Nancy Knipper (VVRRC) at Senior High school to introduce students to difference in
communication styles and its relationship to individual/group conflicts. TVVDC led a train -
the -trainer session for the ICC Training Team as part of the team's ongoing skill
development.
• Human Rights Department staff weaves intercultural training tools into meetings and
workshops on a regular basis; the communications team, which consists of employees
across the organization, is working on a series of communication tools to serve as
reminders for staff throughout the organization to do so as well.
• The training needs assessment and new employee focus group identified content for five
orientation workshops to support new staff joining the organization. In addition to our
intercultural workshops, these sessions are in the process of being developed:
o Session I - Foundations of City Employment: Participants will gain an
understanding of our form of government and the guiding principles and key
policies related to being a representative of the city organization.
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o Session II - Being Service Orientated: Participants will gain awareness of
customer service expectations and the importance of their engagement with
community members.
o Session 111 - City Technology: Participants will explore how the organization
leverages technology to deliver city services.
o Session IV - Budget and Finance: Participants will learn general information about
what informs the budget process at the department and organization level.
o Session V - City Partners and Initiatives: Participants will learn about key
partnerships and initiatives that influence city priorities and operations.
• In 2014, 66 new employees participated in 10.5 hours of Intercultural Foundations
Workshops as part of joining the City organization
• Housing & Community Development, the Police Department, and the Water & Resource
Recovery Center all dedicate significant staff time to providing ongoing intercultural skill
development in the organization.
• A new employee welcoming and orientation program is being developed and the
foundational workshops will be redesigned to be part of the orientation
• The Steering team will be revising its strategic plan this year and potentially adding new
membership.
• The Human Relations Specialist's work to `reach -in' to various community groups and
connect them with information and resources in the community and in City government
continues. This year, she has supported Cultural Voices in hosting dialogue sessions
with English Language Learner teachers at DCSD, the Human Rights Department, the
Housing Department, and the Police Department designed to improve communication
and understanding and identify areas of need. She also arranged for Transgender
Dubuque to present to DCSD counselors. She arranged a meeting between the police
department and a community group working on human trafficking.
The Human Rights Department's Intercultural Ambassador program continues to grow.
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Since completing the workshops I have .. .
Improved my ability to Changed my behavior Expanded my social
communciate across by using the skills I connections with
cultural differences learned people from different
cultures
■ Strongly Agree Agree Neutral
Impact: The objectives of this work are having a workforce prepared for 21st century jobs and
48
embracing a diverse population that supports a multicultural workforce. The outcomes will be a
city workforce reflecting the diversity of the community; city services that are available for all
and delivered in an equitable and fair manner; and a community where everyone is welcome.
Business:
Non -Profit:
Inclusive Dubuque:
Inclusive Dubuque's vision is a community where all feel respected, valued and engaged. To
do this our mission is to advance equity and inclusion to meet the economic and cultural needs
of a diverse community. In the last year, we have built a network of partner organizations who
provide direct service and support to community members, and we have grown from 22 to now
30 dedicated partners in this network.
Since the launch in October of 2013, Inclusive Dubuque has:
•Identified a budget and secured commitments of support for 3 years totaling $200,000
annually
•Assembled staff including a full-time Coordinator, full-time Assistant Coordinator, and
communications support
•Grown mission partners from 22 to 30
•Established partnership with Diversity Focus, Government Alliance on Race and Equity,
and D5 — other nonprofits working on these challenges
•Spread the word by launching a website, sent weekly updates & monthly newsletters and
grew the email list from zero to more than 1000
•Importantly, we shared and facilitated 37 idea exchanges and events with Mission
Partners engaging over 1,500 people in the Dubuque community.
This upcoming quarter, we will continue our efforts with our mission partners, launch a City
Equity Assessment and continue engaging the community with Idea Exchanges, event
participation and being active in the community.
Every Child, Every Promise: Current priorities include:
• LEAP is funded through a collaboration of ECIEP, the Dubuque Community School
District and key OST providers the community has received an $850,000 grant in April
2011 to start a coordinated, collaborative OST program for Middle School Students at
Jefferson and Washington schools. The grant is a 21st Century Community Learning
Center Grant and was awarded to the Dubuque Schools in collaborate with the key OST
providers.
• There has been an overwhelming response of 300 students per school who have signed
up for activities, a huge increase in involvement in after school programs. The program
is gearing up for the 2014-2015 school year. LEAP plans to provide over 20 programs to
students in the upcoming school year including several new programs at both schools.
• 3rd Grade Reading- an effort to build a coordinated approach between City, Schools,
CBO's, parents, students and others, to improve 3rd Grade Reading Achievement has
been identified as an important strategy. ECEP continues to facilitate an initiative to
increase achievement by improving outcomes in school attendance, school readiness
and summer learning. Progress continues in each of three focus areas:
o School Readiness- In fall 2013, 120 Dubuque school district high school juniors
and seniors registered for new early childhood development classes that earn
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community college credit. This new affordable pathway to an early childhood
career was developed by Dubuque Community Schools and Northeast Iowa
Community College.
0 Attendance- In September 2014, the Dubuque Community School District Board
signed an Attendance Proclamation in which they committed to focusing on
reducing chronic absenteeism to give all children an equitable opportunity to
learn, grow and thrive academically, emotionally and socially. Additionally, for the
2014-2015 school year, the Dubuque school District is continuing attendance best
practices, policies and programs that were implemented in 13 elementary schools
in 2013-2014. Fulton worked with a select group of students and reduced the
chronic absence rate among that group from 7 to 2%.
Summer Learning - During the summer of 2014, intensive reading instruction was
offered to kindergarten and first grade students who were not proficient in
reading by the Dubuque Community School District. Additionally, the City of
Dubuque and Every Child/Every Promise supported the St. Mark Summer
Academy through a $25,000 grant. The 2014 Summer Academy served a total of
22 at -risk children in a 6 -week program.
• Data- Every Child/Every Promise in partnership with Dubuque County Early Childhood
launched a new data system called Results Scorecard in August 2014. This online data
system allows partner organizations to input aggregate level data about programs. To
date, there are a total of twelve partners contributing data for the Scorecard. Information
regarding data can be found on the Every Child/Every Promise and Grade -Level
Reading websites. Additional data reports will be available via newsletters, press
releases and social media throughout the year.
• Every Child/Every Promise received funding from Alliant Energy, McDonough
Foundation and the Dubuque Racing Association to roll out a new website for Every
Child/Every Promise and the Dubuque Grade -Level Reading Campaign. The new
websites feature various resources as well as highlights work being done within the City
of Dubuque.
• In an effort to increase efforts on behalf of Grade -Level Reading, Every Child/Every
Promise in partnership with the Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque, hired a full-
time Coordinator for ECEP. Corrine Kroger will work closely with initiatives related to
ECEP including GLR and LEAP.
• The Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque is happy to announce the expansion of
Grade -Level Reading into Jackson County and Dyersville. This is made possible by an
Anonymous Donor Grant in the amount of $180,000.
• In September of 2014, ECEP released an insert, Dubuque's Signs of Promise, in the
Telegraph Herald. This feature was a highlight of some of the data that has been
collected in relation to Grade -Level Reading and the progress that has been made in
Dubuque. GLR and ECEP hopes to continue the conversation and work to close the
gaps by promoting school readiness, regular attendance, quality teaching, summer
learning programs and parents as their children's first teachers.
Continuum of Care: A working network of homeless shelter and service providers created in
2001 to respond to the needs of the City's homeless population. The successful development
of the Maria House, the four Davis Place SROs and Hillcrest's transitional housing facility has
provided significant new shelter opportunities. The Teresa Shelter for homeless women and
children was opened during FY 2006. Manasseh House, a 19 room single room occupancy
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(SRO) facility for 19 single women was completed in FY 2007. The Salvia House SRO opened
in 2010.
The City partners with Project Concern, Maria House, Hillcrest Family Services, and Manasseh
House for the annual allocation of Continuum of Care funds. This grant, under the "Supported
Housing Program" category, provides funding for support services for homeless persons and
families. These activities include outreach services, counseling, a "homeless hotline," and
staffing for transitional housing and the Manasseh House SRO for women.
Green Dubuque: Green Dubuque is a registered 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization committed to
improving and beautifying Dubuque by reducing the city's greenhouse gas emissions,
promoting smart development and urban green space, and protecting the health and integrity of
local ecosystems.
Since 2006, Green Dubuque has led or been involved in numerous projects to support the
Sustainable Dubuque vision, including organizing grassroots events, research and reporting on
a variety of sustainability and climate change -related topics, lobbying for local and state
government activity, community education and supporting local foods initiatives in a variety of
ways. Specific projects of significance that they have been key partners in include CARE
Bombs, Green Drinks, Complete Streets, and the Dubuque Community GHG Reduction Task
Force. Green Dubuque members and other invested residents are working together to
reactivate the Dubuque Area Recycling Network (DARN) model and establish an energy district
in Dubuque.
Green Dubuque hosted a Climate March in September as part of a national series of marches.
HEART (Top Priority):
The Housing Education and Rehabilitation Training Program, or HEART, with its broad
partnership and deep community impact, is re-engaging disconnected youth and building strong
connections to community through education, service and job training. Transforming the
Washington and downtown neighborhoods, students in our program have participated in over
60 total community projects since 2004, including turning over 34 substandard rentals into 24
owner occupied homes. Four Mounds mission of preservation, service and education aligns
with the three focus areas of the Sustainable Dubuque model. We reclaim threatened, historic
structures and find new relevant uses for the community, using the opportunity to train youth
and prepare them for healthy adulthood.
Since 2003, the HEART program has met the needs of 63 individual young people on a full-time
basis, as they work to attain their high school diploma. Our students come to us at -risk of
dropping out, but they make a commitment to hard work until they graduate, splitting their days
on the worksite and classroom. In addition to the skills training and degree completion,
students are prepared up front with Lead Safe Worker training & certification, First Aid & CPR
certification, and Tool & Safety training.
Eco -Movie Nights: Initiated by GreenCorps members with support from the Sustainability
Office and other partners, Eco -Movies is a new series which will host a free, educational movie
each month in Dubuque from April to August. Each movie concludes with a community
discussion led by subject matter experts.
Schools:
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Green Vision Education Program: This program is sponsored by the Dubuque Metropolitan
Area Solid Waste Agency and began in 2005. Since that date, eleven schools are currently
Green Vision Schools and several more are working towards achieving the status during this
calendar year.
Current Green Vision Education schools are:
• Resurrection Catholic Elementary School
• Table Mound Elementary School
• Abraham Lincoln Elementary School
• St. Columbkille's Catholic Elementary School
• Dubuque Montessori School
• Mazzuchelli Catholic Middle School
• Holy Ghost Catholic Elementary School
• St. Anthony's/Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Elementary School
• Sageville Elementary School
• Wahlert Catholic High School
• Hempstead High School
Through these schools, over 600 staff members, 3800 students, and 2600 families are
participating in the Green Vision Education Program. The program recognizes student and staff
efforts to reduce waste in their schools, as well as the schools' recently implemented energy-
saving practices. Green Vision schools receive flags to hang outside their buildings and
banners to display in their hallways or gyms. Some of the practices that have been
implemented by the schools include food scrap composting, worm bin composting, increased
paper and container recycling, and reduction in the use of disposable products.
Green Vision evaluation and support partners include the Dubuque Metropolitan Area Solid
Waste Agency, the Dubuque Community School District, the Holy Family Catholic Schools,
FEH Inc., the Dubuque County Conservation Board, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources
- Mines of Spain, the Catfish Creek Watershed Project - Dubuque County Soil and Water
District, the Maquoketa Valley Electric Cooperative, Keep Dubuque County Clean & Green, the
City of Dubuque, ISU Extension, and Green Dubuque.
During the 2013-14 school year:
• Table Mound School worked with the City of Dubuque Sustainability Coordinator to
receive the Social/Cultural Vibrancy patch
• St. Columbkille School worked with Eric Schmechel (Dubuque County Soil & Water
Conservation District) to receive the Watershed Awareness Patch.
• St. Anthony/Our Lady of Guadalupe School worked with Green Vision school reps to
receive the Eco -Literacy patch.
• Other GVE schools continue to work on maintaining and improving sustainability efforts
on their campuses.
People & Neighborhoods:
Andrew Connolly Make A Difference Day: The community's successful Make a Difference
Day has expanded this year to honor the "Pay It Forward" legacy of Iraqi war veteran Andrew
Connolly. The event was held on October 26, 2013, serving over 50 homes and eight
community projects and engaging approximately 500 volunteers.
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Dubuque Community Days of Caring: The 6th annual Days of Caring occurred on April 26-
27, 2013, engaging a new record of over 800 volunteers in the two-day event. The 7th annual
Days of Caring occurred April 25-26, 2014, engaging a new record of over 1,200 volunteers.
REASONABLE MOBILITY
Government:
SW Arterial (High Priority):
The Southwest Arterial project is the No. 1 surface transportation priority in the Dubuque area
and will provide for a 6.1 -mile four -lane divided freeway with priority 1 -access control between
Highway 61/151 and Highway 20.
Mobility Benefits: The Southwest Arterial project will connect two growing sections of the
community together and will support future anticipated expansion growth to the southwest of
the City toward the Dubuque Regional Airport. The Southwest Arterial will also provide an
efficient bypass around the City thereby reducing travel times and minimizing delay by reducing
traffic volumes and congestion on the local street system.
Environmental Benefits: The Southwest Arterial project will provide an alternate, direct and
efficient route for traffic through southwestern Dubuque, which will provide significant travel time
savings by avoiding the numerous signalized intersections on Highway 61/151, Highway 20 and
Central Avenue (Hwy 52/3) through Dubuque, thereby providing fuel energy savings, reducing
vehicle emissions and improving air quality. The Southwest Arterial project will be designed and
constructed with forward thinking sustainability initiative incorporated, which will include an
environmentally and resource sensitive highway corridor, an integrated bike / pedestrian trail
with amenities, and Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) technology.
Passenger Rail: The proposed project, which was identified as an Envision 2010 goal, will
reestablish passenger rail transportation to the Chicago — Dubuque Corridor and improve
freight rail transportation by upgrading the railroad infrastructure. The overall project area lies
along the 300 -kilometer (180 -mile) Chicago — Dubuque rail corridor, which extends in a
northwest direction across the state of Illinois between Chicago, Illinois, and Dubuque, Iowa.
The improvements proposed lie primarily within existing railroad rights-of-way with minimal work
adjacent to the track. The Chicago -Rockford -Dubuque corridor project will rehabilitate existing
rail infrastructure to current maximum operating speeds of up to 60 mph to restore previous
intercity passenger rail service. This project is the first step in achieving a more balanced modal
use of the transportation network by leveraging the existing railroad infrastructure to restore
intercity passenger train service that was discontinued in 1981. The need for the project stems
from the lack of modal options in the corridor. Highway -based modes, including automobiles
and bus service, face growing traffic congestion that cause travel delays and unreliable
schedules, inherent safety risks, and air quality impacts. This project is the first step in
achieving modal balance in the transportation system between these two cities with an
environmentally friendly, reliable and convenient travel option.
Highway -based modes, including automobiles and bus service, face growing traffic congestion
that cause travel delays and unreliable schedules, inherent safety risks, and air quality impacts.
This project is the first step in achieving modal balance in the transportation system between
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these two cities with an environmentally friendly, reliable and convenient travel option.
The State of Illinois has budgeted $60 million to rebuild the railroad tracks. To move ahead with
this project, the State of Iowa must commit to providing $550,000, a share of the annual
operating subsidy, beginning in Fiscal Year 2014. The State of Iowa has challenged local
governments to provide 50% of the annual subsidy. On March 9, 2011, the City Council
approved to commit 25% of the subsidy ($137,500) beginning in Fiscal Year 2014. Dubuque
County and other area cities are considering the other portion of the local match that is
required.
City staff along with ECIA staff are searching for funding opportunities. The IDOT is not willing
to pursue Federal funding for rail improvements along this corridor based on recent decisions
made by the State Legislature.
On May 17, 2012, ECIA and City staff met with representatives of the ILDOT, IADOT, Amtrak,
CN, CP and TY Lin to discuss the opportunity for a temporary platform site for passenger rail
service, which is expected to arrive in Dubuque late in 2014 or early 2015.
Based on the walking tour and input from the various groups, TY Lin will prepare cost estimates
for review and continued discussion with other City staff. A meeting has been scheduled with
City staff for June 18 to review the information.
The City will pursue a temporary platform site to accommodate future passenger rail service.
This site will be on the existing spur track area adjacent to the 3rd Street overpass in the Port of
Dubuque. Staff has been in contact with the Iowa DOT to discuss the use of state
enhancement funds to assist with this project.
Staff has also met with representatives of the National Mississippi River Museum, the Diamond
Jo, the major property owners in the Millwork District and Passenger Rail Committee to make
them aware of these recent developments.
City Staff is working with staff at ECIA to make applications for funding to assist with the capital
costs associated with the passenger rail platform. The IA DOT has encouraged the City to
submit an ICAAP application for the platform improvements. This application requires a 20%
local match and is due by March 1, 2013. ECIA has begun the application.
The ICAAP application was submitted on February 26, 2013 requesting $2,618,071 of State
funding and provided assurance of $654,518 of local match for the passenger rail platform at 3rd
Street in the Port of Dubuque. Letters of support were provided by the Diamond Jo Casino and
the National Mississippi River Museum. Unfortunately, the application was denied in the
summer of 2013.
Intermodal Center: The City of Dubuque has been planning for the construction of an
Intermodal Transportation Center in Dubuque for several years. Components of the project will
include: construction of an elevated parking structure with a capacity for approximately 182
vehicles (in Phase 1), a IP addressable video camera system, ticket booths at vehicle access
points supporting the operation of a paid parking structure with the potential inclusion an
automated traffic counter system, a terminal facility that will serve as a hub for local public
transit (The Jule and RTA), intercity bus and taxi services and that would provide indoor
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passenger waiting area. The Intermodal Transportation Center would contain pedestrian and
bicycle -friendly elements, and public restrooms. The Intermodal Center will also contain
architectural aspects that enhance the overall esthetics of the site and further contribute to the
overall vitality of the area. A key measurement for the success of the project will be the
resulting smooth traffic flow in and out of the facility including convenient driveway connections
to roadways that access other adjacent areas.
The consultants identified 11 potential sites for consideration. The review committee narrowed
these options down to 2 sites through a ranking system established in conjunction with the
Federal Transportation Authority (FTA). One site is in the Port of Dubuque and one in the
Historic Millwork District. After weighing the pros and cons of each site, the review committee
unanimously recommended the Historic Millwork District for the Intermodal Transportation
Center. On March 7, 2011, the City Council concurred with the recommendation to pursue the
Historic Millwork District for a future Intermodal Transportation Center.
On June 4, 2012, City Council authorized the release of another Request For Qualifications
(RFQ), this one for a Bus Storage and Maintenance Facility (BSMF) Site Selection Study and
Environmental Analysis. The proposals were due July 6, 2012. Staff received six Bus Storage
and Maintenance Facility Site Selection RFQ proposals. The selection committee met on
August 15, 2012 to review the proposals. Interviews with three of the companies that
responded to the RFQ are scheduled for mid-September. The City Council approved the
selection committee recommendation to enter contract negotiations with IIW for the Site
Selection study and Environmental Analysis. A recommendation for contract award to IIW was
approved by City Council at the November 5, 2012, meeting and a contract was signed early
December 2012. IIW has begun the work for the project with the goal of having it completed by
early spring. A draft of the Site Selection Study has been submitted to the Federal Transit
Administration (FTA) Region VII for comment. These will be incorporated into the final Site
Selection Study which, with the completed Environmental Analysis, will be submitted to the FTA
for review and approval as part of the application for the TIGER V grant (application is due June
3, 2013). Having those documents submitted and approved by the FTA will help ensure that
Dubuque is well -situated in its pursuit of federal funding for a new bus storage and maintenance
facility.
The vision for the Intermodal Transportation Center is that it will support transit connections,
vehicular parking, electric vehicle charging, bicycle parking, intercity bus, a passenger waiting
area, taxicab stands, public restrooms and ticketing offices for public transit and intercity bus.
In late October 2011 public meetings were held with Millwork property owners, City staff and
other stake holders for review of alternative site layout proposals and a work session with City
Council was held December 5th, during which the site plan and building proposals for the
center were presented for review and approval.
The contract for final design of the facility has been awarded to Neumann Monson Architects.
The City is currently working on access points for the facility and property acquisition with the
Iowa Department of Transportation. Following ongoing discussions with the railroads and the
City's consultants, the rail transfer will no longer be a part of the intermodal center and will be
located at an alternate location. The project was bid and contract for construction awarded in
early 2014 with a ground breaking ceremony held mid-May 2014.
The Jule:
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1
. a
December 2010, replaced the old Orange Line. The Medical Loop provides increased
-
. ■ . •
Dubuque Internal Medicine, Medical Associates East, etc.), the colleges and universities,
provides deviated route ("upon demand") service to the Key West area (e.g. Dept. of
was a two year grant; this grant ended October 2012.
• JFK Transfer Center: A state grant was awarded for the Phase I building of a Transfer
Center (transit point) at Area Residential Care's (ARC) new facility on JFK Circle. Phase
I will be a canopy large enough for four fixed route buses (stacked two by two) to pull
underneath. Phase II if funded (application will be filed in May 2014) will allow for the
building of an enclosed waiting area with public bathroom facilities at the JFK Circle (the
old Econo Foods store). An Easement Agreement between ARC and the City was
approved by City Council at the May 7, 2012, meeting. A Request for Bid (RFB) was
released for public bid in July 2012, but because the responses came in over budget a
new RFB was released in mid-October. A second bid was released and contract
awarded by City Council to Murphy Construction Group at the December 3, 2012
meeting. The canopy is in place and final construction is scheduled to be completed on
or/before June 30, 2013. A "grand opening" celebration was held early September 2013.
The JFK Circle Transfer is one of three main transfer locations in the city and phase two
of the project is planned for FY2017.
• Shopping Circulator: The Shopping Circulator, which began November 21, 2011 is
funded with a (two-year) ICAAP grant that ends on/around September 30, 2013. The
Shopping Circulator route links the major shopping centers located on the west end of
Dubuque and operates on an hourly basis, with transfers between the Shopping
Circulator and the Red, Green and/or Grey Lines occurring at the JFK Circle. This grant
is scheduled to end on/around October 2013. Because this route has turned out to be a
viable and vital piece of the VMT project a third year ICAAP grant application has been
submitted to IA DOT. The grant was approved in June 2013 to carry the route through
September 2014 and into the re -design of the fixed route system. An improvement
package request was approved to continue the Shopping Circulator route after the end of
the grant period in FY15.
The IBM Smarter Travel project development is designed for implementation over 2-3 years. A
key element and critical factor in this project and the overall success of the ICAAP grant is a
working smartphone application, which will enable a successful recruitment of 1,000 volunteers
who will be using the smartphone application to track their travel patterns within the city. The
first year is the data -gathering period, the second is when the data is processed and changes to
the transit system are implemented, and the third year is when the "fine tuning" of the route
changes occurs. In late October 2011 an ICAAP grant application was submitted to the State by
the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). An ICAAP grant requires a 20% local match
and is normally awarded for a two-year period (e.g. October 1, 2012 through September 30,
2014). The grant requested $2,164,000 over a two-year period, $1,050,000 of which will be
used in the first year by IBM for implementation the VMT Study using the pilot routes. Because
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of the large amount of funding requested, IA DOT staff has informed us that if the grant
application is approved it will only be for one (1) year of funding, and that the MPO (DMATS)
would need to apply for a second ICAAP grant for year -2 funding. IA DOT is aware of the
importance of the second year of the project as that is when the functionality of data gathered
during the first year is demonstrated, and as of June 20-13, had approved a year -2 ICAAP grant
for the project ending on/around September 2014.
Route changes have been made while keeping three goals in mind: 1) the changes must make
the transit system more efficient and effective, 2) transit services would need to cover as much
area as is practical and affordable and should include areas not currently served, 3) increases
in operational costs would need to be kept as minimal as is feasible. The Express Route and
hub and spoke model were implemented in January 2014. The pilot routes offer alternative
methods for passengers and help encourage new users of the transit system as it will reduce
travel time between the downtown and west end areas.
• Nightrider: The Nightrider is the result of a partnership with Loras College, Clarke
University and University of Dubuque to develop a weekend evening service focused on
the needs of college students. The Nightrider was combined with the MidTown loop and
Feeder (below) and is part of the ICAAP SmarterTravel project. Grant match for the
Nightrider portion of the grant application was paid by the three colleges and allows
college students to utilize the Nightrider and daytime routes free of charge.
The Nightrider route began providing service on September 28, 2012, operating on
Friday and Saturday nights from 6 pm until @ 2:40 am. As of March 31, 2014, the
Nightrider route has had a total of 29,498 passengers: 14,597 college students (Clarke,
UD and Loras) and 12,831 members of the general public.
A third year grant was submitted to and approved by the Iowa Clean Air Attainment
Program (ICAAP) in October 2013. This grant will fund 80% of the cost of service until
September 2015 and match funds would again be provided by the colleges.
• MidTown loop & Feeder: The MidTown Loop & Feeder, which was a route identified in
the 2009 LSC Study as having the potential of reducing travel time between downtown
and midtown location, was originally scheduled to begin service in February 2013. This
route was implemented as part of the route restructuring in January 2014 and serves as
the spine of the hub and spoke route. It has dramatically reduced travel times between
downtown and west end locations. The MidTown Loop & Feeder will operate Monday
through Saturday during regular hours of operation. The MidTown Loop will operate in
areas between JFK Drive, Grandview and downtown with transfers to/from other routes
at 6th & Iowa, Delhi and the JFK Circle. Passengers would use the Feeder to travel non-
stop between downtown and JFK Circle. The start of the MidTown Loop & Feeder has
been moved to January 2014 as the DOT has separated the route component of the
project from the research component. A contract was developed between IBM and the
FTA for the research component in April 2014.
• January 2014 Route Restructuring Results:
Address Points served increased by 59%
Old Routes (Pre January 2014): 47% (13,808129,169)
New Routes (post January 2014): 75% (21,956129,169)
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Average monthly fixed -route ridership prior to the reconfiguration was 28,138 while fixed
route ridership after the reconfiguration has averaged 32,726, an increase of 14% per
month. The new Express route is currently the most popular route in the system with
others that were added during the reconfiguration also performing very well. This year's
increases built on previous years' success; transit ridership in Dubuque has increased
from 373,376 to 478,370, over 100,000 rides or 28 percent in the past five years. Fifty
thousand of these rides came between FY2011 and FY2012, during the first round of the
Smarter Travel pilot study, and over 30,000 rides came between FY2013 and FY2014,
after The Jule's routes were restructured. The Nightrider and college partnership have
also been integral to these increases with over 36,379 daytime and Nightrider rides to
college students since September 2012.
Smarter Travel (High Priority):
• Update on Pilot Households/Dashboard: Originally we had hoped that there would be, like
that available to participants in the Smarter Water and Electricity programs, a dashboard
for Smarter Travel participants so they could see how their choices impact their
environment and their lives. However, Smarter Travel has proven itself to be a "moving
target" in that there are many more challenges in bringing this information into the smart
phone application that was anticipated. Marketing of recruitment of volunteer participation
in the Smarter Travel was targeted towards the altruistic nature of the project volunteers,
reminding them that their participation will help improve transportation for all Dubuquers
(not just those riding public transit). The dashboard -like feature will become available to
participants with the deployment of the CAD/AVL (Automatic Vehicle Location) system
which will be installed on the fixed route buses and connected to Mentor Engineering's
MyRide software by November 2013. The passenger access portal will be live January
2014. Once connected, passengers will have the ability to set up a dashboard
experience on their home computers and/or smartphones through a link with Mentor's My
Ride software. This connectivity will help make the fixed route system more "user-
friendly" by allowing waiting passengers to know when they can expect their bus to arrive
to a particular stop. Another benefit of the Smarter Travel project is Transit will be better
able to gather information that can be used to help guide significant changes in the transit
system. What we anticipate seeing, especially with passengers using the MyRide
dashboard, is increased awareness of how much they rely on the use of their personal
vehicle when an alternative form of transportation, e.g. bus, bicycle or walking, might be
used instead. The MyRide portion of The Jule's Intelligent Transportation System (ITS)
deployment should be up and fully functional by June 2014.
• In late 2011 the City received notice that an Iowa Clean Air Attainment Program (ICAAP)
grant was awarded to the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the Vehicle Miles
Traveled project (aka Smarter Travel). The ICAAP grant is being used to help pay for the
operating costs of two new pilot routes, the Nightrider and the MidTown Loop/Feeder.
The year -2 grant application was submitted in March 2013 and awarded in June, 2013,
and will help fund another year of both pilot routes and the re -design of the fixed route
public transit system. The Nightrider route began providing service on Friday and
Saturday nights from 6pm until 2:40AM on September 28, 2012. Beginning May 30,
2014, the Nightrider provided an abbreviated schedule throughout the summer (returning
to "regular" service August 22nd). The DOT separated the research and route
components of the MidTown Loop & Feeder project. The MidTown Loop & Feeder route
will start January 2014 ECIA, city staff, DOT and FTA staff and IBM continue to work with
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IBM to resolve the research component contract and deliverables. The first year ICAAP
grant has been extended and when the Midtown Loop and feeder are implemented in
January 2014, they will impact the existing routes, reducing cross-town travel times. Data
generated with the two pilot routes added and adjustments made to the system, the
Smartphone application and the RFID data, will be gathered and processed by IBM and
then used in year-2/year-3 of the grant to help to guide the changes made to the fixed
route system in order to improve its overall function and increase its route service,
efficiency and effectiveness. These additional changes will be implemented across the
structure of the fixed route system as IBM provides route restructuring information.
• State of Good Repair Grant: All of the new buses have been purchased and are in use. A
contract for the purchase, installation and deployment of Intelligent Transportation System
(ITS) technology/electronic equipment (e.g. Automatic Vehicle Location or "AVL", a
Security Camera System, Electronic Fare Collection, etc.) was signed in mid -2012. The
first phase of the ITS project was completed in early December with the installation of
Mobile Data Terminals (MDTs or Mentor -brand "Rangers") in the mini -bus fleet and the
training of the Bus Operators and Dispatchers on their proper use. The MDTs that are
connected to the scheduling software used for mini -bus services are all fully operational.
The purchase, installation and deployment of the ITS equipment for fixed route service
began in February 2013, and includes: CAD Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) system,
Automatic Voice Announcement (AVA) system, Automatic Passenger Counter (APC)
system, Electronic Fare Collection equipment, etc. The pilot roll out of the fixed route
system wa+s scheduled to begin mid-May, and was fully operational by November 2013.
• ECIA and IBM continue to discuss with IA DOT management the potential expansion of
the Iowa opportunity to include a major IA DOT "cloud" service for transportation data in
Iowa
• The Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) in collaboration with IBM and The Jule
submitted a report to the Transportation Research Board (TRB) about the Smarter Travel
project. The research paper highlights the use of smartphone applications, anonymous
cell tower (and RFID) data in the re -design of fixed route public transit system routes.
The paper has been accepted by the TRB and was presented by the MPO during the
Board's national meeting in January 2013.
Bicycle/Pedestrian Network:
Most recently, the City partnered with the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs to create bilingual
trail signs, map kiosks, and a bilingual trail map brochure that identifies trailheads, which
include map kiosks, parking and other amenities, and trail map kiosk locations. The major
ongoing new trail project in Dubuque is the continued extension of the Iowa 32 Bike/Hike Trail
along the Northwest Arterial. This trail provides an important and safe connection for bike and
pedestrian traffic between the Heritage Trail and the City's trail system, and the west side of
Dubuque -- the city's fastest growing shopping, employment and residential area.
Approximately 2 miles are built with another 2 -mile segment now complete to Holiday.
The City of Dubuque has recently been notified that it has been awarded a $200,000 REAP
(Resource Enhancement and Protection) grant for the extension of the NW Arterial Hike/Bike
trail from Holliday Drive to Pennsylvania Avenue. The Engineering Department will work on the
trail design over the winter of 2013/2014. The project is planned to be bid in the spring of 2014.
In May the city partnered with the Tri-State Trail vision committee to submit a Bicycle Friendly
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Community application to the League of American Bicyclists. The City of Dubuque received an
Honorable Mention ranking.
Engineering has completed a Safe Routes to School project that provides for enhanced cross-
walks at four school locations. These locations include Marshall School, Eisenhower School,
Resurrection School and Roosevelt Middle School. The enhancements include new painted
cross -walks and flashing beacons to warn drivers of the crossings. The project was awarded to
McDermott Excavating. The project was completed in July 2013.
The Engineering Department has current FY 2014 funding to provide for other enhanced cross-
walks. One location being studied is near Senior High School on Clarke Drive.
The Engineering Department and Building Services Department have partnered to develop
bicycle parking at the City Hall Annex. Engineering is working with Dan Arensdorf Construction
to install a bike rack on a pad that uses left over permeable paver brick from the Millwork
District. The parking area for the bikes will utilize permeable pavers to infiltrate stormwater.
City staff, in partnership with Dubuque County, VNA, Dubuque Coop, and others, has
developed a list of needed bike rack locations throughout the downtown area. Over 15 racks
and one fix -it station on the Northwest Arterial Trail have been/will be installed by this project's
completion in late fall 2014.
Business:
Non -Profit:
Schools:
People & Neighborhoods:
Dubuque Bike Coop/Library: A group of interested citizens, including bike enthusiasts, bike
shop owners, City staff, and representatives from the Dubuque Rescue Mission began meeting
to develop a community bike library which would offer bikes for long-term rental to residents as
well as a variety of community education opportunities including classes on bike maintenance
and safety. The group has already received several bike, tool and part donations and is
seeking additional storage space. Additionally, mechanics' nights have started in order to
prepare the bikes for community rental. The Bike Coop is now renting out bikes at various
community events. The Dubuque Police Department donated approximately 30 abandoned
bikes to the Coop to assist in starting the project. The Bike Coop hosted an open house in
their new home at 2206 Central in October.
CLEAN WATER
Government:
Low Impact Development Conference: The 7th annual LID conference was held March 10th
and 11th, 2014. Conference themes this year focused around the drift less region and it's
unique connection to water as well as presentations for Streambank and habitat restoration,
and updates to the Catfish Creek Watershed Management Plan. Between 85-100 people were
in attendance.
Construction Workshop: The City held is 7th annual Contractor Construction Site Workshop.
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The meeting was held at the Fire Safety Training Center and included talks on City and County
regulations, as well as Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan requirements. Close to 100
contractors, engineers, and developers were in attendance.
Permeable Pavement/Green Alley: The City of Dubuque began in fiscal year 2011 an annual
program for reconstructing Dubuque alleys using permeable pavement. The City currently has
eight green alleys that utilize either porous asphalt pavement or interlocking concrete pavers
which allow storm water to pass through the pavement. These alleys help reduce storm water
runoff by infiltrating and cleaning the water before it reaches the City's aquifers.
The City is also working with the Iowa DNR on a project to reconstruct 73 alleys over the next
three years. This $9.4 million project will be funded using SRF monies. The project is the first in
the state of Iowa to use SRF funds for water quality enhancements. The City is able to use the
SRF proceeds from the Water Resource and Recovery Center project. This project is currently
under construction. Two alleys are completed with an additional 46 alleys planned for the
summer/fall of 2014. The remaining alleys for the SRF funded portion of the project will be
constructed in 2015.
Bee Branch (High Priority): Project involves the day lighting of 4,500 feet of the buried Bee
Branch storm sewer. Episodic damage to public and private property due to flooding results in
recurring expenditures related to repairing damages. Moreover, it leads to a reluctance to
improve property or even maintain property.
• Update on Property Acquisitions
o The City has acquired 107 of the 112 properties required for the project. The City
expects to acquire the necessary property/easements by the end of 2014.
• Update on Design:
o Design of the first phase, the Lower Bee Branch Creek Restoration is complete.
o The final design of the second phase, the culvert system through the railroad
property was sent to Canadian Pacific for review in September.
o The design of the Upper Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project, everything north
of Garfield Avenue, is 90% complete. Final design is on schedule to be complete
and ready for bidding in the winter of 2015.
• Update on Construction:
o Construction of the Lower Bee Branch Creek Restoration started in the fall of
2010 and was substantially complete in November of 2011.
o Construction of the Upper Bee Branch Creek Part 1 (Railroad Culvert System)
Project is scheduled to start in 2015 and be complete by the spring of 2016.
o Construction of the Upper Bee Branch Creek Part 2 will begin in late 2015 and be
functional by the fall of 2016 and fully completed by the spring of 2017.
Water & Resource Recovery Center Upgrade: At the very outset of the project sustainability
has been in the forefront of the process, from the selection of the design professionals to the
selection of the anaerobic digestion process for bio -solids management. In addition to these the
following items have a significant sustainability component:
1. The use of low mow and native grasses for landscaping
2. Incorporation of rain gardens for storm -water management
3. Using plant effluent as a heating/cooling source for the Admin/Lab building
4. Pursue Energy Star Rating for the entire plant
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5. Combined Heat and Power utilizing digester gas
6. Elimination of the use of Chlorine gas for disinfection
7. Reuse of existing structures for new purposes
8. Researching utilizing available digester space for high strength organics and food residuals
for addition energy production.
9. 99.8% Construction materials diversion rate from the landfill
The W&RRC construction project has caught up with the damage caused by the July 11, 2011
wind storm and the July 27/28, 2011 major rain event. Digesters #1 and #3 tall walls are
completed and work progresses on the short walls for all digesters and concrete work on all
aspects of the digester complex. Clarifier #1 (an existing clarifier) is 80% complete and should
be able to be returned to service within two months. The start up of clarifier #1 will allow the
contractor to move on to the reconstruction of #2. The base work for the additional primary
clarifier is ongoing with a pour scheduled for the week of September 26, 2011. After the base is
completed the walls of the clarifier will be constructed at which point the mechanisms will be
installed.
The City of Dubuque Builders Risk provider has agreed that the complete replacement of all of
the flooded modules in the UV Disinfection System is warranted. These modules have been
ordered and will be installed upon arrival in approximately six to eight weeks. The UV system is
however functioning as required to provide disinfection for the plant effluent.
Work continues on all aspects of the project and plant staff and contractor personnel are
beginning the preparation for operations and construction to continue as the winter approaches.
Negotiations took place with the W&RRC neighbor Inland Protein for the use of part of their
property to facilitate construction of the digester covers. The availability of this land provide for
much needed storage space and an area any from construction traffic for the assembly of the
covers. The City had estimated a project delay of approximately three to four months beyond
the final completion date given of October 1, 2013. The City has since granted a 120 working
day extension to the two major milestones of digester startup and sludge processing startup.
The City and its general contractor are working out details of a revised project completion
schedule required by the weather related delays. Factoring in the delays, the City will still meet
the startup deadline (April 26, 2014) as prescribed in the Consent Decree barring any further
major uncontrollable delays.
Through July 2, 2013, the project is in its 26th month of construction and work has been started
on all aspects of the project. At this point, City staff estimates the project is close to 95%
complete with an expenditure of approximately $50,000,000 to date. The ultraviolet disinfection
system was started in March 2011 and continues to be operational. Work continues on the
digesters and sludge processing complex. The construction of the fourth primary clarifier
concrete work is completed with the mechanisms installed and the clarifier online. It is now
projected that the digesters will be put online the first week of August and will be in full
production by October of this year. Once fully online the Sludge Processing portion of the plant
will be completely renovated to meet the needs of the new process. The sludge handling
section will be operational by February 2013. Work has begun on the renovation of the final
clarifiers, One clarifier at a time is taken done for construction leaving three online at all times.
The reconstruction of primary clarifier number 1 is complete and started up with #2 ready for
drive installation. When #2 is started we will move #3 and then #4. When this clarifier is on-line,
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work will begin on the reconstruction of the remaining clarifiers. A minimum of three clarifiers
will remain in service during construction. In addition to the digester structures, work has been
completed on pumps and piping associated with the digester operation along with the
installation of the many pumps and motors required for the process. A bio -solids handling
contract was negotiated and signed with Nutri-Ject Systems of Hudson, Iowa on the March 19,
2012 council agenda. The anaerobic digesters are producing a Class I product which is the
best classification. Bio -Solids were successfully applied to land this spring. The project was
substantially complete as of September 3, 2013. The Ribbon Cutting for the W&RRC was held
October 3, 2013.
The laboratory addition of the Administration/Laboratory Building is now complete and has been
put into service as of June 13th, 2012. The former lab and the remaining portion of the
Administration building was gutted and remodeled to provide for a conference/training area,
men's and women's lockers, parts storage, SCADA room and Administration offices. The
Administration/Laboratory Building will be a highly energy efficient building using plant effluent
to meet heating and cooling needs. The entire structure is highly insulated and will use a
minimum of energy for lighting, heating and cooling.
Construction has been completed to install the microturbines and associated equipment to
more fully utilize the biogas being generated by the anaerobic digestion process. The
completion date for the microturbine installation was February 2014. Some reprogramming of
the W&RRC electrical grid will be completed June 11, 2014 at that point the W&RRC should be
able to generate about two thirds of the W&RCC electrical needs.
The W&RRC was substantially completed on September 3, 2013 and the ribbon cutting event
was held on October 3, 2013. Work on the micro -turbine project is substantially complete with
the turbines started in February 2014.
Capacitor banks were added to the W&RRC electrical grid to increase efficient utilization of the
electricity produced by the microturbines by bringing the power factor to or very close to one.
Discussions continue with Alliant Energy to allow excess electricity produced at the W&RRC to
feed back into the grid.
Research continues in cooperation with the Dubuque Area Sanitary Landfill on the possible use
of excess methane generated by the W&RRC to be used to produce Compressed Bio -Gas for
vehicle fuel.
Please refer to the Water & Resource Recovery Center for detailed information on the
Sustainable ROI of this project.
Inflow and Infiltration Reduction Program:
The City of Dubuque is conducting an Inflow and Infiltration (I&I) Reduction Program to
significantly reduce storm water inflow and groundwater infiltration into Dubuque's sanitary
sewer collector system. Excessive I&I can cause sanitary sewer back-ups into basements,
overflows into creeks and wetlands, and increased operating costs to process the water at the
Dubuque Water Pollution Control Plant.
Five neighborhoods have been identified as sources of high sanitary sewer flows during rainfall
events, which indicates excessive I&I. To address this issue, the City will conduct private
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property inspections, smoke testing, and dye testing, and televise sanitary sewer pipes to
determine the major defects in the five areas with excessive I&I between 2011 and 2016.
> The City has notified 4,489 property owners that their neighborhood has been identified
as a source of high sanitary sewer flows during rainfall events, which indicates excessive
l&l. The property owners were asked to schedule an appointment for City inspectors to
enter the yard and basement of each home to observe and record the property's
drainage facilities.
> Of the 3,420 properties, City staff has inspected 3,577. This is a response rate of
approximately 80%. Approximately 5% of the inspected properties have improper
connections to the sanitary sewer system (failed inspection).
• Engineering staff continues to work with property owners to correct improper connections
to the sanitary sewer identified by smoke testing or private property inspections.
> The Engineering Department found approximately 500 improper connections during I&I
inspections during the mid- to late -1990's. Current Engineering staff is revisiting these
properties to conduct "historic inspections." Staff has found that approximately 17% of
the historic inspections continue to have improper connections (compared to 5% as
stated above).
> The Engineering Department conducted smoke testing of Sewershed 7 and 5 during July
and August 2012. Smoke testing has been conducted within nearly 70 miles of the City's
sanitary sewer collection system since the beginning of 2011. This has identified over 450
defects beyond those identified in the private property inspections.
> Engineering staff has inspected all brick manholes in Sewersheds 5, 7 and 12 during
2012. These inspections will provide information to determine which manholes are in
need of repair or replacement in the coming years.
Catfish Creek Watershed Management Authority: In October of 2014, the SRF sponsorship
project committee reviewed the City's application for the Ctafish Creek Watershed project and
plans on recommending the projects for funding. The grant is not to exceed 1.4 million dollars.
Preliminary plans at this time include Streambank and wetland restoration on the south fork of
Catfish Creek north of the landfill, and permeable pavements for parking lots at Swiss Valley
Nature Center and the E.B. Lyons Nature Center.
Catfish creek has also partnered with Trout Unlimited and many other partners in an effort to
secure 20 million dollars in funding for four key watersheds in the Driftless area through the
Regional Conservation Partnership Program. This would include the Apple Plum watershed, in
which Catfish Creek and the Bee Branch watershed are a part of.
Rain Garden Program: The City of Dubuque continually offers a cost share program for the
construction of rain gardens for citizens. The City will pay for up to $1000-1200 of materials
provided that an equal or greater amount be spent on equipment rental / labor by the citizen.
Streambank Stabilization Program: The City of Dubuque continually offers a cost share
program for the stabilization of ditches and creek on private property (residential only). The City
64
will pay for up to $1000-1200 of materials provided that an equal or greater amount be spent on
equipment rental / labor by the citizen.
Public Works Department:
• Household Hazardous Materials Regional Collection Center (HHMRCC) The Public
Works Department provides administrative and operating staff support to the Dubuque
Metropolitan Area Solid Waste Agency (DMASWA or "Agency"). An Agency program dating
back to the mid -1990's is its Household Hazardous Materials Regional Collection Center
(HHMRCC). Initially a once -per -year special event staged at the Dubuque County
fairgrounds, the program is focused on keeping hazardous materials out of the DMASWA
Landfill. Based on the premise that landfills are not perfect and that they all eventually leak,
the intent of the program is to reduce hazardous chemicals in that leachate. By 1998, the
Agency funded and established a permanent collection and storage facility at its Landfill.
Citizens are encouraged to take their paint, solvents, automotive chemicals, cleaning fluids,
etc. to the Agency's RCC for reuse or incineration at no cost to them. A small fee is charged
small businesses and governmental entities to cover the cost of the service provider. The
HHMRCC Program also provides staff and equipment support for special, one day collection
events at locations throughout the Agency's two -county service area. The measureable
outcomes include pounds/tons of hazardous materials collected and managed annually.
• E -Scrap Recycling Program. Established in 2006, the Agency's E -Scrap Recycling
Program initially educated and encouraged its customers to recycle, versus landfill, their old
television sets, VCRs, cell phones, computers, and other electronic entertainment and
communication devices. While such household items are allowed to be landfilled by federal
and Iowa regulations, the Agency provided a recycling alternative for a fee. The fee, while
more than what was charged for landfilling, is needed to cover the cost charged by the
Agency's R2 -certified recycling service provider. Given the generally -acknowledged toxicity
of some e -scrap components, the Agency adopted an e -scrap landfill ban, which went into
effect on July 1, 2011. As a result, the DMASWA no longer buries electronics in its landfill.
The most significant measurable outcomes for this program are the number and/or weight of
e -scrap items recycled.
• Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) Bulb Recycling Program - Begun in 2009 due to the
national concern regarding the mercury contained in CFLs and the increasing number of old
CFLs being sent to landfills for disposal, the DMASWA established a free drop-off program
for Dubuque and Delaware county residents. Through the Agency's website, its biannual
Recycling and Reuse Guide, its advertisements, and presentations by its Education and
Communication Coordinator, the Agency makes its customers aware of the twenty-one (21)
locations throughout Dubuque and Delaware counties where the CFLs can be dropped off
for recycling. The most significant measurable outcome is the number of pounds of CFLs
diverted and recycled by this program annually. The primary community impact in future
years is cleaner leachate and groundwater at the DMASWA Landfill.
• The DMASWA is partnering with the University of Dubuque Environmental Science
Department to monitor surface water quality within the Agency's Landfill facility. Through an
Iowa Department of Natural Resources Environmental Management System grant, funding
was received to purchase water monitoring equipment that provides ongoing information to
monitor surface waters. U.D. students are gaining valuable real life experience while
assisting the DMASWA with monitoring efforts.
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• Funding from an Iowa Department of Natural Resources Environmental Management
Systems grant enabled the DMASWA to install LED lighting in the Landfill Shop, saving
hundreds of dollars in electricity use. The same grant funded an Education Pavilion
constructed on top of the closed landfill area. This pavilion is being used for landfill tours for
all ages. Displays in the pavilion provide information on landfill construction and monitoring
as well as a large photo display of the landfill property. Over 500 students have used the
pavilion since it's completion in early spring.
Leisure Services Department:
• Rain gardens have been constructed in Flora park and Eagle Point park to reduce and clean
water runoff to the city storm water system
• New city hanging baskets in the Historic Millwork District and on the Bee Branch trail contain
a water reservoir for rain collection and better management of water use
Information Services:
• The Information Services computer room air conditioning unit at the City Hall annex was out
of capacity. A new air conditioning unit was installed at the beginning of February 2013.
After the new unit was installed, the water usage went from over 4,000 gallons per day to
110 gallons per day.
Daily Usage for 110377572 (Gallons)
6.000-•imaii .0 itimi.•tsamo milui�.uuu.
5,000 -
4,000 -
3.000 -
2,000 -
1.000 -
0
!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!
2013
Sustainable Dubuque Watershed Network: The University of Iowa College of Engineering
and Environmental Science, in collaboration with the City, will provide funding and support for
the Sustainable Dubuque Watershed Network. The research would be intended to coordinate
with existing University watershed research, but take it a step further by incorporating advanced
measuring devices and analysis into an urban watershed, the North Fork — Catfish Creek. It is
intended that the outcome help inform and analyze future infrastructure design and renovation
and low -impact development options for the community and its stakeholders. Specific research
will be sought for analysis of infrastructure design and renovation and low -impact development
options for stakeholders such as rain gardens, bioswales, bioretention areas, green roofs and
other policy options within a watershed. Handling watershed issues before they become Water
and Resource Recovery Center issues will be an economic and environmental benefit to the
community.
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Business:
Non -Profit:
Schools:
People & Neighborhoods:
HEALTHY AIR
Government:
Clean Air Attainment Strategy/Air Quality Task Force (High Priority): In November 2009,
the DMATS Board facilitated a meeting with the Iowa DNR to discuss air quality data in
Dubuque and the surrounding area. From this meeting, city and ECIA staff recommended
forming a public/private partnership to study the data and work on improving air quality. Greater
Dubuque Development Corporation was approached and agreed to facilitate an Air Quality
Task Force, which would consist of local government and business representatives. Greater
Dubuque Development engaged businesses who had a stake in local air quality. After several
meetings, the Task Force agreed that further analysis of the current data showed prevailing
winds from south and peaks and valleys of particulates throughout the year, it is still not
conclusive as to the cause(s) of non -attainment.
Greater Dubuque Development commissioned and financed a study through the University of
Northern Iowa. The detailed information, although proprietary and confidential, was shared and
discussed with key officials from both the public and private sectors. Greater Dubuque
Development, along with staff support from ECIA, also initiated a series of proactive
meetings/discussions with the Iowa DNR. During the past 2 years, through ECIA and City of
Dubuque staff, possible policy/rule changes have been actively monitored.
In August 2013, the City Council approved the City enrolling in the EPA PM Advance Program.
PM Advance is designed to promote local actions to reduce PM 2.5 and its precursors and
attainment areas to continue to maintain the PM 2.5 National Ambient Air Quality Standards
(NAAQS). The Air Quality Task Force is now working on securing technical assistance to write
a path forward, a plan that will determine local actions and strategies to reduce PM 2.5. In
conjunction with the University of Iowa College of Engineering, the City applied for a EPA
Education Grant focused on Air Quality. The University of Iowa was not successful in this
grant; however, their staff will continue to provide assistance in securing air quality experts to
assist with drafting our Path Forward.
Transit Fleet Replacement: In 2010 two large federal grants were awarded to The Jule
(formerly known as Keyline Transit): State of Good Repairs at $2.3 million dollars and Clean
Fuels at $1.5 million dollars. These two grants, coupled with vehicle replacement money from
the State, allowed for the replacement of the entire transit fleet (both fixed route and mini bus).
All new buses are equipped with Clean Diesel engines, a proven technology that allows for
increased fuel efficiency and lower engine emissions, and were placed into service by August
31, 2011. The State of Good Repairs grant is also allowing for the purchase of ITS equipment
for both fixed route and mini bus service. The ITS equipment purchased with the grant will help
increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the transit service and includes, but is not limited to:
a CAD/Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) system along with web -based software will allow
passengers to see when the next bus will arrive to a particular bus stop; LED display boards
that will be placed a key transfer points to display pending arrival time(s) of the next bus, as well
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as (e.g.) public service announcements; an Automatic Voice Announcement (AVA) system that
will announce the approach of (e.g.) major intersections and points of interest for passengers
that have a visual impairment (or who are otherwise not familiar with the area); an electronic
fare collection system that will broaden the choice and type of bus passes, as well as allow for
better ridership data collection; Mobile Data Terminals (MDT) that will allow for real-time
dispatching in mini bus service; new scheduling software for mini bus service to work in
conjunction with the MDTs; camera (security) systems on both fixed route and mini bus; etc. A
contract for the purchase, installation and deployment of the ITS equipment and systems went
City Council for approval at the June 18, 2012, meeting, with an amended contract start date of
August 6, 2012. The start of the ITS project began mid November 2012, with the installation of
the Mobile Data Terminals (MDT) into the Light Duty buses used for Mini -bus service, and
connection of the MDTs to the RouteMatch scheduling software, which is the software system
used to schedule passengers and generate reports of the provision of mini -bus services. Work
on the fixed route service began December 17, 2012, installation of equipment on the buses
began late March 2013, and a project completion date is set for on/around November 2013.
Public Works Department:
• Landfill Methane Collection System Project - The Public Works Department provides
administrative and operating staff support to the Dubuque Metropolitan Area Solid Waste
Agency (DMASWA or "Agency"). One of the Agency's recent initiatives relevant to the
Healthy Air principle is its Landfill Methane Collection System Project. Initiated in FY10 and
completed in FY11, the first phase of the methane collection system was installed in the
Agency's oldest "closed" landfill cells (#1 and #2). The methane collection system's second
phase was installed in the summer of 2013 in Cells #3 - #6. The system's third phase was
installed and completed in the autumn of 2013. Since the project's initial phase completion
in September of 2010, the methane has been measured for quality and quantity as it is
flared off. By flaring the methane, the Agency is significantly reducing a very potent
greenhouse gas previously emitted by its landfill facility. The Agency's Board of Directors is
currently considering a proposal from a regional electrical power producer for its methane
and is negotiating with the utility through an industry expert to evaluate the proposed project.
The Directors have indicated that they anticipate making a decision regarding the proposal
in calendar 2014. Anticipated future measurable outcomes include amount of usable
methane produced annually and revenue garnered and/or costs avoided.
• Clean Diesel & Biofuels Technology - The Public Works Department is spearheading the
City's conversion of its diesel -engine truck and heavy equipment fleet to the use of "clean
diesel" technology. As of May 25, 2014, thirty-four (34) heavy trucks and nineteen (19)
heavy equipment machines have been replaced with units equipped with clean diesel
engines. Clean diesel engines produce fewer airborne particulates and harmful emissions.
The most measurable outcome for this conversion program is the number of "dirty diesel"
versus "clean diesel" units in the department's fleet at any given time.
The Public Works Department has also spearheaded the City's use of biofuels in its many
trucks and heavy equipment. Its diesel -engine trucks and heavy equipment use 20%
biodiesel during warm weather months and 5% biodiesel during the coldest months. The
department's light vehicles use 85% ethanol in their gasoline engines year-round. The most
likely measurable outcome is total departmental fuel usage by type annually.
Business:
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Non -Profit:
Schools:
People & Neighborhoods:
NATIVE PLANTS & ANIMALS
Government:
Planning Services Department:
• Sustainable Development Tools: The City's 2009 Unified Development Code (UDC)
requires that new major subdivisions achieve a minimum score of 40 points by utilizing
approved sustainable subdivision development tools. Subdivision and site development
regulations were extensively revised to promote sustainable design and low -impact
development (LID) measures. These tools include Conservation Subdivision design, in
which development is clustered to optimize open space, preserve natural features, protect
environmentally sensitive areas, and minimize infrastructure demands. The UDC has a
residential density bonus for conservation subdivisions. These tools also include the
provision that native and regionally appropriate trees and vegetation are preserved or
planted, which limits turf grass, limits water demand, improves infiltration or filtration, and
enhances the natural environment. Such vegetation is to be phased so denuded areas are
quickly vegetated. Turf grass should not exceed 30% of the landscaped area.
As noted above, new major residential subdivisions currently must score a minimum of 40
points by utilizing sustainable subdivision tools approved by the City Council. A major
subdivision involves public improvements (street, water, sanitary sewer, etc.) In March 2011,
the City Council adopted a standard for sustainable development incentives for residential
subdivisions. The City Council established an 80 -point standard be used for a new
residential subdivision to qualify for sustainable development incentives from the City of
Dubuque.
• Mines of Spain/E.B. Lyons: The 1,387 -acre Mines of Spain State Recreation Area near
Dubuque has served as a focal point for environmental and cultural educational programs
and interpretive activities for the tri-state area of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin for many
years. Burgeoning interest in the rich history of the tri-state area and growing awareness of
the significance of the Mississippi River and its watershed created greater demands for
exhibits and educational programming. Demand for more programs and services increased
over time. Continued success and growth in visitation, interpretation and education were
inhibited by space limitations.
More space was needed at the E.B. Lyons Interpretive Center at the State Recreation Area.
In response, the Friends of the Mines of Spain (FOMOS) planned and coordinated an
expansion that updated and more than doubled the original space for educational purposes.
The FOMOS raised private, local, state and federal funds for the expansion and education
project. They raised $1,575,569 -- $98,575 over the cost estimate of $1,476,994 for the
expansion. Construction began in September 2009, and was completed a year later.
The Friends also raised an additional $325,000 for enhanced exhibits and educational
programming. Thanks to excellence in interpretive support by the FOMOS, the Interpretive
Center now welcomes visitors to one of the region's best -conserved natural and cultural
resources, where people can explore the history and natural riches of the park. The updated
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exhibits at the Interpretive Center invite visitors to discover the history, geology, and ecology
of the park and region, and prepare the visitor for forays onto the many trails and interpretive
sites throughout the Mines of Spain. The Interpretive Center has displays on the park's
historic farm site, archeology, prairies, woodlands, wetlands, lead mining, Native Americans,
and wildlife of the park on both the upper and lower levels.
• Land Acquisition for Mines of Spain: The City of Dubuque, in conjunction with the Friends
of the Mines of Spain, has been working with the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation (INHF)
on the acquisition of the Bottoms Farm, 9097 Bellevue Heights Road, Dubuque, Iowa to
expand the land area of the Mines of Spain State Recreation Area and the E.B. Lyons
Interpretive Center. The 52.19 acre property abuts the Mines of Spain on the north, and the
30 -acre Interpretive Center site on the east. The INHF acquired the land at auction in
August 2011. The City of Dubuque has a purchase agreement with the INHF for the
property. Cost estimates are being finalized for removal of the farmstead, barns and other
structures, and capping the well on site. There will be a future amendment to the original
agreement to add these costs and some carrying costs.
The Iowa DNR's Natural Resources Commission approved the City of Dubuque's 2011
Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) Grant of $200,000 toward the acquisition of
the Bottoms Farm in October 2011. The City Council approved the REAP grant agreement
with the IDNR in November 2011. The City will apply for additional grants to cover the
acquisition costs, plus whatever the FOMOS and IDNR would contribute. A $500,000
National Scenic Byways grant application submitted in December, 2011 for additional land
acquisition was not funded. A $175,000 Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) grant
application for acquisition and development submitted in March 2012 was awarded. A
$200,000 REAP grant application for development was approved in October 2012. A
$170,500 State Recreational Trails grant was approved in October 2012.
The acquisition of this land is extremely important to the Mines of Spain and the Interpretive
Center. The land acquisition would allow: the creation of a buffer for the State Park and the
Interpretive Center from encroaching development; protection of the historical,
archeological, cultural, and natural resources we anticipate are on the property; restoration
of native landscape to improve and expand wildlife habitat and storm water management;
and opportunities to expand parking, interpretive signage, and other park amenities that will
improve the visitor experience.
The plan for future management of the project area is to leave the archeological sites
undisturbed, unless the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) authorizes development
for the additional parking. The objectives of reestablishing vegetation on the farm's cropland
are to reduce erosion, create wildlife habitat and reconstruct examples of original native
vegetation. The current management plan for the Mines of Spain has been to replace most
of the current croplands and restore them to native prairie to create a landscape that dates
back to the 1700's.
The IDNR undertook the Mines of Spain master plan process for the 52 -acre Bottoms
property in February and March, 2012 with a multi -disciplinary planning task force of IDNR,
City, INHF, and FOMOS representatives and a public survey. The goal is to develop a plan
for the future management and appropriate development of this additional land, to preserve
its natural and cultural resources, as well as expand and enhance the programs and
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recreational offerings of the E.B. Lyons Interpretive Center and the Mines of Spain. The
draft master plan and public survey results were provided to the City Council in March 2012.
The SHPO recommended an archaeological survey of the Bottoms property and an
intensive level survey/evaluation of the farmstead buildings in November 2012 prior to
development activities. The IDNR contracted for a Phase 1 archaeological survey in
December, 2012. The Office of the State Archeologist (OSA) survey identified one new site,
but it was not eligible for listing in the NRHP. The OSA recommended no additional
archaeological investigation were necessary prior to the proposed construction.
The City contracted with the OSA to conduct a historic evaluation of the farmstead buildings
in March 2013 as requested by the SHPO and NPS. Survey work began in April 2013.
SHPO clearance was received in October 2013. Bids to deconstruct the farmstead
structures were received in November 2013; work is to be completed by April 2014.
On May 6, 2013, the Park and Recreation Commission and the City Council voted in support
of disbursement of $471,000 from the Edwin B. Lyons Trust to match state and federal grant
funding for the acquisition and development of the EB Lyons Interpretive Area Addition. This
disbursement will allow the community driven master plan for the E.B. Lyons Interpretive
Area Addition to become reality. The FOMOS has been successful in raising private funds
as well.
Documentation for purchase of the E.B. Lyons Interpretive Area Addition (Bottoms Property)
was begun in October 2013. Closing completed in December 2013.
Engineering Department:
On May 19, 2014 the City Council approved a construction contract with Portzen Construction
of Dubuque, IA to construct the improvements for the EB Lyons Interpretive Area Addition. The
contract was for $981,243.62. The planned improvements include:
— Construction of a concrete trail and concrete pad to serve as an outdoor classroom
including associated grading and culvert installations
— Construction of concrete sidewalks to connect the current interpretative center to the
newly constructed trails and parking Tots
— Construction of stormwater management components
— Construction of two parking lots and associated grading
— Expansion of one parking lot and associated grading
— Construction of a toilet facility and associated electric services
— Construction of an open air pavilion and associated electric services
— Construction of a kiosk
— Installation of a water service to a people and pet drinking fountain and a flush hydrant
— Site grading and utilities to accommodate a maintenance shop
— Provide and install limestone benches
Construction of the improvements began in June of 2014. The site grading is complete and half
of the ADA trail is paved. Work will begin shortly on the foundations for the pavilion and
restrooms.
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Leisure Services Department:
• An expansion project for native plantings in Dubuque Industrial Center West is in the
works for an 18 to 20 acre addition.
• Organic Gardening 101 class 2011
• Fall Landscaping Workshop
• Dirt, Worms and Food 2012
• Frontier Living 2012
Multicultural Family Center: Future Talk program cleared invasive plant species and dead
trees from several acres of land at Mines of Spain, Swiss Valley, and Kaufmann Prairie in order
to sustain native species. Crew members also learn about the environment during the program.
GIS: Assisted Parks Division in GPSing and identifying locations of native plantings near
Bergfeld Recreation Area and new recreational trail, as well as Eagle Point Park.
Library: Hosted seven Nature Days and one Flower Power public event from 2006 -present.
Hosted a "Garden" story time in April, 2011 with 20 attendees.
Bee Branch: The City, in partnership with Black Hills Energy and other community partners,
has obtained a Trees Forever grant to plant 1,000 trees in Phase I of the Bee Branch project,
valued at over $6,000. Volunteers from the neighborhood will be engaged in the planting of the
trees.
Dubuque Metropolitan Area Solid Waste Agency:
• Worked with Iowa Department of Natural Resources to stock two stormwater retention
ponds at the DMASWA Landfill in calendar 2012 and 2014 with native fish species.
• Partnered with the Dubuque County Conservation Board to establish seven bluebird
houses at the DMASWA Landfill in calendar 2012. As of spring 2014, three of the seven
houses have bluebirds living in them.
Business:
Non -Profit:
See Land Acquisition for Mines of Spain above.
Stewards of the Beautiful In partnership with City staff, Dubuque County Soil & Water
Conservation District, Swiss Valley Nature Center, and others, Trees Forever hosted a series of
free classes focused on native plantings in urban and rural environments in summer 2012.
Classes focused on rain gardens and bioswales, plant identification prairies, etc.
Four Mounds Estate: The Four Mounds Foundaiton recently partnered with the US Fish &
Wildlife Service to restore 2 acres of oak savanna. This follows a restoration of almost 10 acres
the previous year, removing invasive and non-native trees. Oak savanna is a rare eco -system
in our area, however it was prevalent at Four Mounds.
Schools:
People & Neighborhoods:
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COMMUNITY HEALTH & SAFETY
Government:
Smarter Health & Wellness (High Priority):
The Smarter Health and Wellness pilot with IBM was completed in September, 2014. On
November 26, the City submitted an application for IBM's Smarter Cities Challenge on the topic
of Health and Wellness. The Smarter Cities Challenge is a global competition in which cities
submit topic ideas that could be addressed by a team of visiting IBM staff. If successful, IBM
staff would visit Dubuque for three weeks sometime during the summer of 2014 and work with
City personnel and other community partners to study community health data collection from a
variety of sources and determine technology needs to collecting and analyzing data that impact
health. In March 2014, the City was notified that our application was not successful. Staff
continues to research funding sources along with community health and wellness models.
Neighbor to Neighbor: The Neighborhood Development Specialist, Police Department, and
Human Relations Specialist are collaborating with residents on a resident designed initiative
called Neighbor to Neighbor. Block leaders have been identified for the pilot program and
materials are being developed for implementation.
Business:
Dubuque County Wellness Coalition: The Dubuque County Wellness Coalition completed a
strategic planning process to determine how they can be a community leader and facilitator
around this new principle. Public Health Specialist Mary Rose Corrigan facilitates the coalition;
which is a key component for accessing state and federal funds for community health and
wellness issues.
Non -Profit:
Schools:
People & Neighborhoods:
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