The July 2018 GREATER BURLINGTON PARTNERSHIP NEWSLETTER VOL. 98 NO. 7 PARTNERSHIP Kay Sackville Breuer PRESIDENT & CEO’S LETTER Vice President 319-208-0041 [email protected] Belinda Colwell Office Manager The $115 Million 319-208-0042 [email protected] Mandate Steve Frevert by Jason Hutcheson Downtown Partners, Inc. Exec. Dir. 319-208-0056 [email protected] Trash has proven to be a pretty big deal. The very idea that a government Cindy Henry policy could change the decades old practice of handling trash Customer Relations Specialist 319-208-0052 combined with the potential for a $2+ increase in monthly fees has [email protected] caught the ire of the public. I suppose public interest in a topic such as trash should be higher than many issues, as garbage impacts each household, and it is something people Jeremy Hess can easily understand. Dir. of Economic Development 319-208-0050 Garbage isn’t our problem, however. Storm water is, and I’ll tell you why. [email protected] Burlington has been under a consent order from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) in Jason Hutcheson compliance with the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The consent order is driving the President & CEO community to separate storm water drainage from the sanitary sewer system to prevent raw sewage from 319-208-0043 jhutcheson@greaterburlingtoncom dumping into the Mississippi River during major rain events. On the surface, preventing raw sewage from entering our river is a noble cause and one that I could Sherri Krause support. When the two systems are combined, all of the water that enters the sewer has to be treated. Chief Financial Officer 319-208-0044 During major rain events, the system is overloaded and bypasses treatment to dump directly into the [email protected] river. With a separated system, only the sewage needs to be treated, and the storm water can safely flow into the river just as if it were draining there naturally. Chelsea Lerud Convention & Visitors Bureau Let’s talk about the cost. To date, the City of Burlington has spent more than $20 million to begin the Exec. Dir. 319-208-0045 initial phases of compliance. Sewer bills have already doubled over the last decade and are projected to [email protected] continue increasing at about 4% per year for the foreseeable future. The price tag of the work yet tobe Brenda Levitt done: $115,000,000. The share by each man, woman, and child living in our community is $4,600. Add Graphic Designer construction cost inflation and financing charges on top of that figure. 319-208-0047 [email protected] Simply put, our community cannot pay this bill. Even worse, the $115 million does not cover upgrades to our aged sewer infrastructure. It simply covers the separation piece. Rachel Lindeen Event Coordinator What about clean water infrastructure needs? How about our roads and bridges? Should storm water 319-208-0046 alone eat through all of our community’s available infrastructure dollars? [email protected] While I support efforts to clean Iowa’s water, I am concerned about the cost of doing so. How will Emily Pattee someone on a fixed income pay for unending sewer bill increases? How much of this liability will be Welcome Center Manager pushed to the business community? 319-752-8731 [email protected] At this point in time, few federal policy issues have a greater impact to the City of Burlington’s balance sheet. Dustin Roth Marketing & Communications Dir. As a community with aging demographics, our ability to pay for the unfunded mandates should be taken 319-208-0048 into consideration by both the EPA and the DNR. There has to be a solution that improves our water [email protected] quality without bankrupting the city. During our region’s recent Washington DC Summit, meetings with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce proved valuable. The organization is interested in our cause and believes our case study can lead to a better policy balance in cost-conscious water quality legislation. Burlington is not the only community struggling to implement these unfunded mandates. SUBSCRIPTIONS: Price is $24, which is included in annual events fees. Non-members: $4 per issue. There should be a way to protect both the environment and our citizens. Stay tuned. Periodicals postage paid at Burlington, Iowa. POSTMASTER: The Partnership is published monthly by the Greater Burlington Partnership 610 North Fourth Street, Suite 200, Burlington, Iowa 52601. POSTMASTER send address changes to Greater Burlington Partnership (USPS 001-692) 610 North Fourth Street, Suite 200, Burlington, Iowa 52601 page 2 RiverPark Place • 610 North 4th Street, Suite 200 • Burlington, Iowa 52601 • 319-752-6365 om ON THE COVER c Design Committee As Burlington’s Main Street downtown revitalization program, FrontRow: Mary Hart; Karla Mundt; Stephanie Waples,Klingner & Associates Downtown Partners has an active and capable Design Committee. It BackRow:Hal Morton, Des Moines Co. Regional Solid Waste Commission; works to get downtown into top physical shape by concentrating on Florence Paterno; Jerry Johnson, Capitol Theater; Hillaurie Fritz-Bonar, assets such as a wealth of historic buildings, an attractive geographic Art Center of Burlington setting, and pedestrian oriented streets. The Design Committee encourages building preservation through the recent Model Not Pictured:Gretchen Miller, Lin Parks, Kay Weiss Community façade forum, the Business Signage Grant program, and design assistance from Main Street Iowa, the statewide coordinating agency. In addition, the Design Committee promotes downtown improvements and beautification with the County Seat bench painting project, flower planting, public art, the Burlington Lightscape Project, clean up campaigns, and holiday decorations. #GreaterBurlingtonPartnership • GreaterBurlington.com page 3 Partnership Night Out... ... at The Legacy Theater JULY 13 The Greater Burlington Partnership is excited to extend an invitation from The Legacy Theater to attend a complimentary live show at this renovated theater, just a short drive from Burlington in Carthage, IL. As a member of the Chamber of Commerce, you and your employees are invited to bring a guest to see JOHNNY COUNTERFIT, straight from Nashville, TN. Johnny Counterfit recreates the singing voices of traditional country music superstars, Hollywood legends and comedians from the last 50 years. Complimentary drinks and appetizers will be served as well. Chamber members and guests will enjoy special balcony seating designed for groups and parties. RSVP by calling The Legacy Theater at 217-357-9479 or email [email protected] to secure your spot. Social hour begins at 6 PM; show starts at 7 PM. Seating is limited to 80. ... attheBees AUGUST 17 The Greater Burlington Partnership is excited to partner with the Burlington Bees again this year! Enjoy all of the action on August 17 at Community Field when the Burlington Bees take on the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, followed by fireworks. Your business is encouraged to treat your employees and customers to a fun night out. As a member of the Chamber of Commerce, you can take advantage of great deals with the Bees as well. Tickets for the evening’s game are $3.50 (half price) with a minimum of 10 tickets purchased. The Bees interns will be calling members regarding ticket purchase, or call the Bees at 319-754-5705. page 4 RiverPark Place • 610 North 4th Street, Suite 200 • Burlington, Iowa 52601 • 319-752-6365 SUMMER 2018 The REPORTING ON THE PARTNERING FOR THE FUTURE II CAMPAIGN QUARTERLY Inventory for Industry 2019 – 2023 The vision of those who came before looks both bold and wise when looking back at Flint Plan of Work Ridge Business Park over the past 25 years. What was once a massive failed Caterpillar project became the vast modern business park that our industries enjoy today. As Flint Ridge This community has a history of placing Business Park nears capacity, a great deal of research and study has gone into answering the high value on economic and community question… “What’s next?” development. Those efforts were taken One answer that has become painfully clear is that a similar 300+ acre industrial site is nearly to a new level in 2009 with the launch of impossible to duplicate. Between increased land prices (if contiguous parcels can even Partnering for the Future. The bold, five- be found), and the costs associated with inputting necessary infrastructure in the tens of year plan of action set aggressive goals millions, other options need to be explored. and high measures of accountability. It was done again in 2013 with Partnering Similar to area schools adopting the “newer and fewer” concept when it comes to educational for the Future II. The current plan of work facilities, “smaller and smarter” seems to be the answer when it comes to inventory for is nearing completion, and efforts are industrial sites. An example is the recently acquired industrial ground in West Burlington underway to assemble a plan covering formerly known as the Raider Pre-Cast property on North Gear Avenue. This 40 acre site 2019 - 2023. has been essentially overgrown and vacant for over a decade; it is a great example of an underutilized property ripe for redevelopment. With infrastructure already in place, it’s an A draft plan has been assembled, and a excellent opportunity to create a smaller industrial park that allows for the accomplishment feasibility study was conducted during of the primary goals of Economic Development… 1. Grow the tax base. 2. Provide the month of May. Nearly 70 interviews opportunities for job creation. were completed as a part of that process. Feedback on the draft plan was received, While final planning isn’t complete, preliminary drawings illustrate 4 - 5 developable and there were a couple of key takeaways industrial lots accessed by a public road and cul-de-sac.