[{"_1":2,"_111":-5,"_112":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87,99],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6207011,"mediaKeyId","3759788-e15e4ef9b6f08f3ef47ad155460156ce","parentId",3759788,"title","Finance committee approves travel requests, pre-authorizations and bills totaling about $23.5 million in two payments","audioSeconds",725,"startMs",3666000,"endMs",4391000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3759788-e15e4ef9b6f08f3ef47ad155460156ce&start=3666&end=4391","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3759788-e15e4ef9b6f08f3ef47ad155460156ce/thumbnail_3666000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6207011/Waterloo/Black-Hawk-County/Iowa/Finance-committee-approves-travel-requests-pre-authorizations-and-bills-totaling-about-235-million-in-two-payments","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6207011-4468e58cde988869d7d13633196882bf/orig.mp4?Expires=1770896974&Signature=FeAnCnqLVMfOVax2u8B89w9ZNUgrKt-W9FzGU6qffp~VA3fFRtv0uB-TxTMjzfheVVg7nM2Klo7y8YI-CEAchFQfZaS7KMBXBMAWcCK2e7Hgkkgmzklj5oQERtgH0RvOXy~8oBKbyT00uQN1GX1R~1A72Uy4AOt88WubRhtDjyz2XRA5FIG-YiEc2DauCSPzPtmfq0B1A9rfPgsbJ8JWykBGB2rTUcM2mV7YOX9Fim2~Gm0v0YVWLvubWmq~hgLSWUNHLha7SGZcujd3cve3mEgme0EHmHK2eOg1YovoP5YWoFn2ogFoYo4Q-fjOQyudc5AgRGluyjSsFAzvoLWymA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Waterloo","date","2025-06-03T00:00:00Z","article","At the Finance Committee meeting the chair called for approval of travel, training and pre-authorizations and the committee approved travel requests, multiple pre-authorizations to expend over $2,500 and the committee forwarded two bills-payment amounts to the full council.

A consolidated travel-and-training motion listed multiple employees and events. Approved travel items included certification and training webinars and conferences for housing, police, fire and finance staff; notable entries included four firefighter/paramedics attending a critical care paramedic class, several detectives attending interview and interrogation training, and finance staff attending payroll and internal-control webinars.

The committee approved pre-authorizations to expend over $2,500 across departments. Items included: engineering dues to the Iowa Stormwater Education Partnership ($6,385); annual maintenance fees to Tyler Technologies for finance/HR/community development software ($153,795.25); a parking-enforcement gas interceptor and related equipment ($37,952 plus $1,250 shipping); six routers/antennas/mounting kits for fire apparatus ($18,673.79); HVAC and preventative-maintenance items for facilities ($6,124.50 and $7,602); MIS storage controller firmware work ($3,000); 20 Dell desktop replacements for police ($20,029.60); six tactical body armor replacements for police ($12,262.98); crane inspections for Public Works ($2,762.50 plus $500 load testing); spare UV lamps for the wastewater plant ($3,445 plus $254 shipping); a new mobile column lift for the wastewater treatment plant ($52,524.17); a ZT606 riding mower for lift stations ($9,895.86); and a 2023 John Deere 624P wheel loader for the street department ($222,958) to replace an older loader.

During discussion, Public Works Division Manager Randy Bennett confirmed the loader would come with a five-year warranty. \"This 1 will actually, come with a 5 year warranty, on the actual unit itself for like transmission, engine, all that stuff,\" Bennett said.

Committee members also queried staffing and enforcement logistics for the new parking-enforcement equipment. Finance Director Bridget Wood and others provided procedural details and cost caps for individual travel items when asked.

The committee voted to receive, file and forward bills payments: $20,869,579.96 for the May 27, 2025 payment run and $2,667,824.25 for June 2, 2025. The motions to approve travel and pre-authorizations were recorded as carried by voice vote; no dissenting vote was recorded in the transcript for these items.

The finance meeting adjourned after forwarding the items to the full council; all approvals were made by committee motion and voice vote as recorded in the minutes.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","City of Waterloo Council Work Session & Finance Committee Meeting - Monday, June 2, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The Waterloo Finance Committee approved employee travel and training, pre-authorizations to expend for equipment and services (including a $222,958 loader and $20,029.60 in police desktops), and moved bills payment amounts totaling $23,537,404.21 to the full council for approval.","taxTitle","Waterloo, Black Hawk County, Iowa","taxId",3694,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6207015,"Council signals intent to comply with state fireworks law; debate over keeping joint July 5 event with Cedar Falls",529,3093000,3622000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3759788-e15e4ef9b6f08f3ef47ad155460156ce&start=3093&end=3622","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3759788-e15e4ef9b6f08f3ef47ad155460156ce/thumbnail_3093000.jpg","/articles/6207015/Waterloo/Black-Hawk-County/Iowa/Council-signals-intent-to-comply-with-state-fireworks-law-debate-over-keeping-joint-July-5-event-with-Cedar-Falls","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6207015-2fb0c569fdc794e3c35478de3f8a4364/orig.mp4?Expires=1770896974&Signature=o9tKaVMAYVi0WOA1H9lBtaDmPJ4bwrEEFx3DJNH2GdxPuxsjdd3rWdhXoaJro-~75xiVLldER8wOjENK3RUtERpKcR3d6JAa-0n7s-~MN79Kt~pp1D5Xbf-4EwnlJMYv0gusV9dqjfZU1zcWbixSwF2QNyLgN5yEDQlrXPaJieQPUXCh9q~OMy13Gw6eYtIKp1X-6D5sfLoxe9a5AoUdBL2DH172uBhAI9B~-i3XEC4x5auiRH9tqHetb-3mAHWbwuUy-1QpZVU3Wki7O~cEMGX0pf~82FZJ4DYnAPVikobIOSxlT89y9HGZW-HvNsCa9VtKjWWv8H3qEoPJgH14Ng__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The council discussed whether to keep a previously announced joint fireworks date with Cedar Falls on July 5 after the state adopted rules that specify legal consumer fireworks days.

The mayor explained that state law now lists July 3 and July 4 (and Dec. 31) as legal fireworks days and that the city had already announced a joint July 4–5 schedule with Cedar Falls. A majority of council members said they would comply with the state law’s designated days rather than maintain a local schedule that included July 5. \"I'm hearing the majority say to comply with the state law,\" the mayor said during the discussion.

Several council members voiced concerns about enforcement and the effect on residents when legal fireworks days fall on weekdays. One council member said enforcement details should be discussed with the police chief before finalizing a schedule. Another councilmember urged residents upset about the change to contact state legislators rather than the city, saying the state has limited local \"home rule\" in this area.

Council members also noted the existing joint resolution with Cedar Falls and the city’s prior promotion of a July 5 event. Because the City previously announced the July 5 date, one councilmember recommended temporarily adopting July 3–5 for this year’s schedule to avoid confusing residents and then conforming to the state-prescribed days in future years. The discussion closed with the mayor saying staff would return the item with the state-law-compliant dates; there was no formal recorded vote on an ordinance during the work session.

No formal enforcement plan was adopted at the meeting; council members asked staff to provide enforcement details and logistics in a future agenda item.","Council members debated whether to retain a previously announced July 5 community fireworks display after the state specified allowable fireworks days. A majority indicated they will comply with state law designating the legal days as July 3–4 and Dec. 31; council requested further enforcement clarification before final action.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6207020,"Grow Cedar Valley outlines business recruitment, workforce programs and a Cedar Valley population study",1435,1463000,2898000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3759788-e15e4ef9b6f08f3ef47ad155460156ce&start=1463&end=2898","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3759788-e15e4ef9b6f08f3ef47ad155460156ce/thumbnail_1463000.jpg","/articles/6207020/Waterloo/Black-Hawk-County/Iowa/Grow-Cedar-Valley-outlines-business-recruitment-workforce-programs-and-a-Cedar-Valley-population-study","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6207020-4fb5265e4529705f72fc7e7e3609eec0/orig.mp4?Expires=1770896974&Signature=KOT7C--mUFcdOcIyUNBLm5~wqoX8-prURKd7bHv6Zcz57T5b1xRfFe6V2lPzeJaoc~gFHh1Vw9bZey6W7YUObe68Rdvj8kZkEVutXrLSX3SiVcsrTA2w-22s102qL5QLj9anhT21uXGUdV4OufFIqNZYNlTj2Q6ySZajb~HwV~cpph-wJpAsS02~bbOBcVjVN55xsLs9bnxF6v-vvCUxEYtM-iHAH5JSLQATWyuclqd3pQzrgTTlyJRNGocs1CAsej-admd9VCY6EZWwolUwjC3qUNjGDtyi4xobiyuoZDWaioDpGvVq8N9aqEEAzqgmsw86fkpLuZfRWZeyZ6Azdw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Katie, representative, Grow Cedar Valley, and Grow Cedar Valley staff gave the City Council and mayor a multi-part update on economic development, business retention and expansion, workforce initiatives and a new population study for the Cedar Valley.

Adrienne Miller, director of business services and advocacy for Grow Cedar Valley, said the organization has expanded business retention engagement across the Cedar Valley and reported 55 business visits completed or scheduled this fiscal year, with 32 of those in Waterloo. \"We continue to find that in person engagement is the most effective way to connect with companies,\" Katie said when describing lead-generation trips and outreach.

The presentation reported 18 new prospects for Waterloo since December. Grow Cedar Valley described recent lead-generation trips that began with large prospect lists — the West Coast trip started with 1,051 companies and produced five new business opportunities; the East Coast trip began with 1,548 companies and produced four opportunities, two of which were advancing to visit planning.

The organization said it participated in the SelectUSA Investment Summit with five one-on-one meetings and planned a lead-generation trip to the Netherlands with six meetings scheduled. Grow Cedar Valley said it plans to host three site-selection consultants in the Cedar Valley Sept. 9–11 to assess sites, incentives, workforce and quality-of-life factors.

On workforce and talent, Stephanie Detweiler, director of talent and workforce, described the Cedar Valley Intern Connect program: 30 participants last year with 100% reporting increased connectedness to the Cedar Valley, and 32 interns already signed up for the current year representing 19 businesses. Detweiler also described the Cedar Valley Young Professionals program launched this year with membership starting July 1 ($90 for non–Grow Cedar Valley investors; $75 for Grow Cedar Valley members) and said the group has had 274 young-professional attendees at five events since January.

Grow Cedar Valley outlined a population study intended to reverse a projected five-year population decline in the Cedar Valley MSA (Black Hawk, Bremer and Grundy counties). The organization said it issued an RFP in January, received 15 proposals, interviewed five firms and selected Civic Soul (Austin, Texas) for the study because of Civic Soul’s partnership with the Lightcast data provider and their emphasis on stakeholder involvement. Civic Soul is scheduled to visit the Cedar Valley in June and Grow Cedar Valley asked council members to participate in roundtables planned for June 24.

Operational and coordination items listed included a goal of 60 business retention and expansion (BRE) visits in the coming year, quarterly economic development office (EDO) roundtables with city staff and utility partners, more aggressive external business recruitment and continued emphasis on foreign direct investment once Grow Cedar Valley’s board finalizes the next fiscal-year budget.

Council members asked for the roundtable schedule and meeting logistics; Grow Cedar Valley said it would email save-the-date and roundtable invitations. There was no formal council vote; the update was informational and Grow Cedar Valley closed by thanking the city for the partnership.","Grow Cedar Valley told council it engaged 18 new prospects since December, completed 55 business visits this fiscal year (32 in Waterloo), plans site-selector visits in September, emphasized foreign direct investment and hired Civic Soul to lead a Cedar Valley population study with stakeholder roundtables June 24.",{"_33":100,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":101,"_41":102,"_43":103,"_45":104,"_47":105,"_49":106,"_51":107,"_53":108,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":109,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":110,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6207025,"Main Street Waterloo reports volunteer growth, $149 million private investment and plans to expand downtown programming",1089,241000,1330000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3759788-e15e4ef9b6f08f3ef47ad155460156ce&start=241&end=1330","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3759788-e15e4ef9b6f08f3ef47ad155460156ce/thumbnail_241000.jpg","/articles/6207025/Waterloo/Black-Hawk-County/Iowa/Main-Street-Waterloo-reports-volunteer-growth-149-million-private-investment-and-plans-to-expand-downtown-programming","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6207025-19e4a3d0b3bfe19edb86cf4bbd997a4a/orig.mp4?Expires=1770896974&Signature=N7V84OVJlicLoPGLLyPkOf72pjnz9wW1eqGYlOj0S6GZXS-konLDZOwAzRcXE6-sDJnmQG0pWGFW5pGstmDeondHDkdJsK4GBNa3G5ru0m8Q~P1UH3awCy3EZHF~dPD05g2V0KQMHU1dfTnTb4-nw1mUeGuTkksj9hSv7aSXBGA0YHR-bhL~2TwfDhR1cYTzrsfxnD0YDGYZZ15f5IKJaTGeK7YibnvJ-QRQW3B9vmi1qkkeyIcqgPhu1coqbvJHi25ngC~Cn20HmjaXA-fxrmfYshQCUs-GWkOXcD1xuROkjXfUk5PlVPTd09DFt6qoQi3UY1J6Z03kxiKzom-pvw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Jessica, staff member, Main Street Waterloo, gave the City Council an annual update on downtown revitalization and Main Street Waterloo’s work to support businesses, preserve historic buildings and increase community engagement.

Main Street Waterloo said it is a volunteer-driven nonprofit with two full-time staff members and has been accredited since 1996 under the Main Street America model. \"This is your Downtown Waterloo,\" Jessica said, summarizing the organization’s outreach goal to make residents and business owners feel connected to downtown’s growth.

The organization reported supporting more than 200 businesses and over 100 property owners. Within a five-minute drive of downtown there are about 21,000 residents, and nearly 2,000 live inside the downtown district, the presentation said. Per-capita income in that five-minute radius was reported as $21,683 and the median age as 34. Main Street Waterloo said 92.9% of residents within that radius are employed.

Jessica highlighted long-term outcomes the group attributes to its work: about $149,000,000 in private investment in the district since 1996, 318 rehabilitated buildings (17 completed between 2020 and 2024) and 249 net new businesses founding 712 jobs in the downtown district since 1996. She said two new downtown businesses were expected to open by the end of the summer and that the organization supported recent projects such as the Martin Flats rehabilitation and downtown grant recipients Veil Lane Yoga and Try Buy Bakery.

On volunteer and fundraising metrics, the presentation said Main Street Waterloo recruited 121 new volunteers in 2024, recorded nearly 98,000 total volunteer hours since becoming a Main Street community, and increased fundraising by about 90% in 2024. The group runs more than 30 events a year and estimated those events draw roughly 32,000 attendees annually and generate about $1,900,000 in economic impact.

Council members asked how to coordinate attendance at monthly business events. Jessica asked for City Council participation at the monthly “Brews in Business” meetings (third Tuesday) and the “support local cash mobs” (fourth Tuesday) and offered to provide more event information to council offices.

The presentation also noted place-making efforts such as seasonal flowers, public art and the reinstallation of the \"Diversity is our Strength\" mural, and that Main Street Iowa and the Iowa Economic Development Authority continue to be partners in the national Main Street America framework.

The council did not take a formal vote on the presentation; members thanked the organization for its work and encouraged coordination on outreach and event attendance.","Main Street Waterloo told the City Council it supports more than 200 businesses, reported a 90% increase in fundraising in 2024, recruited 121 new volunteers and highlighted $149 million in private investment in the district since 1996.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Finance committee approves travel requests, pre-authorizations and bills totaling about $23.5 million in two payments

Council signals intent to comply with state fireworks law; debate over keeping joint July 5 event with Cedar Falls

Grow Cedar Valley outlines business recruitment, workforce programs and a Cedar Valley population study

Main Street Waterloo reports volunteer growth, $149 million private investment and plans to expand downtown programming