Latest news with #EvelynGeorge
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Randy Ervin brushes aside campaign inquiries, says to focus on mayor's service
Aug. 9—Ever since Newton Mayor Evelyn George announced last month that she would not be running for re-election, council member Randy Ervin has been asked if he will attempt another mayoral campaign. At the end of the city council meeting this past week, he set the record straight: He's not sure yet. "For those of you who don't know — and, trust me, I know — Mayor (George) beat me by 13 votes," Ervin said. "And I'm OK with that. I sent her a note that night and said thank you, a good campaign, we both supported each other. So I think the focus right now doesn't need to be: 'Is Randy running?'" Instead, Ervin suggested people focus on the 12 years of service George had dedicated to city government. Prior to serving as mayor, George represented the Ward 2 seat on the city council from 2013 until 2017. She represented the at-large seat on the council from 2017 until 2023 when she ran for mayor. The 2023 mayoral election was indeed decided by just over a dozen votes. George earned 911 votes to Ervin's 898 votes, according to results from the county auditor's office. Lonnie Appleby, who launched his second campaign for mayor after running as a write-in candidate in 2021, received 798 votes. George told council members in July she would not be running for re-election this coming November in order to focus more of her time with family. "Let's thank her for what she has done," Ervin said. "Let's thank her for the steps she has taken to be a part of what she's done for that many years for the city." Ervin noted his decision to run for mayor or not will be contemplated by himself and his wife over prayer. So, does he want to be mayor of Newton? "Absolutely, but let's not get in a hurry. Let's take time to thank Evelyn for what she has done. And let's also take time to realize that she earned that spot," Ervin said, noting George served the council during difficult times. "...There were some challenging years there. New administrators. New challenges." Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
27-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Mayor Evelyn George will not run for re-election
Jul. 27—Newton Mayor Evelyn George announced this week she will not be seeking another term, putting an end to her long tenure in city government. George was elected mayor in November 2023. The tight race was determined by just 13 votes, with George earning 911 votes and council member Randy Ervin earning 898 votes. Lonnie Appleby, who launched his second campaign for mayor after running as a write-in candidate in 2021, received 798 votes. Prior to her run for mayor, George served the Ward 2 seat on the Newton City Council from 2013 until 2017, and then the at-large seat from 2017 until 2023. At the conclusion of the July 21 city council meeting, George said she and her husband have been married 43 years and counting. She suggested she is not running for re-election this coming November in order to focus more of her time family while they are still healthy to do so. "As we were planning our family vacation to Smoky Mountains, we're like, 'There are so many other places we want to visit and see,'" George said. "And while we're still healthy and able to do that, we've decided that's going to be a priority. So, I will not be running for office this fall." George said the most important characteristics for anyone wanting to serve as mayor are: open-mindedness, a positive attitude and a willingness to listen to people, especially those that aren't of the same background. She also said it helps to be someone who strives to be a lifelong learner. "If someone comes in thinking they have all the answers and they know it, they'll soon find out that city government is quite different than anything else," she said. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Industrial properties in Newton on track to receive 5-year partial tax exemptions
May 18—To prepare for the prospective businesses that may be interested in building new facilities at the proposed rail park just northeast of town, the Newton City Council is in the process of establishing partial tax exemptions for industrial properties. Portions of industrial property taxes would be abated over a five-year period. According to city documents, industrial properties would be afforded a 75 percent tax abatement in the first year, a 60 percent abatement the second year, a 45 percent abatement the third year, a 30 percent abatement the fourth year and a 15 percent abatement the fifth year. Upon adopting this ordinance, the Newton City Council will hold a public hearing to consider a tax exemption for the currently under construction industrial building at 1610 N. 15th Ave. E. by CMGA Enterprises, LLC. The public hearing will be set at the June 16 meeting, approving the exemption no sooner than July 21. However, only the first reading was passed by city council at its May 5 meeting. Staff noted the timeline could be accelerated should council choose to waive the second and third readings of the ordinance. Newton Mayor Evelyn George noted these tax exemptions are in direct response to the proposed rail park. "This was an item that we had talked about wanting to have in place prior to the rail park prospects coming in so that we have something ready," George said. Newton News previously reported that the industrial rail park could be the biggest economic development project post-Maytag. The rail park is a collaboration with Iowa Interstate Railroad, Alliant Energy, Jasper County and City of Newton. The rail park would directly connect industries to a full-service rail terminal. Jim Bowman, senior director of site and economic development at Iowa Interstate Railroad, told Newton News this project is unique. "You've got a railroad, a large electric utility company and the public sector partnering," he said. "It's a true public-private partnership ... I don't know if this exists anywhere else in Iowa, to do a major industrial development with these four entities. I'm really proud that we could bring these groups together."
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Newton explains why property taxes won't increase after borrowing $6.03M
Mar. 11—Before the Newton City Council commenced with four public hearings last week that would authorize the city to borrow up to $6.03 million for several different projects, officials had the city's finance officer provide responses to all of the written questions and concerns submitted by residents. According to city documents, $4.2 million would go toward public infrastructure construction, equipment for city cemeteries, vehicles and equipment for police/fire/EMS departments, parks and airport improvements, demolitions of dilapidated properties and funding for the housing initiative program. Up to $930,000 would be used for improvements to the tennis court, city pool, recreational trails and clubhouse at Westwood Golf Course; up to $700,000 would be used for improvements to the fire station and city hall and construction of an animal control facility and training facilities for the police/fire departments. Finally, up to $200,000 would go towards the costs and undertaking of the Downtown Housing Grant and Downtown Micro-Grant programs. Newton Mayor Evelyn George said since there was a written comment given to the city, she had requested Finance Officer Lisa Frasier to review those questions and concerns and address them at the March 3 council meeting. Frasier said some residents mistakenly believe the bond will raise property taxes. "We do not intend to increase the levy at all because of this bond," Frasier said. "We work closely with our financial advisors, D.A. Davidson in Des Moines, and we project that out through many years to make sure the city can pay this without raising the debt service levy and our total levy in order to pay for these." Newton News has summarized these questions based on the comments shared by city staff at the city council meeting. Question #1: Wasn't the city administrator concerned about meeting city expenses after the Iowa Legislature passed property tax reform? Frasier: That's a true statement, but this bond does not impact the general fund. That is what the city administrator was referring to when he made that comment. This bond would only be paid for with debt service funds, TIF funds or enterprise funds. So the general funds, which the city administrator was concerned about, are not used to pay for this debt that we are incurring. Question #2: Would approving the four loan agreements on March 3 raise property taxes on the average home in Newton by a combined $92.98? Frasier: So the levy we proposed in FY26 and beyond is only $17.10. The same as it was before. And so we don't project it to be higher in future budgets. So none of these bonds would increase anyone's property taxes. We are not raising our levy to pay for any of these bonds. Question #3: How does the water revenue bond factor in to all of this? Frasier: The water revenue bond passed in November 2024 (more than $2.5 million) could only be paid with water revenues generated by the water fund. It cannot be put on debt service taxes and levied on our taxpayers. That's the only way we can legally pay for that. Question #4: Why does the city need a police and fire training facility? Frasier: So the police and fire departments are both in need of climate controlled storage of equipment, vehicles and evidence. If you remember when we did the parking lot reconstructions, we tore this garage down over here. The police department used to use that facility, that little shed to store a lot of things like bicycles and things they picked up. They no longer have that storage. That's one item. We don't have a place for an extra ambulance when we are full. Right now we are down one, but when we have all our ambulances that we should have we don't have a place to put that. So this would also be a facility for that. The other really big thing is the fire department would do their training over at that facility instead of closing this lot. That's kind of an inconvenience for the public when they're having their water spray everywhere. When the public wants to access the fire department it's difficult for them to do that. Question #5: Wasn't ARPA money approved for police and fire equipment and also for the golf course clubhouse? Frasier: That is true, but we need police and fire equipment. It needs to continually be replaced and updated. We have to make sure our police and fire are equipped with the best equipment available for use when they do their jobs. The golf clubhouse what we're borrowing for in this bond is for phase three of the project. I think that is almost the final phase. So that's really good news. ARPA was for phase one. Question #6: Can't commercial building owners fund their own projects downtown? Frasier: A vibrant downtown attracts more visitors from other communities. So these property taxes within the district, which is a TIF area, those revenues from those properties in the district will make the payments on this portion of the bond. So the residential taxpayers will not pay on that portion of the bond. Only the property taxes from that TIF will pay on that bond. Question #7: Won't the animal control facility cost more than Parkview? Frasier: Parkview canceled the contract providing these services to the city. So without a contract the city has estimated the cost would be around $90,000 a year. Although the upfront costs of setting up the city's own facility will exceed that amount in year one, ongoing operation expenses are expected to be in the $30,000-$45,000 per year range. So we'll be saving almost double if we would just not have a contract and use services estimated at $90,000 year. So it's a good investment for the city and for the taxpayers. Question #8: Hasn't the pool already been improved the past few years? Frasier: True statement with the park bond. We did a lot of improvements at the pool. But what we're proposing is some painting of the pool for $15,000. It's very important to keep your maintenance up on the pool, and it's essential for keeping it in good working order so we don't have to shut the pool down, possibly, in the middle of summer. Then people wouldn't be able to use the pool where they purchased their passes. We want to make sure it's in excellent condition. Question #9: How do the low or fixed income residents afford this? Frasier: So we looked up the person who had written this letter. In 2024, their taxes were $2,566 for the year. In FY25 that fell to $2,451, which is a decrease of $115. The tax levy rate remains at $17.10 for the city. Projected in FY26 with the city's $17.10 levy and if the school and county keep their levies the same, their taxes would go down $66 more dollars to $2,385. That's a 7 percent decrease from FY24 to FY26, and the dollar amount is $181. How many expenses for anyone has gone down that much in the last two years? I don't think much has.
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
'Get to Know Newton' signs to be repaired and replaced with altered design
Feb. 22—The "Get to Know Newton" signs are here to stay for now, but they are going to look a little different. While the city council does not seem too keen on the costs of a full rebrand, officials this past week did decide to move forward with allowing staff to replace and repair signs used throughout the city using a new layout. Signage was created following the adoption of the Get to Know Newton brand about 10 years ago. Many of the signs used for city facilities are starting to show visible signs of aging or have been damaged over time. Of note, the Agnes Patterson Park sign has become tattered and difficult to read. Newton City Council voted unanimously in favor of replacing, repairing and adding new signs to a number of locations throughout the city, at a cost not to exceed $25,000. Sign Pro, of Newton, created the signs for the original branding initiative and has since provided a quote for the work addressing the signs. Staff argued the sign repairs and replacements are needed in order to maintain a positive and professional image for residents and visitors alike. The new signs do differ from their original designs but are not significantly different. They maintain the same color scheme but the size of Get to Know Newton logo has been reduced. As a result, the new signs attract more focus to the facility itself rather than the logo. Text sizes have been increased, too. Mayor Evelyn George said these changes help people better understand where they are in Newton since the signs now emphasize the place rather than the city. "They need to know: 'Where am I in Newton?'" George said. Council member Randy Ervin likes the new look a lot, and the updated signs will be major improvements in places like Agnes Patterson and Sunset Park. Ervin also noted that council should not give up on the idea of rebranding itself going forward. He acknowledged the initial assessment was a bit pricey. "I don't know if we need to step that far in, but I do think it's time for us to elevate our game a little bit past the Get to Know Newton and start working on some other aspects and forms of attention getting," he said, noting Get to Know Newton can be maintained while looking at other ways to promote the city. Here are the locations where signs will be newly installed, repaired or replaced: —Adult Softball Complex —Agnes Patterson Memorial Park —Aurora Park —Callison Park —Cardinal Pond —City Hall —Denniston Knolls Park —Hillcrest Park —Fred Maytag Park —Newton Public Library —Newton Sanitary Landfill —Public Works & Park Shop —Sersland Park —Sunset Park —Woodland Park —Westwood Dog Park —Westwood Golf Course —Wastewater Treatment Plant (1915 E 5th ST S) —Waterworks Treatment Plant (5382 S 48th AVE W) —Waterworks Central Pump Station (Water Hill) —Waterworks Distribution (700 W 7th Street N)
