Hawkeye Reporter

City of Alleman recently issued the following announcement.

As we roll into the summer months I want to take the opportunity to check in with all of Alleman. Your city council has been working on items such as our capital improvement plan, franchise fees, and getting our city regulations current.

In an effort to keep Alleman a farm community I have been working with area landowners to see if they would like to annex their farms and homes into Alleman. The goal is to stop Ankeny at 126th Street, the Elkhart Road. The response from landowners has been excellent. There have been questions about property tax values and restrictions on development. This is where the new Alleman Comprehensive Plan comes into play. As you may recall, Alleman hired a class from Iowa State to redo our outdated comp plan. Meetings were held in the community, input was given by myself and council, surveys were taken to each home, and school leaders and students were interviewed

The new comp plan will keep Alleman a smaller city by requiring lot sizes to be at a minimum ¾ of an acre, no spaces for apartment buildings, and farmers can keep their existing lots but sell off a section for development if they wish. The comp plan is currently in the hands of the Iowa State Legal Department and we will have our first official copy July 1. It will be available to view on-line and at City Hall.

As mentioned above the council is working on a capital improvement program. A capital improvement program serves as a guide for public improvements, and outlines the timing of projects for a five-year period. This program will help the council make more wise decisions when planning budgets for the next five years. Projects that will be included are resurfacing all city streets in Alleman, upkeep of all city properties, a park and recreation plan that could include sidewalks and trails,and possibly a new Alleman sign in the original district.

I am still in negotiations with Dr. Mart and the North Polk School District in coming to a common ground for them using non-drinkable water from the city to water the sports turf. Documents from Des Moines Water Works of past usage have been provided, along with the knowledge that increased traffic on our streets is due to increased traffic to their buildings. The ball is in their court. They can accept our proposal to purchase water from Alleman at a reduced cost, or they can pay Des Moines Water Works and use tap water on their turf. All the money collected will go toward asphalt to resurface the streets of Alleman.

The new animal ordinances are available on allemaniowa.org. Our regulations are now completely in line with Polk County, which will give the sheriff’s department a clear cut, no questions asked, guideline to follow. Your cats and dogs need to be licensed every three years with the city clerk. There are tags issued for every animal registered. The cost to register your dog or cat is $5.00 for neutered or spayed animals

There has been work on several ditches around town, the goal being to get the rain water to run quickly out of our town. Be sure your ditch is free of lawn clippings, tree branches, leaves and trash. If you did have dirt work done on your ditch the rains will settle the dirt. Be sure you are being a good landowner and raking the dirt to keep things flowing properly. There was grass seed put down. If you think your ditch work could use more grass seed, contact Public Works.

Alleman does allow ATV’s on our streets along with snowmobiles in the winter. Your recreational vehicle does need to be registered at City Hall. A yearly fee is charged and a sticker issued to the owner to be placed on the vehicle. There are regulations, such as safety flags and slow moving vehicle placards, that must be followed. The cost to register your recreational vehicle is $20.00. Stickers, along with a copy of all requirements to drive your vehicle on the city streets, are at City Hall.

A person shall not use or explode consumer fireworks on days other than June 1 through July 8 and December 10 through January 3 of each year, all dates inclusive. (1) Between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. on July 4 and the Saturdays and Sundays immediately preceding and following July 4.

This is the legal definition set by the state of Iowa. Please be aware not all your neighbors enjoy the noise. Fireworks are to be shot off in your driveway - not the street. More pets go missing over the 4th of July than any other time, so be aware of your surroundings before starting your celebration.

As I am sure you have seen on the allemaniowa.org web page, all Summer 2020 Alleman Park and Rec events have been cancelled. We do have a new Little Free Library in place for everyone to enjoy. Bring a book, take a book! The library was made by Scott Rozenboom and his daughter Kaylie. It’s adorable; come check it out!

Did you get a chance to see the Dennler Drive signs? They were completely remade by the Stevens family. Stacey Stevens did all the painting. Thanks to donations from Alleman residents and the City there was money left to purchase lights to make them glow at night too. Thank you to everyone who donated to this project! Residents getting involved and willing to help each other makes Alleman a place we can be proud to call home.

will end this summer update with a bit of great news. The Local Option Sales Tax that Alleman showed overwhelming support for is helping us pay down City debt faster. As stated and promised in the passing of the sales tax. half of the money would be used to reduce city debt. This July, the Berkadia loan will be paid in full - two years early! This loan, originally taken out in 1994, was for improvements and construction for municipal waterworks. That original well water system has been replaced and all Alleman homes now have water direct from Des Moines Water Works. This brings me to Alleman having two more water loans from that transformation. Both of these loans mature in 2024. The Covid 19 pandemic has been hard on everyone so your city council is planning on sales tax and road use tax monies being greatly reduced in the upcoming fiscal year. As your mayor I will guide them to make choices that will keep Alleman on the path of getting our bills paid down and costs of running business low.

As always please contact me with your thoughts, questions, and concerns.

Original source can found here.