Maybe next time

The Clay Central/Everly school board on Dec. 28 had to rescind a measure that had been rescinded once already.

A resolution regarding board member elections was yanked from the books after being unanimously approved in November. According to Board Secretary Diane White, last month's resolution included a small paragraph stating "that the board secretary of CC/E CSD shall cause this resolution to be on the ballot in November 2023."

"It was brought to our attention that we do not want that paragraph in the resolution as then we would have to have the public vote on this in November 2023, which then would make it so that we could not have all of this change for CC/E until the November 2025 election," White explained after the meeting. "CC/E wants this to be in effect for the election that will take place in November of 2023."

The revised resolution will have to be republished before the board can vote on it again. A previous resolution passed by members more than a year ago also was rescinded, as the board was legally required to wait until the November meeting to make the change.

Once the measure is re-approved, two members (Districts 1 and 2) must reside north of county road B24 while two must reside south of B24 (Districts 4 and 5). District 3 will now be an at-large spot, and the seat holder can reside anywhere inside the district.

Previously, CC/E constituents elected each board member from the director district in which the candidate resided. Members were required to live in the district they represented. The setup made it difficult to find candidates in recent years.

Under the new setup, current board members Allison Goyette and Barb Trierweiler would represent the south side of the district while Allyn Heikens and Denny Dalen would represent the north. Board Member Brian Schmidt would hold the at-large seat. Heikens and Schmidt will be on the ballot in November 2023.

In other business, the board tabled approving an asbestos removal bid for the upcoming tunnel project. Cost of removal was estimated at $22,855.

"The board wants to see what the entire project will cost before they approve the bid on the removal of the asbestos," White said. "We have been in touch with Swift Air to see if they can get us a bid on the rest of the project."

The board is hoping to have an estimate by the Jan. 25 meeting. According to previous board discussion on the matter, various plumbing issues have developed in recent years in the tunnels that run underneath the elementary building. Issues are centered on steam lines for the boiler and water lines.

Finally, Board Member Allyn Heikens presented two letters of opposition written to the Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) by the boards of education at Clarksville and Graettinger-Terril regarding proposed carbon dioxide pipelines. Heikens believed the CC/E school board should do the same. If built, the Summit Carbon Solutions CO2 line would run two miles north of the elementary school, and Heikens feared it could pose a threat to student safety if it burst.

White said Heikens' concerns were taken as informational.