Council approves $150K loan agreement for The Public House restaurant project

By Rick Morain
Jefferson Herald

The Jefferson city council April 12 approved a $150,000 economic development forgivable loan agreement with Pub Adventures LLC for improvements to the building at 123 N. Chestnut Street on the east side of the square.
The building formerly housed Ace Hardware on the northeast corner. The forgivable 10-year loan, granted to owners Addi Meyer and Amanda Bills, will provide building renovation funding for the planned family restaurant, The Public House, at that location. Also approved was the signature form for the project.

In other action, the council approved expense of $14,279.40 for dog holding equipment from Building Concepts for the new animal shelter. The council also approved Pay Estimate No. 3 of $129,094.07 to Jensen Building for the animal shelter, and $14,021.87 to CleanWise for a vacuum system for the animal shelter.

The council approved hiring three part-time golf clubhouse employees: Jordan Aubrey at $10 per hour and Jason Cerveny and Jeremy Cartwright at $9 per hour.
Pay Estimate No. 4 of $42,935 from Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds were approved for work on the building at 200 East State (at the northeast corner of the square).
Class C liquor licenses were approved for the Greene County Fair Association and Doc’s Stadium Bar and Grill.
By resolution, the council approved the list of city salaries for calendar year 2021.

The council also received a report from Linn Price of A.P.E. concerning the city’s trap/neuter/release (TNR) program for feral cats for calendar year 2021. The joint effort by the A.P.E. and PAWS organizations dealt with 49 cats during the year. Of that total, 31 were trapped, neutered and returned to their colonies. Four had to be euthanized due to serious illnesses, and 14 were friendly or young enough to be tamed and placed for adoption. Because the TNR program provides microchipping, three cats were identified by their microchip in 2021.

In 2021 the project received $7,000 in grants. The $3,000 grant in that total is eligible for any cat (house cats included) from Greene County to be spayed or neutered.
Price’s report stated that anyone feeding cats in Jefferson needs to inform PAWS or A.P.E.

Sid Jones, President of Greene County Development Corporation, presented to the council a proposal regarding housing in Jefferson. The proposal suggests that the city reimburse a house builder a certain amount – for instance, $15,000 – once an occupancy permit is signed. The program would benefit the builder, the new owner, and the city, since the property taxes on the new home would reimburse the city over the next several years.
From 2015 through 2021, a period of seven years, 20 new homes were built in Jefferson, Jones noted. The proposal he presented is designed to increase that number substantially. Council members indicated they would consider the idea.
The Jefferson city council meets regularly the second and fourth Tuesdays of every month at 5:30 p.m. in the council chambers on second floor of city hall.    

 

Contact Us

Jefferson Bee & Herald
Address: 200 N. Wilson St.
Jefferson, IA 50129

Phone:(515) 386-4161