The Atlantic City Council met in a brief, regular scheduled Wednesday evening. The Council, and Mayor Dave Jones congratulated Sondra Marnin for her 5-years of service to the Atlantic Public Library.

(on the left) Mayor Dave Jones congratulates Sondra Marnin for her five-years serving the Atlantic Library.

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The Mayor then read from a proclamation recognizing January 28th through February 1, 2020, as “School Choice Week,” in Atlantic.  Afterward, the Council approved a change order for the Ash Street Sanitary Sewer Replacement Project. Snyder and Associates Engineer Dave Sturm explained the project is an approximately 400-foot extension of the sewer line to two houses on the top of the hill on 22nd Street, east of Olive Street. The two properties are currently served by septic systems in the City Limits.

Sturm said change order simply extends the contract for Pierce Pump, which is in charge of the Ash Street replacement project. The cost of the extension is $27,450. The Community Development Committee met last month to review the proposal and recommended approval.

In other business, the Atlantic City Council, Wednesday, approved: the appointment of Melissa Ihnen to the Planning and Zoning Commission; The re-appointment of Barb Barrick as the Atlantic City Clerk; Appointment of David Wiedersteen as City Attorney; and other, administrative matters.

In his report to the Council, City Administrator John Lund said work on the Budget continues. He also had some good news/bad news information. The good news: The City will no longer have to estimate what its health insurance premiums will be in the coming year. Since the City is in the Iowa Communities Trust Pool (ICAP), Wellmark issues renewal figures much earlier. The bad news: The renewal is about 12-percent. The City’s insurance broker, Cottingham and Butler will review the self-insure component and have a final recommendation within about a week.

Lund said also, with City Clerk Barb Barrick recovering from health issues, her duties are being split among Lund, and office the two office assistants, Ali and Amanda, so everything is taken care of in a timely manner. Lund said he plans to meet with the Personnel and Finance Committee in a couple of weeks to review some of the early budget figures and answer any questions.