Iowa City Council to meet Tuesday morning to discuss cottages

IOWA CITY - The Iowa City Council will meet Tuesday morning to discuss the three mid-19th century cottages south of downtown.

Facing conflicting structural engineer reports - one stating the buildings are unsafe and need to be razed while a second argues that the buildings do not pose a safety risk and only suffer from normal wear and tear - on the three South Dubuque Street buildings, the council decided this week to schedule a special meeting to formally discuss whether or not to set a public hearing on pursuing historic landmark status for the three cottages.

That special meeting has been scheduled for 7 a.m. Tuesday at City Hall, 410 E. Washington St. The meeting has been limited to one hour in length due to council availability.

City officials say property owner Ted Pacha's demolition permit applications for 608, 610 and 614 S. Dubuque St. could be issued Dec. 10.

However, if the council decides to schedule a public hearing, a 60-day moratorium would be enacted, which would temporarily halt any demolition on the properties.