Many choices ahead for Hiawatha voters

HIAWATHA — Voters in Hiawatha have plenty to think about in Tuesday's city elections — whether to give Mayor Tom Theis his third consecutive term or pick a newcomer; who to elect for the three open City Council seats; and whether to approve bond debt to finance a second fire station.

Theis, 72, who first served as mayor in the early 1980s and was a council member and volunteer firefighter for 30 years, is seeking his third consecutive term as Hiawatha's mayor.

'We're running again because I love the city,' he said. 'There's no question about that.'

Theis faces opponent William Bennett, 53, owner of A-1 Storage and 5 Seasons Motorsports who has lived in the city 45 years but not held elected office before.

Theis has a record of beating his opponents in recent races. When he ran against former City Council member Steve Waller in 2011, Theis received 65 percent of the vote. In 2007, he defeated mayoral incumbent Tom Patterson with 54 percent of the vote.

If elected, Theis said, he plans to push harder for relief of congestion on Boyson and Tower Terrace roads. Plans for both are awaiting approval from the Iowa Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration.

Theis pointed to the city's growth during his tenure, including plans to build the 80,000 square-foot Mercy Hiawatha Medical Park and the planned expansion of Cedar Rapids Toyota in Hiawatha at Boyson Road and Interstate 380, as reasons voters should re-elect him. He also supports the proposed building of a second fire station.

Voters will be asked if the city should issue bonds of up to $2.25 million to build the station as a way to improve response times as Hiawatha's population grows.

'There's no question we need a second fire station because of two things: response time, and the current station is actually overcrowded,' he said.

Bennett, his opponent, said he's 'not sure' Hiawatha is ready to beat the cost of another fire station.

Indeed, if elected, he said, he'll seek to lower property taxes and bring transparency to Hiawatha government.

'I'm amazed that Hiawatha (property taxes) are higher than Cedar Rapids',' he said. 'That's the first thing I want to work on.'

The tax rate in Cedar Rapids is about $15.21 per $1,000 of taxable valuation. Hiawatha's is $15.41 per $1,000 of taxable valuation.

Bennett also opposes the use of city tax breaks to support an influx of car dealerships in the town.

'I don't think it's fair that the government get involved in guiding their success,' he said.

Also on the ballot Nov. 3, five candidates will compete for three council seats. Incumbents Dennis Norton, Dick Olson and Bob Wheeler will compete with Jacob Bryan and Aime Wichtendahl to keep their seats on the six-member council.