Letter: Stories didn't tell the full story

To the editor:

We are appreciative that the editor has given the city an opportunity to address some of the more negative aspects of recent stories about North Liberty in Business 380 (July 3). The stories themselves are generally accurate, but overall leave the reader with a general negative impression because of some unfortunate misrepresentations that I would like to address in the following paragraphs.

The high proportion of multifamily housing in North Liberty mentioned in the articles has been a topic of much conversation in our city. While we have many fine modern single-family neighborhoods both fully developed and under development - almost 600 single-family lots are available for development, the majority of housing units at this time are found in multifamily condominiums and deed-out or zero-lot duplexes.

Why is that? Because multifamily has been in demand and the city has been willing to accommodate that demand; however, the city has gradually tightened development standards for multifamily development and the supply of zoning needed for multifamily development as residents' opinions here have swung to desiring more single-family housing in the mix.

Importantly, the city understands the potential negative consequences of slowing the multifamily growth, and is closely considering future directions at open public meetings.

Commercial development in North Liberty reflects the newness of the city. There never was a “downtown” area here, and modern development preferences seldom produce that same style of development that many of us grew up with.

No matter how hard planners and baby boomers try to recreate the downtowns of the 1940s through '60s, those times are gone and forcing that style of development almost never works. New businesses locate where the parking is easy and traffic volumes are high. In almost every city, downtowns are saddled with parking issues, empty storefronts and deteriorating infrastructure, and often cities are compelled to “rescue” them with cash infusions and disproportionate amounts of resources. North Liberty does not have these problems.

North Liberty has been criticized by a very few people who have gotten a lot of press attention for its recent use of TIF funding to incentivize a major new University of Iowa Community Credit Union project here. The challenge in utilizing the TIF program is to use the funds generated wisely and only on the best projects the city deems to be most important.

Most TIF critics fail to understand that the tax funding used to incentivize TIF projects is made up entirely of the “new” taxes that the new business pays for the first several years after it is built. There is no drawdown from the city's general fund, and no projects are being delayed or scrapped, because the funding would not be available if not for the new development.

Similarly, the school districts and county government are not losing tax money because any incentive comes from new taxes paid by the new development. In a couple of months the credit union will break ground on a thirty million dollar corporate office near I-380 that will eventually be filled with over 400 employees, and that was judged by the city council to be an important project for our city to participate in.

A University of Iowa professor quoted in Business 380 piece opines that the development is bad because it does not conform to the city's Comprehensive Plan, but in fact the multifamily designation and zoning on what is now the credit union site had been a sore point in North Liberty for years before the credit union project came up, and a change in the Land Use Plan in that location was fully supported by policy statements in the Comprehensive Plan, by the public at large, and by good planning sense.

There were several statements and quotes in the article that mention high or rising taxes as if North Liberty is a high-tax city. In fact, taxes in North Liberty are substantially lower than any other full-service city in the Corridor, the average city tax increase over the last 9 years was under 2 percent, and city taxes actually decreased 1.5 percent for 2012. How many cities can compare favorably to those statistics?

And at the same time, the city is undertaking an almost staggering number of important public improvements, including major upgrades of Jones Boulevard, Highway 965, Golfview Drive and other streets, extending a trail through the city along and near Dubuque Street, establishing a new type of well/drinking water storage system, and building and operating one of the most high-tech sanitary sewer plants in the Midwest.

These projects being completed now when we are in a growth mode and have the funding will position us well for the future.

The University of Iowa's second professor quoted in the article says some aspects of North Liberty appear “bizarre” to him. Perhaps if he had visited North Liberty lately he would know that the city has plans in place to fill missing gaps in development and infrastructure and is actively pursuing those plans.

We have had a Comprehensive Plan and Major Street Plan for many years, and streets will be extended and built as development occurs, like every other city. Unlike other cities, North Liberty has had a “complete streets” policy for years that requires sidewalks on both sides of every street and a trail on one side of major streets.

In addition, the city undertook a very unpopular sidewalk installation program in the older parts of town some years ago indicating a very high level of concern for pedestrians. In new developments, bike racks and pedestrian-scale improvements are required.

The professor's statement that “it's not very pedestrian friendly” seems simply uninformed. The city has a Comprehensive Plan, a Parks Plan, a Trails Plan, a Sanitary Sewer Extension Plan, a Facilities Plan, a Water System Plan and design standards, all of which are continuously being acted upon.

The professor might help us by pointing out what additional planning he thinks we need when he states we are “almost a case study of what happens if you don't have long-range planning.”

Or perhaps it might be more accurate and graceful for him to say that, like most cities, North Liberty was not very well-prepared for explosive growth when it began, but unlike other cities it has aggressively pursued long-range planning to ensure completion of improvements and long-range success.

There are at least two mentions in the Business 380 story of “cookie cutter” subdivisions and strip-style commercial development, and there are certainly a number of those areas in North Liberty as there are in almost every other city.

But rather than focus on those areas, why not mention the outstanding single-family neighborhoods that are being built by a variety of builders and developers with interesting and unique homes, or the newer multifamily development that features a very high level of design and construction?

Most but not all of the commercial development in North Liberty is what some call strip development because it is located on major streets and not clustered in malls or downtown - but major streets is where business wants to be. We can plan cute commercial areas set back from the roadways with hidden parking that are popular in modern planning theory, but if businesses aren't interested those pretty plans ultimately fail.

The more practical approach we are taking in North Liberty is to define a higher level of strip commercial development that minimizes areas dedicated to parking by sharing those areas and offering flexibility in parking requirements, that contains pedestrian-scale improvements including connecting walks, that features very high levels of design and construction to convey permanence and that includes extensive landscaping.

Driveways onto major streets are limited so that congestion is minimized.

Last, the professor's comment about the city “lacking visual focus” and having a disjointed mental image has a ring of truth, but I feel strongly that we are developing that focus. It is a focus on family and family-related quality of life. The number of residents out running, walking dogs, pushing baby carriages, biking and walking is incredible in North Liberty, especially in the evenings.

Parks and athletic facilities are well-used. The city's recreation center is the envy of other cities and is heavily utilized.

Library use is growing and it will soon be expanding. Our police force has grown substantially and is a significant presence. This is our focus - safety, ability to recreate and relax in the little time we have for it, and good affordable city services.

So in summary, it is frustrating to see North Liberty referred to negatively when so many things are going so right. Residents of North Liberty know that the city has growing pains, but it is an exciting, young environment. It is safe, affordable, friendly, and offers high levels of affordable city service.

Good advice is being given by the many citizen-led boards and commissions, and informed decisions are being made by elected officials. We invite the professors and reporters to see the positive directions our city is headed instead of quoting the few critics and emphasizing a small number of perceived faults.

A. Dean Wheatley

Planning Director

City of North Liberty