SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
May 12, 2022
Sullivan’s Salvos 5/17/22
In this edition:
*RIP Bob Hardy
*The Register Deserves to Die
*Family Folk Machine
*Exceptions to Policy
*Tooting Our Own Horn
*ARPA Funds at Work!
*Did You Know?
*RIP Bob Hardy
I was very sad to learn of the passing of Bob Hardy of Iowa City. Bob spent a long time working for the City of Iowa City in the local access television area. Bob was a guy that was ahead of his time, and had a wonderful sense of humor. As the saying goes, “He was one of the good guys.” And that is very true. RIP, Bob.
*The Register Deserves to Die
I wrote the following to Carol Hunter at the Des Moines Register.
“In a last-ditch effort to survive, the Register has decided to forego endorsing candidates. In this final abdication of duty - this final abdication of journalistic integrity - the Register has finally gone too far. You have allowed the bullies to win, and sacrificed your principles in the process. The Register does not DESERVE to survive!
Forget about truth. Forget about honesty. Forget about integrity. Forget about a well-informed public. This is a last-ditch Hail Mary to maintain Republican subscribers. Rather than give the bullies what they want, why don’t you at least go out with your head held high?
Don’t you DARE spend another column lecturing Iowans as to what is right and wrong. You have lost all moral authority.”
Rod Sullivan
514 N. Linn St.
Iowa City, IA 52245
(A person who would still be subscribing if you could have gotten the paper to my door even one out of six Sundays.)
*Family Folk Machine
Family Folk Machine will hold its Spring concert Sunday, May 14 at 221 E. Washington Street in Iowa City. For more info, see: familyfolkmachine.org.
*Exceptions to Policy
Like any governing body, the Board of Supervisors is often asked to make exceptions to policy. I have some guiding principles I use when considering exceptions; after I lay out my thoughts, I’d like to know your opinions!
First, I look at the rule in question, and ask, “Is it intended to further the goals we wish to achieve as a county?” If yes, great. If not, I say we get rid of the rule.
Secondly, I look at the rule in question, and ask, “Does it have the intended effect?” If not, we may need to modify the rule. This includes a broad look at all the cases that do and don’t comply with said rule.
Let’s assume the rule is necessary and generally works. If so, my third effort is to try and understand why the petitioner cannot or will not comply.
Fourthly, I try to look at all the possible options, including those that comply and those that do not. I weigh each option.
The fifth step is discussing my thoughts with all involved (petitioners, staff, etc.) to make sure I understand all the issues.
Finally, I make a decision to support the requested exception or to oppose it, and communicate my reasoning.
Here are a few of my pet peeves when it comes to exceptions. Unfortunately, these examples are all too real:
1. Elected officials grant an exception without explanation. The public deserves to know why you are bending the rules.
2. Elected officials grant exceptions because they were too lazy/unable to understand the implications of the decision. It sounds bad, and it is! But unfortunately, it can happen!
3. Exceptions are granted only for the powerful & well connected. It sounds bad, and it is! But unfortunately, it can happen!
4. Exceptions are granted to folks who were too lazy to learn and/or follow the rules. A failure to plan on their part does not constitute an emergency on the part of the government.
5. Exceptions are granted virtually all the time. This means the rule is no good.
I believe exceptions to policy should be both infrequent and easy to explain. What are your thoughts?
*Tooting Our Own Horn
It may be uncouth, but I am going to brag a little bit. My family and I moved to a new neighborhood a little over 3 months ago. We spent a lot of money – more than I ever thought I would spend on anything - on a 120-year-old house.
Most of the houses in my neighborhood are rentals. Don’t get me wrong; two thirds of the people in Johnson County are renters. Renters are not second-class citizens. We need quality rental stock; especially affordable rental housing. I put a lot of my professional energy into affordable housing related issues. So this is not about exclusive neighborhoods. It is about historic preservation and neighborhood diversity.
I have described this neighborhood as an estuary, and I think it fits. Two blocks north and three blocks east, and there are very few students. Two blocks south and one block west, there are very few non-students. My block is a transition between two very different areas. And like an estuary, it cannot get too heavy on one or the other, or it gets out of balance.
Iowa City only has so many 120-year-old houses. I wish more of them were preserved. I see the deterioration of some of the houses in my neighborhood, and it is really unfortunate. Once these are destroyed, they are gone. And many are getting destroyed.
Right outside my backdoor is a beautiful, 120-year-old brick house. We are witnessing a bunch of 21-year-old men destroying it in real time. It’s really sad.
The brick house I reference is owned by a big rental company. Had we not spent a lot of money on our house, a big rental company would have done so. And our house would be on that same path to destruction.
Instead, we took 15 truckloads of garbage out of this house. Things were cleaned that had not been cleaned in many decades. The floors were redone. The whole thing is repainted, and in one case, wallpapered. The electrical has been upgraded. A decorative window was fixed. We are going to update the kitchen and a bathroom soon. It is a ton of work, and a lot of money. But it means we are preserving something that deserves to be preserved. In turn, I think we are improving the stability of the neighborhood. It feels good.
Yes, we are extremely privileged to be able to do this. I understand that. But I’m still proud. We need more people to do this (and more incentives from the city) to keep this neighborhood viable for families. Iowa City also needs to ensure that rules for preservation are not so onerous as to discourage the practice. We need to maintain historic structures, and we need to maintain diverse neighborhoods!
*ARPA Funds at Work!
Johnson County Public Health (JCPH) will increase its capacity to address current and emerging health issues in the community by hiring an additional disease prevention specialist whose primary focus will be chronic disease prevention. The position is a result of Johnson County’s investment of funds received from the federal government through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).
JCPH currently employs three disease prevention specialists. Disease prevention specialists work to improve healthy behaviors and the health status of the county; provide information to individuals and communities to promote, maintain and improve healthy lifestyles; and reduce barriers to health care through outreach and education to disproportionately impacted populations.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the specialists oversaw the county’s contact tracing, which was instrumental in the response to the crisis. However, due to the additional infectious disease investigation workload, the department was not able to focus on chronic disease issues in the community, including obesity, cancer, and heart disease. Chronic disease prevention is a strategic priority of JCPH. With the support of ARPA funding for this position, the department will be able to pursue opportunities to address the disparities in chronic disease prevention that were made even more apparent due to the pandemic.
The Board of Supervisors voted to invest $53,173 for Fiscal Year 2022, which ends June 30, 2022. A total of $319,039.20 has been allocated over four Fiscal Years.
JCPH works to promote, protect and improve the safety, health and well-being of Johnson County. More information about JCPH is available at https://www.johnsoncountyiowa.gov/department-of-public-health.
More information about ARPA and how it impacts Johnson County is available at https://www.johnsoncountyiowa.gov/arpa.
*DID YOU KNOW? Iowa City had a great program a few years ago called the UniverCity Housing program. (I hope it makes a return!) It allowed the City to rehab older rental homes in the “University Impact Area” of Iowa City and return them to single family homes. These were then sold to income-eligible buyers. For more info, see: https://www.icgov.org/UniverCity.
Anyone interested in learning more about County government should take a look at the County website-
"Sullivan’s Salvos" is sent once per week to any interested party. It will give a brief update on issues of interest to Johnson County residents.
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---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 8:07 AM
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