SULLIVAN'S SALVOS
November 26, 2024
Sullivan’s Salvos 11/28/24
In this edition:
*Happy Thanksgiving!
*Welcome Erin!
*Local Food Event
*County Charter?
*Real Talk on Affordable Housing
*Did You Know?
*Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving to Salvos readers! In many ways, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. (Imagine that coming from a fat guy, huh?)
Actually, I love the idea of giving thanks. It is a simple act that does not happen enough.
While I am at it – thanks to all of you who read Salvos each week. And a special thanks to those of you who follow up by sharing your thoughts. I appreciate it! Happy Thanksgiving!
*Welcome Erin!
The Johnson County Board of Supervisors is very excited to announce the hiring of Erin Shane as the Board Office Executive Director.
If the name sounds familiar, it is because Erin Shane was selected to serve as the interim County Auditor in August of this year after the former Auditor announced his resignation. Previously, she worked in the Johnson County Auditor’s Office as a Deputy Auditor and for the University of Iowa as the Associate Director of Parking & Transportation.
I am really happy about this hire! Erin demonstrated the necessary leadership and managerial skills to ensure a smooth election process for Johnson County voters. Her ability to build trusted relationships with County employees and her work ethic are some of the many reasons why I feel good about this appointment. I know she will hit the ground running and do very well in this role.
The Board Office Executive Director provides administrative guidance to the Board of Supervisors and ensures the effective operation of the Board Office and its staff. The Executive Director is also responsible for overseeing the Board Office’s daily operations, projects, policies, budgets, and strategic initiatives on behalf of the Board of Supervisors. Erin’s start date is Dec. 2.
*Local Food Event
The 10th annual Johnson County Food Policy Council public forum will take place from 9 to 11 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024, at the Iowa Conservatory, 123 N Linn St, Iowa City.
This year’s forum, “From Policy to Plate: Unpacking the LFPA in Johnson County,” explores how state-level investments in local food can lead to a more equitable, resilient, and community-based food system. The forum will begin with an explanation of the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA) at the federal and state levels, followed by a discussion from a panel of guest speakers on how the LFPA has impacted their work in Johnson County. There will also be opportunities for attendees to engage in break-out discussions with panelists.
The forum's goal is to build support for the LFPA and motivate advocacy around local, state, and federal food policy. Additionally, the council hopes to gather input on community needs for advocacy training and updated information on food policy.
The event is free and open to the public. Kindred Coffee will provide breakfast and coffee to attendees. Registration information and additional details are available on the Facebook event page at https://www.facebook.com/share/15UqmxGCXq/ and on Johnson County’s website at www.johnsoncountyiowa.gov/localfoods.
The Johnson County Food Policy Council was created in 2012 by the Board of Supervisors to provide guidance on food and agriculture issues. The council is charged to provide annual recommendations on how to improve our local food system, hold public forums to obtain feedback on food system issues and to educate County residents on the value of supporting a strong community-based food system.
*County Charter?
I have opined several times about the City of Iowa City’s once-per-decade Charter Review. But I have not taken the time to mention an obvious difference in Iowa law: counties are not given permission to do a charter.
That’s right. Cities can adopt a charter, and then have wide latitude to design a government to fit their needs. Counties get very few choices. What choices do we have for county government? Here is the list:
3 Supervisors or 5. Elections by districts or elections at-large (no hybrids). County Manager or no. Elect a Sheriff, County Attorney, Treasurer, Auditor, and Recorder, or do some combination of the last 3 offices mentioned. So there are really only 4 choices. Here are my thoughts on those four:
*3 or 5: I wish we could go to 7. Johnson County is a populous, diverse county. But given the binary choice, 5 is the only way to go.
*Districts: I would definitely support districts, but only if there was some way to have a hybrid system. Given a binary choice, I prefer at-large.
*County Manager: I am one of many Iowa Citians still scarred by the Eric Shaw shooting. I like the fact that in County government, elected officials are forced to be more accountable to the public. You don’t like what we did? Vote us out! So no County Manager for me.
*Combined offices: People have *NO* idea how difficult these jobs are. No one with any knowledge of the work they do would ever suggest that they be combined. And someone still has to do the work- they are simply less accountable. So I say keep them all.
Again, it would be fun to have charter power like cities do. We could create something really neat for Johnson County. But alas, counties have never been given the same latitude.
*Real Talk on Affordable Housing
I attended a community meeting the other day and left quite frustrated. People in the room were demanding that Iowa City and Johnson County solve our affordable housing crisis.
I LOVE to talk about this topic! But we have to start the conversation with facts. Here is one: the most affordable way to house people permanently is in a 3-story apartment building. Under existing code, it can be stick built, without an elevator, and gives you the most units per acre. It might not be the highest quality or most aesthetically pleasing, but it would be the cheapest. So think about a 3-story, 24 unit building.
We will make our units 3 bedroom. Many families need bigger apartments, but for the sake of argument, we’ll say 3 bedroom. Each of those 24 units is going to run at least $150,000 to build. It might be a lot more. But we’ll be generous. So the single building costs $3.6 million.
Johnson County is short about 10,000 units of affordable housing. Let’s use *HALF* of that number. 5,000 units at $150,000 equals $750 million dollars. That is equal to the whole annual budgets of Iowa City and Johnson County added, then doubled. And that only solves half the problem!
Iowa City and Johnson County are quite generous when it comes to affordable housing. No local governments in Iowa are doing more per capita. That is a fact – look it up. But we *HAVE* to face reality here! Between the two municipalities, they put about $1.7 million into affordable housing last year. That funded just over 100 units. That is great. But in doing so, we met about 1% of the local need. And the need continues to grow.
So the public says, “Do twice as much!” Can both governments find an additional $1.7 million? Yes. But you will not like where it comes from. In Iowa City, it might mean closing a rec center, ending free bus service, and cuts to library hours. All things needed most by the very folks who need affordable housing. In Johnson County, you might see cuts to nonprofit agencies and public health services – both things needed most by the very folks who need affordable housing.
People get angry at me for telling the truth here. They claim I do not care, they claim I am just not progressive enough, they claim I am not creative enough. All those claims hurt. I’ve been working hard on affordable housing for almost three decades now. It feels like a swift boating.
I can tell you one thing: I can do math. And Iowa City and Johnson County are not going to solve our affordable housing crisis alone. It is going to require *SIGNIFICANT* investments from the Federal and State governments to put a dent in our 10,000 unit shortage. And that help is not coming for at least 4 years.
People hate it when I say this. They say, “We must do better.” I agree. But what would you have us do? I have yet to hear a single suggestion that will make much of a difference. I am simply being realistic here.
We need to keep doing what we have been doing. We need to do more of it. We need to be open to new ideas. All that is true. It also will not come anywhere near solving our affordable housing crisis. We need help from the State and Feds!
*DID YOU KNOW? The annual tradition (which I detest) of a “Presidential Pardon" for a turkey began under President Reagan.
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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As always, feel free to contact me at 354-7199 or rodsullivan29@gmail.com. I look forward to serving you!
---Rod
posted by Rod Sullivan @ 7:49 AM
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