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COMMUNITY FACILITIES PLAN

INTRODUCTION

Community facilities include those lands, buildings, services and systems which are provided on a public or semi-public basis in the interest of or benefit to the residents of the community. Their importance should not be under-estimated in that they are offered as a necessity for sustaining life within the urban environment and are therefore, a major contributor to the quality and safety of urban living.

In order to enhance the quality of life within North Liberty, it is fundamental that adequate community facilities are provided for its residents. Commonly provided facilities include parks, open space, administrative offices, police/fire protection, and public utilities.

Government buildings and facilities such as parks play a major role in providing the necessary community amenities and in projecting a positive image of the City. These facilities reflect North Liberty's concern and dedication in providing its residents with a quality living environment, where recreational opportunities are abundant and a high standard of living is projected.

Public utilities are also an important factor in regulating development of particular areas of the City. Requiring that utilities are present prior to subdivision approval can prevent "leap frog" or premature development.

PARKS AND RECREATION

A vast array of regional park and recreation areas and activities are included in close proximity to the City of North Liberty.

Within the City of North Liberty itself, five outdoor and recreation areas are provided. Three of the four active parks are all located east of the CRANDIC Railroad and near the original town center. While the parks do adequately serve residents in their immediate area, they do not conveniently accommodate the recreational needs of residents in the western portion of the community and areas of new development.

However, with the development of Quail Ridge Park, some area of recreational activity has been provided in this area. The City has recently acquired an additional 10 acre park by the new waste water treatment plant, located south of the old town portion of the City. This park is presently intended to be developed as a passive park.

According to the community survey and the Planning Tactics, residents and community representatives have expressed satisfaction with the current parks, but a desire to improve the parks and park elements that currently exist. As the area west of Highway 965 continues to grow, consideration for additional park land will need to be made.

A comprehensive park plan which addresses location and programming of park lands does not currently exist. Through the fulfillment of a park plan, the park and recreation system can be utilized to promote a quality living environment. In development of a comprehensive park system, there are three types of parks the City must consider in the future:

1. Community Parks: These parks would provide facilities for more intensive recreational activities, such as tennis courts, ballfields, swimming pools, and ice skating rinks.

2. Neighborhood Parks: These parks could be much smaller in size than the community parks, and only provide limited recreational offerings for children such as practice fields, multi-purpose courts and playground equipment.

3. Passive-Preservation Parks: These parks are set in natural areas of the community where preservation of the natural environment is the primary emphasis. Hiking trails, wildlife sanctuaries and picnic facilities would be among the primary uses of such a park facility, which in turn would benefit the natural wildlife of the area and nature enthusiasts.

The existing park facilities, as well as future park land acquisition and development, must be considered within this framework. This hierarchy of park types allows for the appropriate distribution of facilities throughout the City, as well as consideration for park access and location.

Although a vast majority of the respondents surveyed rated the City's existing park good to excellent, the construction of a municipal pool and the development of a multi-purpose bike and pedestrian trail was highly rated in terms of important projects that the City must consider in the near future.

Penn Meadows Park was the most regularly used of all recreation facilities. The improvement of existing parks was considered more important than the development of new parks.

A major consideration in the development of a comprehensive plan is coordination with regional recreational areas and private recreational opportunities within the North Liberty area. The numerous federal, state, and county parks within the Iowa River corridor are an important resource within the area. In addition, private recreational facilities such as golf courses and private marinas fulfill specific needs within the regional community. The City's park plan should fully consider these types of facilities in determining necessary programming and park land needs.

COMMUNITY BUILDINGS, FACILITIES AND SERVICES

Presently, there are three publicly-oriented government buildings located within North Liberty - the City Hall/fire station shared facility. the Post Office, and the community center/library. The community center houses a gymnasium, walking track, game room, meeting rooms, activity rooms, locker rooms, and a weight room. Future plans for the community center include an indoor swimming pool.

The proposed community center is considered highly positive within the community as is evidenced by the findings of the community survey and the Planning Tactics. Not only will area residents be afforded additional recreational choices and meeting facilities, but the construction of the said building will free up space within the existing administrative building for the City Hall. The center's proposed location within the Central Commercial Area is also viewed as positive. Such a location is accessible to all of the community and provides an element which enhances community focus, image, and identity.

The City expanded the fire station by adding additional bays to the existing facility. No further expansion is proposed in the next ten years if the population growth continues as the trends indicate. Considering the rapid growth of the City, the City Hall may need to be expanded in size or relocated. The City should consider setting aside land for this possibility.

City defense and emergency shelter issues deserve further study on a part of the community due to the number of residential structures without on-site emergency structure facilities.

Currently, plans are being considered for the relocation or expansion of the post office facility. The City should remain active in the site selection process to ensure that the location and design of the post office follows the goals of the Comprehensive Plan.

Community services such as police and fire protection, snow removal, recycling, and general road maintenance must be annually reviewed. Although generally positive, the community survey did reveal the need to continually monitor these services provided by North Liberty.

Expanding community growth will increase the demands on local community services. Periodic monitoring of service demands must also occur to evaluate any future service expansion needs and to ensure the most cost effective provision of services.

SCHOOLS

North Liberty residents are served by two independent school districts (Clear Creek and Iowa City). Although these school districts serve considerable areas outside North Liberty, the City does hold one school within its borders. Penn Elementary School is part of the Iowa City School District. Although the school has undergone a expansion in the last several years, the facility is once again at full capacity. Kate Wickham is a new elementary school under construction in the Iowa City School district. This new school addition will help reduce the overcrowding anticipated in Penn Elementary.

The portion of North Liberty which is serviced by the Clear Creek School District is somewhat isolated from the balance of the School District by Interstate 380. This barrier separates the North Liberty area from all of the district facilities, and makes service more difficult. Furthermore, the division of the City into two school districts detracts from the sense of community identity and cohesiveness. In conjunction with both school districts, the City should explore a more appropriate district boundary which takes into account physical barriers and the community identity objectives of North Liberty.

PUBLIC UTILITIES

As the City experiences new development and growth, a primary concern will be the extension of utilities and the demand such growth produces. The extension of such facilities should occur in a planned, logical order to ensure sewer and water extensions are made with a maximum amount of cost efficiency. Expansion of the systems should proceed out from the existing system in an orderly fashion where development is occurring adjacent to existing land uses.

"Leap frog" development occurs when cities construct utilities wherever developers choose to locate subdivisions. Areas of land are left vacant between existing land uses and new development. The extension of sewer and water systems through these vacant areas cannot be financially supported where no residence or land uses are present. The City has begun to use special assessments or tap on fees in assigning costs for public improvements to benefitting parties. This type of situation has occurred in the past in North Liberty and should be avoided in the future to the extent possible to minimize unnecessary City expenditures and prevent premature development.

SANITARY SEWER

The City of North Liberty began its public waste water operations in 1967 and added a new plant in 1981. Due to rapid population growth experienced by the City, there has been violations in the City's waste water system. The existing mechanical plants are unable to meet limitations as prescribed in the facility's operating permit. In 1994, the Department of Natural Resources required the City to take corrective actions necessary to bring the system into compliance with the permit limitations.

As the map on the following page indicates, sanitary services are available throughout the majority of the City. Since December 1990, the sewer department has issued construction permits for 17 sewer extensions. Eight of these were issued in 1994. In 1996, the City started constructing a trunk line necessary to handle sewage flows from new subdivisions.

The City Engineer at Shive-Hattery Inc. evaluated a number of alternatives for sanitary sewer expansion plans. In an effort to avoid duplication and overlap with other similarly available services, consideration was given to connecting to the City of Coralville's waste water treatment facility. However, the growth of the community results in uncertainty regarding the Coralville plant's ability to accept increasing quantities of waste water in the future.

The final option selected for construction was a Sequential Batch Reactor (SBR) Treatment System. This treatment plant is projected to start in 1998. This system would have a 20 year design life and should be able to accommodate a population of approximately 8,800 people. Since the City is constantly trying to attract industrial users to the community, this new construction should have a capacity available for any new industrial users. Along with the SBR treatment system, this project would involve site acquisition, piping, pump stations, bar screens, grit removal, control building, digestion, and sludge storage.

The City has begun an inflow and infiltration program in the Spring of 1997. This will be a continuing program with the goals of rehabilitating the existing sanitary sewer system and increasing the sewer treatment facilities’ capacity by minimizing inflow and infiltration.

The Joint Municipal Design Standards outlines the guidelines for design for sanitary sewer. These designs are not necessarily a substitute for good engineering, but it would be the obligation of the designer to use these standards responsibly and professionally to produce design conforming with commonly accepted engineering practices.

As stated previously within this report, concern exists as to the potential for septic system failure within the residential development along the Iowa River. The significant amount of development within the river corridor which utilizes on-site septic systems greatly increases the threat of ground water contamination within the area. The City should take an active role in reviewing and inspecting all future residential development within this river corridor to ensure adequate on-site septic systems are being implemented and maintained. This regulation is in the best interest of North Liberty as it protects against massive septic system failure in the North Liberty area. Such a failure may result in the costly extension of utilities to service failed developments. Furthermore, the City should consider long range planning efforts which provide for the eventual expansion of utilities to the river corridor area through a logical staging of growth within the City and surrounding extra territorial jurisdiction area.

WATER SYSTEM

The City of North Liberty is provided water by five wells. The original water system facilities include two municipal wells, a water treatment plant, a 200,000 gallon elevated storage tank, and water distribution piping system. Three additional municipal wells were added to the City water in 1983, 1988, and 1994, and another 400,000 gallon elevated storage tank added in 1995.

The existing water system functions adequately at present, however, the rapid growth of the community will require careful planning to ensure future and current needs.

Shive-Hattery Inc. prepared a draft Water System Facilities Planning Report in June 1996. The purpose of this report is to provide the City with pertinent data relating to facility needs so that planned improvement programs can be pursued and implemented. According to this report, the water treatment plant in North Liberty meets the current Iowa DNR and US EPA guidelines for health and safety. This report also states that at the current growth rate of 8.4 percent per year, existing storage facilities will meet ample water supply in the event of a power outage and provide an adequate water capacity for fire protection demands and the Iowa DNR standards for the next seven years.

The City is considering eliminating the dead-end water mains that currently exist by creating a complete loop system. Particularly, completing loops along Club House Road, connecting water mains from Jones Boulevard to east of Highway 965, and a second loop that connects the Fox Run development across Dubuque to 240th Street. This loop system would eliminate the problems that would occur with a main break that would shut down water supply to those persons down stream of the water flows.

The City Engineer has also suggested that the Cities of Coralville and North Liberty work together in constructing a 12 inch water main along Highway 965 that connects the two cities. This would be a closed valve system for emergency use by either of the cities. The City Engineer's report recommends that a cost/benefit analysis should be performed to evaluate a connection to the City of Coralville's water system for emergency supply.

In order to address the issues raised by the facility report, the City should explore the necessary improvement costs and financing options available. In addition, these improvements should be included within the City's approved capital improvement program.

STORM DRAINAGE

According to the community survey and the Planning Tactics, residents and community representatives have expressed dissatisfaction with the storm water drainage system in the City. These concerns are reflective of problems which have occurred in older portions of the community and high water table that caused problems with flooding in basements.

Within some of the older areas of the community, the City has experienced drainage problems with regards to surface water runoff during heavy rainfall. This is primarily attributed to a lack of effective drainage patters within the yards of some older homes.

The City has adopted an area-wide drainage plan. This plan not only addresses storm water retention practices for new developments, but also addresses utilizing natural drainageways and drainage issues related to existing development. Further, in the last five years, the City has been reviewing subdivisions for compliance with the area-wide drainage plan in regard to storm water, erosion control and sump pump requirements.

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